NationalWatch

EXCLUSIVE: Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s recruitment efforts are proving to be a quick success with 141,000 applications and 18,000 tentative job offers since the recruitment push started at the end of July.

The Trump administration launched a campaign earlier this summer to boost ICE staff, including by offering major perks, such as up to $50,000 as a sign-on bonus, student loan forgiveness and special retirement benefits.

“ICE has received more than 141,000 applications from patriotic Americans who want to defend the homeland by removing the worst of the worst criminal illegal aliens from the U.S. We have already given more than 18,000 tentative job offers,” Secretary Kristi Noem said in a statement.

ICE APPLICANTS SAY THEY WANT TO JOIN TRUMP’S DEPORTATION CAMPAIGN TO DELIVER ‘JUSTICE’ IN US

“Americans are answering their country’s call to serve and help remove murderers, pedophiles, rapists, terrorists, and gang members from our country,” Noem continued.

The agency has been conducting large operations in major cities throughout the country, including in Los Angeles, Chicago and Washington, D.C., in order to execute mass deportations as well as arresting those in the country illegally with other criminal charges or convictions. More detention centers have also opened throughout the country to hold individuals before deportation, including Alligator Alcatraz in Florida.

The One Big Beautiful Bill Act signed by President Donald Trump in July provides funding for 10,000 ICE agents. As of mid-August, there were 100,000 applicants since the effort began. Notably, the age cap, which is typically 37 or 40, was nixed by the administration and it is encouraging retired law enforcement officers to join.

OVER 100K AMERICANS RUSH TO JOIN TRUMP’S MASSIVE ICE HIRING SPREE NATIONWIDE, DHS SAYS

“We are ENDING the age cap for ICE law enforcement. Qualified candidates can now apply with no age limit,” Noem posted to X on Aug. 6.

ICE currently has various operations underway to achieve the administration’s goals, including “Operation Midway Blitz” in Chicago and “Operation Patriot 2.0,” which each have the primary goal of targeting criminals.

CLICK HERE FOR MORE IMMIGRATION COVERAGE

DHS has continued to encourage illegal immigrants to self-deport through the CBP Home app, which replaced the CBP Home app used by people crossing the southern border to claim asylum during the Biden years.

TRUMP ADMINISTRATION ENDS AGE CAP FOR ICE POSITIONS IN MAJOR RECRUITMENT DRIVE

While many Democratic leaders have been unwilling to cooperate with federal immigration authorities, many Republican leaders are openly assisting ICE. Arkansas Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders announced Tuesday that the state’s National Guard will help out ICE in the state with 40 people. 

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“The Arkansas National Guard stands ready to support this mission by providing requested administrative and logistical assistance to the Department of Homeland Security,” Brig. Gen. Chad Bridges, Arkansas’ adjutant general, stated. “Our Guardsmen are highly trained and committed to enabling federal agents to focus on their core operations.”

Fox News Digital’s Anders Hagstrom and Preston Mizell contributed to this report.

All but two Senate Republicans banded together to kill a surprise push from Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., to force the release of the “Epstein files.” 

Sens. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., and Rand Paul, R-Ky., joined Senate Democrats in voting against the move from Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., to table Schumer’s amendment to Congress’ annual defense authorization bill. 

Schumer announced on the Senate floor on Wednesday that he planned to file an amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) that would require Attorney General Pam Bondi to release all the files and documents related to Jeffrey Epstein.

SCHUMER CLAIMS TRUMP ADMIN WITHHOLDING EPSTEIN FILES, THREATENS TO SUE

He later told reporters that his amendment was effectively the same as the discharge petition in the House being pushed by Reps. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., and Ro Khanna, D-Calif.

“There’s been so much lying, obfuscation, cover-ups,” Schumer said. “The American people need to see everything that’s in the Epstein files. And my amendment would make that happen.”

The Epstein drama that has gripped the House has so far been more muted in the Senate, with only a pair of dust-ups between Sens. Ruben Gallego, D-Ariz., and Markwayne Mullin, R-Okla., in late July, plus a push from Senate Democrats to eat away floor time last month.

‘LOUDER BY THE HOUR’: SENATE GOP WANTS THE EPSTEIN DRAMA TO END, BUT DEMOCRATS AREN’T LETTING IT GO

But Schumer’s surprise move to file an amendment and force a vote on it comes as Republicans and Democrats are negotiating the annual defense bill, and further, trying to find a middle ground on a government funding extension ahead of the Sept. 30 deadline.

A Senate Republican source told Fox News Digital that Schumer’s move was “an extremely hostile act.”

“We were actively involved in bipartisan negotiations and this could jeopardize that,” the source said.

The Epstein fervor reignited, however, when a card from the late pedophile’s “birthday book” was revealed earlier this week that was allegedly sent by President Donald Trump.

The card, which was first reported by the Wall Street Journal, featured a message and drawing and has what appears to be Trump’s signature at the bottom, and it was sent to the House Oversight Committee by the Epstein estate.

SENATE REPUBLICAN DEMANDS STATE, FEDERAL COURTS ‘IMMEDIATELY UNSEAL ALL’ EPSTEIN DOCS

The White House has vehemently denied the veracity of the card and also disputed that it was Trump’s signature.

When asked why Democrats never released the files when former President Joe Biden was in power, Schumer pivoted back to Trump.

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“Look, the bottom line is the American people need to see this,” Schumer said. “Donald Trump has lied about this. There was no picture. There was no drawing. There have been so many lies, so much prevarication, so much cover-up.”

“The American people, Democrats, Independents, Republicans are demanding it be made public,” he continued. “And it should be. We hope Republicans will vote for it. They should.”

Fox News Digital reached out to the White House for comment but did not immediately hear back. 

Following President Donald Trump’s call for swift action, U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi shared that the Justice Department may seek the death penalty for Iryna Zarutska’s killer.

Speaking with reporters on Wednesday, Bondi shared that Zarutska’s alleged murderer, Decarlos Brown Jr., has been arrested and that he is being charged federally.

“We have arrested him. We are charging him federally because it was a murder on mass transit,” said Bondi.

“This young woman died a horrific, horrific death, as we all saw, captured on video,” she went on, adding, “It was horrible.”

AG PAM BONDI: WE WON’T LET A PROGRESSIVE DA GET THIS CASE

“The steps are, we charge, then we indict. Then, legally, we make the decision whether or not to seek the death penalty. That is certainly on the table once he is indicted for this horrific crime,” explained Bondi.

Zarutska, a 23-year-old refugee from Ukraine, was stabbed to death while riding a light rail train in Charlotte. The stabbing, captured on video, took place on Aug. 22 at around 10:30 p.m. as Zarutska was on her way home from work at a pizza restaurant. Still in her uniform, Zarutska sat down in front of a man, later identified as Brown, wearing a red hoodie. Moments later, the man pulled out a knife and stabbed her to death, with several bystanders looking on.  

Brown, 34, was arrested shortly after the incident and hospitalized before being charged with first-degree murder. Police confirmed that Brown and Zarutska did not know one another.

WHO IS IRYNA ZARUTSKA, UKRAINIAN REFUGEE KILLED IN CHARLOTTE TRAIN ATTACK?

Court records, previously reported by Fox News Digital, show Brown has a history of arrests dating back to 2011, including charges of felony larceny, robbery with a dangerous weapon, and communicating threats. Most charges were later dropped.

On Tuesday, Trump called for the government to respond to the spate of killings in the U.S. with decisive action, saying, “We have to be vicious just like they are.”

He blamed Democratic leaders in major American cities for adopting “catch and release” policies “for thugs and killers.”

“In Charlotte, North Carolina, we saw the results of these policies when a 23-year-old woman who came here from Ukraine met her bloody end on a public train,” said the president. “She was slaughtered by a deranged monster who was roaming free after 14 prior arrests.”

TRUMP ADDRESSES DEADLY CHARLOTTE STABBING: ‘IT’S TIME TO STOP THIS MADNESS’

“We cannot allow a depraved criminal element of violent repeat offenders to continue spreading destruction and death throughout our country. We have to respond with force and strength,” said Trump.

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In a Truth Social post, Trump wrote, “The ANIMAL who so violently killed the beautiful young lady from Ukraine, who came to America searching for peace and safety, should be given a ‘Quick’ (there is no doubt!) Trial, and only awarded THE DEATH PENALTY. There can be no other option!”

Fox News Digital’s Emma Bussey contributed to this report.

Vice President JD Vance shared a deeply personal remembrance of conservative activist Charlie Kirk, who was fatally shot Wednesday while speaking at Utah Valley University. In a lengthy post on X, Vance honored his late friend as a man of “courage,” “faith” and profound loyalty.

Kirk, the co-founder and CEO of Turning Point USA, was a close confidant of Vance’s both personally and politically. Their friendship stretched from early skepticism about Donald Trump in 2016 to the heights of the 2024 campaign trail.

Vance’s candid social media reflection gave a rare glimpse into Kirk’s influence not only on the conservative movement but also on the very formation of the Trump-Vance team.

“Charlie was fascinated by ideas and always willing to learn and change his mind,” wrote the Vice President. “Like me, he was skeptical of Donald Trump in 2016. Like me, he came to see President Trump as the only figure capable of moving American politics away from the globalism that had dominated for our entire lives.”

VIGILS HELD ACROSS US AFTER ASSASSINATION OF CHARLIE KIRK: ‘WE MUST HEAL’

“Charlie was one of the first people I called when I thought about running for senate in early 2021. We talked through everything, from the strategy to the fundraising to the grassroots of the movement he knew so well. He introduced me to some of the people who would run my campaign and also to Donald Trump Jr.”

Kirk, a longtime advocate for young people in the conservative movement, was described by Vance as pivotal to President Trump’s decision-making process in his selection as running mate in 2024.

“When I became the VP nominee—something Charlie advocated for both in public and private—Charlie was there for me… Charlie was constantly calling and texting, checking on our family and offering guidance and prayers,” Vance added.

KAI TRUMP REACTS TO DEATH OF ‘CLOSE FAMILY FRIEND’ CHARLIE KIRK AFTER UTAH CAMPUS SHOOTING

He also highlighted the father-of-two’s strong faith in Christ, saying, “Charlie genuinely believed in and loved Jesus Christ. He had a profound faith. We used to argue about Catholicism and Protestantism and who was right about minor doctrinal questions. Because he loved God, he wanted to understand him.”

His “true,” friendship and loyalty were valued by Vance, with the Vice President recalling Kirk as “a true friend. The kind of guy you could say something to and know it would always stay with him.”

Vance also credited Kirk with helping power the Trump movement in 2024, noting that “so much of the success we’ve had in this administration traces directly to Charlie’s ability to organize and convene.”

After reports came out Wednesday afternoon, the Vice President said he spoke with President Trump about Kirk candidly.

“I was talking to President Trump in the Oval Office today, and he said, ‘I know he was a very good friend of yours.’ I nodded silently, and President Trump observed that Charlie really loved his family,” said Vance. “The president was right.”

“I was in a meeting in the West Wing when those group chats started lighting up with people telling Charlie they were praying for him. And that’s how I learned the news that my friend had been shot,” recalled Vance.

“God didn’t answer those prayers, and that’s OK. He had other plans. And now that Charlie is in heaven, I’ll ask him to talk to big man directly on behalf of his family, his friends, and the country he loved so dearly.”

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“You ran a good race, my friend. We’ve got it from here,” Vance concluded.

In a resurfaced video, Kirk once said he wanted to be remembered “for courage, for my faith.” For those now mourning, that legacy is exactly how he will be remembered.

Lawmakers quickly sounded off after conservative activist Charlie Kirk was shot during an event on his “American Comeback Tour” at Utah Valley University on Wednesday afternoon.

It was later announced that Kirk, 31, had died. 

“It’s devastating news,” House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., said. “The idea that political violence has taken one of the strongest voices on the conservative side is a great heartbreak. Charlie was a close friend of mine and a confidant, and he will be sorely missed, and we need every political leader to decry the violence and to do it loudly. The problem is in the human heart, and it’s gotten out of hand.”

Prayers for Kirk, as well as condemnation of political violence poured in from both Democrats and Republicans minutes after the news broke that he was shot. 

“This is a good time to pray,” Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, said on X, adding that he was monitoring the situation.

HOUSE MOVES TO EXPOSE EPSTEIN FILES, AUTHORIZES OVERSIGHT PROBE

Rep. Eugene Vindman, D-Va., a first-term Democrat, wrote online, “Political violence has NO place in our society. I am closely monitoring the events in Utah.”

“The attack on Charlie Kirk today is a horrific act of political violence. Praying for his safety and for his family in this trying time. We must reject and condemn political violence in all its forms,” Rep. Mike Lawler, R-N.Y., said in a statement.

Kirk’s shooting follows a wave of high-profile political assassination attempts in an increasingly polarized political environment. 

President Donald Trump survived two separate assassination attempts within weeks of each other while running for re-election in 2024. Meanwhile, a gunman in Minnesota shot and killed state Rep. Melissa Hortman and her husband, while critically injuring another state lawmaker, this past June.

The top Democrat in the House, Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries of New York, also spoke out to condemn the violence.

“Political violence is NEVER acceptable. My thoughts and prayers are with Charlie Kirk and his family,” Jeffries wrote in a statement.

The top Democrat and Republican in the Senate both sounded off with similar sentiments in the minutes after Kirk was shot.

“There is no place in our country for political violence. Period, full stop. Please join me in praying for Charlie Kirk,” Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., wrote on X.

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., wrote on the site, “Political violence has no place in America. This shooting is horrifying, and I’m praying for Charlie Kirk and his family.”

Kirk also got support from former Rep. Gabby Giffords, D-Ariz., who left Congress after she was shot and nearly killed in a political assassination attempt in 2011.

LONGTIME BIDEN AIDE SAYS HE STOOD TO EARN UP TO $8M HAD PRESIDENT WON RE-ELECTION

“I’m horrified to hear that Charlie Kirk was shot at an event in Utah. Democratic societies will always have political disagreements, but we must never allow America to become a country that confronts those disagreements with violence,” Giffords wrote.

She added that she and her husband, Sen. Mark Kelly, D-Ariz., are praying for Kirk’s recovery.

Former Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., condemned gun violence after the shooting on Wednesday.

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“The horrific shooting today at Utah Valley University is reprehensible. Political violence has absolutely no place in our nation. All Americans should pray for Charlie Kirk’s recovery and hold the entire UVU community in our hearts as they endure the trauma of this gun violence,” Pelosi wrote in a statement.

Ellen Treanor, Associate Vice President of Strategic Communications Management at Utah Valley University, initially told Fox News that a person of interest was in custody after Kirk’s shooting. They were later released, according to police. 

Police do not currently have a suspect in custody, according to an updated statement.

A White House official, meanwhile, told Fox News that the tragic event was being monitored in the situation room and by Secretary of State Marco Rubio in his role as National Security Advisor.

Fox News’ Jacqui Heinrich and Samantha Daigle contributed to this report. Fox News Digital’s Adam Sabes also contributed to this report.

Vigils were held across the country following the killing of conservative activist Charlie Kirk at an event in Utah on Wednesday.

Kirk, the 31-year-old co-founder of Turning Point USA, was shot and killed on the campus of Utah Valley University on Wednesday afternoon. He was transported to a hospital in critical condition before he was later pronounced dead.

Politicians, faith leaders, fellow conservative activists and others mourned Kirk’s death, with some announcing vigils to stand against political violence in the wake of his murder.

Turning Point USA campus chapters at colleges across the country organized vigils on Wednesday night for the organization’s founder.

CHARLIE KIRK, TURNING POINT USA FOUNDER, DEAD AT 31 AFTER UTAH CAMPUS SHOOTING

“In response to the reprehensible and senseless murder of Charlie Kirk, we are gathering tonight at Westlake Park in Seattle at 7:30PM for a time of prayer, worship, and solitary as we take a stand against the senseless political and religious violence in America,” Russell Johnson, lead pastor at The Pursuit in Washington state, wrote on X announcing his church’s vigil.

Rep. Ryan Zinke, R-MT, said there would be a prayer vigil at a church on Capitol Hill on Wednesday night.

“I invite Montanans to join us in prayer and spirit praying for Charlie, his family and our divided nation. We must heal,” he wrote on X.

In Arizona, the group Catholics for Catholics said a rosary vigil would be held Wednesday night.

“Charlie Kirk’s local Catholic community gathers to pray the Rosary for the Eternal Rest of his soul,” the group wrote on Instagram.

YANKEES HOLD MOMENT OF SILENCE IN HONOR OF CHARLIE KIRK AFTER SHOOTING DEATH IN UTAH

“Charlie was our friend,” the post added. “His family are our neighbors. He attended our Church. We loved him and America loves him too. It’s time now for us to pray and ask for Our Lady to usher his soul into heaven.”

The New York Yankees held a moment of silence ahead of Wednesday night’s game against the Detroit Tigers to honor Kirk.

“Before tonight’s game we held a moment of silence in memoriam of Charlie Kirk. Kirk founded the youth activist group ‘Turning Point USA’ and had become a fixture on college campuses,” the team said on X.

Kevin Smith, founder of the conservative media company The Loud Majority, also announced a vigil scheduled for Saturday in New York.

President Donald Trump, officials in his administration, other U.S. politicians on both sides of the aisle, foreign leaders and sports figures were among those who came out in mourning Kirk and condemning acts of political violence.

“The Great, and even Legendary, Charlie Kirk, is dead. No one understood or had the Heart of the Youth in the United States of America better than Charlie. He was loved and admired by ALL, especially me, and now, he is no longer with us,” Trump wrote on Truth Social. “Melania and my Sympathies go out to his beautiful wife Erika, and family. Charlie, we love you!”

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California Gov. Gavin Newsom, a Democrat, said on X that the attack on Kirk was “disgusting, vile, and reprehensible,” adding: “In the United States of America, we must reject political violence in EVERY form.”

“Charlie Kirk was murdered for speaking truth and defending freedom,” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on X. “A lion-hearted friend of Israel, he fought the lies and stood tall for Judeo-Christian civilization.”

“Condolences to his family and the young people of this country,” Bruce Pearl, Auburn University’s men’s basketball coach, said on X. “Many in our Auburn student body are horrified tonight, you young patriots who love our country like Charlie. For now let’s morn, keep the violent rhetoric down and then live our best lives, committed to making this country better.”

Kirk leaves behind his wife, Erika Lane Frantzve, and two children.

The House of Representatives passed its version of Congress’ annual defense bill on Wednesday evening, albeit along stunningly partisan lines.

For decades, the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) has seen support from a majority of Democrats and Republicans. That’s changed in recent years, however, and the trend appears to have continued with the fiscal year (FY) 2026 bill.

The legislation passed 231-196 after a lengthy series of votes, with 17 Democrats voting in favor and 192 against. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., and other top Democrats opposed the bill.

Democratic lawmakers had spent hours beforehand railing against GOP-led amendments on mainly transgender issues, including several which were successfully voted into the bill.

HOUSE MOVES TO EXPOSE EPSTEIN FILES, AUTHORIZES OVERSIGHT PROBE

Multiple amendments by Rep. Nancy Mace, R-S.C., for instance, placing limits on spaces that transgender service academy cadets can access, passed along mostly partisan lines.

Another amendment by Rep. Jimmy Patronis, R-Fla., aimed at eliminating the preference for motor vehicles using electric or hybrid propulsion systems and related requirements of the Department of Defense, passed with mostly Republicans – although six Democrats joined in approving it as well.

Rep. Cory Mills, R-Fla., introduced an amendment aimed at preventing pride flags or other ideological banners being displayed on military installations, which also passed along nearly partisan lines.

Rep. Adam Smith, D-Wash., the top Democrat on the House Armed Services Committee, announced on Tuesday that he would vote against final passage of the bill if certain GOP-led amendments made it into the final piece.

Smith also ripped Republicans for not allowing House-wide votes on solely Democrat-led amendments in the bill, all of which were filtered out when the House Rules Committee was considering the legislation earlier this week.

“There are a number of problematic amendments included in the rule that focus on divisive topics rather than strengthening our national security. Should these amendments be adopted, I will vote against final passage of the bill,” Smith said in a statement.
 
“For 65 years, the passage of the National Defense Authorization Act has been a testament to shared respect for the duty of Congress to provide for the common defense and to place the needs of America’s national security and national defense above politics. The rule undermines this long-standing tradition by failing to include meaningful amendments offered by Democrats to address critical issues.”

Rep. Sara Jacobs, D-Calif., earlier spoke out against the amendments targeting transgender issues as well.

“Many people in this body have received gender-affirming care. Filler is gender-affirming care. Boob jobs is gender-affirming care. Botox is gender-affirming care,” Jacobs said.

RON KLAIN DODGES REPORTERS AFTER MARATHON GRILLING IN BIDEN COVER-UP PROBE

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It prompted an angry response from Mace, “That is ridiculous! You are absolutely ridiculous.”

Four Republicans voted against the bill in addition to the dozens of Democrats, including Reps. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., and Thomas Massie, R-Ky., longtime skeptics of foreign aid funding in the NDAA.

Democrats who voted in favor of the bill include Reps. Jared Golden, D-Maine, Marie Gluesenkamp Perez, D-Wash., Don Davis, D-N.C., Henry Cuellar, D-Texas, and Vicente Gonzalez, D-Texas.

The NDAA is an annually passed bill that sets defense and national security policy goals for the U.S.

The Senate is expected to consider its own version of the bill as well, after which the two chambers must compromise and consider them again before they get to President Donald Trump’s desk for a signature.

American flags outside the White House were seen at half-staff on Wednesday evening after President Donald Trump ordered them to be lowered in honor of Charlie Kirk.

Kirk, a 31-year-old husband, father, conservative activist and Turning Point USA founder, was fatally shot in the neck while speaking during an event at Utah Valley University on Wednesday.

On his Truth Social, Trump posted, “In honor of Charlie Kirk, a truly Great American Patriot, I am ordering all American Flags throughout the United States lowered to Half Mast until Sunday evening at 6 P.M.”

Images taken by Fox News Digital on Wednesday showed the massive American flags installed on either side of the White House at Trump’s direction were at half-staff.

SADNESS AND SHOCK AT WHITE HOUSE AFTER CHARLIE KIRK’S SHOOTING DEATH

Trump issued an official proclamation on Wednesday, writing, “As a mark of respect for the memory of Charlie Kirk, by the authority vested in me as President of the United States by the Constitution and the laws of the United States of America, I hereby order that the flag of the United States shall be flown at half-staff at the White House and upon all public buildings and grounds, at all military posts and naval stations, and on all naval vessels of the Federal Government in the District of Columbia and throughout the United States and its Territories and possessions until sunset, September 14, 2025.”

In the proclamation, he also directed that flags at all U.S. embassies, legations, consular offices, and other facilities abroad, including all military facilities and naval vessels and stations also lower their flags to half-staff in Kirk’s honor.

Earlier on Wednesday, Trump announced that Kirk had passed as a result of the shooting on Truth Social, writing, “The Great, and even Legendary, Charlie Kirk, is dead.”

SHOT THAT KILLED CHARLIE KIRK MAY HAVE COME FROM ROOF: UTAH OFFICIAL

“No one understood or had the Heart of the Youth in the United States of America better than Charlie. He was loved and admired by ALL, especially me, and now, he is no longer with us. Melania and my Sympathies go out to his beautiful wife Erika, and family. Charlie, we love you!” wrote Trump.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture also posted footage of an American flag outside its headquarters at half-staff in honor of Kirk.

American flags were also seen at half-staff in Orem, Utah, a suburb of Salt Lake City and home to Utah Valley University.

Utah Gov. Spencer Cox, a Republican, also ordered that U.S. and Utah state flags be lowered on all state facilities “in recognition of the tragic passing of Charlie Kirk.”

CHARLIE KIRK’S ASSASSINATION LATEST CASE OF CONSERVATIVES BEING TARGETED FOR MURDER

Cox also invited all private citizens, businesses, and other organizations to join in honoring Kirk by lowering their flags.

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Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt, a Republican, also announced on X that he ordered all flags in Oklahoma to half-staff to “honor the extraordinary life and legacy of Charlie Kirk.”

“Charlie’s memory, that of a tireless champion for freedom, shall never die,” wrote Stitt.

The horrific assassination of Turning Point USA founder Charlie Kirk Wednesday is the latest entry in a grim and growing tally of conservative figures and institutions being targeted for violence, vandalism and murder.

The fatal shooting follows a lengthy recent history of conservatives and Republicans facing violence, a Fox News Digital review of the last four years found, including two assassination attempts against President Donald Trump in a roughly two-month span in 2024. 

Kirk was speaking at Utah Valley University as part of his “American Comeback Tour” when shots rang out and he collapsed on stage. He was rushed to a local hospital, where he was pronounced dead.  

The 31-year-old husband and father was a staunch ally of President Donald Trump’s, and toured the nation promoting right-of-center ideology to youths, most notably on college campuses. He founded his conservative group more than a dozen years ago.

CHARLIE KIRK, TURNING POINT USA FOUNDER, DEAD AT 31 AFTER UTAH CAMPUS SHOOTING

Conservatives and pro-life nonprofits have been targeted with shootings, arson, and vandalism in just the past four years.

Trump himself has faced two assassination attempts, including on July 13, 2024, when he was shot in the ear while joining a campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania. The shooting rocked the election cycle as Trump rose, bleeding and defiant, and urged the crowd to “Fight, fight, fight.” The assassination attempt came just two days before the Republican National Convention was set to kick off in Milwaukee. 

Trump appeared at the convention while wearing a bandage on his ear, and noted how he “had God on my side” during the attempt. The motive of the would-be assassin, 20-year-old Thomas Crooks, who was killed by a Secret Service sniper, remains unclear. The FBI has pointed to a complex web of personal grievances, mental health issues and a desire for notoriety as leading to the act, Fox News Digital previously reported. 

RYAN ROUTH TRIAL OPENS WITH BIZARRE JURY QUESTIONS AND WITNESS DRAMA

Just weeks later on Sept. 15, 2024, Trump was rushed off of his golf course in Florida when shots rang out. The suspect in that assassination attempt case, Ryan Routh, posted prolifically about Trump, the 2024 election and politics in the lead up to the attempt, Fox News Digital previously reported. 

Routh is going on trial Thursday over the case, and described the president as an “insecure ego idiot-mad fool” in court documents in September, the New York Post reported. 

RILEY GAINES ‘AMBUSHED AND PHYSICALLY HIT’ AFTER SAVING WOMEN’S SPORTS SPEECH AT SAN FRANCISCO STATE

Attacks on conservatives have unfolded at the grassroots level, as well, including this year when the New Mexico Republican Party’s headquarters faced an arson attack. The attack destroyed the entrance to the headquarters, while graffiti reading “ICE=KKK” scrawled on the building. 

The suspect in that case, who also allegedly attacked a Tesla Albuquerque Showroom, was hit with federal charges as Attorney General Pam Bondi pointed to the incident as a disturbing case of political violence.

TPUSA chapters around the nation have also faced other incidents of violence this year, including when a group of students with Turning Point USA at UC Davis were attacked by masked individuals in April, Fox Digital reported at the time. 

The conservative group was in the midst of hosting a “Prove me Wrong” event with a guest speaker when protesters destroyed camera gear, a tent, event signage, flipped tables, and assaulted group staff, TPUSA said at the time. 

PRO-LIFE NY LEADERS SLAM HOCHUL, AG JAMES FOR ‘MISERABLY’ FAILING STATE AT REOPENING OF ‘FIREBOMBED’ OFFICE

Looking back at 2023, former NCAA swimmer and conservative political activist Riley Gaines was also attacked and barricaded in a room at San Francisco State University following a speech to students promoting a ban on biological males from playing in women’s sports. The event was part of a Turning Point USA and Leadership Institute forum on campus. 

DATA SHOW THERE HAVE BEEN 22 TIMES MORE ATTACKS ON PRO-LIFERS THAN PRO-CHOICE GROUPS SINCE SUPREME COURT LEAK

Churches and pro-life groups have also faced dozens upon dozens of attacks beginning in 2022 in response to the Supreme Court’s Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization decision, which effectively ended the recognition of abortion as a constitutional right. 

The attacks included a pro-life center that was “firebombed” in Buffalo, New York, in 2022, Catholic churches that were vandalized and set on fire, and pro-choice protesters interrupting church services and Catholic masses. The attacks followed a radical pro-choice group declaring in a public letter that it was “open season” on pro-lifers.

In 2017, House Majority Whip Steve Scalise, R-La., was shot along with three others when James Hodgkinson, a deranged supporter of Bernie Sanders, sprayed an Alexandria, Virginia, baseball field with gunfire as Republican lawmakers practiced for the annual Congressional Baseball Game. Scalise nearly died, but recovered and remains in office.

The fatal shooting of Kirk on Wednesday has not yet yielded a suspect, with the FBI and ATF on the ground and investigating, according to Bondi. 

Trump, as well as members of his Cabinet, have offered an outpouring of support to Kirk’s family following the tragedy. 

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“The Great, and even Legendary, Charlie Kirk, is dead,” Trump said on Truth Social on Wednesday. “No one understood or had the Heart of the Youth in the United States of America better than Charlie. He was loved and admired by ALL, especially me, and now, he is no longer with us. Melania and my Sympathies go out to his beautiful wife Erika, and family. Charlie, we love you!”

Fox News Digital’s Louis Casiano, Stepheny Price, and Sarah Rumpf-Whitten contributed to this report. 

The jury has been seated for the high-profile federal trial of Ryan Routh, the North Carolina man accused of attempting to assassinate former President Donald Trump at his West Palm Beach golf club last September, when Trump was a leading candidate in the 2024 election.

After three days of jury selection that began Monday, 12 jurors and four alternates were chosen. The panel includes six white women, four white men, one Black woman and one Black man. The alternates are two white women and two white men. Opening statements are set for Thursday morning in Fort Pierce, Florida, where prosecutors are expected to launch their case immediately.

JURY SELECTION STILL UNDERWAY IN RYAN ROUTH TRIAL, MORE THAN 70 JURORS REMOVED

Three groups of 60 potential jurors went through the selection process, where prosecutors and Routh – who is representing himself – asked potential jurors questions to assess if they could fairly participate in the trial. 

During Wednesday’s session, Routh said he wanted to raise an objection due to the prosecution eliminating two potential jurors who were Black.

“I want to raise that we have a racist situation,” Routh said. 

But the prosecution said that one of the potential jurors was Haitian and would face language barriers, and that they had no knowledge the other was Black. 

On Tuesday, U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon eliminated a potential juror for the trial because the woman asserted, “I am MAGA.” According to Cannon, the statement showed “self-declared bias.” 

Another woman was eliminated as a potential juror for saying she “only follows God’s law” on a questionnaire. 

During Monday’s session, Routh’s questions for potential jurors included their views on the war in Gaza, their position on the U.S. potentially acquiring Greenland as the president has floated, and how they would act if they were driving and spotted a turtle in the middle of the road.

In response, Cannon labeled them “politically charged,” and said that they were unnecessary for jury selection. 

Prosecutors claim that Routh sought to kill Trump for weeks, and staked out a spot in shrubbery on Sept. 15, 2024 when a Secret Service agent detected him pointing a rifle at Trump while the then-presidential candidate played golf at his West Palm Beach country club. Routh aimed his rifle at the agent, but abandoned his weapon at the scene after the Secret Service agents opened fire. 

JURY POOL SHRINKS AS RYAN ROUTH TRIAL UNFOLDS IN FLORIDA ON DAY 2

Routh was later apprehended by the Martin County, Florida, Sheriff’s Office on the I-95 interstate in a black Nissan Xterra. 

Routh faces federal charges including attempted assassination of a major presidential candidate, as well as assaulting a federal officer and various gun violations. The charges carry a potential life sentence if the jury finds him guilty. Meanwhile, Routh has maintained he’s innocent and pleaded not guilty to all federal charges, in addition to state charges of terrorism and attempted murder. 

Routh was previously convicted of felonies in North Carolina in 2002 and 2010. 

RYAN ROUTH TRIAL OPENS WITH BIZARRE JURY QUESTIONS AND WITNESS DRAMA

The court has allocated four weeks for Routh’s trial, although it is expected to wrap up sooner. 

Fox News’ Jamie Joseph, Olivianna Calmes, Jake Gibson, Heather Lacey and the Associated Press contributed to this report. 

Lawmakers bridged the partisan divide on Wednesday after news that conservative activist Charlie Kirk, 31, was killed from a gunshot wound. 

Prayers for Kirk’s recovery on social media swiftly turned into condolences to his family and a widespread condemnation of political violence from both Republicans and Democrats. 

CHARLIE KIRK, TURNING POINT USA FOUNDER, DEAD AT 31 AFTER UTAH CAMPUS SHOOTING

“It’s devastating news,” House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., said. “The idea that political violence has taken one of the strongest voices on the conservative side is a great heartbreak. Charlie was a close friend of mine and a confidant, and he will be sorely missed, and we need every political leader to decry the violence and to do it loudly. The problem is in the human heart, and it’s gotten out of hand.”

“This is beyond terrible,” Sen. Ruben Gallego, D-Ariz., said. “Charlie Kirk was a husband, father, and son. Violence is never the answer. Sydney and I are keeping the Kirk family in our prayers.”

DEMS, GOP LAWMAKERS JOIN FORCES TO CONDEMN POLITICAL VIOLENCE AFTER CHARLIE KIRK SHOT

Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., addressed Kirk’s death on the Senate floor and said that “political violence, which this attack seems to be, has no place in this country — none.” 

“I’m deeply disturbed about the threat of violence that has entered our political life, and I pray that we will remember that every person, no matter how vehement our disagreement with them, is a human being and a fellow American deserving of respect and protection,” he said. 

President Donald Trump confirmed the news on Truth Social and said, “No one understood or had the Heart of the Youth in the United States of America better than Charlie.” 

CHARLIE KIRK ROSE TO BECOME CONSERVATIVE POWERHOUSE, TRANSFORMATIVE CAMPUS FIGURE

Kirk was shot during an event on his “American Comeback Tour” at Utah Valley University on Wednesday afternoon. The university initially said that a suspect was in custody but later announced that the person was released.

Campus police on Wednesday afternoon asked students to call a hotline and be escorted off.

Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, called Kirk “an American patriot, an inspiration to countless young people to stand up and defend the timeless truths that make our country great.” 

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“This murder was a cowardly act of violence, an attack on champions of freedom like Charlie, the students who gathered for civil debate, and all Americans who peacefully strive to save our nation,” he said. 

“The terrorists will not win,” he continued. “Charlie will. Please join me in praying for his wife Erika and their children. May justice be swift.”

Sen. John Fetterman, D-Pa., urged, “We must collectively find a way forward during these polarized times.” 

His death follows a wave of high-profile political assassination attempts in an increasingly polarized political environment. 

Trump survived two separate assassination attempts within weeks of each other while running for re-election in 2024. Meanwhile, a gunman in Minnesota shot and killed state Rep. Melissa Hortman and her husband, while critically injuring another state lawmaker, this past June.

Ryan Routh – accused of attempting to assassinate President Donald Trump when he was a major candidate in the 2024 election at his Florida golf club last year – has chosen to represent himself in court, a decision one legal expert says could prove disastrous.

Cully Simson, a former prosecutor, defense attorney and judge, told Fox News Digital that while the Constitution guarantees the right to self-representation, it’s “almost always a mistake.”

“It really makes no sense for somebody to defend themselves, especially in a serious case,” he said. “They have the right to do it, but it’s not prudent.” 

RYAN ROUTH TRIAL OPENS WITH BIZARRE JURY QUESTIONS AND WITNESS DRAMA

Self-representation creates risks and an unusual courtroom dynamic where the judge and prosecutor “have to pull their punches” to protect the record, and essentially “protect the defendant from himself.”

A seasoned defense attorney knows how to put prosecutors to the test, forcing them to prove every element of the case and carefully laying the groundwork for potential appeals. When a defendant represents himself, Simson said, that kind of strategy is completely missing.

“And so what ends up happening is the judge and the prosecutor has to play, in a weird way, a defensive role, in addition to the role of the judge being a neutral and impartial arbiter of the law, and the prosecutor just be the person who advocates on behalf of the government. You have to essentially protect the defendant from himself, and that is so much more difficult,” he said.

RYAN ROUTH TRIAL: JURY SELECTION BEGINS IN TRUMP ASSASSINATION ATTEMPT CASE

Simson said defense attorneys typically “push the envelope” and force the government to object, but when someone is representing themselves, lawyers hold back “because he’s not going to be smart enough or educated enough to object.”

This can sometimes create an atmosphere where a “right to a fair trial” can become skewed – and it’s something law students study, too.

“That’s that sophisticated point that law students talk about, and lawyers talk about. If you had a public defender or a private defense counsel who wasn’t very good and made a number of mistakes during the trial, if the guy’s convicted, one of the first things on appeal is you’ll claim ineffective assistance of counsel,” Simson said.

“You can’t claim ineffective assistance of counsel when you represent yourself.”

When asked if there were any pros to self-representation in a federal trial, Simson said: ” I guess one pro would be to conduct his defense exactly how he wanted to.”

“For example, in the Long Island shooter case, no criminal defense attorney was going to let that nut job act out in court and be the wacko he was,” he said.

TRUMP ASSASSINATION ATTEMPT SUSPECT RYAN ROUTH CAN REPRESENT HIMSELF AT TRIAL, FEDERAL JUDGE RULES

As in the notorious 1993 Long Island Rail Road case, convicted killer Colin Ferguson chose to represent himself and even took the witness stand to question his own victims. 

Routh has pleaded not guilty to federal charges of attempting to assassinate a major presidential candidate and assaulting a federal officer. Prosecutors say he was armed with an AK-style rifle when Secret Service agents stopped him near Trump’s golf course in West Palm Beach in September 2024.

The trial is expected to last several weeks, but Trump-appointed Judge Aileen Cannon urged both sides to keep proceedings efficient.

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Opening statements are tentatively scheduled for Thursday, Sept. 11, if the panel is seated on time.

President Donald Trump called for prayers for Turning Point USA founder Charlie Kirk after he was shot in Utah. 

“We must all pray for Charlie Kirk, who has been shot. A great guy from top to bottom. GOD BLESS HIM!” Trump posted to Truth Social on Wednesday afternoon. 

Kirk is in Utah and was scheduled to appear at Utah Valley University on Wednesday as part of his “American Comeback Tour.”

According to Kirk’s spokesperson, “Charlie Kirk has been shot at Utah Valley University. Condition unknown.”

This is a breaking news story and will be updated. 

EXCLUSIVE: Virginia Lt. Gov. Winsome Earle-Sears will receive a big boost from a top national conservative figure in her quest to succeed Gov. Glenn Youngkin in November, Fox News Digital has learned exclusively.

Ohio gubernatorial candidate Vivek Ramaswamy, one of the original “DOGE” leaders in President Donald Trump’s circle, plans to rally with and endorse her at an event in Chesterfield next week.

Ramaswamy told Fox News Digital that Earle-Sears will “lead Virginia to new heights.”

“Winning in 2024 was the first step, but soon it’s going to be up to the states to lead the way,” Ramaswamy said.

‘DON’T MARYLAND MY VIRGINIA’: YOUNGKIN, 2025 GOP TICKET RALLIES TOGETHER FOR FIRST TIME AHEAD OF KEY ELECTION

“I look forward to leading Ohio soon, and we want a coalition of strong states to join us in reviving a new American Dream.”

Earle-Sears, who will join Ramaswamy in the Richmond suburb on September 19, said she is “honored” to have the entrepreneur join her in the commonwealth.

“Vivek and I share a deep belief in the promise of America, that with hard work, faith, and freedom, every family can thrive,” she said.

Earle-Sears called Ramaswamy a “strong voice for freedom, opportunity, and common sense.”

“I’m grateful for his friendship and partnership in this fight. It means so much to welcome him to Virginia as we stand shoulder to shoulder, working to deliver a brighter, safer, and stronger future for every Virginian family.”

The Republican nominee, locked in a close fight with former Rep. Abigail Spanberger, who leads by a handful of points, has also received key endorsements from figures like Youngkin, while pledging to continue the economic successes of the current administration.

WINSOME EARLE-SEARS REBUKES SPANBERGER PLAN TO UNDO VIRGINIA’S ICE PACT: ‘THIS IS NOT HARD’

Earle-Sears also has made her personal story a hallmark of her campaign – often quipping that she might seem like she should be the stereotypical Democrat, though she is anything but.

“I look like the kind of people who really do normally vote Democratic, and I’m not. And so I’m appealing to all voters,” she said in a recent interview.

“My message is a common-sense message that no matter where you came from in life, no matter what color you are, no matter what country you came from, when you came to America and you tried and here you are succeeding, that’s what we need.”

“Here I stand, second-in-command in the former capital of the Confederacy,” Earle-Sears, who is Black and an immigrant from Jamaica, added. “Don’t tell me America hasn’t changed.”

The Ramaswamy event will be held in the home district of state Sen. Ghazala Hashmi, the Democratic nominee for lieutenant governor in the 2025 race.

Chesterfield County, outside Petersburg, is considered a bellwether in statewide contests. Once reliably Republican for decades, it has trended Democratic since the 2000s with an influx of younger and more diverse voters from the Richmond-Petersburg metro.

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Hillary Clinton lost it by about one percentage point in 2016. Former President Joe Biden then flipped the county in 2020 – but Youngkin won it in 2021, before former Vice President Kamala Harris beat Trump there by about nine points in 2024.

The area is best known as the namesake of a historic cigarette brand, and home of several athletes, including New York Giants legend Lawrence Taylor, basketball player Moses Malone, and NASCAR star Denny Hamlin.

In Ramaswamy’s own race, he recently received the endorsement of the Ohio Republican Party, which led Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost to drop out of the primary.

Current Lt. Gov. Jim Tressel – a retired coaching icon at Ohio State University – is also considering jumping in on the Republican side.

Former Sen. Sherrod Brown elected to pursue his old Senate seat rather than focus on Columbus, and former Rep. Tim Ryan is also considering a run against current Democratic primary candidate, ex-Ohio Health Director Amy Acton.

Recent polling trends showed Ramaswamy leading both Acton and Ryan in the general election – should the latter jump into the fray.

Senate Democrats are deeply entrenched in their blockade of President Donald Trump’s nominees as Senate Republicans inch closer to going nuclear in the upper chamber.

Republicans are expected to use the “nuclear option” on Thursday and will change the Senate’s rules using a modified Democratic proposal to clear the growing backlog of Trump’s nominees. But Democrats, led by Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., are standing firm in their resistance.

THUNE LAYS GROUNDWORK FOR NUCLEAR OPTION IN SENATE FIGHT OVER TRUMP NOMINEES

Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., railed against the Schumer-led logjam and charged that Senate Democrats were blocking nominees from voice votes or unanimous consent – two fast-track processes typically used to move non-controversial nominees – because of “Trump derangement syndrome.”

“That’s got to change,” Thune said. “This is a problem the Democrats created, and we intend to fix it.”

Thune teed up 48 nominees, all sub-Cabinet level positions that advanced out of committee on a bipartisan basis, for Thursday’s vote. Senate Democrats still have the option to vote on the tranche of Trump’s picks and avoid a nuclear change, but that outcome is unlikely.

Instead, Schumer offered for Republicans to again resume negotiations that were derailed last month when Trump intervened and told the Democratic leader to “GO TO HELL” over “egregious and unprecedented” demands for a deal on a nominee package.

TRUMP NOMINEES PILE UP AS GOP WEIGHS RULE SHIFT ONCE FLOATED BY DEMOCRATS

“I say to my Republican colleagues to think carefully before taking this step. If you go nuclear, it’s going to be a decision you will come to regret,” Schumer said.

Republicans are moving forward with a modified version of a bill originally introduced by Sens. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., Angus King, I-Maine, and former Sen. Ben Cardin, D-Md., that would allow for nominees to be confirmed in groups, or en bloc.

SENATE GOP READY TO GO NUCLEAR AFTER SCHUMER’S ‘POLITICAL EXTORTION’ OF NOMINEES

Democrats showed their willingness to continue the blockade throughout the week, including when Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, attempted to tee up 10 judicial nominees for unanimous consent but was promptly blocked by Schumer.

“This blanket obstruction of all nominees is a misguided attempt to score political points,” Grassley said.

Sen. Brian Schatz, D-Hawaii, told Fox News Digital that Republicans haven’t shown a desire to return to the table since negotiations were blown up last month. He said that using a Democratic proposal “gives them a talking point they can lean on,” but he said Senate Democrats weren’t falling for it.

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“They’ve decided they lost patience, and using someone else’s bill as cover doesn’t really do the trick,” he said.

Indeed, Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, offered the original Klobuchar bill on the floor Wednesday night, but the move was blocked by Sen. Alex Padilla, D-Calif., who instead offered to modify the proposal to kick in later in 2029, when Trump will be out of office.

And King, one of the original co-sponsors of the bill, told Fox News Digital that he couldn’t support his legislation coming back to benefit the Trump administration.

“No, it’s a different, whole different situation than it was,” King said. “I could not support anything that facilitated this president’s stocking of the federal government.” 

Sen. John Fetterman, D-Pa., sounded off on “lefties” in his own party who are warming to socialism or communism, recounting a past discussion with people who lived under communist rule in the 20th century.

Asked about a new Gallup poll showing 66% of Democrats view socialism favorably while only 42% view capitalism favorably, Fetterman said it is an important question to raise.

“I literally was in a former communist nation. And I asked that — I said, ‘Some people in my party, some of the lefties are talking about socialism now. What do you think?’”

“He’s like, ‘that’s the worst thing ever – you’re going to need a reality check if you ever adopt any of those things. You know, like — you are morons.”

IT’S NOT JUST DEMOCRATS. SOCIALIST MAMDANI’S PLANS SHOULD WORRY REPUBLICANS NATIONWIDE

Fetterman appeared to agree with the sentiments of the people he spoke with, later disclosing the country he had visited was Croatia.

Croatians told him, “Thank God we’re freed from that,” and that they are “mystified why [America] is having that conversation.”

The comments came as the Democratic Party’s mainstream has shifted left more recently, largely beginning with the rise of Vermont democratic socialist Sen. Bernie Sanders and the left-wing “Squad” in the House of Representatives.

President Donald Trump recently branded New York City mayoral frontrunner Zohran Mamdani a “Communist lunatic,” and a man in a Cuba shirt also disrupted a recent Mamdani event by shouting allegations he aligns with the ideology closely associated with Havana’s current regime.

‘NOT A DEMOCRAT’: JOHN FETTERMAN CALLS ZOHRAN MAMDANI’S NYC PRIMARY WIN A ‘GIFT’ TO THE GOP

Mamdani denied to NBC News that he is a communist, instead preferring “democratic socialist.”

In a clip from “The Faulkner Focus,” Rep. Pramila Jayapal, a Seattle Democrat and prominent progressive, said the current economic system is “not working for the majority of Americans anymore.”

“This world that we’ve inherited is not sustainable to human life. And there has to be a better way of doing things.”

In Croatia, the current political system was preceded by Josip Tito’s oppressive communist regime, which ruled from World War II through the 1980s and swiftly crushed dissent.

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After Tito’s death in 1980, the country began to slowly democratize and by 1989, multi-party elections were held.

By contrast, its current prime minister is Andrej Plenković, who is considered a conservative, pro-NATO and pro-market leader.

Fox News Digital reached out to Fetterman for further comment.

Secretary of War Pete Hegseth held his first call with his Chinese counterpart, Admiral Dong Jun, on Sept. 9, in a conversation that comes as Beijing deepens ties with Moscow and Pyongyang while showcasing its own military might.

Pentagon chief spokesperson Sean Parnell said Hegseth “forthrightly relayed that the U.S. has vital interests in the Asia-Pacific, the priority theater, and will resolutely protect those interests.”

“Hegseth made clear that the United States does not seek conflict with China nor is it pursuing regime change or strangulation of the PRC.”

Parnell said the call, which occurred on Tuesday but was made public Wednesday, was “candid and constructive,” and the defense chiefs agreed to further discussions. 

XI JINPING HAILS ‘UNSTOPPABLE’ CHINA AS TRUMP ACCUSES BEIJING OF CONSPIRING AGAINST US

Fox News Digital reached out to the Chinese embassy for comment on the call. 

Last week, China hosted a military parade where President Xi Jinping showcased his regional alliances in public appearances with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and Russian President Vladimir Putin. 

Xi at the time hinted at his ambitions toward Taiwan, saying that the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) would “resolutely safeguard national sovereignty, unity and territorial integrity.”

Xi has repeatedly set 2027, the 100th anniversary of the PLA, as a deadline for military modernization — a timeline U.S. officials warn could coincide with preparations for an invasion of Taiwan.

During the parade, China showcased its full nuclear triad, hypersonic missiles and new stealth drones. 

3 NEW CHINESE WEAPONS HIGHLIGHTED AT MILITARY PARADE WATCHED BY PUTIN, KIM

The show of force came two months after the U.S. hosted its own military parade to coincide with the Army’s 250th birthday. 

In recent years, Beijing has deepened its security partnerships with Pyongyang and Moscow through arms transfers and military technology exchanges.

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The U.S. has accused North Korea of supplying munitions to Russia for its war in Ukraine, while Chinese firms have been sanctioned for helping Russia skirt Western export controls.

President Donald Trump, however, has suggested he may meet with Xi in the future as trade negotiations drag on. 

It was reckless to allow former President Joe Biden to run for re-election last year, former Vice President Kamala Harris admitted in her new book, “107 Days.”

This time last year, Harris was in the thick of her short-lived presidential campaign. With some distance from Washington, D.C., and in retrospect, Harris doesn’t hold back in the first preview of her new book that is set to hit shelves later this month. 

“‘It’s Joe and Jill’s decision.’ We all said that, like a mantra, as if we’d all been hypnotized. Was it grace, or was it recklessness? In retrospect, I think it was recklessness. The stakes were simply too high. This wasn’t a choice that should have been left to an individual’s ego, an individual’s ambition. It should have been more than a personal decision,” Harris said in the excerpt released by The Atlantic on Wednesday morning. 

While Harris publicly defended Biden throughout his presidency, in the first excerpt of Harris’ highly anticipated account of the shortest presidential campaign in history, the former vice president described how she was often scapegoated by the Biden administration. And for the first time, she admitted that, “perhaps,” she should have told Biden to “consider not running.”

HARRIS ADMITS BIDEN ‘GOT TIRED,’ DENIES ‘CONSPIRACY’ TO HIDE MENTAL DECLINE

During her brief presidential campaign, Harris often walked a fine line in trying to defend Biden, for whom she remained his vice president, while also differentiating herself from his unflattering record. 

KAMALA HARRIS ADMITS THERE ARE THINGS SHE WOULD’VE DONE DIFFERENTLY IN 2024, FAILS TO ELABORATE

“There is not a thing that comes to mind,” Harris infamously said on “The View,” when asked what she would have done differently than Biden. The clip was an instant attack ad for Republican candidates up and down the ballot to pit Biden’s shortcomings on Harris. 

Harris later told Fox News’ Bret Baier that her presidency would “not be a continuation of Joe Biden’s presidency,” as she sought to distance herself from Biden’s stances on the economy and the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza. 

“And of all the people in the White House, I was in the worst position to make the case that he should drop out,” Harris said in the “107 Days” excerpt. “I knew it would come off to him as incredibly self-serving if I advised him not to run. He would see it as naked ambition, perhaps as poisonous disloyalty, even if my only message was: Don’t let the other guy win.”

Harris said she rationalized her decision to stay quiet by telling herself, “the American people had chosen him before in the same matchup,” and maybe he was “right to believe” he could defeat President Donald Trump again. 

“I don’t believe it was incapacity. If I believed that, I would have said so. As loyal as I am to President Biden, I am more loyal to my country,” Harris said in the book.

But as described in “Original Sin,” one of several books this year to pull back the curtain on the reality of the Biden administration, loyalty to Biden was wielded as a weapon in the White House. 

“Because I’d gone after him over busing in the 2019 primary debate, I came into the White House with what we lawyers call a ‘rebuttable presumption.’ I had to prove my loyalty, time and time again,” Harris said in the book. 

In the excerpt, Harris goes on to describe how the “White House rarely pushed back,” when she was criticized for her “gaffes” or when “Republicans mischaracterized my role as ‘border czar.’”

Harris explained how she often had to prove her loyalty to Biden, yet Biden’s inner circle “seemed glad” to let her dominate headlines. 

“Their thinking was zero-sum: If she’s shining, he’s dimmed. None of them grasped that if I did well, he did well. That, given the concerns about his age, my visible success as his vice president was vital. It would serve as a testament to his judgment in choosing me and reassurance that if something happened, the country was in good hands. My success was important for him,” the former vice president argued in the “107 Days” excerpt. 

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“His team didn’t get it,” Harris said. 

Fox News Digital reached out to Biden’s office for comment but did not immediately hear back. 

FIRST ON FOX: Sen. Steve Daines, R-Mont., is traveling to Israel following the Jewish State’s strike in Qatar, a strike he argued was part of Israel’s “singular purpose” to eradicate Hamas.

The Israeli Defense Force (IDF) announced the strike, which was intended to target senior-level leadership in Hamas, on Tuesday. However, the attack took place over 1,300 miles away in Doha, Qatar.

The Qatari government has been a key player at the negotiation table in the quest for a ceasefire and return of hostages in the ongoing conflict between Israel and the terrorist organization Hamas following the group’s brutal attack on Oct. 7, 2023. Israel’s targets were top negotiators in Hamas’ political bureau, who were mulling the latest U.S. ceasefire proposal.

TRUMP DIRECTED ENVOY TO WARN QATAR AHEAD OF ‘UNFORTUNATE’ ISRAELI STRIKE, WHITE HOUSE SAYS

So far, Qatari officials have condemned the strike, and the White House has taken a rare step against Israel in the aftermath.

Daines, who is a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, likened Hamas to “a cancer” that Israel needed to eradicate. He put the Jewish State’s situation into perspective of, if the U.S. were in Israel’s position and “1,200 innocent Americans [were] slaughtered by terrorists 40 miles from Washington, D.C.,” then the “United States would do everything within its power to eradicate the threat.”

“The Israelis, as we’ve seen, whether it’s with Iran or Hezbollah, sometimes doesn’t matter where these leaders are,” he told Fox News Digital. “They’re going to come after them, not unlike the United States did when we went after Osama bin Laden in Pakistan. We didn’t ask Pakistan for permission.”

Following the attack, President Donald Trump told reporters that he was “not thrilled” about the situation.

SEN. STEVE DAINES SAYS REGIME CHANGE IS THE BEST LONG-TERM PLAN IN IRAN

“I was very unhappy about it, very unhappy about every aspect. And we got to get the hostages back, but I was very unhappy about the way that went down,” Trump said.

The Qatari Foreign Ministry condemned the attack and panned Israel’s move as a “criminal attack” that constituted “a flagrant violation of all international laws and norms and a serious threat to the security and safety of Qataris and residents of Qatar.”

Daines’ plan to head to the Jewish State came before the strike and was initially meant to celebrate the excavation of ancient stone steps and a pathway, known as the Pilgrimage Road, which Jesus is believed to have walked, leading from the Pool of Siloam to the Temple Mount.

The lawmaker previously went to Israel to commemorate progress of the ongoing archaeological dig in 2023, a couple of months before Hamas’ blitz on Israel.

‘THE MISSION WAS ACCOMPLISHED’: SENATE REPUBLICANS PUSH BACK AGAINST LEAKED REPORT ON IRAN STRIKES

Now, his planned trip, where Secretary of State Marco Rubio and U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee are expected to attend, is likely to take a different tenor.

Daines said he had just spoken with the Israeli Ambassador to the U.S. on Monday and hoped that his schedule could line up for a meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. He also noted that he had yet to see an assessment of the strike, which hit a residential complex in Doha.

When asked if he was worried that the strike could derail ceasefire talks, Daines noted that he had appreciated Qatar’s cooperation and pointed out the U.S. has its largest military base in the Middle East there. But, he added that “Hamas, clearly, is trying to evade the reach of the Israeli government.”

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“And as we say, ‘Sometimes you can run, but you can’t hide,’ and Israel had to make a decision, knowing that, like they did with Iran, where they took out military leadership, they took out their nuclear scientists, because they could not allow Iran to get into their bomb,” Daines said.

“Similarly, with Hamas, they would have to take out their command and control structure, leadership. And they have a singular mission, and Israel will do what it needs to do to protect herself,” he continued.

Fox News Digital reached out to the State Department for comment but did not immediately hear back. 

Fox News’ Greg Norman contributed to this report. 

EXCLUSIVE: House Republicans are having early talks about cracking down on crime nationwide, the No. 2 GOP lawmaker suggested on Tuesday.

“There are discussions about addressing some of these problems at a more federal level, but right now, we’re focused on D.C.,” House Majority Leader Steve Scalise, R-La., told Fox News Digital.

“The president’s been very effectively reducing crime in D.C., and he’s got some limitations right now with a lot of these ordinances, and that’s what we’re focused on cleaning up.”

He added, however, “But we’re not done.”

NEWSOM DEPLOYS CRIME TEAMS STATEWIDE AS WHITE HOUSE MOCKS ‘COPYING TRUMP AGENDA’

It comes after President Donald Trump federalized the Washington, D.C., police force and deployed federal troops to the capital city in a bid to end violent crime. He’s now eyeing National Guard deployments in other cities across the country, though the idea has been met with criticism by Democrats.

The House Oversight Committee is slated to advance several bills dealing with D.C. criminal sentencing this week, which will likely get full House votes in the coming months.

Scalise’s comments suggest that while lawmakers are currently focused on overhauling Washington, D.C.’s criminal policies, it’s possible they could turn to the rest of the country at some point as well.

TRUMP CLAIMS ‘WE’RE AGAINST CRIME. DEMOCRATS LIKE CRIME’

Trump similarly signaled last month that he wanted to see a bill dealing with crime across the U.S.

“Speaker Mike Johnson, and Leader John Thune, are working with me, and other Republicans, on a Comprehensive Crime Bill. It’s what our Country needs,” he wrote on Truth Social.

House GOP leaders also railed against crime in Democrat-run cities and states during their weekly press briefing on Tuesday – specifically their leaders’ opposition to National Guard deployments.

Such moves by the federal government could risk court battles with Democrat-run states and cities, as was the case when Trump sent the National Guard into Los Angeles earlier this year over the objections of California Gov. Gavin Newsom.

“I mean, these mayors in these big blue cities have to ask this question – and I think their voters and the residents and the law-abiding citizens in all these cities should be asking local leadership, ‘How long are you going to put up with this? When are you going to put your foot down and do the right thing?’” Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., posed.

“This is common sense. And I cannot, for the life of me, understand how the Democrats think this is some sort of winning political message. Yield, man. Let the troops come into your city, and show how crime can be reduced.”

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Scalise, meanwhile, said at the press conference that Democrats “want crime to continue.”

“They want to continue defunding the police and try to have it both ways. And President Trump is tired of that game, because he’s tired of watching people be hurt. There’s no reason for this violent crime wave that we see in so many cities,” Scalise said. 

“So we’re going to continue to have the president’s back and, frankly, have the American people’s back, regardless of their party, regardless of what city they live in. Everybody deserves to be safe, and Republicans are going to continue to push policies to help put that in place.”