NationalWatch

U.S. Special Envoy for Peace Missions Steve Witkoff claims Russian President Vladimir Putin made “robust” steps toward peace during his meeting with President Donald Trump last week.

Witkoff made the statement during an appearance on “Fox News Sunday” with host Shannon Bream. The official was in the room for the Alaska meeting and has met previously with Putin several times.

“We agreed on much more robust security guarantees,” Witkoff said. “The Russians agreed on enshrining legislatively language that they would attest to not attempting to take any more land from Ukraine after a peace deal, where they would attest to not violating any European borders.”

Witkoff also said Trump spoke with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and European leaders directly after the meeting. He said the meeting was “absolutely acknowledged as a win.”

ZELENSKYY TO MEET WITH TRUMP IN WASHINGTON, DC FOLLOWING US-RUSSIA TALKS

Bream pressed Witkoff to explain why Trump did not push Putin for a ceasefire agreement during the meeting as well. Trump had previously said a ceasefire was a top priority and claimed Putin would face consequences if he didn’t agree to one.

ZELENSKYY OUTLINES PEACE DEMANDS BEFORE HIGH-STAKES WHITE HOUSE MEETING WITH TRUMP

“The president has always talked about a ceasefire, until he made a lot of different wins in this meeting and began to realize that we could be talking about a peace deal. The ultimate deal here is a peace deal, and we were talking about much more robust security guarantees than anyone ever imagined,” he said.

In a statement after the call with Trump, major European leaders did not address whether they preferred a peace deal over a ceasefire.

TRUMP: WE’RE GOING STRAIGHT TO RUSSIA-UKRAINE PEACE DEAL, ‘NOT A MERE CEASEFIRE’

The leaders said they “welcomed President Trump’s efforts to stop the killing in Ukraine, end Russia’s war of aggression, and achieve just and lasting peace.”

Putin described his talks with Trump in Alaska as “very frank.”

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“We, of course, respect the position of the American administration, which sees the need for a speedy end to military actions,” Putin said at the follow-up meeting at the Kremlin, adding that “we would like to move to resolving all issues by peaceful means.”

Fox News’ Landon Mion and the Associated Press contributed to this report.

Former Vice President Mike Pence said Sunday that President Donald Trump needs to bring the “hammer” down on Russian President Vladimir Putin with additional secondary sanctions. 

After meeting with Putin at a high-stakes summit in Alaska, Trump shifted from advocating for an immediate ceasefire deal to a broader “peace agreement” between Ukraine and Russia. 

In an appearance on CNN’s “State of the Union” on Sunday, Pence described Trump’s style in dealing with dictators as the “velvet glove” approach but said he thinks “the hammer needs to come, and it needs to come immediately.” 

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is expected to meet with Trump in the Oval Office on Monday, joined by United Kingdom and European leaders. Pence said Trump, at the same time, needs to “pick up the phone and ask” Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., “to immediately pass the secondary sanctions bill that is supported virtually by everybody in the United States Senate.” 

PUTIN APPEARS TO BE VISIBLY ANNOYED AS REPORTERS BARRAGE HIM AND TRUMP WITH QUESTIONS

“The combination of engagement, but also making it clear to Putin that we are prepared to take actions that would literally break his economy even while we redouble our commitment to the security of Ukraine,” Pence said. 

“The last thing we want to see is for Putin to use this latest delay as a reason to continue this war all the way until the winter hits and the fighting season essentially passes in that part of the world,” he added later on. “We can’t allow Vladimir to run out the clock on the war in this year and this season. We literally have to do both things, and that is: the sanctions ought to be on the president’s desk, available for his signature while negotiations begin. That’s the most important way that we will ensure that there’s real progress toward the peace agreement.” 

Pence, who served as Trump’s vice president during his first term, reiterated how Putin attacked Georgia under President George W. Bush, attacked Crimea under President Barack Obama, and invaded Ukraine after “that disastrous withdrawal” from Afghanistan under President Joe Biden.

“Putin’s made it no secret to the fact that he wants to reassert the old Soviet sphere of influence, what we used to call the evil empire in Eastern Europe,” Pence told CNN’s Jake Tapper. “I think Putin only understands strength, so while the president and his diplomatic team engage in this re-approach with Putin, and there seems to be interest, in my judgment, Putin is not going to stop until he’s stopped.”

Pence said Trump “should be commended for pursuing peace in Ukraine,” noting that the president has already secured peace agreements in Africa, Armenia and Azerbaijan. 

“I think he deserves credit as leader of the free world for not giving up on Ukraine,” Pence said, claiming “there are many voices in and around the administration that would have cut Ukraine loose months ago.” 

DEMOCRATS DOUBT TRUMP WILL SECURE UKRAINE CEASE-FIRE IN ALASKA SUMMIT WITH PUTIN

Pence said he wanted to commend the president for “trying to make progress,” but said he would have liked to have seen a ceasefire deal. Still, he said that “no deal is better than a bad deal.” 

Based on U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff’s description of the talks, Pence said it appeared there “was at least an ascent in Putin and Trump’s meeting to the United States providing security guarantees, and clearly, the president didn’t forfeit anything having to do with America’s national security or with the security of our allies in Eastern Europe in the midst of this war.” 

Witkoff told CNN that the Trump administration is “intent on trying to hammer out a peace deal that ends the fighting permanently – very, very quickly, quicker than a ceasefire.” He also said that Trump could not agree to “any sort of land swap” on behalf of the Ukrainians. At the summit, Putin pushed for the Ukrainians to withdraw from Donetsk and Luhansk in exchange for Russian forces freezing the fronts in other areas. 

“At the end of the day, it’s important to remember the bad guy here is Putin. Putin launched an unprovoked brutal invasion more than three years ago,” Pence said. “Now more than ever, America and our allies need to stand strongly with Ukraine and create the conditions for a just and lasting peace.”

Minutes before Pence spoke to CNN on Sunday morning, Trump posted to TRUTH Social, teasing: “BIG PROGRESS ON RUSSIA. STAY TUNED!” 

Trump also criticized the media’s reporting about his meeting with Putin. 

“It’s incredible how the Fake News violently distorts the TRUTH when it comes to me,” Trump wrote on social media earlier Sunday. “There is NOTHING I can say or do that would lead them to write or report honestly about me. I had a great meeting in Alaska on Biden’s stupid War, a war that should have never happened!!!”

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“If I got Russia to give up Moscow as part of the Deal, the Fake News, and their PARTNER, the Radical Left Democrats, would say I made a terrible mistake and a very bad deal,” Trump added. “That’s why they are the FAKE NEWS! Also, they should talk about the 6 WARS, etc., I JUST STOPPED!!! MAGA.” 

Drug Enforcement Administration Administrator Terry Cole, the federal government’s new designee to help run the Washington D.C. Metropolitan Police Department, vowed to let local cops “do their job again” to get rising crime under control.

Cole was tapped by Attorney General Pam Bondi after the Trump administration announced on Monday a major intervention to crack down on crime in the nation’s capital. The move came after several high-profile violent crimes, including the murder of a Congressional intern.

“We cannot afford to turn a blind eye,” Cole told Fox News Channel’s “The Story” on Tuesday. “We have tremendous cooperation, tremendous intel sharing, and what’s most encouraging, the police are looking forward to doing their job again.”

According to an order released by Bondi on Friday, Cole’s role is defined as the “designee for the duration of the emergency declared by the President for the purpose of directing the Mayor of the District of Columbia to provide such services of the [MPD] as the Attorney General deems necessary and appropriate.”

“Attorney General Bondi’s new order is STRONGER because instead of rescinding just one bad MPD order this superseding order REQUIRES MPD’s full cooperation with federal immigration authorities,” a DOJ spokesperson told Fox News Digital in an email on Saturday.

DC REACHES LEGAL SETTLEMENT WITH TRUMP ADMINISTRATION OVER FEDERAL POLICE TAKEOVER

“We are not backing down, as President Trump remains in control under the law to determine what is necessary and appropriate,” the spokesperson added.

Washington, D.C., Police Chief Pamela Smith will technically stay in her position, but Cole will play a key role in making sure city leaders such as Smith and Mayor Muriel Bowser comply with the federal government’s requests, especially in cooperation with immigration authorities.

Dozens of the arrests already made since the takeover have been of illegal immigrants, as ICE and other federal agencies are patrolling the streets of the capital.

“Attorney General Bondi just issued a new directive to Mayor Bowser requiring MPD to provide the services found necessary by her designee, DEA Administrator Terry Cole, to comply fully and completely with federal immigration law and authorities, regardless of any policies MPD might otherwise have. President Trump will continue pursuing all efforts to Make DC Safe Again and end violent crime despite liberal opposition,” White House spokeswoman Abigail Jackson said in a statement.

AG SHOWDOWN: DC ATTORNEY GENERAL REJECTS US ATTORNEY GENERAL PAM BONDI ORDER AS ‘UNLAWFUL’

Cole has an extensive background in law enforcement, including working at the DEA for over 20 years before retiring from the federal government in 2020, according to his profile on the DEA website. Afterward, he was the Virginia Secretary of Public Safety and Homeland Security from 2023 to 2025.

“I’m glad to see it happen under the leadership of Terry Cole,” Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin said on “Mornings with Maria” on Fox Business Network earlier this week, addressing how a similar law enforcement model will be employed in Northern Virginia in partnership with commonwealth and federal leaders.

DEA HEAD SAYS PHONE CALLS ARE COMING FROM ‘ALL OVER THE COUNTRY’ FROM FED AGENTS WANTING TO HELP IN DC

“Terry Cole, who is now director and administrator of DEA, and is leading this effort on behalf of the administration, is the best man in the country to do this. I have huge confidence in him, and I want to thank President Trump for taking this big step,” the Republican governor added.

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Youngkin noted in February that Cole played a major role in tackling illegal drugs in the commonwealth.

“His leadership of our Operation FREE initiative in Virginia resulted in the seizure of tens of thousands of pounds of illicit drugs—including more than 70 million lethal doses of fentanyl—and has become a standard for collaboration between federal, state and local law enforcement,” Youngkin stated. “He will put the safety and security of Americans first as head of the DEA. It’s a great day to be an American and a bad day to be a drug dealer.” 

Fox News Digital’s Stephanie Samsel contributed to this report.

Democratic socialist mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani made an appeal to non-Democrats during brief remarks in Brooklyn on Sunday, kicking off his general election campaign. 

Mamdani, who defeated former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo by 13 percentage points in the June primary, recently concluded his five-day, anti-Donald Trump tour of each of New York City’s boroughs last week. 

Without referencing Trump this time around, Mamdani addressed supporters in Brooklyn on Sunday with a message on affordability and local government being able to take care of voters’ “material needs.” 

“Are there more New Yorkers who want to join this movement for a city that they can actually afford?” Mamdani, who’s campaigned on socialist and communist ideas, such as government-run grocery stores and rent freezes, said. 

MAMDANI DEFENDS CITY-RUN GROCERY PLAN, SAYS STORE OWNERS CAN BE ‘PARTNERS’

Mamdani recalled a conversation he said he had on primary election day with a volunteer of an organization who endorsed his campaign. He said the volunteer had “gotten a phone call from a coworker about aunties and uncles who were breaking down at the poll sites after they’d been informed they weren’t registered as Democrats and able to vote at that time.” Only registered Democrats were eligible to vote in the June primary. 

Mamdani also told the story of an 18-year-old man pulling up next to him on a motorbike on primary election night to ask for a selfie. Mamdani said he asked the young man if he had voted and that they used his license to check his registration. According to Mamdani, the man was a registered Republican, who was ineligible to vote in the primary but who could support the Democratic socialist candidate in the November general election. 

“I tell you the story of that 18-year-old young man, of those aunties and uncles who had to be pulled away from those poll sites to remind us of how many more New Yorkers there are for us to speak,” Mamdani said. “And I thank you for being here, because so often, any victories in politics are described as if they are that of just the candidate. But you know the truth. This is your victory. It is your work that took us from 1% in the polls to beating a former governor by 13 points.” 

Mamdani credited his campaign canvassers, who went door to door in six-floor walk-ups, rain or shine, for taking “a campaign that was considered, at best, an interesting idea to one that has won the most votes of any in New York City primary history.”

Mamdani received more than 573,00 votes in the June primary, though voter turnout was less than 30% of registered Democrats. 

NEW REPORT REVEALS MAMDANI LAPPING RIVALS IN BATTLE FOR CAMPAIGN DONATIONS FROM THIS KEY INDUSTRY

“I thank you for being here today, because what you show is that this movement is just getting started. Yeah, we are just getting started because we know there are so many more neighborhoods for us to reach, so many New Yorkers for us to speak to and so many more people who we can finally show that there is the possibility that local government could actually meet their material needs,” Mamdani added on Sunday. “And I thank you for doing this, because you are the ones who are changing history in this city and in this country, and it’s an honor to be one part of this movement with each and every one of you.”

Mamdani – who has recently walked back his long-vocal stance on defunding police – concluded his remarks without taking questions from the press, but earlier Sunday took to social media to address a mass shooting in Brooklyn. 

He said the Crown Heights incident had “stolen the lives of three New Yorkers and injured eight more,” adding that he was “grateful for the first responders who rushed towards the danger and worked to save lives.”

“We cannot accept gun violence in our city,” Mamdani wrote. 

Cuomo, who is running as an independent in the November election, has recently increased attacks on Mamdani for living in a rent-stabilized apartment despite his wealthy upbringing. 

Mamdani, the son of an acclaimed Indian filmmaker and a Columbia University professor, recently returned from an extravagant wedding celebration in Uganda. He has also recently walked back his prior support for the phrase “globalize the intifada” after widespread criticism and concern from the New York Jewish community. 

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Incumbent Mayor Eric Adams is also running as an independent in November. The Republican mayoral hopeful is Guardian Angels founder Curtis Sliwa.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy reiterated on Sunday that Kyiv will not surrender any territory to Moscow, pushing back against mounting international speculation about potential land-for-peace negotiations. 

“The constitution of Ukraine makes it impossible to give up territory or trade land,” Zelenskyy said during a press conference at the European Commission on Sunday. 

EUROPEAN LEADERS WILL JOIN TRUMP-ZELENSKYY MEETING, SIGNALING SOLIDARITY WITH UKRAINE

He added that Russia has repeatedly tried and failed to seize the entirety of the Donbas region in eastern Ukraine for a period of 12 years. The Donbas, which includes Donetsk and Luhansk oblasts, is an industrial hub, with coal mining and steel production central to Ukraine’s economy.

“Since the territorial issue is so important, it should be discussed only by the leaders of Ukraine and Russia at the trilateral [talks with] Ukraine, United States, Russia,” Zelenskyy said.

The Ukrainian leader, who spoke alongside EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, said that so far the Kremlin has “given no sign that the trilateral will happen.” 

PUTIN DEMANDS CONTROL OF KEY UKRAINIAN TERRITORY IN EXCHANGE FOR PEACE: EUROPEAN DIPLOMAT

“With regards to any territorial questions in Ukraine, our position is clear: international borders cannot be changed by force. These are decisions to be made by Ukraine and Ukraine alone, and these decisions cannot be taken without Ukraine at the table,” von der Leyen said.

Their remarks came after Russian President Vladimir Putin’s meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump in Alaska on Friday, during which the Russian leader outlined conditions for ending the war, including demands for control over parts of eastern Ukraine.

Following the meeting with the Russian leader, Trump signaled that Zelenskyy should take Putin’s deal to end the war because “Russia is a very big power” and Ukraine is not. Still, SSecretary of State Marco Rubio dismissed claims that Trump would pressure Zelenskyy to give up large swaths of its sovereign land to Russia.

“The president has said that in terms of territories, these are things that Zelenskyy is going to have to decide on,” Rubio told Maria Bartiromo on Fox News’ “Sunday Morning Futures.”

“All the president is trying to do here is narrow down the open issues,” Rubio said, adding that Trump is focused on ending the Kremlin’s war in Ukraine.

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“You can’t have a peace deal between two warring factions unless both sides agree to give up something. And both sides agree that the other side gets something. Otherwise, if one side gets everything they want, that’s not a peace deal. It’s called surrender. And I don’t think this is a war that’s going to end anytime soon. On the basis of surrender,” Rubio said.

Zelenskyy said he hopes the upcoming meeting with European allies and Trump “will be productive,” contrasting it with the heated Oval Office exchange during his February visit.

European leaders will join Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy when he travels to Washington, D.C., on Monday for a high-stakes meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump. 

On Sunday, NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, French President Emmanuel Macron, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and Finnish President Alexander Stubb all confirmed their attendance. Their joint presence underscores Europe’s determination to present a united front in support of Ukraine as Russia’s war drags on.

PUTIN DEMANDS CONTROL OF KEY UKRAINIAN TERRITORY IN EXCHANGE FOR PEACE: EUROPEAN DIPLOMAT

Ahead of his meeting with Trump, Zelenskyy met with von der Leyen at the European Commission in Brussels to set priorities for the White House talks, focusing on long-term military aid, Ukraine’s ambitions to join the EU, and bolstering transatlantic solidarity in the face of Russian aggression.

At a joint press conference, von der Leyen said she was glad to be joining Zelenskyy and other European leaders in Washington on Monday.

“We will continue to support you for as long as it takes,” she said, adding that the EU backs a trilateral meeting between Ukraine, Russia and the United States.

She warned that the EU will move forward next month with its 19th sanctions package against Russia if the Kremlin refuses to halt its war in Ukraine.

TRUMP: WE’RE GOING STRAIGHT TO RUSSIA-UKRAINE PEACE DEAL, ‘NOT A MERE CEASEFIRE’

Zelenskyy said he hopes the upcoming meeting with Trump “will be productive” and not a repeat of the shouting match that took place in the Oval Office during his February visit.

Zelenskyy’s meeting at the White House comes on the heels of Trump’s summit with Russian leader Vladimir Putin in Anchorage on Friday, where Trump dropped his demand for a ceasefire and urged a final peace deal.

After meeting with Putin, Trump said the Russian leader was willing to end the war in exchange for key Ukrainian territory concessions. Trump said Kyiv should take the deal with Moscow because “Russia is a very big power, and they’re not.”

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Zelenskyy, alongside European leaders, consistently rejects proposals to surrender any Ukrainian land to Russia.

“Since the territorial issue is so important, it should be discussed only by the leaders of Ukraine and Russia at the trilateral Ukraine, United States, Russia,” Zelenskyy told reporters at the European Commission on Sunday. “So far, Russia has given no sign that the trilateral will happen,” he added.

Joseph Hernandez, a 52-year-old entrepreneur originally from Cuba, was motivated to enter the New York City mayoral race by his disdain for the left-wing policies championed by Zohran Mamdani.

“I am the absolute polar opposite of Zohran Mamdani and what he stands for,” Hernandez told Fox News Digital. “I believe that hard work, education and grit are what makes you successful in this country.”

ZOHRAN MAMDANI LAUNCHES ANTI-TRUMP TOUR ACROSS FIVE BOROUGHS IN NEW YORK CITY

Hernandez, a Manhattan businessman, leads Blue Water Venture Partners, a healthcare and technology investment firm. He has also founded over a dozen healthcare and pharmaceutical companies over the course of his career, according to his campaign’s website.

“I don’t really need to do this in my career or my life, but I’m really, really concerned with the trajectory of this great city,” he told Fox News Digital.

Hernandez said he launched his independent mayoral bid a little over a month ago, and since then, has raised around $300,000.

“We think we have a lot of support, and we continue to ask people to support us because we have a big battle,” he said. “This is a big political machine that’s fighting us.”

NYC OFFICIAL WARNS BUSINESSES WILL FLEE ‘IN DROVES’ IF DEMOCRATIC SOCIALIST CANDIDATE WINS MAYORAL RACE

If elected, he has three main priorities: safety, affordability and technology. He hopes to bolster public safety by hiring 10,000 additional police officers, improve city services through the use of artificial intelligence and transform vacant office space into affordable housing.

“The city is not safe,” Hernandez told Fox News Digital. “You can’t ride the subways at night. Women get attacked on almost a nightly basis. People get robbed here. There’s no law and order — there is zero respect for law.”

At age seven, Hernandez came to the U.S. with his family to flee Fidel Castro’s communist rule.

“My father was a political prisoner in Cuba. He was thrown in prison because he didn’t agree with the communist regime, and they stole effectively all our properties and businesses,” he said. “… We came to this country with nothing. … This is an amazing society, and we’re letting it slip.”

MAMDANI LANDS ENDORSEMENT OF A TOP CUOMO BACKER IN NYC MAYORAL PRIMARY

Hernandez acknowledged that concerns over him splitting the moderate and conservative vote are understandable. However, he believes the real issue is the way New York City runs its elections.

“I filed a lawsuit against the city a couple of weeks ago, really requiring that they bring back ranked-choice voting in the general election,” he said. 

Democratic mayoral nominee Zohran Mamdani maintains a hefty lead in the New York City mayoral race, according to a recent Siena poll of registered voters.

Mamdani is polling at 44%, and former Gov. Andrew Cuomo, who’s running as an independent, is at 25%. Republican Curtis Sliwa is at 12%, and incumbent Mayor Eric Adams is at 7%.

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The campaign for Zohran Mamdani did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.

Just weeks before President Donald Trump federalized the Washington, D.C., police force over crime woes, the Metropolitan Police Department was hit with accusations of allegedly juking crime stats for more favorable results. 

“When our members respond to the scene of a felony offense where there is a victim reporting that a felony occurred, inevitably there will be a lieutenant or a captain that will show up on that scene and direct those members to take a report for a lesser offense,” D.C. Police Union chairman Gregg Pemberton told NBC Washington in July of an alleged trend to manipulate crime stats.

“So, instead of taking a report for a shooting or a stabbing or a carjacking, they will order that officer to take a report for a theft or an injured person to the hospital or a felony assault, which is not the same type of classification.”

The accusations from the union chief followed the police department suspending Washington, D.C., police commander Michael Pulliam in mid-May for allegedly changing crime statistics in his district, local media reported in July. 

DC VIOLENCE HAS GROWN FAR MORE DEADLY, DESPITE DEMS CLAIMING 30-YEAR LOW

The police commander was accused of falsifying crime data to make crime trends look more favorable for the city, but has denied the allegations. A week before his suspension, Pulliam filed an equal employment opportunity complaint against a higher-up, local outlet NBC Washington reported. 

Pulliam is currently under investigation over allegedly changing stats. The Metropolitan Police Department told Fox News Digital Thursday, when asked for additional comment and updates on the case, that it “does not comment on internal investigations or personnel matters.” 

FORMER CAPITOL POLICE CHIEF SAYS CRIME BY ‘GANGS OF YOUTH’ IN DC HAS SPIKED, ESCAPED ‘CERTAIN NEIGHBORHOODS’

The accusations over changing crime stats were soon followed by Trump federalizing the police department on Monday in response to a spate of high-profile killings and attacks, as well as a crime wave in the District that has persisted since the 2020 era. The president federalized the local police department under section 740 of the District of Columbia Home Rule Act, which allows the president to assume emergency control of the capital’s police force for 30 days.

“Our capital city has been overtaken by violent gangs and bloodthirsty criminals, roving mobs of wild youth, drugged-out maniacs and homeless people,” Trump said Monday. “And we’re not going to let it happen anymore. We’re not going to take it.” 

“We’re taking it back under the authority vested in me as the president of the United States, I’m officially invoking section 740 of the District of Columbia Home Rule Act,” he added. “You know what that is. And placing the D.C. Metropolitan Police Department under direct federal control.… In addition, I’m deploying the National Guard to help reestablish law, order and public safety in Washington, D.C. And they’re going to be allowed to do their job properly.”

On Thursday, Trump railed against the accusations of manipulating crime data in the District. 

“They are under investigation right now,” Trump said Thursday during an Oval Office press conference. “They are giving this phony crime stats just like they gave other stats in the financial world. But they’re phony crime stats. And Washington, D.C., is at its worst point, and it will soon be at its best point. You’re gonna have a very safe, you’re going to have a crime-free city.” 

Trump-aligned legal group America First Legal Foundation, which was founded by White House advisor Stephen Miller, exclusively told Fox Digital Thursday that it filed a FOIA request seeking all crime records and data compiled by the D.C. Metropolitan Police Department, including any records “reflecting the falsification or non-publication” of crime data and statistics.

‘RADICAL’ DC OFFICIALS TREATED OFFICERS ‘LIKE CRAP,’ POLICE LEADER SAYS – 7 ATTACKS THAT LED TO TRUMP TAKEOVER

Democratic lawmakers and local liberal leaders have slammed Trump over federalizing the city – which has included hundreds of National Guard members flooding D.C., as well as law enforcement officers from agencies such as the FBI, Drug Enforcement Administration, U.S. Capitol Police and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives assisting with Trump’s law and order crackdown – claiming crime is at a 30-year low. 

“Violent crime in Washington, D.C. is at a 30-year low,” House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., said Monday. “Donald Trump has no basis to take over the local police department. And zero credibility on the issue of law and order. Get lost.” 

“As you listen to an unhinged Trump try to justify deploying the National Guard in DC, here’s reality: Violent crime in DC is at a 30-year low,” former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton posted to X. 

Washington, D.C., was among the cities caught up in a spiking national crime trend in 2020 – when the COVID-19 pandemic raged and protests and riots overtook cities nationwide – recording 198 homicides that year, which marked a 16-year high for the city. Homicides jumped to 226 in 2021, edged down to 203 in 2022 and soared in 2023 to 274 – a 20-year high. 

TRUMP CLAIMS DC CRIMES TROUNCE STATS FROM NOTORIOUSLY VIOLENT CITIES WORLDWIDE

D.C. saw homicides drop by roughly 31% from 2023 to 2024, according to year-end Metropolitan Police Department data reporting 187 in 2024. The data shows violent crime across the board fell by roughly 35% from 2023, when the department reported 5,345 incidents, to 2024, when it reported 3,469. 

A study published in July by the Council on Criminal Justice found the chances of a person facing a violent crime in Washington, D.C., have dropped in recent years, but the possibility of dying during such a crime has skyrocketed. 

The study examined violent crime data from 17 large U.S. cities between 2018 and 2024, specifically investigating the lethality of violent crimes in those cities. It found Washington, D.C., had the highest lethality level out of the group – which included Baltimore and Chicago – at a 38% increase in lethality in 2024 compared with 2018. 

EXCLUSIVE: TRUMP-ALIGNED LEGAL GROUP FILES FOIA REQUEST FOR DC CRIME DATA, CITING ALLEGED MANIPULATION

Lethality in D.C. jumped by a whopping 341% when compared to 2012 data, the study found, reporting that there were 13 homicides per 1,000 serious violent crimes in 2012 to 57 homicides per 1,000 serious violent crimes in 2024. 

The study defined lethality as “the number of homicides per aggravated assaults and robberies.” 

“You have less chance of being victimized, but if you are victimized, you have more of a chance of dying,” John Jay adjunct lecturer Jillian Snider, a retired New York Police Department officer, told Fox News Digital Tuesday of violent crime trends in the nation’s capital. 

The District’s police union chief told Fox News Monday that it supports Trump’s federalization while slamming claims crime has ticked down in the city. 

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“We completely agree with the president here that crime in the district is out of control and something needs to be about it,” Pemberton said in support of Trump’s actions during an interview on FOX Business. “This concept that crime is down is really an old trope. They’re using statistics in a way that makes it appear that crime is going down, but our rank-in-file officers know that we’re going call to call to call, for armed carjackings, stabbings, robberies, shootings, homicides and the crime isn’t going anywhere.”

Fox News Digital reached out to the union for additional comment on the matter, but did not immediately receive a reply. 

Fox News Digital’s Hannah Panreck and Breanne Deppisch contributed to this report. 

The Trump administration’s crackdown on violent crime in Washington, D.C., has already netted more than 240 arrests and taken 38 guns off the streets, a White House official told Fox News.

The show of force has swept up gang members, robbery suspects and immigration violators. On Friday alone, 52 people were arrested, including 28 illegal immigrants, while three guns were seized.

Federal teams also cleared 25 homeless encampments, and officials said those removals were carried out without confrontations or arrests.

EXPERT FLIPS SCRIPT ON DEMS PUSHING ‘CHERRY-PICKED’ CRIME STATS TO RESIST TRUMP’S DC CRACKDOWN

White House deputy chief of staff for policy Stephen Miller hailed the scale of the operations and said the numbers are “breathtaking.”

“We have seen a record number of violent offenders, bad guys, gang members and all kinds of threats to public safety removed off the streets as well as their illegal weapons that they’ve been using to terrorize the citizens of this city,” Miller told “Fox News Live.” 

“Additionally, we have seen over 70 homeless encampments that have scarred and disfigured the public streets of this city, dismantled and thrown away and the homeless cleared from those encampments. At the same time, we have the National Park Service going around and getting rid of the gang graffiti that has been left untouched by this city for decades.”

The operation began quietly Aug. 7 with the launch of the “Making D.C. Safe and Beautiful” task force created by President Donald Trump in March through an executive order. 

He escalated it Aug. 11 by temporarily seizing federal control of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) under emergency powers in the Home Rule Act, the first such move in U.S. history.

WOMAN GUNNED DOWN IN ‘SAFE’ DC NEIGHBORHOOD AS TRUMP LAUNCHES FEDERAL POLICE TAKEOVER

The order puts the MPD under federal authority for up to 30 days, unless Congress extends it, and 800 National Guard troops were deployed. 

In all, 22 multi-agency teams with more than 1,800 personnel were deployed across all seven police districts as the president vowed to aggressively “take our capital back.”

“We have a capital that’s very unsafe. … Something’s out of control. But we’re going to put it in control very quickly,” Trump said Monday. 

Other arrests included drug distribution, weapons violations and outstanding warrants. Police also detained suspects accused of fleeing law enforcement, reckless driving, assault with a dangerous weapon and kidnapping.

The D.C. National Guard carried out roving patrols on foot and in vehicles around the National Mall and Union Station last night. While they remain armed, the officials stressed they are not making arrests, instead securing federal assets and providing cover for police.

Trump began floating the idea of federalizing D.C. law enforcement after the brutal beating of a former Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) employee during an alleged attempted carjacking in Washington’s Logan Circle. He then moved to ramp up his crackdown on Monday, invoking the Home Rule Act. 

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Democrats and local officials pushed back, noting MPD and the U.S. Attorney’s Office report violent crime is at a 30-year low, down 35% from 2023 to 2024. 

FBI data for the same period shows a much smaller decrease of around 9%, highlighting a substantial gap between local and federal statistics. The discrepancy stems from differences in how crimes are classified and reported to federal databases.

D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser described the federal action as “unsettling and unprecedented,” while Democrats have introduced a joint resolution in an effort to put the brakes on the federal takeover of police. 

Jonathan Bush, cousin of former President George W. Bush, is signaling a possible run for Maine governor, blasting what he calls the state’s “learned helplessness” and outlining a policy vision to revive the “Maine Dream.” 

Bush’s message, published through his nonprofit, Maine for Keeps, offers a preview of how he could frame his pitch to voters.

The Bangor Daily News reported that former President Bush and former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush recently attended a small fundraiser for Jonathan in Kennebunkport. 

Newsweek also reported he has already launched an exploratory committee for governor in addition to launching Maine for Keeps to promote his ideas. These moves may position him as the face of a potential Bush family revival in politics after George P. Bush’s defeat in Texas in 2022 was seen as a setback for the dynasty.

SENATE DEMOCRATS ARE FEVERISHLY RECRUITING TOP CANDIDATES TO WIN BACK MAJORITY IN 2026 MIDTERMS

As of this reporting, however, Bush does not yet appear among the 18 gubernatorial candidates officially registered with Maine’s Ethics Commission.

Democratic Gov. Janet Mills is term limited, leaving an open 2026 gubernatorial seat in a state that leans left but prides itself on its independent streak. Mills was re-elected in 2022 by double digits over former Republican Gov. Paul LePage, showing Democratic strength in the Pine Tree State. The Cook Political Report and Sabato’s Crystal Ball currently rate the race as “Likely Democratic.”

SCOOP: TRUMP ALLY TO LAUNCH KEY BATTLEGROUND STATE CAMPAIGN IN BID TO FLIP DEMOCRAT-HELD SENATE SEAT

In his Maine for Keeps blueprint, Bush roots his vision in family ties and a sense of place. 

“Maine is the best place on earth to live and raise a family! My family has been in Maine since the 1890s. My wife Fay’s family has been here since the 1700s,” he wrote. 

But he warns the state government has failed to foster opportunity.

“Instead of creating an environment that fosters economic growth and independence, Maine state government has slipped into a ‘learned helplessness,'” he said.

He also points to schools and housing as areas of decline, writing, “Our schools have dropped from among the best in the nation to the bottom of the barrel. … We’re experiencing a housing crisis because a spider web of development restrictions has shut down new construction for anything but high-end homes.”

Bush has also sought to distinguish himself with entrepreneurial credentials and plainspoken appeals to civic duty. In a recent interview with journalist Polina Pompliano, he described an “unwritten Bush family rule”: “You need to earn both sides of a paycheck before you tell other people what to do with their tax dollars.” 

Bush said that philosophy led him to build businesses in Maine.

“I moved to Maine, which is a tough state to do business in, and I’ve tried to help out as much as I can in my community,” he said.

His philosophy, he added, is that “we should all be figuring out how to lean in, rather than just yell at the TV. The TV doesn’t care.”

Bush, 55, is best known as a healthcare entrepreneur. He co-founded Athenahealth in the 1990s, expanding it into a major medical software company before stepping down in 2018 amid an activist investor fight. He later launched Zus Health, a Boston-based startup focused on health data interoperability.

Several prominent Democrats are already exploring bids, including Angus King III, Hannah Pingree, Secretary of State Shenna Bellows and Senate President Troy Jackson. Republicans, meanwhile, face a fragmented field, with several candidates vying for attention in a party divided between Trump-aligned populists and moderates, analysts told Newsweek.

One Gallup poll from Jan. 21 shows both Bush’s potential and his hurdles.

Trump enjoys 93% favorability among Republicans, compared to 63% for Bush’s cousin, George W. Bush. Maine’s tradition of electing moderates, as seen with Sen. Susan Collins’ repeated victories, could, however, play to his advantage.

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Jonathan Bush has not formally declared his candidacy but is expected to make a decision in the coming months. In the meantime, Maine for Keeps is continuing to release policy papers and podcast episodes.

A gubernatorial run would test what the Bush family name still means to voters in the Trump era.

The George W. Bush Presidential Center, Former Gov. Jeb Bush and Sen. Susan Collins did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment. Jonathan Bush’s nonprofit Maine for Keeps could not be reached for comment.

Though the move by the Trump administration this week to federalize the nation’s capital in the name of public safety has drawn controversy, previous comments by the president show the bold action was a direct campaign promise.

Hundreds of National Guard troops and federal agents were deployed to deter crime and “beautify” the city after President Donald Trump federalized the Metropolitan Police Department on Monday.

While coordination with the federal government came after former DOGE employee ‘Big Balls’ was violently beaten in Washington, D.C., the commanding step was promised on multiple occasions during Trump’s presidential campaign in 2024.

“Americans overwhelmingly elected President Trump because of his commonsense policies that are hugely popular with the American public–including restoring law and order. Making DC Safe Again and stopping violent crime is something President Trump pledged to do and now he’s keeping his promise,” White House spokeswoman Abigail Jackson told Fox News Digital. “Democrat politicians who oppose this move are suffering from a severe case of Trump Derangement Syndrome and it is just one of the many reasons why their approval rating is hitting record lows. Meanwhile, Americans from all backgrounds and communities can applaud efforts to stop violent crime.”

‘RADICAL’ DC OFFICIALS TREATED OFFICERS ‘LIKE CRAP,’ POLICE LEADER SAYS – 7 ATTACKS THAT LED TO TRUMP TAKEOVER

Following the January 2024 murder of Mike Gill, a Republican who worked under the Obama and Trump administrations, in Washington, D.C., Trump posted on Truth Social noting the violence was unacceptable.

“Wonderful and brilliant Mike Gill, a highly respected member of the Trump Administration, was ruthlessly and viciously shot in the head during a carjacking in Washington D.C.,” Trump posted on Truth Social Sunday morning. “His family and friends are devastated. The Federal Government must take over D.C.” 

Gill was shot in broad daylight on Jan. 29, 2024 while sitting in his car parked just a few blocks north of the National Mall. 

He was waiting to pick his wife up from work when an armed carjacker opened fire. He suffered a gunshot wound to the head and died three days later.

At a campaign event in Las Vegas, Trump doubled down on the promise to restore law and order in the capital.

“We’re going to federalize it,” he said. “We’re going to have the toughest law enforcement in the country.”

Former Republican House Speaker Newt Gingrich also weighed in on the topic following Gill’s death, calling on Congress to “take back control.”

“Mike Gill’s death from attack by a carjacker on 14th street in downtown Washington while picking his wife up from work is one more example of why Congress needs to take back control of our national capital,” Gingrich wrote in an X post.

I SUPPORT TRUMP TAKING CONTROL OF DC POLICE — THE CONSTITUTION IS ON HIS SIDE

Mayor Muriel Bowser said violent crime in D.C. is at a 30-year low, but city data shows robberies and homicides spiked after the pandemic.

D.C. records show gun violence jumped 460% downtown, while homicides rose up to 500% in neighborhoods like Southwest/Waterfront and H Street.

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Trump has 30 days of temporary emergency control of the capital under current law, and warned he could declare a national emergency to prolong it if Congress resists.

“You can’t have 30 days,” he said during a news conference at the Kennedy Center. “We’re going to do this very quickly, but we’re going to want extensions. I don’t want to call a national emergency, but if I have to, I will.”

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

Democrats across the country have been pushing back on President Trump’s D.C. crime crackdown, citing statistics purportedly showing that crime in the nation’s capital is down or even at historic lows, but an expert who spoke to Fox News Digital is pushing back on that narrative.

“These Democrats are citing statistics from the FBI, from its uniform crime report. And the problem with that is that they’re portraying it as if it’s a record of violent crime,” Jim Agresti, president of the nonprofit research institute Just Facts, told Fox News Digital shortly after Trump announced he was sending federal resources to the nation’s capital to confront crime in the city.

“But really what it is is a record of crimes that are reported to the police and then those of those crimes that get reported to the FBI. It’s not a full record of all violent crimes, and this is a problem. And the FBI is very explicit about this when they present the data in their formal report every year, where they say, ‘Do not directly compare the data from year to year because there are differences in how frequently people report crimes and how frequently the FBI gets that data from the local police agencies.’”

While many prominent Democrats, including Mayor Muriel Bowser, have insisted violent crime is at a 30-year low in the city, Agresti told Fox News Digital the “best way to understand the state of violent crime” in any jurisdiction is to look at the number of murders because it is a violent crime that is difficult to “sweep under the rug” because it “produces a dead body.”

WOMAN GUNNED DOWN IN ‘SAFE’ DC NEIGHBORHOOD AS TRUMP LAUNCHES FEDERAL POLICE TAKEOVER

“When we look at the murder data for DC, we see that it is not a situation that is lower now than it’s been in the last 30 years. Quite the opposite,” Agresti explained. “It is currently 83% higher than it was at its low point a dozen years ago. So, there is a serious problem with serious crime, violent crime in D.C., and the city now, the nation’s capital, has a murder rate that is five times the U.S. average.”

The chances of a person facing a violent crime in Washington, D.C., have dropped in recent years, but the possibility of dying during such a crime has skyrocketed, data shows, Fox News Digital reported on Wednesday.

Lethality in D.C. jumped by a whopping 341% when compared to 2012 data, the study found, reporting that there were 13 homicides per 1,000 serious violent crimes in 2012 and 57 homicides per 1,000 serious violent crimes in 2024. 

Agresti explained that while many people operate with the belief that crime spiked across the country during and because of COVID, the issue actually began getting worse specifically when the Black Lives Matter rioting erupted.

CAPITOL HILL STAFFER STABBED IN HEAD, CHEST WELCOMES TRUMP’S WASHINGTON, DC CRIME CRACKDOWN

“That makes a lot of sense,” Agresti said. “Police were vilified. They pulled back out of fear of being hurt. People were talking about defunding the police, and there was overall mayhem in this country. So, that rise, by the way, that people blame on COVID actually didn’t start with COVID, and it didn’t appear in other countries. It happened here where we had these BLM riots.”

Agresti told Fox News Digital there is a “clear connection” between crime in the United States and the “Defund the Police” movement and that most people don’t grasp the “full extent” of the crime problem in this country.

“We had roughly 17,000 murders last year,” Agresti explained. “Imagine if all of them made national news. At the current rate of murders in this county, roughly one in every 230 people in the United States will have their lives cut short by being murdered. That statistic is so unbelievable.”

In addition to the “staggering” facts about murder, Agresti said data compiled by Just Facts shows one in 10 women in the United States are raped in the course of their lives. 

“Think about the horror of that, and beyond all this pain, suffering, death, there’s also a financial cost to crime,” Agresti said. “It’s been quantified in a 2021 academic paper, and, bottom line, crime in all of its forms, pain, death, suffering, financial loss, activities we take to prevent crime, they amount to a cost on our US economy of roughly $40,000 per U.S. household.”

Questions have also been raised about local crime stats from D.C. showing crime is down so far this year, with many pointing to news reports that a D.C. police commander was recently suspended for allegedly altering crime data.

Agresti said anyone can “cherry-pick” crime statistics to promote a specific agenda but that it is important to also realize that many crimes also go unreported due to various factors, including animosity toward police or the belief that calling the police won’t yield results. 

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“The vast majority of crime goes unreported, and another phenomenon that’s really, really disturbing is the amount of crimes that are solved,” Agresti said. “It used to be in this country, in 1960, that 92% of all murders are solved. In 2023, that figure was down to 58%, meaning that 40-plus percent of people who committed murders got away with it, and they’re out there to commit them again.”

As of Thursday, 800 Trump-authorized National Guard troops were in Washington, D.C., supporting other federal law enforcement agencies with “monument security, community safety patrols, protecting federal facilities and officers, traffic control posts and area beautification,” according to the State Department.

Trump’s move to crack down on crime in the capital, which the White House says is happening at levels that dwarf capitals in other far more impoverished countries across the world, has sparked protests led by liberal activists and outrage from some elected Democrats, including House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries.

“When politicians are saying, ‘We don’t have to worry about this, it’s the lowest crime rate in 30 years,’ they are abdicating their responsibility,” Agresti told Fox News Digital. 

“The Declaration of Independence said that governments are instituted to protect the rights of people, including their life, their liberty and the pursuit of happiness. What we have right now is many politicians and governments who are doing an extremely poor job of that, and the pain and suffering is unbelievable. It’s just so broad and so horrible.”

Fox News Digital’s Emma Colton contributed to this report

EXCLUSIVE: First Lady Melania Trump wrote a “peace letter” to Russian President Vladimir Putin telling him “it is time” to protect children and future generations around the globe, Fox News Digital has learned.

Fox News Digital exclusively obtained the “peace letter” the first lady penned to Putin, which  President Trump hand-delivered to the Russian leader before their summit in Alaska, Fox News Digital has learned.

TRUMP RATES PUTIN SUMMIT A ’10 OUT OF 10′ AND TOUTS ‘VERY GOOD PROGRESS’ TOWARD PEACE

Immediately upon receiving the letter, Putin read it as the American and Russian delegations looked on.

“Dear President Putin,” the first lady’s letter begins. “Every child shares the same quiet dreams in their heart, whether born randomly into a nation’s rustic countryside or a magnificent city-center. They dream of love, possibility, and safety from danger.”

“As parents, it is our duty to nurture the next generation’s hope,” the letter continued. “As leaders, the responsibility to sustain our children extends beyond the comfort of a few.”

“Undeniably, we must strive to paint a dignity-filled world for all—so that every soul may wake to peace, and so that the future itself is perfectly guarded,” read the letter. “A simple yet profound concept, Mr. Putin, as I am sure you agree, is that each generation’s descendants begin their lives with a purity—an innocence which stands above geography, government, and ideology.”

The first lady continued that “in today’s world, some children are forced to carry a quiet laughter, untouched by the darkness around them—a silent defiance against the forces that can potentially claim their future.” 

TRUMP REVEALS 10 STRIKING TAKEAWAYS FROM PUTIN SUMMIT IN HANNITY INTERVIEW

“Mr. Putin, you can singlehandedly restore their melodic laughter,” the first lady wrote. “In protecting the innocence of these children, you will do more than serve Russia alone—you serve humanity itself.”

“Such a bold idea transcends all human division, and you, Mr. Putin, are fit to implement this vision with a stroke of the pen today,” she wrote. “It is time.”

Mrs. Trump’s “peace letter” was written ahead of her husband’s historic meeting with Putin in Anchorage, Alaska, Friday. The high-stakes meeting was the first U.S.-Russia summit since June 2021, which was under former President Joe Biden’s administration and only eight months before Putin invaded Ukraine. 

Though Trump and Putin had not met in person in years prior to Friday, they have spoken on the phone numerous times this year to discuss an end to the Russia’s war with Ukraine.

Following the meeting, President Trump, said the summit was “extremely productive,” but that the parties were “not there yet” on ending the war. 

“There were many, many points that we agreed on, most of them, I would say,” Trump told the press following the meeting. “A couple of big ones that we haven’t quite gotten there, but we’ve made some headway. So, there’s no deal until there’s a deal.”

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is expected to travel to Washington D.C. to meet with President Trump on Monday. 

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“On Monday, I will meet with President Trump in Washington, D.C., to discuss all of the details regarding ending the killing and the war. I am grateful for the invitation,” Zelenskyy wrote on X.

Zelenskyy said Trump told him about the main points of his meeting with Putin, adding that he fully supports Trump’s proposal for a trilateral meeting between Ukraine, Russia and the U.S.

A large number of arrests by the newly federalized Washington D.C. Metropolitan Police Department will likely be illegal immigrants, one expert predicts.

Some 29 of the 45 arrests that were announced by the Trump administration Wednesday were illegal immigrants. A day later, 15 of the 33 arrests were illegal immigrants, including a suspect from China.

“It will not be surprising to hear that a significant portion of arrests that occur under the federal intervention will be criminal aliens,” Jessica Vaughan, director of Policy Studies at the Center for Immigration Studies, told Fox News Digital. “Washington, D.C., has long suffered from problems with street gangs that include or are majority illegal alien, in part because of sanctuary policies, but also because prior waves of illegal immigration have led to large Central American diasporas in the region.”

AG BONDI STRIPS POWER FROM DC POLICE CHIEF, RESCINDS SANCTUARY CITY PROTECTIONS IN CRIME CRACKDOWN OPERATION

“Gangs like MS-13 and 18th Street like to set up shop in these areas, so they can recruit, extort, and intimidate the population. Any city that tolerates illegal immigration is going to have a problem with criminal aliens who know they will be shielded from immigration enforcement,” Vaughan added.

This week, Attorney General Pam Bondi scrapped sanctuary policies from the department as part of a move that would override city laws on the matter.

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Earlier today, DC Police Chief Pamela Smith issued an order permitting some cooperation with federal immigration authorities, but stopped short of allowing cooperation for the sole purpose of immigration enforcement.

DC TRAFFIC STOP REPORTING ON ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS A ‘GREAT STEP,’ TRUMP SAYS — OTHER BLUE CITIES COULD BE NEXT

The short-lived Thursday order from Smith permitted officers to begin “sharing information about persons not in MPD custody” such as during “traffic stops” and to provide “transportation for federal immigration agency employees and detained subjects,” according to NBC 4 Washington.

“This intervention by Trump is an opportunity for ICE to make up for years of being hindered by the DC government, and to clear out criminal aliens who have preyed on the law-abiding population of the city. The gangs and predators will no longer have the run of city parks and public spaces the way they have in the recent past, and the ones who are here illegally will be sent home instead of back to the streets,” Vaughan continued.

Since President Donald Trump announced the police takeover on Monday, several federal agencies, along with the National Guard, have been patrolling the streets of Washington, D.C., and they are visible at key locations throughout the capital.

DC POLICE ANNOUNCE MAJOR ACTION ON IMMIGRATION ENFORCEMENT AFTER TRUMP’S CRIME CRACKDOWN

“Under President Trump and [Homeland Security] Secretary [Kristi] Noem’s leadership, ICE law enforcement is being unleashed to keep America safe from dangerous criminals. As the secretary has announced, ICE and CBP have been deployed to help clean up the streets of our nation’s capital,” a Department of Homeland Security spokesperson stated.

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 “Our message is clear: Criminal illegal aliens are not welcome in the United States,” the spokesperson added.

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

President Donald Trump is ready to zoom past a ceasefire and get straight to a peace deal between Russia and Ukraine.

After his high-stakes summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin and ahead of his meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Trump announced his intention to bring a more final end to the war.

“It was determined by all that the best way to end the horrific war between Russia and Ukraine is to go directly to a peace agreement, which would end the war, and not a mere ceasefire agreement, which often times do not hold up,” Trump wrote in a Truth Social post on Saturday.

TRUMP REVEALS 10 STRIKING TAKEAWAYS FROM PUTIN SUMMIT IN HANNITY INTERVIEW

Trump also said that if his meeting with Zelenskyy in D.C. on Monday goes well, they will work to schedule a trilateral meeting with Putin, presumably to get a peace agreement finalized and signed. However, Trump and Zelenskyy have both confirmed that they spoke after the U.S.-Russia summit on Friday.

The president’s rejection of a ceasefire agreement echoes what Zelenskyy has often said regarding a lasting peace, rather than a “pause between Russian invasions.” 

“Today, following a conversation with President Trump, we further coordinated positions with European leaders. The positions are clear. A real peace must be achieved, one that will be lasting, not just another pause between Russian invasions,” Zelenskyy wrote in a post on X on Saturday.

Zelenskyy to meet with Trump in DC after historic Putin summit

European leaders involved in the “Coalition of the Willing,” including U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer, French President Emmanuel Macron and others, also expressed their desire for a “just and lasting peace.” The officials issued a joint statement after Trump and Putin’s meeting, praising U.S. efforts and encouraging them to continue.

“We are also ready to work with President Trump and President Zelenskyy towards a trilateral summit with European support,” the statement read. 

Zelenskyy said on X that he urged Trump to issue sanctions if Russia refuses to partake in a trilateral meeting. The move is possible, as Trump threatened to hit Russia with “very severe” economic consequences if Putin derailed the peace process, but did not explain what that would entail.

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Although Putin and Trump did not reach a deal during their meeting in Alaska, the summit was widely seen as a successful step towards peace. Trump told Fox News’ Sean Hannity in an exclusive interview that the summit was a 10 out of 10 and that Putin wants the war to be “done.”

“We see the desire of the U.S. administration and President Trump personally to facilitate the resolution of the Ukrainian conflict, his desire to delve into the essence and understand its origins,” Putin said in a statement after the meeting, according to a Reuters translation.

Putin reiterated his stance that the conflict with Ukraine is based in security concerns for Russia. He also said that he saw the Ukrainian people as “brotherly” and that “in order for the Ukrainian settlement to be sustainable and long-term, all the root causes of the crisis must be eliminated,” according to Reuters.

It remains to be seen whether Putin would be open to a trilateral meeting to end the brutal years-long war.

The State Department announced on Saturday that it was halting all visitor visas to individuals from Gaza while it reviews the issuing process.

“All visitor visas for individuals from Gaza are being stopped while we conduct a full and thorough review of the process and procedures used to issue a small number of temporary medical-humanitarian visas in recent days,” a post on X from the State Department read.

Neither the State Department nor Secretary of State Marco Rubio commented on what triggered the sudden review.

ISRAEL SECURITY CABINET APPROVES PLAN TO OCCUPY GAZA CITY

In June, the Trump administration began cracking down on vetting for visa applicants. This involved the introduction of a “comprehensive and thorough” review of all applicants’ “online presence.”

“Every visa adjudication is a national security decision. The United States must be vigilant during the visa issuance process to ensure that those applying for admission into the United States do not intend to harm Americans and our national interests, and that all applicants credibly establish their eligibility for the visa sought, including that they intend to engage in activities consistent with the terms for their admission,” the State Department said at the time.

3 EXCLUSIVE ‘GOLDEN’ VISA DESTINATIONS THAT AMERICA’S WEALTHIEST ARE EYEING

Earlier this month, France suspended evacuations from Gaza after a Palestinian student allegedly shared a social media post with an image of Adolf Hitler that called for killing Jews.

French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot told France Info radio that the woman “must leave the country” and that she “has no place” in France.

“No evacuation of any kind will take place until we have drawn the necessary conclusions from this investigation,” Barrot said in the interview. He also vowed there would be a probe into how the Palestinian woman was able to get a student visa.

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The student, later identified as Nour Attaalah, left France for Qatar after the incident.

As of Jan. 1, 2025, the population in Gaza had dropped by 6% since the beginning of the Israel-Hamas war in October 2023, according to Reuters, which cited the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics (PCBS). The outlet noted that this includes approximately 100,000 Palestinians who fled the enclave.

Fox News Digital reached out to the State Department. 

President Donald Trump closed out his 30th week in office of his second term with a high-stakes meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin Friday in Anchorage, Alaska, in an attempt to end the war between Russia and Ukraine. 

The two did not reach a peace agreement, but Trump said that the meeting was a success and that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy will visit the White House in Washington Monday. 

“It was determined by all that the best way to end the horrific war between Russia and Ukraine is to go directly to a Peace Agreement, which would end the war, and not a mere Ceasefire Agreement, which often times do not hold up,” Trump said in a Saturday post on Truth Social. 

If the meeting in Washington with Zelenskyy goes well, Trump said that a trilateral meeting between the U.S., Russia and Ukraine will be scheduled. 

Trump described the meeting with Putin as “very warm,” and said that he believed a deal was imminent. 

“I can tell you, the meeting was a very warm meeting,” Trump told Fox News host Sean Hannity in an exclusive interview. “You know, he’s a strong guy, he’s tough as hell on all of that, but the meeting was a very warm meeting between two very important countries, and it’s very good when they get along. I think we’re pretty close to a deal. Now look, Ukraine has to agree to it.”

Here’s what also happened this week: 

Crime crackdown 

On Monday, Trump announced he would activate approximately 800 National Guard troops and would take over the Metropolitan Police Department to address crime in Washington. The move came after Trump already bolstered federal law enforcement presence in the nation’s capital Saturday. 

“I’m deploying the National Guard to help reestablish law, order and public safety in Washington, D.C.,” Trump told reporters at a Monday press conference. “And they’re going to be allowed to do their job properly.”

TRUMP TAKES CONTROL OF METRO POLICE, DEPLOYS NATIONAL GUARD TO TAKE ON WASHINGTON CRIME

Trump initially suggested federalizing Washington’s Metropolitan Police Department and dispatching National Guard troops to address crime in Washington Aug. 6 in response to the assault of a former Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) staffer. 

Although a temporary federal takeover of the Metropolitan Police Department is warranted for emergency situations, Washington officials filed a lawsuit challenging the Trump administration’s move Friday. 

“By illegally declaring a takeover of MPD, the Administration is abusing its temporary, limited authority under the law,” Washington Attorney General Brian Schwalb wrote in a Friday X post. “This is the gravest threat to Home Rule DC has ever faced, and we are fighting to stop it.”

Smithsonian review

The White House sent a letter to the Smithsonian Tuesday, announcing it would conduct a review of its museums and exhibits leading up to the 250th birthday of the United States in 2025.

“We want the museums to treat our country fairly,” Trump told reporters Thursday. “We want their museums to talk about the history of our country in a fair manner, not in a woke manner or in a racist manner, which is what many of them, not all of them, but many of them are doing.”

“Our museums have an obligation to represent what happened in our country over the years. Good and bad,” Trump said. “But what happened over the years in an accurate way.” 

AMERICAN HISTORY WON’T BE DISPLAYED ‘IN A WOKE MANNER’ AT SMITHSONIAN, TRUMP SAYS

The White House said in a letter Tuesday the review would involve examining social media, exhibition text and educational materials to “assess tone, historical framing, and alignment with American ideals.” 

“This initiative aims to ensure alignment with the President’s directive to celebrate American exceptionalism, remove divisive or partisan narratives, and restore confidence in our shared cultural institutions,” the letter said.

WHITE HOUSE REVIEWING ALL SMITHSONIAN MUSEUM, EXHIBIT CONTENT BEFORE AMERICA 250 CELEBRATION IN 2026

The Smithsonian told Fox News Digital it would coordinate with the White House, Congress and its governing Board of Regents on the matter. 

“The Smithsonian’s work is grounded in a deep commitment to scholarly excellence, rigorous research and the accurate, factual presentation of history,” the Smithsonian said in a statement.

The Department of Homeland Security is touting new data showing that the nation’s illegal immigrant population has plummeted by 1.6 million people since January.

The statistics, from the Center for Immigration Studies, indicate that self-deportations are driving the trend. The federal government has provided financial incentives for illegal immigrants to leave and has run advertisements telling them they can only apply to return if they leave voluntarily.

“In less than 200 days, 1.6 MILLION illegal immigrants have left the United States population,” DHS Secretary Kristi Noem said in a statement on Thursday. “This is massive. This means safer streets, taxpayer savings, pressure off of schools and hospital services and better job opportunities for Americans. Thank you, President Trump!”

The agency says over 1 million people have opted for self-deportation through the CBP Home app. DHS began offering $1,000 and free travel out of the United States to those seeking to leave the country on their own and who do not have a criminal background outside of their immigration status.

TOM HOMAN PUTS SANCTUARY CITIES ‘ON NOTICE’ AS TRUMP ADMINISTRATION CRACKS DOWN ON IMMIGRATION

Meanwhile, Washington, D.C., is becoming an example from the Trump administration to sanctuary cities around the country, as Attorney General Pam Bondi ordered that officers cooperate with federal immigration authorities and put Drug Enforcement Administration Administrator Terry Cole in an oversight role of the police force.

“I sent out 33 letters to mayors around this country. I think three or four of them were in California alone. Not surprising. I sent out letters to all of these mayors and to the governors saying, “You must comply.’ we want to know what you’re doing to comply with our federal government,” Bondi said on “Hannity” on Thursday night.

Tensions are high between Democratic leadership and federal law enforcement in sanctuary cities, as there were immigration authorities outside Gov. Gavin Newsom’s rally in Los Angeles on Thursday, and at least one arrest was made by U.S. Border Patrol.

NEWSOM OFFICE DISMISSES CRIME FEARS, DEFENDS SANCTUARY POLICIES AMID SURGE IN VIOLENCE: ‘FAKE NEWS’

“WE WILL NOT BE INTIMIDATED BY WEAK LITTLE DONALD TRUMP, THE CRIMINAL PRESIDENT!” Newsom’s office told Fox News Digital in an email.

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Some New York City leaders are also making critical comparisons to rebuke the Trump administration’s immigration policies.

“When I look at the visuals of ICE agents masked on the street, taking people from their homes, taking people who are rightfully showing up for court. It reminds me of something that some of my ancestors had to go through, which is the KKK,” New York City Council Member Nantasha Williams said this week.

AMERICA’S CRIME DROP ISN’T A COINCIDENCE. TRUMP’S IMMIGRATION POLICIES ARE WORKING

Many Democrats have likened ICE agents to Nazis since Trump took office.

“I’m gonna start with the flashing red light — Donald Trump’s modern-day Gestapo is scooping folks up off the streets,” former vice presidential nominee and Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz said in May. “They’re in unmarked vans, wearing masks, being shipped off to foreign torture dungeons. No chance to mount a defense. Not even a chance to kiss a loved one goodbye. Just grabbed up by masked agents, shoved into those vans, and disappeared.” 

“I don’t know of any police department that routinely wears masks. We know that there are other groups that routinely wear masks. NSC-131 routinely wears masks,” Boston Mayor Michelle Wu said in June, referencing a neo-Nazi group. 

DHS says that ICE agents are facing a 1,000% increase in assaults since last year. 

“We will not and have not let this violence stop us or slow us down. Everyday our law enforcement continues to enforce the law and arrest the most depraved criminals including pedophiles, terrorists, murderers, gang members, and sexual predators,” Noem stated earlier this month as ICE seeks to hire thousands of more agents.

President Trump is touting the immigration crackdown, as the administration says the efforts to remove illegal immigrants from the country will lead to less of a strain on public resources.

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“We want to stop crime. I think if the Democrats aren’t strong on this issue, they won’t be able to do it. I think this is a bigger issue than all of the other ridiculous things that like open borders,” he said Thursday. 

Fox News Digital’s Peter Pinedo contributed to this report.

Democratic House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries again declined to issue an endorsement of New York City socialist mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani and said the recent controversy over Mamdani living in a rent-stabilized apartment is a “legitimate issue.”

“Well listen, that’s an issue for the state legislators and the state government to work out,” Jeffries told CNBC on Thursday morning when asked about Mamdani living in a rent-stabilized apartment in Queens despite making close to $150,000 a year. 

When pressed about New Yorkers who make far less and don’t have access to rent-controlled apartments, Jeffries said, “It’s a legitimate issue that has been raised, and the campaign is going to have to address it.”

Mamdani has faced intensifying criticism for living in the rent-controlled apartment while campaigning on the need for affordable housing, including from his opponent, former Gov. Andrew Cuomo, who has floated legislation that he has dubbed “Zohran’s Law” to prevent high-income individuals from occupying rent-stabilized apartments. 

OBAMA’S CALL TO MAMDANI ‘NORMALIZES’ THE DEMOCRATIC SOCIALIST CANDIDATE, SHARPTON SAYS

Mamdani, who has previously acknowledged that he hails from a wealthy family, has said he rented the $2,300-per-month apartment before he became an assemblyman and did not know at the time he signed the lease that it was a rent-stabilized apartment. 

This week, Mamdani was hit with an ethics complaint urging a probe into the situation and questioning whether the socialist candidate received improper assistance securing subsidized housing.

“Right-wing think tanks and MAGA billionaires’ pathetic attempts to distract from Zohran Mamdani’s mission to make NYC more affordable will fail, just as they did in the primary where New Yorkers resoundingly rejected Andrew Cuomo in a humiliating defeat,” Mamdani spokesperson Dora Pekec told the New York Post regarding the ethics complaint.

‘NOT WELCOME HERE’: STATEN ISLAND ACTIVIST ARRESTED AFTER CONFRONTING NYC MAYORAL CANDIDATE

Jeffries legitimizing the critique of Mamdani sparked some pushback online from users who suggested Jeffries was wrong to side against Mamdani. 

“Starting to think this guy shouldn’t be leader,” former Democratic speechwriter Alex Bradley posted on X. “Weak where it matters, not a team player.”

“What a coward,” NYU’s Institute for Public Knowledge Associate Director Michael Koncewicz posted on X. “It’s deeply embarrassing that Jeffries is a leader of the Democratic Party.”

A headline from Mediaite characterized Jeffries’s comment as having thrown Mamdani “under the bus.”

Cuomo and Mamdani have been going back and forth with jabs on the issue after Cuomo called Mamdani out in a social media post that has been seen over 30 million times, calling on Mamdani “to move out immediately and give your affordable housing back to an unhoused family who need it.”

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In the CNBC interview, Jeffries also declined to officially endorse Mamdani despite praising his primary performance where he “outworked” his opponents.

“But now, during the general election, of course, he’s going to have to demonstrate to a broader electorate, including in many of the neighborhoods that I represent in Brooklyn, that his ideas can actually be put into reality, and that’s the conversation that he’s having with me and having with people who are community leaders and residents in the 8th Congressional District I serve.”

Fox News Digital’s Alec Schemmel contributed to this report

The federal takeover of policing in Washington D.C. sparked protests near Union Station Thursday night,with demonstrators calling police and National Guard officers “Nazis.”

“You guys safe over here? You guys safe? Are you guys being murdered?” one protester was heard sarcastically asking officers. Others said they are “betraying” the country and “terrorizing the community.”

“You will never know a moment of peace,” one man said, accusing the officers of being “Nazis.”

“Sad incel car. Sad incel car, look at that,” a woman shouted as a Tesla Cybertruck is stopped.

DC’S SOFT-ON-CRIME LEADERS LET TEENS RUN WILD, OPENED DOOR FOR TRUMP TAKEOVER: POLICE GROUP

“Y’all are the reason why our country is going downhill,” a protester shouted at officers during a traffic stop.

President Donald Trump announced the move on Monday, and the National Guard and a variety of federal agencies, including ICE and the FBI, have been patrolling and conducting operations throughout the city. Some arrests have already been made, including dozens of illegal immigrants.

Attorney General Pam Bondi initially ordered that Drug Enforcement Administration Administrator Terry Cole be in charge of the Metropolitan Police Department as an “emergency police commissioner,” although that directive was later changed to ensure Cole worked with Mayor Muriel Bowser. Bondi also ordering more compliance between local police and federal immigration authorities.

‘RADICAL’ DC OFFICIALS TREATED OFFICERS ‘LIKE CRAP,’ POLICE LEADER SAYS – 7 ATTACKS THAT LED TO TRUMP TAKEOVER

Democrats have criticized the takeover as an overreach, with members of Congress asking for a resolution to terminate the “crime emergency” that was declared by the Trump administration.

“President Trump’s incursions against D.C. are among the most egregious attacks on D.C. home rule in decades. D.C. residents are Americans, worthy of the same autonomy granted to residents of the states,” Rep. Eleanor Holmes Norton, who represents D.C. as a delegate, said in a statement.

“Our local police force, paid for by D.C. residents, should not be subject to federalization, an action that wouldn’t be possible for any other police department in the country. No emergency exists in D.C. that the president did not create himself, and he is not using the D.C. Police for federal purposes, as required by law,” she added.

TRUMP ACTIVATES NATIONAL GUARD TROOPS TO ADDRESS ‘TOTALLY OUT OF CONTROL’ CRIME IN WASHINGTON

Meanwhile, the White House blasted the resolution, as the Trump administration said the intention is to lower crime in the capital city.

“But instead of supporting what should be a bipartisan measure to Make DC Safe Again, Democrats are burying their heads in the sand, denying there is a problem, and carrying the torch for dangerous criminals that terrorize DC communities,” White House spokeswoman Abigail Jackson told Fox News Digital.

“D.C. residents know the reality on the ground – crime was out of control and President Trump’s actions are making the city safer. The left’s refusal to support widely popular issues with the American public – like stopping violent crime – are why their approval ratings are at historic lows and will continue to tank,” she added. 

The city is suing over the action, arguing that it hinders the ability of the district to self-govern.

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“We are suing to block the federal government takeover of D.C. police. By illegally declaring a takeover of MPD, the Administration is abusing its temporary, limited authority under the law. This is the gravest threat to Home Rule DC has ever faced, and we are fighting to stop it,” D.C. Attorney General Brian Schwalb posted to X on Friday. 

“The federal government’s power over DC is not absolute, and it should not be exercised as such. Section 740 of the Home Rule Act permits the President to request MPD’s services. But it can only be done temporarily, for special emergencies, and solely for federal purposes,” he added.

Fox News Digital’s Alex Nitzberg contributed to this report.