NationalWatch

Former Obama administration officials named in new revelations surrounding the origins of the Trump-Russia investigation have been silent amid allegations they “manufactured” intelligence that led to the opening of the yearslong probe.

On Friday, Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard declassified documents revealing “overwhelming evidence” that demonstrated how, after President Donald Trump won the 2016 election against Hillary Clinton, then-President Barack Obama and his national security team laid the groundwork for what would be the yearslong Trump–Russia collusion probe.

OBAMA ADMIN ‘MANUFACTURED’ INTELLIGENCE TO CREATE 2016 RUSSIAN ELECTION INTERFERENCE NARRATIVE, DOCUMENTS SHOW

Gabbard said the documents revealed that Obama administration officials “manufactured and politicized intelligence” to create the narrative that Russia was attempting to influence the 2016 presidential election, despite information from the intelligence community stating otherwise.

The new documents name former President Barack Obama, top officials in his National Security Council, then-Director of National Intelligence James Clapper, then-CIA Director John Brennan, then-National Security Advisor Susan Rice, then-Secretary of State John Kerry, then-Attorney General Loretta Lynch, and then-Deputy FBI Director Andrew McCabe, among others.

Gabbard, on Monday, sent a criminal referral to the Justice Department related to those findings. DOJ officials did not share further details on whom the criminal referral was for.

Gabbard told Fox News Digital that this “is not a partisan issue,” but one that “concerns every American.”

DOJ RECEIVES GABBARD’S CRIMINAL REFERRAL ON BOMBSHELL CLAIMS OBAMA ADMIN ‘MANUFACTURED’ RUSSIAN COLLUSION HOAX

“The information we are releasing today clearly shows there was a treasonous conspiracy in 2016 committed by officials at the highest level of our government,” Gabbard told Fox News Digital. “Their goal was to subvert the will of the American people and enact what was essentially a years-long coup with the objective of trying to usurp the President from fulfilling the mandate bestowed upon him by the American people.”

Gabbard said the “egregious abuse of power and blatant rejection of our Constitution” by Obama-era officials “threatens the very foundation and integrity of our democratic republic.”

“No matter how powerful, every person involved in this conspiracy must be investigated and prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law, to ensure nothing like this ever happens again,” Gabbard said. “The American people’s faith and trust in our democratic republic, and therefore the future of our nation, depends on it.”

FBI LAUNCHES CRIMINAL INVESTIGATIONS OF JOHN BRENNAN, JAMES COMEY: DOJ SOURCES

Gabbard added: “As such, I am providing all documents to the Department of Justice to deliver the accountability that President Trump, his family, and the American people deserve.”

Gabbard’s criminal referral comes just a week after CIA Director John Ratcliffe sent a criminal referral for Brennan.

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FBI Director Kash Patel opened a criminal investigation into Brennan and former FBI Director James Comey for potential wrongdoing related to the Trump-Russia probe, including allegedly making false statements to Congress, Justice Department sources told Fox News Digital.

None of the former Obama-era officials have responded to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.

FIRST ON FOX: The Democratic National Committee (DNC) on Tuesday launched billboards outside three rural hospitals that Democrats say are closing or cutting back services due to President Donald Trump’s recently signed domestic policy package.

The DNC says it placed billboards in Silex, Missouri; Stillwell, Oklahoma; and Missoula, Montana, to make sure that rural voters, who overwhelmingly supported Trump in last year’s presidential election, “know who is responsible for gutting rural health care.”

The Democrats’ national party committee, in taking aim at the sweeping and controversial tax cut and spending measure, named the “One Big Beautiful Bill” by Trump and congressional Republicans, argued that “residents are already seeing the firsthand effects of Trump’s Budget Betrayal.”

The billboards were shared first with Fox News Digital on Tuesday morning.

RNC CHAIR SAYS ‘BIG BEAUTIFUL BILL’ KEY TO GOP’S MESSAGING EFFORT HEADED INTO MIDTERMS

The measure is stuffed full of Trump’s 2024 campaign trail promises and second-term priorities on tax cuts, immigration, defense, energy and the debt limit. 

It includes extending the president’s signature 2017 tax cuts and eliminating taxes on tips and overtime pay. 

By making his first-term tax rates permanent — they were set to expire later this year — the bill will cut taxes by nearly $4.4 trillion over the next decade, according to analysis by the Congressional Budget Office and the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget.

POLITICAL FIGHT OVER ‘BIG BEAUTIFUL BILL’ IS FRONT-AND-CENTER IN KEY SENATE RACE

The measure also provides billions for border security and codifies the president’s controversial immigration crackdown.

The $3.4 trillion legislative package is also projected to surge the national debt by $4 trillion over the next decade, but many Republicans dispute the projection by the Congressional Budget Office (CBO).

And the new law also restructures Medicaid — the almost 60-year-old federal program that provides health coverage to roughly 71 million low-income Americans. The CBO this week estimated that 10 million people could lose their health insurance over the next decade.

The changes to Medicaid, as well as cuts to food stamps, another one of the nation’s major safety net programs, were drafted in part as an offset to pay for extending Trump’s tax cuts. The measure includes a slew of new rules and regulations, including work requirements for many of those seeking Medicaid coverage.

Democrats, for months, have repeatedly blasted Republicans over the social safety net changes. And they spotlighted a slew of national polls last month and this month that indicate the bill’s popularity in negative territory.

WHAT’S ACTUALLY IN TRUMP’S ‘BIG BEAUTIFUL BILL’

The DNC claims that the bill, which Trump signed into law on July 4 after the GOP-controlled House and Senate narrowly passed the measure along near-party-line votes, will gut Medicaid, forcing rural hospitals and nursing homes to close their doors. 

“Rural hospitals were already on the brink of collapse thanks to Donald Trump, but now he has put the last nail in the coffin for rural hospitals with his billionaire budget bill,” DNC chair Ken Martin argued in a statement to Fox News.

Martin highlighted that “in states across the country, hospitals are either closing their doors or cutting critical services, and it’s Trump’s own voters who will suffer the most. This is what Donald Trump does — screw over the people who are counting on him.”

Republican National Committee (RNC) chair Michael Whatley, in an interview with Fox News Digital last week, spotlighted that “if you take a look at the Medicaid side of this conversation, the fact is that we’re going to be moving illegal aliens off of Medicaid. We’re going to be strengthening the program. Those are things that absolutely need to happen.”

FIRST ON FOX: HOUSE REPUBLICANS LAUNCH FIRST ADS TOUTING ‘BIG, BEAUTIFUL BILL’

And he argued that “the tax cuts are going to be very, very strong indicators, no tax on tips, no tax on overtime, no tax on Social Security. Plus we’re extending those Trump tax cuts. This is going to help every family in every community all across the country.”

Included in the megabill is a $60 billion fund, named the Rural Health Transformation Program, which Republicans say would offset cuts to Medicaid and would also help overcome long-standing health disparities that rural communities have faced.

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But the DNC says their new analysis “shows this funding was never going to be enough to make a difference.”

And the DNC points to a non-partisan breakdown of the new law, which says that half of the rural hospital funding will be split evenly among all states that apply, regardless of need.

Both parties see the “big, beautiful bill” as a key part of their messaging heading into next year’s midterm elections, when the Republicans will be defending their slim majorities in the House and Senate.

President Donald Trump slammed Rep. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., calling the lawmaker “the worst Republican Congressman” in a Monday night Truth Social post, while noting that he is seeking a challenger he can support against the incumbent lawmaker.

“Thomas Massie, the worst Republican Congressman, and an almost guaranteed NO VOTE each and every time, is an Embarrassment to Kentucky. He’s lazy, slow moving, and totally disingenuous – A real loser! Never has anything positive to add. Looking for someone good to run against this guy, someone I can Endorse and vigorously campaign for!” Trump declared in the post.

The president’s post linked to a video by MAGA KY targeting the congressman for ouster. “Let’s fire Thomas Massie,” the voiceover declares.

ELON MUSK INDICATES HE’LL DONATE TO REP. THOMAS MASSIE, A REPUBLICAN WHO HAS BEEN EXCORIATED BY TRUMP

Fox News Digital reached out to Massie early on Tuesday morning, but did not receive a response by the time of publication.

Massie, a fiscal hawk, voted against passage of the Trump-backed One Big Beautiful Bill Act.

TRUMP SAYS MASSIE IS ‘GONNA BE HISTORY’ AS ‘BIG, BEAUTIFUL BILL’ JUMPS FINAL HURDLES TO PASSAGE

Trump has been a vociferous critic of the congressman.

In a Truth Social post last month, the president asserted that Massie “is not MAGA,” and declared, “we will have a wonderful American Patriot running against him in the Republican Primary, and I’ll be out in Kentucky campaigning really hard.”

TARGETED BY TRUMP, REPUBLICAN REP. THOMAS MASSIE HAULS IN CAMPAIGN CASH

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Billionaire business tycoon Elon Musk has indicated that he will donate to support Massie’s re-election bid.

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

– Biden’s stunning exit, one year later: The dropout heard around  the country

– Russia bombards Ukraine hours before key meeting on Trump NATO weapons deal

– Democratic socialists torch AOC for voting against Republican anti-Israel funding amendment

Fed Chair Powell Hit with Criminal Referral by Trump House GOP Ally

FIRST ON FOX: Rep. Anna Paulina Luna, R-Fla., is referring Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell to the Department of Justice (DOJ) for criminal charges, accusing him of two specific instances of lying under oath.

Luna is accusing Powell of perjury on two occasions, according to a letter to the DOJ first obtained by Fox News Digital.

It comes as conservative Trump allies continue to demand that Powell, a Trump appointee himself, be fired before his term expires in mid-2026… READ MORE.

White House

POLLING PLUNGE: One year after Biden’s unprecedented exit from 2024 race, Democrats poll numbers at rock bottom

CAMPUS CRACKDOWN: FIRST ON FOX: Columbia professors demand answers as White House finalizes negotiations with Ivy League university

‘ENORMOUS MISTAKE’: Few presidents have bowed out like Biden. Historians explain what it means

END OF THE LINE: Maurene Comey fired from Trump DOJ after she ‘failed’ in two major cases, expert says: ‘Absolute mess’

‘WOULD-BE-KINGS’: DNC vice chair compares President Trump to notorious segregationists during heated town hall event

‘COMPLETE DISASTER’: Trump demands end to cashless bail, says ‘complete disaster’ driving crime in cities, endangering police

‘POLITICIZED’ INTEL: DOJ receives Gabbard’s criminal referral on bombshell claims Obama admin ‘manufactured’ Russian collusion hoax

World Stage

KREMLIN CARNAGE: Russia bombards Ukraine hours ahead of key meeting on Trump NATO weapons deal

CLOCK TICKING: UK backs Trump’s Putin ultimatum with urgent ’50-day drive’ to strengthen Ukraine’s position

PROMISES KEPT: Trump heads to Scotland, continues ironing out trade deals after notching six months back in office

RED-TAPE FIASCO: Dispute over Christian groups’ visas to Israel resolved after Huckabee threat

Capitol Hill

HOLD ‘ACCOUNTABLE’: ‘Clear corruption’: Jeffries faces complaint for pressing judges to fire Alina Habba

DEFUND THE DEFIANT: Republican bill would put ‘anarchist jurisdictions’ on notice, threaten federal funding

BORDER WARRIOR: Scoop: Republican launches House bid in key swing district GOP aims to flip in 2026 midterms

DEMS IN DISARRAY: Democratic socialists torch AOC for voting against Republican anti-Israel funding amendment

‘SQUAD’ TARGETED: AOC campaign office vandalized with anti-Israel message after vote on Republican amendment

TABLES TURNED: VIDEO: Tables turn as House GOP blasts Dems for suddenly demanding Epstein transparency from Trump admin

Across America 

POWER PLAY: Red state map battle heats up as Trump pushes Texas plan to reshape congressional districts

SPELL CHECK: Zohran Mamdani fires back at White House mispronouncing his name: ‘M-A-M-D-A-N-I’

‘ROSETTA STONE’: Epstein’s former lawyer: Ghislaine Maxwell should get immunity in exchange for secrets

IN CUSTODY: Noem blames ‘sanctuary’ policies for migrant accused of shooting off-duty CBP officer

RADIO SILENCE: Mamdani silent after Border Patrol officer allegedly shot by illegal immigrant in NYC

LEAD, BUT NO LOCK: Poll Position: Mamdani’s the frontrunner, but isn’t running away with NYC mayoral race just yet

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

The head of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) is blasting leading New York mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani for his “deafening” silence in the wake of Saturday night’s shooting of a Customs and Border Protection officer in a city park. 

In a statement to Fox News Digital, acting ICE Director Todd Lyons said, “The silence from Zohran Mamdani is not just deafening, it’s deliberate, disturbing, and sadly predictable.”  

Lyons went on to say that Mamdani’s “reckless anti-law enforcement policy positions would endanger legal, law-abiding New Yorkers.” 

“His silence in the face of this brutal attack speaks volumes about where his priorities lie, and it’s not with public safety and the American people,” said Lyons. 

BORDER PATROL SAYS SOME ILLEGAL MIGRANTS ARRESTED IN SACRAMENTO RAID HAD CRIMINAL HISTORIES

This comes after an alleged attempted robbery by two criminal illegal immigrants, Dominican nationals Cristian Aybar Berroa and Miguel Francisco Mora Nunez, led to a shootout in which an off-duty CBP officer was struck in the face and forearm. He has been hospitalized and is in stable condition. 

Nunez was shot in the leg and groin during the shootout, police said. He was dropped off at a hospital in the Bronx, according to authorities. Both suspects have been apprehended. 

In response to the shooting, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said New York City sanctuary policies are responsible. 

DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin told Fox News Digital that “sanctuary politicians must condemn this violence and put the safety and security of our citizens first.”

“Make no mistake: these criminal illegal aliens pulled the trigger, but Zohran Mamdani, and other sanctuary politicians in this country have blood on their hands,” said McLaughlin, adding, “Secretary Noem is calling on every politician at every level of government to abandon these reckless, lawless policies and stop playing Russian roulette with American lives.” 

HOUSE REPUBLICANS CRITICIZE DEMOCRATS FOR ANTI-ICE RHETORIC

She added that DHS “will continue to flood the zone in sanctuary cities and remove these criminals one by one.” 

Meanwhile, Mamdani, who, as the Democratic nominee, is the likely frontrunner for New York City mayor, has yet to address the incident. 

Mamdani’s social media posts and website show no public statement on the matter, which has become national news and sparked a broader discussion of President Joe Biden’s border policies and criticism of sanctuary cities.

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

Mamdani has been widely criticized for his previous calls to defund the police and his stated opposition to working with Trump to deport illegal immigrants if he is elected mayor in November. After winning the primary race in June, Mamdani said he would halt “masked” U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officials from “deporting our neighbors.” 

The mayoral hopeful announced on Sunday that he was headed to Uganda “in a personal capacity” to celebrate his marriage to his wife, Rama, with their family and friends.

NOEM BLAMES ‘SANCTUARY’ POLICIES FOR MIGRANT ACCUSED OF SHOOTING OFF-DUTY CBP OFFICER

“I do want to apologize to the haters, because I will be coming back,” he said, adding he would return to New York City “by the end of the month.”

Some of Mamdani’s opponents have responded to the shooting by calling for the arrest of criminal illegals.

On Monday, Mayor Eric Adams said he would “welcome” the Trump administration sending more ICE agents to New York City if they “go after dangerous people like this individual who shot an innocent Customs and Border Patrol agent.”

Adams noted, however, that “if it’s going to be to go after everyday individuals who are trying to complete the path to be a citizen, I don’t think we should do that.”

Republican mayoral nominee Curtis Sliwa has said, “I am the only candidate on the ballot who opposes sanctuary city status. Adams, Cuomo, and Mamdani all support it.”

Former Gov. Andrew Cuomo, who is running for mayor as an independent, did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.

BLUE STATE POLITICIANS REPEATEDLY ALLOWED CRIMINAL MIGRANTS TO RUN RAMPANT THROUGH AMERICAN CITIES: BEN DOMENECH

Federal immigration authorities have faced an increase in public scrutiny from Democrats and left-wing activist groups, even to the point of violence. Border Patrol was targeted in an ambush earlier this month at an annex facility in McAllen, Texas, where a local police officer was hit in the leg, and two Border Patrol personnel were injured. The gunman was killed.

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In addition, 12 individuals are facing charges, including 10 for attempted murder of federal officers, in an Independence Day attack outside the Prairieland Detention Center in Alvarado, Texas, intended to target ICE agents. A police officer was shot in the neck but is expected to recover, and cars were vandalized.

Overall, ICE agents have faced an 830% increase in assaults since this time last year as the Trump administration continues to ramp up deportation and immigration enforcement efforts, according to DHS.

Fox News Digital’s Andrew Mark Miller and Deirdre Heavey contributed to this report.

The White House called out Hunter Biden after he slammed the Trump administration’s immigration policies in a recent web series interview.

The younger Biden echoed a popular Democratic talking point during a heated rant while appearing on Channel 5 with Andrew Callaghan.

“Am I not supposed to feel for someone? Am I going to be like all these Democrats say, ‘You have to talk about and realize that people are really upset about illegal immigration?’ F— you. How do you think your hotel room gets cleaned?” Biden later added.

“How do you think you got food on your f—ing table?” he continued. “Who do you think washes your dishes? Who do you think does your f—ing garden? Who do you think is here? By the f—ing sheer f—ing just grit and will that they figured out a way to get here because they thought that they could give themselves and their family a better chance.”

JOHN KERRY ADMITS TRUMP WAS ‘RIGHT’ ON BORDER, SAYS HE TOLD BIDEN THAT DEMOCRATS MISSED ON IMMIGRATION

The White House pulled no punches after the interview from Biden, who was a major player behind the scenes during the Biden administration and faced a lot of scrutiny for his past overseas business dealings.

“A CBP agent was just shot in the face by two criminal illegal aliens that Joe Biden let into the country but Hunter is more concerned about who is going to clean up his hotel room after his benders,” Abigail Jackson, White House spokeswoman, told Fox News Digital.

“This sort of callous, self-interested maliciousness from the entire Biden Crime Family is exactly why Joe Biden left office with record-low approval ratings,” Jackson added.

The administration has sent those believed or known to be from designated foreign terrorist organizations, like MS-13, to the prison in El Salvador, as Immigration and Customs Enforcement continues to ramp up immigration operations across the country, including in sanctuary cities. Meanwhile, many people in the country illegally have opted to self-deport, as the Department of Homeland Security is offering $1,000 and free travel out of the country for those without an additional criminal background.

OBAMA SEEMS TO SWIPE AT TRUMP IMMIGRATION CRACKDOWN, SAYING MIGRANTS ‘TREATED AS ENEMIES’

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Democrats have repeatedly gotten into hot water for mentioning the service and agricultural industries to counteract Trump’s stances on immigration.

Famously, Kelly Osbourne was slammed for saying, “If you kick every Latino out of this country, then who is going to be cleaning your toilets? Donald Trump?” on “The View” in 2015, which she later apologized for.

“We have a shortage of workers in our country, and you see even in Florida, some of the farmers and the growers saying, ‘Why are you shipping these immigrants up North? We need them to pick the crops down here,'” Rep. Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., said in 2022 when she was speaker of the House. 

More recently, Rep. Jasmine Crockett, D-Texas, faced scrutiny for remarks at the South by Southwest Festival in March.

“How many of you are sending your kids to college?” Crockett said.  “How many of you are sending your kids to college to go and work on the farms?”

“Now, how many of you are looking to send your kids into hospitality after this college education so that they can go and make the beds at the hotels?” the Democrat asked. 

“How many of you are planning to send your kids to college – because that’s what we do, we send everybody to college – how many of you are planning to send your kids to college so that they can then go and build these houses?” Crockett continued. 

In the interview, the former president’s son also called both President Donald Trump and El Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele a “dictator,” and referred to the Central American nation’s terrorism confinement center as a likely “death camp.”

WHISTLEBLOWER ACCUSES BIDEN ADMIN OF LEAVING THOUSANDS OF MIGRANT CHILD TRAFFICKING REPORTS UNINVESTIGATED

“What we’re going to do is we’re going to send masked men to this marginalized group and we are going to take them, put them on planes, put them on buses, put them on trains, and send them to a prison camp in a foreign country,” he said in an interview with the “Channel 5 with Andrew Callaghan” YouTube channel. “What am I describing right then? Am I describing Germany? Am I describing the United States right now? Because I will tell you what, if you think that the prison in El Salvador is not a f—ing concentration camp, you’re out of your f—ing mind.”

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Biden was granted a pardon by his father in December for any crimes he “has committed or may have committed” dating back to 2014. Biden said his son was “being selectively, and unfairly, prosecuted” after he was convicted in two federal cases in 2024 for tax and firearm offenses.

“I have admitted and taken responsibility for my mistakes during the darkest days of my addiction – mistakes that have been exploited to publicly humiliate and shame me and my family for political sport,” Hunter Biden said in a statement at the time.  

“Is it really a surprise that Hunter Biden has no respect for Americans who are upset about the criminal illegal aliens let into our country by Joe Biden? Under Biden’s reckless open-border policies, terrorists, gang members, murderers, and child pedophiles were released into American communities,” DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin stated in response to Biden’s podcast comments.

“These policies had real consequences. Young Americans, like Laken Riley and Jocelyn Nungaray, lost their lives because of illegal aliens who should have never been in this country. Just two days ago, two illegal aliens who entered our country and were released under President Biden shot and nearly killed one of our brave off-duty CBP officers. President Trump and Secretary Noem will never abandon these victims or their families. DHS will continue to deliver on the mandate of the American people to make America safe again,” she added.

Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard announced the release of over 230,000 files related to the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. in response to an executive order from President Donald Trump.

“The American people have waited nearly 60 years to see the full scope of the federal government’s investigation into Dr. King’s assassination,” Gabbard said. “Under President Trump’s leadership, we are ensuring that no stone is left unturned in our mission to deliver complete transparency on this pivotal and tragic event in our nation’s history. I extend my deepest appreciation to the King family for their support.”

The files are being released as part of Trump’s commitment to release previously-classified documents related to King, as well as President John F. Kennedy and Sen. Robert F. Kennedy.

The latest batch of files includes details about the investigation conducted by the FBI into King’s assassination.

CIA RELEASES DECLASSIFIED DOCUMENTS PER TRUMP ORDER ON ROBERT F KENNEDY ASSASSINATION

Some of the documents pertain to a discussion of potential leads, internal FBI memos regarding the progress of the case, and those related to James Earl Ray’s former cellmate, who stated he discussed an alleged assassination plot with Ray.

Additionally, the release has foreign evidence from Canadian police regarding Ray’s fleeing from the country after King’s assassination.

“The American people deserve answers decades after the horrific assassination of one of our nation’s great leaders,” said Attorney General Pamela Bondi. “The Department of Justice is proud to partner with Director Gabbard and the ODNI at President Trump’s direction for this latest disclosure.”

DNI GABBARD REFERS INTEL OFFICIALS TO DOJ FOR PROSECUTION OVER ALLEGED LEAKS OF CLASSIFIED INFORMATION

King’s children, Bernice and Martin Luther King III, had previously opposed the release of the documents, and on Monday released a statement.

“We recognize that the release of documents concerning the assassination of our father, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., has long been a subject of interest, captivating public curiosity for decades,” the statement read on X. “As the children of Dr. King and Mrs. Coretta Scott King, his tragic death has been an intensely personal grief – a devastating loss for his wife, children, and the granddaughter he never met – an absence our family has endured for over 57 years. We ask those who engage with the release of these files to do so with empathy, restraint, and respect for our family’s continuing grief.”

DNI TULSI GABBARD REFERS ALLEGED INTELLIGENCE LEAKERS FOR PROSECUTION; DETAILS POSSIBLE MOTIVES

Gabbard announced in April that documents related to the 1968 assassinations of RFK and MLK would be released in the coming days, noting that over 100 people were “working around the clock” to scan paperwork related to both killings and subsequent investigations.

She told Trump during a cabinet meeting at the White House in April that the documents had been sitting in storage for decades and had never been scanned or seen prior.

Upon taking office, Trump issued an executive order to declassify files on the assassinations of King, a civil rights icon who was gunned down on April 4, 1968, outside his second-floor Tennessee hotel room in Memphis.

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The newly released files can be viewed by visiting the National Archives website at www.archives.gov.

Senate Republican leadership is weighing whether to cancel, or shorten, their upcoming August break following President Donald Trump’s request to stay in town and finish confirming his outstanding nominees. 

Over the last six months, the Senate has moved at a breakneck pace to confirm the president’s nominees all while facing resistance from Senate Democrats. So far, 96 of Trump’s nominees have been confirmed. Still, there are 136 outstanding nominations on the upper chamber’s calendar that haven’t made it over the finish line.

Year in and year out, lawmakers typically escape from the Hill for the entire month of August, either recuperating from months in Washington, D.C., or selling their legislative accomplishments to people back home.

CONGRESSIONAL REPUBLICANS FACE BRUISING BATTLE TO AVOID GOVERNMENT SHUTDOWN

But Trump on Sunday called on Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., to keep lawmakers in town to finish their work on confirming his slew of outstanding nominees.

“Hopefully the very talented John Thune, fresh off our many victories over the past two weeks and, indeed, 6 months, will cancel August recess (and long weekends!), in order to get my incredible nominees confirmed,” Trump said on his social media platform Truth Social. “We need them badly!!! DJT”

‘LONG OVERDUE’: SENATE REPUBLICANS RAM THROUGH TRUMP’S CLAWBACK PACKAGE WITH CUTS TO FOREIGN AID, NPR

Thune said he had spoken with the president about the August recess issue, but did not say whether the entire break would be canceled. A senior GOP aide told Fox News Digital that discussions over shortening the August recess were already happening before Trump’s request.

“We’re thinking about it,” Thune said. “We want to get as many noms through the pipeline as we can. And honestly, it’d be nice to have Democrats who actually would kind of act more according to historical precedents when it comes to this.”

The remaining spots that need to be filled run across nearly every facet of the federal government, including positions in the Defense Department, Environmental Protection Agency, Commerce Department and a slew of ambassadors, among others.

‘ONE MORE’: SENATE REPUBLICANS EYE TACKLING ANOTHER RECONCILIATION BILL

Among the remaining nominees are some familiar faces from the 2024 election and beyond, including Hung Cao, who ran against Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Va., and was nominated as Navy undersecretary; Donald Trump Jr.’s ex-fiancee Kimberly Guilfoyle, who was tapped to be the U.S. ambassador to Greece, and former Rep. Marc Molinaro, R-N.Y., who was nominated to be Federal Transit administrator.

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Thune accused Senate Democrats of being obstructionist and noted that so far, not a single nominee has been approved through the fast-track voice vote or unanimous consent processes. Indeed, every nominee has been put to a floor vote. Only Secretary of State Marco Rubio received a near unanimous, 99 to 0, vote.

Earlier this year, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., supported delaying all the president’s nominees who lack unanimous support in the upper chamber, effectively triggering floor votes for each. He also used an arcane Senate procedural move to stall federal prosecutors in committee.

“This is something that we’re very committed to, and we’re going to be looking at all the options in the next few weeks to try and get as many of those across the finish line as we can,” Thune said. 

As the Democratic Party continues to reel from its 2024 losses and deals with internal strife, Republican fundraising nearly doubled that of the Democrats in June, according to reporting by The Hill and a Fox News Digital review.

The Hill reported that the Republican National Committee raised a grand total of $16.2 million in the month of June, far outstripping the Democratic National Committee’s $8.6 million during the same period.

The RNC currently has a war chest totaling $80.78 million, while the DNC has $15.22 million on hand, according to the outlet.

This comes as the Democratic Party had to deal with internal turmoil in June, including drama over former vice-chair David Hogg, a progressive activist, who decided to not seek reelection just months after being elevated to the role. Hogg had sparked considerable internal rifts with his push to primary older incumbent Democrats.

ONE YEAR AFTER BIDEN’S UNPRECEDENTED EXIT FROM 2024 RACE, DEMOCRATS POLL NUMBERS AT ROCK BOTTOM

At the time, DNC vice-chair Malcolm Kenyatta told Fox News Digital the process was “frustrating” and felt like a “slap in the face.”

“We haven’t been able to be singularly focused,” Kenyatta said. “We’ve spent a lot of time talking about procedural nonsense within the DNC. I promise you nobody cares about that, and nobody wants to talk about it as little as I do. I want us to get refocused.”

This comes after Vice President Kamala Harris spent a whopping $1.5 billion during her 15-week campaign that ended in defeat to President Donald Trump, including burning through millions of dollars on star-studded events on the eve of the election, according to a report.

Despite this seemingly dire situation, Democratic Party leadership is taking an optimistic tone, saying in a Monday statement that this June was the “best-ever” for grassroots donations in an off-year in the committee’s history.

DEMOCRATIC PARTY CATAPULTED INTO ‘NEW PHASE OF A COLD WAR’ IN ONE-YEAR WAKE OF BIDEN’S UNPRECEDENTED DROPOUT

The statement said the party has raised a total of over $50 million since the start of the year.

DNC Chair Ken Martin commented that “around the country, people are energized, ready to fight back, and empowering Democrats to win elections.”

“The DNC is breaking grassroots fundraising records, bringing on more volunteers than ever, and raising record-setting funds to beat Republicans,” said Martin. “Democrats are back in the ring thanks to grassroots energy across all 50 states, and together, we’re going to defeat the toxic Republican agenda and put this country back on track for hard-working families.”

Meanwhile, The Hill also reported the National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) outraised its counterpart, the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, $32.3 million to $29.1 million in the second quarter of the year and $18.1 million to $12.7 million in June.

The outlet noted that despite the fundraising, the DCCC reported having $39.7 million on hand, while the NRCC has $37.6 million. However, this is the first time in four years that the NRCC outraised the DCCC in the first six months of an election cycle.

WATCH: NANCY PELOSI SILENT ON WHY BIDEN DID NOT RELEASE EPSTEIN FILES

A Fox News Digital review of NRCC fundraising numbers found that on average, Republican congressional candidates in swing districts outraised vulnerable House Democrats in the second quarter $1.1 million to $661,000 and have more money on hand by over $848,000.

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In a statement emailed to Fox News Digital, NRCC Spokesman Mike Marinella said the committee was building a “historic” war chest.

“While House Republicans build a historic war chest to grow the majority, House Democrats are broke, divided, and hijacked by socialists,” said Marinella. “Donors are slamming the brakes because they know this party is pathetic, aimless, and has no chance of taking back the majority.” 

Fox News Digital reached out to the RNC, DNC and DCCC for comment but did not immediately receive a response. 

Fox News Digital’s Deirdre Heavey, Paul Steinhauser and Stephen Sorace contributed to this report.

A judge on Monday temporarily blocked the Trump administration from stripping some Medicaid funds from Planned Parenthood after Congress and President Donald Trump agreed to partially defund the nonprofit through passage of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act.

Judge Indira Talwani of the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts said in her order partially granting a preliminary injunction that the bill unconstitutionally punishes Planned Parenthood member organizations that do not provide abortions. 

The injunction will risk “at most minimal harm—financial or otherwise” to the Trump administration while the lawsuit proceeds, Talwani, an Obama appointee, wrote.

The judge’s order appears to apply to some but not all Planned Parenthood facilities. The nonprofit said in a statement that it viewed Talwani’s order as a partial win and remained “hopeful” that the judge would take further judicial action down the line.

“This isn’t over,” the organization said. “While we’re grateful that the court recognized the harm caused by this law, we’re disappointed that not all members were granted the necessary relief today.”

SENATE PARLIAMENTARIAN OKS BAN ON PLANNED PARENTHOOD FEDERAL FUNDING IN TRUMP MEGABILL

Talwani’s order arose from a lawsuit brought by Planned Parenthood, the nation’s largest abortion provider, over the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, a massive budget bill that passed Congress this month with no Democrat support. Trump signed the bill into law on July 4.

A provision in the bill stripped Medicaid funding from Planned Parenthood, which the nonprofit said could force it to close about 200 of its 600 facilities and deprive about half of its customers, more than one million people, of services that do not include abortion.

Planned Parenthood attorneys noted in court filings that Medicaid typically does not cover abortion.

JUDGE TORCHED FOR PLANNED PARENTHOOD ORDER: HER COURT LOOKS ‘LIKE A FAST FOOD DRIVE-THRU’

The attorneys argued that the bill would cause cancer and sexually transmitted infections to go undetected, especially for low-income people, and that more unplanned pregnancies would occur because of a lack of contraception access. They said the consequences of losing Medicaid funding “will be grave.”

Department of Justice (DOJ) attorneys had previously argued in court filings that the purpose of the budget provision was to stop “federal subsidies for Big Abortion” by freezing federal funds for certain Medicaid recipients who provide abortions. Weakening Planned Parenthood has been one of the pro-life movement’s leading priorities since the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade.

Talwani granted a temporary restraining order two weeks ago in favor of Planned Parenthood. The judge initially offered no explanation for her decision, a move that led to widespread backlash among Republicans who described it as judicial overreach. Days later, Talwani offered more context in a subsequent order.

PLANNED PARENTHOOD USING ‘LOOPHOLE’ TO GET MINORS GENDER TRANSITIONS WITHOUT PARENTS’ OK: WATCHDOG

The preliminary injunction will partially leave in place the pause on defunding Planned Parenthood indefinitely, but the Trump administration is likely to appeal the order to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit.

The judge noted that her injunction applied to Planned Parenthood entities that do not provide abortion services or receive less than $800,000 in annual Medicaid reimbursements.

DOJ attorneys had previously argued to the court that blocking a measure that was passed by Congress and signed by the president was an extraordinary move and unjustified.

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“Beyond the futility of the claims on the merits, Planned Parenthood fails to demonstrate imminent irreparable harm to justify an injunction, asserting only classically reparable economic injury and irrelevant potential harm to patients, who are third parties not before this Court,” DOJ attorneys wrote.

The Department of Defense has ordered 700 U.S. Marines to leave Los Angeles, California on Monday, more than a month after they were deployed to the city against the will of city leaders and amid violent demonstrations against U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) actions.

The Trump administration deployed the 700 Marines and federalized roughly 4,000 National Guard soldiers to Los Angeles in early June to quell anti-Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) riots and protests. 

The Marines assigned to the area were limited to defending federal buildings, including the ICE office and detention facility in downtown LA.

PENTAGON SCALING DOWN NATIONAL GUARD DEPLOYMENT TO LA

“With stability returning to Los Angeles, the Secretary has directed the redeployment of the 700 Marines whose presence sent a clear message: lawlessness will not be tolerated,” Chief Pentagon Spokesman Sean Parnell said. “Their rapid response, unwavering discipline, and unmistakable presence were instrumental in restoring order and upholding the rule of law. We’re deeply grateful for their service, and for the strength and professionalism they brought to this mission.”

The Pentagon’s decision to have the Marines leave LA comes after half of the National Guard troops were ordered to leave the city last week.

LA Mayor Karen Bass called the withdrawal of troops “another win for Los Angeles.”

MARINES STILL NOT ON LA STREETS, SEEN IN HAND-TO-HAND COMBAT TRAINING

“This is another win for Los Angeles, but this is also a win for those serving this country in uniform,” Bass said on Monday. “Just this morning I stood with Veterans, families of active-duty officers, and business leaders to show the impact of this unnecessary, unprecedented, and unconstitutional assault on our city. We took the administration to court and won, now we continue that momentum with today’s news. Los Angeles stands with our troops, which is why we are glad they are leaving.” 

California Gov. Gavin Newsom sued the Trump administration for deploying California National Guard troops despite his opposition. He argued that the National Guard troops were likely violating the Posse Comitatus Act, which prohibits troops from conducting civilian law enforcement on U.S. soil.

HEGSETH SPARS WITH SENATE DEMOCRATS OVER MARINE DEPLOYMENT TO LA ANTI-ICE RIOTS: ‘NOT ABOUT LETHALITY’

Newsom won an early victory in the case after a federal judge ruled the Guard deployment was illegal and exceeded Trump’s authority. An appeals court tossed that order, and control of the troops remained with the federal government. The federal court is set to hear arguments next month on whether the troops are violating the Posse Comitatus Act.

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The deployment of National Guard troops was for 60 days, though Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth had the discretion to shorten or extend it “to flexibly respond to the evolving situation on the ground,” the Trump administration’s lawyers wrote in a June 23 filing in the legal case.

Fox News’ Liz Friden, Danielle Wallace, James Levinson and the Associated Press contributed to this report.

FIRST ON FOX: Thomas Fugate, a 22-year-old Trump appointee, spoke with Fox News Digital after being cast into the spotlight and criticized over his young age, inexperience and role in President Donald Trump’s administration. 

Fugate’s official title at the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is Special Assistant. However, several outlets reported that Fugate was the head of DHS’s Center for Prevention Programs and Partnerships (CP3). CP3 is DHS’ lead office for terrorism and targeted violence prevention.

The young appointee and DHS denied those claims to Fox News Digital.

“All decisions came down from policy leadership, [the] undersecretary, deputy secretary, and chief of staff,” Fugate emphasized.

SECOND SUSPECT ARRESTED IN CBP OFFICER SHOOTING HAS LENGTHY CRIMINAL PAST, DHS SAYS

Fugate went on to say that CP3, a program which was gutted by an $18.5 million cut last week, has a heavily reduced role compared to previous administrations as Trump’s DHS has downsized the division. 

“Before I got there, [CP3] was already flagged for waste, fraud, and abuse,” Fugate explained. “We’re not talking about a massive office of 80 people with a wide range of functions. We’re talking about a very niche and small, specialized office.”

Fugate said the office is mainly focused on administering a grant program.

“It’s only when you take it out of context and blow it out of proportion that it then becomes a massive problem where people think I’m practically running the FBI,” Fugate continued.

DHS also told Fox News Digital that Fugate was never in a position of leadership within the program, and even referred to him as a “low-level” staffer. 

NOEM BLAMES ‘SANCTUARY’ POLICIES FOR MIGRANT ACCUSED OF SHOOTING OFF-DUTY CBP OFFICER

“This entire smear campaign around Thomas Fugate is a smokescreen to bury the rampant grift and waste festering in the CP3 program under the Biden Administration’s watch,” DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin told Fox. “Fugate never held the director role at CP3, and to imply that he had operational control or exercised leadership over CP3 is simply untrue, as we have consistently told them.”

“The fact a low-level 22-year-old staffer was able to identify the misappropriated spending and the subsequent violent reaction to defend this woke, partisan spending by those on the left tells you exactly what this program was really being used for,” McLaughlin said.

As for his young age and experience, Fugate noted that he started out with DHS at Border and Immigration when the Undersecretary of Policy asked him to temporarily assist at CP3.

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Prior to that, he interned at the Heritage Foundation before graduating from the University of Texas at San Antonio with a degree in Politics and Law last May.

Preston Mizell is a writer with Fox News Digital covering breaking news. Story tips can be sent to Preston.Mizell@fox.com and on X @MizellPreston

Housing and Urban Development Secretary Scott Turner shared a video Monday afternoon on social media showing falling roof tiles at the HUD agency’s D.C. headquarters amid the agency’s efforts to relocate its headquarters under the Trump administration. 

The video of the damaged building comes after Turner announced last month that HUD would be relocating its headquarters down the road to Alexandria, Virginia. 

Turner previously cited the fact that the D.C. building is facing over $500 million in “deferred maintenance” costs, while only half of HUD’s D.C. headquarters is currently being used. He has also argued the building is not safe, which he further illustrated in a Monday post on X.

HUD BECOMES FIRST MAJOR CABINET AGENCY TO EXIT DC, CITING ‘FAILING’ HQ — WHICH DOGE WANTS TO SELL

“The current HUD HQ is falling apart everywhere you turn. I witnessed this firsthand today,” Turner captioned his video posted to X Monday afternoon. “It’s not suitable for HUD staff or the people we serve. Moving day can’t come soon enough.”

Turner showed “damaged roof tiles,” which he described as water-logged and “leaking.” The video showed a gaping hole in the roof of the HUD headquarters, with a trash heap beneath it full of what appeared to be broken roof tiles from the inside of the building that fell. 

“Did this fall on anyone?” Turner asked in the video, after which someone behind the camera confirms it did not. “Well,” Turner replied. “It won’t be long. It won’t be long.”

TRUMP’S HOUSING CHIEF RIPS POWELL FOR BLOWING MILLIONS ON FED FACELIFT DURING HOUSING CRISIS HE PERPETUATES 

The HUD building will relocate from the Robert C. Weaver Federal Building to 2415 Eisenhower Avenue in Alexandria, where the National Science Foundation (NSF) is housed, but no indication has been made about when that move will be finalized. The move marks the first major executive agency under Trump to relocate its headquarters.

The relocation effort will be a staggered process that will ultimately relocate approximately 2,700 HUD employees currently based at the D.C. headquarters building, according to the General Services Administration (GSA). 

In addition to saving on deferred maintenance costs, the relocation will also save taxpayers roughly $56 million in annual rent and operations expenditures, according to HUD.

“This is about the HUD employees to have a safe space, to have a nice place to work, to represent the people that we serve in America,” Turner said during a press conference formally announcing the relocation last month. “This is not about the secretary. This is about the posterity and the future of HUD.”

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NSF staff met this week to discuss how they will handle the HUD relocation, including a potential relocation themselves, local reporting out of Alexandria indicated.

President Donald Trump called for California Democrat Sen. Adam Schiff to face jail time while invoking recently declassified documents alleging Obama administration officials “manufactured and politicized intelligence” to create the narrative that Russia was attempting to influence the 2016 presidential election.

“Adam ‘Shifty’ Schiff is in BIG TROUBLE!” Trump posted to Truth Social Sunday evening. “He falsified Loan Documents. He once said my son would go to prison on a SCAM that Schiff, along with other Crooked Dems, illegally ‘manufactured’ in order to stage an actual coup.” 

“My son did nothing wrong, knew nothing about the fictional story,” he added. “It was an American Tragedy! Now Shifty should pay the price of prison for a real crime, not one made up by the corrupt accusers!” 

Schiff is under scrutiny after the U.S. Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) sent a letter to the Department of Justice in May sounding the alarm that in “multiple instances,” Schiff allegedly “falsified bank documents and property records to acquire more favorable loan terms, impacting payments from 2003-2019 for a Potomac, Maryland-based property.”

FEDERAL HOUSING OFFICIAL SUBMITTED SCHIFF CRIMINAL REFERRAL TO DOJ OVER MORTGAGE DOCUMENTS

FHFA is an independent federal agency that oversees Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and the Federal Home Loan Bank System. 

Schiff’s office did not respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment Monday morning.

Trump publicly lambasted Schiff Tuesday over the alleged mortgage fraud, while Fannie Mae’s financial crimes investigations concluded last week in a letter to the FHFA that Schiff allegedly engaged in “a sustained pattern of possible occupancy misrepresentation” on five Fannie Mae loans, Fox News Digital previously reported. 

“I have always suspected Shifty Adam Schiff was a scam artist,” Trump posted to Truth Social Tuesday. “And now I learn that Fannie Mae’s Financial Crimes Division have concluded that Adam Schiff has engaged in a sustained pattern of possible Mortgage Fraud.” 

“Adam Schiff said that his primary residence was in MARYLAND to get a cheaper mortgage and rip off America, when he must LIVE in CALIFORNIA because he was a Congressman from CALIFORNIA. I always knew Adam Schiff was a Crook. The FRAUD began with the refinance of his Maryland property on February 6, 2009, and continued through multiple transactions until the Maryland property was correctly designated as a second home on October 13, 2020.”

Schiff has passed off the allegations as a continuation of Trump’s history of slamming the liberal lawmaker. 

“Since I led his first impeachment, Trump has repeatedly called for me to be arrested for treason,” Schiff posted to X earlier in July after Trump first accused Schiff of mortgage fraud. “So in a way, I guess this is a bit of a letdown. And this baseless attempt at political retribution won’t stop me from holding him accountable. Not by a long shot.” 

WATCH: ADAM SCHIFF SILENT AFTER TRUMP ACCUSED HIM OF MORTGAGE FRAUD

Trump and Schiff have long been political foes, which was underscored during Trump’s first administration when Schiff served as the lead House manager during the first impeachment trial against Trump in 2020, and when Schiff repeatedly promoted claims that Trump’s 2016 campaign colluded with Russia. 

Days after Trump first posted about Schiff’s mortgages in Maryland and California, the president’s Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard declassified documents that reportedly show “overwhelming evidence” that then-President Barack Obama and his national security team laid the groundwork for what would be the yearslong Trump–Russia collusion probe after Trump’s election win against former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in 2016. 

“It lays out, these over 100 documents that you’re referencing, that I declassified and released, spells out in great detail exactly what happens when you have some of the most powerful people in our country directly leading at the helm, President Obama and his senior-most national security cabinet, James Comey, John Brennan, James Clapper, and Susan Rice and others, essentially making a very intentional decision to create this manufactured, politicized piece of intelligence with the objective of subverting the will of the American people,” Gabbard told Fox News’ Sean Hannity Friday evening.

TRUMP ACCUSES ‘SCAM ARTIST’ SCHIFF OF LYING ABOUT MARYLAND HOME TO COMMIT MORTGAGE FRAUD

She argued that the goal of Obama and his team was to essentially “not accept the decision of the American people” in 2016, and to use this “manufactured, politicized piece of intelligence” as a means to enact a “years-long coup against President Trump.”

Schiff was an incredibly vocal lawmaker amid the Russian collusion claims, most notably when the House censured him in 2023 over his promotion that Trump’s 2016 campaign colluded with Russia. Schiff served in the House representing California from 2001 to 2024, when he was sworn-in as a senator after his successful 2024 campaign to serve in the nation’s upper chamber.

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Schiff served as the ranking member of the House intelligence committee from 2015 to 2019, before becoming the committee’s chair from 2019 to 2023. In that role, Schiff was kept up to date on classified materials surrounding the Russian collusion claims. 

Schiff advocated in 2018 that Donald Trump Jr., the president’s son, face a subpoena amid Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation into claims Trump’s 2016 campaign colluded with Russia to secure the election, which Trump cited in his latest Truth Social aimed at Schiff. Mueller’s investigation, which wrapped up in March 2019, into the Russia claims determined there was no evidence of collusion between the Trump campaign and Russia.

Former first son Hunter Biden disclosed his father was on an anti-insomnia prescription ahead of his disastrous 2024 debate that may have affected his command of the stage that evening.

Biden said former President Joe Biden had taken Ambien, a gamma-aminobutyric acid enhancer similar to benzodiazepines, to help him sleep better amid his grueling schedule and advanced age.

He criticized several members of former President Barack Obama’s inner circle for continually doubting his father, saying that the 2024 State of the Union was a make-or-break moment that the elder Biden “knock[ed] out of the park.”

The debate, he said, was the next test his father was given by Democratic elders to see if he should run for reelection.

HUNTER BIDEN RAGES AGAINST F—ING THUG TRUMP, INVOKES KKK IN IMMIGRATION RANT

“I know exactly what happened in that debate. He flew around the world, basically, the mileage that he could have flown around the world, three times. He’s 81 years old. He’s tired as s—. They give him Ambien to be able to sleep,” he said.

“He gets up on the stage. And he looks like he’s a deer in the headlights. And it feeds into every f—ing story that anybody wants to tell,” Hunter went on, adding that CNN anchor Jake Tapper’s book relied on several anonymous sources for his related expose because in reality no one had spoken out against Joe.

“If this was a conspiracy… somehow the entirety of a White House in which you’re literally living on top of each other has kept their mouth shut about you now, like what? And what’s the conspiracy? Did Joe Biden get old? Yeah, he got old. He got old before our eyes. The people that came out against him were who — nobody — except Speaker Emerita Pelosi did not give a full-throated endorsement, which allowed everybody else to kind of go, ‘OK.’

“Who came out full-throated? Progressives. AOC, Bernie, the entire progressive wing, [Silicon Valley Congressman] Ro Khanna. The entirety of the progressive side of the Democratic Party said Joe Biden has got more of our agenda accomplished in four years than any president in history. The largest investment into climate change in history, just that alone. And so he gets over the hump. He goes and does Stephanopoulos, and everybody said that’s not enough…”

Earlier in the interview, with Delaware Valley podcaster Andrew Callaghan, Hunter savaged Obama’s inner circle, mocking the hosts of “Pod Save America” — made up of his then-youthful close aides — as “Saviors of the Democratic Party.”

DNC VICE CHAIR COMPARES TRUMP TO NOTORIOUS SEGREGATIONISTS DURING HEATED TOWN HALL EVENT WITH BETO O’ROURKE

“[They’re] White millionaires that are dining out on their association with Barack Obama from 16 years ago living in Beverly f—ing Hills telling the rest of the world what Black voters in South Carolina really want or what the waitress living outside of Green Bay, Wisconsin [want].

“I hear Rahm Emanuel’s going to run for president,” he added incredulously. “I think David Axelrod is going to run his campaign for him… there’s a f—ing answer; geniuses all.”

Hunter also disputed claims his father had been the unanimous choice of Democrats in 2020.

“Bull—-. We lost Iowa. We lost New Hampshire. We came in second in Nevada. David Plouffe and David Axelrod went on TV. They said that there’s no way Joe Biden can get the nomination, not a chance in the world. Mike Bloomberg’s gonna crush him in California. Elizabeth Warren’s gonna beat him in Massachusetts… A lot of rural voters said, ‘F— you, we love Joe.’ A lot urban voters said, ‘F— you. We love Joe.’ And they voted for him overwhelmingly,” he said.

He later defended himself against allegations about his decision to market paintings, saying they were a pastime that “saved him” from his vices.

“They accused me of crimes for painting. Not that I couldn’t sell my paintings, but that it was a clear conspiracy to launder money and to curry influence by selling acrylic on canvas — through this abstract painting by Hunter Biden,” he said.

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“All of a sudden, the Iranians are going to change their nuclear weapons program. It’s such f—ing insane bull—-. Meanwhile, these mother f—ers are selling gold telephones and sneakers and $2 billion investments in golf courses and selling tickets to the White House for investment into their memecoin.

“If you believe the worst possible thing that they’ve ever said about me [in terms of influence peddling] — what they are openly doing, they’re openly doing. And nobody’s batting an eye. Don Jr. is opening a club called the Executive Club in Georgetown in which it is promised that you will be able to rub shoulders at the cost of a $500,000 initiation fee with… people and decisionmakers in the cabinet of his father.”

Fox News Digital reached out to the White House for comment, as well as a representative for former President Joe Biden in regard to the Ambien revelation.

Former President Joe Biden’s use of the autopen allowed “the sadistic criminal underclass” to enter the U.S. under his administration’s border policies, according to White House deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller. 

Biden has come under scrutiny for his alleged use of the autopen while in office, and President Donald Trump has said thousands of pardons Biden signed were void and that the former president did not know what documents he was signing through the automated device.

“Democrats created a puppet presidency under Biden and then used his autopen to resettle the sadistic criminal underclass of the world in our towns,” Miller said in a Monday X post. “The Left has weaponized migration against the American People.” 

BIDEN’S ‘AUTOPEN SIGNATURE’ APPEARS ON MOST OFFICIAL DOCS, RAISING CONCERNS OVER WHO CONTROLLED THE WH: REPORT

Miller’s post came in response to one from the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) that claimed that one of the suspects accused of ambushing and shooting an off-duty U.S. Customs and Border Protection officer in New York City Saturday entered the country illegally in 2023 under the Biden administration. 

According to DHS, Miguel Francisco Mora Nunez illegally entered the U.S. in April 2023, and authorities issued a criminal warrant for him for armed robbery with a firearm in February. 

Biden signed multiple executive orders pertaining to immigration, including the Keeping Families Together initiative that would have provided a path to citizenship for illegal immigrants married to U.S. citizens. A federal judge struck down the order in November 2024, asserting that the order violated U.S. immigration law. 

When asked which specific orders Miller was referring to, the White House did not specify, but said Biden employed the autopen to all aspects of the presidency. 

BIDEN’S STUNNING EXIT, ONE YEAR LATER: THE DROPOUT HEARD AROUND THE COUNTRY

“Biden’s entire presidency – including his dangerous open-border policies and refusal to remove dangerous criminal illegals from our country – was run via autopen,” White House spokesperson Abigail Jackson said in a Monday statement to Fox News Digital. “President Trump is exposing this fraud for what it was.”

A spokesperson for Biden did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Fox News. 

FEW PRESIDENTS HAVE BOWED OUT LIKE BIDEN. HISTORIANS EXPLAIN WHAT IT MEANS

Biden’s alleged use of the autopen has primarily attracted attention for a wide swath of pardons he issued toward the end of his term, including a series of preemptive pardons on his final day to officials like former chief medical advisor to the president Anthony Fauci and former chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Mark Milley. 

Multiple investigations are ongoing evaluating Biden’s alleged use of the autopen while in office, including the House Oversight Committee’s probe on the cover-up of Biden’s mental decline and potentially the unauthorized use of the autopen for pardons and other executive orders during his term. 

Hunter Biden raged against President Donald Trump and his mass deportation efforts during an expletive-laden interview with a Philadelphia podcaster in which he calls his father’s successor a “f—ing thug” and draws parallels to 19th-century government actions against Black freedmen.

Biden and “Channel 5” podcaster Andrew Callaghan spoke for three hours on a range of topics, from the former first son’s cocaine use, to the former president’s disastrous debate, to theories that he was marketing paintings to assuage overseas interests in favor of his dad.

On immigration, Biden began by revisiting the Reconstruction era and the Ku Klux Klan’s early role as a voter suppression organization against Black Americans.

He discussed an 1873 incident in Colfax, Louisiana, when former Confederate militiamen and the Klan converged with a cannon on a courthouse where several Black men were defending GOP officeholders following a contested election.

Many of those defenders were slaughtered outside the courthouse and Biden said such violence and intimidation continued throughout the country thereafter.

Connecting that time to the present, Biden said America gets stuck in a “permanent Jim Crow loop” that when the “more perfect union” is nearly realized, a “symbiosis between money and power” ruins it.

“There is a minority group that those in power, that came into power through democratically elected means, are going to target this minority group because they’re stealing all the jobs,” he said, as clips played of Trump from 2016 speaking about “Mexico not sending their best” and claims of migrants “eating the dogs” in Ohio.

“And what we’re going to do is we’re going to send masked men to this marginalized group, and we are going to take them, put them on planes, put them on buses, put them on trains, and send them to a prison camp in a foreign country,” Biden fumed.

FLASHBACK: BIDEN REPEATEDLY EQUATED ISLAMOPHOBIA AND ANTISEMITISM AMID SURGE IN ATTACKS ON JEWS

“What am I describing right then? Am I describing Germany? Or am I just describing the United States right now? Because I will tell you what. You think that the prison in El Salvador is not a f—ing concentration camp, you’re out of your f—ing mind.”

Biden then claimed White men are “45 times more likely” to commit a violent crime than illegal immigrants.

He also reserved invective for former President Barack Obama’s top acolytes, including the “Pod Save America” hosts, and top advisors David Axelrod and Rahm Emanuel.

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Biden said Axelrod wrongly surmised that Democrats need to understand why people are upset and appeal to them.

“Well, the only people that f—ing appealed to those f—ing White voters was Joe Biden, 81 years old, and he got 81 million votes. And he did because, not because he appeased their f—ing Trumpian sense, but because he challenged it,” Biden said.

“And he said, you can be an 81-year-old Catholic from f—ing Scranton that doesn’t understand it, but still has empathy for transgender people and immigrants,” he said, as Callaghan posted a photo of former Pennsylvania Health Secretary Rachel Levine, who also served in the Biden administration.

If he were president, Biden said, he would call Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele and warn him that “you either f—ing send them back [to the U.S.] or I’m going to f—ing invade.”

“It’s a f—ing crime what they’re doing. He’s a f—ing dictator thug,” he added.

When Callaghan asked if Biden meant Trump or Bukele was a “thug,” Biden indicated “both.”

“Luckily for the American people, a house cat has a better chance of being President than Hunter,” White House spokesperson Abigail Jackson told Fox News Digital in response to Biden’s comments. “If anyone agreed with Hunter’s unhinged rantings, Kamala Harris would be in the White House right now. But the American people sent President Trump back to the White House because they wanted him to undo all of Joe Biden’s disastrous policies – including his open borders agenda that let countless criminal illegal aliens come into our country.”

Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley released declassified documents related to the FBI’s investigation into former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s private email server when she served in the federal government, revealing the FBI reportedly “failed to fully investigate” the matter. 

“This document shows an extreme lack of effort and due diligence in the FBI’s investigation of former Secretary Clinton’s email usage and mishandling of highly classified information,” Grassley said in a Monday press release.

“Under Comey’s leadership, the FBI failed to perform fundamental investigative work and left key pieces of evidence on the cutting room floor,” he continued. “The Comey FBI’s negligent approach and perhaps intentional lack of effort in the Clinton investigation is a stark contrast to its full-throated investigation of the Trump-Russia collusion hoax, which was based on the uncorroborated and now discredited Steele dossier. Comey’s decision-making process smacks of political infection.” 

Clinton, who served as former President Barack Obama’s secretary of state from 2009 to 2013, was investigated by the FBI over claims she improperly stored or transmitted classified materials on a private email server. The FBI advised the Department of Justice in 2016, ahead of that year’s massive election that pitted Clinton against future President Donald Trump, that Clinton should not face prosecution over the matter.

OBAMA OFFICIALS ADMITTED THEY HAD NO ‘EMPIRICAL EVIDENCE’ OF TRUMP-RUSSIA COLLUSION: HOUSE INTEL TRANSCRIPTS

“Although there is evidence of potential violations of the statutes regarding the handling of classified information, our judgment is that no reasonable prosecutor would bring such a case,” then-FBI director James Comey said in a press release. “Prosecutors necessarily weigh a number of factors before bringing charges. There are obvious considerations, like the strength of the evidence, especially regarding intent. Responsible decisions also consider the context of a person’s actions, and how similar situations have been handled in the past.” 

OBAMA OFFICIALS USED DOSSIER TO PROBE, BRIEF TRUMP DESPITE KNOWING IT WAS UNVERIFIED ‘INTERNET RUMOR’

Grassley specifically released declassified materials from the “Clinton annex,” which is an appendix to the Department of Justice Office of Inspector General’s 2018 report that reviewed the DOJ and FBI’s handling of the Clinton investigation. Attorney General Pam Bondi, and other Trump administration leaders at other agencies, declassified the materials and delivered them to Grassley at his request, his press release reported.

The documents claim that then-FBI Director Comey, as well as other FBI leaders, obtained thumb drives related to their investigation into Clinton, but that the agency failed “to perform additional, targeted searches of the drives,” according to Grassley’s office.

FBI LAUNCHES CRIMINAL INVESTIGATIONS OF JOHN BRENNAN, JAMES COMEY: DOJ SOURCES

The thumb drives reportedly were never reviewed during the investigation, but “contained highly sensitive information exfiltrated from U.S. government agencies, including the Department of State, as well as then-President Barack Obama’s emails and, potentially, congressional information.”

The FBI also obtained intelligence that alleged communications between Florida Democrat Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz, who served as Democratic National Committee chair until July 2016 when she resigned, and individuals who worked for the Soros Open Society Foundations, which was founded by left-wing billionaire donor George Soros. 

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“The intelligence reports alleged that the Obama administration took efforts to scuttle the investigation into Clinton and protect her candidacy,” Grassley’s release reported, but that the FBI at the time did “not make serious investigative efforts” into the intelligence reports. 

Fox News Digital reached out to Clinton’s office, Wasserman Schultz’s office, the Soros Open Society Foundations and the Kettering Foundation, where Comey currently works as a senior fellow, for comment on Grassley’s release, but did not immediately receive replies. 

“I warned years ago that the Clinton investigation failed to hit the mark, and I’m grateful the American people can finally see the facts for themselves,” Grassley said in the press release. “After nearly a decade in the shadows, this information is now coming to light thanks to Attorney General Pam Bondi and FBI Director Kash Patel’s dedicated efforts to fulfill my congressional request. 

“I appreciate their ongoing commitment to transparency and strongly urge them to continue to fully review this matter, including its national security impact,” he said.

Grassley’s release follows Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard’s bombshell claims that Obama-era officials reportedly “manufactured and politicized intelligence” to create the narrative that Russia was attempting to influence the 2016 presidential election.

Gabbard released unclassified documents Friday that reportedly show “overwhelming evidence” that then-President Obama and his national security team laid the groundwork for what would be the yearslong Trump-Russia collusion probe after Trump’s election win against Clinton in 2016. 

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“Their goal was to usurp President Trump and subvert the will of the American people,” Gabbard had posted to X on Friday regarding the criminal referral. “No matter how powerful, every person involved in this conspiracy must be investigated and prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. The integrity of our democratic republic depends on it. We are turning over all documents to the DOJ for criminal referral.” 

Fox News confirmed earlier Monday that the DOJ received Gabbard’s criminal referral related to the matter but did not share additional comment.  

Congressional Republicans are facing an uphill battle over the next two months to deliver on their promises to cut spending in the next fiscal year – while avoiding a partial government shutdown if no deal is struck.

“When’s the last time we got 12 appropriations bills actually done, and completed in a couple of weeks? It’s almost impossible to do,” Rep. Rich McCormick, R-Ga., told Fox News Digital last week.

Passing 12 individual appropriations bills, each funding separate aspects of the federal government, has been Republicans’ goal each time the Sept. 30 fiscal year (FY) deadline nears.

But that has not happened since 1996 — FY1997 — and the partisan environment in Washington has only gotten more polarized since. Recent Republican-backed legislation has all but sidelined the once-powerful appropriations committees in both chambers.

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Meanwhile, House Republicans are more broadly eager to adhere to the Trump administration’s request to cut $163 billion from non-defense government spending than their Senate counterparts – which could result in a standoff between the two chambers.

“It’s looking like it’s going to be higher than what the president’s budget is. And that, I’m not a fan of,” Rep. Andrew Clyde, R-Ga., a member of the House Appropriations Committee, told Fox News Digital last week.

Another committee Republican, Rep. Riley Moore, R-W.Va., said, “I’m really proud of the work the committee has done so far. I do feel like we’re gonna be able to get these bills done. The question is, what’s the Senate going to do?”

Further compounding difficulties between the two sides of the U.S. Capitol is the 60-vote filibuster threshold that most bills in the Senate must ram through. 

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That means that any spending bills have to be bipartisan, but after Senate Republicans advanced President Donald Trump’s $9 billion rescissions package, Senate Democrats have warned that they won’t play ball. 

Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., said that he would like to go ahead with a regular appropriations process, but that Senate Democrats “have signaled that they don’t want one.”

“The Democrats have been very clear,” he said. “They are already conferencing the idea of a government shutdown — I don’t have any idea, no idea how that is helpful for them or to anyone.” 

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., previously warned that if Republicans were successful in passing the rescissions package — after icing out Democrats during the budget reconciliation process — that there could be trouble down the road in generating enough bipartisan support to pass spending bills, nonetheless avert a partial government shutdown. 

Sen. John Hoeven, chair of the Senate Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies appropriations subcommittee, told Fox News Digital that if Democrats planned to block everything, then “what would you expect?”

“By working with us, that’s how they actually will get some of their priorities,” the North Dakota Republican said. “But when they’re going to just block us, then why should their priorities be included?”

A House Appropriations Committee member who spoke with Fox News Digital on the condition of anonymity indicated that Republican lawmakers are beginning to accept the possibility of a short-term continuing resolution (CR), a stopgap measure extending the previous fiscal year’s funding levels in order to keep the government open.

“You could see a situation where you’re in a short-term CR, and we’ll try to negotiate topline numbers and all that,” that House lawmaker said.

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It’s a situation that House Appropriations Committee Chairman Tom Cole, R-Okla., didn’t rule out to reporters early last week – while agreeing with Senate Republicans’ concerns about Democrats failing to work across the aisle.

“I’m always worried about a shutdown, because I think the Democrats have a very hard time bargaining with Donald Trump. I mean, that’s why we ended up in a CR,” Cole said, referring to the last round of government funding talks that resulted in a CR from March through the end of FY2025.

“We offered them a much better deal than a CR, and they couldn’t do it. So I hope this time they can, but the temperature on the other side is very high, and Democratic voters are punishing their own members for cooperating on things like keeping the government open.”

That could create issue with members of the conservative House Freedom Caucus, however, who have fiercely pushed back against CRs or “omnibus” spending bills in the past – though no such standoffs have led to a shutdown in recent years.

Both House and Senate Republicans are dealing with razor-thin margins of just three votes.

House Republicans scored an important victory last week in passing their $832 billion defense funding bill. That, along with the bill funding military construction and Veterans’ Affairs, make up more than half of the discretionary budget requested by the White House earlier this year.

But they’re not expected to hold House-wide votes on any of the remaining 10 bills before early September, when Congress returns from August recess.

Senate Republicans are also gearing up to consider their first spending bill, one for military construction and the VA, on Tuesday that will likely end up being a test of how the appropriations process, and likely government funding extension, will play out in the coming months. 

Sen. Patty Murray, the top Democrat on the Senate Appropriations Committee, said after the rescissions package passed that she wanted to see the panel return to form, and in doing so, keeping the bipartisan spirit of appropriations alive. 

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“It is unfortunate that many members of this body have voted to make that a whole lot harder,” the Washington state Democrat said. 

One senior House GOP lawmaker who spoke with Fox News Digital ultimately downplayed concerns of a shutdown, however.

“The factors of the Senate wanting more money than the House, Democrats wanting more money than Republicans – those have been in place for a generation. And most of the time, shutdowns don’t happen,” that lawmaker said. 

“It would seem to me that although the Democrats are big mad about Elon and Trump, and reconciliation, at some point, that temperature’s going to fade and people are going to realize that a shutdown doesn’t really serve our national interests.”

The Department of Justice confirmed Monday that it has received Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard’s criminal referral related to her bombshell claims that Obama-era officials “manufactured and politicized intelligence” to create the narrative that Russia was attempting to influence the 2016 presidential election, Fox News has confirmed. 

The Department of Justice declined further comment, but confirmed to Fox News that the department received the referral. 

Gabbard released unclassified documents Friday that reportedly show “overwhelming evidence” that then-President Barack Obama and his national security team laid the groundwork for what would be the yearslong Trump–Russia collusion probe after Trump’s election win against former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in 2016. 

“Their goal was to usurp President Trump and subvert the will of the American people,” Gabbard had posted to X of the criminal referral Friday. “No matter how powerful, every person involved in this conspiracy must be investigated and prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. The integrity of our democratic republic depends on it. We are turning over all documents to the DOJ for criminal referral.” 

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Gabbard joined Fox News’ Maria Bartiromo Sunday, where she detailed evidence uncovered in the case, which she said showcases “overwhelming” proof that Obama-era officials laid the groundwork for what would be the yearslong Trump-Russia collusion probe after the 2016 election.

FBI LAUNCHES CRIMINAL INVESTIGATIONS OF JOHN BRENNAN, JAMES COMEY: DOJ SOURCES

“The implications of this are frankly nothing short of historic,” Gabbard said Sunday. 

“Over 100 documents that we released on Friday really detail and provide evidence of how this treasonous conspiracy was directed by President Obama just weeks before he was due to leave office after President Trump had already gotten elected. This is not a Democrat or Republican issue. This is an issue that is so serious it should concern every single American because it has to do with the integrity of our democratic republic,” she continued.

Following Gabbard’s revelations, Trump shared a video to his Truth Social account showing a handful of Democrats, including Obama, vowing that “no one is above the law.” Later in the clip, an AI-generated video showed Trump and Obama sitting in the Oval Office before Obama is arrested while Trump’s the song “YMCA” plays in the background. 

Additionally, Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) also will release declassified documents related to a 2018 DOJ Inspector General report on the Justice Department’s handling of the investigations related to the 2016 presidential election, Fox News confirmed Monday. Grassley will specifically declassify the report’s appendix, which Fox learned focuses specifically on the Clinton email investigation. 

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Hillary Clinton was investigated by the FBI for holding classified information on her private email server at home when she served as secretary of state under the Obama administration. Then-FBI Director James Comey said publicly that Clinton mishandled classified information, but declined to recommend prosecution. 

Fox News Digital’s Brooke Singman and Danielle Wallace contributed to this report.