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State Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce said the agency is poised to move “quickly” after the Supreme Court shot down a lower court’s ruling blocking the Trump administration from implementing widescale reductions in force across the federal government. 

“I think it’s fair to say that with everything else that happens [at the State Department], it will happen quickly,” Bruce said when asked how soon the agency would begin issuing notices to department employees. “This is not going to be an extended wait for people who are listening and watching in this building, or fellow Americans at home and around the world, this will happen quickly.”

Bruce pointed out that, up to this point, the only reason there has been a delay in implementing force reductions at the Department of State, is because of the courts that have stepped in to try to halt the reforms.

SOTOMAYOR BREAKS WITH JACKSON IN SUPREME COURT DECISION OVER TRUMP CUTS TO FEDERAL WORKFORCE

“There has been a delay – not to our interests, but because of the courts,” Bruce added. “It’s been difficult when you know you need to get something done for the benefit of everyone. So it will be – it will be quickly.” 

However, while Bruce indicated the agency would be moving “quickly,” she declined to provide any specific timeline. 

She also declined to provide specifics around whether a court order that followed the Supreme Court’s decision authorizing the Trump administration’s reductions in force, which seeks to resolve a dispute over whether the administration must publicly share the reasoning for their reorganization efforts, might slow down the process. 

SUPREME COURT LETS TRUMP’S ‘WRECKING BALL’ FEDERAL JOB CUTS PROCEED WHILE LEGAL FIGHT CONTINUES

The court order seeking to determine whether the Trump administration must publicly share the details of their planned reforms and reductions in force across the government was signed by U.S. District Court Judge Susan Illston. 

It was Illston’s previous ruling in May that temporarily blocked the Trump administration from implementing its executive agency reforms, which the Supreme Court overturned this week.

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Illston’s May ruling stemmed from lawsuits initiated by labor unions and advocacy groups, which argued the president’s February work reduction executive order was an overreach of power and undermined certain civil service protections.

A judge in Los Angeles is set to preside over a hearing Thursday that could have major implications for immigration enforcement in California, a state that has become a focal point of President Donald Trump’s aggressive deportation agenda.

Judge Maame Ewusi-Mensah Frimpong, a Biden appointee, will hear arguments about whether to grant emergency restraining orders against Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) over allegations the agency is violating constitutional rights during its immigration arrests.

The case was initially brought in June as a routine petition from three detainees, but it has ballooned into a weighty lawsuit challenging the way ICE operates.

TRUMP ADMINISTRATION SUES LOS ANGELES OVER SANCTUARY POLICIES THAT ‘IMPEDE’ ICE OPERATIONS

Immigration rights groups and local governments, including the cities of Los Angeles, Santa Monica, Culver, and West Hollywood, have all intervened in the case and Democrat-led states have filed an amicus brief in support of them.

The plaintiffs alleged in court papers that ICE is “indiscriminately” arresting people with “brown skin” at Home Depots, car washes, farms and more. Authorities made the arrests with no “reasonable suspicion” and sometimes mistakenly apprehended U.S. citizens in the process, all in violation of the Fourth Amendment, attorneys wrote.

The plaintiffs argued the Trump administration gave ICE an unrealistic quota of 3,000 arrests per day, causing officers to feel pressured to blow past legal requirements to achieve those numbers.

Meanwhile, the Trump administration is disputing the allegations and denies wrongdoing.

Department of Justice attorneys wrote that immigration arrests, of which there have been nearly 3,000 across California since early June, have been carried out legally.

“Their request that immigration authorities be enjoined from relying on certain factors like occupation and location flies in the face of established law requiring immigration officials to consider the totality of the circumstances, including things like occupation and location,” the attorneys wrote.

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The plaintiffs have also asked the judge to expand visitor access to a short-term detention facility in downtown Los Angeles.

The facility became the site of protests and unrest in early June, leading to authorities temporarily abandoning the building. The plaintiffs allege that detainees’ access to lawyers has been hindered, in violation of the Fifth Amendment.

This is a developing story and will be updated.

Following the suspension of six Secret Service agents tasked with protecting President Donald Trump at a campaign rally in Butler, Pa. on July 13 of last year, growing calls for accountability are sounding on social media. 

GOP Rep. Anna Paulina Luna of Florida called the suspension the “absolute bare minimum.”

“Given the shocking security failures that day, this is the absolute bare minimum,” Luna wrote on X.

SECRET SERVICE SUSPENDS 6 AGENTS TASKED WITH PROTECTING TRUMP DURING ASSASSINATION ATTEMPT

Republican Sen. Mike Lee of Utah posted the news on his personal account and told one user in a thread that he intends “to find out why” the Secret Service agents had been suspended instead of fired. 

“Why didn’t this happen a long time ago?” asked a user to his post. 

“The Deep State is deliberately slow,” Lee replied in the thread. 

Retired FBI agent Jennifer Coffindaffer said the move to suspend the agents involved was expected. 

Coffindaffer wrote in an X post that the Secret Service’s “incompetence cost a life,” referring to Corey Comperatore, a 50-year-old firefighter, father and husband, who was shot and killed that day. 

The assailant, 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks, fired eight shots from an AR-15–style rifle from a rooftop approximately 400 feet from the stage where Trump was speaking. One bullet grazed Trump’s right ear, while another fatally struck rally attendee Comperatore, who shielded his family.

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The Secret Service agency confirmed to Fox News that the disciplinary action occurred in February. The revelation comes ahead of a Senate report outlining the security failures in Butler.

Following the July 13 incident, the agency faced additional criticism when a second assassination attempt on Trump took place in West Palm Beach, Florida. 

The second incident prompted then-Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle to resign. 

The Secret Service has ushered in a series of changes to beef up its security measures in the aftermath of the July 2024 assassination attempt against President Donald Trump in Butler, Pennsylvania – including suspending six of its agents due to their response to the crisis. 

Secret Service Deputy Director Matt Quinn disclosed the suspensions Wednesday in an interview with CBS News, and said the consequences ranged from 10 days to 42 days of unpaid leave. Additionally, he said the agents would return to restricted roles following the suspension, and said the agency was “laser focused on fixing the root cause of the problem.”

“Secret Service is totally accountable for Butler,” Quinn told CBS. “Butler was an operational failure and we are focused today on ensuring that it never happens again.”

SECRET SERVICE SUSPENDS 6 AGENTS TASKED WITH PROTECTING TRUMP DURING JULY 2024 ASSASSINATION ATTEMPT 

The Secret Service confirmed to Fox News that the suspensions went into effect in February and that no agents had been fired. 

The agency faced harsh scrutiny in the aftermath of the ambush, where 20-year-old gunman Thomas Matthew Crooks fired eight bullets at Trump from a rooftop during a campaign rally on July 13, 2024. A bullet grazed Trump’s ear, and the gunman killed Corey Comperatore, a 50-year-old firefighter, father and husband attending the rally. A Secret Service sniper killed Crooks. 

The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Fox News Digital. 

Bill Gage, who served as a Secret Service special agent for former Presidents George W. Bush and Barack Obama, told Fox News Digital that the attempted assassination served as a wake-up call for the agency – bringing about overdue changes to the Secret Service. 

Specifically, Gage said the incident prompted the Secret Service to “create new divisions, new units to counter modern threats, and gave the agency a real focus.” 

TRUMP DIRECTS SECRET SERVICE TO GIVE HIM ‘EVERY BIT OF INFORMATION’ ABOUT HIS ATTEMPTED ASSASSINS: REPORT

Former Secret Service Acting Director Ronald Rowe told lawmakers on a bipartisan House task force investigating the assassination attempt in December 2024 that the immediate changes to the agency included expanding the use of drones for surveillance purposes, and also incorporating greater counter-drone technology to mitigate kinetic attacks from other drones. 

Likewise, the agency also overhauled its radio communications networks and interoperability of those networks with Secret Service personnel, and state and local law enforcement officers. Streamlining these radio communications is a major change, according to Gage, who said he sometimes was outfitted with up to five radios because an integrated system didn’t exist. 

Rowe also told lawmakers that the agency is seeking to beef up its staffing, and had assigned more special agents to Trump’s security detail. Rowe said the agency was planning to use some of the additional $231 million in funding that Congress approved for the Secret Service in a stopgap spending bill in September 2024 to hire 1,000 new agents and officers in 2025. 

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

Other potential changes in the works include constructing a precise replica of the White House, instead of using Tyler Perry’s White House replica at his Atlanta film studio as agents historically have done. 

Secret Service Director Sean Curran said in an April interview with Fox News’ “My View with Lara Trump” that the agency is coordinating with the White House to build the replica at the James J. Rowley Training Center in Laurel, Maryland. 

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Gage called it “inexcusable” that a replica of the White House didn’t already exist and said even more value should be placed on training. 

“The service should really focus on training,” Gage said. “There needs to be an increased mindset for training, where training is viewed as just as important as your assigned shift.” 

Fox News’ Elizabeth Pritchett and Alexis McAdams contributed to this report.

President Donald Trump installed two massive 88-foot-tall American flags on either side of the White House this summer in a patriotic endeavor that did not cost U.S. taxpayers a cent. 

“President Trump personally paid to install two big, beautiful American Flags to wave proudly over the White House for years to come. This is just one of many projects President Trump selflessly paid for to make the White House even more patriotic and beautiful,” White House spokesperson Davis Ingle told Fox News Digital on Thursday. 

The flagpoles were estimated to cost $50,000 each. 

An American flag has flown on the White House roof stretching back decades, with Trump first announcing in April that he planned to install additional flags on the North and South lawns. 

TRUMP VOWS CONSEQUENCES FOR ‘ANIMALS’ BURNING AMERICAN FLAGS IN LA, SLAMS THOSE WAVING OTHER COUNTRIES’ FLAGS

“They needed flagpoles for 200 years,” Trump told the media back in April when he first announced plans for the flag installations. “It was something I’ve often said, you know, they don’t have a flagpole per se. So we’re putting one right where you saw us, and we’re putting another one on the other side, on top of the mounds. It’s going to be two beautiful poles.”

MORE AMERICANS SUPPORT THAN OPPOSE TRUMP’S ARMY CELEBRATION PARADE: POLL

“Paid for by Trump,” he added. 

The flagpoles were installed last month ahead of the 4th of July holiday and now frame the White House on either lawn.

Trump held a flag-raising ceremony on June 18, when he remarked that these are the “best poles anywhere in the country or in the world,” while reveling in the manual installation of the poles. 

TRUMP UNFURLS PLANS FOR DOUBLE 100-FOOT FLAGPOLES DURING WHITE HOUSE LAWN WALK

“Only if you’re in construction is this exciting,” Trump said during the ceremony last month. “See, you have to get it perfectly straight and once it’s perfect, they pour in the sand, and it’s there for 100 years.”

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The installation of the flag poles is Trump’s latest revamp to the White House under his second administration. The White House Rose Garden, for example, is currently under construction after Trump announced in March that he planned to renovate the historic garden with pavers, citing the grass “doesn’t work,” citing how the soft grass terrain was difficult for some visitors, notably women in high-heels, to navigate.  

The discredited document at the center of the criminal investigations into former CIA Director John Brennan and former FBI Director James Comey was used to open the original Trump–Russia probe in 2016 and used to brief then-President-elect Donald Trump, despite top Obama-era intelligence officials knowing it was filled with unverified “internet rumor.”

The “Steele dossier,” as it’s called, was authored by ex-British intelligence officer Christopher Steele. It was funded by Hillary Clinton’s presidential campaign and the Democratic National Committee (DNC) through the law firm Perkins Coie.

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

After Trump’s 2016 victory and during the presidential transition period, Comey briefed Trump on the now-infamous anti-Trump dossier, containing salacious allegations of purported coordination between Trump and the Russian government. Brennan was present for that briefing, which took place at Trump Tower in New York City in January 2017.

However, Brennan and Comey knew of intelligence suggesting Clinton, during the campaign, was stirring up a plan to tie Trump to Russia, documents claim. It is unclear whether the intelligence community, at the time, knew that the dossier was paid for by Clinton and the DNC.

CIA Director John Ratcliffe, when he served as director of national intelligence under the first Trump administration, declassified Brennan’s handwritten notes memorializing that meeting, which were exclusively obtained by Fox News Digital in October 2020.

On July 28, 2016, Brennan briefed then-President Barack Obama on a plan from one of Clinton’s campaign foreign policy advisors “to vilify Donald Trump by stirring up a scandal claiming interference by the Russian security service,” the notes said. 

Comey, then-Vice President Joe Biden, former Attorney General Loretta Lynch and former Director of National Intelligence James Clapper were at the Brennan–Obama briefing.

“We’re getting additional insight into Russian activities from (REDACTED),” read Brennan’s handwritten notes, exclusively obtained by Fox News Digital in October 2020. “CITE (summarizing) alleged approved by Hillary Clinton a proposal from one of her foreign policy advisers to vilify Donald Trump by stirring up a scandal claiming interference by the Russian security service.”

After that briefing, the CIA properly forwarded that information through a Counterintelligence Operational Lead (CIOL) to Comey and then-Deputy Assistant Director of Counterintelligence Peter Strzok, with the subject line: “Crossfire Hurricane.”

Fox News Digital exclusively obtained and reported on the CIOL in October 2020, which stated, “The following information is provided for the exclusive use of your bureau for background investigative action or lead purposes as appropriate.”

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

“Per FBI verbal request, CIA provides the below examples of information the CROSSFIRE HURRICANE fusion cell has gleaned to date,” the memo continued. “An exchange (REDACTED) discussing US presidential candidate Hillary Clinton’s approval of a plan concerning US presidential candidate Donald Trump and Russian hackers hampering US elections as a means of distracting the public from her use of a private email server.”

The FBI did not open an investigation into the matter, and instead, continued with its counterintelligence investigation into whether candidate Trump and members of his campaign were colluding or coordinating with Russia to influence the 2016 campaign. That investigation, which was opened July 31, 2016, was referred to inside the bureau as “Crossfire Hurricane.”

Brennan and Comey are now under criminal investigation for potential wrongdoing related to the Trump-Russia probe, including allegedly making false statements to Congress, Justice Department sources told Fox News Digital.

Ratcliffe referred evidence of alleged wrongdoing by Brennan to FBI Director Kash Patel for potential prosecution, DOJ sources told Fox News Digital.

The sources said that the referral was received and told Fox News Digital that a criminal investigation into Brennan was opened and is underway. DOJ sources declined to provide further details. It is unclear, at this point, if the investigation spans beyond his alleged false statements to Congress.

As for Comey, DOJ sources told Fox News Digital that an investigation into the former director is underway but could not share details of what specifically is being probed.

The full scope of the criminal investigations into Brennan and Comey is unclear, but two sources described the FBI’s view of the duo’s interactions as a “conspiracy,” which could open up a wide range of potential prosecutorial options. 

The Brennan investigation comes after Ratcliffe recently declassified a “lessons learned” review of the creation of the 2017 Intelligence Community Assessment (ICA). The 2017 ICA alleged Russia sought to influence the 2016 presidential election to help then-candidate Trump. However, the review found that the process of the ICA’s creation was rushed with “procedural anomalies,” and that officials had diverted from intelligence standards. 

It also determined that the “decision by agency heads to include the Steele Dossier in the ICA ran counter to fundamental tradecraft principles and ultimately undermined the credibility of a key judgment.” 

The review marks the first time career CIA officials have acknowledged politicization of the process by which the ICA was written, particularly by Obama-era political appointees.  Records declassified as part of that review further revealed that Brennan did, in fact, push for the dossier to be included in the 2017 ICA.

Brennan testified to the House Judiciary Committee in May 2023, however, that he did not believe the dossier should be included in that intelligence product.

EX-OBAMA INTEL BOSS WANTED ANTI-TRUMP DOSSIER INCLUDED IN ‘ATYPICAL’ 2016 ASSESSMENT DESPITE PUSHBACK

Ratcliffe was not surprised by the review’s findings, a source familiar told Fox News Digital, given the director’s long history of criticizing Brennan’s politicization of intelligence. However, Ratcliffe was compelled to refer aspects of Brennan’s involvement to the FBI for review of possible criminality, the source said.

The source was unable to share the sensitive details of Ratcliffe’s criminal referral to the FBI with Fox News Digital but said that Brennan “violated the public’s trust and should be held accountable for it.”

The false statements portion of the probe stems from a newly declassified email sent to Brennan by the former deputy CIA director in December 2016. That message said that including the dossier in the ICA in any capacity jeopardized “the credibility of the entire paper.”

“Despite these objections, Brennan showed a preference for narrative consistency over analytical soundness,” the new CIA review states. “When confronted with specific flaws in the Dossier by the two mission center leaders – one with extensive operational experience and the other with a strong analytic background – he appeared more swayed by the Dossier’s general conformity with existing theories than by legitimate tradecraft concerns.”

The review added, “Brennan ultimately formalized his position in writing, stating that ‘my bottomline is that I believe that the information warrants inclusion in the report.’”

However, Brennan testified the opposite in front of Congress in May 2023.

“The CIA was very much opposed to having any reference or inclusion of the Steele dossier in the Intelligence Community Assessment,” Brennan testified before the House committee, according to the transcript of his deposition reviewed by Fox News Digital. “And so they sent over a copy of the dossier to say that this was going to be separate from the rest of that assessment.”

FLASHBACK: NEWLY DECLASSIFIED INTEL DOCUMENT NOTED STEELE DOSSIER CLAIMS HAD ‘LIMITED CORROBORATION’

CIA officials at the time of its creation pushed back against the FBI, which sought to include the dossier, arguing that the dossier should not be included in the assessment, and casting it as simply “internet rumor.” 

Ultimately, Steele’s reporting was not included in the body of the final ICA prepared for then-President Obama, but instead detailed in this footnote, “largely at the insistence of FBI’s senior leadership,” according to a review by the Justice Department inspector general and later the Senate Intelligence Committee.

However, back in June 2020, Ratcliffe, while serving as director of national intelligence, declassified a footnote from the 2017 ICA, which revealed that the reporting of Trump dossier author Steele had only “limited corroboration” regarding whether then-President-elect Trump “knowingly worked with Russian officials to bolster his chances of beating” Clinton and other claims.

FLASHBACK: DNI DECLASSIFIES BRENNAN NOTES, CIA MEMO ON HILLARY CLINTON ‘STIRRING UP’ SCANDAL BETWEEN TRUMP, RUSSIA

The footnote, also known as “Annex A” of the 2017 ICA, exclusively obtained by Fox News Digital in June 2020, spanned less than two pages and detailed reporting by Steele. The footnote made clear the internal concerns officials had over that document. 

“An FBI source (Steele) using both identified and unidentified subsources, volunteered highly politically sensitive information from the summer to the fall of 2016 on Russian influence efforts aimed at the US presidential election,” the annex read. “We have only limited corroboration of the source’s reporting in this case and did not use it to reach the analytic conclusions of the CIA/FBI/NSA assessment.”

“The source collected this information on behalf of private clients and was not compensated for it by the FBI,” it continued. However, the annex notes that Steele’s reporting was “not developed by the layered subsource network.”

“The FBI source caveated that, although similar to previously provided reporting in terms of content, the source was unable to vouch for the additional information’s sourcing and accuracy,” the annex states. “Hence this information is not included in this product.”

FBI IGNORED ‘CLEAR WARNING SIGN’ OF CLINTON-LED EFFORT TO ‘MANIPULATE’ BUREAU FOR ‘POLITICAL PURPOSES’

Justice Department Inspector General Michael Horowitz also reviewed the inclusion of Steele’s reporting in the ICA during his review of alleged misconduct related to the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA).

Horowitz said that the unverified dossier helped serve as the basis for controversial FISA warrants obtained against former Trump campaign aide Carter Page. 

His report, released in late 2019, found that there were “significant inaccuracies and omissions” in FISA warrants for Page. Those warrants relied heavily on Steele’s reporting, despite the FBI not having had specific information corroborating allegations against Page that were included in Steele’s reporting.

Fox News Digital has learned that the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court ordered that information surrounding FISAs for Page will be reviewed and used by the FBI and Justice Department as part of their investigations. 

The FBI and CIA declined to comment.

Neither Brennan nor Comey immediately responded to Fox News Digital’s request for comment. 

Former special counsel Robert Mueller was appointed to take over the FBI’s original “Crossfire Hurricane” investigation. After nearly two years, Mueller’s investigation, which concluded in March 2019, yielded no evidence of criminal conspiracy or coordination between the Trump campaign and Russian officials during the 2016 presidential election.

WHITE HOUSE WANTS OBAMA INTEL OFFICIALS ‘HELD ACCOUNTABLE’ FOR ROLE PEDDLING 2016 RUSSIA HOAX

Shortly after, John Durham was appointed as special counsel to investigate the origins of the “Crossfire Hurricane” probe.

Durham found that the FBI “failed to act” on a “clear warning sign” that the bureau was the “target” of a Clinton-led effort to “manipulate or influence the law enforcement process for political purposes” ahead of the 2016 presidential election.

“The aforementioned facts reflect a rather startling and inexplicable failure to adequately consider and incorporate the Clinton Plan intelligence into the FBI’s investigative decision-making in the Crossfire Hurricane investigation,” Durham’s report states.

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“The Office showed portions of the Clinton Plan intelligence to a number of individuals who were actively involved in the Crossfire Hurricane investigation. Most advised they had never seen the intelligence before, and some expressed surprise and dismay upon learning of it,” Durham’s report states. “For example, the original Supervisory Special Agent on the Crossfire Hurricane investigation, Supervisory Special Agent-1, reviewed the intelligence during one of his interviews with the Office.” 

Durham added, “After reading it, Supervisory Special Agent-I became visibly upset and emotional, left the interview room with his counsel, and subsequently returned to state emphatically that he had never been apprised ofthe Clinton Plan intelligence and had never seen the aforementioned Referral Memo.” 

An appeals court has reversed the conviction of a pro-Trump influencer charged with spreading false information on social media to suppress Democratic voter turnout during the 2016 election, voiding conspiracy charges and a monthslong federal prison sentence handed down by a jury in Brooklyn, New York.

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the 2nd Circuit on Wednesday unanimously voided the conviction of Douglass Mackey on federal conspiracy charges and remanded the case back to the U.S. Court in the Eastern District of New York to enter a new judgment of acquittal.

The unanimous three-judge panel said in their ruling that “no rational jury” could have found that Mackey, 36, “knowingly” joined others in an illegal conspiracy aimed at influencing the outcome of the 2016 election or depriving people of their right to vote.

“The jury’s verdict and the resulting judgment of conviction must be set aside,” Chief Judge Debra Ann Livingston wrote.

TRUMP ADMINISTRATION SWARMS SCOTUS WITH EMERGENCY REQUESTS AND SEES SURPRISING SUCCESS

The verdict is a win for Mackey, a self-styled right-wing influencer and self-described “troll,” who amassed roughly 58,000 followers on Twitter in the run-up to the 2016 election. 

Mackey, who used the handle “Ricky Vaughn,” used his account to post false information designed to support then-presidential candidate Donald Trump, including memes designed to look like Hillary Clinton ads that told voters they could submit their ballots via text message.

Mackey was convicted in 2023 on conspiracy charges and sentenced to seven months in federal prison.

The three-judge panel ruled Wednesday that Mackey’s posts, including the false memes he posted, were not sufficient evidence to prove that he had violated U.S. conspiracy laws, “even assuming that he did so with the intent to injure other citizens in the exercise of their right to vote,” they said. 

SCOTUS DENIES FLORIDA AG REQUEST TO ENFORCE CONTROVERSIAL IMMIGRATION LAW

“The government was obligated to show that Mackey knowingly entered into an agreement with other people to pursue that objective,” Chief Judge Debra Ann Livingston and Judges Reena Raggi and Beth Robinson wrote. “This the government failed to do.”

The decision was praised by Mackey, who immediately posted on social media about the verdict.

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“HALLELUJAH!” Mackey said on X after the appellate court ruling on Wednesday. Mackey proceeded to thank God, his family, wife, lawyers and others who supported him during the trial in subsequent posts. He then threatened to pursue legal action over his conviction.

“Now we sue,” he said.

Democratic socialist Zohran Mamdani, the frontrunner in the race for mayor of America’s most populous city, on Thursday landed the endorsement of one of New York City’s most influential politicians.

Democratic Rep. Adriano Espaillat, arguably the city’s most powerful Latino leader, is backing Mamdani, who, if elected in November, would become New York City’s first Muslim mayor.

“Thank you @EspaillatNY for joining this campaign for an affordable NYC and for fighting Trump’s authoritarianism in DC,” Mamdani wrote in a social media post. “Adriano and I know that the only way we can protect this city is by standing firm in our values and standing up for working class and immigrant New Yorkers.”

MAMDANI’S FAR-LEFT ALLIES MULL PRIMARY CHALLENGES AGAINST TOP NYC HOUSE DEMOCRATS 

Mamdani and Espaillat are scheduled to team up at a campaign event on Thursday afternoon to formally announce the five-term congressman’s endorsement of the 33-year-old Ugandan-born state assemblyman from Queens.

MAMDANI POLITICAL TSUNAMI SWAMPS DEMOCRATS AS PARTY SEARCHES FOR PATH FORWARD

Espaillat’s endorsement of Mamdani, who two weeks ago convincingly defeated former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo and nine other candidates to win the Democratic Party mayoral nomination, is seen as a setback for Cuomo.

Cuomo, who resigned from office in 2021 during his third term as governor amid multiple scandals and who was aiming for a political comeback, was endorsed in the Democratic primary by Espaillat. And the two politicians teamed up at a rally on the eve of the kickoff of early voting in the primary election.

While Cuomo lost the Democratic mayoral nomination to Mamdani, he’s running, as of now, on the November ballot as an independent, which state rules allow. 

Democratic Mayor Eric Adams, who dropped his primary bid earlier this year amid sinking poll numbers in the wake of numerous controversies, is seeking re-election as an independent.

THE PLOT TO STOP MAMDANI: DEMOCRATS SCRAMBLE TO PREVENT FAR-LEFT TAKEOVER IN NYC

Also on the ballot in the general election are Jim Walden, a former federal prosecutor running as an independent, and Guardian Angels co-founder Curtis Sliwa, who, for a second straight election, is the Republican mayoral nominee.

Espaillat, the chair of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus, has been a vocal critic of President Donald Trump’s sweeping and controversial second-term immigration crackdown.

And Espaillat, who backed Adams in the mayor’s 2021 election, was thought to have grown frustrated with the mayor’s working relationship with Trump on immigration enforcement.

Adams’ poll numbers were sinking even before he was indicted last year on five counts, which accused the mayor of bribery and fraud as part of an alleged “long-running” scheme to personally profit from contacts with foreign officials.

The mayor made repeated overtures to Trump and the Justice Department earlier this year dismissed the corruption charges, so Adams could potentially work with the Trump administration on its illegal immigration crackdown.

RESURFACED MAMDANI PHOTO SPARKS SOCIAL MEDIA FIRESTORM 

News of Espaillat’s endorsement of Mamdani was first reported by The New York Times.

Mamdani surged to a primary victory thanks to an energetic campaign that put a major focus on affordability and New York City’s high cost of living.

Mamdani made smart use of social media platforms, including TikTok, as he engaged low-propensity voters. He proposed eliminating fares to ride New York City’s vast bus system, making CUNY (City University of New York) “tuition-free,” freezing rents on municipal housing, offering “free childcare” for children up to age 5, and setting up government-run grocery stores.

And thanks in part to the efforts of a massive grassroots army of volunteers, he rode a wave of support from younger and progressive voters to catapult into first place.

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Since his primary victory, Republicans have relentlessly painted Mamdani as an extremist and anchored him to Democrats across the country ahead of next year’s midterm elections.

The attacks stretched from down ballot on the campaign trail all the way up to the White House, with Trump claiming that Mamdani was “a 100% Communist Lunatic.”

Sen. Josh Hawely, R-Mo., is reigniting a congressional push to ban the Chinese Communist Party from buying up farmland and residential land in the U.S. on Thursday.

Hawley is introducing the Protecting Our Farms and Homes from China Act, which bans Chinese corporations and individuals associated with the Chinese Communist Party from making such purchases. President Donald Trump’s administration has sounded the alarm about Chinese ownership of U.S. land in recent days, particularly around American military bases.

“China’s ownership of U.S. farmland poses a direct threat to American interests,” Hawley told Fox News Digital in a statement. “We should never let our nation’s greatest adversary have access to our vital resources, including our housing supply. That’s why I’m introducing legislation to protect American assets from the CCP once and for all.”

While the bill would impose a flat ban on relevant purchases of farmland, the ban on residential purchases would only apply for two years, leaving an option for the president to re-up the prohibition every two years beyond that.

TEXAS THE LATEST STATE WITH A LAW BANNING FOREIGN ADVERSARIES FROM BUYING REAL ESTATE

The legislation also requires Chinese corporations and CCP-affiliated individuals who own affected land to divest that ownership within one year. It also establishes penalties for failing to comply with the law, ranging from fines to outright forfeiture.

Hawley’s move comes in tandem with the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announcing its National Farm Security Action Plan earlier this week.

CHINESE NATIONALS WHO INFILTRATED US UNIVERSITIES

The plan is specifically meant to address threats from foreign governments, like China, and how those threats impact American farmers. The plan laid out executive reforms and called for Congress to pursue legislation like Hawley’s.

“The farm’s produce is not just a commodity, it is a way of life that underpins America itself. And that’s exactly why it is under threat from criminals, from political adversaries, and from hostile regimes that understand our way of life as a profound and existential threat to themselves,” USDA Secretary Brooke Rollins said at a press event in Washington, D.C., on Tuesday.

HARVARD UNIVERSITY’S ALLEGED TIES TO CHINESE PARAMILITARY GROUP, IRAN-BACKED RESEARCH SPARK GOP PROBE

“For them, agricultural lands and our farms, because they are a previous inheritance, are weapons to be turned against us,” she continued. “We see it again and again, from Chinese communist acquisition of American farmland to criminal exploits of our system of agriculture, to the theft of operational information required to work the land and beyond. All of this takes what is profoundly good and turns it toward evil purposes.”

Joining Rollins at the event were Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, Attorney General Pam Bondi and Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem.

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Numerous states have laws on the books restricting land purchases by those with ties to China and other foreign adversaries. Nevertheless, in 2021, over 383,000 acres had ties to China. While the number has dipped in recent years, it remains a significant issue, according to Agriculture Dive. 

Read the full text of Hawley’s bill below (App users click here)

Fox News’ Cameron Arcand contributed to this report

Senate Republicans are gearing up to claw back billions of dollars in foreign aid and public broadcasting funding, but dissent is brewing among some who could eat into President Donald Trump’s cut request.

A cohort of Senate Republicans are publicly and privately growing squeamish over the White House’s $9.4 billion rescissions package, which would slash $8.3 billion from the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) and over $1 billion from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB), the government-backed funding arm for NPR and PBS.

‘BAIT AND SWITCH’: SCHUMER WARNS OF BITTER FUNDING FIGHT OVER GOP CUTS PLAN

The cuts stem from Trump’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), which was lauded by most Republicans for its mission to root out waste, fraud and abuse in the federal government.

Still, concerns and calls for changes are being made, in particular to proposed slashes to the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) and the public broadcasting fund.

Publicly, Sens. Susan Collins, R-Maine, Mike Rounds, R-S.D., and Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, have all aired their concerns about the House-passed bill and are eyeing changes that could see the cuts reduced.

TRUMP’S PLAN TO SLASH ‘WOKE’ FOREIGN AID, NPR FUNDS CLEARS HOUSE AS SENATE BATTLE LOOMS

“I don’t like it as it is currently drafted,” Murkowski said. “I’m a strong supporter of the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, and our health programs are important.”

Collins has raised issues with slashes to PEPFAR, an issue brought forth during a hearing with White House officials last month, while Rounds is worried about funding being slashed to rural radio stations, particularly for Native American populations in his state and others “and their ability to get good information during times of stress.”

Senate Republican leadership already has plans for an amendment process on the bill, which will likely culminate in another marathon vote-a-rama amendment session — roughly two weeks after the grueling amendment process for Trump’s “big, beautiful bill.”

Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., said that he intended to put the package on the Senate floor next week, likely ahead of the Friday deadline for lawmakers to advance the clawbacks.

If the bill is amended, it would have to be sent back to the House before heading to Trump’s desk.

Sen. Markwayne Mullin, R-Okla., told Fox News Digital that he expected the vote-a-rama to begin Wednesday, and said the hope was that leadership would be able to address as many concerns among Republicans as possible before bringing the bill to the floor.

“Whatever it takes, we’re having those conversations,” he said. “The point is, once we get to the vote-a-rama, we want to have as much issues resolved so we know where we’re at on the floor without any surprises. And I think we can do that, maybe not, but I think we can. I think we got a good picture of where we’re at right now.”

Other lawmakers see the package in its current form as a no-brainer to pass.

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Sen. John Kennedy, R-La., said that if amendments were offered to keep spending that he agreed with, he could find himself supporting tweaks to the package. But he challenged his colleagues to reject a spending cut package that ultimately amounted to less than half a percent of the nation’s entire budget.

“This is gut check time for our Republican colleagues,” he said. “They either believe in reducing spending or they don’t. They either believe in spending porn or they don’t, and I’ve listened to my colleagues, especially in the last 100 plus days, talk about how great DOGE was. Well, now is the chance to show it.” 

President Donald Trump told donors in 2024 he had cautioned Russian President Vladimir Putin that bombs would drop on Moscow if the Russian leader invaded Ukraine, a new book claims. 

The book, “2024: How Trump Retook the White House and the Democrats Lost America,” was published on Tuesday and chronicles how Trump secured his victory in the November 2024 election, and how former President Joe Biden‘s team dismissed concerns about his age in the campaign cycle. 

TRUMP DISTANCE HIMSELF FROM RUSSIA-UKRAINE CONFLICT: ‘NOT OUR PEOPLE, NOT OUR SOLDIERS’

According to the book, Trump told donors that he’d issued a harsh warning to Putin about any potential invasion. Additionally, he said he’d issued a similar warning to Chinese President Xi Jinping, should the Chinese leader invade Taiwan, the book said. 

“I was with Putin and I told him, ‘Vladimir, if you do it, we’re going to bomb the s— out of Moscow,’” Trump revealed, according to an audio recording, also shared with CNN. “‘If you go into Taiwan, I’m going to bomb the s— out of Beijing.’ He thought I was crazy… He didn’t believe me either, except 10 percent. And 10 percent is all you need.” 

JD VANCE STEPS INTO THE SPOTLIGHT DEFENDING TRUMP’S FOREIGN POLICY IN OVAL OFFICE DUSTUP WITH ZELENSKYY

In response, the White House said that Russia only invaded Ukraine in February 2022 — after Trump’s first term in office. 

“As President Trump has said time and again, Russia never dared invade Ukraine when he was in office. It happened only when Biden was in office,” White House spokesperson Anna Kelly said in a Wednesday statement. “Thanks to this President’s leadership, America is once again the leader of the free world, and peace through strength is restored. President Trump won on an America First agenda, and he is working hard to implement the mandate the American people gave him.”

The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Fox News Digital confirming the authenticity of the audio. 

WHERE ZELENSKYY IS HEADED FOLLOWING TENSE WHITE HOUSE EXCHANGE WITH TRUMP, VANCE

The book “2024” is one of several that have been released in 2025 detailing how Trump secured victory in the 2024 election and how Biden’s mental acuity declined. It is authored by Josh Dawsey of the Wall Street Journal, Tyler Pager of the New York Times and Isaac Arnsdorf of the Washington Post. 

The authors did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Fox News Digital. 

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Trump has recently voiced frustration with Putin as he’s sought to bring an end to the war between Russia and Ukraine. Tuesday, Trump said during a Cabinet meeting he was fed up with Putin and said he was eyeing potentially imposing new sanctions on Russia. 

“We get a lot of bulls— thrown at us by Putin, if you want to know the truth. He’s very nice all the time, but it turns out to be meaningless,” Trump said Tuesday. 

Fox News’ Sarah Tobianski contributed to this report. 

Six Secret Service agents were suspended without pay or benefits following a gunman’s attempt to take President Donald Trump’s life at a Pennsylvania rally last July.

Matt Quinn, the agency’s deputy director, told CBS News on Wednesday that they “weren’t going to fire [their] way out of this,” but did say they are “laser focused on fixing the root cause of the problem.”

Quinn told the outlet that the agents’ penalty ranged from 10 to 42 days of unpaid leave, adding that they were placed in restricted roles with less responsibility once they returned to the job. He said the disciplinary actions were in accordance with a federally mandated process.

Fox News Digital reached out to the Secret Service for independent confirmation, but did not hear back by the time of publication.

TRUMP DIRECTS SECRET SERVICE TO GIVE HIM ‘EVERY BIT OF INFORMATION’ ABOUT HIS ATTEMPTED ASSASSINS: REPORT

The agency faced heavy criticism following the security failure, which allowed gunman Thomas Crooks to open fire toward the rally’s stage in Butler, Pennsylvania, on July 13, 2024. 

Corey Comperatore, a 50-year-old firefighter, father and husband attending the rally, was killed while Trump’s ear was grazed by a bullet and two other men were injured by gunfire. 

Crooks was killed by a Secret Service sniper.

FOX NATION REVEALS NEVER-BEFORE-SEEN FOOTAGE FROM TRUMP ASSASSINATION ATTEMPT IN BUTLER 

“Secret Service is totally accountable for Butler,” Quinn said to CBS. “Butler was an operational failure and we are focused today on ensuring that it never happens again.” 

He also said the agency is focusing on the “root cause” of the operational failure and fixing “the deficiencies that put us in that situation.”

Since the Butler rally, Quinn said the Secret Service has introduced a new fleet of military-grade drones and mobile command posts to improve radio communications with local law enforcement.

The agency faced more criticism weeks later when a second assassination attempt on Trump took place in West Palm Beach, Florida. Though it was stopped, then-Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle resigned and the agency underwent several investigations and congressional hearings.

A bipartisan House task force released a 180-page report in December stating that the incident in Butler was “preventable,” citing “preexisting” leadership and training issues that “created an environment” where security failures were possible.

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In the report, lawmakers also pointed out that the Secret Service did not coordinate or plan well with local law enforcement.

While debate over why the Texas floods were so deadly has centered around President Donald Trump’s cuts to key weather agencies, left-wing critics have also complained that policy inaction and “climate denialism” were major factors.

As search and rescue efforts continued after the devastating storm swept through Texas on the July Fourth holiday, former Democratic presidential candidate and New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg penned an op-ed arguing that the Texas floods “were made worse by climate denialism.”

“The latest episode of horrific flooding isn’t just about a natural disaster in one state. It’s also about a political failure that’s been happening in states across the country, and most of all in Washington,” Bloomberg wrote. “The refusal to recognize that climate change carries a death penalty is sending innocent people, including far too many children, to early graves.”

OBAMA BROS BALK AT FAR-LEFT SAYING TEXANS BROUGHT FLOOD DISASTER ON THEMSELVES BY SUPPORTING TRUMP

“We are at a crossroads,” Ben Jealous, former candidate for Maryland governor andexecutive director at the Sierra Club, wrote in his own op-ed following the tragedy in Texas. 

“We can double down on denial and let superstorms, heatwaves, droughts, floods and fires determine our fate. Or we can lead — with science, resilience, courage, and a recommitment to our values,” Jealous said.

Meanwhile, Will Bunch, a national opinion columnist at the Philadelphia Inquirer, said that “so many more lives would have been saved if leaders dropped climate denial and believed in government for the public good.”

EX-BIDEN OFFICIAL SCOLDS TRUMP ON CLIMATE CHANGE AFTER TEXAS FLOODS

In response to these arguments, Steve Milloy, a senior policy fellow at the conservative-leaning Energy and Environment Legal Institute, said it was “sad” to see folks politicizing the tragedy in Texas to advance their agenda. 

“Just for the record, this area of Texas is known for flash floods,” Milloy added. “Extreme rainfall is not correlated with emissions and there hasn’t even been any ‘global warming’ over the past five days.” The climate advocacy group Climate Central also added that “it is difficult to directly attribute specific rain events to climate change” in an assessment about understanding the link between the Texas floods and climate change.

Milloy said that while the National Weather Service was “sufficiently staffed” in his view, he thinks a preliminary investigation will show the warning system in place needs improvements.

WHITE HOUSE BLASTS SCHUMER, DEMOCRATS FOR ‘DEPRAVED LIE’ BLAMING TRUMP FOR TEXAS FLASH FLOOD

In a statement to Fox News Digital, White House spokesperson Abigail Jackson called it “shameful and disgusting” to see that in the wake of the environmental tragedy in Texas, people were politicizing it.

“The Texas officials who say, ‘We couldn’tqaa [sic] see this coming,’ are totally oblivious that they should have seen climate change coming, and done something about it. Climate change denial means more torrential rain for Texas, and more flash flooding,” former Washington State Democratic Governor Jay Inslee wrote on social media. 

“North Carolina. Texas. When will floods finally wash away the climate change denial in DC that is now washing away America’s economically productive clean energy industries?” Inslee asked in a separate post.

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One climate group, World Weather Attribution, told Axios it was so confident climate change is what caused the deadly flooding that it does not even plan to study the natural disaster to better understand what caused it. Fox News Digital reached out to the group to understand better why it is so certain of the cause, but did not receive a response. The group investigated the climate change impacts of a July heat wave in Europe as recently as this month, according to the New York Times.

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott on Wednesday called for a special session to consider legislation to improve warning systems and emergency response in flood-prone areas across the state.

The proclamation comes days after more than 100 people died, and nearly 200 others went missing, in the July Fourth Texas Hill Country floods.

The floods, which were caused by excessive rainfall near the Guadalupe River, swept away people and homes across multiple counties early Friday morning. Officials said the river rose nearly 30 feet within 45 minutes.

SEVERE WEATHER EMERGENCY ALERTS: HOW TO GET LOUD PHONE WARNINGS

Following the disaster, which claimed the lives of 27 campers at a riverfront youth camp, citizens criticized an apparent lack of prior notice.

The National Weather Service (NWS) said notifications were expanded about 12 hours before the tragedy, though the warning remained “moderate.”

TEXAS RIVER FLOODS AS EMERGENCY CREWS RACE TO FIND OTHERS MISSING; CAMP EVACUATED

Abbott specifically called for new legislation to improve early warning systems and other preparedness infrastructure, strengthen emergency communications and other response infrastructure, provide relief funding, and evaluate and streamline rules and regulations to speed preparedness for and recovery from natural disasters.

Other legislation requests unrelated to the floods but included in the proclamation surrounded eduction, taxes, abortion, human trafficking, crime and public safety, elections and redistricting, and hemp-derived products.

DEADLY TEXAS FLOOD EXPOSES ‘NEGLECTED’ WEATHER ALERT SYSTEM TRUMP AIMS TO MODERNIZE

Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Kristi Noem addressed flood notification failures at a news conference on Saturday, claiming the administration was working on updating the National Weather Service and NOAA’s “neglected” and “ancient” systems.

Noem vowed to upgrade the weather service technology, which she described as being “neglected for far too long,” to ensure families have “as much advanced notice as possible.”

She added reform is ongoing, though she did not provide a timeline.

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Skeptics argued the upgrades are unlikely due to the reduced National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) workforce following Department of Government Efficiency’s (DOGE) spending cuts.

Democrats previously alleged more than 880 NOAA workers were laid off, though a spokesperson would not confirm a specific number.

Zohran Mamdani’s democratic socialist allies may be eyeing primary challenges next year against some congressional Democrats in New York City, including House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries.

But a senior political advisor to Jeffries is promising that anyone who tries to oust the top Democrat in the House in next year’s primaries will face a “forceful and unrelenting” response.

Mamdani, the 33-year-old Ugandan-born democratic socialist assemblyman from Queens, sent political shock waves across the country with a convincing victory two weeks ago over former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo and nine other candidates in New York City’s Democratic mayoral primary. And Mamdani took a big step toward becoming New York City’s first Muslim mayor.

In the wake of Mamdani’s primary victory last month, the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) highlighted that “this movement is bigger than one person, election, city, or organization.”

MAMDANI POLITICAL TSUNAMI SWAMPS DEMOCRATS AS PARTY SEARCHES FOR PATH FORWARD

“We encourage all people inspired by the Zohran campaign to join their local DSA or YDSA chapter and get involved so we can continue to fight alongside Zohran and DSA elected officials across the country to create the future we all deserve,” they added in a statement.

Fast-forward to today, and DSA leaders are apparently mulling running primary challengers against Jeffries as well as other House Democrats whose districts are in New York City, including Reps. Ritchie Torres, Jerry Nadler, Dan Goldman and Yvette Clarke.

THE PLOT TO STOP MAMDANI: DEMOCRATS SCRAMBLE TO PREVENT FAR-LEFT TAKEOVER IN NYC

Jeffries, who two years ago succeeded longtime House Democratic leader and former Speaker Nancy Pelosi, has been criticized by some of New York City’s far-left leaders as a moderate and establishment Democrat.

“His leadership has left a vacuum that organizations like DSA are filling. I think that is more important right now,” New York City’s Democratic Socialists of America chapter co-chair Gustavo Gordillo told CNN.

Democratic socialist state Sen. Jabari Brisport, whose district includes some of the same areas of Brooklyn as Jeffries House district, argued in a statement to Fox News that the longtime congressman is “rapidly growing out of touch with an insurgent and growing progressive base within his own district that he should pay more attention to.”

Democratic strategist Andre Richardson, a top Jeffries political advisor, pointed to the sweeping and controversial moves by President Donald Trump during the opening months of his second tour of duty in the White House, and said, “Leader Hakeem Jeffries is focused on taking back the House from the MAGA extremists who just ripped health care away from millions of Americans.”

Richardson also warned in a statement to CNN that if those on the left mount a primary challenge against Jeffries, “our response will be forceful and unrelenting. We will teach them and all of their incumbents a painful lesson on June 23, 2026.”

RESURFACED MAMDANI PHOTO SPARKS SOCIAL MEDIA FIRESTORM 

Jeffries, when asked about a potential primary challenge in an interview Wednesday with CNN, responded that he had “no idea what these people are talking about.”

And Jeffries said he’s focusing “on pushing back against the extremism that has been unleashed on the American people.”

Jeffries, Gov. Kathy Hochul, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and some other top Democratic elected officials in New York have praised Mamdani’s campaign. And while they’ve defended him from Trump’s attacks, they have refrained, as of now, from endorsing the Democratic mayoral nominee. 

Mamdani surged to a primary victory thanks to an energetic campaign that put a major focus on affordability and New York City’s high cost of living.

He made smart use of social media platforms, including TikTok, as he engaged low-propensity voters. He proposed eliminating fares to ride New York City’s vast bus system, making CUNY (City University of New York) “tuition-free,” freezing rents on municipal housing, offering “free childcare” for children up to age 5, and setting up government-run grocery stores.

Thanks in part to the efforts of a massive grassroots army of volunteers, Mamdani rode a wave of support from younger and progressive voters to catapult into first place over Cuomo, who had been the primary frontrunner.

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“I think it’s clear that voters are prioritizing action over inaction, and not just incremental change but broad sweeping change,” veteran Democratic strategist Joe Caiazzo told Fox News Digital, when asked about what Mamdani’s victory means for the party.

And Caiazzo, a veteran of Sen. Bernie Sanders’ 2016 and 2020 presidential campaigns, said one reason for Mamdani’s victory was that he tirelessly met “voters where they are.”

FIRST ON FOX: Bill Berrien, a Wisconsin manufacturing executive, former Navy SEAL and self-described political outsider, announced his Republican campaign for governor of Wisconsin on Wednesday. 

In the Republican’s first national exclusive interview since announcing his gubernatorial bid, Berrien told Fox News Digital, “We [have] to get away from the six years of Tony Evers, where we’re going in the entirely opposite direction. This race is extremely winnable. I can win it. I can be the conservative governor that is going to make this the Wisconsin century.”

Berrien said Democrat Gov. Tony Evers’ tenure has felt like the “gears in reverse” of any gains made by former GOP Gov. Scott Walker. The Republican hopeful called Evers a “tax and spend” Democrat who isn’t moving the state forward. 

“I’m an outsider. I’m a businessman, just like President Trump,” Berrien said. “He’s taking back Washington. We need to take back Madison for Wisconsinites.” 

FORMER NAVY SEAL MOUNTS SENATE BID TO ‘CRUSH THE WOKE AGENDA’ AS TUBERVILLE SEEKS GOVERNORSHIP

Berrien is the CEO of manufacturing companies Pindel Global Precision and Liberty Precision and served as a Navy SEAL for nine years. According to his campaign website, his top priorities in the race are revitalizing Wisconsin manufacturing, restoring law and order and strengthening Wisconsin families. 

FORMER TALK RADIO HOST DIALS INTO ALASKA’S RACE FOR GOVERNOR, SAYS ENERGY IS KEY

“Wisconsin is the best of the country,” Berrien said. “We make things, we build things, we work with our hands. My vision is we can be the manufacturing powerhouse of the world again. We can be ground zero for the success of the Trump-driven re-industrialization.”

President Donald Trump campaigned on unleashing American manufacturing as president and, through his often controversial trade and tariff policies, seeks to return business to the United States. 

Trump’s win in battleground Wisconsin landed him the White House in 2024. Berrien called his win “historic” and said it reflected a “shift across the board” among the Wisconsin electorate.  

“It is the Republican workers’ party – that’s due to his leadership. I think we’re gonna be building on that through this campaign,” Berrien said. 

While Trump secured Wisconsin in 2024, a liberal Democrat-backed Wisconsin Supreme Court candidate, Susan Crawford, won a contentious multimillion-dollar election over conservative Brad Schimel earlier this year. 

When Elon Musk was still in Trump’s good graces, he invested millions to support Schimel, but Democrats from across the country threw their political weight behind Crawford, and she was ultimately elected to the open seat. 

“It means all the more that we need to have a Republican in the governor’s mansion,” Berrien said before asking, “How do we apply a military leadership-type mindset across all 72 counties, winning up and down the ticket?”

And when asked about Democrats’ early 2026 midterm messaging about the One Big Beautiful Bill Act’s Medicaid cuts, Berrien said he supports Medicaid work requirements and called Trump’s megabill “wind in our sails for creating the Wisconsin century, making Wisconsin the manufacturing powerhouse to the world again.”

“When you look at the business incentives for factory construction, investing in technology, investing in people, it’s like a Black Friday sale or factory expansion, no coupons required.”

Berrien announced his candidacy in a campaign video released Wednesday morning. Washington County Executive Josh Schoemann announced his own Republican gubernatorial campaign in May. 

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Evers has yet to announce whether he will seek re-election in 2026. He did not respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.

“When we think about the last 10 years, there has only been two candidates that have been successful on a statewide basis, [Sen.] Ron Johnson and Donald Trump. We have on my team, leaders who’ve been part of both of those races, and we have the team to win this. We have resources, and we have a clear lane and opportunity. Let’s make this the Wisconsin century,” Berrien said. 

EXCLUSIVE: United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations unit arrested an alleged MS-13 kingpin and MS-13 associate in Nebraska on Wednesday.

The kingpin is on El Salvador’s “Top 100 Most Wanted” list, but his name is not yet being released by authorities. He is wanted for “aggravated homicide of five victims, attempted aggravated homicide, deprivation of liberty and terrorist organization affiliation,” according to an ICE press release.

“These illegal aliens didn’t just sneak into our country, they brought with them a legacy of violence, terror, and death,” Mark Zito ICE Homeland Security Investigations Special Agent in Charge of Kansas City, stated. “They thought they could hide in America’s heartland, but they were sadly mistaken, not on our watch.”

ICE AGENTS CAPTURE SUSPECTED VIOLENT MS-13 GANG MEMBER, ANOTHER ILLEGAL ALIEN AFTER POLICE LET THEM SLIP AWAY

In addition, an alleged “MS-13 gang member and foreign terrorist” associate who is also wanted in the Central American nation for allegedly “giving orders” to members of the gang to commit a range of serious crimes such as murder and drug trafficking was also taken into federal custody, according to ICE.

The arrest was considered “targeted enforcement action” in Omaha, with authorities saying the two were a “serious threat” to the area. 

The two were both living illegally in the U.S., and the investigation is being done by ICE and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives.

‘OFF OUR STREETS’: ICE MAKES MAJOR ARREST OF INTERNATIONALLY WANTED ‘SUSPECTED TERRORIST’

“When ICE agents move in to make an arrest, it is extremely important that the public not interfere,” ICE acting Director Todd M. Lyons said in a statement. “The misinformation, and sometimes blatant lies, being spread around the country could result in someone stepping into a federal operation and suddenly finding themselves face-to-face with a killer who has nothing to lose.”

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“Our ICE officers and agents are protecting your neighborhoods, even when you don’t know the threat is there, so either support them, or get out of the way,” Lyons added.

In a video of the arrest on the road, one of the men is seen putting their hands up quickly after being stopped by agents wearing “ATF Police” and “Homeland Security Investigations” on their backs. 

VIOLENT MS-13 GANGBANGERS GETTING ‘DESPERATE’; DHS OFFICIAL CREDITS EARLY TRUMP ACTION

The news release from ICE said that arrests went “without incident.”

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The arrest comes as ICE has been doing enforcement operations all over the country, as the agency continues to highlight arrests of those with criminal charges and convictions.

FIRST ON FOX: The Oklahoma State Department of Education (OSDE) is partnering with pro-Trump educational nonprofit PragerU to develop an “America First” assessment for new teachers coming into the state.

The state Department of Education is currently working with PragerU to develop the assessment for teachers “relocating from states with progressive education policies,” which they must take in order to get a license to teach in Oklahoma. The new assessment will evaluate educators on three main aspects: knowledge of the U.S. Constitution, “understanding of American exceptionalism” and “grasp of fundamental biological differences between boys and girls,” according to a news release about the new assessment. 

The goal of the new assessment is to ensure educators align with OSDE’s commitment to an education “rooted in truth, patriotism and core values,” and aims to instill “pride” in the nation’s history among students. 

ARIZONA LAUNCHES PARTNERSHIP WITH PRAGERU TO TEACH KIDS ABOUT AMERICA’S ‘RICH HISTORY AND VALUES’

“We’re sending a clear message: Oklahoma’s schools will not be a haven for woke agendas pushed in places like California and New York,” said Superintendent Ryan Walters. “If you want to teach here, you’d better know the Constitution, respect what makes America great, and understand basic biology. We’re raising a generation of patriots, not activists, and I’ll fight tooth and nail to keep leftist propaganda out of our classrooms.”

OSDE said it was still assessing which states of origin will be required, but said California and New York would be included. The exact makeup of the test is also still under development but will be finalized in the coming weeks. The assessment will then be implemented immediately upon completion, according to OSDE.

“We’re thrilled to join Oklahoma in answering parents’ urgent call against senseless woke indoctrination,” said PragerU CEO Marissa Streit. “This assessment will stop extreme leftist ideologues from harming children and ensure teachers champion America’s greatness and future potential.”

HOW TRUMP’S ‘BIG, BEAUTIFUL BILL’ WILL IMPACT K-12 EDUCATION

Fox News Digital reached out to multiple Oklahoma teachers unions for comment. The Association of Professional Oklahoma Educators got back, but they declined to comment, citing the fact they had not been notified of the details of this new teacher assessment yet. The Oklahoma chapter of the National Educators Association also declined to comment. 

OSDE’s new assessment for new teachers is not the first reform Walters has ushered in over the last several months to ensure students get a pro-America education in the state. About six months ago, Walters released updated social studies standards aimed at strengthening civics and constitutional studies across every grade that “upholds pro-family, pro-America values.” 

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Under Walters’ leadership, OSDE has also instituted lifetime teaching bans for serious sexual misconduct and other violations of professional standards, taken steps to address antisemitism and moved money from administrative budgets to pay for all students’ lunches across the state.

President Donald Trump slammed a pair of Democrat lawmakers for introducing a bill that would require federal immigration law enforcement officers to not wear face masks and have legible IDs while on the job, saying the lawmakers must “hate our country” or they “wouldn’t be saying that.”

“Two Democratic senators now, Cory Booker and Alex Padilla, have a new bill out. They want to require CBP and ICE officers to have legible IDs, and they don’t want CBP or ICE officers covering their faces. Would you ever sign that?” Fox News’ Peter Doocy asked Trump during a Wednesday lunch with African presidents. 

“Well, they wouldn’t be saying that if they didn’t hate our country,” Trump responded before praising officers with Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). “And they obviously do. I’m surprised that they would do it knowing a little bit about them.” 

“These officers are doing a tremendous job,” he continued. “They’re great patriots. If you expose them because of, you know, statements like have been made by Democrat and others on the left, usually mostly, I think, probably exclusively, you put them in great danger, tremendous danger.” 

BLUE STATE LAWMAKER RALLIES AROUND MASK BAN FOR FEDERAL AGENTS AS ICE OPERATIONS RAMP UP

Democratic Sens. Cory Booker of New Jersey and Alex Padilla of California introduced a bill Tuesday, dubbed the Visible Identification Standards for Immigration-Based Law Enforcement (VISIBLE) Act, that would require CBP and ICE agents to wear an identification badge while working and that they not wear face masks that conceal their identity. 

DHS FIRES BACK AT DEMOCRATS FOR ‘BEYOND THE PALE’ RHETORIC AS ICE AGENTS FACE WAVE OF VIOLENT THREATS

“For weeks, Americans have watched federal agents with no visible identification detain people off the streets and instill fear in communities across the country,” Booker said of the bill Tuesday. “Reports of individuals impersonating ICE officers have only increased the risk to public and officer safety. The lack of visible identification and uniform standards for immigration enforcement officers has created confusion, stoked fear, and undermined public trust in law enforcement.”

Federal immigration law enforcement officers have been targeted repeatedly in recent days, including at least two ambushes in Texas, and protesters clashing with federal officers at the Portland, Oregon, ICE facility after Trump signed the “big beautiful bill” into law Friday.  

Anti-ICE rhetoric especially intensified in June, when federal officials descended on Los Angeles to conduct raids to deport illegal immigrants, which was met by protests that devolved into riots last month as local Democratic leaders condemned the Trump administration for its immigration policies. 

“And it’s sort of funny when people picket in front of Columbia, in front of Harvard and they have masks on more than masks, I mean, you can’t see anything. Nobody complains about that. But when a patriot who works for ICE or Border Patrol puts a mask on so that they won’t recognize him and his family, so they can lead a little bit of a normal life after having worked so hard and so dangerously,” Trump continued in his response to Doocy about why federal agents should not conduct their work unmasked. “There’s a problem with that.”

FEDERAL OFFICIALS SLAM DEMOCRATS FOR ‘DANGEROUS’ RHETORIC AS ICE AGENTS FACE VIOLENT MOBS IN LA, NYC

Trump continued that Democrats have become “somewhat deranged” and added that wealthy people on the left are likely funding rioters to attack federal law enforcement officers. 

“This is the problem with the Democrats,” Trump said. “They have a lot of bad things going on in their heads. They’re they’ve become very … they’ve lost their confidence, number one. And they’re really they’ve become somewhat deranged. I want to do whatever necessary to protect our great law enforcement people. And they are right at the top of the list.”

Doocy asked Trump about the ambush in Alvarado, Texas, on the Fourth of July that led to the arrest of 10 rioters. 

“President Trump in Alvarado, Texas, a few days ago, 10 people wearing all black allegedly set off fireworks outside an ICE office to lure the officers out so they could ambush them, shoot at them. They had guns and vests and two-way radios. Do you think that this was an isolated incident, or do you think there’s a national threat of a left-wing militia that is targeting ICE and CBP?” Doocy asked. 

Trump shot back that “some very stupid people on the left” are funding rioters who are targeting the officers.

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“I think you have some very stupid people on the left who have some money that are making it available to these people,” Trump said. “Because you look at the guns they had, they were brand new. You look at even the clothing they were wearing, it looked like it just came out of some military shop. So you have some very stupid people that, if anything ever happened, they’d be the first to go.” 

“They’d be the first ones hit,” Trump added. 

The government of El Salvador told the United Nations that more than 100 Venezuelan migrants deported by the Trump administration to its maximum-security prison, CECOT, in March remain under the sole custody of the U.S. government — appearing to undercut months of assertions by senior Trump officials, who have repeatedly claimed they have no power to compel the return of these individuals.

The U.N. report was included Monday in a court filing submitted by lawyers for the ACLU and other migrant groups representing more than 100 detainees at CECOT who are challenging their removal from the U.S. to the maximum-security Salvadorian prison.

The filing included a copy of statements made by the Salvadorian government to a U.N. human rights office in April, as part of an investigation brought on behalf of four families.

At the time, El Salvador officials told the U.N. that the “jurisdiction and legal responsibility” for detainees sent by the U.S. to CECOT in March lies “exclusively” with the U.S., citing a $6 million agreement it struck with the U.S. in March to host roughly 300 migrant prisoners.

FEDERAL JUDGE ORDERS RETURN OF DEPORTED MIGRANT TO US, REJECTING TRUMP REQUEST

That assertion came roughly one month after the Trump administration in March invoked a 1798 wartime immigration law to more quickly deport Venezuelan nationals, including alleged members of the Tren de Aragua gang. 

Prior to March, the U.S. invoked the law just three times, including most recently during World War II.

Lawyers representing the migrants argued Monday that the statement included in the U.N. report should be grounds for plaintiffs to seek additional discovery in the case, which had been overseen by U.S. District Judge James Boasberg beginning in March.

WHO IS JAMES BOASBERG, THE US JUDGE AT THE CENTER OF TRUMP’S DEPORTATION EFFORTS?
 

“Since March, the Trump-Vance administration has sought to operate in the shadows without public transparency as it removes people from the country under false pretenses or without any process at all,” Skye Perryman, president of Democracy Forward, which is representing the CECOT detainees alongside the ACLU, said in a statement this week.

“This is a threat to every single American, and is a threat to our democracy as a whole,” Perryman added.

It could also breathe new life into a flurry of stalled immigration cases nationwide.

As of this writing, the revelation has already had a knock-down effect on at least one case involving a CECOT migrant ordered back to the U.S. by a federal judge.

JUSTICE DEPARTMENT TELLS FEDERAL JUDGE IT MIGHT INVOKE STATE SECRETS ACT ON HIGH-PROFILE DEPORTATION CASE

U.S. District Judge Stephanie Gallagher, a Trump appointee, ordered the administration on Wednesday to explain its position to the court in light of the new revelations.

“Defendants have repeatedly skirted this Court’s directive to provide information regarding the steps they have taken and will take to facilitate the return of [‘Cristian’] to the United States,” the judge wrote in an order Wednesday evening, referring to a man deported to El Salvador in March.

She noted that the defendants “have repeatedly made oblique references to their request of ‘assistance’ from the U.S. Department of State, which has ‘entered into negotiations to facilitate Cristian’s return’ and ‘assumed responsibility on behalf of the U.S. Government for … diplomatic discussions with El Salvador.'”

Gallagher ruled in April that the government violated a 2024 settlement between DHS and a group of young asylum seekers in deporting him before his case was fully heard in court.

As of this writing, however, he has not been returned to the country. 

SUPREME COURT GRANTS TRUMP REQUEST TO LIFT STAY HALTING VENEZUELAN DEPORTATIONS

The revelation could also come to the fore in another major hearing this week.

On Thursday, U.S. District Judge Paula Xinis will hear from Trump administration officials and lawyers for Salvadorian migrant Kilmar Abrego Garcia as she weighs a request from Abrego’s attorneys to transfer him back to U.S. custody in Maryland.

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Abrego is currently in the custody of U.S. Marshals in Tennesee but could be released as early as next week. Plaintiffs have cited deep concerns that the Trump administration would immediately seek to take him into ICE custody upon release and deport him to a third country— a notion the administration did not dispute.

 Xinis, for her part, has taken umbrage with the Trump administration’s evasiveness and slow-walking of information, which she likened earlier this week to “trying to nail Jell-O to a wall.”