NationalWatch

President Donald Trump announced a handful of nominations and appointments Thursday, including a position to combat antisemitism. 

Trump selected Yehuda Kaploun, a prominent Miami-based businessman and longtime confidant of the president, to serve as the U.S. special envoy to monitor and combat antisemitism as an ambassador-at-large.

“Yehuda is a successful businessman, and staunch advocate for the Jewish Faith and the Rights of his people to live and worship free from persecution,” Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform. “With Anti-Semitism dangerously on the rise, Yehuda will be the strongest Representative for Americans and Jews across the Globe, and promote PEACE. Congratulations Yehuda!”

FEDERAL GOVERNMENT QUESTIONED FORMER COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY PRESIDENT OVER CAMPUS ANTISEMITISM

President Donald Trump and Rabbi Yehuda Kaploun light a candle during an Oct. 7 remembrance event at the Trump National Doral Golf Club in Doral, Fla. (Joe Raedle/Getty Images)

Former U.S. Rep. Mark Walker, R-N.C., has been nominated as the U.S. ambassador-at-large for international religious freedom.

Walker, a former pastor, “will work incredibly hard to expose Human Rights Violations, champion Faith, and help us secure Life Saving Results,” Trump wrote. 

In a post on X, Walker thanked Trump, saying, “I’m open-eyed to the bad actors and regions committing these atrocities against people of faith.”

IVY LEAGUE ANTI-ISRAEL RINGLEADER MAHMOUD KHALIL DENIES ALLEGATIONS AS JUDGE AWAITS DEPORTATION EVIDENCE

Former U.S. Rep. Mark Walker, R-N.C., speaks at a “Make America Great Again” rally in Greensboro, N.C., in 2020. (Grant Baldwin/AFP via Getty Images)

“Religious expression is the foundation of human rights and, whether it’s a college campus in New York or Sub-Saharan Africa, I’ll be relentless in fighting for those targeted who dare to live out their faith,” he wrote. “I’m grateful to my beautiful wife and family for their support. May God provide the path and may we have the courage to follow.”

William “Billy” Marshall III, the commissioner of the West Virginia Division of Corrections and Rehabilitation, will serve as the next director of the Bureau of Prisons, Trump said. 

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“Billy is a Strong Advocate for LAW AND ORDER. He understands the struggles of our prisons better than anyone, and will help fix our broken Criminal Justice System. Congratulations Billy, you will inspire us all,” Trump wrote.

President Donald Trump threatened to impose tariffs, and possibly sanctions, if it continues to rob South Texas farmers of Rio Grande water promised under a decades-old treaty.

In a post on Truth Social on Thursday, Trump proclaimed that Mexico owes Texas 1.3 million acre-feet of water under the 1944 Water Treaty, though Mexico was violating their obligation.

“This is very unfair, and it is hurting South Texas Farmers very badly,” the president wrote. “Last year, the only Sugar Mill in Texas CLOSED, because Mexico has been stealing the water from Texas Farmers. Ted Cruz has been leading the fight to get South Texas the water it is owed, but Sleepy Joe refused to lift a finger to help the Farmers. THAT ENDS NOW!”

Trump continued, saying he will make sure Mexico does not violate treaties with the U.S. and hurt farmers in Texas.

TEXAS FARMING CRISIS LOOMSAS US, MEXICO SPAR OVER LONG-STANDING WATER TREATY

President Donald Trump threatened sanctions and tariffs on Mexico if it fails to comply with the 1944 Water Treaty, which guarantees water into South Texas for farmers. (Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images)

“Just last month, I halted water shipments to Tijuana until Mexico complies with the 1944 Water Treaty,” he said. “My Agriculture Secretary, Brooke Rollins, is standing up for Texas Farmers, and we will keep escalating consequences, including TARIFFS and, maybe even SANCTIONS, until Mexico honors the Treaty, and GIVES TEXAS THE WATER THEY ARE OWED!”

Texas farm groups warned of a disastrous season ahead of them for citrus and sugar, last year, as Mexican and U.S. officials tried to resolve a dispute over the 1944 water treaty that supplies U.S. farmers with critical irrigation.

The two countries have tussled over the treaty before, but the drought-driven water shortages were the most severe in nearly 30 years.

BOTH SIDES CLAIM VICTORY AFTER SUPREME COURT RULES TEXAS RANCHER CAN SUE STATE OVER FLOODED LANDS

President Trump threatened to impose tariffs on Mexico, and now officials like Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum are working with the U.S. to take on cartels and fentanyl. (Reuters)

Under the treaty designed to allocate shared water resources, Mexico is required to send 1.75 million acre-feet of water from the Rio Grande to the U.S. over a five-year cycle.

Texas’s half-billion-dollar citrus industry is heavily dependent on water from Mexico, especially with drought conditions growing more severe in the region. In fact, Texas is the third-largest citrus state behind California and Florida.

Last month, the Bureau of Western Hemisphere Affairs posted that it was denying a request from Mexico to deliver water to Tijuana.

TEXAS TOWN DECLARES ‘WATER EMERGENCY,’ TELLS RESIDENTS THAT IT COULD RUN OUT OF WATER

“Mexico’s continued shortfalls in its water deliveries under the 1944 water-sharing treaty are decimating American agriculture – particularly farmers in the Rio Grande valley,” the agency wrote on X. “As a result, today for the first time, the U.S. will deny Mexico’s non-treaty request for a special delivery channel for Colorado River water to be delivered to Tijuana.”

The day before, Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas., said South Texas was facing a water crisis, which he called a “man-made crisis.”

He also noted that he was leading the fight in the Senate to hold Mexico accountable and abide by the treaty to deliver water to farmers in South Texas.

He shared the Bureau of Western Hemisphere Affairs’ post, calling the move, “excellent.”

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“As I said yesterday, this option is absolutely what the Trump administration needs to pressure Mexico to fulfill its obligations under the 1944 Water Treaty,” Cruz wrote on X. “Texas farmers are in crisis because of Mexico’s noncompliance. I will work with the Trump administration to pressure Mexico into complying and to get water to Texas farmers.”

Reuters contributed to this report.

The Trump administration was handed another win on Thursday after a federal judge ruled that everyone in the U.S. illegally must register with the federal government and carry documentation.

The Associated Press reported that Judge Trevor Neil McFadden, who was appointed by President Donald Trump, sided with the administration after arguing it was enforcing an existing requirement for everyone in the country who is not a citizen of the U.S.

Rather than rule on the substance of the Trump administration’s arguments, McFadden ruled that the group pushing to stop the requirement did not have standing to pursue their claims.

McFadden’s ruling will go into effect Friday.

NOEM SENDS MESSAGE TO THOSE CONSIDERING ENTERING US ILLEGALLY: ‘DON’T EVEN THINK ABOUT IT’

Asylum seekers wait to be processed by U.S. Border Patrol agents after crossing the Rio Grande from Mexico into the United States in 2023 in Eagle Pass, Texas.  (John Moore/Getty Images)

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) said Thursday that the deadline to register for anyone who has been in the country for 30 days or more is Friday, adding that the registration requirement will be enforced to the fullest.

“President Trump and I have a clear message for those in our country illegally: leave now. If you leave now, you may have the opportunity to return and enjoy our freedom and live the American dream,” DHS Secretary Kristi Noem said in the statement. “The Trump administration will enforce all our immigration laws — we will not pick and choose which laws we will enforce. We must know who is in our country for the safety and security of our homeland and all Americans.”

The DHS began warning illegal immigrants in February that they should leave the country or face serious consequences.

DHS SECRETARY NOEM APPEARS TO ACCUSE ‘CORRUPT’ FBI OF LEAKING LA ICE RAIDS

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem visits the Mariposa Port of Entry, Saturday, March 15, 2025, in Nogales, Ariz. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon) (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

The secretary said DHS will enforce the Immigration and Nationality Act, which was enacted in 1952 and created several tools to track illegal aliens and compel them to voluntarily leave the U.S.

DHS said the tools include criminal penalties for migrants who choose not to leave the U.S., fail to register with the federal government and get fingerprinted, and fail to notify the federal government of changes to their address.

Illegal immigrants who fail to depart the U.S. will be charged with a crime resulting in a “significant penalty,” DHS said.

NOEM ENDS BIDEN-ERA USE OF CONTROVERSIAL APP TO ALLOW MIGRANTS TO BOARD FLIGHTS, EXCEPT TO SELF-DEPORT

ICE is conducting flights to remove illegal immigrants from the U.S. and back to their home countries. (ICE Seattle)

But migrants who fail to register with the federal government could be fined, imprisoned or both.

Registration is mandatory for anyone 14 and older without legal status. Anyone registering will be required to provide their fingerprints and address.

Canadians are also required to go through the registration process if they have been in the U.S. for more than 30 days – this includes “snowbirds,” who spend winter months in warmer areas like Florida.

While it has long been required for people who live in the U.S. and are not American citizens, the requirement has only been enforced in rare circumstances.

For instance, the requirement was enforced in a limited way after Sept. 11, 2001, when the National Security Entry-Exit Registration System required noncitizen males 16 and older from 25 countries – all but one of them Arab or Muslim – to register with the U.S. government.

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Even though the program did not lead to terrorism convictions, it pulled over 13,000 people into deportation proceedings. The program was suspended in 2011 and dissolved in 2016.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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…

–Trump tariff spike fuels new House bill to lock China out of US government tech

-Dems fight bill to stop illegal immigrant voting despite polls showing voter support

-Trump’s ‘big, beautiful’ tax agenda scores major victory in House despite GOP rebellion threats

Finding Fraud 

DOGE Chief Elon Musk says the organization is set to save the U.S. government more than $150 billion in cuts to waste and fraud in FY 2026.

Musk made the comment during a public Cabinet meeting with President Donald Trump on Thursday. 

“We anticipate savings in FY 26 from reduction of waste and fraud by $150 billion. And, I mean, and some of it is just absurd. Like people getting unemployment insurance who haven’t been born yet,” Musk said…Read more

Elon Musk (R) attends cabinet meeting with US President Donald Trump in the Cabinet Room of the White House on April 10, 2025, in Washington, DC. Trump on Thursday warned of the “transition cost” from his tariff policies, as Wall Street stocks fell again over the worsening trade war with China. (Photo by Brendan SMIALOWSKI / AFP) (Photo by BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI/AFP via Getty Images) (Photo by BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI/AFP via Getty Images)

White House

TRUMP CRACKDOWN: Trump admin warns states to comply with housing prisoners by their biological sex or face funding cutoff

‘VERY GOOD PERSON’: Trump praises Dem Gov. Gretchen Whitmer after slamming her last year: ‘Very good person’

‘99.9’ PERCENT: Hegseth quips ‘99.9%’ of DEI initiatives are gone from the military under Trump’s watch

President Donald Trump, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and a transgender flag in a split image (Getty/Imagn)

World Stage

‘SAFEST IT GETS’: State Dept upgrades travel advisory for El Salvador, considered safer than France, other European countries

SEALED THE DEAL: Russian-American ballerina released after being wrongfully detained in Moscow for over a year

‘WORSE THINGS’: China targets Hollywood films in retaliation of tariffs; Trump responds

President Donald Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping

Capitol Hill

TAKING SIDES: This Texas Republican congressman endorses Paxton over Cornyn in Senate primary brawl

‘WOMEN AS BAIT’: Conservative firebrand flips script on House Dem’s ‘gotcha’ response to noncitizen voting crackdown

ACCOUNTABILITY: American victims of terrorism could soon sue international orgs if Cruz’s bill passes

CLOCK BLOCKERS: GOP, Dems come together to end Daylight Saving over health, economic risks

ADAM BOMB: WH slams Dems’ ‘partisan games’ after Trump-foe Schiff calls for insider trading investigation over tariffs

MAHA AGENDA: Dr. Marty Makary advances out of key committee in bid for FDA confirmation

REPORTER’S NOTEBOOK: House scrambles to align with Senate on framework for Trump’s ‘big, beautiful bill’

CALLING FOR ANSWERS: Hawley demands Zuckerberg testify on alleged ties between Meta, China

‘OBSTRUCTIONIST POLICIES’: Sanctuary Governors Tim Walz, JB Pritzker, Kathy Hochul called to testify before Congress

FIRST ON FOX: 3 senators lead effort to ban Chinese-owned GNC from military installations over spying concerns

Across America 

‘WIN-WIN’: FDA phasing out some animal testing in ‘win-win’ for ethics and public health: commissioner

‘COWARD!’: Tim Walz heckled by veterans for stolen valor claims, China connections

BOMBSHELL LINK: Newly surfaced report provides more clues on COVID outbreak source and timeline

‘NEXT FEW DAYS’: Gabbard says RFK, MLK Jr records ‘ready to release’ in days, has ‘hunters’ looking at FBI, CIA for more files

Files related to the assassinations of Robert F. Kennedy and Martin Luther King Jr., will be released in the coming days, Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard said Thursday.  (Getty)

MIDTERM MOMENTUM: GOP voters pick a favorite to challenge Dem governor in early battleground straw poll

‘HAD TO READ IT SEVERAL TIMES’: DOGE reveals bizarre findings of unemployment insurance claims survey
 

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

During President Donald Trump‘s second public meeting with his Cabinet at the White House on Thursday, he said there will soon be a deadline by which illegal immigrants must be gone from the U.S., or they will not be allowed to try to reenter legally. 

The president’s comments came as he expressed a willingness to work with undocumented immigrants “right from the beginning” to help them return to the country legally — that is, if they leave “in a nice way,” the president added.   

“We’re going to work with people, so that if they go out in a nice way, and go back to their country, we’re going to work with them right from the beginning on trying to get them back in legally,” Trump said following comments from Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem.

TRUMP ADMIN UNVEILS PLAN COSTING MIGRANTS MASSIVE FINE FOR EVERY DAY THEY DON’T SELF-DEPORT

“We’re going to work with people, so that if they go out in a nice way, and go back to their country, we’re going to work with them right from the beginning on trying to get them back in legally,” President Donald Trump said Thursday during a meeting with members of his Cabinet from the White House. (Getty Images | AP)

“So it gives you real incentive, otherwise they’ll never come back — they’ll never be allowed once a certain period of time goes by, which is probably going to be 60 days.”

The Trump administration is currently undergoing a massive voluntary removal effort, with federal officials encouraging immigrants residing illegally in the U.S. to self-deport through the administration’s CBP Home app. More than 5,000 immigrants self-deported over the last month, according to Department of Homeland Security (DHS) data.   

“It’s a very big self-deport operation that we’re starting,” Noem said during Thursday’s Cabinet meeting.

FLASHBACK: MITT ROMNEY MOCKED IN 2012 FOR SELF-DEPORTATION CONCEPT THAT HAS NOW BECOME A REALITY 

Noem pointed out that currently, under the Alien Registration Act and the president’s Executive Orders, if undocumented immigrants still have not registered their status with the federal government, they can be criminally charged, face fines of up to $1,000 per day “and they’ll never get the chance to come back to America.”

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem speaks during a tour of the Terrorist Confinement Center in Tecoluca, El Salvador, on March 26. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

She also added that the agency is working on securing the funding and resources to ensure deported immigrants land on their feet when they return to their home country, pointing to programs in places like Mexico, El Salvador and Colombia that are offering food and housing assistance.

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“[We are] making sure that these folks have the opportunity to go home, so that they can get the chance to come back to America is important,” Noem told Trump and his Cabinet.

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

A former Marine Corps officer who deployed in the Iraq War and later served at the Pentagon and the Veterans Administration under former President Barack Obama is the first major candidate to jump into the high-profile campaign for an open congressional seat in swing state New Hampshire.

Democrat Maura Sullivan, in an interview with Fox News, said “our country clearly needs a new generation of leadership, period. And the Democratic Party needs new leadership, and I’m running to be one of those leaders.”

Sullivan said in a statement announcing her candidacy in the race to succeed four-term Democrat Rep. Chris Pappas, “I am stepping up to serve because the issues we are facing aren’t Democrat or Republican issues, they’re American issues.”

Pappas last week launched a campaign to succeed longtime Democrat Sen. Jeanne Shaheen, who recently said she would retire at the end of next year rather than bid for a fourth six-year term representing New Hampshire in the Senate.

POPULAR REPUBLICAN GOVERNOR WHO TRUMP URGED TO RUN FOR SENATE IN KEY SWING STATE MAKES HIS DECISION

Rep. Chris Pappas, D-N.H., announces his bid to succeed retiring Sen. Jeanne Shaheen, a fellow Democrat, on April 3, 2025, in Manchester, N.H. ( AP Photo/Robert F. Bukaty)

His seat, New Hampshire’s 1st Congressional District, covers the eastern half of the northern New England state, and Republicans are aiming to flip it from blue to red in next year’s midterm elections. The race is expected to be expensive and competitive.

This is Sullivan’s second bid for Congress in the district. She came in second to Pappas in a crowded 11-candidate Democrat primary in 2018, when the congressman first won the office. 

Sullivan, a New Hampshire Democratic Party vice chair, took aim at President Donald Trump and his most visible White House adviser in a campaign launch video she posted on social media.

DEMOCRATIC CONGRESSMAN TAKES AIM AT TRUMP, MUSK IN SENATE CAMPAIGN LAUNCH

“I saw too many of my fellow Marines give their lives for this country to just sit by and watch Donald Trump and Elon Musk tear it down,” Sullivan said in a video shared on X. “They’re driving up costs for New Hampshire families, making it even more difficult to own a home and pay the bills. And that’s why I’m running for Congress, to protect the promise of America and ensure a better future for our kids.”

Sullivan, in her Fox News Digital interview, said that “I’m hearing from folks all around New Hampshire that they’re worried, they’re scared, they’re frustrated, and I am too.”

HOUSE GOP CAMPAIGN CHAIR TELLS FOX NEWS WHAT HE’S MOST CONCERNED ABOUT WHEN IT COMES TO DEFENDING THE MAJORITY

Maura Sullivan, left, meets with Democratic Party officials and activists after announcing her candidacy for the U.S. House in New Hampshire’s 1st Congressional District on April 10, 2025, in Manchester, N.H. (Maura Sullivan campaign)

While Sullivan is the first major candidate to enter the race, she likely won’t be the last.

Former state Sen. Tom Sherman, a physician and the 2022 Democrat gubernatorial nominee in New Hampshire, told Fox News he’s “definitely interested” in a potential bid for Congress and said he is “keeping my options open.”

DEM CONGRESSMAN LASHES MUSK IN OPENING SALVO OF POPULIST BID IN 2026 SWING-STATE SENATE RACE

Also mulling a run is former state Sen. John Morgan, a cybersecurity executive who told Fox News he’s “kicking the tires” on a possible congressional campaign. 

“New Hampshire is part of my heart and soul,” Morgan said, adding that “it’s really a time that calls for bold leadership.”

Democrat state Sen. Rebecca Perkins Kwoka is also thought to be a possible contender for the nomination.

In the race for the Republican nomination, former state senator and former executive councilor Russell Prescott, the 2024 nominee who lost to Pappas, is mulling another run for Congress.

Democrat Maura Sullivan announces her candidacy for the U.S. House in New Hampshire’s 1st Congressional District in a campaign launch video on April 10, 2025. (Maura Sullivan campaign)

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So are Hollie Noveletsky, Joe Kelly Levasseur and Chris Bright, who came in second, third and fourth, respectively, behind Prescott in the 2024 GOP primary in the district.

State Attorney General John Formella is also thought to be a possible contender for the GOP nomination.

The City of Newark and its Democratic mayor are facing pushback after filing a legal complaint against Immigration and Customs Enforcement for reopening a building to prep illegal immigrants for deportation without “following proper building safety protocols.”

Mayor Ras Baraka said in a statement that using the building, Delaney Hall, for processing people in the country illegally goes against state and local law, leading the city to file a lawsuit in the Essex County Superior Court at the end of March.

“The City was informed that construction work is taking place in the building without required permits,” the mayor stated. “The Department of Engineering imposed a stop work order to halt any and all construction on the site today. Two ICE officials and the GEO Group facility director on site were made aware of the violations.”

“In addition, ICE has failed to apply for construction permits, continued certificates of occupancy, and requests to change the building’s use,” he added. Delaney Hall has just under 1,200 beds, according to USA Today.

TEXAS MAN WHO VOWED TO SHOOT, KILL ICE AGENTS, SAID NOEM SHOULD BE IN ‘GULAG,’ CHARGED IN FEDERAL COURT: DOJ 

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem watches a vehicle scan during a tour of the San Ysidro Port of Entry, in San Diego, March 16, 2025. (Alex Brandon/Pool via Reuters)

“The agreement between ICE and the GEO Group to use Delaney Hall with the intention of incarcerating and holding immigrants slated for deportation does not supersede the ordinances and procedures legislated by the City of Newark and the State of New Jersey.” the Democrat continued. “As I have stated in the past, without compliance with requirements, Delaney Hall cannot lawfully open. We will not tolerate federal attempts to ignore or evade our laws and statutes, which apply to everyone.”

The contractor who runs Delaney Hall, the GEO Group, said this is a political tactic and could put jobs and community safety “in jeopardy.”

“The attempt by local and state officials to stop the opening of a lawful federal immigration processing center at the Delaney Hall facility in Newark is another unfortunate example of a politicized campaign by sanctuary city and open borders politicians in New Jersey to interfere with the federal government’s efforts to arrest, detain, and deport dangerous criminal illegal aliens in accordance with established federal law,” a spokesperson for the group told Fox News Digital.

NEW JERSEY WOMAN ACCUSED OF HIRING TINDER DATE TO KILL HER EX AND HIS TEEN DAUGHTER: COURT DOCS

Newark Mayor Ras Baraka speaks after the Democratic gubernatorial debate at Rider University in Lawrenceville, New Jersey, on Feb. 2, 2025. (AP photo/Mike Catalini)

“These politically motivated tactics threaten both public safety and the local economy and are based on bogus claims about the Delaney Hall facility, which previously operated as a federal immigration processing center for six years under President Obama’s administration, without opposition from local political leaders,” the statement continued.

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Immigration and Customs Enforcement did not respond in time for publication.

Baraka, who’s running for governor, criticized an ICE raid in the city in January, which led to the arrest of eight individuals.

“The problem with this is that none of these people were rapists, or murderers or criminals,” Baraka said at the time. “The problem with it is that ICE went in there without a warrant.” 

“We don’t want an ICE detention in Newark. What we are concerned about is the erosion of the Constitution,” he added.

GOP CANDIDATE RIPS BLUE STATE DIRECTIVE MEDDLING IN POLICE FORCE’S COOPERATION WITH ICE: ‘HANDCUFFED’

Republican gubernatorial candidate Jack Ciattarelli is joined by his wife Melinda as he speaks during a news conference, Nov. 12, 2021, in Raritan, New Jersey. (AP )

New Jersey state laws on illegal immigrants have continued to spark pushback among Republicans, as state police were directed not to pay attention to warrants requested by the federal government for immigration enforcement purposes, according to an email obtained by Jack Ciattarelli’s gubernatorial campaign and reviewed by Fox News Digital.

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“The fact that my campaign received this email is evidence that brave and courageous law enforcement officers throughout New Jersey are angry about being handcuffed by liberal Democrat policies in Trenton, making our communities less safe,” Ciattarelli, a Republican, said in a statement.

Fox News’ Chris Pandolfo contributed to this report.

Documents related to the 1968 assassinations of Robert F. Kennedy and Martin Luther King Jr. will be released in the coming days, Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard said Thursday during President Donald Trump’s Cabinet meeting at the White House. 

Gabbard said that more than 100 people “working around the clock” have been scanning paperwork related to both killings and the subsequent investigations.

“These have been sitting in boxes in storage for decades,” she told Trump, who was sitting a few feet away from Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. “They have never been scanned or seen before. We’ll have those ready to release here within the next few days.”

EPSTEIN FILES DEBACLE SPURS NEW INTEREST IN CONTENTS OF PROMISED RFK, MLK ASSASSINATION FILES

Files related to the 1968 assassinations of Martin Luther King Jr. and Robert F. Kennedy will be released in the coming days, Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard said Thursday.  (Getty)

Trump said, “That’s great” before moving to RFK Jr., the son of the former senator. 

“Bobby, how do you feel about that?” he asked. 

“I’m very gratified,” RFK Jr., responded. 

“That’s hitting close to home,” Trump said. “I’m thinking about Bobby when that statement was made.”

RFK Jr. then told Trump he was “very grateful.”

“And you let Bobby see some of this because, you know, it’s very personal stuff. But it’s time,” Trump told Gabbard, who replied that she spoke with the RFK Jr., who she said told her the “world needs to know the truth.”

DEADLINE LOOMS FOR RELEASE OF JFK ASSASSINATION FILES

Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, D.C. (Andrew Caballero-Reynolds/AFP via Getty Images)

RFK Jr. was a teenager when his father was fatally shot on June 5, 1968, at the Ambassador Hotel in Los Angeles, after addressing campaign supporters following his California Democratic presidential primary win. 

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, Sen. Kennedy and his brother, former President John F. Kennedy. 

U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. (Getty Images)

In March, declassified documents related to the assassination of the former president were released. 

Gabbard said the government has “hunters” looking in storage lockers at the FBI, CIA and other agencies to see if there is anything else that hasn’t been reported. 

President Donald Trump with an executive order to release thousands of pages related to the assassinations of President John F. Kennedy and Martin Luther King Jr.  (Associated Press)

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“We’re actively going out and trying to search out the truth,” she said. 

FIRST ON FOX: A bipartisan duo of House lawmakers is moving to ensure the U.S. government is free from Chinese-made technology after President Donald Trump hiked tariffs against Beijing.

Rep. Pat Fallon, R-Texas, is leading the Securing America’s Federal Equipment (SAFE) Supply Chains Act alongside Rep. Ro Khanna, D-Calif.

It would impose new guardrails on the technology the U.S. government is able to purchase by forcing a federal agency or office to only purchase it from “original equipment manufacturers” or “authorized resellers,” according to the bill text obtained by Fox News Digital.

TRUMP SAYS HE’LL ‘TAKE A LOOK’ AT EXEMPTING SOME LARGER US COMPANIES HIT ESPECIALLY HARD BY TARIFFS

Chinese President Xi Jinping, left, and U.S. President Donald Trump, right (Getty Images)

The bill targets U.S. government technology purchased through the “gray market,” an alternative channel for purchasing and selling genuine goods without the authorization of the manufacturer.

Fallon said his bill “dovetails” with Trump’s hawkish stance on China.

“With the rising threat posed by Chinese aggression, not only in the Indo-Pacific, but here at home by means of artificial intelligence and cyberattacks, it’s critical that the Department of Defense secure its vital infrastructure,” Fallon explained to Fox News Digital. 

“In order to do so, we must ensure that the U.S. military only purchases electronic equipment from approved vendors that are free from adversarial, particularly [Chinese Communist Party], influence.”

Rep. Pat Fallon questions witnesses during a House Oversight and Reform Committee hearing on the U.S. southern border in the Rayburn House Office Building Feb. 7, 2023, in Washington. (Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)

He praised Trump’s “bold leadership” in the U.S. “breaking its dependency on Communist China.”

“The SAFE Supply Chains Act dovetails with this endeavor and is in the best interest of U.S. national security,” he said.

The White House said Thursday it had imposed 145% in new tariffs on China, up from the 125% Trump announced the day before.

DONALD TRUMP’S ALLIES, SUPPORTERS AND DONORS, LED BY ELON MUSK, PUSH TO END TARIFF WAR

While hiking rates on China, Trump said he would reduce tariffs on other countries that did not retaliate against the U.S. to his baseline of 10%.

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“Look, for years we’ve been ripped off and taken advantage of by China — and others, in all fairness — but by China, there’s a big one. And it’s just one of those things,” Trump said Wednesday.

Fallon’s bill has a counterpart in the Senate led by senators John Cornyn, R-Texas, and Gary Peters, D-Mich.

The White House slammed Democrats for playing “partisan games” and calling for an investigation into alleged insider trading after President Donald Trump paused customized reciprocal tariffs for 90 days on Wednesday. 

“It is the responsibility of the President of the United States to reassure the markets and Americans about their economic security in the face of nonstop media fearmongering. Democrats railed against China’s cheating for decades, and now they’re playing partisan games instead of celebrating President Trump’s decisive action yesterday to finally corner China,” White House spokesman Kush Desai said in comment to Fox Digital when asked about Democrats claiming Trump manipulated the market. 

Sens. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., and Ruben Gallego, D-Ariz., wrote a letter on Thursday to White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles, as well as Trade Representative Jamieson Greer, calling for an investigation into potential insider trading. 

“This sequence of events raises grave legal and ethics concerns. The President, his family, and his advisors are uniquely positioned to be privy to and take advantage of non-public information to inform their investment decisions,” the senators wrote. 

TRUMP SAYS HE’LL ‘TAKE A LOOK’ AT EXEMPTING SOME LARGER US COMPANIES HIT ESPECIALLY HARD BY TARIFFS

President Donald Trump holds a chart as he delivers remarks on reciprocal tariffs during an event in the Rose Garden entitled “Make America Wealthy Again” at the White House in Washington, D.C., on April 2, 2025. (BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI/AFP via Getty Images)

Trump, ahead of pausing the reciprocal tariffs, posted to Truth Social, “BE COOL! Everything is going to work out well. The USA will be bigger and better than ever before!” and “THIS IS A GREAT TIME TO BUY!!! DJT.” The president had previously said he would not pause tariffs but was open to negotiating with other nations. 

Trump paused only the higher, customized tariffs he placed on nations that historically installed trade barriers on U.S. goods, with nations across the world instead facing a lower 10% tariff on goods, as the Trump administration and world leaders hash out negotiations for the reciprocal tariffs. 

DONALD TRUMP’S ALLIES, SUPPORTERS AND DONORS, LED BY ELON MUSK, PUSH TO END TARIFF WAR

Sen. Adam Schiff wrote a letter calling for an investigation into potential insider trading. (Screenshot/NBC)

China, however, was not part of the tariff pause and was instead hit with a higher 125% tariff after retaliating with its own additional tariffs against the U.S.

“I’m going to do my best to find out,” Schiff, who has long been a Trump foe, told Time of investigating the president for alleged insider trading. “Family meme coins and all the rest of it are not beyond insider trading or enriching themselves. I hope to find out soon.”

CHARLIE GASPARINO BREAKS DOWN TRUMP’S TARIFF PAUSE: ‘THIS IS WHAT FORCED THE HAND’

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the customized tariffs were paused due to Trump wanting to be “personally involved” in negotiations as dozens of nations contacted the White House to strike deals.

President Donald Trump is keeping high tariffs in place on China, while putting a 90-day pause on reciprocal tariffs for countries that have said they are open to negotiation. (Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)

“We’ve had more than 75 countries contact us. And I imagine after today, there will be more. So it is just a processing problem. Each one of these solutions is going to be bespoke. It is going to take some time. And President Trump wants to be personally involved. So, that’s why we’re getting the 90-day pause,” Bessent said during a gaggle with the media outside the White House on Wednesday afternoon. 

Trump added on Wednesday that he was watching the volatile bond market, calling it “tricky” and making people a “little queasy,” but denied it persuaded him to change course on customized tariffs. 

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“I thought that people were jumping a little bit out of line. They were getting yippy. You know, they we’re getting a little bit yippy, a little bit afraid, unlike these champions, because we have a big job to do. No other president would have done what I did. … I know the presidents, they wouldn’t have done it, and it had to be done,” Trump added in his remarks. 

President Donald Trump’s push to increase the number of illegal immigrants who self-deport was originally the brainchild of former Sen. Mitt Romney, who pitched the idea of encouraging voluntary departures during his 2012 bid for president.

“The answer is self-deportation, which is people decide they can do better by going home because they can’t find work here because they don’t have legal documentation to allow them to work here,” Romney said during a Republican primary debate in 2012, when asked how the U.S. could deport the millions of illegal immigrants in the country.

Romney was largely mocked for the idea during that campaign, including by Trump, who told Newsax in November 2012 that Romney’s “maniacal” and “crazy” proposal had turned off Latino voters.

THOUSANDS LEAVE COUNTRY VOLUNTARILY AMID TRUMP SELF-DEPORT PUSH, DHS SAYS

President Donald Trump, right, initially mocked former Sen. Mitt Romney’s 2012 idea to encourage illegal immigrants to self-deport. (AP)

Fast-forward to 2025, and self-deportation has become a central theme of Trump’s effort to speed the overall number of removals, with Trump sending an Oval Office video message last month to illegal immigrants encouraging them to use the CBP Home app to voluntarily leave the country.

“Leave now and self-deport voluntarily. If they do, they could potentially have the opportunity to return legally at some point in the future,” Trump said in the video, adding that those who do not self-deport “will be found, they will be deported, and they will never be admitted again to the United States.”

“Using the CBP home app to leave the United States voluntarily is the safest option for illegal aliens,” Trump added.

That message has seemingly hit home over the last month, according to Department of Homeland Security Data (DHS) shared with Fox News Digital, which shows that more than 5,000 people have used the app to arrange their voluntary departure to the United States.

IMMIGRATION THINK TANK COOKS UP SCHEME TO USE ‘SNITCHES’ TO FORCE MIGRANTS TO SELF-DEPORT

Former Sen. Mitt Romney was one of the first to advocate for encouraging self-deportation during his 2012 run for president. (Win McNamee/Getty Images)

The push to increase that number has accelerated in recent days, with the administration unveiling a new plan to fine illegal immigrants who have received a final order of removal $998 for every day they fail to comply with the order and remain in the country. That fine is in addition to fines of $1,000-$5,000 for those who claimed they would self-deport but subsequently failed to do so.

DHS has also released a flyer spelling out the benefits of self-deportation, which boasts that illegal immigrants will be able to keep the money they earned while in the United States and retain the ability to legally migrate to the country in the future.

TRUMP ADMIN UNVEILS PLAN COSTING MIGRANTS MASSIVE FINE FOR EVERY DAY THEY DON’T SELF-DEPORT

President Donald Trump has made a renewed push for illegal immigrants to self-deport. (Evan Vucci/AP)

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“Illegal aliens should use the CBP Home app to self-deport and leave the country now. If they don’t, they will face the consequences,” DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin told Fox News on Tuesday. “This includes a fine of $998 per day for every day that the illegal alien overstayed their final deportation order.”

The House passed the Safeguarding American Voter Eligibility (SAVE) Act on Thursday, with 208 Democrats voting against the President Donald Trump-backed measure that would crack down on noncitizen voting.

The SAVE Act, which passed 220-208, now heads to the Senate, where it will need the support of some Democrats to meet the 60-vote threshold for advancement. Democrats have rejected the bill, despite polling indicating bipartisan support for voter ID requirements. 

A Gallup Poll released ahead of the 2024 election found that 84% of respondents favor requiring a photo ID to vote, and 83% support requiring proof of citizenship when registering to vote for the first time. 

If passed in the Senate and signed into law by Trump, the SAVE Act by Rep. Chip Roy, R-Texas, would require voters to obtain proof of citizenship in person before they register for a federal election, and it would remove noncitizens from voter rolls. 

TRUMP-BACKED BILLS ON ACTIVIST JUDGES, NONCITIZEN VOTING HEADING FOR HOUSE-WIDE VOTES

The House passed the SAVE Act on noncitizen voting. It needs to pass in the Senate before President Donald Trump can sign it into law. (Getty)

“After four years of mass illegal immigration facilitated by the Biden administration, it is more important now than ever to ensure only American citizens are voting in American elections. By passing the SAVE Act, House Republicans are once again proving our commitment to defending the will of the American people,” House GOP Majority Whip Tom Emmer told Fox News Digital. 

VAST MAJORITY OF AMERICANS SUPPORT PHOTO ID REQUIREMENT TO VOTE, NEW POLL SAYS

Meanwhile, Democrats have rejected the implication that illegal immigrants are voting in U.S. elections. Nineteen Democrat-led states and Democrat leaders sued the Trump administration’s election integrity executive order requiring proof of citizenship to vote in American elections. 

“Noncitizens attempting to register to vote is exceedingly rare, and if they do, they face severe consequences, including fines up to five years in prison, and deportation,” Rep. Suzanne Bonamici, D-Ore., said on the House floor, urging her colleagues to reject the SAVE Act. 

People arrive to cast their vote during early voting.  (Christopher Mark Juhn/Anadolu via Getty Images)

“Coupled with President Trump’s recent anti-voter election executive order, the SAVE Act would end the voter registration process for all Americans as they know it. Republicans have repeatedly failed to present any evidence that noncitizen voting at a federal level has ever affected the outcome of any election,” Rep. Joe Morelle, D-N.Y., added in opposition to what he called the “extremist anti-voter SAVE Act.”

The SAVE Act passed a procedural hurdle known as a “rule vote” on Wednesday. A simple majority of House lawmakers was needed to pass the “rule” to allow for debate and eventual House-wide votes on the legislation.

It was first introduced in July 2024 under former President Joe Biden’s administration and failed to pass through the Democrat majority in the Senate. Roy reintroduced the bill in January as the bill was more likely to pass under a Republican-controlled House, Senate and White House. 

Speaker of the House Mike Johnson shakes hands with President-elect Donald Trump onstage at a House Republicans Conference meeting at the Hyatt Regency on Capitol Hill on Nov. 13, 2024 in Washington. (Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)

“The American people have spoken very clearly that they believe only American citizens should vote in American elections. There’s nothing controversial about that,” Roy said on the House floor ahead of the votes. 

“This legislation is designed to restore that faith, to save our elections, to save election integrity. I’m proud to have worked on this bill with my friend, the Chairman, with my colleagues on this side of the aisle, and I would note that five of my Democrat colleagues joined us last summer to vote for this bill. Hardly a partisan exercise to say that we should protect the elections of the American people,” he added. 

The bill made headway during the 2024 presidential election as the Republican National Committee (RNC) led voter integrity efforts in battleground states across the country. Trump has long supported the legislation and held a Mar-a-Lago press conference last summer with House Speaker Mike Johnson affirming Republican support for the bill. 

Voters make selections at their voting booths inside an early voting site in North Carolina. (Melissa Sue Gerrits)

Voter registration is handled on the state level, so rules requiring proof of citizenship or photo ID differ by state. Thirty-six states request or require identification to vote. The SAVE Act would federalize the issue, requiring proof of citizenship to vote and removing non-citizens from voter rolls. 

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When Virginia, led by Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin, attempted to remove non-citizens from the state’s voter rolls, Biden’s Justice Department rejected the program and tried to restore the canceled voter registrations. The Supreme Court’s conservative majority upheld Virginia’s removal of about 1,600 people from the voter rolls. 

FIRST ON FOX – Republican Rep. Lance Gooden of Texas is taking sides in the Lone Star State’s burgeoning GOP Senate primary battle between longtime Sen. John Cornyn and state Attorney General Ken Paxton.

Gooden, a four-term lawmaker who represents a congressional district which includes parts of eastern Dallas as well as large swaths of suburban, exurban, and rural areas east of the city, endorsed Paxton on Thursday. He is known as a MAGA firebrand and ally of President Donald Trump.

“Attorney General Paxton is the conservative champion we need in the U.S. Senate,” Gooden wrote in a statement shared first with Fox News.

He predicted that Paxton “will take a sledgehammer to the establishment, secure the border, and fight hard for President Trump’s agenda. Ken Paxton has my complete and total endorsement.”

GET READY FOR A NASTY AND EXPENSIVE GOP SENATE PRIMARY IN TEXAS

Rep. Lance Gooden endorsed Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton in the 2026 U.S. Senate race in Texas. Paxton is primary challenging longtime GOP Sen. John Cornyn. (Bill Clark/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)

Gooden, who is a member of the House Armed Services and Judiciary committees, is the second member of the Texas congressional delegation to back Paxton, following Republican Rep. Troy Nehls, who endorsed the attorney general on Wednesday.

As he gears up for what will most certainly be his roughest re-election of his decades-long career, Cornyn has the backing of the top Republican in the Senate, Majority Leader John Thune of South Dakota, as well as the National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC).

And Republican sources confirmed to Fox News that Thune, as well as Sen. Tim Scott, R–S.C., the NRSC chair, have personally asked Trump to back Cornyn.

CORNYN’S RE-ELECTION CAMPAIGN SPARKS QUESTIONS ON BOTH PARTY FLANKS AS DEMS CHASE ‘THE GHOST OF A BLUE TEXAS’

The president’s grip on the GOP is stronger than ever and any endorsement Trump may make in the emerging Republican Senate primary in Texas would be extremely influential.

Paxton announced his candidacy Tuesday night in an appearance on Fox News’ “The Ingraham Angle.”

“It’s time for a change in Texas,” Paxton, who first won election as state attorney general in 2014, said as he launched his campaign.

Attorney General Ken Paxton speaks at an event outside the Texas Statehouse, on Feb. 28, 2022, in Austin. (Fox News – Paul Steinhauser)

And pointing to conservative Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas, Paxton argued that “it’s time that we have another great senator that will actually stand up and fight for Republican values, fight for the values of the people of Texas and also support Donald Trump in the areas that he’s focused on in a very significant way.”

Paxton has flirted for a couple of years with launching a 2026 primary challenge against Cornyn, a former state senator, former Texas Supreme Court justice, and former state attorney general, who first won election to the U.S. Senate in 2002.

ONLY ON FOX NEWS: SENATE REPUBLICAN CAMPAIGN CHAIR REVEALS HOW MANY SEATS HE’S AIMING FOR IN 2026

Paxton has long claimed Cornyn does not represent the conservative values of Texans, and has accused the senator of not being an ally of Trump. He has also regularly labeled Cornyn a “RINO,” a “Republican in name only” – an insult MAGA and “America First” Republicans have regularly used to criticize more mainstream or establishment members of the GOP.

Cornyn, during the early stages of the 2024 Republican presidential nomination race, had said he would prefer that the GOP take a new direction, which angered Trump. But the senator endorsed Trump in late January of last year, after the then-former president won both the Iowa caucuses and the New Hampshire primary, the first two contests in the Republican presidential nomination calendar.

Sen. John Cornyn speaks during a Senate Finance Committee hearing, on Capitol Hill, March 14, 2025. (AP Photo/Ben Curtis)

Since Trump returned to the White House three months ago, Cornyn has been supportive of the president’s Cabinet nominees and agenda.

ONLY ON FOX NEWS: SENATE REPUBLICAN CAMPAIGN CHAIR REVEALS HOW MANY SEATS HE’S AIMING FOR IN 2026

In the senator’s campaign launch video last month, the announcer highlighted that during Trump’s first term in office, “Texas Sen. John Cornyn had his back.”

And Cornyn told reporters on Capitol Hill on Wednesday that he had “a 92% voting record with President Trump.”

“It’s unclear to me exactly what is motivating Mr. Paxton, other than vanity and personal ambition, certainly it’s not going to make a lot of difference in terms of the voting record, because I’ve been a supporter of President Trump and his agenda,” the senator argued.

Paxton grabbed national attention in 2020 for filing the unsuccessful Texas vs. Pennsylvania case in the Supreme Court that tried to overturn former President Joe Biden’s razor-thin win over Trump in the Keystone State, and for speaking at the Trump rally near the White House that immediately preceded the deadly Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol by right-wing extremists aiming to disrupt congressional certification of Biden’s Electoral College victory.

During Biden’s four years in the White House, Paxton took the administration to court numerous times.

While Paxton, who’s in his third four-year term as Texas attorney general, has long been a legal warrior in the MAGA movement, he also has plenty of personal political baggage.

Republican Attorney General Ken Paxton at his primary night celebration, on March 1, 2022, in McKinney, Texas. (Fox News – Paul Steinhauser)

Paxton was indicted on securities fraud charges soon after taking office in 2015, and also came under investigation by the FBI over bribery and corruption allegations from former top staffers. In 2022, he survived a bruising primary amid his many legal difficulties.

In 2023, Paxton was impeached by the Texas House of Representatives, but he was later acquitted of all charges by the state Senate. 

The charges in the long-running federal corruption probe were dropped during the final weeks of the Biden administration. 

While Paxton for years has denied any wrongdoing and has survived his legal fights, he would likely continue to face tough optics and plenty of incoming fire over his past predicaments during a Senate showdown.

“Paxton has a checkered background. He is a con man and a fraud and I think the people of Texas know that,” Cornyn charged on Wednesday.

And the senator added: “This is what will be litigated during the course of this campaign.”

Matt Mackowiak, a veteran Republican strategist and communications consultant based in Texas and Washington, D.C., pointed to the bruising intra-party battle ahead as he told Fox News that “this is going to be the most expensive, nastiest, most aggressive, most personal U.S. Senate primary in Texas history.”

“You have two candidates who are going to raise significant funds, who are in significant positions, who do not like each other and have not liked each other, whose teams do not like each other and the stakes could not be higher,” Mackowiak said.

GOP Rep. Wesley Hunt of Texas headlines the opening of the first Trump campaign office in Pennsylvania, on June 4, 2024, in Philadelphia. (Fox News – Paul Steinhauser)

Potentially complicating the primary battle is a possible Senate bid by conservative Rep. Wesley Hunt, who represents a Houston-area district.

The third-term 43-year-old Texas Republican and rising MAGA star has made his case to the president’s political team, sources confirm to Fox News. Hunt’s argument is that he’s the only person who can win both a GOP primary and a general election, a source familiar with the discussions confirmed to Fox News.

An outside group supportive of Hunt is currently spending seven figures to run ads across the Lone Star State to increase the lawmaker’s name recognition.

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The eventual winner of next year’s GOP primary will be considered the favorite in the general election against whomever the Democrats nominate.

Former Democratic Rep. Colin Allred has said he’ll decide by this summer if he’ll mount a 2026 Senate campaign.

Allred, a former Baylor University football player and NFL linebacker who later represented Texas’ 32nd Congressional District (which includes parts of Dallas and surrounding suburbs), was last year’s Democratic challenger in the race against Cruz.

The House tries again this morning to align with the Senate on a framework for President Donald Trump’s tax cut bill. 

A vote could come as early as the 10 a.m. ET hour. 

No alignment? No bill.

THE SPEAKER’S LOBBY: ‘WHOSE THROAT DO I GET TO CHOKE?’

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

More than a dozen House conservatives balked last night, blocking Republicans from even voting on the blueprint. 

They spoke with House GOP leaders for more than an hour. House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., also spoke with President Trump. Some conservatives met with Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., and Senate committee chairs. 

The holdouts want more assurances that the Senate will cut more spending than they greenlighted in their revamped budget early last Saturday morning. 

What would unlock the votes today? Either an informal promise from the Senate to cut more. Or, the House could alter the Senate package and Senate to sync with the House. 

MIKE JOHNSON PUNTS HOUSE VOTE ON TRUMP TAX AGENDA AFTER GOP REBELLION THREATENED DEFEAT

Mitch McConnell’s fundraising apparatus is changing hands to Thune allies. (Reuters)

An alternative is for the House to vote to add two steps to process – sending the House and Senate plans to a conference committee to finally blend the resolutions into one. 

Changing the bill and going to a conference committee are cumbersome, time-consuming steps. Rather than eight steps to finish the bill, that would create 10. The House is stuck on step 4. 

Thune has said the Senate can’t tackle another update and overnight vote series. It’s already done two versions. 

This underscores the wide divide between what the House wants to tackle – and what the Senate is capable of tackling. 

The House and Senate must approve the same measure at this stage in order to get to the bill itself. And these steps were supposed to be easier. 

House Speaker Mike Johnson leads a news conference at the Republican National Committee headquarters in Washington on Jan. 22, 2025. (J. Scott Applewhite/AP)

This also jeopardizes Johnson’s goal of finishing the bill by Memorial Day. 

It’s about the math: Johnson can only lose three votes. And he has north of a dozen nays now. 

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Moreover, the House and Senate are out of alignment. Whatever can advance in the Senate can’t pass the House and vice versa. That could imperil the ultimate passage of the bill itself.

FIRST ON FOX: Thousands of illegal immigrants facing potential involuntary removal from the U.S. have instead opted to self-deport through an app provided by the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP).

The number of immigrants who have opted to self-deport over the last month using the CBP Home app is over 5,000, according to Department of Homeland Security (DHS) data shared with Fox News Digital.

The self-deportations come as the Trump administration has ramped up a messaging campaign aimed at encouraging illegal immigrants to leave the country voluntarily, most recently releasing a flyer addressed to “illegal aliens” that threatens new fines for those who choose to remain in the U.S. despite a deportation order.

“Self-deportation is safe,” the flyer reads. “Leave on your own terms by picking your departure flight.”

TRUMP ADMIN UNVEILS PLAN COSTING MIGRANTS MASSIVE FINE FOR EVERY DAY THEY DON’T SELF-DEPORT

Over 5,000 illegal immigrants have opted to leave the country voluntarily since March 10. (Getty Images)

The flyer warns that the administration plans to start fining illegal migrants who have received a final order of removal $998 per day if they continue to stay in the country, while fines of $1,000-$5,000 could be given to those who failed to self-deport after claiming they would.

America First Legal Senior Counsel James Rogers argued that the self-deportation push is working because of the “credible threat of enforcement.”

“Our nation’s immigration laws impose severe penalties on aliens who are illegally in the country. The only reason there is a large population of illegal immigrants residing in the United States is because prior administrations have failed to enforce these laws passed by Congress,” Rogers said. “Everyone knows this, including the aliens who have been illegally living here. The current trend of illegal aliens self-deporting proves that even just the credible threat of enforcement can be enough to get many illegal immigrants to comply with our laws and leave the country.”

Meanwhile, the flyer boasts of several benefits for those who opt to self-deport, including the ability to keep the money they earned while in the U.S., future opportunities for legal immigration, and potential financial assistance or flights out of the country for those who cannot afford it.

TRUMP TELLS ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS TO ‘SELF-DEPORT’ USING CBP HOME APP IN NEW VIDEO

President Donald Trump has encouraged illegal immigrants to self-deport, claiming it is the safest way to leave the country. (Evan Vucci/AP)

BLUE STATE SHERIFFS COMBINE FORCES TO FIGHT BACK AGAINST SANCTUARY LAWS

“Illegal aliens should use the CBP Home app to self-deport and leave the country now. If they don’t, they will face the consequences,” Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin told Fox News on Tuesday. “This includes a fine of $998 per day for every day that the illegal alien overstayed their final deportation order.”

President Donald Trump himself has joined the messaging campaign, releasing a video last month that encouraged illegal migrants to use the CBP Home app to self-deport.

“Leave now and self-deport voluntarily. If they do, they could potentially have the opportunity to return legally at some point in the future,” Trump said in the video, adding that those who do not self-deport “will be found, they will be deported, and they will never be admitted again to the United States.”

“Using the CBP home app to leave the United States voluntarily is the safest option for illegal aliens,” Trump added, noting that self-deportation will also free up critical law enforcement resources that are better spent focusing on criminal aliens.

Venezuelan migrants walk following their arrival on a flight after being deported from the U.S., in Caracas, Venezuela, on March 24. (Reuters/Leonardo Fernandez Viloria)

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Rogers argued illegal immigrants would be wise to follow Trump’s advice.

“They would be wise to do so, because leaving on their own will be far better for them than the many penalties they will face if they continue to remain here in violation of our nation’s laws, now that we have an administration willing to enforce the law,” he said.

A major public library system in California has teamed up with Planned Parenthood to promote “sexual health resource cabinets” in its libraries. These cabinets, which are accessible to library visitors — including children without restrictions — contain condoms, pregnancy tests, contraceptives, dental dams, lubricants and graphic sex education materials, all available for free.

The Sacramento Public Library system, in partnership with Planned Parenthood Mar Monte, began placing the cabinets in 12 of its 28 libraries six weeks ago, CBS News first reported. The library system is under city-county jurisdiction. 

The cabinets, which include Planned Parenthood pamphlets titled, “How to Talk to Your Child About Sex,” are also stocked with QR codes directing people to the clinic’s sexual health materials.

SCOOP: NEWSOM ASKS WORLD LEADERS TO EXEMPT CALIFORNIA EXPORTS FROM RETALIATORY TARIFFS

The Sacramento Public Library system is putting condoms, lube and other sex resources in a dozen of its libraries in partnership with Planned Parenthood.  (Getty Images/Sacramento Public Library)

Fox News Digital did not hear back from Sacramento Public Library before publication.

The move has alarmed parents’ rights activist groups who say the cabinets provide a way for the local government to reach minors with explicit content without parental consent or knowledge. 

NEWSOM FOE PICKED BY TRUMP FOR KEY PROSECUTOR JOB VOWS TO ‘DISMANTLE’ SANCTUARY STATE SHIELDS

“I don’t understand why they think kids should be having sex. Nobody on either side of the aisle believes that, and yet they want to provide sex stuff for people … in the library, which is beyond the pale,” Greg Burt, vice president of the nonprofit advocacy group California Family Council, told Fox News Digital in an interview.

“I think when parents realize this is happening in their libraries, they’re not gonna take their kids to the library anymore. They aren’t safe spaces.”

A child peruses a library. (In Pictures Ltd./Corbis via Getty Images)

The cabinets are placed sporadically around the libraries, according to CBS, with some placed out in the open in the library’s main space, while others are placed closer to adult sections.

“We want to remove the stigma around these resources,” Todd Deck, community engagement services manager for the Sacramento Public Library, told the outlet.

The cabinets can be found in libraries located in Central, Belle Cooledge, Robbie Waters Pocket-Greenhaven, Southgate, Carmichael, Rancho Cordova, Valley Hi-North Laguna, Walnut Grove, South Natomas, Rio Linda, Fair Oaks and Sylvan Oaks.

CALIFORNIA DEM COMPARES ‘SAVE GIRLS SPORTS’ LAW TO NAZI GERMANY, AS TWO TRANS ATHLETE BAN BILLS FAIL TO PASS

A Planned Parenthood sign outside a healthcare clinic in Inglewood, Calif., May 16, 2023. (Patrick T. Fallon/AFP via Getty Images)

“One thing to keep in mind is we are approaching this like we do a book on our shelves,” Deck said. “Although this resource may not be applicable for everyone, we do want to make it available for the people who do need it.”

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The library plans to expand the cabinets to other locations.

The Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) account on X shared eyebrow-raising findings from a survey of unemployment insurance claims.

The “initial survey of Unemployment Insurance claims since 2020” found that thousands of people with future birthdates claimed benefits.

The survey also indicated that thousands of supposedly very young and very old people had claimed benefits.

ELON MUSK SCRAPS WITH CHUCK SCHUMER, SUGGESTING THE SENATOR PROFITS FROM GOVERNMENT FRAUD

Elon Musk walks to the White House after landing in Marine One on the South Lawn with U.S. President Donald Trump (not pictured) on March 9, 2025 in Washington, D.C. (Samuel Corum/Getty Images)

The DOGE post states that the survey found, “24.5k people over 115 years old claimed $59M in benefits,” “28k people between 1 and 5 years old claimed $254M in benefits,” and “9.7k people with birth dates over 15 years in the future claimed $69M in benefits.”

“In one case, someone with a birthday in 2154 claimed $41k,” the post also notes.

Fox News Digital reached out to the Department of Labor for comment early on Thursday morning, but did not receive a response by the time of publication.

DOGE ENDS 108 ‘WASTEFUL’ CONTRACTS, INCLUDING FOR AN ‘EXECUTIVE TRANSFORMATIONAL LEADERSHIP TRAINING PROGRAM’

“Your tax dollars were going to pay fraudulent unemployment claims for fake people born in the future! This is so crazy that I had to read it several times before it sank in,” Elon Musk tweeted.

Musk is spearheading the DOGE effort to uncover waste, fraud, and abuse in the federal government.

“The oldest living American is 114 years old, so it is safe to say that anyone 115 or older is collecting ‘unemployment’ due to being dead. There was no sanity check for impossibly young or impossibly old people for unemployment insurance,” he noted in another post.

AMERICANS GRADE DOGE AND ELON MUSK’S EFFORTS WITHIN THE FIRST 100 DAYS OF THE TRUMP ADMINISTRATION

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Republican Sen. Mike Lee of Utah replied to Musk, writing, “Reckless incompetence.”

Russian-American ballerina Ksenia Karelina, who has been wrongfully detained in Russia for more than a year, is on her way back to the United States, Secretary of State Marco Rubio confirmed early Thursday.

Russian-American ballerina Ksenia Karelina, who has been wrongfully detained in Russia for more than a year, is on her way back to the United States, Secretary of State Marco Rubio confirmed early Thursday. (Eleonora Srebroski/Handout/Reuters)

“American Ksenia Karelina is on a plane back home to the United States. She was wrongfully detained by Russia for over a year and President Trump secured her release. @POTUS will continue to work for the release of ALL Americans,” Rubio wrote on X.

Karelina was sentenced to 12 years in a Russian prison after donating about $50 to a Ukrainian charity in early 2024.

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The Wall Street Journal reported that Karelina was released in exchange for the release of Arthur Petrov, a dual German-Russian citizen who was arrested in 2023 in Cyprus at the request of the U.S. on charges of exporting sensitive microelectronics.

This is a breaking news story. Check back for updates.

U.S. Army Secretary Dan Driscoll was tapped to serve as the acting director of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF), replacing FBI Director Kash Patel, who was appointed to the role in February, according to a U.S. defense official.

Driscoll was notified of the appointment on Wednesday while traveling in Europe, the defense official told Fox News.

He will fulfill both roles, continuing to serve as the Army secretary while overseeing the ATF.

DEMOCRATS PRESS ARMY SECRETARY NOMINEE IF ‘READINESS’ AFFECTED BY SOUTHERN BORDER DEPLOYMENTS

Daniel Driscoll testifies before a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing on his nomination to be Army secretary, on Capitol Hill, Jan. 30. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)

A source close to Patel told Fox News Digital that the ATF was taken off his plate because he wanted to focus on the bureau.

“It was never supposed to be a long-term thing. He was happy to serve, of course, but his job is the director of the FBI,” the source said.

Hailing from North Carolina, Driscoll, an Army veteran and venture capitalist, was chosen by Trump to serve as secretary of the Army. Driscoll, who is a senior advisor to Vice President JD Vance, fought with the 10th Mountain Division as a cavalry scout platoon leader in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom.

FBI DIRECTOR KASH PATEL SWORN IN AS ACTING ATF CHIEF, VISITS DC HQ

Kash Patel testifies during his confirmation hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee, Jan. 30, in Washington, D.C. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)

Patel was sworn in to lead the ATF days after taking an oath to head the FBI following a contentious confirmation process in which Democrats raised alarms about his lack of management experience, among other claims. 

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President Donald Trump hasn’t made clear what his plans are for the ATF, which has long been a target for congressional Republicans. The agency is charged with enforcing the nation’s laws with respect to firearms, explosives and arson. 

It’s also charged with licensing federal firearms dealers, tracing guns used in crimes and analyzing intelligence in shooting investigations.

Fox News Digital’s Morgan Phillips and Louis Casiano contributed to this report.

Two federal judges in Texas and New York on Wednesday temporarily blocked the Trump administration‘s use of the Alien Enemies Act to deport Venezuelan nationals — the latest in a high-profile legal saga centered on the administration’s use of a wartime immigration law to immediately deport certain migrants.

Plaintiffs filed two separate lawsuits asking federal judges in Brownsville, Texas, and Orange County, New York, to grant a temporary restraining order blocking their removals under the 1798 wartime immigration law that was reviewed by the Supreme Court just days earlier.

U.S. District Judge Fernando Rodriguez Jr., in Brownsville granted a temporary restraining order filed on behalf of three Venezuelan nationals. The order temporarily blocks their removal under the AEA, as well as the removal of “any other person that Respondents claim are subject to removal under the Proclamation” from the district’s El Valle Detention Center, according to the text of his ruling.

Rodriguez, a Trump appointee, sided with plaintiffs’ contention that allowing the law to be used for their deportations would likely cause “immediate and irreparable injury to the removed individuals,” whom he said would likely be “unable to seek habeas relief.”

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Prison officers stand guard a cell block at the maximum security penitentiary CECOT (Center for the Compulsory Housing of Terrorism) in Tecoluca, San Vicente, El Salvador, on Friday. (Alex Peña/Getty Images)

In addition, he said, the “substantial likelihood exists that the individual could not be returned to the United States” if deported.

Rodriguez said he will hear from both parties in court again Friday to consider whether to continue extending the 14-day emergency order.

In the New York case filed in Manhattan federal court, U.S. District Judge Alvin Hellerstein — a Clinton appointee — sided with two Venezuelan nationals whose attorneys argued they likely wouldn’t have time to seek the habeas relief granted by the Supreme Court in its emergency ruling.

Venezuelan migrants walk following their arrival on a flight after being deported from the U.S. in Caracas, Venezuela, on March 24.  (Reuters/Leonardo Fernandez Viloria)

Both clients, “and others similarly situated to them,” are now “all at imminent risk of removal” by the Trump administration without proper notice, lawyers said in the filing. 

Hellerstein’s ruling, unlike that of the federal judge in Texas, stopped short of directly addressing whether the Alien Enemies Act is an appropriate legal basis for deporting the two individuals, though it temporarily blocks the law from being used to remove them.

The updates follow a 5–4 Supreme Court ruling on Monday that lifted a lower court’s restraining order, allowing the Trump administration to temporarily resume use of the Alien Enemies Act — albeit with new due process protections for migrants.

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President Donald Trump signs executive orders in the Oval Office. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)

The high court said individuals slated for deportation must have the opportunity to challenge their removal, with sufficient time to do so in a U.S. court.

But the proceedings must take place in the federal jurisdictions where detainees are held — raising concerns among immigration advocates, who note that these cases are often difficult to bring individually and typically occur in court districts where most migrants are detained.

“Whether or not you’re a gang member, the Alien Enemies Act cannot be used under these circumstances,” lawyers for the ACLU said in an earlier court filing, noting that the Alien Enemies Act “is a military authority.”

“It is not supposed to be used in peacetime against a gang,” they said.

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In granting the temporary restraining order, Rodriguez, the Trump appointee, agreed with the plaintiffs’ argument that “maintaining the status quo is required to afford the parties the ability to develop a fuller record for the Court to consider the request for a preliminary injunction and other forms of relief,” and to “prevent the immediate and irreparable injury that may occur with the immediate removal of any Venezuelan alien subject to the Proclamation.”

“Furthermore, if the United States erroneously removed an individual to another country based on the Proclamation, a substantial likelihood exists that the individual could not be returned to the United States,” he said.

Lawyers for the Trump administration had urged the court to vacate the lower court ruling, arguing in a Supreme Court filing that the lower court orders “rebuffed” their immigration agenda, including their ability “to protect the Nation against foreign terrorist organizations and risk debilitating effects for delicate foreign negotiations.”