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EXCLUSIVE: Legislation will be introduced Tuesday to expand the list of crimes that would require a migrant to be taken into custody.

The “Safeguarding American Property Act” would add arson, vandalism and trespassing to the crimes that would require those in the country illegally to be placed into federal custody.

“Property rights are a fundamental American value,” Rep. Troy Downing, R-Mont., said in a statement to Fox News Digital.

TRUMP SIGNS LAKEN RILEY ACT INTO LAW AS FIRST LEGISLATIVE VICTORY IN NEW ADMINISTRATION

Immigrants wait to be processed by the U.S. Border Patrol after crossing the border from Mexico, on Aug. 6, 2022, in Yuma, Arizona. (Qian Weizhong/VCG via Getty Images)

“Those who disregard our laws by committing acts of vandalism or trespassing on private property, especially those who broke our laws crossing our borders, must not be allowed to remain. This bill builds on the good work of the Laken Riley Act and takes another step toward reversing Biden’s border crisis. I appreciate the support of the bill’s cosponsors, and I look forward to getting this legislation passed into law to keep our communities safe,” he continued.

Specifically, it would amend the Immigration and Nationality Act. The Montana Republican’s legislation is meant to help rural communities, which could have limited law enforcement resources to protect property. 

Many properties along the southern border faced damage as a result of the high volume of migrants that came across throughout the Biden administration, which triggered the state of Texas to create the Landowner Compensation Program to help repay those in agricultural communities.

LAKEN RILEY ACT UNLEASHES FEDS TO HUNT VENEZUELAN GANG MEMBERS IN FLORIDA: LAWMAKER

Cattle graze at a ranch in Blanchard, Oklahoma, on Dec. 2, 2021. (Nick Oxford/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

“Illegal aliens crossing the Texas-Mexico border at Joe Biden’s invitation leave behind a trail of destruction that harms Texas agricultural land,” Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton said in May 2024. “This program will provide needed relief to Texans whose property is damaged by foreign aliens waved into the country by the federal government. I am glad to help the farmers and ranchers on our borderlands who bear the costs of Biden’s destructive policies.”

Downing’s proposal builds off the Laken Riley Act, which was signed into law by President Donald Trump this winter. The act garnered some bipartisan support, as it made theft, similar criminal charges or assaulting an officer triggers for federal authorities to detain illegal immigrants for potential deportation.

LAKEN RILEY MURDER: JUDGE SENTENCES COLLEGE STUDENT KILLER AFTER FAMILY ADDRESSES ‘MONSTER’ IN COURT

Laken Riley was found dead near a lake on the University of Georgia campus on Feb. 22, 2024. (Laken Riley/Facebook)

The law is named after a late 22-year-old nursing student who was killed by illegal immigrant Jose Ibarra while on a jog on the University of Georgia campus.

Ibarra had been arrested in the past but was not taken into ICE custody, and he’s now facing life behind bars.

“This horrific atrocity should never have been allowed to happen,” Trump said at the time, as it was the first bill signed in his second term. “And as president, I’m fighting every single day to ensure that such a tragedy never happens again.”

Fox News’ Diana Stacy contributed to this report. 

What’s most striking about President Trump’s tariff war is that he’s being pressured by some of his closest advisers and supporters to end the crusade that has upended the world economy.

It’s not just media conservatives like Ben Shapiro, Rich Lowry, Ben Domenech and the Wall Street Journal editorial page. It’s longtime wealthy donors like Ken Langone, co-founder of Home Depot, who denounced the tariffs and cited the 46 percent levy on Vietnam as an example of “bull****,” telling the Financial Times that “right now what everybody’s terrified of is a trade war.” 

Another billionaire, hedge fund investor Bill Ackman said, “The consequences for our country and the millions of citizens who have supported the president…are going to be severely negative.” Jamie Dimon, CEO of JP Morgan, said “whether or not the menu of tariffs causes a recession remains in question, but it will slow down growth.”

WHITE HOUSE SAYS BEIJING MISSED DEADLINE TO LIFT RETALIATORY TARIFFS, US TO HIKE CHINA TARIFFS TO 104%

The most famous defector is Elon Musk, who, according to the Washington Post, privately urged Trump not to go ahead with the sky-high tariffs. Now he’s gone public: 

“Ideally, both Europe and the United States should move to a zero-tariff situation, effectively creating a free trade zone between Europe and North America.” Even the world’s richest man and chief budget cutter couldn’t convince the boss, and he is off the reservation.  

Musk is also taking shots at the strongest tariff booster in the White House, Peter Navarro, calling him “truly a moron,” “dumber than a sack of bricks,” and, in a particularly juvenile jab, “Peter Navarrdo.”

In addition to sounding off against President Trump’s tariffs, Elon Musk has thrown a few rhetorical punches at the staunchly pro-tariff Peter Navarro. (AP)

The aforementioned Navarro, you’ll be happy to hear, went on Fox and guaranteed there will be no recession. So you can all resume regular breathing.

It doesn’t help Trump that after an early rebound rally yesterday ran out of gas, the Dow dropped another 320 points, after a dramatic decline that has decimated people’s stock holdings and 401-Ks. The Constitution, by the way, says Congress is in charge of tariffs.

Almost no one is safe, including Bibi Netanyahu, who came to the White House on Monday in a ring-kissing gesture, has imposed no levies on the U.S., but still got hit with a 17 percent tariff. Against Israel, our chief ally in the Middle East and the region’s only democracy?

And the escalation with China, our biggest adversary, was predictable. Trump had hit Beijing with a 54 percent tariff (including an earlier 20 percent levy). Beijing hit back, as promised, with a 34 percent tariff on U.S. goods, battling what it calls blackmail. 

Wouldn’t we have done the exact same thing if the roles were reversed?

But Trump acted as though he was personally insulted, and is now vowing an additional 50 percent tariff on the Chinese. This is how trade wars spiral out of control. And China has cut off negotiations on the sale of TikTok to an American owner.   

Media blunders also fueled the market’s volatility. On Monday, Bloomberg – that is, someone identified as Walter Bloomberg, not connected to any news outlet – posted this: “HASSETT: TRUMP IS CONSIDERING A 90-DAY PAUSE IN TARIFFS FOR ALL COUNTRIES EXCEPT CHINA.”

Media blunders – including one claiming Kevin Hassett, director of the White House economic council, said Trump was considering a 90-day tariff pause – only exacerbated market volatility. (Andrew Harrer/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

This goosed the stock market. Except that Kevin Hassett, director of the White House economic council, never said that. 

But CNBC morning anchor Carl Quintanilla told viewers, “I think we can go with this headline. Apparently, Hassett’s been saying that Trump will consider a 90-day pause in tariffs for all countries except for China.”

Reuters then ran with this headline: “Wall Street reverses course after Hassett’s comments on tariff pause.”

What Hassett actually said, when asked on Fox if Trump would consider a 90-day tariff pause: “I think the president is gonna decide what the president is gonna decide.” Not exactly the same thing. But the market shot up.

The wire service later admitted the mistake: “Reuters has withdrawn the incorrect report and regrets its error.”

TRUMP, EYEING 3RD TERM, KEEPS ATTACKING ELITE INSTITUTIONS – AND MANY ARE CAVING

A CNBC spokeswoman said later, “As we were chasing the news of the market moves in real-time, we aired unconfirmed information in a banner. Our reporters quickly made a correction on air.”

Meghan McCain posted a broader swipe against the media: “There are so many hypocritical talking heads on TV saying they don’t care about losing money or being in financial pain for a while. Most of you are married to finance bros, come from rich families or have huge media contracts. You have a cushion…

“One of my best friends buys her groceries for her family based on what coupons each store has. I assure you a possible recession or huge rise in prices everywhere will be a different experience for her family than you.”

SUBSCRIBE TO HOWIE’S MEDIA BUZZMETER PODCAST, A RIFF ON THE DAY’S HOTTEST STORIES

Is there an exit ramp? White House officials say 70 countries have been in touch, seeking a negotiated settlement. Some, of course, were doing that in the runup to “Liberation Day.” The president could reach many of the settlements, declare victory and credit his tariff war.

At the moment, he shows no inclination to do that, having pushed the tariff idea since the 1980s and repeatedly promising such an approach during last year’s campaign. 

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I wrote a book on Wall Street and the media, talked to many top traders as well as business anchors and commentators. I understand the hair-trigger nature of the culture. Everyone expected that Donald Trump would impose hefty tariffs, just not at this stratospheric level.

Wall Street rebounded into the green as multiple foreign countries came to the tariff negotiating table with President Donald Trump – but that was not enough to assuage some lawmakers’ critiques of the “alla prima” tariff actions, as one Republican put it.

U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer testified Tuesday the U.S. has long-suffered from “China Shock” – the surge in manufacturing outputs from the Communist nation since the turn of the century – and that the U.S. had to do something substantive but strategic about the 5 million manufacturing jobs lost and 90,000 factories closed since the middle of the Clinton administration.

“President Biden left us with a $1.2 trillion trade deficit-in-goods – the largest of any country in the history of the world,” Greer said.

“During COVID, we were unable to procure semiconductors to build our cars or materials for pharmaceuticals and personal protective equipment. During World War II, we built nearly 9,000 ships. Last year, the United States built only three ocean-going vessels,” he said.

STOCKS JUMP AS TRUMP TARIFF NEGOTIATIONS BEGIN

U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer testifies before the Senate Finance Committee in the Dirksen Senate Office Building. (Getty Images)

Greer said the U.S. historically was on the surplus side of agriculture trade but that, as of late, purportedly friendly countries like Australia have essentially rejected beef and pork exports, while America has not reciprocated with their livestock.

That became a sore subject during a particularly heated exchange between Greer and Sen. Mark Warner, D-Va., as the lawmaker claimed Trump unnecessarily “clobbered” Canberra with a 10% tariff.

“We have a free trade agreement with Australia,” he said, questioning Trump’s “fancy Greek formula” for determining tariffs.

Democrats and media figures previously mocked Trump for tariffing uninhabited Australian islands in the Indian Ocean – which Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick suggested over the weekend was to close any potential loophole to circumvent tariffs on such countries’ mainland.

Greer argued the “lowest rate available” was imposed on Australia, leading Warner to ask again “why did they get whacked in the first place.”

“Despite the [free trade] agreement, they ban our beef, they banned our pork, they’re getting ready to impose measures on our digital companies – It’s incredible,” Greer said.

OPINION: TRUMP RISKS IT ALL ON TARIFFS

Warner later acknowledged markets had rebounded a “blip” by midday but said a Wall Street contact equated it to a “good day in hospice.”

Meanwhile, during his opening remarks, Senate Finance Committee ranking member Ron Wyden said he has drafted a bipartisan resolution to “end the latest crop of global tariffs that are clobbering American families and small businesses.”

“Members on both sides of the aisle ought to know that this is a call to action and Congress must step in to rein this president on trade,” Wyden said.

He called the tariffs “aimless” and “chaotic” and said it showed Congress ceded the executive branch too much constitutional power.

In his testimony, Greer called trade imbalance an indicator of both an economic and national security emergency.

He also suggested America’s allies have been foisting unfair policies on the American consumer – including the European Union.

“[They] can sell us all the shellfish they want, but the EU bans shellfish from 48 states. The result is a trade deficit in shellfish with the EU,” he said.

CHINA REFUSES TO BACK DOWN ON TARIFFS

“We only charge a 2.5% tariff on ethanol, but Brazil charges us an 18% tariff. The result? We have a large trade deficit in ethanol with Brazil.”

“Our average tariff on agricultural goods is 5%, but India’s average tariff is 39%. You understand the trend here.”

In response to some of Wyden’s concerns, Greer said Vietnam has already negotiated a lower tariff on U.S. cherries and apples exported from Oregon and the Northwest.

“This is exactly the right direction that we want to go in,” Greer said.

Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., struck a more middling tone on tariffs, saying that he has never been a “great fan of free trade,” and cited his work ending NAFTA and opposing normalized relations with China.

Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee Chairman Bernie Sanders in the Dirksen Senate Office Building on Capitol Hill on April 20, 2023 in Washington. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

He also cited the outsourcing of manufacturing to Mexico, saying it killed hundreds of thousands of American jobs and has many Mexican workers “living in cardboard boxes.”

“That is the type of trade policy which I detest. But I want to move to an area, to talk about the legal basis of what President Trump has done,” he said.

Sanders said he lives 50 miles from Canada and does not see the same empirical data on illegal immigration and fentanyl smuggling that Trump accused Ottawa of failing to act on – and incorporated into his tariff calculations.

On the Republican side, Chairman Michael Crapo, R-Idaho, was largely deferential to Trump and Greer, while some other Republicans voiced concerns.

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Sen. Charles Grassley of Iowa questioned whether Congress “delegated too much authority to the president” but said he supports the president so long as his mission is to “turn tariffs into trade deals to reduce tariff and non-tariff barriers” versus any plot to “feed the U.S. Treasury through them.”

“I made very clear throughout my public service that I’m a free and fair trader. The Constitution gives Congress the authority to regulate interstate and foreign commerce. I believe that Congress delegated too much authority to the president in the Trade Expansion Act of 1962 and Trade Act of 1974,” he said.

Additionally, Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C., pressed Greer on who should be considered the person that will take ultimately responsibility for either praise or accountability depending on the outcome of the tariff actions.

“Whose throat do I have to choke,” he said, underlining that the phrase was borrowed from a management consulting mantra.

House Republicans are divided over how to proceed on a massive piece of legislation aimed at advancing President Donald Trump’s agenda as a possible vote on the measure looms Wednesday afternoon.

Fiscal hawks are rebelling against GOP leaders over plans to pass the Senate’s version of a sweeping framework that sets the stage for a Trump policy overhaul on the border, energy, defense and taxes.

Their main concern has been the difference between the Senate and House’s required spending cuts, which conservatives want to offset the cost of the new policies and as an attempt to reduce the national deficit. The Senate’s plan calls for a minimum of $4 billion in cuts, while the House’s floor is much higher at $1.5 trillion.

“The problem is, I think a lot of people don’t trust the Senate and what their intentions are, and that they’ll mislead the president and that we won’t get done what we need to get done,” Rep. Rich McCormick, R-Ga., told reporters on Tuesday. “I’m a ‘no’ until we figure out how to get enough votes to pass it.”

SENATE GOP PUSHES TRUMP BUDGET FRAMEWORK THROUGH AFTER MARATHON VOTE SERIES

Republicans aren’t necessarily on the same page just yet about budget reconciliation. (Reuters)

McCormick said there were as many as 40 GOP lawmakers who were undecided or opposed to the measure.

A meeting with a select group of holdouts at the White House on Tuesday appeared to budge a few people, but many conservatives signaled they were largely unmoved.

“I wouldn’t put it on the floor,” Rep. Chip Roy, R-Texas, told reporters after the White House meeting. “I’ve got a bill in front of me, and it’s a budget, and that budget, in my opinion, will increase the deficit, and I didn’t come here to do that.”

Senate GOP leaders praised the bill as a victory for Trump’s agenda when it passed the upper chamber in the early hours of Saturday morning.

Trump urged all House Republicans to support it in a Truth Social post on Monday evening.

Meanwhile, House Republican leaders like Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., have appealed to conservatives by arguing that passing the Senate version does not in any way impede the House from moving ahead with its steeper cuts.

The House passed its framework in late February.

Rep. Chip Roy, R-Texas, who was at the White House meeting on Tuesday afternoon, is still skeptical about the Senate plan. (Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)

Congressional Republicans are working on a massive piece of legislation that Trump has dubbed “one big, beautiful bill” to advance his agenda on border security, defense, energy and taxes.

Such a measure is largely only possible via the budget reconciliation process. Traditionally used when one party controls all three branches of government, reconciliation lowers the Senate’s threshold for passage of certain fiscal measures from 60 votes to 51. As a result, it has been used to pass broad policy changes in one or two massive pieces of legislation.

Passing frameworks in the House and Senate, which largely only include numbers indicating increases or decreases in funding, allows each chamber’s committees to then craft policy in line with those numbers under their specific jurisdictions. 

MEET THE TRUMP-PICKED LAWMAKERS GIVING SPEAKER JOHNSON A FULL HOUSE GOP CONFERENCE

Members of the conservative House Freedom Caucus have pushed for Johnson to allow the House GOP to simply begin crafting its bill without passing the Senate version, though both chambers will need to eventually pass identical bills to send to Trump’s desk.

“Trump wants to reduce the interest rates. Trump wants to lower the deficits. The only way to accomplish those is to reduce spending. And $4 billion is not – that’s … anemic. That is really a joke,” Rep. Eric Burlison, R-Mo., told reporters.

He said “there’s no way” the legislation would pass the House this week.

The measure will likely go through the House Rules Committee, which acts as the final gatekeeper for most legislation getting a chamber-wide vote.

Rep. Eric Burlison, R-Mo., who was not at the White House meeting, is also skeptical of the Senate plan. (Bill Clark/CQ-Roll Call via Getty Images)

However, tentative plans for a late-afternoon House Rules Committee meeting on the framework, which would have set up a Wednesday vote, were scrapped by early evening on Tuesday.

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The legislation could still get a House-wide vote late on Wednesday if the committee meets in the morning.

As for the House speaker, he was optimistic returning from the White House meeting on Tuesday afternoon.

“Great meeting. The president was very helpful and engaged, and we had a lot of members whose questions were answered,” Johnson told reporters. “I think we’ll be moving forward this week.”

Fox News’ Ryan Schmelz and Aishah Hasnie contributed to this report.

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton announced on Fox News’ The Ingraham Angle Tuesday night that he will run for the U.S. Senate. 

The announcement comes as Paxton no longer faces the cloud of a federal corruption investigation that loomed over him as he rose up the ranks in the Republican Party. 

The announcement by Paxton, a close ally of President Donald Trump and a MAGA firebrand, comes two weeks after Republican Sen. John Cornyn officially launched his re-election campaign as he bids for a fifth six-year term serving Texas in the Senate.

“It’s time for a change in Texas,” Paxton told Fox News’ Laura Ingraham, before acknowledging Sen. Ted Cruz, Texas’ other Republican senator. “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.”

EXTRAMARITAL AFFAIR DETAILS SURFACE IN HISTORIC IMPEACHMENT TRIAL OF TEXAS AG KEN PAXTON

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton speaks at a news conference in Dallas, June 22, 2017. On Tuesday, Paxton announced that he will run for the U.S. Senate.  (AP Photo/Tony Gutierrez, File)

On Sunday, Cornyn said he was looking forward to “the competition” amid rumors of Paxton’s candidacy. 

“Ken Paxton is a fraud,” Cornyn’s campaign charged in a social media post after Paxton’s announcement. “He talks tough on crime and then lets crooked progressive Lina Hidalgo off the hook. He says his impeachment trial was a sham but he didn’t contest the facts in legal filings which will cost the state millions.”

TEXAS AG PAXTON ACQUITTED ON ALL IMPEACHMENT CHARGES: ‘THE TRUTH PREVAILED’

“He says he’s anti-woke but he funnels millions of taxpayer dollars to lawyers who celebrate DEI,” the post continued. “And Ken claims to be a man of faith but uses fake Uber accounts to meet his girlfriend and deceive his family.”

Cornyn’s campaign noted that the incumbent senator has voted with Trump more than 95% of current senators. Trump and Texas need a “battle-tested conservative” who knows how to protect his agenda in the Senate and won’t be outsmarted by Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and the Democrats, the campaign said. 

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton and U.S. Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas.  (Fox News Digital)

The announcement from Paxton puts the gears in motion for what may be an extremely expensive and bruising GOP primary battle, pitting the remaining establishment and business factions of the Republican Party versus the ascendant MAGA wing.

“It sets the table for the most expensive primary in Texas. It will be a brutal battle,” veteran Republican strategist Dave Carney told Fox News. Carney, the longtime top political adviser to Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, noted that the announcement by Paxton also “opens up the attorney general’s race. There will probably be a very competitive primary for that and we’re going to have a lot of musical chairs down ballot.”

Matt Mackowiak, a veteran Republican strategist and communications consultant based in Texas and Washington, D.C., said “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 and have not liked each other, whose teams do not like each other and the stakes could not be higher,” he emphasized.

WILL DEMOCRATS ONCE AGAIN CHASE THE ‘GHOST OF A BLUE TEXAS’ IN NEXT YEAR’S SENATE RACE?

Paxton’s announcement was not a huge surprise, as he 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” and an insult MAGA and “America First” Republicans have regularly used to criticize more mainstream or establishment members of the GOP.

Paxton, who has been Texas’ top prosecutor since 2015, has regularly criticized his GOP rival, pointing to Cornyn’s position on a border wall and opposing Trump during the 2016 election. 

Cornyn also previously came under criticism from conservatives after he helped push a bipartisan gun control bill after the 2022 mass shooting at a Uvalde, Texas elementary school that killed 19 students and two teachers. 

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

Paxton, for a couple of years, had flirted with a primary challenge against the 73-year-old 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.

FACING POSSIBLE PRIMARY CHALLNGE FROM A TRUMP ALLY, LONGTIME TEXAS SENATOR ANNOUNCES RE-ELECTION

“I can’t think of a single thing he’s accomplished for our state or even for the country,” Paxton said in a September 2023 interview on the Fox News Channel. “Somebody needs to step up and run against this guy,” adding, “everything’s on the table for me.”

Fast-forward to earlier this year, and Paxton, at a county GOP meeting in Texas, told supporters that one of the things “we need to do, and I might play a role in this, is replace John Cornyn in the U.S. Senate.”

And in a Fox News Digital interview in January, Paxton acknowledged that he was “looking potentially at the U.S. Senate.”

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

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.

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

And 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.”

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, R-S.D.

And Republican sources confirm to Fox News that Thune, as well as National Republican Senatorial Committee chair Sen. Tim Scott, have personally asked Trump to back Cornyn.

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

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.

Making Cornyn’s path to renomination even more difficult is a possible Senate bid by 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 ID.

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

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)

Some Republican operatives and strategists worry that a primary battle in Texas could cost up to $100 million, potentially diverting much-needed resources from other races.

While Paxton is very popular with the conservative base of the party, it’s not clear at this point what Trump will do regarding the race. And political strategists note that toppling Cornyn in a GOP primary will likely be a very expensive proposition, and it’s not clear if Paxton can raise the money needed for victory.

“This says two things. One, Paxton sees an opportunity. And two, him getting in this early shows he needs the maximum time possible to try to raise money,” Mackowiak said. He added that Paxton “has received some negative feedback on fundraising.”

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.

Paxton was indicted on securities fraud charges soon after taking office in 2015, and more recently came under investigation by the FBI over bribery and corruption allegations from former top staffers. And 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. 

The attorney general also faced an investigation by the Texas State Bar for his efforts to overturn the 2020 election results.

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.

Colin Allred, last year’s Democratic Senate nominee in Texas, speaks at a campaign rally in Houston on Oct. 25. (Reuters/Marco Bello)

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

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Former 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.

President Donald Trump touted the record-breaking fundraising numbers garnered by the National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) during its annual president’s dinner Tuesday evening. 

“You know, we’ve done very well in this room before,” Trump told attendees at the annual dinner Tuesday night. “But right now we broke every record. I just heard from Mike Johnson, he said, ‘We broke every record, sir.’ There is over $35 million. That’s not bad, for an evening.”

The fundraising numbers achieved during Tuesday night’s dinner rival what the NRCC has garnered across entire quarters. In July, the group highlighted a “record-shattering” fundraising haul for the second quarter of 2024, which was only $2 million more than what the NRCC was able to garner Tuesday night. 

TRUMP’S NAME CONTINUES TO BE FUNDRAISING BEHEMOTH FOR BOTH POLITICAL PARTIES: ‘CENTER OF THE UNIVERSE’

Estimates, in advance of the Tuesday night dinner, suggested it might only bring as much as $10 million for the NRCC, a source familiar told Fox News Digital.

Republicans and Democrats elicit President Donald Trump’s name in fundraising messages.   (Getty)

“Next year we’ll do 45 or 50 million, right?” Trump asked the crowd, garnering cheers. “A lot of people, you broke your record attendance, and you broke your money record, and that’s a great tribute to the Republicans and the party and everything it stands for.”

Tuesday’s event had “giving levels” as high as $310,100, with the lowest costing seat being $6,000 per person, or $10,000 per couple.

“We have some unbelievable supporters of our House Republican majority with us, as you know, and with the help of everyone in this room the next year’s Republican Party is going to defy history. We’re going to really defy it, and we already are.”

TRUMP, HEGSETH REVEAL WHOPPING FIGURE THEY WANT FOR THE NEXT PENTAGON BUDGET

Former US president and Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump leaves Trump Tower to attend his trial for allegedly covering up hush money payments linked to extramarital affairs in New York, on April 22, 2024. (CHARLY TRIBALLEAU/AFP via Getty Images)

To illustrate this point, Trump pointed to the “fortune” America is making with his new tariff plan. 

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“Two billion dollars a day – do you believe it? I was told $2 billion a day,” Trump told the crowd. “You know I get hit by the press about tariffs, we’re making $2 billion – billion – this isn’t $35 million, that’s peanuts. $2 billion a day.”

“In addition, we have a lot of countries coming to see us – they want to make a deal. And we’re doing – we’re doing things that nobody’s ever even thought about.” 

New York Republicans are pushing a new law to protect animals after a beloved pet squirrel and internet star named P’Nut was taken and killed by state environmental officers late last year.

The bill, called “Peanut’s Law: The Humane Animal Protection Act,” would require a 72-hour waiting period before the Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) can euthanize any seized animal. It would also give animal owners the chance for a hearing before the state takes or puts down their animals.

P’Nut and another pet squirrel named Fred were taken from Mark and Daniela Longo’s upstate farm last October after someone filed an anonymous complaint. Both animals were killed and tested for rabies, and both tests came back negative. 

The squirrel had a huge following on social media, with P’Nut accruing nearly one million followers to watch content of the critter and his family.

OWNERS OF BELOVED PEANUT THE SQUIRREL PLAN TO SUE NEW YORK STATE OVER SEIZURE AND KILLING BY AUTHORITIES

Peanut or P’Nut the squirrel, who had over 500,000 followers on Instagram, was euthanized by New York State officials last week. (peanut_the_squirrel12 via Instagram)

Once news spread on P’Nut’s Instagram page, backlash over DEC’s actions spread like wildfire online. At the time, everyone from Elon Musk to President Trump weighed in on the killing of the dear family pets.

Musk referred to the killing back in November as “the whole squirrel thing” while on Joe Rogan’s podcast.

Assemblyman Jake Blumencranz (R-Nassau), who is sponsoring the bill, said it’s about fairness. “This is about due process,” he said, adding that animals should not be killed unless they’re an immediate danger.

PEANUT THE PET SQUIRREL TAKEN AWAY BY NEW YORK STATE OFFICIALS FROM ADOPTED HOME, MAY BE EUTHANIZED

The Longos, who run an animal sanctuary, say they were never told why their pets were taken. They hope the new bill will stop similar cases from happening again. 

Mark Longo said of the new bill: “I sit here trying not to cry, but passing this law will be a movement to make sure that animal rights are not overlooked anymore.”

Peanut or “P’Nut” was only a baby when the Longos rescued him. The squirrel adapted to his adoptive human family after his real mother was run over by a car when he was just five weeks old.

Peanut was rescued at 5 weeks old by his adoptive human parents after his mother was run over by a car. (peanut_the_squirrel12 via Instagram)

“They were not dangerous. They were not sick. They were not wild threats roaming the streets,” said Assemblyman Blumencranz. “They were rescues — loved, nurtured, and safe.” 

Supporters of the legislation say it’s a common-sense move to protect both animals and their owners.

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“Here is the cold, hard truth. It is too little, too late. Words don’t save P’Nut and Fred, and words won’t save the next animal, or the next family, unless we change the law.”

An attorney who represents the Longo family did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.

The Department of Commerce on Tuesday announced its decision to cut $4 million in funding related to climate research for Princeton University.

Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said in a news release the cuts were made “after a detailed, careful, and thorough review of the Department’s financial assistance programs against the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA) current program objectives.”

The department added that the termination of these funds from Princeton, effective June 30, “will streamline and reduce the cost and size of the Federal Government, consistent with President Trump’s promise for his Administration. The Department of Commerce is delivering on that promise.”

Princeton received $455 million in federal funding during fiscal year 2024.

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

Exterior view of University Chapel on the Princeton University campus, Princeton, N.J.  (Oliver Morris/Getty Images)

The department said the financial awards previously given to Princeton through NOAA, including the Cooperative Institute for Modeling the Earth System (CIMES), “are no longer aligned with the program objectives of NOAA, a sub-agency of the Department of Commerce, and are no longer in keeping with the Trump administration’s priorities.”

Princeton did not immediately respond to an inquiry from Fox News Digital.

PRINCETON EVENT WITH FORMER ISRAELI PM NAFTALI BENNETT DISRUPTED BY ANTI-ISRAEL AGITATORS

President Donald Trump, from left, speaks as then-Commerce Secretary nominee Howard Lutnick and Rupert Murdoch listen in the Oval Office of the White House, Monday, Feb. 3, 2025, in Washington, as Trump prepares to sign an executive order. (Evan Vucci)

The CIMES website states that the program “has contributed to the development of oceanic and atmospheric models, performed research on climate and biogeochemical cycling and educated several generations of postdoctoral researchers and graduate students.”

The commerce department, however, said the CIMES agreement “promotes exaggerated and implausible climate threats, contributing to a phenomenon known as ‘climate anxiety,’ which has increased significantly among America’s youth.”

VIDEO SHOWS ARREST OF COLUMBIA ANTI-ISRAEL RINGLEADER MAHMOUD KHALIL 

The department further stated that the Climate Risks and Interactive Sub-seasonal to Seasonal Predictability agreement “suggests that the Earth will have a significant fluctuation in its water availability as a result of global warming,” and the Advancing Prediction agreement “has used its resources to assess risks associated with climate change, including alleged changes to precipitation patterns and sea-level rise,” according to the release.

The Trump administration is cutting $4 million in federal funding to Princeton University for its climate-related research projects. (Fox News Photo/Joshua Comins)

“It also aims to address coastal inundation while other more targeted research efforts are addressing this issue,” the release continues.

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The department said the administration’s goal in terminating these funds will save U.S. taxpayer dollars, and it will “continue to review its outstanding cooperative agreements, grant awards, and other financial assistance on an individualized basis to avoid wasteful governmental spending — whether they be to Princeton or any other recipient.”

Colleges and universities across the country have been on edge since Trump began investigating schools for alleged antisemitic discrimination and harassment, cutting federal funds for certain schools that allowed anti-Israel protests on campus since the Oct. 7, 2023, attack on Israel.

Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Kristi Noem spent Tuesday morning with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Arizona law enforcement agents going after illegal immigrant criminals in the Phoenix area.

Standing with a gun in her hands, Noem said in a video posted to X that she was going out with ICE to pick up someone facing charges of human trafficking. She also said she went out earlier with agents and swept up a person wanted for murder.

“I appreciate the work that they do every day, and we appreciate them working to keep America safe,” Noem said.

In another post, Noem shared images of her standing with law enforcement officials and sitting in an ICE vehicle while wearing a Kevlar vest.

FEDERAL JUDGE POSTPONES DHS’S ATTEMPT TO END TEMPORARY PROTECTED STATUS FOR VENEZUELANS

DHS Secretary Kristi Noem joined ICE and other agents on operations in Phoenix on Tuesday. (Secretary Noem X)

She also shared pictures of law enforcement officials arresting two men, one who had no shoes and the other who was wearing a pair of Crocs.

“Arizona is safer this morning after a successful operation getting criminal illegal aliens and gang members off our streets,” Noem wrote. “Thank you to our brave law enforcement officers. If you are in this country illegally, we will find you, arrest you, and send you back.”

NOEM OFFERS HOMELAND SECURITY EMPLOYEE BUYOUTS IN MOVE TO SHRINK DEPARTMENT

DHS Secretary Kristi Noem joined ICE and other agents on operations in Phoenix on Tuesday. (Secretary Noem X)

Noem has taken a hands-on approach to her role as the DHS secretary since President Donald Trump appointed her to the position.

She recently traveled to El Salvador’s Terrorism Confinement Center, where hundreds of migrant criminals were deported last month.

IRS AND DHS REACH HISTORIC DEAL TO AID IN PURSUIT OF ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS SUBJECT TO DEPORTATION

DHS Secretary Kristi Noem joined ICE and other agents on Tuesday in Phoenix. (Secretary Noem X)

Noem toured the facility where she met face-to-face with alleged Tren de Aragua and MS-13 gang members, all of whom were wearing white prison suits and had shaved heads.

She also sent a message from the prison to illegal immigrants who are still in the U.S. or plan to visit anytime soon.

NOEM’S HOMELAND SECURITY ‘UNAPOLOGETIC’ ABOUT USING LIE-DETECTOR TEST ON SUSPECTED INTEL LEAKERS

DHS Secretary Noem joined ICE and other agents on operations in Phoenix, Arizona on April 8, 2025. (Secretary Noem X)

“First of all, do not come to our country illegally: You will be removed, and you will be prosecuted,” she said while standing with her back to the inmates. “But know that this facility is one of the tools in our toolkit that we will use if you commit crimes against the American people.”

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Noem shared the video on X, saying, “President Trump and I have a clear message to criminal illegal aliens: LEAVE NOW. If you do not leave, we will hunt you down, arrest you, and you could end up in this El Salvadorian prison.”

Trump’s hard-line approach to illegal immigration was a key campaign promise, and his administration has also been arresting and deporting criminal illegal migrants across the country under the leadership of Noem and border czar Tom Homan.

A Republican lawmaker has warned that Democrats in Colorado’s state legislature could face the ire of the Trump administration if a series of controversial bills passed Sunday — including one labeling parental misgendering during custody battles as “coercive control” — are signed into law.

“It really does feel like we’re poking the bear,” state Rep. Jarvis Caldwell told Fox News Digital on Tuesday.

Colorado enacted legislation to expand health care access to illegal immigrants this year, “as well as housing and food and education for illegal immigrants, which is in direct violation of some of the orders that have come from President Trump,” according to Caldwell.

“And then the transgender issue, we’re pushing this further than we ever have before on children in the state of Colorado, and that directly goes in violation of what President Trump is looking at.”

COLORADO DEMS RAM ABORTION, TRANSGENDER BILLS THROUGH ON LIMITED SUNDAY SESSION DEBATE: ‘UNPRECEDENTED’

Colorado state Rep. Jarvis Caldwell says Democrats could be headed toward federal action from the Trump admin after controversial bills passed the House on Sunday. (Getty Images/Rep. Jarvis)

As such, Caldwell said “it’s a very real possibility” that some of the state’s programs could be at risk of losing federal funding, adding the Centennial State will “pay the consequences for it, and Democrats will be responsible.”

“Health is a big one with Medicaid, a big portion of that is federal funds, and then education as well,” Caldwell said. “And so we are passing bills, especially on the illegal immigrant issue, that directly involve these issues. And so I think that’s going to be something that’s on President Trump’s radar.”

The Colorado Democratic House majority barreled through four controversial gender and abortion bills on Sunday — which one Republican lawmaker described as a day for “family and prayer,” curtailing floor debate in an “unprecedented” floor procedural tactic.

The bills that were passed include SB25-183, which requires taxpayers to fund abortion services; HB25-1309, mandating insurers cover transgender procedures regardless of age; HB25-1312, which imposes state-mandated gender policies on schools and considers it “coercive control” in child custody cases when a parent does not affirm a child’s gender identity or “deadnames” them; and SB25-129, which prohibits cooperation with out-of-state investigations on transgender procedures and abortion services.

TRANS INMATE IN PRISON FOR KILLING BABY MUST GET GENDER SURGERY AT ‘EARLIEST OPPORTUNITY’: JUDGE

Colorado State Capitol in Denver. (John Greim/Loop Images/Universal Images Group viaGetty Images)

State House Majority Democratic Leader Monica Duran told Fox News Digital previously that the four bills were debated on the floor for more than 12 hours last week. Duran also invoked a procedural rule that limited debate to two hours last Friday.

But Caldwell said under 24 hours is nothing compared to the Democrat majority’s 12 months they spent on several of the bills.

“They had an entire year to coordinate testimony, and we had less than 24 hours,” Caldwell said. “And then when it went to the final vote, we’re each supposed to get 10 minutes for debate, and they completely cut off any and all debate.”

The Republican minority also failed to get any of their amendments passed. For HB 1309, which would mandate insurers cover the cost of transgender procedures regardless of age, Republicans introduced an amendment to exclude minors from it.

“Because some of the coverage is genital surgical procedures, it’s hormone therapy, it’s facial reconstruction, and then breast reductions and chest augmentation,” Caldwell said. “And so now your health care plan, even if you disagree with this, you’re going to be paying a higher premium most likely to cover the cost, in my opinion, to genitally mutilate children.”

SB25-183 and SB25-129 are headed to the governor’s desk for signature, while the other House bills now go to the Senate for consideration.

TRUMP DOJ, EDUCATION DEPT FORM TASK FORCE TO PROTECT FEMALE ATHLETES FROM ‘GENDER IDEOLOGY’ IN SCHOOLS, SPORTS

President Donald Trump signs an executive order in the Oval Office at the White House in Washington, Tuesday, Feb. 25, 2025.  (AP Photo)

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It’s not unlikely that Trump could target Colorado Democrats. 

Earlier this year, Trump signed several executive orders aimed at eliminating “radical gender ideology,” and he’s already moved to slash some federal funds in Maine after Gov. Janet Mills refused to enforce Trump’s ban on biological males competing in women’s sports. Mills lobbed a lawsuit against the Trump administration on Monday over the frozen funds.

In January, Trump signed the “Defending Women From Gender Ideology Extremism and Restoring Biological Truth to the Federal Government” executive order, which defines two sexes: male and female. The order prohibits “chemical and surgical mutilation” of minors to include puberty blockers, hormones such as estrogen and testosterone, and sex-change surgeries. It also bars institutions receiving federal grants from providing such services and allows healthcare providers to refuse services based on gender identity.

Trump also signed an executive order requiring military personnel to serve according to their biological sex.

The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, which regulates and supervises national banks, on Tuesday said it notified Congress of a February hack that it called a “major information security incident.”

The breach was first disclosed in February when it learned of “unusual interactions between a system administrative account in its office automation environment and OCC user mailboxes,” an OCC news release states. 

According to Bloomberg, the hackers had access to more than 150,000 emails after breaching the system in June 2023.

“The confidentiality and integrity of the OCC’s information security systems are paramount to fulfilling its mission,” said Acting Comptroller of the Currency Rodney Hood.

MALWARE EXPOSES 3.9 BILLION PASSWORDS IN HUGE CYBERSECURITY THREAT

The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency in Washington, D.C. (Getty Images)

The OCC first learned of the incident on Feb. 11. Compromised administrative accounts were shut off the next day.

“The OCC discovered that the unauthorized access to a number of its executives’ and employees’ emails included highly sensitive information relating to the financial condition of federally regulated financial institutions used in its examinations and supervisory oversight processes,” the agency said.

The OCC said it has reached out to third-party cybersecurity experts to conduct a review of IT security protocols to prevent future attacks. 

STAY PROTECTED & INFORMED! GET SECURITY ALERTS & EXPERT TECH TIPS — SIGN UP FOR KURT’S ‘THE CYBERGUY REPORT’ NOW

“I have taken immediate steps to determine the full extent of the breach and to remedy the long-held organizational and structural deficiencies that contributed to this incident,” Hood said. “There will be full accountability for the vulnerabilities identified and any missed internal findings that led to the unauthorized access.”

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Throughout its review, the OCC has coordinated with the Treasury Department to share information about its findings.

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…

-Here’s the list of books the Naval Academy removed from its library during DEI purge

–Supreme Court sides with Trump over fired probationary federal employees

-Judge Boasberg cancels planned hearing to review Trump deportations

‘All options are on the table’

White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt insisted Tuesday that “all options are on the table for each country” when it comes to making deals over the latest U.S. tariffs, but warned those who retaliate that President Donald Trump “has a spine of steel and he will not break.” 

Leavitt said since Trump’s “Liberation Day” tariff announcements, 70 countries have already reached out to the president to begin negotiations.  

“On the other hand, countries like China who have chosen to retaliate and try to double down on their mistreatment of American workers are making a mistake. President Trump has a spine of steel and he will not break,” Leavitt added, referencing 34% retaliatory tariffs that China unveiled against the U.S. last week…Read more

US 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, DC, on April 2, 2025. Trump geared up to unveil sweeping new “Liberation Day” tariffs in a move that threatens to ignite a devastating global trade war. Key US trading partners including the European Union and Britain said they were preparing their responses to Trump’s escalation, as nervous markets fell in Europe and America. (BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI/AFP via Getty Images)

White House

‘Vital’ action: Protecting the playing field: GOP urges governors to take action on women’s sports

‘MANY FAILURES’: Whistleblower exposes how fired Biden-era official was soft on China, prioritized DEI

COSTLY CRIME: Trump admin unveils plan costing migrants massive fine for every day they don’t self-deport

‘TRULY A MORON’: Elon Musk spars with Peter Navarro: ‘Dumber than a sack of bricks’

PURGING THE PENTAGON: Trump admin fires Navy admiral at NATO targeted by conservative group

FIRST ON FOX: New 6-figure ad touts Trump policies that have key industry ‘booming’: ‘You voted for it’

LAUNCH SEQUENCE: Trump assassination attempt suspect Ryan Routh sought rocket launcher from Ukraine

‘GOLDEN AGE’: Trump crypto chief says we are in the ‘golden age’ for digital assets, ‘clearing the deck’ of Biden barriers

World Stage

‘KIND OF LAMENTABLE’: China says JD Vance’s comments about ‘peasants’ are ‘words that lack knowledge and respect’

Vice President JD Vance will attend an AI summit in Paris, France, a French official said anonymously. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

RED SEA RESET: New Navy Chief ‘regrets’ costly missile strikes against Houthis, pushes for cheaper Red Sea defense

‘DOMINANT POWER’: White House: US will lead in AI, but China is catching up

Capitol Hill

BATTLE OF THE CHAMBERS: House Republicans worry even Trump can’t save them as tax cuts, budget bill hang in balance

‘COMPLETE 180 DEGREE FLIP’: House Democrat says he’d vote to protect Trump’s tariff plan, worries White House will stand down

EMOTIONALLY TAXING: Treasury Secretary Bessent to huddle with key Republican caucus as Trump enacts tariff plan

‘MAGA EXTREMISTS’: Jeffries claims Trump budget bill will steal food from ‘the mouths of babies’ while enriching billionaires

WASHINGTON, DC – APRIL 02: U.S. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) speaks at his weekly press conference at the U.S. Capitol Building in Washington, DC. Jeffries spoke to reporters about U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariff announcement and the recent special elections across the United States. (Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images) (Getty Images)

CHRIS’ CALL: Popular former Republican governor whom Trump urged to run for Senate makes his 2026 decision

NUCLEAR NOMINATION: Supporters defend Trump’s pick to control America’s nuclear arsenal before Senate grilling

FUNDRAISER-IN-CHIEF: Trump hauls in millions for House GOP 2026 war chest as Dems taunt they are ‘running scared’

‘ENOUGH IS ENOUGH’: GOP Rep. touts GOP effort to pass bill cracking down on ‘rogue’ judges

Across America

FLORIDA TARGETS DEI: Florida AG bans law firms with DEI policies from serving as outside counsel

BRAINS AND BRASS: Elbridge Colby confirmed to top Pentagon policy post after hesitation from GOP hawks

‘SIGNIFICANT DANGER’: Migrant convicted of killing his son arrested by ICE years after initial deportation

TESTY OVER TARIFFS: Dem governors revolt against Trump’s ‘Liberation Day’ tariffs

Democratic Governors Gavin Newsom, (left) and J.B. Pritzker (right) have rejected President Donald Trump’s tariffs and tried to thwart the tariff’s impacts on their home states through independent negotiations. (Getty/Shutterstock)

TULSI’S TASK: Gabbard establishes new Intelligence Community task force to restore transparency

RESHAPING THE WORKFORCE: Noem offers Homeland Security employee buyouts in move to shrink department

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

President Donald Trump and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth vowed to hike the Pentagon budget to over $1 trillion for the first time ever. 

Speaking to reporters alongside Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Trump said the upcoming budget would be “in the vicinity” of $1 trillion, a major boost from this year’s $850 billion budget. 

“COMING SOON: the first TRILLION dollar @DeptofDefense budget,” Hegseth posted on X. 

He said Trump is “is rebuilding our military – and FAST.”

$1,300 COFFEE CUPS, 8,000% OVERPAY FOR SOAP DISPENSERS SHOW WASTE AS DOGE LOCKS IN ON PENTAGON

Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth said the $1T budget would rebuild the military “fast.” (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

The budget for all national security programs, including the Department of Defense, nuclear weapons development and other security agencies, is at $892 billion for this year. 

Moving to a $1 trillion Pentagon budget would be a 12% increase over current levels. 

But the $1 trillion budget idea comes just as the Pentagon has moved to cut 8% each year for five years from each program to reinvest in modernization. The department is also planning to slash tens of thousands from its civilian workforce and consolidate bases across the world. 

“We’re going to be approving a budget, and I’m proud to say, actually, the biggest one we’ve ever done for the military,” he said. “$1 trillion. Nobody has seen anything like it.

NEW NAVY CHIEF ‘REGRETS’ COSTLY MISSILE STRIKES AGAINST HOUTHIS, PUSHES FOR CHEAPER RED SEA DEFENSE

Speaking to reporters alongside Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Trump said the upcoming budget would be “in the vicinity” of $1 trillion, a major boost from this year’s $850 billion budget. (Reuters/Kevin Mohatt)

“We are getting a very, very powerful military. We have things under order now.”

White House officials are expected to unveil their budget proposal for fiscal year 2026 later this spring before Congress hashes out the appropriations process. 

Even a $1 trillion budget would not put the U.S. at Trump’s stated target for NATO countries to spend on defense: 5%. 

President Donald Trump looks at an image of an F-47 sixth-generation fighter jet in the Oval Office at the White House. (Reuters/Carlos Barria)

But the president said the cash influx would be used to kickstart production on new equipment and technologies. 

“We’ve never had the kind of aircraft, the kind of missiles, anything that we have ordered,” he said. “And it’s in many ways too bad that we have to do it because, hopefully, we’re not going to have to use it.”

The Trump administration recently unveiled a Boeing contract for the Air Force’s sixth-generation fighter jet, the F-47, which the service branch expects to cost around $20 billion from 2025 to 2029. 

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“We know every other plane,” Trump said. “I’ve seen every one of them and it’s not even close. This is a next level.”

An announcement on the Navy’s next-generation fighter jet, F/A-XX, has been stalled, while chief of naval operations Adm. James Kirby told reporters Monday work on the new jet’s contract was taking place at “secretary-level and above.” 

Rep. Jasmine Crockett, D-Texas, a member of the far-left group of progressive lawmakers known as “the Squad,” told congregants at a historically Black church that America needs robust immigration because “we done picking cotton.” 

Crockett, who represents Texas’s 30th Congressional District, made the remarks during Connecticut-based Grace Baptist Church’s 125th anniversary celebration held over the weekend. The comments were part of Crockett’s broader attempt to slam the Trump administration for cracking down on illegal immigration. 

“So I had to go around the country and educate people about what immigrants do for this country, or the fact that we are a country of immigrants. The fact is ain’t none of y’all trying to go and farm right now,” Crockett said, garnering a sheepish laugh from a few members of the audience. 

ROLLING CONTROVERSY: FAR-LEFT DEM JASMINE CROCKETT FACES WEEK OF BACKLASH AMID ‘UNHINGED’ COMMENTS

“OK, so I’m lying?” Crockett shot back, noticing the awkward silence. “You’re not! You’re not! We done picking cotton! We are. You can’t pay us enough to find a plantation.”

Crockett’s weekend remarks are just the latest in a line of other questionable comments and controversies that have resulted in her facing possible censure in the House of Representatives. (Getty Images/Fox News)

Crockett’s weekend remarks are just the latest in a line of other questionable comments and controversies that have resulted in her facing possible censure in the House of Representatives.

One of those controversies occurred after she referred to Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, who is paralyzed and has been confined to a wheelchair for decades, as “Governor Hot Wheels.”

While Crockett attempted to walk back her comments after they drew nationwide backlash, she has exhibited a pattern of promoting remarks about Abbott “rolling places.”

JASMINE CROCKETT CONCEALS THE MEANING OF ‘HOT WHEELS’: GUTFELD

“Rolling up to the White House to cheer on the president destroying the agency that makes sure kids in wheelchairs have equal access to education is wild,” read a social media post Crockett shared days before her “hot wheels comment.” Prior to that, during Abbott’s re-election campaign against former Democratic Rep. Robert Francis “Beto” O’Rourke, Crockett once again blasted the Texas governor, saying, “The new nickname I have for Beto O’Rourke is the king of the clap backs! Beto is rolling around the state… Where is Abbott rolling to?”  

Other questionable remarks leading up to the censure resolution included suggesting Texas GOP Sen. Ted Cruz should be “knocked over the head.” Meanwhile, amid a spate of violent attacks targeting Elon Musk and Tesla, Crockett mused that “all I want to see happen on my birthday is for Elon to be taken down,” while she was speaking at a rally pushing Tesla owners to sell their cars and get rid of any stock in the company.

Rep. Jasmine Crockett claimed her comment seeming to mock a disabled Republican leader as “Governor Hot Wheels” was misinterpreted. Her previous comments about the governor, however, indicates otherwise. (Fox News Photo/Joshua Comins | Allison Bailey/Middle East Images/AFP via Getty Images)

Another remark that has put Crockett in hot water lately included comments that Democrats need to be “OK with punching.”

“I think you punch,” Crockett said in an interview when asked how Democrats regain the momentum they lost in the 2024 election. “I think you’re OK with punching.”

JASMINE CROCKETT SETS OFF SOCIAL MEDIA AFTER TOUTING BEING BLACK AS QUALIFICATION FOR PUBLIC DEFENDER JOB

Comments criticizing the interracial marriage of Florida GOP Congressman Byron Donalds, a Trump ally, from June 2024 have also resurfaced amid Crockett’s spate of questionable statements.

“The fact that you’re sitting around talking about ‘life was better under Jim Crow,’ like, is this because you don’t understand history? Or literally it’s because you married a White woman and so you think that whitewashed you?” Crockett said on “The Breakfast Club” in June, which was first reported by the Washington Free Beacon.

“I feel like they give [Donalds] his talking points and he’s like, ‘Yes, massa. I got it.'”

Rep. Jasmine Crockett has just undergone a week full of flubs and controversies that have her facing a possible censure in the House and scathing criticism from the president and White House. (Getty/Justin Sullivan/AP/Fox News Photo)

The censure resolution against Crockett, introduced March 26 by Rep. Randy Weber, R-Texas, remains under consideration by the House Committee on Ethics. In comments to Fox News’ Sean Hannity last month, Attorney General Pam Bondi added that Crockett needs “to tread very carefully,” noting that “words have consequences.”

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“She needs to immediately apologize and denounce [her rhetoric] because, even in her home state, violence is happening after she made these statements,” Bondi said, referring specifically to Crockett’s comments about wanting to see Musk “taken down” for her birthday amid a spate of violent attacks targeting Tesla. 

“It’s dangerous,” Bondi continued. “She has to know it’s dangerous, and she’s calling for further insurrection on her birthday this weekend.” 

Fox News Digital reached out to Crockett’s office for comment but did not receive a response in time for publication. 

FIRST ON FOX: The Department of Energy, the Department of the Interior and the Environmental Protection Agency are set to announce a bevy of new actions Tuesday afternoon that will “unleash” coal energy following President Donald Trump’s expected signature on an executive order reinvigorating “America’s beautiful clean coal industry,” Fox News Digital learned. 

“The American people need more energy, and the Department of Energy is helping to meet this demand by unleashing supply of affordable, reliable, secure energy sources — including coal,” Department of Energy Secretary Chris Wright said in a Tuesday statement provided to Fox News Digital. 

“Coal is essential for generating 24/7 electricity generation that powers American homes and businesses, but misguided policies from previous administrations have stifled this critical American industry,” he said. “With President Trump’s leadership, we are cutting the red tape and bringing back common sense.”

Trump is expected to sign an executive order Tuesday afternoon that will cut through red tape surrounding the coal industry, including directing the National Energy Dominance Council to designate coal as a “mineral,” end a current pause to coal leasing on federal lands, promote coal and coal technology exports, and encourage the use of coal to power artificial intelligence initiatives, Fox News Digital learned of the upcoming executive order. 

BIDEN BLOCKS NEW MINING IN REGION THAT PRODUCES ABOUT 40% OF NATION’S COAL: ‘IT’S A DISASTER’

Chris Wright, US secretary of energy, displays a signed order approving an LNG permit extension for the Delfin LNG project on the Louisiana Coast: F. Carter Smith/Bloomberg via Getty Images (Carter Smith)

The Departments of Energy and the Interior and the EPA will take actions supporting the Trump executive order Tuesday, including the Interior ending the current moratorium on federal coal leasing and removing regulatory burdens for coal mines, a press release first obtained by Fox Digital shows. 

COAL STILL KEY TO US ENERGY DOMINANCE, SAYS WEST VIRGINIA GOVERNOR

“The Golden Age is here, and we are starting to ‘Mine, Baby, Mine’ for clean American coal,” Department of the Interior Secretary Doug Burgum said in a statement provided to Fox News Digital. “Interior is unlocking America’s full potential in energy dominance and economic development to make life more affordable for every American family while showing the world the power of America’s natural resources and innovation.” 

Interior Secretary Doug Burgum is interviewed by Fox News Digital  (Fox News – Paul Steinhauser)

The Interior Department explained that by expanding acces to coal reserves and cutting through red tape surrounding the permitting process, “the administration is removing long-standing regulatory barriers that have undermined American coal production.”

“These efforts support high-paying mining jobs and rural economies, while strengthening U.S. energy independence by reducing reliance on foreign energy sources,” the press release stated. “Coal is a critical component of a secure, stable and diversified American energy portfolio.” 

MOUNTAIN STATE CRACKDOWN: WV GOV’S ORDER LEADS TO 60 SUSPECTED ILLEGAL IMMIGRANT CRIMINAL DETENTIONS

At the Department of Energy, Wright is expected to announce five initiatives to strengthen coal innovation and mineral independence, Fox Digital learned. The five actions include: Reinstating of the National Coal Council; facilitating new investment in coal-powered electricity generation; the designation of steelmaking coal as a critical material and mineral; deploying mineral extraction technology from coal ash; and commercializing coal ash conversion technologies. 

The National Coal Council is a 50-member federal advisory committee that was established in 1984, but saw its charter expire under the Biden administration in 2021. The council acted as a guide for the government while navigating coal technologies and markets. Once reinstated, the council will include coal producers, users, equipment suppliers, state and local officials, and other stakeholders, according to a Department of Energy press release first obtained by Fox News Digital Tuesday. 

Abandoned mining equipment at a former coal mine in Welch, West Virginia. (Ian Mahathey/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

The Energy Department’s Loan Program Office’s Energy Infrastructure Reinvestment (EIR) Program will also make $200 billion in financing available for coal energy investments, such as upgrading energy infrastructure and building new facilities that utilize legacy energy infrastructure.

The Department of Energy also will work with the Interior Department to recommend that coal, in the context of steelmaking, be designated as critical material and a critical mineral in the 2025 Critical Materials Assessment. 

President Donald Trump is expected to sign an energy-focused executive order. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon) (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

“This strategic designation will help ensure the U.S. maintains a stable supply of steelmaking coal in the decades to come and underscores the vital role of steelmaking coal in bolstering national security and economic stability,” the Energy Department explained of the initiative. 

NEW ENGLAND’S LAST COAL PLANTS SET TO SHUTTER, USHERING IN ERA OF GREEN ENERGY

The department is also expected to heighten its focus on coal ash, specifically employing its newly patented technology to extract critical minerals from coal ash, and commercializing the recovery of critical minerals from coal ash, which the Department of Energy said will reduce the U.S.’ reliance on China for such materials. 

An aerial picture taken on September 29, 2022, shows trucks driving past a silt pond at a coal mine operated by Blackhawk Mining and Pine Branch Mining in Lost Creek, Kentucky. (Diane Desobeau/AFP via Getty Images)

“The Energy Department is committed to restoring American energy dominance and strengthening America’s industrial base,” the Department of Energy said of the initiative. “Secretary Wright will continue to work with all members of the National Energy Dominance Council to eliminate unnecessary regulatory burdens on coal and unleash American energy.” 

While the EPA is set to announce that $5.8 million in State and Tribal Assistance Grants funds will be made available to provide grants assisting states in the implementation of EPA-approved state Coal Combustion Residual program, which comes after Zeldin’s EPA already has taken a handful of coal-related actions, such as reconsidering the Biden-era “Clean Power Plan 2.0.” plan and revising coal regulations. 

“President Trump is delivering on the mandate Americans gave him last November by empowering different forms of domestic energy to drive down costs, increase domestic energy supply, and improve our grid security as we pioneer the path to become the Artificial Intelligence capital of the world,” EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin said in comment provided to Fox News Digital. 

“The Obama and Biden administrations deliberately tried to regulate coal out of existence. Under my leadership, economic growth and environmental stewardship are not mutually exclusive choices. We are committed to supporting all forms of energy, including clean beautiful coal, and have already taken steps to bolster America’s energy dominance and make energy affordable again while ensuring we have the cleanest air, land and water on the planet,” Zeldin added. 

BIDEN ADMIN ISSUES ENERGY EFFICIENCY RESTRICTIONS ON KEY POWER GRID TECHNOLOGY

Producing energy at home in the U.S. was a cornerstone of Trump’s campaign, with the then-candidate vowing that the U.S. would no longer rely on foreign nations for oil by reinvigorating the coal industry, and tapping oil in the U.S.

Chris Wright, Donald Trump, Doug Burgum (Reuters)

“We will develop the liquid gold that is right under our feet, including American oil and natural gas and we will also embrace nuclear, clean coal, hydropower, which is fantastic, and every other form of affordable energy to get it done,” Trump said in 2023. 

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The Tuesday executive order is expected to build on Trump’s pledge to make the U.S. energy independent while also providing cheaper energy costs to Americans, and follows previous actions such as withdrawing from the Paris climate agreement, terminating the liberal climate plan dubbed the Green New Deal in a January executive order, and reversing a pause on liquefied natural exports, a fact sheet on the upcoming executive order argued. 

Elbridge Colby will now assume the Pentagon’s number three post after a contentious Senate battle ended in a vote to confirm him to the role.

The Senate voted 51 to 45 to confirm the national security strategist as Defense Department undersecretary for policy, with three Democrats joining most Republicans in voting in his favor. Sen. Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., was the lone Republican no vote. 

Colby successfully overcame skepticism from GOP hawks like Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Ark., who worried over his previous statements on Iran, even as he lost the former Senate majority leader. 

“Elbridge Colby’s long public record suggests a willingness to discount the complexity of the challenges facing America, the critical value of our allies and partners, and the urgent need to invest in hard power to preserve American primacy,” McConnell said in a statement after the vote. 

“The prioritization that Mr. Colby argues is fresh, new, and urgently needed is, in fact, a return to an Obama-era conception of à la carte geostrategy. Abandoning Ukraine and Europe and downplaying the Middle East to prioritize the Indo-Pacific is not a clever geopolitical chess move. It is geostrategic self-harm that emboldens our adversaries and drives wedges between America and our allies for them to exploit.”

Colby, a co-founder of the Marathon Initiative and a former deputy assistant secretary of defense for strategy and force development under the Trump administration, is best known for his role in authoring the 2018 National Defense Strategy, which reoriented long-term military strategy toward a great power competition with China.

VANCE VISITS CAPITOL HILL TO URGE SENATORS TO CONFIRM ELBRIDGE COLBY FOR PENTAGON NO. 3 POST

Elbridge Colby will now assume the Pentagon’s number three post after a contentious Senate battle ended in a vote to confirm him to the role. (Dominic Gwinn/Middle East Images/AFP via Getty Images)

He has long argued the U.S. military needs to limit its resources in the Middle East to pivot to the Indo-Pacific region. Colby had staunch backing from Trump’s inner circle, which turned up the heat on Senate Republicans to get behind his confirmation.

Colby had tempered some of his earlier statements, including one that suggested living with a nuclear Iran was safer than bombing Iran’s nuclear sites, and one that suggested the U.S. could “live without” Taiwan. 

Pressed by Cotton during his confirmation hearing, Colby said he believes Iran to be an “existential” threat to the U.S. 

“Yes, a nuclear-armed Iran – especially, Senator, given that… we know they’ve worked on ICBM-range capabilities and other capabilities that would pose an existential danger to the United States,” Colby said.

MAGA LOYALISTS TAKE AIM AT GOP SENATOR AS KEY TRUMP DEFENSE POST SPARKS CONTROVERSY: ‘WHY THE OPPOSITION?’

Colby had the staunch backing of Trump’s inner circle, including Vice President JD Vance.  ( Kent Nishimura/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

He promised to provide “credible good military options” to the president if diplomacy with Iran fails.

“The only thing worse than the prospect of an Iran armed with nuclear weapons would be [the] consequences of using force to try to stop them,” Colby had said in 2012. 

“I would say a lot of what I was arguing against at the time, these conversations 15 years ago, a lot of the opponents I felt had a casual or in some cases even flippant attitude toward the employment of military force,” Colby explained at the hearing. “That’s a lot of what I was arguing against. Was my wording always appropriate? Was my precise framing always appropriate? No.”

Sen. Tom Cotton pressed Colby on his past comments on Iran. (Bill Clark/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)

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“Your views on Taiwan’s importance to the United States seems to have softened considerably,” Senate Armed Services Chairman Roger Wicker, R-Miss., told Colby at one point during the hearing. 

“What I have been trying to shoot a signal flare over is that it is vital for us to focus and enable our own forces for an effective and reasonable defense of Taiwan and for the Taiwanese, as well as the Japanese, to do more,” said Colby.  

Rep. Jared Golden, D-Maine, indicated he’d vote to protect President Trump’s tariff plan if legislation killing the economic measure was brought to the House floor.

Speaking with Axios, Golden said he’s worried Trump will end up caving to pressure and wind up not implementing the tariff plan.

“My biggest worry is that they’re going to do this and lose faith and political will and back away,” Golden said.

When Golden was asked about the mixed reaction from the stock market on the tariff plan, Golden responded “The vast majority of Americans have no stocks.”

PRICE TAG: HOW MUCH AMERICANS COULD PAY BETWEEN TARIFFS AND TAX CUTS EXPIRING

Democratic Rep. Jared Golden shared cautious optimism about President Trump’s tariff policy (Getty Images)

Trump on April 2 announced a baseline duty of 10% on every import to the United States, along with additional tariffs for countries which have high tariffs on American exports.

Golden also complained that there aren’t more Democrats in favor of Trump’s tariff plan.

“I remember Dems being outraged by the World Trade Organization, NAFTA, all these trade deals, even as recently as TPP,” Golden added. “Now all of a sudden it’s like a complete 180 degree flip here where we’re staunchly defending the importance and relevance of the stock market to the American economy and defending free trade deals.”

When asked about Rep. Greg Meeks’, D-N.Y., bill that would remove Trump’s tariffs, Golden said “I’d be a ‘no’ on that.”

GOP DEFECTORS HELP SENATE ADVANCE RESOLUTION TO CANCEL TRUMP TARIFFS DESPITE WHITE HOUSE VETO WARNING

Rep. Jared Golden, D-Maine, is seen during a House Armed Services Committee hearing titled “Outside Perspectives on Nuclear Deterrence Policy and Posture,” in Rayburn Building on Wednesday, March 6, 2019. (Tom Williams/CQ Roll Call)

Golden is one of the few, if not the only, House Democrat in favor of the tariff proposal. “When they’re searching under every couch cushion for ways to re-appeal the party to working class, coming out against this so strongly,” Golden said as he chided fellow Democrats for standing against the proposal.

Rep. Chris Deluzio, D-Pa., said in a video posted to X, that he’s staunchly opposed to the tariffs.

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U.S. President Donald Trump speaks during a meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in the Oval Office of the White House on April 7, 2025 in Washington, DC. President Trump is meeting with Netanyahu to discuss ongoing efforts to release Israeli hostages from Gaza and newly imposed U.S. tariffs.  (Photo by Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)

“I think a wrong-for-decades consensus in Washington on free trade has been a race to the bottom,” Deluzio said. “The president’s tariff announcement, though, his trade strategy — it’s been chaotic, it’s inconsistent.”

Fox News Digital’s Julia Johnson and Elizabeth Elkind contributed to this report.

China is pushing back Tuesday after Vice President JD Vance told Fox News last week that the U.S. borrows “money from Chinese peasants to buy the things those Chinese peasants manufacture.” 

Vance, during an interview with “Fox & Friends,” made the remark while speaking about the effects of the Trump administration’s tariffs. 

“I think it’s useful for all of us to step back and ask us, ask ourselves, what is the globalist economy gotten the United States of America? And the answer is fundamentally, it’s based on two principles — incurring a huge amount of debt to buy things that other countries make for us, and to make it a little bit more crystal clear, we borrow money from Chinese peasants to buy the things those Chinese peasants manufacture,” Vance said.  

When asked about Vance’s comments on Tuesday, Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Lin Jian said, “To hear words that lack knowledge and respect like those uttered by this Vice President is both surprising and kind of lamentable. 

JD VANCE HONORS HIS MOTHER AT WHITE HOUSE FOR REACHING 10 YEARS SOBRIETY 

Vice President JD Vance arrives for a “Make America Wealthy Again” trade announcement event in the Rose Garden at the White House on April 2. (Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)

“China has made its position perfectly clear on its trade relations with the U.S.,” he added. 

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

China’s criticism of Vance on Tuesday comes as the U.S. and China are involved in an escalating dispute over tariffs. 

TRUMP SAYS US NOT WILLING TO MAKE DEAL WITH CHINA UNLESS TRADE DEFICIT IS SOLVED 

President Donald Trump holds a chart as he delivers remarks on reciprocal tariffs during an event at the White House on April 2. (Brendan Smialowski/AFP via Getty Images)

“Remember the during the first Trump administration, everybody said that Trump’s tariffs were going to be inflationary back then. What actually happened — we had 1.5% inflation, we had the fastest growing economy in a generation. And we had the beginning of a manufacturing renaissance in the United States of America,” Vance told Fox News. “Then, of course, we had four terrible years of the Biden administration.” 

President Donald Trump, left, and Chinese President Xi Jinping. China is pushing back Tuesday on comments made by Vice President JD Vance last week. (Getty)

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“We’ve seen closing factories. We’ve seen rising inflation. We’ve seen the cost of housing so high that most Americans can’t afford to buy a home right now,” he also said. “President Trump is taking this economy in a different direction. He ran on that. He promised it. And now he’s delivering.” 

SpaceX and Tesla CEO Elon Musk sparred on social media Tuesday with White House Senior Counselor Peter Navarro, after Navarro said in an interview Monday that Tesla was a car “assembler” rather than a manufacturer. 

“Tesla has the most American-made cars. Navarro is dumber than a sack of bricks,” Musk said in an X post on Tuesday. 

“Navarro is truly a moron,” Musk said in a separate post. “What he says here is demonstrably false.” 

Both Navarro and Musk are two of Trump’s closest advisors, and Navarro previously served in Trump’s first administration as the director of the White House National Trade Council and the director of the Office of Trade and Manufacturing Policy. 

Musk is currently spearheading the Trump administration’s Department of Government Efficiency initiative to curb government waste and spending as a “special government employee.” 

The executive or legislative branches are permitted to take on temporary employees to address short-term projects for up to 130 days in a single 365-day period, which will expire at the end of May for Musk. 

This is a breaking story and will be updated. 

FIRST ON FOX — As congressional Republicans gear up for a bruising battle in the 2026 midterm elections to hold onto their razor-thin House majority, President Donald Trump is stepping up his efforts as well.

The president on Tuesday evening will headline a major donor event in the nation’s capital for the National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC), which is the House GOP’s campaign arm. 

The fundraiser is expected to haul in at least $10 million for the NRCC, a source familiar with the event tells Fox News.

Republicans currently control the House – when the chamber returns to full strength – with a fragile 220-215 majority, and fundraising will be crucial to the GOP’s game-plan to keep control.

CONGRESSIONAL DEMOCRATS TARGETING THESE HOUSE REPUBLICANS IN 2026 MIDTERM BATTLE

Now-President Donald Trump greets Rep. Richard Hudson of North Carolina, the chair of National Republican Congressional Committee, at the Republican National Convention on July 18, 2024, in Milwaukee. (Win McNamee/Getty Images)

Asked what concerns him the most when it comes to defending the House majority, NRCC chair Rep. Richard Hudson said in a Fox News Digital interview on Monday that “Democrats have a structural advantage when it comes to fundraising. They always seem to have just mountains of money. So I think the amount of money the Democrats raise is probably the only thing that really concerns me.”

“We have to raise enough money to keep up with the Democrats and make sure that our candidates can get their message out,” Hudson emphasized.

Hudson, a North Carolina Republican and 12-year veteran of the House, said that “the President understands that he’s got to keep the House majority in the midterm so that he has a four-year runway, instead of a two-year runway to get his agenda enacted.”

And pointing to the House Democratic leader, Hudson added, “Speaker Hakeem Jeffries would fight President Trump on every front, and it would be really difficult for him to achieve his agenda. President Trump understands it’s important to hold the House and he’s, he’s been extremely helpful to us and we appreciate it.”

WERE LAST WEEK’S ELECTIONS IN WISCONSIN AND FLORIDA A CRYSTAL BALL FOR THINGS TO COME IN NEXT YEAR’S MIDTERMS?

Rep. Richard Hudson speaks at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, July 18, 2024. (Reuters/Mike Segar)

Hours before Trump was scheduled to attend the NRCC fundraiser, the House Democrats’ campaign arm took aim at nearly three dozen Republican-held seats in the chamber as they aim to win back the majority.

The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC) on Tuesday morning released its initial 2026 target list, which included 35 GOP-controlled seats, and launched an effort to fundraise for the party’s eventual nominees in each of the districts.

The DCCC emphasized that their moves signal that “Democrats are on offense and poised to win the majority in 2026.”

POLL POSITION: WHERE TRUMP STANDS WITH AMERICANS 11 WEEKS INTO HIS SECOND TOUR OF DUTY IN THE WHITE HOUSE

The unveiling of the DCCC list came three weeks after the NRCC went up with its initial target list, which took aim at 26 districts controlled by House Democrats.

“House Republicans are running scared, and they should be. They’re tanking the economy, gutting Medicaid, abandoning our veterans, and making everything more expensive. In short, they’ve lost the trust of their constituents, and it’s going to cost them the majority,” DCCC Chair Rep. Suzan DelBene of Washington state charged in a statement announcing the moves.

While the party in power, which clearly is the Republicans, traditionally faces serious political headwinds in the midterm elections, the NRCC is optimistic they can defend their majority.

“If you look at the landscape for the 2026 election, there are only three Republicans in districts that [former vice president and 2024 Democratic presidential nominee] Kamala Harris carried, but there are 13 Democrats in seats that Donald Trump carried, and half of those are majority Hispanic districts that President Trump has really put in play for us,” Hudson reiterated.

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The NRCC also points to the growing number of House Democrats who are seeking statewide office in 2026 rather than running for re-election.

Hudson said the trend would “absolutely” help the GOP defend the majority next year.

“It’s much easier to win an open seat than a seat with a Democrat incumbent who’s entrenched.,” Hudson said. “I think it’s incredibly helpful, and I think you’re going to see a whole lot more Democrats running for other offices and retiring.”