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President-elect Donald Trump’s first Department of Education (DOE) secretary, Betsy DeVos, has been floated as one of the potential candidates for the position again. However, if she does not get the job, DeVos has some ideas about who would be a good fit to carry the mantle Trump started in 2017.

“There’s a whole host of Republican governors who have led on issues around at K-12 education, in particular, and in other cases, higher education,” DeVos told Fox News Digital in an interview.

“They have great backgrounds and could do a great, great job in carrying out the policies of a second Trump administration. Which I believe, as President Trump has said, should definitely include every effort to depower the federal agency and turn control and power back over to states, local, districts and parents.”

BETSY DEVOS JOINS TRUMP’S CALL TO ‘DISBAND’ THE DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION AND ‘RE-EMPOWER’ FAMILIES

Education Secretary Betsy DeVos speaks during a House Appropriations subcommittee hearing on the budget on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., on Tuesday, March 26, 2019. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik)

GOP-dominated legislatures in Florida, Iowa, Arkansas and elsewhere passed bills significantly expanding school vouchers last year. 

On the campaign trail, Trump said one of the first things he’ll do is “closing up the Department of Education in Washington, D.C., and sending all education and education work it needs back to the states.”

DeVos said the budget and investments in education would not change, but through “block granting.”

“Let’s talk about eliminating the bureaucracy, not the budget, and ways in which that can be done,” DeVos said. “Very simply, block granting the money back to the states, so that it goes to states and ideally directly it to families who need it most.”

TRUMP’S FORMER EDUCATION SECRETARY SAYS SHE IS ‘VERY OPEN’ TO DISCUSSION ABOUT RETURNING TO PREVIOUS POST

Former President Donald Trump arrives for a campaign rally at Lancaster Airport on Nov. 3, 2024 in Lititz, Pennsylvania. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

During Trump’s first term, DeVos strongly advocated for school choice policies and expanding school voucher programs and tax credit scholarships to allow public funding to be used for private and religious school tuition.

She also rescinded federal guidance on the use of bathrooms by transgender students in schools, arguing it should be a state and local decision. 

DeVos scaled back federal oversight and programs in K-12 education, including the scope of civil rights investigations conducted by the DOE.

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Former Education Secretary Betsy DeVos strongly advocated for school choice policies and expanding school voucher programs and tax credit scholarships to allow public funding to be used for private and religious school tuition. (iStock)

“This is unfinished business from the first term, when we introduced with President Trump’s support and urged a freedom, a tax credit freedom bill to establish a pool of funds that individuals could designate money to at the federal level, but it would go alongside what states are already doing,” DeVos said. 

“Many states have passed education freedom policies to support families making those choices in that state, and other states have not yet done that, but this would allow for kids in every state through scholarship granting organizations to experience more education, freedom and choices and options, and that is a really important piece that should be addressed. And I believe this new Congress is ready to jump into it,” she added.

On the contrary, President Biden increased funding for public schools, particularly in low-income areas, through the American Rescue Plan during the COVID-19 pandemic. 

Throughout his presidency, Biden pushed for college student debt relief, despite being blocked by the Supreme Court.

Biden’s Education Department is trying to push through a new federal rule in the final weeks before President-elect Trump takes over to provide additional student loan forgiveness for 8 million borrowers who face financial hardships. 

If finalized, the new rule would authorize student debt forgiveness on a one-time basis for people who the department considers to have at least an 80% chance of defaulting on loans based on a “predictive assessment using existing borrower data.”

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The rule would also allow people, including potential “future borrowers,” to apply for relief that will be awarded based on “a holistic assessment of the borrower’s hardship.”

“There is every argument for if the taxpayers are going to be funding student lending, there better be ways to oversee it and actually do it effectively and efficiently,” DeVos said. “And it has not been happening. It is a huge mess, and it needs to be rethought and re-examined, and frankly, the private sector, private sector lending needs to come back into it and be an option.”

Fox News Digital’s Alec Schemmel contributed to this report.

House Speaker Mike Johnson’s plan for a short-term bill to kick the government funding debate into early next year is getting a rocky reception from various corners of the House GOP.

“That’s not my preference at all,” Rep. Ryan Zinke, R-Mont., President-elect Donald Trump’s former Interior secretary, told Fox News Digital. 

Zinke said a short-term bill that kicks the fiscal year (FY) 2025 government spending fight into early next year could impede Trump’s goal of immediately implementing his agenda in the first 100 days of the new administration. 

“You’ve always heard the first 100 days is extremely important, and it is. But to be bogged down in the first 100 days dealing with the issues of last Congress, I think it unfortunately doesn’t provide the runway,” Zinke said.

JOHNSON BLASTS DEM ACCUSATIONS HE VOWED TO END OBAMACARE AS ‘DISHONEST’

House Speaker Mike Johnson, left, signaled the House could seek to punt the government funding fight into the new year, when President-elect Donald Trump takes office. (Getty Images)

Johnson told “Fox News Sunday,” “We’re running out of clock. Dec. 20 is the deadline. We’re still hopeful that we might be able to get that done, but if not, we’ll have a temporary measure, I think, that would go into the first part of next year and allow us the necessary time to get this done.”

He said a short-term extension of this year’s funding, called a continuing resolution (CR), would benefit Republicans by kicking the spending fight into a period when the GOP controls both Congress and the White House.

Other Trump allies, like Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, and Rep. Ralph Norman, R-S.C., are also advocating for a short-term bill to give Republicans full control over this year’s fight.

However, several rank-and-file Republicans like Zinke suggested that dealing with the previous administration’s issues could hinder Trump’s aim of a productive first 100 days.

On the other side of the House GOP, hardliners who previously opposed a CR on principle signaled they would not budge this time, either.

REPUBLICANS PROJECTED TO KEEP CONTROL OF HOUSE AS TRUMP PREPARES TO IMPLEMENT AGENDA

Rep. Ryan Zinke is among the Republicans who want Congress to wrap up the current funding debate as soon as possible. (Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)

“I really have to read things before I say whether I’m going to vote on them or not,” Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., told Fox News Digital. “I have never really voted for any CR, so it’s hard for me to support in the first place.”

House and Senate negotiators have done little bicameral work to fund the government for the current fiscal year. Instead, congressional leaders chose to extend the previous deadline of Sept. 30 through late December.

It has caused frustration among some House Republicans who have pushed for Congress to fulfill its duties of setting new fiscal spending directives for FY 2025. 

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“We should have got our business done before,” Rep. Dave Joyce, R-Ohio, told reporters on Monday evening.

Rep. Mark Amodei, R-Nev., suggested kicking the debate into next year could hamper Trump’s ability “to hit the ground running,” but saw little other choice left, given the short amount of time before the Dec. 20 deadline.

Others, like Zinke and Rep. Max Miller, R-Ohio, are still pushing for a full spending package addressing the current fiscal year’s spending.

Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene is skeptical of CRs. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)

“The smartest thing that I believe that we can do as a conference would be to do an end-of-the year package to clean the entire decks for President Trump when he comes in,” Miller said. 

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“If we were able to put an end-of-the-year package together and finish the appropriations process, which is our main job in Congress, then the president can get going in January with his agenda and his legislation.”

One senior GOP lawmaker pointed out that a partial government shutdown is a “high probability” if Republicans can’t all get on board with a CR, assuming Democrats do not support one either.

Rep. Anna Paulina Luna, R-Fla., a member of the ultra-conservative House Freedom Caucus, said when asked about Johnson’s tentative plan, “You know I’m not a fan of CRs in any form.”

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu made no secret of his feelings toward President Biden after Donald Trump was elected this month, publicly revealing he’d ignored the current U.S. president’s counsel and threats to withhold aid. 

“The U.S. had reservations and suggested that we not enter Gaza,” Netanyahu revealed to the Israeli Knesset on Monday. 

The U.S., he said, also was hesitant about Israel’s plans to enter Gaza City, Khan Younis and “strongly opposed entry into Rafah,” threatening to force Israel to fight without U.S. aid.

“President Biden told me that if we go in, we will be left alone,” Netanyahu said. “He also said that he would stop shipments of important weapons to us. And so he did. A few days later, [U.S. Secretary of State Antony] Blinken appeared and repeated the same things and I told him – we will fight with our nails.”

DEMOCRATIC EFFORT TO BLOCK BIDEN WEAPONS SALE TO ISRAEL GAINS MOMENTUM: ‘CONGRESS MUST STEP UP’

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu made no secret of his feelings after Donald Trump was re-elected, publicly revealing he’d ignored President Biden’s counsel and threats to withhold aid. (Getty Images)

The U.S. ultimately withheld a single shipment of 2,000-pound bombs, allowing all other weapons transfers to go on. 

“I made clear that if they go into Rafah – they haven’t gotten into Rafah yet – if they go into Rafah, I’m not supplying the weapons that have been used historically to deal with Rafah, to deal with the cities, to deal with that problem,” Biden told CNN’s Erin Burnett in an interview at the time.

The move prompted blowback from supporters of Israel in Congress and Biden eventually moved forward with the shipment.

Netanyahu also claimed the U.S. wanted Israel not to respond to Iran’s missile attacks on Tel Aviv in October. 

“Again, we were told by our friend that there is no need to respond. And I said that sitting and not reacting is not acceptable, and we responded.”

He confirmed that Israel had struck Iranian nuclear facilities in its counter-attack.

“It’s not a secret, it has been published,” Netanyahu said. “There is a specific component in their nuclear program that was hit in this attack.”

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Netanyahu emphasized the importance of Israel making its own decisions. 

“We must preserve Israel’s independence. We decided to enter – and we occupied Rafah, the Philadelphi Corridor and the Rafah Crossing.”

Netanyahu had immediately congratulated Trump following his victory in the Nov. 5 presidential election, deeming it “history’s greatest comeback.” 

At the Knesset meeting Monday, Netanyahu said he would work with Trump on how to move forward on combating Iran through its proxies, its ballistic missiles and its nuclear program. 

Netanyahu immediately congratulated Trump following his victory in the Nov. 5 presidential election, deeming it “history’s greatest comeback.” (Amos Ben-Gershom (GPO)/Handout/Anadolu via Getty Images)

Smoke billows over Beirut’s southern suburbs after an Israeli strike, as seen from Baabda, Lebanon, on Nov. 14, 2024. (Reuters/Thaier Al-Sudani)

“Our ability to act against these three threats will be evaluated in the near future together with the incoming administration in Washington,” he said.

The Biden administration is working to secure a cease-fire in Lebanon in its final months in power. Amos Hochstein, Biden’s envoy to the Middle East, suggested a peace deal was “within our grasp.” 

“This is a moment of decision-making. I am here in Beirut to facilitate that decision, but it’s ultimately the decision of the parties to reach a conclusion to this conflict. It is now within our grasp,” he said.

But Netanyahu struck a different tone – suggesting his nation would continue to carry out attacks on Hezbollah even if they had reached a cease-fire “on paper.” 

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“The most important thing is not [the deal that] will be laid on paper,” Netanyahu said. “Even if there is a paper [setting out an agreement], worthy though it may be, we will be required, in order to ensure our security in the north (of Israel), to systematically carry out operations – not only against Hezbollah’s attacks, which could come. Even if there is a cease-fire, nobody can guarantee it will hold. So it’s not only our reaction, a preventive reaction, a reaction in the wake of attack, but also the capacity to prevent Hezbollah from strengthening.”

“We will not allow Hezbollah to return to the state it was in on Oct. 6, 2023.”

A federal China commission released its sprawling yearly report to Congress on Tuesday, for the first time recommending lawmakers end China’s favored trade status and end the provision that allows goods under $800 to enter the U.S. duty-free.  

The U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission, established by Congress as a bipartisan entity to investigate and provide policy recommendations on China, is now directly advocating for Congress to end the Permanent Normal Trade Relations (PNTR) China has enjoyed since 2004.

The committee will pitch its 83 policy recommendations to lawmakers on Tuesday, along with a report on China’s military capabilities, its threats to U.S. allies in the region and how it is exploiting U.S. policy for its own advancement. 

“For decades we have engaged in whack-a-mole policy working within international organizations and guidelines to address the increasing and ambitious efforts by China to skirt laws or take advantage of trade loopholes,” commission chair Robin Cleveland said. 

“In our hearing on the threats to American consumers this year we heard from administration and expert witnesses who were starkly clear: U.S. agencies do not know if the majority of packages coming from China include a baby toy painted with a toxic chemical—a counterfeit piece of clothing made with slave labor—or a pin head amount of fentanyl which is enough to kill the average citizen.”

CHINA’S XI VOWS TO WORK WITH TRUMP DURING MEETING WITH BIDEN

The China security commission released its sprawling yearly report to Congress on Tuesday, for the first time recommending lawmakers end China’s favored trade status. (Costfoto/NurPhoto via Getty Images)

“While the administration has existing authority to shut down this flood of troubling products, we have a strong recommendation on legislative action that should strengthen safety and legal protections for consumers and manufacturers.”

The commission also identified an urgent need for AI advancement in the U.S., calling on Congress to establish and fund a “Manhattan Project-like program” to acquire Artificial General Intelligence (AG) capability, defined as systems that would “surpass the sharpest human minds at every task.” 

The prospect of eliminating PNTR, which allowed low-cost Chinese goods to flood U.S. markets throughout the 2000s by giving the CCP the same trade benefits as U.S. allies, faces increasingly likely odds with Republican control of the House and Senate.

Eliminating it would grant the president authority to assess and review whether greater tariffs are needed. President-elect Donald Trump has vowed to drastically increase tariffs on Chinese-made goods. 

The report found that Chinese goods increasingly evade regulatory inspection and tariffs by coming in shipments valued under $800, taking advantage of the “de minimus” exemption in tariff law. 

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Eliminating “de minimus” on e-commerce shipments would require Customs and Border Patrol to institute far greater oversight over small-dollar shipments, prompting a request for more resources in Congress. But the report found these shipments are often used to sneak fentanyl into the U.S. 

The U.S. has brought in around $4 million in Chinese goods shipped under “de minimus” per day this year, up from $3 million last year. 

U.S. President Joe Biden waves as he walks with Chinese President Xi Jinping at Filoli estate on the sidelines of the APEC summit. (REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque//File Photo)

Congress should also consider legislation to eliminate federal tax expenditures for investments in Chinese companies that are on the Commerce Department’s trade blacklist known as the Entity List, per the report. 

Such legislation could eliminate the preferential capital gains tax rate, the carried interest loophole or capital loss carry-forward provisions for companies that are believed to run afoul of U.S. interests or suspected to be stealing intellectual property.  

The report also recommended the U.S. bolster its export controls to deny China access to critical dual-use goods and technologies and ban imports of certain technologies controlled by Chinese entities, like autonomous humanoid robots and energy infrastructure products. 

It urged Congress to direct the administration to create an outbound investment office to oversee dollars flowing to investments in countries of concern and to amend laws to allow the Consumer Product Safety Commission mandatory recall authority over Chinese products. 

The meth seized had an estimated street value in the millions of dollars, CBP said. (U.S. Customs and Border Protection)

Throughout the year, China has increasingly tried to crack down on dissent and “sanctions proof” its economy, in preparation for a future of potential military or economic warfare with the West, the report noted. It conducted violent attacks on Philippine personnel operating within their own exclusive zone, tried to influence Taiwan’s democratic elections and incurred into Taiwanese air space over 2,300 times. 

It launched its first intercontinental ballistic missile test into the South Pacific in more than 40 years. 

Trump has begun to fill out his Cabinet with China hawks. On the campaign trail this year, Trump has proposed a 10% tariff on all U.S. imports and 60% on Chinese-made products.

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If Trump successfully raises tariffs to 60%, it could reduce China’s exports by $200 billion and cause a one percentage point drag on GDP, said Zhu Baoliang, a former chief economist at China’s economic planning agency, at a Citigroup conference. 

Last year, China exported about $500 billion worth of goods to the U.S., about 15% of all of its exports. 

Rep. Nancy Mace, R-S.C., clashed with her critics online Tuesday as she faces backlash for her resolution to bar men who identify as female from the women’s restrooms on Capitol Hill.

Mace filed the resolution on Monday, which Fox News Digital’s Elizabeth Elkind first reported will prohibit “Members, officers, and employees of the House from using single-sex facilities other than those corresponding to their biological sex.” 

The resolution comes just as the first openly transgender lawmaker, Rep.-elect Sarah McBride, D-Del., is set to join Congress in January. McBride is a biological male who identifies and presents as a woman. 

“This is a blatant attempt from far right-wing extremists to distract from the fact that they have no real solutions to what Americans are facing,” McBride said in a statement. “We should be focused on bringing down the cost of housing, health care, and child care, not manufacturing culture wars.” 

TRANSGENDER WOMEN TO BE BANNED FROM CAPITOL HILL FEMALE BATHROOMS UNDER NEW HOUSE GOP PROPOSAL

Rep. Nancy Mace, R-S.C., leaves a meeting of the House Republican Conference in the U.S. Capitol on June 6, 2023.  (Getty Images)

“Delawareans sent me here to make the American dream more affordable and accessible and that’s what I’m focused on,” added McBride.

When online critics said Mace’s resolution was “clearly directed” at McBride, the South Carolina congresswoman confirmed that was her intention.

“Yes and then some. Biological men do not have any rights to women’s private spaces. It’s perverted to think otherwise,” Mace posted on X in response to another user. 

“Also Sarah McBride doesn’t get a say here. I will always protect woman and girls. Period. Full stop. End of story.” 

REP. MARJORIE TAYLOR GREENE WANTS MEN BANNED FROM WOMEN’S SPACES IN ‘ALL TAXPAYER-FUNDED FACILITIES’

Rep.-elect Sarah McBride, D-Del., poses for a photograph after joining other congressional freshmen of the 119th Congress for a group photograph on the steps of the House of Representatives at the U.S. Capitol Building on Nov. 15, 2024 in Washington, D.C. (Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)

Her uncompromising position provoked McBride’s defenders to call Mace a bigot and a bully. 

Left-wing journalist Aaron Rupar shared a screenshot of Mace’s response and wrote, “Note how ‘concerns about fairness in sports’ has already transformed into unvarnished transphobic bigotry.” 

Mace responded, “Protecting women and girls isn’t bigotry, it’s common sense. I will stand in the brink to protect women’s rights from the far left radicals trying to erase us.” 

Harry Sisson, a Democratic content creator on TikTok, likewise accused Mace of “straight up bigotry and bullying.” 

Mace quoted his X post and wrote, “All these radical left men pushing other men into women’s private spaces shows you how sick they truly are – the Left will do whatever they can to harm women and girls. As a victim of abuse and as an advocate for other women abused by men, four words for you: Over My Dead Body.” 

DELAWARE DEMOCRAT SARAH MCBRIDE PROJECTED TO BECOME FIRST TRANSGENDER MEMBER OF CONGRESS: AP

Transgender rights activist and now Rep.-elect Sarah McBride speaks on stage at the Women In The World Summit in New York, U.S., April 11, 2019.

Rep. Dean Phillips, D-Minn., called Mace’s effort to ban McBride from the ladies’ room “pathetic.” 

“What are you scared of, Nancy?” he asked.

To which Mace quoted his reply and wrote, “I don’t want people with penis’s [sic] showing them off in our locker room.” 

In a follow-up post, Phillips asked, “Why wouldn’t we ‘allow’ our fellow citizens the right to use the damn toilet of the gender by which they live their lives? 

“You may not like it. I get it. But it’s still common sense and banning it seems un-American,” he continued. “So come-on patriots, let’s be cool with one another.” 

But Mace refused to back down. 

Rep. Nancy Mace narrowly won election in 2020 over incumbent Joe Cunningham (D) by one-percent or about 5,400 votes. With newly redrawn redistricting maps in place, she comfortably won reelection by 14%. (Getty Images)

“As a victim of abuse, I know firsthand women are vulnerable; and I will stand in the way of anyone who violates our rights or who wants to set us back 100 years,” she wrote.

Semafor politics reporter David Weigel observed that Mace’s position is a “shift” to the right after she supported a Republican alternative to the Democrat-backed Equality Act, which would have added sexual orientation and gender identity language to federal anti-discrimination law.

The GOP’s “Fairness for All Act” would have extended civil rights protections to gay and transgender people but exempted religious institutions, nonprofit organizations and certain individuals. 

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“I strongly support LGBTQ rights and equality,” Mace told the Washington Examiner in 2021. “No one should be discriminated against.”

She went on to say gender issues are not “black-and-white.” 

“I do believe that religious liberty, the First Amendment, gay rights, and transgender equality can all coexist. I’m also a constitutionalist, and we have to ensure anti-discrimination laws don’t violate First Amendment rights or religious freedom,” Mace said at the time.

“I have friends and family that identify as LGBTQ,” she added. “Understanding how they feel and how they’ve been treated is important. Having been around gay, lesbian, and transgender people has informed my opinion over my lifetime.”

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

President Biden was not pictured among other world leaders in the traditional “family photo” at the final Group of 20 summit of his presidency on Monday.

Biden arrived along with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau after photographers had already finished with the other smiling leaders, who had been positioned on a riser. A senior Biden official said the president did not participate because of “logistical issues.” 

“Due to logistical issues, they took the family photo early before all the leaders had arrived. So a number of leaders weren’t actually there when they took the photo,” the official said. 

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President Biden, left, and Canada’s Prime Minister Justin Trudeau arrive late for a group photo during the G-20 Summit in Rio de Janeiro on Monday, Nov. 18, 2024. (AP Photo/Eraldo Peres)

The official emphasized Biden missed the photo because of bad timing, not because he wanted to avoid taking a picture with some of the U.S.’ top rivals, including Russian foreign minister Sergey Lavrov or Chinese President Xi Jinping.

Biden’s absence left Jinping front and center among the rows of leaders poised against blue skies and blue water in Rio de Janeiro.

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Leaders attending the G-20 Summit pose for a group photo in Rio de Janeiro on Monday, Nov. 18, 2024. (AP Photo/Eraldo Peres)

Lavrov stood in the back row, less visible.

Biden and Trudeau arrived together at the designated spot for the photo, standing and looking about for a time. Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni also did not join in the group photo, a set piece of such summits.

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Backdropped by Sugar Loaf mountain, leaders attending the G-20 Summit pose for a group photo in Rio de Janeiro on Monday, Nov. 18, 2024. (AP Photo/Eraldo Peres)

Notably, Biden did not arrive via the red carpet ramp used by other world leaders. Instead, he was seen taking a sharp right turn on his way to the gathering, declining to use the ramp which led to the entrance of the building. 

The official said the president did not use the ramp “due to security concerns.” 

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China’s President Xi Jinping talks after joining a group photo during the G-20 Summit in Rio de Janeiro on Monday, Nov. 18, 2024. (AP Photo/Eraldo Peres)

“Several leaders from high threat — from countries that face high threats did not take the open ramp and instead took a different red carpet route,” the official said. 

The G-20 summit is a gathering of leaders from the world’s largest economies, who meet to discuss efforts to combat hunger and poverty. In remarks at the summit Monday, Biden called on those present to increase investments in the World Bank, provide debt relief to struggling countries and end conflicts around the world that have contributed to starvation, including the wars in Ukraine and Gaza. 

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., has suggested that she would support banning biological men from women’s spaces in “all taxpayer-funded facilities.”

Greene’s comments come as Rep. Nancy Mace, R-S.C., pushes a resolution to prohibit House members and others from using single-sex spaces in the Capitol or House office buildings that do not align with their biological sex.

“A Member, Delegate, Resident Commissioner, officer, or employee of the House may not use a single-sex facility (including a restroom, changing room, or locker room) in the Capitol or House Office Buildings, other than those corresponding to the biological sex of such individual,” the resolution states, noting that the House sergeant-at-arms is tasked with enforcement.

TRANSGENDER WOMEN TO BE BANNED FROM CAPITOL HILL FEMALE BATHROOMS UNDER NEW HOUSE GOP PROPOSAL

Rep. Nancy Mace, R-S.C., speaks to the media outside the Thomas P. O’Neil Jr. House Office Building on Feb. 28, 2024 in Washington D.C. (Jemal Countess/Getty Images for Congressional Integrity Project)

Delaware state Sen. Sarah McBride, a Democrat who was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives during the 2024 election, identifies as transgender.

“McBride, a biological male, does not get a say in women’s private spaces,” Mace posted.

In a post on X, McBride, who will be the first openly transgender member of Congress, said, “Every day Americans go to work with people who have life journeys different than their own and engage with them respectfully, I hope members of Congress can muster that same kindness.”

DELAWARE DEMOCRAT SARAH MCBRIDE PROJECTED TO BECOME FIRST TRANSGENDER MEMBER OF CONGRESS: AP

Rep.-elect Sarah McBride, D-Del., poses for a photograph after joining other congressional freshmen of the 119th Congress for a group photograph on the steps of the House of Representatives at the U.S. Capitol Building on Nov. 15, 2024 in Washington, D.C. (Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)

“This is a blatant attempt from far right-wing extremists to distract from the fact that they have no real solutions to what Americans are facing. We should be focused on bringing down the cost of housing, health care, and child care, not manufacturing culture wars. Delawareans sent me here to make the American dream more affordable and accessible and that’s what I’m focused on,” McBride added in another post.

McBride will be sworn in to serve in the U.S. House of Representatives next year.

“He’s a biological male,” Greene said in a video. “He can go in the men’s room,” she said. There is a “bathroom in his office just like all of us,” she said.

Greene indicated she would support a resolution blocking men from women’s spaces in “all taxpayer-funded facilities.”

“I support banning men from women’s restrooms in the Capitol, but that isn’t enough,” Greene noted in the post on X that also contains the video. “Men should be banned from women’s restrooms in every federal building paid for by taxpayers.”

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U.S. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., speaks ahead of the arrival of former President Donald Trump during a campaign rally at the Johnny Mercer Theatre on Sept. 24, 2024 in Savannah, Georgia. (Brandon Bell/Getty Images)

Fox News Digital attempted to reach out to McBride for comment.

EXCLUSIVE: More than three dozen state financial officers will send a letter to House Speaker Mike Johnson calling for action to assuage their “grave concerns” about the national debt.

The consortium of treasurers, controllers and auditors will tell Johnson, R-La., they agree with Arizona Republican Andy Biggs’ resolution declaring the national debt a “threat to national security.”

“We have grave concerns about the national debt. We concur with [legislation from Sen. Mike Braun, R-Ind., and Biggs, R-Ariz.]…”

“It gives us great pause that we are speaking of our nation, which serves as the beacon of freedom and opportunity for the world,” they wrote.

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“Control [the] debt to protect the states and American global leadership,” read the subject line, as the state officials went on to call for the passage of a long-term congressional plan to restore U.S. solvency.

The national debt – which measures what the U.S. owes its creditors – rose to $35,965,533,024,604.05 as of Nov. 14, according to the Treasury Department. That is up about $15.2 billion from the figure reported the previous day.

The nation’s first Treasury secretary, Alexander Hamilton, wrote in 1790 that the U.S. debt “was the price of liberty [and] the faith of America has been repeatedly pledged for it.”

“To justify and preserve their confidence and promote the increasing respectability of the American name… these are great and invaluable ends to be secured by a proper and adequate provision… for the support of public credit.”

The U.S. budget was last balanced in the years between 1998 and 2001 during the Bill Clinton and George W. Bush administrations. Prior to that, former President Lyndon Johnson oversaw a balanced budget in 1968.

“Balancing the budget and reducing spending are among the most difficult, yet essential, actions you could take,” the state financial officers wrote to Johnson:

“That is why we have come together to support you in making these critical decisions.”

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The National Debt Clock (Reuters)

They warned that the cost of servicing the debt in 2024 exceeded both $1 trillion and thereby the annual cost of Medicare payouts.

“America’s financial stability, the dollar will be replaced as the reserve currency, and we will lose our nation’s status as the global leader. To prevent this looming day of reckoning, which could easily occur within our and our children’s lifetimes, requires a commitment to begin addressing this situation on day one.”

The officials expressed that a new president and a new Congress could mean a reset on fiscal policy and potentially produce a “National Financial Restoration Plan” before July 4, 2026, when the U.S. turns 250 years old.

One avenue they suggested, which has been floated by President-elect Trump as well, is to slash regulations and tap into “vast national resources” and put them on the market.

Alaska’s chief financial officer, Adam Crum, was one of the signatories of the letter, and the man who appointed him – Gov. Mike Dunleavy – previously told Fox News Digital the state remains ready to work with any administration willing to utilize the Last Frontier’s oil and gas resources in that way.

Biden, he said, “is searching for oil anywhere except at home.”

Other signatories have recently made news with their own belt-tightening endeavors, including Pennsylvania Treasurer Stacy Garrity – who recently announced a $737 million had been added to the state’s “Rainy Day Fund.” 

Garrity said when she took office in 2021 that it was one of the “worst reserve funds” of any state, and praised both the Republican legislature and Democratic Gov. Josh Shapiro for their aid.

Iowa Treasurer Roby Smith added that the Hawkeye State too has adopted strong budgeting practices and he would like to see the same approach taken federally.

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Donald Trump Jr., Eric Trump, Speaker Mike Johnson and Vivek Ramaswamy during the UFC 309 event at Madison Square Garden on Nov. 16, 2024, in New York City. (Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC)

“Congress should look to Iowa as an example of the benefits of keeping a balanced budget and limiting spending, and should place a strong emphasis on applying these same principles at the federal level,” he said.

“Our hard-won independence depends on it,” added Indiana Comptroller Elise Nieshalla.

Arizona State Treasurer Kimberly Yee said her “don’t spend more than you make” mantra needs to be heeded by Washington.

President-elect Trump appears to be a politician in a hurry when it comes to staffing his upcoming second administration’s top jobs.

Trump has announced roughly 20 cabinet and other top level positions in the nearly two weeks since decisively winning the 2024 presidential election over Vice President Kamala Harris.

The former and future president’s staffing pace is far ahead of where he was eight years ago, after his first White House victory.

And he’s also making his picks at a quicker rate than President Biden following his 2020 election, and former President Obama 16 years ago.

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The Republican presidential nominee, former President Donald Trump, arrives at his election night celebration at the Palm Beach Convention Center on November 6, 2024 in West Palm Beach, Florida.  (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

One reason for the quick pace – unlike eight years ago when Trump and his top aides were relatively new to the process, this time they’re experienced hands. And this time around, Trump enjoys a larger national mandate, due to his sweeping Electoral College victory and his capturing of the national vote, which he didn’t accomplish in his 2016 White House win.

GET TO KNOW TRUMP’S CABINET- WHO THE PRESIDENT-ELECT HAS PICKED SO FAR

“He certainly knows the ropes and I guess in some ways, he kind of knows the dopes. He knows who he likes and knows who he doesn’t. He knows what he wants to accomplish,” Matt Mowers, a veteran Republican consultant and 2020 GOP congressional nominee in New Hampshire who worked on Trump’s 2016-2017 transition and served in the first Trump administration, told Fox News.

Mowers noted that the clock’s ticking for Trump.

“It shows that they recognize that with only four guaranteed years, they have to make an impact starting on day one. So it’s one of the reasons why they’ve chosen candidates at the speed he has and really started to announce policy at the speed he has – because they know they only have four years to really fundamentally guarantee a change of direction of the country based on what he campaigned on,” Mowers emphasized.

DESANTIS SETS TIMETABLE FOR RUBIO REPLACEMENT IN THE SENATE

Matthew Bartlett, another Republican consultant who also served at the State Department during Trump’s first term, told Fox News that “we are seeing the operation warp speed, that Trump is rapid fire naming cabinet and agency heads.”

“Some of that is because he absolutely knows who he wants in place for his second term,” Bartlett said. “And it’s possible that some of it is because he is extemporaneously firing off names that are in his ear. So this looks like a mix of professionals and possibles.”

But the past-face of announcements could potentially have a downside when it comes to the Senate confirmation of some of the more controversial picks by Trump.

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“The American people have an appetite, maybe even a demand, for a disruptor, but I’m not sure that they voted to see a destroyer as a cabinet secretary,” Bartlett said.

And he predicted that some of the nominees “are going to go down” during the Senate confirmation process.

A group of House Republicans is pushing to overhaul how funds are organized at the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to more quickly get aid to communities devastated by Hurricane Helene.

Rep. Gary Palmer, R-Ala., chair of the House GOP Policy Committee, is leading a new bill that would move unspent funds the agency has from the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as certain unspent funds earmarked for previous natural disasters like Hurricane Katrina, into the FEMA Disaster Relief Fund.

It comes just hours before the House Oversight Committee is set to hold a high-stakes hearing over accusations that FEMA aid was politicized.

MIKE JOHNSON WINS REPUBLICAN SUPPORT TO BE HOUSE SPEAKER AGAIN AFTER TRUMP ENDORSEMENT

House GOP Policy Committee Chair Gary Palmer is out with a new proposal to reshuffle FEMA funds. (Getty Images)

“Millions of Americans were impacted by devastating hurricanes, and many are still seeking assistance and aid from FEMA to this day. Reports have now surfaced that a FEMA official recently instructed relief workers to avoid homes displaying support for President Donald Trump,” House Oversight Committee Chair James Comer, R-Ky., said last week when announcing the hearing.

“Not only are these actions by a FEMA employee completely unacceptable, but the committee remains deeply concerned that this is not an isolated incident at the agency.”

Palmer’s bill is backed by a wide spectrum of GOP lawmakers, from House Freedom Caucus members, like Reps. Anna Paulina Luna, R-Fla., and Byron Donalds, R-Fla., to more moderate Republicans, like Reps. Don Bacon, R-Neb., and Young Kim, R-Calif.

It’s one of several solutions proposed in Congress to help get more immediate dollars to FEMA’s disaster fund. 

MATT GAETZ FACES GOP SENATE OPPOSITION AFTER TRUMP SELECTION FOR ATTORNEY GENERAL

Parts of North Carolina, like Chimney Rock, were hit hard by Helene. (Getty Images)

FEMA Administrator Deanne Criswell told reporters on Monday that her agency “will need additional funding of approximately $40 billion beyond its 2025 budget request to support the ongoing recovery efforts to these storms and meet our overall mission requirements through the end of the fiscal year.”

The White House also requested $98 billion in additional disaster relief funding from Congress.

Congressional leaders on both sides of the aisle have pledged to act swiftly once getting a formal request from the Biden administration.

JOHNSON BLASTS DEM ACCUSATIONS HE VOWED TO END OBAMACARE AS ‘DISHONEST’

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Helene ravaged part of the U.S. Southeast in late September, killing more than 100 people in North Carolina alone.

It’s estimated to have caused billions of dollars worth of damage as well.

House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., previously told Fox News Digital that he believed it could be one of the most expensive storms in U.S. history. 

If you take a step back – make that several steps back – it’s easier to understand what Donald Trump is doing.

Why would he deliberately ignite a media firestorm over such controversial nominees as Matt Gaetz and Pete Hegseth, and to a lesser degree with Tulsi Gabbard and RFK Jr.?

The short answer is that the president-elect can’t run again and wants these nominees to disrupt – or even blow up – the departments they’d be in charge of running. And if they don’t have the usual credentials, if they’ve never run a large organization, he doesn’t give a damn.

But wouldn’t it better serve his purposes to nominate equally disruptive Cabinet members who don’t have the baggage of a Matt Gaetz? But would they have the unquestioned loyalty?

TRUMP, DEFYING MEDIA PREDICTIONS, MAINLY PICKS SEASONED CAPITOL HILL VETERANS SUCH AS MARCO RUBIO

President-elect Trump is standing by his nominations of Pete Hegseth and Matt Gaetz to top-ranking Cabinet positions. (Roy Rochlin/Getty Images | Aaron Schwartz/NurPhoto via Getty Images)

Even skeptical members of his inner circle have no choice but to let Trump be Trump.  

If Gaetz were to become attorney general, for instance, he could fire FBI chief Chris Wray rather than Trump having to be the bad guy. 

The thinking in Trump World is that the Senate won’t be able to reject more than two of his nominees. So even if Gaetz, who doesn’t appear to have the votes, is rejected, and perhaps Hegseth as well, everyone else gets through, including Kennedy and Gabbard.

And wouldn’t it be hard for the Republican Senate, in the wake of such rejections, to be essentially obligated to approve the replacement nominees, given the magnitude of Trump’s victory? Is this 4-dimensional chess?

White House chief of staff Susie Wiles was on the plane, with Gaetz, when Trump offered the now-former congressman the AG’s job. Whether Wiles, who ran a tightly organized campaign, knew about it or not, she had no power to stop it.

Privately, some Trump advisers are opposed to the most radioactive picks, but they also know that the boss gets what he wants.  

THE PODCAST CAMPAIGN: IS IT CURTAINS FOR MAINSTREAM MEDIA?

The incoming Senate majority leader, John Thune, who’s not a Trump fan and was opposed by Trump, is deemed not likely to go along with recess appointments, which would be surrendering the chamber’s constitutional role of advise and consent.

New reporting has complicated things for Gaetz and Hegseth, the decorated Army combat veteran and former Fox weekend host tapped to run the Pentagon. 

The Washington Post scoop about Hegseth’s lawyer saying he paid off a female accuser who says he raped her in 2017, as part of a non-disclosure agreement, would sink a nominee under any other president. Hegseth, visibly intoxicated, says the encounter in his hotel room was consensual; the 30-year-old woman was at the conservative conference with her husband and small children.

Speaker Johnson has pushed back against pressure to release the Ethics Committee’s report on Gaetz. (Stephanie Keith/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

In the case of Gaetz, House Speaker Mike Johnson doesn’t want the ethics committee report released, since the man has resigned his seat. Does anyone doubt that if this was a Democrat, he would take the opposite stance and denounce the nominee as a pervert?  

In any event, a lawyer for multiple women making accusations of sexual misconduct told ABC that two of his clients say Gaetz paid them for sex. And he plans more interviews.

Attorney Joel Leppard said that in their House ethics testimony, staffers “essentially put the Venmo payments on the screen and asked about them. And my clients repeatedly testified, ‘What was this payment for?’ ‘That was for sex.'” .

MEDIA LIBERALS SAVAGE KAMALA AS TRUMP PICKS EXPERIENCED HARD-LINERS

Leppard had previously said that one of his clients had also watched Gaetz have sex with a minor.

John Clune, another lawyer for a woman who contends that Gaetz had sex with a minor then in high school, called the Gaetz nomination “a perverse development in a truly dark series of events.”

And as CNN noted, one of the underage girls says she had sex with Gaetz on an air hockey table, according to her testimony.

Reporting on Gaetz’s alleged past has significantly complicated what was already a longshot nomination for attorney general. (Photo by Kent Nishimura/Getty Images)

One thing is certain: Trump continues to support both nominees. He is not going to back down.

By the way, if Kamala Harris had won the election, I’d be scrutinizing her nominees the same way. A number of pro-Trumpers online accused me of Trump Derangement Syndrome for covering the most controversial nominees, which is hilarious because the president-elect granted me two interviews in 10 months, one just a couple of weeks before the election, and told me that both were fair.

Meanwhile, Trump’s decision to meet with Joe Scarborough and Mika Brzezinski, who have relentlessly bashed him for the last seven years, was a brilliant move. Both made the request, and Trump was magnanimous enough to grant them an audience at Mar-a-Lago – really a stunning development.

As they explained yesterday on “Morning Joe:”

“We talked about a lot of issues, including abortion, mass deportation, threats of political retribution against political opponents and media outlets. We talked about that a good bit,” Scarborough said.

“It will come as no surprise to anybody who watches this show, has watched it over the past year or over the past decade, that we didn’t see eye-to-eye on a lot of issues and we told him so.”

‘MORNING JOE’ CO-HOSTS HOLD FACE-TO-FACE MEETING WITH TRUMP FOR FIRST TIME IN SEVEN YEARS

What they did agree on, Brzezinski said, “was to restart communications.”

She noted that her father, the late Zbigniew Brzezinski, “often spoke with world leaders with whom he and the United States profoundly disagreed. That is a task shared by reporters and commentators alike. We had not spoken to Trump since March of 2020, other than a personal call that Joe made after the attempt on his life in Butler, Pennsylvania.”

Trump was “cheerful and upbeat” and “seemed interested in finding common ground with Democrats on some of the most divisive issues.”

“Morning Joe” co-hosts Mika Brzezinski and Joe Scarborough enraged liberals on social media after meeting with President-elect Donald Trump. (Getty Images)

As for the expected liberal backlash for meeting with a man they’d described as a fascist, Mika turned it around: “Why wouldn’t we?”

Trump later told Fox’s Brooke Singman: “Many things were discussed, and I very much appreciated the fact that they wanted to have open communication. In many ways, it’s too bad that it wasn’t done long ago…

“In order to Make America Great Again, it is very important, if not vital, to have a free, fair and open media or press.” 

MSNBC’S ‘MORNING JOE’ CO-HOSTS REVEAL THEY MET WITH PRESIDENT-ELECT TRUMP AT MAR-A-LAGO

Trump also said of his meeting with the husband-and-wife MSNBC hosts that they “congratulated me on running a ‘great and flawless campaign, one for the history books,’ which I really believe it was, but it was also a campaign where I worked long and hard — perhaps longer and harder than any presidential candidate in history.”

“We talked about various Cabinet members — both announced and to be announced. As expected, they like some very much, but not all. The meeting ended in a very positive manner, and we agreed to speak in the future.” And here’s the olive branch: “I expect this will take place with others in the media, even those that have been extremely hostile.”

Trump said he has “an obligation to the American public, and to our country itself, to be open and available to the press.”

“If not treated fairly, however, that will end.”

President-elect Trump was quick to pigeon-hole the media into a carrot-and-stick situation – treat him fairly this go-round, otherwise, his openness to press inquiries may meet a swift end. (Jovanny Hernandez/Milwaukee Journal Sentinel / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images)

So there you have it, a carrot and a stick. 

The denunciations came fast and furious.

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

“Byron York – Annals of shamelessness: They call Trump a fascist, and much, much more, and then, just 22 days after his ‘Nazi-like’ rally, they fly to Florida for an audience. Afterward, they say, ‘We didn’t see eye-to-eye on a lot of issues,’ but they want to ‘restart communications.’ What?”

Steve Cortes – “It’s difficult to overstate how dishonest these two are. Mika & Joe scream for months that Trump is a ‘fascist’ who would ‘end democracy.’ Now that he’s elected — and very popular — they visit him like it’s just coffee with an opposing party politician???”

I couldn’t disagree more. The meeting, which may not be unrelated to ratings, means they will have some access to their onetime friend and, they say, criticize him when they think he’s wrong.

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Who wants to hear another four years of Trump-bashing, which didn’t work? This way they can report what the next president says and then take a stance. And with Trump vowing to reach out to other hostile outlets, I hope the truce lasts.

Footnote: Trump has named former Congressman Sean Duffy, a co-host of “Bottom Line” on FOX Business, as Transportation secretary.

FIRST ON FOX — The House Homeland Security Committee is demanding interviews with three FEMA employees on possible “systemic bias” against Trump supporters — as the agency deals with fallout from now-fired employee Marn’i Washington telling relief workers to skip houses visibly advertising support for President-elect Trump during recovery efforts after Hurricane Milton. 

In a letter to FEMA Administrator Deanne Criswell, Homeland Security Committee Chair Mark Green, R-Tenn., asks to speak with three employees who would have been responsible for policy in Florida, where Washington was assigned. Those employees are FEMA Region 4 Administrator Robert Samaan, Deputy Region 4 Administrator Robert Ashe and Chad Hershey, the lead for FEMA’s disaster survivor assistance crew. 

The letter cites recent comments by Washington, including to Fox News, that she’s being scapegoated for doing what her superiors told her to do. 

Green is joined on the letter by Reps. Dan Bishop, R-N.C., and Anthony D’Esposito, R-N.Y., who chair relevant Homeland Security subcommittees. 

FEMA OFFICIAL SAID TO AVOID HOMES WITH TRUMP SIGNS: ‘TO SAY I WAS SURPRISED WOULD BE A LIE’

Deanne Criswell was unanimously confirmed by the Senate on April 22, 2021, as the 12th administrator of FEMA. (Getty Images)

“Ms. Washington’s statement contradicts FEMA’s press release and points to a possibly systemic bias within FEMA against individuals that support President-elect Donald J. Trump,” the lawmakers said in the letter. “If such bias is present within FEMA, the Committee is deeply concerned that households that support President-elect Trump and even neighborhoods consisting of primarily Republican-aligned households might be receiving diminished levels of resources, manpower, and support, significantly protracting recovery following natural disasters.” 

Criswell said in a statement after the Daily Wire first reported on Washington’s order that it was “reprehensible” and “a clear violation of FEMA’s core values and principles.”

“I’m just simply executing, again, what was coming down from my superiors,” Washington shot back in an interview with Trace Gallagher on “Fox News @ Night” last week. 

“This was the culture. They were already avoiding these homes based on community trends from hostile political encounters,” Washington also said. 

HOUSE OVERSIGHT CALLS ON FEMA DIRECTOR TO TESTIFY AFTER OFFICIAL TELLS WORKERS TO AVOID HOME WITH TRUMP SIGNS

Green’s letter asks that FEMA schedule the interviews with Hershey, Ashe and Samaan by the end of this week. Fox News is also told by a source familiar that the Homeland Security Committee will have another transcribed interview request on FEMA oversight soon. 

“If [Washington] is right and there is a broader ‘policy’ of discriminatory practices in the agency’s recovery efforts, this Committee will demand accountability from the highest levels,” Green said in a statement to Fox News. 

FEMA Administrator Deanne Criswell speaks at a press briefing at the White House, Jan. 14, 2022. (AP Newsroom)

Washington emphasized to Fox News that FEMA prioritizes “avoidance” and “de-escalation” in situations where some employees may feel unsafe, and that isn’t necessarily politically targeted at Trump supporters. This could include other situations, like urban areas where there are unleashed dogs, she said. 

Washington told Gallagher that discriminating against people explicitly because of political leanings would violate the Hatch Act, but said “unfortunately, again, the passionate supporters for Trump, some of them were a little bit violent.” 

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Criswell will nevertheless face a congressional grilling Tuesday. She appears before a House Transportation & Infrastructure subcommittee at 10 a.m. EST and then will testify to the House Oversight Committee at 2 p.m. EST.  

Fox News’ Trace Gallagher and Melissa Summers contributed to this report.

Energy and climate-focused groups have mixed feelings about the new appointees selected to lead the charge on environmental issues over the next four years.

President-elect Donald Trump tapped fracking CEO Chris Wright to head the Department of Energy, while former New York Rep. Lee Zeldin was nominated to run the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

Both candidates are teed up to align themselves with Trump’s position on achieving U.S. energy independence and cut back on the Biden administration’s environmental policies, such as emissions standards. When interviewed by Fox News Digital, leaders of environmental groups said that neither inspired much hope that Trump would seriously address their concerns about the future. 

Zeldin previously supported environmental causes during his time in Congress, such as cleaning up Long Island Sound, which was applauded by environmental groups after he was nominated for the top administration position.

TRUMP TAPS LIBERTY ENERGY CEO CHRIS WRIGHT FOR DEPARTMENT TO ENERGY: ‘LEADING TECHNOLOGIST AND ENTREPRENEUR’

President-elect Donald Trump announced his nominee for secretary of energy.  (Evan Vucci)

“Lee Zeldin is deeply familiar with the environmental issues we face in the Long Island Sound region and has championed the Sound’s health as co-chair of the Long Island Sound Caucus,” Save the Sound, a group focused on stopping water pollution, and restoring wildlife habitats, said in a statement. “We appreciate Representative Zeldin’s prior support of the funding that is critical for the restoration of Long Island Sound, his role in passing the Long Island Sound Restoration and Stewardship Act, and his support for the permanent preservation of Plum Island.”

The New York League of Conservation Voters (NYLCV) also highlighted their work with Zeldin over the years on environmental issues.

TRUMP TAPS FORMER NEW YORK REP LEE ZELDIN TO LEAD EPA

“While we did not always see eye to eye with Rep. Zeldin, we did work to find common ground on several issues during his time in office, including on Plum Island, the Great American Outdoors Act, fighting offshore drilling on the East Coast, EPA actions on PFAS, and restoring funding for Long Island Sound,” NYLCV said in a statement after Zeldin was nominated. 

“The former congressman has called himself a champion for conservation within the Republican Party. He has also said he is committed to public health and that he supports energy independence. He opposed cuts to the EPA from both Democratic and Republican presidents because, he said, they would hurt the people he was in office to serve,” NYLCV continued. “For the health and wellness of the American people and given the urgency of the climate crisis, we hope his EPA will reflect these values.”

Former Rep. Lee Zeldin was tapped by Trump to lead the EPA. (Jason DeCrow)

However, the Union of Concerned Scientists, a nonprofit of 250 scientists whose research is geared towards a mission to “combat climate change,” claimed that Zeldin does not have the experience for the role.

“If confirmed, Lee Zeldin would come to the crucial position of EPA administrator lacking relevant experience and has already signaled that he would put corporations over people,” Rachel Cleetus, the policy director for the Union of Concerned Scientists, said in a statement. “The EPA’s mission is to protect public health and the environment, and he must make decisions based on the best available science, not pressure from oil and gas companies seeking to expand their profits. His focus should be on cutting harmful pollution—including heat-trapping emissions—to safeguard people, the economy and ecosystems.” 

Earthjustice, the San Francisco-based nonprofit that dates back to 1971, expressed skepticism that Zeldin could get rid of many of the current environmental policies of the Biden administration.

Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-NY) (L) and Rep. Lee Zeldin (R-NY) (R) join Donald Trump during a campaign rally at the Grappone Convention Center on Jan. 19, 2024 in Concord, New Hampshire. (Chip Somodevilla)

“We need a steady, experienced hand at EPA to marshal federal resources to fight climate change and utilize the full power of the law to protect communities from toxic pollution. Lee Zeldin is not that person,” Earthjustice President Abigail Dillen said, according to Roll Call. “His loyalty to Donald Trump indicates he will gladly take a sledgehammer to EPA’s most recent lifesaving regulations, putting politics over science and endangering our communities.”

Environmental groups have been widely critical of pro-fracking candidate Wright, the CEO and founder of Liberty Energy, to head the Department of Energy in Trump’s second term.

Jeff Deyette, deputy director of the climate and energy program at the Union of Concerned Scientists, said that “the nomination of Chris Wright makes crystal clear the fossil fuel industry’s out-sized and undue influence on shaping and implementing the Trump administration’s agenda.”

“DOE must prioritize confronting the reality of the climate crisis, maintaining focus on the technological and policy innovation required to enable a rapid phase out of dirty fossil fuels and transition to clean and reliable renewable energy,” Deyette added.

Wright, who described himself as a “lifelong environmentalist,” has said that he believes climate change is an issue, but not a crisis, and accused the movement of using “deceptive marketing terms.” 

“Climate change is a real problem, and I’ve been speaking on it for 20 years,” Wright said while speaking at the 2023 American Conservation Coalition Summit in Salt Lake City. “We can make progress on that. But we can’t make progress towards solving a climate challenge if we’re keeping people in poverty and not letting them rise up.”

The Sierra Club, an environmental group that “works to promote clean energy,” slammed his views on climate change.

Liberty Oilfield Services Inc. CEO Chris Wright laughs as he celebrates the companies IPO on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange shortly after the opening bell in New York on Jan. 12, 2018. (Lucas Jackson)

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“Not since Donald Trump’s most recent cabinet pick has a nominee ever been so utterly unqualified for the job,” Sierra Club Executive Director Ben Jealous said of Chris Wright. “Clean air and clean water are not a priority for these people, and their reckless ideas and policies will only further harm the American people. Chris Wright is not merely unqualified, he’s a direct threat to our future and the planet’s.”

Wright is likely to push back on the Biden administration’s target to reach net-zero emissions by 2050.

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said the federal government in Canada “could have acted quicker” to reign in the massive influx of migrants entering the country following the coronavirus pandemic. 

Trudeau’s remarks came during a nearly seven-minute video he posted online over the weekend, during which the prime minister laid out the reasons why Canada was putting limits on its temporary foreign worker program, while also reducing the number of permanent residents allowed entry into Canada by as much as 27% by 2027. 

Trudeau largely blamed “bad actors,” such as corporations and universities, for enticing immigrants to come to Canada, where there was a massive labor shortage following the pandemic. He pointed out that many of these predatory entities lured hordes of immigrant workers with false promises of college degrees, permanent residency, jobs and more. 

CANADA’S TRUDEAU FACING REVOLT FROM WITHIN AS POPULAR CONSERVATIVE LEADER LOOKS TO CAPITALIZE

However, Trudeau also suggested that the federal government was at least partly to blame for not “turn[ing] off the taps faster” after the country’s labor shortage waned.

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said the federal government in Canada “could have acted quicker” to reign in the massive influx of migrants entering the country following the coronavirus pandemic.  (Charles Krupa/Associated Press)

“Looking back, when the post-pandemic boom cooled and businesses no longer needed the additional labor help, as a federal team, we could have acted quicker, and turned off the taps faster,” Trudeau said in his video message. “Immigration is primarily a federal job. We have the levers to rein it in. So we are.”

Canada’s new plan, introduced formally last month, seeks to reduce the threshold of immigrants allowed into the country who are seeking permanent residency over the next three years. In the first year, 2025, the allowable threshold will be reduced from 500,000 to 395,000, followed by a 2026 threshold of 380,000 immigrants seeking permanent residency and finally, in 2027, the limit will be set at 365,000.

In addition to the changes impacting immigrants seeking permanent residency, Canada will also begin limiting the number of temporary foreign workers allowed into the country for the first time. The limit aims to reduce the share of temporary foreign workers in Canada to 5% of the overall population.

CANADA LAUNCHES SUDDEN IMMIGRATION CRACKDOWN AMID PUBLIC PRESSURE: REPORT

Meanwhile, Trudeau’s liberal government has seen waning support among voters this year. Amid that decreasing support, Canada began cracking down on visa requirements and started turning away more immigrants showing up at its front door, Reuters reported in September. On average, Canada turned away roughly 20% more immigrants per month during the first seven months of this year, the outlet indicated.

Pierre Poilievre, leader of Canada’s Conservative Party, speaks at the Assembly of First Nations Annual General Assembly in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, on Thursday, July 11, 2024.  (Graham Hughes/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

During a podcast conversation about Canada’s ongoing immigration challenges, released Friday, Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre said the chaos in Canada’s immigration system has largely occurred under Trudeau’s leadership, who Poilievre said ushered in a 300% increase in Canada’s population over several years. The Conservative Party leader also blamed Trudeau for much of the waste, fraud and abuse the prime minister spoke of in his video that resulted in such a massive influx in immigration post-coronavirus pandemic. 

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“Now, [Trudeau] is basically denouncing his entire immigration policy and expecting us to believe that he can fix the problems that he caused,” Poilievre concluded. “The bottom line is we have to fix our immigration, get back to the best system in the world, the one that brought my wife here as a refugee legally and lawfully, the one that brought so many people here to pursue the Canadian promise.”

Criticisms have mounted surrounding President-elect Trump naming former Rep. Matt Gaetz as his pick for U.S. attorney general, following nearly four years of actions taken by the Biden administration’s Department of Justice that came under fierce fire from conservatives. 

Trump named Gaetz as his pick for attorney general last Wednesday, coming as a surprise to both conservatives and liberals alike. Democrats have notably slammed the choice, citing the House Ethics Committee’s investigation into Gaetz’s alleged sexual misconduct with a minor. Gaetz has long denied any wrongdoing, and the Trump transition team said they are confident the Senate will confirm Gaetz. 

“I know Matt personally. He is a great person. He’s a man of integrity. He also is a brilliant litigator. He served on the House Judiciary Committee for eight years. Anyone who has watched him in those hearings knows that he’s incredibly impressive,” Karoline Leavitt, the transition team’s spokesperson and Trump’s recently announced pick for press secretary, said on Fox News last week. 

“Like President Trump, Matt Gaetz has been a victim of the weaponized Department of Justice, and one of the promises President Trump made to the American people was to root out the corruption at the DOJ. We have seen this agency turn against the American people because of their political beliefs. Matt Gaetz and President Trump are going to put an end to that, and that’s what the American people want. That’s why they elected him,” Leavitt added. 

SPEAKER JOHNSON OPPOSES RELEASING MATT GAETZ’S HOUSE ETHICS REPORT: ‘OPEN A PANDORA’S BOX’

President-elect Trump and attorney general nominee Matt Gaetz (Getty Images)

The Biden administration’s Department of Justice, led by Attorney General Merrick Garland, has repeatedly come under fire for a series of actions viewed as targeting conservatives. 

The DOJ was heavily criticized by parents nationwide in 2021, when Garland issued a memo directing the FBI to use counterterrorism tools related to parents speaking out at school board meetings against transgender-related issues and critical race theory curricula. The memorandum followed the National School Boards Association (NSBA) sending a letter to President Biden, asking that the federal government investigate parents protesting at school board meetings, claiming school officials were facing threats at meetings. 

The NSBA requested that parents’ actions should be examined under the Patriot Act as “domestic terrorists,” sparking Garland’s eventual memo, which did not use the phrase “domestic terrorist.”

Attorney General Merrick Garland speaks during a news conference at the Department of Justice, Sept. 24, 2024, in Washington. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)

“After surveying local law enforcement, U.S. Attorney’s offices around the country reported back to Main Justice that there was no legitimate law-enforcement basis for the Attorney General’s directive to use federal law-enforcement and counterterrorism resources to investigate school board-related threats,” the House Judiciary Committee stated in an interim report on the memo last year. 

Garland testified before the Senate last year that the memo “was aimed at violence and threats of violence against a whole host of school personnel,” not parents “making complaints to their school board,” but the memo set off a firestorm of criticism from parents, nonetheless. 

“The premier law enforcement agency of the United States of America, the FBI, was used as a weapon by the DOJ against parents who dared to voice their concerns at the most local level – their school board,” Moms For Liberty founder Tiffany Justice told Fox News Digital last year. 

Other parents sounded off on social media, facetiously asking if they looked like a “domestic terrorist,” and others stating “arrest me” online in response to protesting liberal school policies. 

GAETZ-GATE: NAVIGATING THE PRESIDENT-ELECT’S MOST BAFFLING CABINET PICK

The Biden DOJ again came under fire for claims it was fraudulently targeting religious Catholics when the FBI arrested a Pennsylvania dad in 2022 who frequently prayed outside of abortion clinics. 

Mark Houck, a Catholic dad of seven who would often pray outside a Philadelphia abortion clinic, was arrested at his rural Pennsylvania home in Kintnersville by the FBI. The arrest stemmed from an altercation he had with a Planned Parenthood escort in Philadelphia in October 2021. Houck was accused of pushing the abortion clinic escort, who allegedly verbally harassed Houck’s 12-year-old son outside the clinic.  

The Biden administration alleged Houck violated the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances (FACE) Act, which makes it a federal crime to use force with the intent to injure, intimidate and interfere with anyone because that person provides reproductive health care. 

Houck was acquitted by a jury last year, after arguing that he was protecting his son. He and his wife Ryan-Marie argued the FBI used excessive force during the arrest, filing a lawsuit against the DOJ earlier this year alleging the arrest followed a “faulty and malicious investigation.” 

FBI ARREST OF PENNSYLVANIA PRO-LIFE ACTIVIST ‘STINKS TO HIGH HEAVEN,’ FORMER PROSECUTOR SAYS: ‘LOSER CASE’

President Biden delivers a speech at Dundalk Marine Terminal in Baltimore. (Amy Davis/Baltimore Sun/Tribune News Service via Getty Images)

In Georgia, the DOJ came under fire for suing the state after it passed the Election Integrity Act of 2021, which overhauled its election laws, including limiting ballot drop box locations and requiring absentee voters to provide a form of identification – such as a driver’s license or the last four digits of their Social Security number – when requesting an absentee ballot.

Biden, along with Democrats nationwide and Hollywood actors who frequently film in the Peach State, sounded off on the election laws, including the 46th president calling them “Jim Crow 2.0.” 

“This is Jim Crow in the 21st century. It must end. We have a moral and constitutional obligation to act,” Biden said in March 2021.

‘JIM CROW 2.0?’ CONSERVATIVES BLAST DEMOCRATIC FEARMONGERING AFTER GEORGIA SMASHES EARLY VOTING RECORDS

“This law, like so many others being pursued by Republicans in statehouses across the country is a blatant attack on the Constitution and good conscience. Among the outrageous parts of this new state law, it ends voting hours early so working people can’t cast their vote after their shift is over. It adds rigid restrictions on casting absentee ballots that will effectively deny the right to vote to countless voters,” Biden added. 

The DOJ filed a lawsuit against the state, claiming that portions of the law had a “purpose of denying or abridging the right to vote on account of race,” the DOJ said in a press release at the time. 

People line up at a mobile voting station on Oct. 12, 2020, at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church in Atlanta. (Ben Gray/Atlanta Journal-Constitution via AP)

“The right of all eligible citizens to vote is the central pillar of our democracy, the right from which all other rights ultimately flow,” said Garland in a statement at the time. “This lawsuit is the first step of many we are taking to ensure that all eligible voters can cast a vote; that all lawful votes are counted; and that every voter has access to accurate information.”  

Conservatives slammed the Biden administration and Democrats for “fearmongering” following the 2022 election cycle, which reported record-smashing early-voting numbers after Democrats claimed the laws would prevent some voters from casting ballots. 

Simultaneous to running for re-election, Trump had juggled a handful of lawsuits leading up to Nov. 5, including charges brought against him by Special Counsel Jack Smith. Garland appointed Smith as special counsel, with the Trump legal team arguing the AG “violated the Appointments Clause by naming private-citizen Smith to target President Trump.” 

Smith indicted Trump in Washington, D.C., over alleged efforts to overturn the outcome of the 2020 election, as well as federal charges against the former president in Florida for his handling of classified documents after leaving the White House. The judge presiding over the Florida case tossed it over the summer, which Smith quickly appealed.  

Following Trump’s massive electoral win this month, however, Smith began winding the cases down as DOJ policy forbids criminal charges against a sitting president. 

JUDGE DISMISSES TRUMP’S FLORIDA CLASSIFIED DOCUMENTS CASE

Special Prosecutor Jack Smith addresses reporters after his grand jury issued more indictments against former President Trump. (Bill O’Leary/The Washington Post via Getty Images)

Following the controversies within the DOJ under the Biden administration, Democrats are slamming Trump for naming Gaetz as his pick for attorney general. Gaetz resigned from the House of Representatives following Trump’s announcement, but he still needs to be confirmed by the Senate in order to officially become attorney general in the second Trump administration. 

“Three recent Trump nominees – Gaetz, Hegseth, and Gabbard – are far less qualified than Senate confirmation rejects like Bork, Tower, and Mier [sic],” Harvard Professor Lawrence Summers, who served in the Clinton and Obama administrations, posted on X, referencing Supreme Court nominees Robert Bork and Harriet Miers and Defense secretary nominee John Tower. “I hope that the Senate will do its duty.”

“This is going to be a red alert moment for American democracy. Matt Gaetz is being nominated for one reason and one reason only: Because he will implement Donald Trump’s transition of the Department of Justice from an agency that stands up for all of us to an agency that is simply an arm of the White House designed to persecute and prosecute Trump’s political enemies,” Sen. Chris Murphy, D-Conn., said last week. 

TRUMP LAWYERS MOVE TO DISMISS JACK SMITH 2020 ELECTION CHARGES, CLAIM HE WAS UNLAWFULLY APPOINTED

Rep. Matt Gaetz in the Capitol in Washington, D.C., on March 7, 2024, ahead of President Biden’s State of the Union address. (Aaron Schwartz/NurPhoto via Getty Images)

“It’s just kind of like a God-tier kind of trolling just to trigger a meltdown,”  Sen. John Fetterman, D-Pa., said. “But, really, the Dems’ opinions on Gaetz, that’s not really what’s interesting. The good ones are going to come by my colleagues on the other side, the GOP, on how they can justify voting for that j— off.”

While some Republicans have also sounded off on the choice and predicted that Gaetz won’t make it through the confirmation process, conservatives such as Fox News’ Mark Levin and Wisconsin Republican Sen. Ron Johnson shut down such criticisms. 

DEMOCRATS’ FUROR OVER ‘UNQUALIFIED’ TRUMP NOMINEES PUTS BIDEN’S STAFFING DECISIONS BACK IN THE SPOTLIGHT

President-elect Trump gestures during the UFC 309 event at Madison Square Garden on Nov. 16, 2024, in New York City. (Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC)

“The Democrat Party nominated and supported Tim Walz for vice president. I don’t want to hear from that party or its media that any of the Trump nominees are unqualified for their posts. They have demonstrated that they have no standards at all when it comes to selecting even a vice-presidential candidate.  Every Trump nominee has a solid record.  Perspective is very important,” Levin posted to X last week. 

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Johnson held up a photo of assistant HHS Secretary Rachel Levine and former senior Department of Energy official Sam Brinton when asked about the selection of Gaetz last week, asking, “Did you ask Democratic senators about this?” Levine is the first openly transgender individual to be confirmed by the Senate, while Brinton identifies as nonbinary and was arrested for baggage theft at airports before he departed the DOE.

Fox News Digital’s Andrew Mark Miller, Gabriel Hays and Julia Johnson contributed to this report. 

Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro is siding with the state’s high court after the justices ruled that faulty mail-in ballots can’t be counted amid a contentious recount, delivering a victory to Republican Party officials.

The state Supreme Court reaffirmed its prior decision in a 4–3 ruling Monday that counties cannot count incorrectly dated or undated ballots. The decision singled out the Boards of Elections in Bucks County, Montgomery County, and Philadelphia County, whom they said “SHALL COMPLY with the prior rulings of this Court in which we have clarified” for mail-in and absentee ballots in their Nov. 1 ruling.

“Any insinuation that our laws can be ignored or do not matter is irresponsible and does damage to faith in our electoral process,” said Shapiro, a Democrat. “The rule of law matters in Pennsylvania. … It is critical for counties in both parties to respect it with both their rhetoric and their actions.”

As governor, Shapiro said he would “continue working to protect our democracy and the votes of all eligible Pennsylvanians.”

REPUBLICANS FILE 12 PENNSYLVANIA LAWSUITS IN ‘AGGRESSIVE’ PUSH TO END RECOUNT

Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro speaks before Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris. On Monday, Shapiro sided with the Pennsylvania Supreme Court over its ruling concerning the counting of faulty mail-in ballots.  (AP Photo/Joe Lamberti)

The high court initially ruled on Nov. 1 that mail-in ballots without formally required signatures or dates should not be counted. Democratic-led election boards, however — including in Philadelphia, Bucks County, Montgomery County, and Centre County — balked at the ruling and voted to include such ballots in the recount. 

“People violate laws any time they want,” Democratic Bucks County commissioner Diane Ellis-Marseglia said last week, according to the Philadelphia Inquirer. “So, for me, if I violate this law it’s because I want a court to pay attention. There’s nothing more important than counting votes.”

Monday’s ruling came amid a slew of lawsuits filed by Republican Party officials in the midst of an aggressive Senate recount effort following the narrow victory of GOP candidate David McCormick over three-term Democrat Sen. Bob Casey. 

‘ABSOLUTE LAWLESSNESS’: GOP BLASTS PA. DEMS’ RECOUNT EFFORT IN CASEY SENATE LOSS

The Pennsylvania Supreme Court reaffirmed its prior decision in a 4–3 ruling Monday that counties cannot count incorrectly dated or undated ballots.  (AP Photo/Matt Rourke)

McCormick had defeated Casey by some 17,000 ballots in the state, or within the 0.5% margin of error. The narrow victory allowed Casey to qualify for an automatic recount under Pennsylvania law.

The Republican National Committee criticized Shapiro for not speaking up sooner in defense of the court’s actions. 

“Heartening to see. Once Democrats came to the conclusion that even ignoring the Pennsylvania Supreme Court can’t scrape up enough ballots to win…,” RNC Chair Michael Whatley wrote on X. “Governor Shapiro suddenly discovers that he stands with the rule of law. Better late than never.”

Democrat Sen. Bob Casey and Republican Dave McCormick, who defeated Casey by some 17,000 votes in the race for the Senate.  (Getty Images)

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Trump campaign official Chris LaCivita said Pennsylvania elections officials would face jail time for counting incorrect mail-in ballots.  

“They will go to jail,” he wrote Sunday evening on X. “Count on it.”

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

Welcome to the Fox News Politics newsletter, with the latest updates on the Trump transition, exclusive interviews and more Fox News politics content.

Here’s what’s happening…

– House Ethics Committee to meet Wednesday after postponing Gaetz investigation meeting

– Trump confirms support for major step in mass deportation push to ‘reverse the Biden invasion’

– Republicans file 12 Pennsylvania lawsuits in ‘aggressive’ push to end recount

‘Game On’

The Congressional Hispanic Caucus will oppose President-elect Donald Trump’s planned mass deportation campaign, Rep. Nanette Diaz Barragán, D-Calif., declared during remarks on Friday.

The congresswoman – who chairs the group composed entirely of Democrats – claimed that mass deportations would “have a negative impact on the U.S. economy.”

During a Saturday appearance on “Fox News Live,” Tom Homan, who Trump tapped to serve as “border czar,” responded to the lawmaker’s remarks…Read more

Former Acting Director of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Thomas Homan speaks during the third day of the 2024 Republican National Convention at the Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, on July 17, 2024. (ANDREW CABALLERO-REYNOLDS/AFP via Getty Images)

Biden White House

‘TOTAL CATASTROPHE’: Biden pushes to finalize more student debt relief before end of term, including for ‘future borrowers’…Read more

‘A DEFINING CAUSE’: Biden touts six-fold climate funding increase under his administration: ‘A defining cause of my presidency’…Read more

‘LIKELY BE IMPOSSIBLE’: Trump would need congressional approval in order to dissolve Education Department, experts say…Read more

‘FACE THE CONSEQUENCES’: Democratic effort to block Biden weapons sale to Israel gains momentum: ‘Congress must step up’…Read more

STATE OF EMERGENCY: Trump declaring national emergency at border would not lead to militarization of country, expert says…Read more

LAME DUCK ESCALATION: Trump allies warn Biden risking ‘World War III’ by authorizing long-range missiles for Ukraine…Read more

POLITICAL STORM: Biden asks Congress for $98 billion in Helene, Milton disaster relief funding…Read more

Cabinet Picks

‘PERVASIVE ANTISEMITISM’: Fetterman calls out ‘UN’s rank, pervasive antisemitism,’ says he looks forward to confirming Elise Stefanik…Read more

FORWARD FOCUS: Trump’s choice for FCC chairman says agency ‘will end its promotion of DEI’ next year…Read more

CLEAN HOUSE: Pentagon bracing for sweeping changes after Trump nominates Pete Hegseth for secretary…Read more

Pete Hegseth attends FOX News All American New Year at Wildhorse Saloon on December 31, 2021 in Nashville, Tennessee.  (Brett Carlsen/Getty Images)

‘BUSINESS-AS-USUAL’: Musk pegs potential Trump Treasury secretary pick Bessent as ‘business-as-usual choice,’ backing Lutnick…Read more

Capitol Hill

‘THAT’S THE LAW’: Fetterman defends Casey-McCormick recount as challenger’s team says ‘zero’ path for Democrat…Read more

‘SWAMPBUS’: Spending bill trouble brews as Sen Mike Lee warns of Dec. 20 govt. funding deadline…Read more

BIG SPENDERS: What is reconciliation, the tool Republicans want to use to ‘push the outer limits’ on federal policy?…Read more

‘RECKONING’ COMING’: Dozens of state financial officials warn new Congress of national security implications of ignoring US debt…Read more

YOUNG GUNS: Youngest House Republican-elect reveals how GOP won back America’s youth…Read more

LET’S CIRCLE BACK IN JANUARY: DeSantis sets timetable for naming a replacement for Rubio in Senate…Read more

Senator Marco Rubio (R-FL) walks on the stage during Day 2 of the Republican National Convention (RNC), at the Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, U.S., July 16, 2024.  (REUTERS/Brian Snyder)

Trail Dust

CONCESSION STAND: Hovde concedes 12 days after Wisconsin Senate race call, blames Dem-recruited 3rd-party candidate…Read more

MILLION-DOLLAR BOB: McCormick-Casey recount to top $1M, as GOP slams blue counties defying high court…Read more

BREAKING THE BANK: Harris campaign budget for star-studded events on election eve ballooned to over $10M…Read more

A flag is left at the event held for Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris on Election Night at Howard University in Washington on November 6, 2024.  (REUTERS/Daniel Cole)

STILL TOO CLOSE: Size of slim Republican House majority hangs on five uncalled races…Read more

Across America 

‘ABSOLUTELY WRONG’: Federal complaint targets Boston school district for Whites-only teacher training on racism…Read more

‘SUBSTANTIAL FLAWS’: GOP cries foul on Dem border spending bill they say would drag out migrant crisis…Read more

Get the latest updates on the Trump presidential transition, incoming Congress, exclusive interviews and more on FoxNews.com.

Senate Republicans opted to delay votes and draw out floor action on Monday night after Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., sought to stack additional judicial confirmation votes on the calendar ahead of the Thanksgiving holiday. 

Two sources familiar told Fox News Digital that the plan to slow down the Senate was spearheaded by Senate Minority Whip John Thune, R-S.D., who was recently elected as the next Republican Senate leader. 

“If Sen. Schumer thought Senate Republicans would just roll over and allow him to quickly confirm multiple Biden-appointed judges to lifetime jobs in the final weeks of the Democrat majority, he thought wrong,” Thune told Fox News Digital in an exclusive statement. 

In response to the Democrat leader’s decision to file cloture on a number of judicial nominees, which would come up for confirmation votes in a number of days, Republicans plotted procedural maneuvers on the Senate floor to significantly delay votes, multiple GOP sources told Fox News. 

GOP CRIES FOUL ON DEM BORDER SPENDING BILL THEY SAY WOULD DRAG OUT MIGRANT CRISIS

Republicans sought to delay Democrats’ cloture filings on Monday as they look to quickly confirm Biden judges.  (Reuters)

The additional cloture filings by Schumer come as Democrats are focusing their efforts on confirming as many judges nominated by President Biden as they can in the time they have left in the majority. 

During the first procedural vote of the evening, a source familiar told Fox News, “it could be a late night.”

SPENDING BILL TROUBLE BREWS AS SEN MIKE LEE WARNS OF CHRISTMAS ‘SWAMPBUS’

Sen. John Thune, a Republican from South Dakota, speaks during a news conference following Senate Republican policy luncheons at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, Tuesday, Dec. 7, 2021.  (Eric Lee/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

In order to file cloture on a nomination, the Senate needs to transition from legislative session to executive session. This is typically done by unanimous consent from the Senate. But on Monday evening, Republicans began objecting to the requests for unanimous consent. 

When a senator objects, it requires the transition between executive and legislative sessions to be voted on. 

By objecting to Democrats’ unanimous consent requests in order to file cloture on the Biden nominees, Republicans are adding additional votes to the schedule, taking up a substantial amount of time. 

THUNE ‘ADAMANT’ ABOUT TRUMP SUPPORT, DRIVING MAGA AGENDA DESPITE TENSE PAST RELATIONSHIP

U.S. Senate Majority Leader Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., motions to President Biden after he delivered remarks at an event on June 18, 2024 in Washington, D.C. (Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)

Schumer’s office did not immediately provide comment to Fox News Digital. 

In floor remarks on Monday, Schumer emphasized that Democrats are prioritizing judges in the lame duck session. 

“The judges we’ve confirmed represent perhaps the widest range of backgrounds and experiences ever seen under any president. We have more judges that worked as public defenders, legal aid attorneys, civil rights lawyers, federal prosecutors, voting rights lawyers, and more women and people of color than we’ve ever had under one Administration,” he said of the 215 nominees that have already been confirmed. 

TOP GOP SENATORS WARN DOJ TO PRESERVE JACK SMITH DOCS IN TRUMP CASES, CITING ‘PAST DESTRUCTION’ OF RECORDS

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., departs a news conference on Capitol Hill on July 23, 2024, in Washington, D.C.  (Kent Nishimura/Getty Images)

 “After we vote today, we’ll keep going. Tonight, I will file on additional judges who we will move forward on the floor this week.”

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“So, let me repeat: the Senate is going to keep prioritizing judicial and administrative confirmations this week, this month, and for the rest of this year,” he said. 

During Biden’s term, his administration has sought to surpass President-elect Donald Trump’s first-term legacy of 234 confirmed Article III judicial nominees. And as Democrats look down the barrel of a Republican trifecta in Washington, D.C., controlling the House, Senate, and White House, they appear more energized than ever to push Biden’s judges through and potentially beat Trump’s number. 

Trump campaign official Chris LaCivita predicted election officials in Pennsylvania will face jail time for counting mail-in ballots with either incorrect or missing dates after the state Supreme Court previously ruled such ballots should not be counted.

“They will go to jail,” LaCivita, Trump’s co-campaign manager, posted to his X account on Sunday evening. “Count on it.”

LaCivita was reacting to a social media post touting a Washington Free Beacon article detailing that Democratic Sen. Bob Casey endorsed Democratic Bucks County commissioner Diane Ellis-Marseglia last year during her campaign for the position, before she and other Democratic commissioners in the state voted to count the disqualified ballots. 

“I think we all know that precedent by a court doesn’t matter anymore in this country,” Ellis-Marseglia said Thursday as she and other Democrats voted to reject a GOP-led challenge to ballots that should be disqualified. 

PENNSYLVANIA DEMOCRATS OPENLY ADMIT TO COUNTING ILLEGAL BALLOTS IN MCCORMICK-CASEY RACE

Pennsylvania is in the midst of a ballot recount after Casey refused to concede his race against Sen.-elect Dave McCormick earlier this month. McCormick’s unofficial margin of victory stands at roughly 17,000 votes, or within the 0.5% threshold required under Pennsylvania law to trigger an automatic recount.

“Pennsylvanians deserve to have their voices heard, and the worth of someone’s vote is not determined by how long it takes to be counted,” Casey wrote in an op-ed defending his decision to not concede the race. “When a Pennsylvanian takes the time to cast a legal vote, often waiting in long lines and taking time away from their work and family, they deserve to have their vote counted, whether it is the first ballot counted or the last.”

The state Supreme Court ruled ahead of the election that mail-in ballots that do not include formally required signatures or dates should not be counted for the official tally of votes in the state. Democratic-led election boards, however — including in Philadelphia, Bucks County, Montgomery County, and Centre County — bucked the state high court’s ruling and voted to include such ballots in the recount. 

Pennsylvania is in the midst of a ballot recount after Casey refused to concede his race against Sen.-elect Dave McCormick earlier this month.  (Getty Images)

“People violate laws any time they want,” Ellis-Marseglia said last week, according to the Philadelphia Inquirer. “So, for me, if I violate this law it’s because I want a court to pay attention. There’s nothing more important than counting votes.”

REPUBLICANS FILE 12 PENNSYLVANIA LAWSUITS IN ‘AGGRESSIVE’ PUSH TO END RECOUNT

In addition to Casey endorsing the Democratic commissioner during her campaign last year, Ellis-Marseglia, as well as fellow Democratic Bucks County commissioner Bob Harvie, donated a combined $2,600 to the Casey campaign this year, the Washington Free Beacon reported. 

“Pennsylvanians deserve to have their voices heard, and the worth of someone’s vote is not determined by how long it takes to be counted,” Casey wrote in an op-ed defending his decision to not concede the race. (Mark Makela/Getty Images)

Republicans have launched a bevy of lawsuits over including the disqualified ballots in the recount. Republican Party officials are filing 12 lawsuits in Pennsylvania in order to protect the Senate seat.

‘ABSOLUTE LAWLESSNESS’: GOP BLASTS PA. DEMS’ RECOUNT EFFORT IN CASEY SENATE LOSS

Both national and state Republican parties have filed lawsuits in four counties across Pennsylvania, urging the courts to not count mail-in ballots with either incorrect or missing dates, in accordance with a Pennsylvania Supreme Court ruling this month.

McCormick’s unofficial margin of victory stands at roughly 17,000 votes, or within the 0.5% threshold required under Pennsylvania law to trigger an automatic recount. (Jeff Swensen/Getty Images)

RNC officials challenged the notion that the Senate recount, which continues through Nov. 26, will change the outcome of the election in any substantive way. They have decried the effort, which costs an estimated $1 million, as a waste of taxpayer money, noting that since 2000 there have been just three statewide election recounts in Pennsylvania, and each has resulted in an average change of 393 votes.

PENNSYLVANIA DEMOCRATS SLAMMED FOR COUNTING ILLEGAL BALLOTS IN SENATE RACE: UNBELIEVABLY ‘BRAZEN’

Trump campaign official Chris LaCivita predicted election officials in Pennsylvania will face jail time for counting mail-in ballots with either incorrect or missing dates after the state Supreme Court previously ruled such ballots should not be counted. (Fox News – Paul Steinhauser)

“Democrat officials are on video saying that they’re going to choose to break the law, and there will be legal consequences for that,” a senior party official told Fox News earlier Monday. 

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“The Casey campaign could end the recount at any time,” Pennsylvania Republican Party Chair Lawrence Tabas added of the lawsuits. “And there are political ramifications of eroding the voters’ confidence in elections that has been built. So we need to stop this attempt at electioneering and declare McCormick the winner.”

President-elect Trump announced that he is nominating former Congressman Sean Duffy of Wisconsin to serve as the U.S. Secretary of Transportation.

Rep. Sean Duffy, R-Wis., leaves the House Republican Conference meeting in the U.S. Capitol in 2018. (Bill Clark/CQ Roll Call)

“Sean has been a tremendous and well-liked public servant, starting his career as a District Attorney for Ashland, Wisconsin, and later elected to the U.S. House of Representatives for Wisconsin’s 7th Congressional District,” Trump said in his announcement on Monday. “Sean will use his experience and the relationships he has built over many years in Congress to maintain and rebuild our Nation’s Infrastructure, and fulfill our Mission of ushering in The Golden Age of Travel, focusing on Safety, Efficiency, and Innovation. Importantly, he will greatly elevate the Travel Experience for all Americans!”

While in Congress, Duffy helped advocate for fiscal responsibility, economic growth and rural development.