NationalWatch

The Justice Department is planning its next move after a federal judge in Boston dismissed its case accusing Harvard University of repeatedly turning a “blind eye” to antisemitism on campus.

“We disagree with the ruling and are assessing next steps,” Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Rights Division Harmeet Dhillon said in a statement. “The Civil Rights Division has an extensive and active portfolio of antisemitism enforcement, including indictments, prosecutions, settlements, and investigations across the country.”

Judge Richard Stearns, who was appointed by President Bill Clinton, dismissed the Trump administration’s lawsuit against the Ivy League on Thursday, determining that the incidents of antisemitism were too isolated to establish a pattern showing that the school remained in violation of federal civil rights law after the federal government issued its complaint.

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“Without diminishing any concern arising from these occurrences, the court finds them, singly and collectively, to be too isolated and episodic to support a plausible inference that any institutionalized noncompliance with Title VI persists at Harvard to this day,” Stearns wrote.

The Justice Department filed its lawsuit against Harvard on March 20, 2026, following a wave of anti-Israel protests that erupted on college campuses nationwide after Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023, attack on Israel and the ensuing war in Gaza.

At Harvard, protests during the 2023-24 school year included repeated occupations of libraries and other campus buildings and a weeks-long encampment in Harvard Yard. Jewish students reported being harassed, intimidated and excluded from campus spaces. The Justice Department alleged that Harvard violated Title VI by failing to protect Jewish and Israeli students from harassment despite complaints to university leaders about the conduct.

But Stearns said the Justice Department referred to only three antisemitic incidents on Harvard’s campus during the following school year that the school had allegedly failed to address.

UCLA STUDENT COUNCIL CONDEMNS CAMPUS EVENT WITH FORMER ISRAELI HOSTAGE

Those incidents included protesters allegedly breaching barricades outside an event featuring former Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett, a Harvard employee allegedly removing posters of Israeli hostages, and more than 60 masked protesters staging a “die-in” outside Widener Library, where they chanted, “we will honor all our martyrs.”

Stearns did not rule on whether Harvard had violated Title VI during the height of the campus unrest. Instead, his decision focused on whether the Justice Department had sufficiently alleged that violations continued after the government formally put Harvard on notice.

The Trump administration sent Harvard a warning letter on June 30, 2025, saying the school had violated Title VI over its response to antisemitism on campus.

Under the statute, the government is required to notify a recipient of a violation and try to resolve it voluntarily before taking enforcement action.

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In his dismissal, Stearns said the Trump administration’s amended June 2026 complaint did not identify any incidents in which Harvard failed to address antisemitism after the government sent its warning letter.

“The Government provided the requisite notice underlying this action on June 30, 2025,” Stearns wrote. “As noted above, the Amended Complaint is devoid of any factual allegations plausibly establishing that any events that might be construed as evidence of noncompliance occurred after June 30, 2025.”

Stearns also rejected the Trump administration’s allegation that Harvard University’s failure to cooperate with every demand in the federal government’s proposed voluntary agreement showed that the school was not in compliance with Title VI.

“Harvard’s refusal to follow every specific demand from the administration wasn’t enough, because the legal question was whether Harvard was complying with Title VI— not whether Harvard was doing exactly what the administration told it to do,” Stearns wrote.

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The dismissal comes as the Trump administration pursues two lawsuits against the University of California over alleged discrimination against Jewish and Israeli students, faculty and staff at UCLA.

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Fox News Digital reached out to Harvard University for comment.

As tensions between the U.S. and Iran remain unsettled more than five months since the start of the war, the number of ships transiting the Strait of Hormuz appears to be far below pre-conflict levels.

“Despite a brief recovery in late June, vessel traffic through the Strait of Hormuz remains significantly reduced, AIS [Automatic Identification System] transit information suggests operators increasingly favouring the Northern route following projectile attacks, ongoing security concerns, and heightened enforcement activity,” a United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) voluntary reporting area overview noted.

“Traffic remains well below normal levels, with AIS-detected transits approximately 90% below pre-conflict baselines and declining since the 24-26 (June) peak.”

The trade intelligence company Kpler reported in part of a post Friday on X that “Maritime traffic through the Strait of Hormuz picked up on 13 August, with 13 confirmed crossings, a 44% day on day increase from nine. Of these, nine vessels used the Iranian Unilateral Scheme, none were confirmed on the Hormuz TSS and four routes remained undetermined.”

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International Chamber of Shipping Marine Director John Stawpert told Fox News Digital Friday that while “traffic is significantly lower” compared to before the war started, “it’s not completely stopped.”

“Essentially, what we see is a cyclical process,” Stawpert said. He explained that when a ceasefire is announced, there is an “uptick” in vessels entering and exiting the Persian Gulf, but “as those ceasefires break down … you’ll see that drop off again.”

He also noted there is still a mine threat in the waters, which affects how much traffic can enter and exit the Persian Gulf.

Stawpert indicated that, to resolve the issue, there would need to be “a meaningful ceasefire that everybody has faith in,” an end to the Iranian threat, an end of the U.S. blockade against Iran and a grasp on which waters are “safely navigable” in the face of the threat posed by mines.

President Donald Trump has claimed the U.S. has full control over the waterway.

“The U.S.A. has total control over the Strait of Hormuz. I THINK WE WILL KEEP IT! Our Naval Blockade is being called, by everyone, ‘A WALL OF STEEL,’ and there is nothing Iran can do about it,” Trump wrote in a Wednesday Truth Social post.

“They have no Navy, they have no Air Force, their remaining soldiers are unpaid, the IRGC is decimated and fleeing, and their ‘Leadership’ is uncertain, at best! They have No Money — Their country is “shot.” All they have is FAKE NEWS and 300% INFLATION, and getting worse! Iran is all talk and no action, the Bully of the Middle East No Longer. Praise be to Allah!” he added.

But the Islamic Republic of Iran’s Persian Gulf Strait Authority said in a post Wednesday on X, “Claims and repeated posts by U.S. officials that the Strait of Hormuz is no longer blocked do not change the reality: the Strait of Hormuz remains blocked and will not be reopened until Iran’s conditions are accepted.”

Iranian Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi posted on X Thursday claiming “the U.S. has long miscalculated due to intelligence failures. Case in point: The war on Iran. Now, an even bigger miscalculation on the Strait of Hormuz. Worse than fake news is fake intelligence. Be careful. Allah is Great, Greater than ANY power on Earth. In Allah we trust.”

IRAN SAYS US MISCALCULATED OVER STRAIT OF HORMUZ DESPITE TRUMP’S CLAIM OF ‘TOTAL CONTROL’

The recently appointed leader of the Iranian Basij paramilitary unit said Thursday that the passage is “under Iran’s control and management,” Reuters reported.

“There’s a northern route which is essentially Iranian controlled. There’s a southern route through Omani waters which is overseen by the U.S. Navy,” Stawpert explained to Fox News Digital, noting that control over the passage is “divided.”

U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright has touted the flow of oil out of the strait.

“Thanks to the coordinated efforts of the U.S. military and our gulf allies, the seven-day average for oil leaving the Strait of Hormuz is currently up to almost 9 million barrels per day,” Wright wrote in a post on X Tuesday.

“When combined with the additional 5-7 million barrels per day leaving the region via newly upgraded pipelines and export facilities, total oil flows are currently averaging approximately 15 million barrels per day. On Sunday alone, over 20 million barrels left the Arabian gulf region, which is above the pre-conflict average.”

“In coordination with the U.S. military, the U.S. Department of Energy maintains the best available data related to oil and oil products leaving the Arabian gulf. Many private businesses undercount the number of ships leaving the Strait of Hormuz due to ships moving covertly through the waterway,” Wright added in another post.

“We need to bear in mind that there’s human beings on board these ships,” Stawpert told Fox News Digital, asserting that the “risk” they face is “unacceptable.”

IRAN DEFIES TRUMP, DECLARES STRAIT OF HORMUZ BLOCKED AFTER PRESIDENT CLAIMS US HAS ‘TOTAL CONTROL’

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“And that’s why this needs to end,” he continued, “for those humanitarian reasons, more than anything.”

The White House did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.

FIRST ON FOX — An independent federal agency is under review for allegedly listing foreign-made products as American, including technology manufactured in China, and the Trump administration is demanding a sweeping audit of its products, pricing and supply chains.

In a draft letter viewed exclusively by Fox News Digital, the General Services Administration directs the U.S. AbilityOne Commission to verify the country of origin of every product on its Mandatory Procurement List and conduct a comprehensive audit of products offered through GSA on pricing, sourcing and compliance with federal law and procurement policy. 

“Federal tax dollars spent on the AbilityOne program should support jobs for blind and disabled Americans, not foreign competitors,” GSA Administrator Edward Forst wrote in a statement.

AbilityOne oversees a federal purchasing program intended to provide employment opportunities for people who are blind or have significant disabilities. Federal agencies are generally required to buy products and services placed on the commission’s mandatory list from participating nonprofit organizations.

“Many of AbilityOne’s product offerings raise serious national security concerns and cast doubt on its ability to carry out its mission,” Forst added in the statement. “GSA will not allow questionable products to undermine the security of the federal marketplace.”

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Forst’s department sent a letter to AbilityOne Commission Chair Christina Brandt to follow through on President Donald Trump’s March 2026 executive order requiring truthful “Made in America” advertising across federal procurement. The audit has also drawn interest from Vice President JD Vance’s anti-fraud task force.

“GSA requests that the Commission promptly conduct a full audit of all items offered for sale through GSA and related procurement data to verify COO [Country of Origin] representations, pricing, sourcing, and compliance with applicable law and policy,” Forst’s letter dated Friday read.

“Such an audit is necessary to provide transparency and accountability to the American people, protect the integrity of Federal procurement, and ensure that taxpayer dollars are not supporting inaccurate or misleading claims.”

GSA said it found multiple examples of AbilityOne-associated technology products labeled on GSA procurement platforms as “Country of Origin: USA” that are, in fact, from foreign countries like China.

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AbilityOne was given until Nov. 16 to respond to GSA’s “areas of concern” and provide corrected country-of-origin information for products offered through the Federal Acquisition Service Verified Product Portal, address products currently listed with unclear origin designations and provide documentation explaining how it will conduct ongoing reviews.

“GSA holds all its contractors to the highest standards,” Forst’s letter concluded. “To ensure we apply the same rules to the AbilityOne Program, I’m instructing my Senior Procurement Executive to promptly take appropriate action to eliminate the exception that permits the Commission to offer items originating in China and other non-allied nations. He will work with GSA and the Commission to ensure effective implementation.”

“GSA appreciates the Commission’s prompt attention to this matter. Ensuring that PL products available through GSA channels are fully compliant is essential to maintaining the integrity of the AbilityOne Program, the Federal marketplace, and the Government’s procurement obligations,” he added.

NEWSOM ADMIN FACES QUESTIONS OVER $6.2M DIAPER CONTRACT AFTER TOUTING ‘COMPETITIVE’ PROCESS

The letter goes beyond country-of-origin concerns, raising questions about pricing and executive compensation at nonprofits participating in the program.

GSA said AbilityOne-affiliated nonprofits can sell products to the government with markups of as much as 55%, depending on pricing arrangements. The agency alleged that some products provide “limited or no meaningful employment or value added to the taxpayer” while nonprofit executives receive compensation reaching more than $1 million annually.

The letter contrasts those figures with an average annual salary of approximately $33,000 for blind workers, citing National Industries for the Blind data. An appendix identifies several AbilityOne nonprofits where executive compensation reportedly ranged from $500,000 to more than $1 million.

GSA also pointed to previous False Claims Act cases involving AbilityOne nonprofits.

Industries for the Blind and Visually Impaired, a Wisconsin nonprofit, agreed to pay $1.9 million in 2020 to resolve federal allegations involving false claims and kickbacks on government contracts. GSA also cited a 2021 settlement in which Connecticut-based CW Resources paid $600,000 to resolve allegations that it falsely certified compliance with AbilityOne labor requirements.

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Those settlements involved allegations resolved in prior cases and are separate from the country-of-origin findings outlined in the new GSA letter.

Those figures are expected to intensify scrutiny of whether participating organizations are directing enough federal contract revenue toward their workforce and whether executive compensation is consistent with AbilityOne’s mission.

The National Council on Disability (NCD), an independent federal advisor, is concerned the “policy relic” is “failing” in its mission, another example of how government waste, fraud and abuse must be audited by the Trump administration’s anti-fraud task force led by Vance.

TRUMP IS PROVING THAT THE WAY TO BETTER OUR MILITARY IS TO SECURE OUR SUPPLY CHAINS

“For years, NCD has reported that AbilityOne is a policy relic that hasn’t kept up with the needs of Americans with disabilities,” NCD Acting Chair Neil Romano wrote in a statement Friday. “This is just another example of that overall failing.”

Fox News Digital reached out to AbilityOne for comment on the allegations and the call for an audit and has not yet heard back.

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GSA is also scrutinizing an AbilityOne policy known as “Essentially the Same,” which allows certain products to be substituted for items already approved for the mandatory list. According to the draft letter, foreign-made goods have quietly displaced American products through that process, undercutting domestic manufacturers while continuing to benefit from preferential federal purchasing rules.

A growing number of states facing noncitizen and illegal voting allegations and disputes over voter registration policies is intensifying a national fight over election safeguards ahead of the midterms.

The disputes exposed a broader fight over how states verify citizenship when registering voters — maximum access versus maximum verification — and how far the federal government can go in demanding state voter data when suspecting illegal activity. The issue recently exploded after New Jersey Gov. Mikie Sherrill disclosed 6,600 noncitizens had been registered to vote through Trenton’s Motor Vehicle Commission (MVC).

“This isn’t just a New Jersey problem. This is a national problem,” Texas Public Policy Foundation chief national initiatives officer Chuck DeVore told Fox News Digital in an interview. DeVore wrote after Sherrill’s disclosure about the problems that can arise if noncitizen and illegal voting continue relatively unchecked.

“Historically, inappropriately pumping up the vote has been a path to gaining power,” DeVore said, adding that a plurality of Americans “are concerned” about noncitizen voting.

FEDERAL JUDGE BLOCKS DOJ ACCESS TO NJ VOTER ROLLS AMID STATEWIDE CONTROVERSY

President Bill Clinton signed the National Voter Registration Act in 1993. Commonly called the “Motor Voter Law” the law requires covered states to offer voter registration through motor vehicle agencies while administering their own voter rolls, DeVore said.

“The intention … was to make it really easy to register to vote, especially when you touched a very common part of government,” DeVore said, “which was the Department of Motor Vehicles or whatever the equivalent is.”

DeVore argued that architects of the voter registration system failed to account for the narrower mission of motor vehicle agencies, which he said historically focused on two things: “You who you say you are — and can you safely operate [automotive] machinery.”

Neither function has anything to do with election security, DeVore said.

“And then if you add an additional layer on top of it, which is If the people in charge want as many people registered as possible because it creates the raw material for election fraud, well, now you have a whole other set of problems that kind of supercharges the weakness.”

That broader fight has increasingly pitted the Justice Department against states including New Jersey and Pennsylvania over federal demands for voter registration data.

Both states’ election agencies — led by a Democrat and a Republican, respectively — resisted the demands, raising privacy and legal objections to releasing unredacted sensitive information.

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The DOJ, meanwhile, has adopted a “broken-windows theory” approach to investigating potential election violations.

Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights Harmeet Dhillon said the agency is applying the crimefighting theory popularized during former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani’s administration, which focused on enforcing lower-level offenses in an effort to deter more serious crimes.

Under Dhillon and Attorney General Todd Blanche, the DOJ has prioritized pursuing provable fraud and irregularities in state election processes.

“We need to go after every single one of these violations … I can’t talk about a lot of what we’re doing publicly, but activists and others are giving us leads,” Dhillon recently told Fox News Digital. “And we are carefully running down each.”

CALIFORNIA ACCUSED OF BLOCKING FEDERAL VOTER ROLL AUDIT AS DOJ ESCALATES PROBE OF ELECTION FRAUD CLAIMS

The push has brought the federal government into conflict with states, with critics citing Tenth Amendment concerns over the balance between federal authority and states’ role in administering elections.

Congress has previously used federal funding to pressure states to change policies traditionally administered at the state level. In the 1980s, federal law conditioned a portion of highway funding on states adopting a minimum drinking age of 21.

The Justice Department has similarly sued or threatened to sue states including New Jersey, Pennsylvania and New York over voter data and election-record disputes.

Democrats in states facing increased federal scrutiny have pushed back against allegations of intentional wrongdoing.

New Jersey Senate President Nicholas Scutari, D-Scotch Plains, recently told Fox News Digital he agrees that a “healthy democracy” depends on voter-roll security and proper “stewardship” of those trusted to execute “free, fair and accessible elections.”

“It also depends on public trust, and Governor Sherrill deserves credit for being transparent about these failures, taking swift action to launch an independent investigation of what went wrong, and pledging to hold anyone responsible to account,” Scutari said.

At the same time, Scutari’s critics have accused Democrats in New Jersey of failing to prevent voter-roll problems despite repeated warnings about vulnerabilities in the system.

SHERRILL DROPS HEAD-TURNING VOTER ID DECLARATION IN WAKE OF REGISTRATION FIASCO: ‘SIGNIFICANT SHIFT’

“People were on the honor system,” said New Jersey Senate Judiciary Committee ranking member Kristin Corrado, R-Totowa.

“The fact is that the people in charge for so long said this absolutely was impossible; Republicans were ‘conspiracy theorists’,” added Sen. Declan O’Scanlon of Little Silver, the top Republican on the State Joint Budget Committee.

Other states, including Pennsylvania, have also resisted federal demands for voter data, citing privacy concerns. DeVore said that while serving as a California state lawmaker, he regularly had access to similar voter information.

“Many Democrats see elections as mere census exercises. All they are is a body count. They’re not, in fact, informed citizens casting a ballot with their enlightened self-interest guiding their ballot.”

Pennsylvania officials similarly resisted the Trump administration’s demand for the state’s voter rolls, even after DOJ sued Harrisburg’s elections chief in September.

“This request and reported efforts to collect broad data on millions of Americans represent a concerning attempt to expand the federal government’s role in our country’s electoral process,” Pennsylvania Secretary of the Commonwealth Al Schmidt — a Philadelphia Republican appointed by Democratic Gov. Josh Shapiro — wrote in his reply.

“I take seriously the obligations under both federal and Pennsylvania law to ensure that only eligible voters have access to the ballot box and to see to it that Pennsylvania’s voter rolls are appropriately maintained and updated,” Schmidt wrote in a more recent letter to the Justice Department in July.

The SAVE America Act — which would require voter registrants to provide proof of citizenship and voters to show ID — remains stalled in the Senate after Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., sent the chamber into summer recess, angering President Donald Trump and election-security advocates.

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DeVore warned, however, that Congress has previously pursued sweeping federal voting legislation and argued that states should take the lead on election safeguards.

He pointed to Democrats’ previous effort to pass the “For the People Act,” legislation sponsored by former Rep. John Sarbanes, D-Md., which would have restricted some state voter-ID requirements.

“So we need to be somewhat circumspect about using the sledgehammer of federal law to sweep away state powers to order their own affairs,” DeVore said.

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Fox News Digital reached out to Sherrill for additional comment.

Rep. Nicole Malliotakis, R-N.Y., slammed what she deemed “hypocrisy” shown by Democratic socialist New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani and Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., arguing that the two officials are betraying their constituents by refusing to support voter identification measures.

“I think the Democrats are showing the two sides that they have,” she told Fox News Digital in an interview.

“They go to their district, they tell their constituents that they support voter ID, and then they turn around to go to Washington and vote against it,” she continued.

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Malliotakis called on the Senate to pass President Donald Trump’s Safeguard America’s Voter Eligibility (SAVE) America Act, a piece of legislation that would require voters to prove American citizenship before casting a ballot.

“If you want people to be confident in the outcome of the election, then we need to pass the Save America Act. We need to require voter ID,” Malliotakis told Fox News Digital.

“Over 80% of America wants it,” Malliotakis continued, adding “the only people that don’t seem to want it are the Democrats who are in Congress right now and they’re not representing the people of their districts who are overwhelmingly saying they want it. Regardless of political affiliation, regardless of race, they are saying that they want a voter ID and the Senate Democrats should vote for it,” she continued.

“Let’s make sure that we show America that we’re taking the integrity of our elections seriously. And voter ID is really the most common-sense step that we should be taking as a body,” she added.

SCHUMER SAID ‘DEMOCRATS SUPPORT VOTER ID’ — THEN EVERY SENATE DEMOCRAT VOTED AGAINST GOP BILL

Malliotakis pinned the blame in particular on Schumer for blocking the SAVE Act.

“We’ve passed it out of the House now four times and is up to the Senate to get the job done. These Senators keep going to their district saying that they support the SAVE America act, or at least they’re telling their constituents that they support voter ID, and then they go to Washington and they vote against it, and so citizens need to hold those senators accountable,” she told Fox News Digital.

“Unfortunately that dissent is being led by my own senator, Senator Chuck Schumer. Who always seems to be at odds with his constituents and America these days,” she said.

Malliotakis, New York City’s lone Republican in Congress, also laid into Mamdani, highlighting what she called his hypocrisy in requiring identification for city programs.

FLASHBACK: MAMDANI’S HISTORY OF DODGING QUESTIONS ABOUT WHERE HE STANDS ON KEY ISSUES

“Sadly, you see the hypocrisy when you see programs like Mayor Mamdani wanting to require photo ID to utilize a government-run supermarket or when he wanted you to use a photo ID, not just one, but multiple IDs for a snow shoveling program,” she told Fox News Digital.

“This is the hypocrisy we’re seeing where things like that for everyday activities, they want ID, but when it comes to voting, the most important thing you do as a United States citizen is vote in your elections and elect your representatives, they don’t want any type of accountability, any type a transparency or any type of requirement for voter identification to prove who you are, that you’re eligible to vote, that you actually reside in the district in which you’re voting and that you are an American citizen,” she said.

Malliotakis also pointed to a recent event in her Staten Island district where Mamdani was booed off the stage.

“This was an event for National Night Out Against Crime. It was in support of our law enforcement and the NYPD. Mamdani, in his career as a state assembly member, led the fight for the defund the police movement. And my constituents have not forgotten that. So number one, they were calling him out on his hypocrisy. But number two, they are making very clear they do not support his communist agenda and my borough of Staten Island is the only borough in the five boroughs of New York City that did not vote for Zohran Mamdani,” she concluded.

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Fox News Digital contacted the offices of Mamdani and Schumer for further comment.

The suspect accused of vandalizing the World War II Memorial in Washington D.C., has been taken into custody, U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia, Jeanine Pirro announced Friday.

The Department of Justice (DOJ) and the U.S. Attorney’s Office in the District of Columbia are charging Melissa L. Farris with two felony charges for her alleged role in the vandalism.

“Vandalizing our World War II Memorial is a despicable attack on a sacred monument honoring the Americans who fought and died for our freedom. Those Americans include my father and grandfather. This morning, we are filing two felony charges, Depredation Against Property of the United States and Destruction of Veterans’ Memorials, in Federal District Court against Melissa L. Farris, offenses that carry penalties of up to ten years in prison. She is now in custody,” Pirro added.

The DOJ is accusing Farris of an act of vandalism which occurred Thursday. Farris allegedly spray-painted the memorial with the words “Clean hands, dirty money,” in bright pink paint.

The alleged vandal also dumped bubble soap into the fountain at the center of the memorial.

President Donald Trump reacted strongly to the memorial’s defacement. 

“Our beautiful World War II Memorial was just hit by Spray Painting Vandals. THERE CAN BE NO GREATER INSULT TO THOSE AMERICAN HEROES WHO DIED IN WORLD WAR II. First the Reflecting Pool, now this. We are on their trail! Where do these animals come from???” he wrote in a Thursday post on Truth Social.

The memorial is the latest DC monument to endure a bout of sabotage this year.

The high-profile saga of the alleged Lincoln Monument Memorial Reflecting Pool has been ongoing as Trump continues to seek the prosecution of a former Olympian accused of ripping the pool’s coating.

In June, U.S. Park Police also launched an investigation after the numbers “8647” were burned into the grass near the Washington Monument.

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This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.

Michigan’s highest-ranking House Republican is crying foul on Abdul El-Sayed’s claim that he is not a socialist.

“If it looks like a duck and walks like a duck and quacks like a duck, it’s a duck,” House GOP Conference Chairwoman Lisa McClain, R-Mich., told Fox News Digital. “So maybe he’s not a socialist. Maybe he’s a full-blown communist.”

El-Sayed, a former public health official, scored an upset victory for Democrats’ leftmost flank in Michigan’s Senate primary earlier this month. He defeated Rep. Haley Stevens, D-Mich., a House lawmaker who was heavily favored by the Democratic establishment, including Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y.

It was part of a larger wave of victories by candidates aligned with the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA), several of whom have toppled sitting House Democratic lawmakers in primaries in New York and Colorado in addition to Michigan.

2026 MIDTERMS STATE OF PLAY: KEY RACES UNFOLD AS STEVENS, EL-SAYED BATTLE IN MICHIGAN

And while El-Sayed himself is not a DSA member, some of the biggest names to campaign alongside him — including Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., and Rep. Rashida Tlaib, D-Mich. — are self-proclaimed democratic socialists.

El-Sayed told CBS News in an interview posted to YouTube last week that he was working on building a broad coalition that included supporters of President Donald Trump as well as DSA members, even though he is neither.

“Folks who come here, like, with two weeks left in the election, really, really want to label me a socialist. I don’t know why, except for maybe it fits into a nice telling of a broader national story. But I’m a scientist, right? And I like solutions that solve problems,” El-Sayed said. “I don’t do ideology. I’d rather think of myself as a capitalist who actually read about capitalism, in the sense that the biggest risk to capitalism was always going to be corporate consolidation and monopoly, rather than government regulation.”

McClain, meanwhile, argued that El-Sayed’s platform is inherently socialist.

“He wants to take money out of your pockets. He wants free everything. Well, at the end of the day, if everything is free, someone has to pay for it,” McClain said. “Are the farmers not gonna get paid? Are the teachers not going to get paid? He wants higher taxes, and he wants to take money out of your pockets so you can pay for your neighbors. To me, that’s socialism. That’s borderline communism.”

MICHIGAN SENATE CANDIDATE ABDUL EL-SAYED DODGES QUESTION ON WHETHER HE STILL SUPPORTS DEFUNDING THE POLICE

El-Sayed’s policy platform includes promises to fight for Medicare for all, raising taxes on millionaires and billionaires, using “wage insurance and basic income” programs to counter artificial intelligence automating industries, and abolishing Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), according to his website.

Republicans have argued that the majority of policies supported by the progressive and socialist left will amount to higher taxes for everyday Americans. But Democrats have insisted that their plans will lead to more affordable living for working- and middle-class people.

Traditionally, the party in power in the White House tends to lose seats in Congress during the midterms. That, combined with low approval numbers for President Donald Trump, means Republicans have an uphill battle to buck past political trends to keep control of the House and Senate.

But McClain pointed out that El-Sayed failed to clinch an outright majority in Michigan Democrats’ Senate primary and predicted it would mean Republicans running up and down the ballot in the Wolverine State will see big gains with the far-left progressive at the top of the ticket.

BIDEN-WORLD VETERAN ISSUES STARK WARNING ABOUT ABDUL EL-SAYED AS HE CROSSES PARTY LINES

“I think it’s gonna help us tremendously, right? Because if you look at El-Sayed’s numbers, 50%, over 50% — the majority didn’t vote for him. So what are those voters gonna do?” McClain posed. “How is El-Sayed and his crazy progressive, socialist, communist party going to bring those Democratic voters over to the Democratic side of the ticket? I don’t think they are. I think those voters are going to look for a common-sense candidate, and I think those voters are either going to one, stay home or two, vote for Mike Rogers.”

Mike Rogers, a former House Republican and FBI agent, is the Republican nominee in Michigan.

He made an appeal to Democrats days after the matchup became official, stating in a video, “If you’re among the majority of Democratic voters that woke up on Wednesday feeling, well, hopeless, because the person who won does not represent your values, well, just know, there is still hope.”

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Fox News Digital reached out to El-Sayed’s campaign for comment.

The impending departure of President Donald Trump’s top spokeswoman has speculation swirling in Washington, D.C., on who will be selected to replace Karoline Leavitt behind the press briefing room podium.

The 28-year-old White House press secretary, fresh off maternity leave, dropped a bombshell announcement on Wednesday that she will end her tenure at the end of August to spend more time with her two young children.

Now, with just two weeks left in the month, the race is on to find the next press secretary — and some predict the briefing room will see a rotating line of Trump administration officials briefing the White House press corps rather than a permanent replacement, like what happened during Leavitt’s maternity leave earlier this summer.

WHITE HOUSE PLANS GUEST HOSTS FOR PRESS BRIEFINGS WHILE KAROLINE LEAVITT TAKES MATERNITY LEAVE

Secretary of State Marco Rubio held the first news conference while Leavitt was on leave, followed by Vice President JD Vance, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) Administrator Dr. Mehmet Oz.

“The next press secretary will undoubtedly be someone who has a strong existing relationship with President Trump,” former Trump press secretary Sean Spicer told Fox News Digital.

“He values and understands the importance of this role in communicating his positions on policy, personnel and key issues, so I can’t imagine it not being someone currently in his orbit,” Spicer added.

Spicer, known for his short tenure as White House press secretary, withdrew his name for consideration a second time around.

Alina Habba, who serves as senior advisor to the attorney general for U.S. Attorneys, was viewed as a frontrunner after Trump won re-election and is once again being floated for the role.

TRUMP SAYS KAROLINE LEAVITT WILL LEAVE WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY ROLE, BECOME OUTSIDE ADVISOR

At the time, Habba said she was “flattered” by the consideration but believed she would “be better served in other capacities.”

She then served three months as counselor to the president before leaving Washington, D.C., for a controversial and turbulent position as interim attorney for the District of New Jersey. After her appointment was deemed unconstitutional, she resigned and was made senior advisor to the attorney general for United States Attorneys.

Habba, who was Trump’s personal attorney and a high-profile surrogate on the 2024 campaign trail, was the early favorite on Kalshi to replace the press secretary but now ranks third behind conservative political commentator Scott Jennings and Leavitt’s deputy, Anna Kelly.

Trump’s principal deputy press secretary has been seen in an outward facing role. Kelly filled in for Leavitt in media hits while Leavitt was on maternity leave but has yet to take the podium for a briefing.

Jennings, a CNN contributor and former aide to President George W. Bush, was also reportedly considered for the press secretary role when Trump retook office in 2024 before he selected Leavitt. Trump has touted Jennings’ recent book and has referred to him as a “patriot” who “gets it.”

TRUMP’S DC LAW-AND-ORDER BLITZ MARKS ONE YEAR WITH EYE-POPPING HAUL OF SUSPECTS

Trump’s senior advisor, Stephen Miller, and his wife, Katie Miller, have been floated on social media as potential replacements.

Stephen was asked Wednesday for his thoughts on his wife, former Vice President Mike Pence’s press secretary and communications director, filling Leavitt’s role. In lieu of commenting, he shot a smile in the direction of the questioner.

White House communication director Stephen Cheung is one of Trump’s most forceful defenders, wielding significant influence but largely operating behind the scenes.

Other names floated as potential contenders include Breitbart’s Washington Bureau Chief Matthew Boyle and former White House deputy chief of staff Taylor Budowich.

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Leavitt is Trump’s second-longest-serving press secretary with 19 months in the role. She comes in second to first-term press secretary and now Arkansas Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders’ 23-month tenure.

After Huckabee’s departure, Stephanie Grisham stepped into the role for nine months but was famous for not holding a single press briefing during that time. She was eventually replaced with Kayleigh McEnany, who served through the end of Trump’s first term.

Mark Lynch has endorsed Rep. Ralph Norman, R-S.C., the runner-up in South Carolina‘s special Republican U.S. Senate primary, who will face first-place finisher Sen. Darline Graham, R-S.C., in a head-to-head runoff.

Graham finished first in the Aug. 11 primary, with Norman advancing in second place. The runoff is scheduled for Aug. 25.

Lynch — who finished second in the South Carolina Republican U.S. Senate primary that Sen. Lindsey Graham won in June — placed fifth in the special Republican U.S. Senate primary contest.

“I’m honored to receive Mark Lynch’s support and endorsement in my race for U.S. Senate!” Norman declared in a Wednesday post on X.

SOUTH CAROLINA GOP SENATE SHOWDOWN HEADS TO RUNOFF IN RACE TO SUCCEED LINDSEY GRAHAM

The post also included a statement, apparently from Lynch, stating, “I am proud to endorse Ralph Norman for the United States Senate. Our country needs someone who will put America First, and the people of South Carolina have shown they are ready for a businessman and someone with a proven conservative record who will be their voice in Washington, D.C.”

Last month, South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster appointed Darline Graham, the sister of the late Sen. Lindsey Graham, to serve the remainder of her brother’s Senate term — and President Donald Trump is backing her for election.

DARLINE GRAHAM DETAILS HOW SHE’D FORGE OWN PATH IN SENATE WHILE CARRYING ON BROTHER LINDSEY’S LEGACY

National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC) Chairman Sen. Tim Scott, R-S.C., backed Graham after she placed first in the special GOP U.S. Senate primary this week.

“If I were going to endorse in the South Carolina GOP Senate primary, I wanted to do so with confidence. After watching Darline Graham in the Senate and on the campaign trail, I’m confident she’s the real deal. Her first-place finish last night was remarkable, but not surprising. She is a conservative stalwart, a hard worker, and represents our beloved state with class, humility, and dignity,” Scott wrote in a Wednesday post on X.

REP RALPH NORMAN ENTERS SOUTH CAROLINA SENATE RACE DESPITE TRUMP’S ENDORSEMENT OF DARLINE GRAHAM

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“I know she is making her brother proud, but Darline has already proven to be her own person: focused on pocketbook issues, defending our South Carolina values, and delivering for the people she represents. Her priorities are our priorities. I voted for Darline in yesterday’s primary, and I’ll vote for her again in the runoff. I’m proud to endorse Darline Graham for the U.S. Senate, and I encourage South Carolina Republicans across our state to join me in voting for her in the runoff,” Scott added.

Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas said his views on race and politics have led critics to question his Blackness.

“I mean, how stupid is that? Look at me,” Thomas said, grabbing his arm. “You know, then they say things like, ‘Oh, black is a state of mind.’”

Thomas made the remarks during a Hoover Institution conversation with Peter Robinson that included a discussion about the role of Black Americans in politics. The conservative justice reflected on how economist Thomas Sowell, a Black conservative, helped transform his thinking on race and politics and gave him the confidence to challenge prevailing expectations about Black Americans’ political views.

CLARENCE THOMAS WARNS AMERICA: LIBERTY DIES WHEN WE CHOOSE COMFORT OVER COURAGE

Thomas said that as a young man, he felt pressure to embrace certain political beliefs because he was Black and faced resistance when he began questioning them.

“You have these views, you have these instincts, but you are getting inputs from the media, from the politicians, the people who have the megaphone, the people who have the loudest voices, that tells you you’re wrong, that tells you you’re bad, that there’s something awful about you,” Thomas said.

While at Yale Law School, Thomas said he bucked the push for school busing, questioning why Black families would want their children sent across town to unfamiliar schools and neighborhoods.

“I remember saying those things at Yale and people — the bottom line was, well, you shouldn’t believe that because you’re black,” Thomas said.

KEY TRUMP AGENCY PUTS TOP UNIVERSITIES IN CROSSHAIRS OVER ALLEGED RACE-BASED DORM PROGRAMS

Thomas argued there was often a disconnect between positions championed by Black political leaders and the views of ordinary Black Americans, pointing to debates over school busing and racial preferences.

“If you ask the leaders, they thought one thing. If you ask the people, they thought another,” Thomas said.

It was Sowell’s work, Thomas said, that helped him make sense of views he had already begun developing on his own.

A friend introduced Thomas to Sowell’s Race and Economics, which Thomas said helped free him from the isolation he had felt over his own views.

THE WELFARE STATE BROKE BLACK FAMILIES. WORK CAN HELP RESTORE THE DREAM

“It was literally like a drink of water,” Thomas said. “Here’s someone who’s thought it through and it makes sense. What your instincts were have been now demonstrated in a logical, analytical way. You’re not alone.” He later sought out a friendship with Sowell.

But Thomas had not always embraced Sowell’s ideas.

As a Yale student in 1972, Thomas said he “reflexively” rejected Sowell’s Black Education: Myths and Tragedies, believing that “no black man” should think that way.

Thomas said Sowell’s example helped give him the confidence to voice his own beliefs even when doing so brought criticism.

THOMAS LEAVES NOTHING LEFT UNSAID ON RACIAL GERRYMANDERING DECISION: ‘GO FURTHER’

“If they can prove you wrong, fine,” Thomas said. “But if they call you names or say you’re not black, I mean, how stupid is that? Look at me.”

He tied those attacks to what he described as a broader pressure on Black Americans to conform to certain views.

“There’s this overriding public view that you’re not supposed to think this way, therefore you’re not black, therefore you’re discredited,” Thomas said. “Nothing you say matters.”

But for Thomas, the biggest lesson he took from Sowell was to think for himself.

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“He always says what he thinks, but he never tells you to say what he wants you to think,” Thomas said of Sowell. “That is yours.”

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“There seems to be this overwhelming pressure for us to agree with the prevailing notions which I consider almost illusory in a sense,” Thomas said.

The high-stakes battle for the ideological future of the Democratic Party moves to Florida next week, before heading to New England early next month, as the 2026 primary season wraps up.

After impactful left-wing victories this month by Michigan’s Abdul El-Sayed and Minnesota Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan in crucial Democratic Senate primaries, and a searing setback for the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA), with the downing of DSA member Francesca Hong in Wisconsin’s Democratic gubernatorial primary, the next faceoff in the party’s civil war comes Tuesday in Florida.

That’s where DSA endorsed Oliver Larkin is challenging more moderate Democratic Rep. Jared Moskowitz in a key congressional swing district that’s among roughly two dozen House seats that will determine if Republicans hold onto their razor-thin majority in the midterm elections.

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Two weeks later, the party’s divisions return to a statewide stage, as longtime progressive leader Sen. Ed Markey of Massachusetts is facing a serious primary challenge from more moderate Democratic Rep. Seth Moulton.

A left-versus-center battle is brewing a week later in neighboring New Hampshire, in the party’s Senate primary for a crucial battleground seat Democrats must hold in the midterm elections in order to win back the chamber’s majority from the GOP.

Progressives scored their biggest victory to date a week ago, when El-Sayed narrowly edged moderate Rep. Haley Stevens to capture the party’s Senate nomination in the Great Lakes battleground, in the race to succeed retiring Democratic Sen. Gary Peters.

DEMOCRATIC GROUP LAUNCHES $15 MILLION WAR ON DEMOCRATIC SOCIALISTS: ‘MORTAL DANGER’

On Tuesday, Flanagan downed moderate Democratic Rep. Angie Craig by roughly 20 points, to grab the party’s nomination in blue-leaning but competitive Minnesota, in the race to succeed another retiring Democrat, Sen. Tina Smith.

Both El-Sayed and Flanagan were backed by top far-left leaders, including progressive champion Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont.

But in Wisconsin’s Democratic gubernatorial showdown, Hong was upset by a razor-thin margin by Milwaukee County Executive David Crowley, who was backed by retiring Democratic Gov. Tony Evers.

Evers and Crowley, pointing to Hong’s past controversial comments on defunding the police and criticizing Thanksgiving, argued that a Hong primary victory would have boosted GOP nominee Rep. Tom Tiffany’s chances of flipping the Wisconsin governor’s mansion.

With the primary calendar winding down, here’s a closer look at the final nomination faceoffs that are dividing Democrats and giving Republicans plenty of ammunition to use in the midterms.

Florida

The 33-year-old Larkin, a veteran of Sanders’ 2016 Democratic presidential campaign, is also the only DSA-endorsed House candidate running in a crucial congressional swing district.

Larkin says he supports abolishing the U.S. Senate, arguing in a Fox News interview that it’s an “undemocratic institution.”

He agreed with socialist New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu should have been arrested during his recent trip to the U.S., and refers to Israel’s ruling coalition as a “religious supremacist regime.”

Moskowitz is a strong and vocal supporter of Israel, who has advocated for robust U.S. military and security assistance.

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The two-term federal lawmaker and former state representative and Florida FEMA director is running for re-election in the state’s newly redrawn 25th Congressional District, a Broward County-anchored seat in the southeastern corner of the red-leaning state.

Moskowitz, who enjoys establishment backing from the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, is also supported by AIPAC, a major-Israel aligned political group. Larkin enjoys plenty of support from top far-left leaders, including controversial political streamer Hasan Piker. Moskowitz is the polling and fundraising lead over Larkin heading into the primary.

Massachusetts

Markey is backed by a slew of progressive politicians and groups, including Sanders and Sen. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts, as well as fellow Bay Stater Rep. Ayanna Pressley, a member of the far-left Squad.

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Moulton is supported by a smaller group of more moderate Democratic lawmakers and groups.

While the primary is partially viewed as a progressive versus moderate showdown, the Democratic Party’s generational showdown is very much at play in this contest.

The 80-year-old Markey has served in Congress for half a century, first in the House and since 2013 in the Senate. The 47-year-old Moulton has repeatedly emphasized it’s time for a new generation of leaders.

The push by Democrats for generational change was fueled two years ago by then-81-year-old President Joe Biden’s exit from the presidential race amid questions over his physical and mental stamina following a disastrous debate performance against President Donald Trump.

A similar generational fight is being waged in the Democratic primary in Massachusetts’ 8th Congressional District. That’s where 71-year-old Rep. Stephen Lynch, who has served in the House for a quarter-century, is being primary challenged by 39-year-old Patrick Roath.

New Hampshire

The action moves north a week later to neighboring New Hampshire, where longtime Democratic Sen. Jeanne Shaheen, the first woman in the nation’s history elected governor and to the Senate, is retiring.

Four-term Rep. Chris Pappas is the front-runner for the Democratic nomination, and enjoys plenty of establishment backing, including from Shaheen and the Granite State’s other Democrat in the chamber, Sen. Maggie Hassan.

Pappas is the clear polling and fundraising leader in a race that also includes medical scientist Karishma Manzur, who is backed by a handful of progressive groups.

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A backer of Israel, Pappas has been blasted over the support he’s receiving from AIPAC by Manzur, who argues Israeli has committed “genocide” against Palestinians in its war with Hamas in Gaza.

Fox News’ Matthew Donnell contributed to this report.

EXCLUSIVE: President Donald Trump will travel with top federal law enforcement brass to Nassau County, New York, on Friday to rally with local police and tout what his office describes as a historic drop in violent crime nationwide, Fox News Digital has learned.

Trump, along with newly-confirmed Attorney General Todd Blanche and FBI Director Kash Patel, are scheduled to host the event at the Nassau County Police Academy, a top-notch 89,000-square-foot advanced training and intelligence center for police on Long Island.

While there, the 47th president is expected to give a rundown on the largest year-to-year decrease in violent crime since the FBI began recording crime statistics in 1936.

FBI REPORTS LARGEST DROP IN VIOLENT CRIME AND MURDER SINCE 1937 AS HOMICIDES FALL MORE THAN 18%

He plans to tout an estimated 18.1% drop in murder and non-negligent manslaughter, an 18.5% drop in robberies, a 7.6% decrease in rapes and a 7.2% decline in aggravated assault in 2025.

Further, Trump will announce that burglaries dropped by an estimated 15.8%, while larceny decreased by 9.8% and motor vehicle theft declined by 22.7%.

The statistics come from the FBI’s soon-to-be released 2025 Crime Statistics Report. Trump is expected to highlight for the officers his law and order policies that he says have led to safer neighborhoods and fewer crime victims.

TRUMP’S DC LAW-AND-ORDER BLITZ MARKS ONE YEAR WITH EYE-POPPING HAUL OF SUSPECTS

“President Trump will visit the Nassau County Police Academy to do a rally with cops. President Trump promised to make America safe again and the data proves he has done just that,” White House spokeswoman Lauren Bis told Fox News Digital.

“Unlike Defund-the-Police Democrats, President Trump will always stand with our law enforcement officers and deliver safer American neighborhoods,” she added, noting the far-left movement’s push to get rid of law enforcement entirely.

It’s been a banner week for the Trump administration in the way of successful crime reduction announcements.

Tuesday marked one year since Trump’s bold deployment of the National Guard to Washington, D.C. in an effort to curb lawlessness in the nation’s capital, dubbed the Safe and Beautiful initiative.

Patel said that D.C. is safer than it has been in decades thanks to the deployment and a surge of federal authorities in the city.

KASH PATEL TOUTS FBI ‘FULL-THROTTLE MISSION’ AFTER OPERATION SPRING CLEANING YIELDS 615 INDICTMENTS/COMPLAINTS

“Last summer, President Trump made the historic decision to surge federal resources to Washington D.C. to crack down on crime – and thanks to his brilliant leadership, the work of brave FBI agents and our law enforcement partners, and the support of our Justice Department, our nation’s capital is now safer than it’s been in decades,” FBI Director Kash Patel told Fox News Digital.

He said that the FBI, in conjunction with law enforcement partners, made 6,000 arrests, nearly 2,000 drug seizures and over 1,300 illegal firearm seizures over the year-long span.

The federal resources will remain in D.C. for the foreseeable future, Patel said.

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“The greatest country on earth should have a capital city reflecting it — where American taxpayers can live, visit, and petition their government without fear of violent crime.”

Republicans are targeting Democratic Senate nominee Troy Jackson after a newly resurfaced 1988 police record detailed accusations that he assaulted a man and pushed his longtime partner during a late-night confrontation in Fort Kent, Maine.

Jackson, a one-time logger and a former state Senate president, was chosen a couple of weeks ago by Maine Democrats to replace embattled oysterman Graham Platner, who won the June Democratic Senate nomination in a landslide before imploding and dropping out of the race last month amid rape allegations that he denied.

Jackson is challenging longtime Republican Sen. Susan Collins in a high-stakes race that’s among a dozen that will determine if the GOP holds onto its slim Senate majority.

MAINE DEMOCRATS CROWN TROY JACKSON AS PLATNER REPLACEMENT FACES INTENSE SCRUTINY

Collins is the only GOP incumbent running for re-election in a state President Donald Trump lost in the 2024 election. A Fox News poll in Maine released on Wednesday indicated Jackson holding a slight two-point edge over Collins, which was within the survey’s sampling error.

“Troy Jackson is Graham Platner 2.0: Violent and unhinged,” the Republican National Committee charged in a social media post.

Meanwhile, the National Republican Senatorial Committee, referring to Senate Democratic Leader Sen. Chuck Schumer and Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee chair Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, wrote on X, “Is this incredibly disturbing report of violence and abuse not enough for you to drop Troy Jackson?”

WHAT THE NEW FOX NEWS POLL IN MAINE’S CRUCIAL SENATE RACE SHOWS

The Bangor Daily News reported that the police report accused Jackson of assaulting another man during a late-night brawl on March 12, 1988.

The brawl was over Jackson’s longtime partner Lana Pelletier, who, according to records, is also his second cousin. Jackson and Pelletier share two adult children.

The police report indicates that Pelletier told officers at the time that Jackson “pushed her around,” a statement she now denies making.

According to the report, the then-19-year-old Jackson went to a home in Fort Kent, Maine around 2 a.m.

After the occupant of the house told Jackson to go away, the report says the future state lawmaker “kicked the door in” and grabbed his rival by the throat before punching him in the face, causing the victim’s glasses to leave a cut. The report added that a friend broke up the ensuing fight.

DEMOCRATS STAND BY JACKSON AFTER LATEST CONTROVERSY

Jackson said in a statement obtained by Fox News Digital, “Nearly forty years ago, when I was 19 years old, I got into a fight with another man. I took responsibility for it then, and I take responsibility for it now.”

“But let me be clear: I have never been violent with my partner Lana, or any other woman. This happened nearly four decades ago, and I assure Mainers this incident in no way reflects the man I am today or the life I’ve led in the years since,” the Democratic Senate nominee added.

Pelletier told Fox News Digital in a statement, “I do not remember making the statements attributed to me and they are not accurate. This is the first time I have seen this report from 40 years ago. Troy and I have built a life and family together and I know the person he has been through the decades since, both as a caring partner and father.”

“I understand Maine voters want to learn about Troy as he seeks to represent them but personal attacks on my family are unacceptable,” she added. “In the 40 years since he made a mistake as a 19-year-old kid, Troy has grown to be a passionate advocate for Mainers and dedicated his life to making things better for our state while Susan Collins has been in Washington enriching herself at our expense.”

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Meanwhile, the Jackson campaign told Fox News Digital that Troy “acknowledges going to the residence and getting into a physical confrontation with another man. The case was resolved with a $50 fine.”

On Thursday, the conservative-leaning Maine Wire reported that a man from Allagash, Maine, who says he’s known Jackson for decades alleged that he witnessed Jackson strike Pelletier, in a separate incident, years ago.

Jackson, who hails from the remote northern tip of Maine, is a one-time conservative Republican who became a Democrat over two decades ago.

As he quickly became the front-runner in the abbreviated race to replace Platner, he faced a slew of reports over his alleged temper and workplace conduct, as well as reported claims of mortgage improprieties and other potential liabilities, including his past strict anti-abortion stance.

Asked by Fox News Digital last month about any vetting concerns, Jackson said, “I think a lot of this obviously is Sen. Collins trying to make sure she win can the election on a really bad record. But, for me, I’ve been in the legislature for 20 years. I do believe I’ve been vetted, I’ve been tested. People know exactly what I’m fighting for. I have their back. And they know they can trust me.”

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The scrutiny and negative reports are raising concerns by some in the party that Democrats landed another unvetted nominee after the Platner implosion.

“This is a bit of a rocket vetting process,” a Democratic strategist who works on Senate races who asked to remain anonymous to speak more freely, told Fox News Digital. “Maine Democrats have made their choice, and they’re just going to have to ride with it.”

The NRSC, in a series of social media posts directed at Democratic senators and Senate nominees who have endorsed Jackson since he landed the nomination, ask if those politicians will “call on Troy Jackson to drop out?”

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Jackson, who unsuccessfully ran for the Democratic gubernatorial nomination, campaigned alongside Platner during the primary. And he quickly made the case that he was the best equipped candidate to grab the mantle of the progressive and populist movement that had backed Platner.

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Similar to Platner, Jackson is running on a platform aimed at working-class voters. He backs raising taxes on billionaires, the universal healthcare system known as “Medicare-for-all,” abolishing U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), and he opposes military aid to Israel at a time Democrats are increasingly divided on support for America’s longtime Middle East ally.

Three detransitioners claim they were pressured by doctors and hospitals when they were young to pursue gender transition, including medical treatment in two cases while they were minors, according to a new HHS-commissioned report.

The stories of Clementine Breen, Soren Aldaco and Luke Healy were featured in the Department of Health and Human Services’ “Wolves in White Coats: How Doctors and Hospitals Pushed and Profited from the Fraud of “Gender Medicine” report released on Thursday. The HHS-commissioned report alleges financial incentives encouraged hospitals and doctors to provide gender transition treatments and identifies insurance billing practices that it says may be improper or warrant further investigation.

Breen was only 12 years old and struggling with a changing adolescent body and unresolved trauma from earlier sexual abuse when the then-minor learned about gender transition online. Breen alleges, according to the HHS report, that doctors at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles told Breen’s parents the preteen was “100% trans” and at high risk of suicide without medical intervention.

According to the report, Breen began puberty blockers at 12, testosterone at 13 and underwent a double mastectomy at 14.

HHS OFFICIAL WARNS OF IRREVERSIBLE RISKS AS TRUMP ADMIN RESTRICTS FUNDING FOR YOUTH GENDER PROCEDURES

Breen’s mental health later deteriorated, and the teen stopped taking testosterone at 18 after therapy led Breen to conclude that the distress surrounding gender identity was connected to earlier trauma, according to the report. Breen reported experiencing pain and irregular menstrual cycles and requiring estrogen.

When Breen later sought breast reconstruction, doctors questioned the teen’s mental stability, and some stopped responding, according to the report.

“She did not face this same scrutiny when seeking a mastectomy at 14,” the report states. HHS also said Breen discovered letters in the medical record claiming a lifelong history of gender dysphoria.

Now studying theater at UCLA, Breen said in the report that the treatments and surgery continue to have physical consequences.

“How can a child consent to losing fertility or the ability to breastfeed if no one checks whether she even understand what that means?” Breen said.

Aldaco said gender-related distress emerged during adolescence and that online communities framed gender transition as the “appropriate response” to those feelings, according to the report.

After talking to a doctor, Aldaco was prescribed testosterone with several specialists treating the then-teen for gender dysphoria, and the report says Aldaco gave no indication that providers considered alternative treatment options outside what it calls a “sex rejection” model.

Aldaco began taking testosterone before receiving a double mastectomy to remove breast tissue. Aldaco then began suffering severe complications after surgery, causing pain the young person said “I don’t think I’ll ever forget.”

“Despite these negative developments, providers did not initiate a structured reassessment of her treatment plan,” the report says, adding that the support received after treatments was insufficient compared to the systems that pushed the life-altering decisions.

“Soren’s experience reflects the imbalance of care for cases like hers,” the report reads. “While her pathway into sex rejection medicalization involved coordinated referrals, approvals, and interventions across multiple providers, the pathway out involved no comparable system of support.”

Healy was just 10 years old when first learning of an online community where adults discussed transgender identities, according to the HHS report.

Within three years, Healy says he came to identify as a girl. After discussing the issue with his parents, Healy was taken to a counselor to talk about it.

“The only people who seriously asked what might have caused his distress were his parents,” the report reads. “Meanwhile, institutional figures … treated his new identity as settled and moved quickly to affirm it.”

“Luke’s parents refused to consent to puberty blockers or hormones while he was still a minor,” the report added. “Luke now describes their refusal as one of the bravest things they ever did.”

Still wanting to be a girl at 18, Healy began pursuing transitioning treatments.

Healy started with estrogen and began receiving consultations for surgical treatments before slowly starting to realize that the treatments were not easing psychological stress.

JD VANCE CALLS ON DOJ TO PROSECUTE ALLEGED FRAUD IN TEEN TRANSGENDER TREATMENT

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“Each intervention led to pressure for further intervention,” the report reads. “In his view, the model was built around escalation rather than resolution.”

Healy eventually began to question the procedures doctors were recommending.

“One doctor quoted him approximately $200,000 for facial feminization surgery. Another, he says, spoke to him like a car salesman while encouraging tracheal shave,” the report said. “Luke came to realize he was being sold procedures, not psychological help.”

Rather than continuing the efforts to become a girl, Healy focused on battling the substance abuse problems developed during the process, quitting drinking and drugs.

“He recognized the same obsessive, destructive pattern in gender ideology that he had seen in addiction,” the report reads.

WASHINGTON — The World War II Memorial on the National Mall was vandalized Thursday, and a fountain was found overflowing with bubbles, the latest incident in which prominent monuments have been targeted in the nation’s capital.

U.S. Park Police were on site and blocked off the area.

“Clean hands, dirty money,” letters in bright pink spray paint said.

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“The vandalism that occurred is an utter disgrace and will not be tolerated,” a Department of the Interior spokesperson told Fox News Digital. 

“Our U.S. Park Police are on the scene, and the investigation is ongoing. The public should know we will find the person responsible for this disgusting act.”

The agency noted that the memorial honors the armed forces and the more than 400,000 Americans who died fighting in World War II.

WATCH: TRUMP REVEALS FLASHY NEW COLOR FOR NATIONAL MALL’S REFLECTING POOL MAKEOVER

An Army veteran who arrived at the memorial told Fox News Digital she was looking forward to seeing it and was “offended” by the act of vandalism.

“It just makes me absolutely irate,” Debra Mortensen said. “I was offended because people fought and died for our country, and it’s dishonoring our country and all we’ve been through.”

Fox News Digital has reached out to the U.S. Park Police and the National Park Service. No information about a potential suspect was released.

In 2016, the memorial was vandalized by someone protesting the controversial Dakota Access Pipeline. A vandal spray-painted the North Dakota section of the memorial with the phrase “#NoDAPL.”

The memorial was closed for several months earlier this year for a $4 million renovation project upgrading the fountains and lighting, FOX DC reported. It reopened in May.

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In addition to the war memorial, other monuments on the National Mall have been targeted recently. 

In June, separate red markings of “8647,” a political slogan and protest symbol used against President Donald Trump, were found on the Washington Monument, and damage was reported at the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool.

Financial unease and voter concerns over Republican incumbent Senator Jon Husted’s ties to the president are driving the dynamics in the Ohio Senate contest between Husted and former Democratic Senator Sherrod Brown.

Brown seeks to regain his Senate seat by challenging Husted, who was appointed in 2025 after JD Vance became vice president. Brown narrowly lost his seat to Bernie Moreno in 2024.

Underpinning the electorate’s mood is frustration with the cost of living. A new Fox News survey of Ohio registered voters finds inflation dominates their priorities, with 40% saying it is their top issue, far outranking healthcare, immigration, and political divisions.

In 2020, 28% of Ohioans described their family’s financial situation as “falling behind.” Now, that’s up to 38% — and those voters favor Brown by 40 points.

Donald Trump won Ohio by 11 points in 2024. Still, a vulnerability for Husted is his connection to Trump, as 51% are concerned that he’s too close to the president. That’s up 5 points from 46% who felt that way about Husted in June. Plus, fewer voters, 44%, are worried Brown is too closely tied to the Democratic Party establishment.

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These headwinds are directly fracturing party lines, with Republican defections to Brown undercutting Husted’s built-in advantage in a state where more voters identify as Republican than Democrat.

While 87% of Republicans favor Husted, fully 97% of Democrats back Brown. The Democrat also draws 11% crossover support from Republicans overall and 25% among non-MAGA Republicans. Two-thirds of independents also favor Brown.

All those factors help Brown remain 8 points ahead of Husted in the race for Ohio’s Senate seat, 53% to 45%, a margin unchanged since June.

FOX NEWS POLL: GOP DIVISIONS SHAPE TEXAS SENATE RACE

Brown’s lead expands to 10 points (54-44%) among those who rate their certainty to vote as a 10 out of 10, and to 15 points (57-42%) among those saying they are extremely motivated to vote.

In addition, those most motivated to turn out this year — liberals, voters with a college degree, and supporters of the Democratic Socialists of America — prefer their former Senator.

Brown has significant advantages among liberals (+88 points), urban voters (+37), those in union households (+31), voters under age 45 (+17), women (+16), and college graduates (+9).

Husted is favored among conservatives (+65 points), White evangelical Christians (+42), White men without a college degree (+17), rural residents (+12), and married voters (+6).

Meanwhile, Brown has the most positive personal rating of the candidates tested (51% favorable, 47% unfavorable), while ratings for Husted are 10 percentage points underwater (43% favorable, 53% unfavorable).

Part of Brown’s advantage is driven by affinity, as 67% of his supporters say their vote is mainly for him rather than in opposition to Husted. Among those favoring Husted, 58% say they are motivated to vote for him, not against Brown.

Even so, the prospect of a shift is real, as one in five who are backing Brown and one in four supporting Husted say they could change their candidate preference before casting a ballot.

Dissatisfaction with the party organizations and national figures is widespread. Majorities of Ohioans hold unfavorable views of the Democratic Party (57%) and the Republican Party (54%), as well as Trump (56%), the MAGA movement (57%), and the Democratic Socialists of America (54%). Views of Vance are divided, 47% favorable and 50% unfavorable.

In the Ohio governor’s race, Republican Vivek Ramaswamy receives 50% to Democrat Amy Acton’s 48%. That’s a small shift since June, when Acton was ahead by 1 point.

Most supporters of both Acton (78%) and Ramaswamy (80%) have a high degree of certainty that they’ll stick with their candidate choice. 

Fourteen percent of those favoring Brown in the Senate contest cross party lines to back Ramaswamy for governor, while 6% of Husted supporters prefer Acton, the Democrat.

Views of Ramaswamy are divided: 46% favorable, 44% unfavorable, mostly unchanged since June. Forty-three percent have a favorable opinion of Acton, but her negative rating stands at 47%, up from 37% in June.

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Conducted August 6-10, 2026, under the joint direction of Beacon Research (D) and Shaw & Company Research (R), this Fox News Poll includes interviews with a sample of 1,008 Ohio registered voters randomly selected from a statewide voter file. Respondents spoke with live interviewers on landlines (78) and cellphones (694) or completed the survey online after receiving a text message (236). Results based on the full sample have a margin of sampling error of ± 3 percentage points. Sampling error for results among subgroups is higher. In addition to sampling error, question wording and order can influence results. Sources for developing weight targets include the most recent American Community Survey, Fox News Voter Analysis, and voter file data. Weights are generally applied to age, race, education, and area variables to ensure the demographics of respondents are representative of the registered voter population. Results among subgroups are only shown when the sample size is at least N=100. 

Fox News’ Victoria Balara contributed to this report.

Concerns are growing that foreign exporters are routing goods through third countries to evade U.S. tariffs, according to a new White House report released Thursday.

As well as China, Panama, Mexico and Colombia are among more than 40 countries identified as posing a high transshipment risk, together with Brazil, Argentina, Chile, Peru, Costa Rica and the Dominican Republic.

Transshipment can involve routing goods through an intermediary country before they enter the United States under a different country of origin, potentially qualifying for lower tariffs.

TOP TRUMP AGENCY PURGES OVER 20 SUSPECTED CHINA-LINKED PRODUCTS FROM FEDERAL MARKETPLACE

The 25-page report, titled “The Great Transshipment Scam,” was produced by the White House Office of Trade and Manufacturing Policy, which is led by trade adviser Peter Navarro.

The report says China offers the most developed historical example of transshipment.

Following the imposition of Section 301 tariffs on China in 2018, the direct U.S. trade deficit with China fell in 2019 and 2020.

“After their imposition, Chinese exporters increasingly routed goods through third countries,” the report says, with goods that previously moved directly from China to the United States instead being shipped through jurisdictions where limited assembly, finishing, repackaging, relabeling or documentation changes could create the appearance of a different national origin.

PETER NAVARRO: TRUMP’S ARTEMIS VISION IS NOW FLYING — AND CHINA IS PAYING ATTENTION

“Over time, these practices contributed to the development of a global network of production hubs, logistics platforms, free-trade zones, bonded warehouses, processing corridors, and re-export centers,” the report said of the transshipment practice.

The report also estimates tariff-avoiding transshipment costs the U.S. Treasury between $19 billion and $26 billion in revenue annually.

“The Trump administration has taken steps to strengthen transshipment enforcement.”

“For years, the great transshipment scam has let communist China launder its exports,” Navarro said, according to The Associated Press.

TRUMP HEADS TO BEIJING FOR HIGH-STAKES XI TALKS AS TAIWAN TENSIONS, TRADE DISPUTES TEST US STRENGTH

Navarro also said countries such as India could also use transshipment to avoid tariffs and that new trade frameworks pursued by the Trump administration will include provisions to penalize trading partners that engage in the practice.

The report cites government and private-sector estimates putting the value of goods transshipped to avoid tariffs at roughly $34.2 billion to $303 billion annually.

Navarro said U.S. Customs and Border Protection has begun using artificial intelligence in a prototype program to detect transshipment. He also said importers found to have falsified a product’s origin can face tariffs applied retroactively for roughly a year.

The report comes ahead of a planned September visit to Washington by Chinese President Xi Jinping, following President Donald Trump’s visit to Beijing in May.

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Fox News Digital has reached out to the White House for comment.

Marco Rubio has a lot of jobs. Now, he has 68 more.

The White House gave the secretary of state a gold-framed collage for his 55th birthday featuring dozens of versions of the viral “Rubio realizing” meme that has transformed President Donald Trump’s top diplomat into everything from an Iranian ayatollah to an astronaut.

At the center of the 68-panel mosaic is the original, unaltered photograph of Rubio slumped on a couch in the Oval Office earlier this year, signed by Trump in gold ink with a presidential endorsement: “You are great.”

WHAT RUBIO’S RISE AS THE INTERNET’S ‘FIXER’ TELLS US ABOUT TODAY’S POLITICS

Around it is a resume that rivals Barbie’s.

There’s Rubio as Robocop, Rubio as an astronaut, Rubio as the White House Easter Bunny, Cardinal Rubio preparing for a papal conclave, Rubio bundled up as the leader of Greenland and one where Rubio holds up a sign that says, “Please stop making memes about me.”

The White House presented Rubio with the collage in May, but the gift only came to wider attention this week after Axios reporter Marc Caputo shared a photo of it on X.

While nearly 70 imaginary gigs may sound excessive, the joke lands particularly well for a Cabinet official who has already accumulated an unusually high number of real roles.

VANCE, CRUZ, HEAD TO IOWA ON 2026 MISSIONS AS 2028 GOP RACE TO SUCCEED TRUMP HEATS UP

Rubio serves as secretary of state and acting national security advisor and previously pulled double duty as acting archivist and acting administrator of the U.S. Agency for International Development.

The internet also appears to have decided Rubio could handle a few more.

The meme began with a decidedly more serious moment on Feb. 28, 2025, when Trump, Vice President JD Vance, Rubio and other administration officials met Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in the Oval Office.

A photograph from the contentious meeting captured Rubio sitting low on a couch, his hands interlocked and an expression on his face that the internet quickly interpreted as a man coming to an uncomfortable realization.

HOW MARCO RUBIO IS RIDING LAUGHTER AND MEMES TO SOCIAL MEDIA DOMINANCE

Then came the heavily-Photoshopped memes. As major jobs opened, in reality or otherwise, Rubio kept getting hired.

When Venezuela’s Nicolás Maduro was captured, meme Rubio appeared dressed to take over the country. When Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz announced he would not seek re-election, Rubio turned up in blaze orange hunting gear, shotgun included.

Rubio has acknowledged he wasn’t initially thrilled with the photograph that launched it all.

“The meme thing, you know, was interesting, ’cause when it first came out, I hated that picture,” Rubio recently told Lara Trump on Fox News’ “My View.”

MARCO RUBIO SPOTTED IN NIKE TRACKSUIT ABOARD AIR FORCE ONE DURING TRIP TO CHINA, IGNITING MEMES ONLINE

Rubio explained that the Oval Office couch was partly to blame.

“If you don’t have a pillow behind your back, you kinda sink,” he said.

But the secretary of state eventually surrendered to the court of public opinion.

“And then it turned into this other thing, and it was fine. And it’s funny,” Rubio said.

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He also revealed that Scavino had turned the online frenzy into something framed forever.

“Dan Scavino made a nice board for me,” Rubio said. “And even since he made that board, we had to update it.”

Which raises an obvious problem. Rubio may already need a bigger frame.

The White House and the State Department did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s requests for comment.

Gun rights advocates are wasting little time putting a “huge” federal court victory into action after a judge struck down decades-old firearms restrictions as unconstitutional.

Gun Owners of America (GOA) and Silencer Shop, a federal firearms licensee covered by the ruling linked to the sale and transfer of silencers, notified the Trump administration Thursday they planned to begin transferring gun silencers without going through the National Firearms Act registration and approval process that has governed such transactions for decades.

Just after midnight Thursday, two gun owners walked out of a Texas firearms dealer with silencers without first completing the federal registration and approval process that has governed such transfers for generations, according to Gun Owners of America. 

INSIDE TRUMP’S UNPRECEDENTED BATTLE PLAN TO EXPAND SECOND AMENDMENT RIGHTS THROUGH JUSTICE DEPARTMENT

GOA said Brandon Herrera and Texas state Rep. Wes Virdell acquired the suppressors from Silencer Shop in Leander, Texas, in what the gun rights group called the first lawful transfers without National Firearms Act registration since the law was enacted in 1934.

“This is the first time in 92 years that any gun owner has been able to do this,” Aidan Johnston, Gun Owners of America’s director of federal affairs, told Fox News Digital in an interview. 

“Previously, this would have been punishable by up to 10 years in federal prison and a $250,000 fine per violation. So, this was a big federal law. We took a really big bite out of it.”

Rep. Andrew Clyde, R-Ga., who attended the midnight transfers and helped write the legislation that set the stage for the ruling, called it “literally, the greatest Second Amendment win in the history of our country,” adding that it marked “a monumental day for the country and a monumental day for the Second Amendment.”

The ruling also appears poised to stand without a challenge from the federal government. Clyde said Wednesday he had received confirmation from the Trump administration that the Justice Department would not appeal the decision.

“GOA fought to crush the NFA’s unconstitutional restrictions through the One Big Beautiful Bill, but we didn’t stop there. We promised to keep fighting until these restrictions were gone, and now our members are putting the historic victory into action,” said Erich Pratt, senior vice president of Gun Owners of America. 

“The era of federal registration for constitutionally protected arms must end.”

CLARENCE THOMAS’ CONSTITUTIONAL ARGUMENT AGAINST FEDERAL GUN LAW GETS FIRST MAJOR COURT TEST

The legal fight traces back to Republicans’ 2025 reconciliation package, which initially included broader efforts to roll back National Firearms Act restrictions on suppressors and short-barreled firearms. 

After the Senate parliamentarian blocked portions of the deregulation push under reconciliation rules, the final One Big Beautiful Bill Act signed by President Donald Trump instead reduced the NFA’s longstanding making and transfer taxes to $0 for suppressors, short-barreled rifles, short-barreled shotguns and certain other weapons, effective Jan. 1, 2026.

Gun rights groups seized on that change almost immediately. The same day Trump signed the law, Gun Owners of America, the Silencer Shop Foundation and other plaintiffs sued the federal government, arguing the NFA’s registration and approval requirements could no longer constitutionally stand for weapons on which Congress had eliminated the underlying tax. Fifteen states later joined the challenge. 

The Justice Department countered that the remaining regulations could still be supported by other NFA taxes and Congress’ authority over interstate commerce.

“Congress didn’t fully repeal the law. They just reduced this 1934 tax from $200 to $0,” Johnston told Fox News Digital. “And I think all of us could understand there’s no such thing as a $0 tax. It doesn’t raise any revenue. It’s not a tax.”

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U.S. District Judge James Wesley Hendrix, a Trump appointee, sided with the challengers Aug. 5, ruling that once Congress eliminated the making and transfer taxes, the regulations that had existed to help collect those taxes lost their constitutional footing. Hendrix permanently blocked federal officials from enforcing the challenged requirements against the plaintiffs and, where applicable, their members and customers, while declining to issue a nationwide injunction. 

However, while the plaintiffs had separately argued that the NFA’s registration and approval requirements violated the Second Amendment, Hendrix said that “Efforts to render the NFA constitutional must come from Congress, not this Court.”

The 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals restored key parts of Texas’ election law Wednesday, handing the state a major win after repeatedly reversing the lower court during a five-year legal fight.

The 11-page ruling overturned a lower court decision that blocked nine parts of Senate Bill 1, a 2021 law that changed Texas’ rules for mail-in voting and voter assistance.

The appeals court pointed to its repeated reversals in the case, noting that it has “reversed the district court on everything” during roughly five years of litigation.

JUDGE HANDS TRUMP MAIL-BALLOT WIN FOR NOW AS DEMOCRATS’ NEXT MOVE LOOMS

“The bulk of the plaintiffs’ claims fail for lack of standing. One fails on the merits. But none justifies interference with the State Legislature’s efforts to prevent voter fraud and to protect election integrity,” Judge Andrew Oldham wrote in the opinion.

The restored rules include requirements for Texans voting by mail to provide an identification number or Social Security number on ballot applications and for that information to match state records. The law also lays out a process for voters to fix defective ballots and requires voters and people helping them fill out ballots to sign an oath stating they did not coerce the voter.

A district judge blocked the rules in March 2025 after several lawsuits challenging the law over accessibility concerns were combined. The plaintiffs argued the requirements made voting too difficult for some voters with disabilities and violated the Americans with Disabilities Act.

Texas allows several groups to vote by mail, including voters who are 65 or older and those who qualify because of a disability.

MAGA TRIUMPH: TRUMP ALLY KEN PAXTON DEFEATS JOHN CORNYN IN BITTER TEXAS GOP PRIMARY WAR

The appeals court found the groups did not have legal standing to bring most of their challenges and rejected another challenge outright.

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, a defendant in the lawsuit, celebrated the ruling on social media, calling it a “major victory.”

Fox News Digital reached out to attorneys and organizations representing the plaintiffs for comment.

Texas lawmakers passed Senate Bill 1 in 2021 after a contentious fight over election rules. The law targeted in part voting initiatives Harris County used during the COVID-19 pandemic. Democratic lawmakers, civil rights organizations and voting advocacy groups opposed the measure, and Texas House Democrats broke quorum in an unsuccessful attempt to stop it.

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The appeals court also noted that the share of mail-in ballot applications or ballots rejected because of identification-number errors fell from 11% to 2.7% after the law took effect.