Donald Trump Poll News

This week’s vote entirely along party lines by the Republican-controlled House of Representatives to formally launch an impeachment inquiry into President Biden immediately impacted the president’s 2024 re-election campaign.

A fundraising email sent hours later by Vice President Kamala Harris instantly caught fire.

A source familiar with the Biden re-election team’s thinking told Fox News that the email was the most lucrative that has been sent so far this month.

“It was the best performing fundraising email the vice president has signed this cycle,” the source added.

HOUSE VOTES TO AUTHORIZE BIDEN IMPEACHMENT INQUIRY

The impeachment vote formalized an inquiry that began in September to investigate whether the president financially benefited from some of his family’s business dealings.

POLL: SUPPORT FOR BIDEN IMPEACHMENT INQUIRY GROWS

Three Republican-led House committees are looking into connections between the president and his son Hunter Biden’s business dealings from 2014-2017, during the elder Biden’s final three years as vice president, and after he left office.

Hunter Biden reiterated this week that his father was not involved in his dealings as a board member of Ukrainian energy company Burisma, or in his partnership with a Chinese private businessman.  

Republican investigators have so far not found any solid evidence that Biden personally benefited, but they argue there’s more to uncover.

While the vote to formalize the inquiry is apparently boosting Biden’s 2024 re-election fundraising, it may also pay dividends in other ways.

It could energize the base of a party that polls suggest is anything but energized by the president’s re-election drive. 

The Biden campaign launched a blistering broadside against House Republicans early this week, ahead of Wednesday’s vote, accusing them of doing the bidding of Biden’s likely GOP challenger next November – former President Donald Trump, the commanding front-runner for the 2024 Republican nomination.

“The only, single fact in this entire sham impeachment exercise is that it’s a nakedly transparent ploy by House MAGA Republicans to boost Donald Trump’s presidential campaign,” Biden campaign communications director Michael Tyler charged in a memo.

The memo spotlights a quote that went viral from Republican Rep. Troy Nehls of Texas, who said the impeachment inquiry would give the former president “a little bit of ammo to fire back.”

But the impeachment inquiry also provides plenty of downsides for Biden’s re-election effort. 

Republicans for years have viewed Hunter Biden’s controversies as a political liability for his father. And now, a formal impeachment investigation – with public hearings – could give the Biden campaign lots of headaches.

“It keeps the negative story about his family in the news,” longtime Republican strategist and communicator Ryan Williams told Fox News. “The impeachment inquiry highlights potential wrongdoing on the part of the president’s son and brother and tries to link it directly to him.”

Republicans can also leverage the impeachment proceedings – as well as Hunter Biden’s legal cases – to deflect attention away from Trump’s extremely serious court cases.

Trump made history earlier this year as the first former or current president to be indicted for a crime, but his four indictments — including in federal court in Washington, D.C., and in Fulton County court in Georgia — on charges he tried to overturn his 2020 presidential election loss.

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP 

“It tries to distract from the serious legal issues Trump is facing and basically at the end of the day,” said Ryan, a veteran of multiple GOP presidential campaigns.

He emphasized that inquiry “shows voters both candidates are facing investigations. It muddies the waters. It tries to make things murky even though the criminal trials that President Trump is facing are much different than the Republican-led inquiry in the House.”

Rep. Dean Phillips of Minnesota, who’s running a long-shot Democratic primary challenge against the president, made a similar argument.

“I don’t see the evidence of it, but yes, when your own son and your own brother are clearly, at the very least unethical and at worst, doing illegal things — my goodness, of course the country pays attention to it,” Phillips said in an interview with the news website Semafor. “People do believe that it perhaps makes him unelectable — somehow, it conflates him with the Trump family’s indiscretions.” 

But Democratic strategist Chris Moyer, who served on a handful of presidential campaigns, disagreed.

“No one is Donald Trump when it comes to corruption, breaking the law, and violating his oath of office,” he argued, when asked if the inquiry lessens the sting of Trump’s own legal controversies.

Biden became the second straight president to face an impeachment inquiry as his re-election was underway, following Trump.

Veteran political scientist Wayne Lesperance spotlighted that “perhaps the biggest casualty of the recent vote is the impeachment process itself. Long gone are the days when impeachment was a last resort for members of Congress who have exhausted all other options of holding the President accountable.”

Lesperance, the president of New Hampshire-based New England College, said that “the frequency with which impeachment has occurred in recent years has reduced the process to yet another partisan tool for whichever party is in power. The real loser in these processes has become the American people, who continue to lose faith in their beleaguered system of government.”

Get the latest updates from the 2024 campaign trail, exclusive interviews and more at our Fox News Digital election hub.

Detractors refer to Washington, D.C., as “the swamp.”

But this is about another swamp – specifically, the Senate “swamp.”

The Senate swamp is a geographic location on Capitol Hill. It’s just across from the Senate steps and where some Senate officials park their cars. Those who work and operate on Capitol Hill have referred to this spot as the Senate swamp for decades.

DOJ’S HANDLING OF HUNTER BIDEN CASE IS ‘INEXPLICABLE,’ SAYS TURLEY, AS EX-PROSECUTR FACES QUESTIONING

They started calling the locale the Senate swamp in 1964.

Legendary congressional correspondent Roger Mudd covered the filibuster of the Civil Rights Act for CBS. Mudd often did his TV standups from the Senate steps with a large clock behind him to show how much time had elapsed (eventually two months) during the filibuster.

Southern senators complained about Mudd standing on the Senate steps. The U.S. Capitol Police moved Mudd and his compadres in the press corps across the plaza to a grassy area. Well, one day it rained. And the correspondent was named “Mudd.” So, they started referring to the area as the “Senate swamp.”

However, that site is anything but a swamp.

The area is paved. A panel of permanent, stainless steel TV jacks for networks to do live shots lines a narrow concrete façade. Reporters can face one direction and talk about Congress with the Capitol behind them. If reporters turn around, they can talk about legal opinions with the Supreme Court serving as a backdrop.

Or, someone like Hunter Biden can use the spot for a press conference, as he did Wednesday morning, publicly defying a House subpoena for a closed-door deposition.

The entrance to the Rayburn House Office Building is more than an eighth of a mile from the Senate swamp. A phalanx of reporters and photographers swarmed the halls of Rayburn, awaiting Hunter Biden’s anticipated arrival for a closed-door deposition. Another horde of journalists roamed the Rayburn “horseshoe,” a semi-circular driveway which curves up to a side entrance across from the Longworth House Office Building.

No one was 100% sure whether Hunter Biden would show up.

House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer, R-Ky., issued a subpoena for Hunter Biden to “testify at a deposition touching matters of inquiry,” at 9:30 a.m. ET on Wednesday in the Rayburn Building. The subpoena added that “you are not to depart without leave of said committee or subcommittee.”

HOUSE VOTES TO AUTHORIZE IMPEACHMENT INQUIRY

In late November, Abbe Lowell — who is Hunter Biden’s attorney — countered Comer’s demand for a deposition with a demand of his own.

“We have seen you use closed-door sessions to manipulate, even distort the facts and misinform the public,” wrote Lowell to Comer. “We therefore propose opening the door.”

The ultimatum appeared to catch Comer and Republicans on the Oversight Committee off guard. Comer said he would grant Hunter Biden the chance to testify at an open hearing, but a closed-door deposition must come first. Comer cited how Democrats conducted multiple, private depositions in their impeachment investigation of former President Trump in the fall of 2019, ahead of public hearings a couple of months later.

So, Hunter Biden indeed showed up on Capitol Hill around 9:30 am Wednesday — but not anywhere near the Rayburn House Office Building.

Hunter Biden materialized an eighth of a mile away at the Senate swamp — that same locale where the Capitol Police banished Roger Mudd to report on the Civil Rights Act filibuster.

Hunter Biden’s Senate swamp maneuver was a filibuster unto itself when it came to ignoring James Comer’s subpoena. But his appearance was both political stagecraft and legal scheme bundled into one.

Hunter Biden showed up on Capitol Hill at the assigned time. But he wasn’t going anywhere close to the room where Comer planned a multi-hour deposition. Materializing at the Senate swamp site with the Capitol dome glimmering behind him was an effort by Hunter Biden to demonstrate he was willing to appear — just on his terms.

ANDY BIGGS CALLS FOR CONTEMPT CHARGES AGAINST ERIC SWALWELL FOR AIDING HUNTER BIDEN

After a brief statement, Hunter Biden left the Senate swamp site, climbed into a van and departed.

Reporters and scribes were panting. Out of breath. Bent over. Hands holding their legs just above their knees like a gassed NBA shooting guard in the fourth quarter. They received word that Hunter Biden was coming to Capitol Hill. But most were over in the Rayburn House Office Building — nowhere near the spot where the news of the day unfolded.

So how and why did the Senate swamp become the hot venue for the story of the day?

It starts with Rep. Eric Swalwell, D-Calif.

Lawmakers are permitted to use the Senate swamp site and a similar location called the “House triangle” for press conferences and other events. The same with studios in the House and Senate Radio/TV Galleries inside the Capitol complex. However, the indoor locations generally require rank-and-file members to secure an invitation from a credentialed member of the congressional press corps.

It’s rare, but not unprecedented, for a House member to book an event on the Senate side. The same with a senator on the House side.

So Swalwell reserved the Senate swamp for a vague press event on Wednesday morning at 9:30. Only Swalwell had no intention of speaking to the press. This was Hunter Biden’s forum.

Those are the logistics.

But that doesn’t tell the full story.

There’s a reason why Hunter Biden showed up on the Senate side of Capitol Hill and not the House side.

Let’s say Hunter Biden ventured into the sea of reporters awaiting his prospective arrival at the Rayburn House Office Building, had his say and left. Or imagine if he had even done the same at the House triangle. The president’s son was already out of compliance with Comer’s subpoena by not attending the deposition. But showing up anywhere on the House side of the Capitol could have triggered a host of legal, constitutional and parliamentary issues for him.

JOE BIDEN FRUSTRATED AND ANXIOUS ABOUT HUNTER, SNAPS AT AIDES WHEN ASKED ABOUT INVESTIGATION: REPORT

You see, the House Sergeant at Arms has jurisdiction over the House side of the Capitol. Yes. The House and Senate meet in the same building. But constitutionally, they are distinct institutions. It’s conceivable that Comer could have argued to the Sergeant at Arms or the Capitol Police that his witness flaunted a subpoena if he showed up on House grounds — yet failed to testify.

It’s unlikely that congressional security officials truly would have done anything about it had Comer — or more specifically, House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., demanded action for a witness defying a subpoena. The House does hold certain “inherent” enforcement powers when it comes to contempt of Congress. Congress used to arrest and hold people for contempt of Congress in the late 18th and early 19th centuries. The last such action where Congress exercised its “inherent” contempt powers was with a Department of Commerce official in the 1930s.

But Abbe Lowell is no fool.

He knew that his client could earn the media attention he wanted by coming to Capitol Hill at the precise time dictated by the subpoena — yet not setting foot anywhere near the House of Representatives. Hence, the Senate swamp.

And being on the Senate side provided something of a legal shield to inoculate Hunter Biden, which he would not have enjoyed on House turf.

Yes, Hunter Biden defied a subpoena and failed to appear for a deposition. It’s possible the House will vote to hold President Biden’s son in contempt of Congress. Such a referral could go to the Department of Justice for potential prosecution.

But in resisting the subpoena, Hunter Biden showed up at the Senate swamp.

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP 

It may be a swamp. But in this case, the terra firma of the Senate offered firmer legal footing to Hunter Biden than the marble floors of the Rayburn House Office Building.

Rudy Giuliani has been ordered to pay $148,169,000 to two women he falsely accused of committing election fraud in the 2020 election.

The former New York City mayor, and Donald Trump ally and former personal lawyer, was on trial for the defamation of two Georgia election workers this week at a federal court in Washington, D.C. 

Giuliani had accused Ruby Freeman and her daughter, Wandrea “Shaye” Moss, of fraud while advancing former President Trump’s unproven claims that the 2020 election was stolen. 

U.S. District Judge Beryl Howell had already awarded default judgment to Freeman and Moss in August. 

HUNTER BIDEN SUES RUDY GIULIANI OVER LAPTOP, ACCUSES EX-TRUMP LAWYER OF ‘HACKING’

Giuliani was also ordered to pay legal fees for Moss and Freeman, amounting to around $270,000.

Speaking outside the courthouse Friday, Moss said “the past few years has been devastating.”

“The flame that Giuliani lit with those lies and passed to so many others to keep that flame blazing changed every aspect of our lives, our home family, our work, our sense of safety and mental health,” Moss said. “And we’re still working to rebuild as we move forward and continue to seek justice.” 

HEAVILY REDACTED RECORDS SHOW FBI’S TARGETING OF CATHOLICS WENT BEYOND WHAT IT CLAIMED: WATCHDOG

“Our greatest wish is that no one, no election worker or voter or school board member or anyone else ever experiences anything like what we went through,” she added.

Giuliani said Friday he’d appeal the ruling.

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

“The absurdity of the number merely underscores the absurdity of the entire proceeding, where I’ve not been allowed to offer one single piece of evidence in defense,of which I have a lot,” he said. “So I am quite confident when this case gets before a fair tribunal, it will be reversed so quickly, it’ll make your head spin and the absurd number that just came in will help that, actually.”

The purpose of this week’s trial was to determine how much money Giuliani would have to pay the women in damages.

Fox News’ Jake Gibson contributed to this report.

CONCORD, N.H. — Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis says he expects Donald Trump to try and “delegitimize” the election results if the former president ends up losing either the Iowa caucuses or New Hampshire primary. 

“If Trump loses, he will say it’s stolen no matter what. Absolutely. He will try to delegitimize the results,” DeSantis told reporters on Friday during a question and answer session after holding a town hall in New Hampshire’s capital city.

DeSantis noted that Trump “did that against Ted Cruz in 2016,” as he referred to Trump’s tweet after narrowly losing the caucuses to the firebrand conservative senator from Texas that “Ted Cruz didn’t win Iowa, he stole it.” 

The former president for three years has repeatedly made unproven claims that his 2020 election loss to President Biden was due to a “rigged” election and “massive voter fraud.”

DESANTIS STOPS IN ALL 99 OF IOWA’S COUNTIES — BUT WILL IT HELP HIM CLOSE THE GAP WITH TRUMP?

And Trump made history earlier this year as the first former or current president to be indicted for a crime, but his four indictments — including in federal court in Washington, D.C., and in Fulton County court in Georgia — on charges he tried to overturn his 2020 presidential election loss.

DeSantis argued that, “I don’t think people are going to buy it.

Trump remains the commanding front-runner in the 2024 GOP presidential nomination race, as he makes his third straight White House run.

DeSantis is currently a very distant second to Trump in the latest polls in Iowa, where the Jan. 15 caucuses kick off the GOP nominating calendar.

And in New Hampshire, which holds the first primary and votes second after Iowa on Jan. 23, DeSantis is in fourth place, far behind Trump and also trailing former ambassador to the United Nations and former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley, as well as former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, who is making his second White House bid.

TRUMP HOLDS A MASSIVE LEAD IN THE POLLS WITH FIVE WEEKS TO GO UNTIL THE IOWA CAUCUSES 

As the first votes in the race for the Republican nomination draw closer, DeSantis has been turning up the volume on his criticism of Trump.

In his conversation with the crowd at his town hall, and in answering reporter questions, he repeatedly jabbed at Trump for failing to follow through on campaign promises, for being too old to serve again as president, and for skipping out on debating his rivals for the Republican nomination.

“He’s promising the same things he did in ’16 that he didn’t deliver. And now he’s just running on the same stuff again,” he argued. “You know, we didn’t get a wall. We didn’t get the swamp drained. He said he was going to go after Hillary [Clinton] and then let her off the hook two weeks after the election.”

Speaking with reporters, DeSantis asked,”’Why won’t he [Trump] debate. Why not?’ And I do think he would not perform the way they remember the Trump from 2015 and ’16. I think that’s the real reason he’s not debating.”

And the governor argued that Trump is “a different guy now and I think he owes it to actually show up and answer questions.”

WAS THE REAL WINNER SO FAR IN THE REPUBLICAN PRESIDENTIAL DEBATES THE GUY WHO DIDN’T SHOW UP?

DeSantis also targeted Trump for not engaging with voters. 

“When is the last time he stood on a stage and just took questions from voters?” DeSantis asked. “Has he done that at any point in this campaign? He certainly hasn’t done it on a debate stage. How often has he been willing to go and really answer the tough questions… people want to see you earn it.”

Asked for a response, Trump campaign spokesman Steven Cheung argued in a statement to Fox News that, “Ron DeSantis is acting out on his Lincoln Project fantasies and doing his best impression of a Never Trumper by reciting Democrat talking points peddled by Crooked Joe Biden and his campaign.”

And Cheung charged that “when Ron’s political career is finished in a few weeks, he can start moonlighting as a Democrat surrogate because he’s showing everyone his true colors.”

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP 

The Lincoln Project is a political action committee formed four years ago by Republicans and former members of the GOP who oppose Trump.

DeSantis returned to New Hampshire three days after popular Republican Gov. Chris Sununu endorsed Haley in the state’s Republican presidential primary.

‘WE’RE ALL IN’ – SUNUNU BACKS HALEY IN MAJOR 2024 ENDORSEMENT

Sununu, a vocal GOP critic of Trump, had said for weeks that he was deciding between Haley, Christie and DeSantis.

DeSantis told Fox News that Sununu’s backing of Haley wouldn’t change his campaign strategy in the Granite State, saying “I wasn’t necessarily expecting that.”

 “Chris is great, a great campaigner and all that,” DeSantis added arguing that “ultimately, Nikki Haley is an establishment candidate. That does not do well in these Republican primaries. That is starting to become more and more apparent to voters as she’s gotten more attention.”

Get the latest updates from the 2024 campaign trail, exclusive interviews and more at our Fox News Digital election hub.

The Biden administration on Friday finalized a plan to dramatically curb the number of offshore oil and gas lease sales over the next five years as it continues to aggressively push green energy development.

The Department of the Interior’s (DOI) five-year offshore oil and gas leasing program schedules just three Gulf of Mexico lease sales through 2029, marking the fewest number of sales ever included in such a plan, which the agency is mandated to issue periodically. According to the DOI, holding the sales will enable future offshore wind leases under an Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) provision that tethers the two.

“President Biden’s approach to severely limit leasing significantly curtails access to a critical national asset,” Erik Milito, the president of the National Ocean Industries Association, which represents both traditional and renewable offshore energy producers, said in a statement Friday. “The White House simply ignores energy realities by once again limiting U.S. energy production opportunities.”

“With global demand at record levels and continuing to rise, regressive policies will harm Americans of all walks of life by putting upward pressure on prices at the pump, destroying good-paying jobs that form the fabric of Gulf Coast communities, and relinquishing geopolitical advantages of energy production to countries like Russia, Iran and China,” he continued.

ALASKAN NATIVE AMERICANS UNLEASH ON BIDEN ADMIN’S CLIMATE AGENDA: ‘COMMUNITIES AND CULTURE ARE AT RISK’

Milito added that policies limiting offshore production in the U.S. only serve to force greater reliance on energy imports, including from nations with higher emissions and worse environmental standards. 

“This jeopardizes our energy security, and economic prosperity, and undermines our efforts to reduce emissions and combat climate change — goals purportedly championed by the current administration,” he said.

OFFSHORE OIL AND GAS PERMITTING PLUMMETS TO 2-DECADE LOW UNDER BIDEN

Under the plan, the DOI’s Bureau of Ocean Energy Management will hold the three sales of parcels in the Gulf of Mexico in 2025, 2027 and 2029. It also rules out any leasing off the Alaskan coast, and in the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans, in another departure from previous plans.

The administration, meanwhile, signaled that it could have pursued an even more restrictive five-year program if not for the IRA. That legislation — Democrats’ $739 billion climate and tax package signed by President Biden in 2022 — ties new offshore wind energy leases to new oil and gas leases, meaning the former could be threatened without consistent fossil fuel leasing.

Issuing a program with less than three sales — a possibility the DOI floated last year to the dismay of energy industry groups — may have jeopardized Biden’s plan to ensure the U.S. develops 30 gigawatts of offshore wind by 2030. The nation currently has just two tiny pilot projects, one off the coast of Rhode Island and the other off Virginia’s coast, but the DOI has permitted several large-scale facilities since 2021 that are slated to come online in coming years.

APPEALS COURT FORCES BIDEN ADMIN TO HOLD OFFSHORE OIL LEASE SALE WITHOUT ECO RESTRICTIONS

“It’s now clear without a shadow of a doubt that without the IRA, this Administration would have ended federal oil and gas development completely,” Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee Chairman Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., said in September after the DOI proposed the plan finalized Friday.

“But instead of embracing the all-of-the-above energy bill that was signed into law, this Administration has once again decided to put their radical political agenda over American energy security, and the American people will pay the price,” Manchin, who was a lead author of the IRA last year, continued. “Granting the bare minimum of oil and gas leases will result in a minimum of renewables leases as well because the IRA tied the two together. You can’t have one without the other.”

Under the 1953 Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act, the federal government is required to issue plans every five years laying out prospective offshore oil and gas lease sales. The most recent plan, which was implemented in 2017, expired in June 2022. 

The persistent delay in issuing a replacement plan, though, represented a departure from precedent set by both Republican and Democratic administrations, which have historically finalized replacements immediately after previous plans expired.

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

The most recent two plans, both formulated under the Obama administration, included more than 10 offshore oil and gas lease sales each. And the Trump administration sought to hold a total of 47 lease sales across the Atlantic region, the Pacific region and the Gulf of Mexico and off Alaska’s coasts between 2022 and 2027.

GOP presidential candidate Ron DeSantis said that the Satanic Temple “should not be recognized” as a religion by the U.S. government.

DeSantis made the declaration on X Friday morning, saying that satanism does not have a place in American society.

The Florida governor’s tweet came after Mississippi state House candidate Michael Cassidy admitted to tearing down the Satanic Temple’s display in the Iowa state capitol. Cassidy was arrested Friday and charged with fourth-degree criminal mischief, KCCI reported.

SATANIC DISPLAY INSIDE IOWA STATE CAPITOL DESTROYED, MAN CHARGED: OFFICIALS

“Satan has no place in our society and should not be recognized as a ‘religion’ by the federal government,” DeSantis tweeted. “I’ll chip in to contribute to this veteran’s legal defense fund.”

“Good prevails over evil — that’s the American spirit,” DeSantis continued.

DeSantis also addressed the Satanic Temple display at the Iowa state capitol during a recent CNN town hall event, pointing to former President Trump’s Internal Revenue Service (IRS) as to why the non-theistic religious organization is recognized as a religion.

In 2019, the IRS recognized the Satanic Temple as an official house of worship, granting the entity both tax-exempt status and protections under the First Amendment.

“So it’s interesting, I heard this, and then I was like, ‘Well, how did it get there? Is that even a religion?’” DeSantis said. “And low and behold, the Trump administration gave them approval to be under the IRS as a religion.”

“So that gave them the legal ability to potentially do it,” DeSantis said.

DeSantis said that “it very well may be because of that ruling” under Trump that the Satanic Temple “may have had a legal leg to stand on.”

“My view would be that that’s not a religion that the Founding Fathers were trying to create,” DeSantis said. “But I do think that IRS ruling, I was really surprised to see that they did that.”

Jake Tapper noted that the IRS granting tax-exempt status does not necessarily mean the government supports satanism.

“No, yeah, exactly,” DeSantis responded. “But they recognized it as a religion, because otherwise you wouldn’t’ve been able to do it.”

“I don’t think that was the right decision. Even as a religion, that’s wrong,” he continued.

Lucien Greaves, one of the Satanic Temple’s founders, told Fox News Digital that “DeSantis’s remarks are raw cowardice dressed up in false heroism.”

“He would like voters to believe that he is standing up against the Satanic Temple, but he is, in actuality, simply yielding to an angry, undemocratic mob that would rather see the fundamental pillars of democracy destroyed than suffer the nuisance of seeing a viewpoint they disagree with in a public forum,” Greaves said.

“It is cowardice that compels him to abandon his pledge of office to uphold constitutional law and religious liberty because he can not, or will not, articulate those ideals to voters, opting instead to appeal to their most base fears and ignorance,” he continued.

“I have announced that I am happy to debate DeSantis on these points at any time, but I suspect he is too cowardly for that as well,” Greaves added.

The Satanic Temple was founded in 2013 and does not express belief in Satan, God, or any higher power.

Instead, the atheist organization follows “seven tenets” that emphasize science and reason, and uses Satanic imagery to push their tenets and political goals, like abortion access and addressing “religious privilege.”

The organization has also been known to jab at Christians, and Greaves has openly stated that the group is “openly atheist,” in a 2015 Salon interview.

“Those who dislike us claim that we are not really a religion, but by what standard?” Greaves said. “These things beg for definition. In the Hobby Lobby case, there was no sincerity test at all, and no test that their exemption had some kind of spiritual basis.”

“In regard to our atheism, if you have a society that grants religious privilege and exemption, and you’re willing to give privilege and exemption to certain groups, then it’s unacceptable to give that only to people who believe in the supernatural,” Greaves said.

“We are openly atheist, but we have cultural identity and symbolic constructs that are deeply meaningful to our members,” he continued.

In a text message to Fox News Digital, Cassidy confirmed that he had torn down the satanic display, which was erected last week by the Satanic Temple of Iowa to represent the group’s right to religious freedom.

“It was extremely anti-Christian,” Cassidy told Fox News Digital when asked why he had torn the statue down.

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

The former congressional candidate didn’t elaborate on why he had torn the statue down, but he posted a Bible verse Thursday night to X after being charged.

“1 Peter 5:8 KJV Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour,” he posted.

Fox News Digital’s Adam Sabes contributed reporting.

Welcome to Fox News’ Politics newsletter with the latest political news from Washington D.C. and updates from the 2024 campaign trail. 

Subscribe now to get Fox News Politics newsletter in your inbox.

Democrats warn Schumer

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer is getting warnings from progressive Democrats who fear the ongoing negotiations for border policy changes could give too much away to Republicans. 

A small, bipartisan group of Senators have been meeting privately with DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas this week, hoping to find common ground on immigration and border security measures. Republicans have insisted that additional funding for Ukraine and aid to Israel be attached to immigration reforms.

The negotiations have yet to produce a deal, but reports of the proposals have rankled several Democrats.

“[Schumer] and those Democrats who are contemplating these proposals need to understand that these Trumpian policies will do nothing to address our challenges at the border and will only exacerbate the problem. Immigration advocates should speak up — HELL NO is the message,” Sen. Bob Menendez, D-N.J., — who is facing federal bribery charges — wrote on X on Thursday. 

White House

‘THREATS TO NATIONAL SECURITY’: Top Biden aide’s spouse involved with group pushing electric vehicle transition …Read more

‘UNDERMINING ISRAEL’: Sen Ted Cruz calls out VP Kamala Harris for Palestinian sympathy push …Read more

‘SWAMP’ GAME: Why Hunter Biden defied House subpoena from the House side of the Capitol …Read more

Capitol Hill

‘CRAZY MIND’: Kevin McCarthy takes parting shots at Matt Gaetz as he exits Congress: ‘He was psychotic’ …Read more

‘HIGHLY INAPPROPRIATE’: Stefanik hits DC judge linked to Trump case with ethics complaint …Read more

‘UNACCEPTABLE‘: House Dem calls for answers from Mayorkas over denial of border funding extension to Arizona county …Read more

‘LONG OVERDUE’: Issa says passport reform ‘long overdue’ as bill moves through House committee with Dem backing …Read more

Tales from the Campaign Trail

PANIC MODE: Biden scrambles to win over Black voters as support from the traditionally blue bloc falters …Read more

‘LBJ MOMENT’: Cornel West predicts Biden will drop out before 2024 election …Read more

TARGETING RIVALS: Christie targets DeSantis and Haley for treating Trump with kid gloves …Read more

‘PARTY DOES NOT EXIST’: Illinois incumbent wants primary opponent disqualified for misspelling ‘Republican’ …Read more

Across America

‘HISTORIC CONNECTIONS’: Chinese official who praised CCP makes another appearance at top Ivy League school …Read more

‘SENSE OF SUCCESS’: Melania Trump speaks to new American citizens about the responsibility of ‘guarding our freedom’ …Read more

10 MINUTES: Supreme Court justice decided to overturn Roe minutes after receiving Dobbs draft decision …Read more

FOLLOW THE MONEY: Republican attorney general exposes DOJ funding to Soros-backed group that trains left-wing prosecutors …Read more

AI-AI-OH: Bipartisan lawmakers eye AI safeguards for U.S. agriculture industry …Read more

Get the latest updates from the 2024 campaign trail, exclusive interviews and more on FoxNews.com.

Some progressive Democrats are at odds with Sen. Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., over the ongoing negotiations that aim to add stricter border policy provisions in the national supplemental package. 

On Friday, White House officials, Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, Sen. Chris Murphy, D-Ct., Sen. Kyrsten Sinema, I-Ariz., Sen. James Lankford, R-Okla., and aides to Schumer and Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., met in the Capitol for the second time this week to continue negotiations. 

But the discussions are not sitting well with several Democratic senators, who worry that their party will make too many concessions to Republican demands for policy changes.

“If [Schumer] thinks he can send us home for the weekend, quietly cave to Republicans’ anti-immigrant demands while nobody is watching, and then ambush Democrats expecting us to vote yes with a smile, he is TERRIBLY MISTAKEN,” Sen. Bob Menendez, D-N.J., — who is facing federal bribery charges — wrote on X on Thursday. 

MIGRANT ENCOUNTERS AGAIN TOP 10K IN A SINGLE DAY AS LAWMAKERS EYE NEW BORDER LIMITS

“[Schumer]and those Democrats who are contemplating these proposals need to understand that these Trumpian policies will do nothing to address our challenges at the border and will only exacerbate the problem. Immigration advocates should speak up — HELL NO is the message,” he continued. 

Sen. Alex Padilla, D-Calif., told Axios that what Democrats are hearing “is very concerning.” 

Former House Rep. Beto O’Rourke, who is now running for governor of Texas, said on X: “If Democrats agree to these failed Trump immigration policies” it will cause increased crossing attempts, more migrant deaths and “depressed enthusiasm from progressive voters.” 

“This is a bad deal. Senate Dems and WH should reject it,” he wrote Friday. 

Schumer indicated Friday  that he would rework the “shell” of the supplemental package to advance the proposed border provisions, which have not been agreed to yet. However, with few details on which provisions will make it into the package, The Hill reported that Sen. Cory Booker, D-N.J., “is very concerned” about the details. 

He added, “We don’t know who’s going to be president” after 2024, leaving in limbo which party will be spearheading the enforcement of the new policies. 

Talks have been ongoing with senators and Biden administration officials this week, as Republicans have refused to pass some $60 billion in additional aid to Ukraine unless it is tied to strict border security measures, such as immediate screenings for asylum processing and quicker expulsions for illegal entrants. The total amount of supplemental aid the White House first requested in October amounts to roughly $106 billion and includes $14 billion to assist Israel. 

SCHUMER ANNOUNCES SENATE WILL CANCEL PART OF HOLIDAY RECESS AS BORDER TALKS CONTINUE

Lawmakers in the upper chamber were expected to recess Thursday, but Sen. Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., announced that the Senate would cancel part of its holiday recess and stay in town to continue the negotiations and schedule a vote on the supplemental package next week.

Lankford, one of the lead negotiators for the GOP, told Fox News Digital in an interview this week that there are “basic elements” to tighten border security that Republicans are asking for: reform asylum processing by conducting immediate screenings, increasing detention beds for processing, and beefing up border patrol. 

The administration was reportedly open to a nationwide expansion of expedited removal, which allows for recently entered migrants to be quickly removed if they do not meet the initial asylum standard. Rapid expulsions are currently only being used near the border. 

GOP LAWMAKERS SKEPTICAL ABOUT VOTING ON BORDER DEAL BEFORE CHRISTMAS AS DEMS THREATEN TO DELAY BREAK 

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

CBS reported this week that the White House was willing to mandate the detention of certain migrants as their claims are considered, as well as a new Title 42-style authority. Title 42 was the COVID-era order that allowed for the rapid expulsion of migrants at the southern border until the Biden administration ended the policy in May.

Meanwhile, migrant encounters at the southern border again topped 10,000 encounters in a single day on Tuesday, Customs and Border Protection (CBP) sources told Fox News.

Fox News’ Adam Shaw and Bill Melugin contributed to this report. 

A Supreme Court justice signed onto the draft opinion overturning Roe v. Wade minutes after receiving the draft decision.

The New York Times reported on Friday that Supreme Court Justice Neil Gorsuch, one of the six conservative-leaning justices in the body, signed on to the 98-page draft Dobbs decision 10 minutes after it hit his desk.

Justices send their draft opinions to their colleagues on the bench and can negotiate changes with them, sometimes using their votes as leverage.

SUPREME COURT’S SEMIAUTOMATIC WEAPON BAN RULING, PASSPORT REFORM TAKES NEXT STEPS AND MORE TOP HEADLINES

Gorsuch had no edits, according to the Times’ sources who reviewed the messages.

The next day, a cascade of conservative justices joined the draft opinion with no edits — beginning with Justice Clarence Thomas.

Justice Amy Coney Barrett joined next, and a few days later, Justice Brett Kavanaugh signed on.

Fox News Digital reached out to the Supreme Court for comment.

The Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization decision in 2022 overturned nearly 50 years of precedent based on the 1973 Supreme Court decision on abortion, Roe v. Wade.

With Roe’s demise, national abortion protections were no longer constitutionally enshrined by a judicial decision and the subject returned to the states and Congress to decide.

On Thursday, the Supreme Court allowed an Illinois law banning high-powered semiautomatic weapons to remain in place.

In a Thursday order with no noted dissents or explanation of its decision, the Supreme Court denied a request from the National Association for Gun rights, which had asked for a preliminary injunction.

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

The ban, signed by Democratic Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker in January, includes penalties for any individual who “carries or possesses, . . .manufactures, sells, delivers, imports, or purchases any assault weapon or .50 caliber rifle.”  

The law also includes statutory penalties for someone who, “sells, manufactures, delivers, imports, possesses, or purchases any assault weapon attachment or .50 caliber cartridge.”

Fox News Digital’s Adam Sabes contributed reporting.

The No. 3 House Republican is calling for an ethics probe into a Washington, D.C., judge who has issued decisions in cases related to both former President Trump and the Jan. 6, 2021 riot at the U.S. Capitol.

House GOP Conference Chair Elise Stefanik, R-N.Y., lodged a misconduct complaint against DC District Judge Beryl Howell on Friday over a speech she gave in late November while accepting an award from the Women’s White Collar Defense Association.

Without using Trump’s name, Howell blamed the violence at the Capitol on “big lies” and warned of “a very surprising and downright troubling moment in this country when the very importance of facts is dismissed, or ignored.”

Stefanik called the speech “highly inappropriate,” accusing Howell of claiming that “re-electing President Trump will lead to fascism in America.”

IVANKA TRUMP TESTIFIES SHE WAS NOT INVOLVED IN DISCUSSIONS ABOUT HER FATHER’S FINANCIAL STATEMENTS  

“As outlined in detail below, Judge Howell’s partisan speech is obviously highly inappropriate election interference by a federal judge that undermines the public’s trust in our courts. Moreover, the public display of the cozy personal relationships between Judge Howell and her partisan friends who appear before her undermines public trust in judicial independence,” she wrote.

Howell was chief judge of the DC District Court from 2016 until March of this year. On her last day of the job, she turned over communications between Trump and his lawyer to Special Counsel Jack Smith in his investigation of the former president’s handling of classified documents, the Daily Beast reported in March. She also compelled the lawyer to testify before a grand jury.

She has also criticized federal prosecutors for being too lenient in sentencing recommendations for Jan. 6 protesters. 

In her letter, Stefanik pointed to Howell’s relationships with Obama-era Attorney General Loretta Lynch and current Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco, who were also at the event.

TRUMP LEGAL TEAM FILES MOTION TO PAUSE PROCEEDINGS PENDING APPEAL

Lynch had praised Howell for her handling of “the COVID-19 pandemic that closed the world, the January 6th insurrection and the resulting caseload, and the flurry of activity spurred by the Office of Special Counsel.”

“It’s particularly shocking to hear the former Attorney General of the United States praise a sitting federal judge for her handling of the grand-jury proceedings on pending federal criminal charges against a defendant (President Trump), the pending criminal cases against his January 6 supporters, and even make the legal conclusion that an ‘insurrection’ occurred on January 6–despite the fact even the over-the-top Biden Special Counsel Jack Smith never brought such charges against any January 6 defendant,” Stefanik wrote.

Howell also praised Monaco, who oversees Jan. 6 prosecutors in her role, in her speech – a fact Stefanik seized on in her letter to the Judicial Council of the District of Columbia Circuit.

SUPREME COURT: TRUMP MUST RESPOND TO SPECIAL COUNSEL’S PRESIDENTIAL IMMUNITY PETITION BEFORE CHRISTMAS

“I’ve been in awe of how you remain a model of calm and grace when carrying enormous responsibility for the safety of so many,” the judge said of Monaco.

Stefanik wrote, “Judge Howell’s 16 minutes of substantive remarks had little to do with women representing white-collar criminal defendants – and they were hardly apolitical, let alone politically neutral.” 

Stefanik, perhaps Trump’s most vocal ally in Congress, previously filed an ethics complaint against New York Supreme Court Judge Arthur Engoron for his handling of a civil case brought against the former president and the Trump Organization by state Attorney General Letitia James.

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

She told Fox News Digital of the most recent misconduct notice, “DC Obama Judge Beryl Howell gave a highly inappropriate speech in which she insinuated the election of President Trump will lead to fascism in America.”

“She also inappropriately allowed a public display of her cozy personal relationships with her partisan friends who appear before her, including the Biden Deputy Attorney General who supervises the January 6 criminal prosecutions,” she said.

Fox News Digital reached out to the Washington, D.C., court system for comment but did not immediately hear back.

The spouse of a top aide to President Biden and first lady Jill Biden is involved with a group that views climate change as a national security threat and pushes for the transition to electric vehicles as part of its efforts, Fox News Digital has found.

David Wade, former chief of staff to Special Presidential Envoy for Climate John Kerry and the husband of Elizabeth Alexander, a deputy assistant to President Biden and the spokesperson for Jill Biden, is entangled with the Washington, D.C.-based American Security Project (ASP), which views “climate security” as a critical component of its endeavors.

While Alexander advises President Biden, who has directed his administration to aggressively push electric vehicles as part of its broader climate change agenda, Wade aids the ASP in similar endeavors from a national security-focused standpoint as a member of its board of directors.

The ASP’s tax filings show the group also paid Wade’s clean energy consulting firm, Greenlight Strategies LLC, $11,000 last year. An ASP spokesperson told Fox News Digital his company received the payment to engage in a project aimed at “providing a forum for bipartisan discussion about climate change and its threats to national security under his LLC.”

BEIJING-BACKED GREEN ENERGY FIRM IS EXPANDING IN US, POSING SERIOUS NATIONAL SECURITY RISK: REPORT

“We see climate as an accelerant to instability in vulnerable regions. We can see the impact it is having on farming and food supplies, even here in the United States,” the ASP spokesperson said. “Our military is concerned as they are often the first sent in to address instability. U.S. military bases around the world, including right here in the United States, are affected by climate change, as can be witnessed in sea level rise.”

Overall, ASP has supported an across-the-board transition to electric vehicles as part of its efforts to tackle climate change in the national security domain.

JOE MANCHIN GOES SCORCHED-EARTH ON BIDEN ADMIN OVER EV ACTIONS BOOSTING CHINA

In a fact sheet ASP released last year, the group said the “widespread adoption” of such vehicles will “keep the U.S. more secure by reducing our dependence on foreign oil and gas, and reduce financial incentives of petro-state autocracies like Russia.”

The document further stated that transportation accounts for 29% of national greenhouse gas emissions, making it a “critical sector in achieving national net-zero climate goals, and enhancing both energy and national security” while referencing the Biden administration’s goal of “transitioning half of America’s vehicles to electric by 2030.”

White House spokesperson Andrew Bates told Fox News Digital, “President Biden has warned for decades that climate change is a national security threat — in agreement with experts across the political spectrum such as Trump Administration Secretary of Defense James Mattis. The president is proud to be delivering on his campaign promise to bring manufacturing jobs back to America and cut Americans’ energy costs by taking on the climate crisis, including by ensuring that the United States wins the global competition for EV manufacturing.”

Shortly after taking office in 2021, Biden issued the goal of ensuring 50% of total domestic vehicle purchases are electric by 2030, a first-of-its-kind goal cheered by green energy industry groups and climate advocates. Since then, the administration has pursued various regulations that, while not explicitly mandating electric vehicles, would create strong financial incentives for manufacturers to produce more zero-carbon options and for consumers to transition to those options.

In December 2022, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) finalized rules that targeted heavy-duty trucks it said at the time were the “strongest-ever national clean air standards to cut smog- and soot-forming emissions” from such vehicles. The new standards went into effect March 27 and will be implemented for new trucks sold after 2027.

INTERNAL DEM MEMO CLAIMS GOP BILL OUTLAWING EV MANDATES MAY LEAD TO PREMATURE DEATHS

In April, the EPA proposed the most aggressive federal tailpipe emissions rules on light- and medium-duty emissions ever crafted. If finalized and implemented, 67% of new sedan, crossover, SUV and light truck purchases, up to 50% of bus and garbage truck purchases, 35% of short-haul freight tractor purchases and 25% of long-haul freight tractor purchases could be electric by 2032, the White House projected.

Months later, in July, the Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration issued its most aggressive fuel economy standards ever, an action critics say would increase consumer costs.

And last year, the EPA also reinstated California’s authority under the Clean Air Act to implement its own emission standards and electric vehicle sales mandates, allowing other states to also adopt California’s rules. The state then approved regulations that mandated all car purchases in the state, which leads the country in annual car sales, be electric by 2035.

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

Still, the electric vehicle industry has faced significant headwinds related to both the increasing costs associated with manufacturing and consumer hesitance around switching from gas-powered cars.

“It is not an overstatement to say that the federal government is subsidizing EVs to a greater degree than even wind and solar electricity generation and embarking on an unprecedented endeavor to remake the entire American auto industry,” a recent Texas Public Policy Foundation report concluded. 

“Despite these massive incentives, EVs are receiving a tepid response from the majority of Americans who cannot shoulder their higher cost.

“It’s time for federal and state governments to stop driving the American auto industry off an economic cliff and allow markets to drive further improvements in cost and efficiency.”

Fox News Digital has reached out to Wade for comment.

EXCLUSIVE: Former first lady Melania Trump will speak to new American citizens on Friday about the “responsibility” of citizenship and the importance of “guarding our freedom” during a naturalization ceremony at the National Archives. 

Trump will reflect on her own experience and the “sense of success” she felt “immediately” after becoming a U.S. citizen, according to excerpts of prepared remarks obtained by Fox News Digital.

The National Archives is hosting a naturalization ceremony at 10 a.m. Friday in the historic National Archives Rotunda. The ceremony will feature 25 people from 25 nations sworn in as new citizens of the U.S. before the Constitution and other founding documents.

MELANIA TRUMP ROLLS OUT ‘AMERICAN CHRISTMAS’ ORNAMENTS, NFTS TO HELP FUND SCHOLARSHIPS FOR FOSTER CHILDREN

The former first lady will speak at the ceremony and discuss the responsibilities that come with being an American citizen.

“It means actively participating in the democratic process and guarding our freedom. It also means leading by example and contributing to our society,” the former first lady is expected to say. “It is a life-altering experience that takes time, determination and sometimes even tremendous strength.”

“Throughout our lives, we cross thresholds,” Trump will say. “And although obstacles often stand in the way of our goals, we persevere, as we understand that conquering them will provide great access to personal development, fulfillment and eventually self-actualization.”

Ahead of the ceremony, the former first lady told Fox News Digital that she was “honored to receive the invitation to participate in the Naturalization Ceremony on Bill of Rights Day.”

MELANIA FULLY BEHIND TRUMP’S 2024 CAMPAIGN, SAYS IT WOULD BE A ‘PRIVILEGE’ TO SERVE AS FIRST LADY AGAIN

“I can personally relate to the wave of emotions experienced by the individuals in today’s celebration and remember the sense of success I felt immediately after becoming a United States citizen,” Trump said.

The former first lady said that the “weight of this transformative moment is accentuated by the magnificence of the venue itself,” referring to the Rotunda of the National Archives. 

“How fortunate to be with the naturalizing individuals and their families as they recite the Oath of Allegiance and become Americans before our great nation’s founding documents,” she said. 

The former first lady, in a previous interview, told Fox News Digital that she supports her husband’s presidential campaign and looks forward to “restoring hope for the future and leading America with love and strength” during a possible second term in the White House.

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

Trump said that if she has “the privilege” to serve as first lady again in 2024, she would continue to prioritize initiatives focused on the well-being and development of children, to ensure they have the “support and resources they need to reach their full potential.”

Former President Donald Trump holds a commanding lead over the GOP primary field. 

During her time as first lady, Trump hosted virtual roundtables on foster care as part of her “Be Best” initiative, and focused on strengthening the child welfare system. She worked with members of Congress on legislation that secured funding for grants awarded to youth and young adults currently or formerly in foster care to help pay for college, career school or training. The bill ultimately was signed by then-President Trump in December 2020.

Since leaving the White House, the former first lady also created special edition Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs). A portion of those proceeds went towards her initiative “Fostering the Future” to secure education opportunities and scholarships for children in the foster care community.

FIRST ON FOX: Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis will be joined by a trio of top conservatives on the campaign trail in Iowa in the next few days as he continues his push to mobilize Hawkeye State voters to caucus for him next month.

Rep. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., a longtime friend of DeSantis, is set to appear with the GOP presidential candidate on Saturday for a 2nd Amendment Town Hall in Johnston, Iowa. Additionally, DeSantis will be joined by Massie’s GOP colleague Rep. Chip Roy, R-Texas, in Iowa on Monday through Wednesday.

“In one month, Iowans can send a loud message that they choose principles over princes and choose Ron DeSantis for his bold, honest leadership and the proven courage to bring a reckoning to Washington, D.C.,” Roy said in a statement.  

“I look forward to spending time with Iowans to share my heartfelt belief Gov. DeSantis is the proven leader we all need to send Biden back to his basement and to carry America forward, not backward, as we start a new era of freedom, security, and prosperity,” Roy said. “As he has always done, Gov. DeSantis will get the job done – ending the invasion of our southern border, shrinking government, and making clear to radical progressives and establishment Republicans that it is a new day in Washington.” 

DESANTIS DOWNPLAYS SIGNIFICANCE OF GOV. SUNUNU’S NEW HAMPSHIRE ENDORSEMENT OF HALEY: ‘SO MANY PROBLEMS’

Oklahoma’s Republican Gov. Kevin Stitt will also join DeSantis in Iowa next Wednesday and Thursday. 

“I watched Ron DeSantis lead through COVID, and I know that as president he will fight for Americans the same way he fought for the people of Florida to protect our liberties and freedoms,” Stitt said in a statement. “I can’t wait to tell Iowans firsthand that he has never made a promise he did not keep, and his record of results proves we can trust him to beat Joe Biden and serve two terms to secure our southern border, end Washington’s reckless spending spree and runaway inflation and unleash our domestic energy production.”

DeSantis has made Iowa his main focus in recent months, shifting resources and staff to the state and visiting all 99 counties as he makes a final push to narrow the polling gap between his campaign and former President Donald Trump’s.

TRUMP HOLDS MASSIVE LEAD IN IOWA 5 WEEKS FROM CAUCUSES THAT KICK OFF GOP RACE: POLL

The Florida governor took part in a CNN town hall debate in Iowa this week and his campaign is hoping that recent endorsements from Iowa Republican Gov. Kim Reynolds and evangelical leader Bob Vander Plaats will help propel him to a strong showing in the state. 

“Riding a wave of momentum in Iowa following historic endorsements from Iowa Gov Kim Renyolds, Iowa Kingmaker Bob Vander Plaats, and 42 state legislators, Ron DeSantis is now enlisting some of the conservative movement’s best fighters – Congressmen Roy and Massie and Governor Kevin Stitt – to help him get his message out in the Hawkeye State,” DeSantis communications director Andrew Romeo told Fox News Digital in a statement. 

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

“Iowans will hear directly from these national leaders who’ve seen first-hand Ron DeSantis fight the tough battles against the left and deliver big wins for conservatives,” Romeo continued. “They’ll make sure there is no doubt in the minds of Iowans that Ron DeSantis will deliver on his promises to stop the invasion at our southern border, restore our economy, and revive America.”

ATKINSON, N.H. – Addressing a standing-room-only crowd at a weekday morning town hall in New Hampshire, Republican presidential candidate Nikki Haley noted that “it’s been a great couple of weeks for us.”

Minutes earlier, the former ambassador to the United Nations and former South Carolina governor was introduced to the crowd — many of whom were seeing her on the campaign trail for the first time — by popular Republican New Hampshire Gov. Chris Sununu, who endorsed Haley on Tuesday.

Haley has enjoyed momentum in the polls in recent months, thanks in part to well-received performances in the first three GOP presidential primary debates. She leapfrogged Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis for second place in New Hampshire, which holds the first primary and second overall contest in the Republican nominating calendar.

Haley also aims to make a fight of it in Iowa — the state whose Jan. 15 caucuses lead off the GOP nominating calendar — where the latest polls suggest she is close to pulling even with DeSantis for a distant second place behind former President Donald Trump, who remains the far and away frontrunner in the race as he makes his third straight White House bid.

‘WE’RE ALL IN’ — SUNUNU BACKS HALEY IN MAJOR 2024 ENDORSEMENT

In an interview with Fox News ahead of her town hall, Haley said her campaign’s momentum is starting to pay off when it comes to fundraising.

“We’ve been talking to people on the ground. We do see that the funding is coming through. We see it on the website. We see that a lot of people are going to Nikki Haley dot com and donating, and we appreciate the support,” Haley touted. “The energy is really good. It’s good on the ground. It’s good around the country.”

Her campaign spotlighted that November was their largest online fundraising month of the cycle, and that December is already outpacing November “with no signs of momentum slowing down.”

Haley’s team also showcased that since the first GOP presidential debate in August, they’ve raised more each subsequent month. And showing off their grassroots appeal, they noted that 95% of donations to the campaign have been $200 or less.

SUNUNU ON HALEY’S 2024 RIVALS: ‘I THINK THEY SHOULD ALL GET OUT’

The campaign and affiliated committees hauled in over $11 million during the July-September third quarter of 2023 fundraising, up nearly $4 million from the second quarter. But Haley’s fundraising, while impressive, trailed DeSantis by around $4 million and lagged far behind Trump’s massive $45 million third-quarter haul.

Separate from the fundraising, Sununu said he’s sensing the campaign’s energy on the ground.

“I’ve done town halls with all the different candidates the past three months. These are the biggest and most energetic town halls I’ve done to date with any candidate,” he told Fox News following the Thursday town hall in Atkinson.

Sununu, a vocal GOP critic of Trump who mulled his own 2024 White House bid before deciding in June against a presidential run, had long said he would make an endorsement in the race ahead of next month’s New Hampshire primary. In November, Sununu said he had narrowed his choices down to Haley, DeSantis and former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, a longtime Sununu friend who is making his second White House bid.

CHRIS CHRISTIE VOWS ‘I’M NOT GOING ANYWHERE. SO LET’S BE REALLY CLEAR ABOUT THAT’

The governor, who teamed up with Haley at four town halls since Tuesday, pointed to Wednesday evening’s campaign event in Keene, New Hampshire.

“Last night was a great example, where you literally had hundreds and hundreds of people who had to get turned away. The energy was through the roof,” he said. “She’s got this amazing spark. Her numbers are moving. And now we’re throwing a little gasoline on it and people are loving it.”

Sununu’s endorsement of Haley was a setback for Christie, who is repeating his strategy from his unsuccessful 2016 Republican presidential run of placing all his chips in New Hampshire. He stands in third place in Granite State polls, a couple of points behind Haley.

“I would have been happy to accept his support,” Christie said of Sununu, as he spoke with reporters Wednesday evening after holding a town hall in Londonderry, New Hampshire.

But he downplayed the significance of the Sununu endorsement, arguing, “I would have known exactly what it meant. It meant one vote. And it would have been nice to hang around with him, and we could have done a buddy show like he and Nikki are doing, but in the end, these voters are not going to be told by anybody who to vote for.”

“I’m disappointed. I’m not going to be stupid about it. It’s disappointing not to get it, but on the other hand, it doesn’t change my strategy here one bit,” he highlighted.

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP 

Christie said he was staying in the race, telling Fox News Digital, “I’m not going anywhere, so let’s be really clear about that.”

The former New Jersey governor took aim at Haley early and often during the town hall, starting with what he called her “word salad” answers when it comes to the combustible issue of abortion. Later, he accused her of “political pandering.”

“The voters in this state have a right to know where she stands. Not just her happy talk. They have a right to know where she stands,” Christie told reporters after the town hall.

Christie said Haley is “unwilling to do it. She wants to be everything to everybody on that issue [abortion]. It’s too important an issue, it’s too personal an issue, and it’s too serious an issue to not answer it directly. I’ve answered it directly. She hasn’t.”

Asked about Christie’s criticism, Haley told Fox News on Thursday, “He’s saying I say one thing in one state and one thing in another. That’s because I was asked two different questions. The first question was, if you were governor and the people of South Carolina wanted a six-week abortion law, would you support it? And I said yes. I would support whatever the people in the state wanted.”

“But when it comes to a federal law, we have to have consensus. You can’t do that without 60 Senate votes. And so what I’m saying is, we’re not going to talk about ban or something that’s not possible. We’re not going to demonize the issue on the federal level. The country doesn’t want that. We’re going to humanize it.”

Minutes later, Haley swiped at Christie and the rest of her rivals, telling the crowd at her town hall to applause that when it comes to abortion, “the fellas just haven’t been able to address this the right way.”

Get the latest updates from the 2024 campaign trail, exclusive interviews and more at our Fox News Digital election hub.

Welcome to Fox News’ Politics newsletter with the latest political news from Washington D.C. and updates from the 2024 campaign trail. 

Subscribe now to get Fox News Politics newsletter in your inbox.

What’s happening:

– New York court rejects Trump’s appeal of gag order…

– Former prosecutor who allegedly scuttled Hunter Biden probe ‘refused’ to answer Judiciary Committee questions…

– Senate delays Christmas break to work on border deal…

‘NO EVIDENCE’

White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre blew up Thursday when pressed by a reporter on President Biden “lying” about past interactions with his son Hunter’s business associates, declaring there was “no evidence” the president did anything wrong.

Jean-Pierre also lashed out at House Republicans over the vote to approve an official impeachment inquiry against Biden, accusing them of “wasting their time,” but the interaction began with New York Post reporter Steven Nelson asking why Biden interacted with so many of his family’s business associates, which contributed to the inquiry’s launch.

“What we’re seeing from House Republicans is wasted time. And it is certainly, you know, a baseless political slant. That’s what we’re seeing. And they’re leaving. House Republicans are leaving this week to go, you know, enjoy a nice holiday. Right? As most Americans should. But what happened to the funding to Ukraine?” Jean-Pierre responded. 

Earlier Thursday, the White House said House Republicans were “dithering” by leaving for Christmas break without approving additional Ukriane funding, aid to Israel, or addressing the border.

White House

‘HE’S WORRIED’: Biden reportedly lashes out at some aides who bring up Hunter Biden …Read more

TWO TO TANGO: Dance troupe in bizarre White House Christmas video has a history of far-left activism …Read more

‘LUNATICS’: Energy experts blast John Kerry’s UN act shutting down fossil fuels …Read more

BIG BUCKS: Hunter Biden claimed he didn’t ‘stand to gain anything’ in controversial Burisma role despite making millions …Read more

Capitol Hill

BOWING OUT: Georgia GOP Rep. Drew Ferguson joins growing list of politicians departing Congress after 2024 …Read more

‘DELUSIONAL’: GOP lawmakers skeptical about voting on border deal as Dems threaten to delay Christmas break …Read more

‘SILENT EPIDEMIC: Senate report sounds alarm on surge in fentanyl deaths among older Americans …Read more

Tales from the Campaign Trail

APATHY WINS: Just 1 in 4 Michigan Democrats enthusiastic about Biden being the nominee: poll …Read more

STRIKE IT DOWN: Ramaswamy says SCOTUS should strike down FDA approval of abortion pill …Read more

FRIENDLY FIRE: Newsom pressed on San Francisco’s homeless woes in late-night stop: ‘Can’t blame it on conservatives’ …Read more

Across America

POWERED UP: Dem, Republican unleash effort to loosen China’s stranglehold on EV supplies amid Biden’s green energy push …Read more

‘ABSOLUTE EMBARRASSMENT’: Critics demolish liberal DC mayor for forgetting where her own city’s metro lines go …Read more

WOKE REVOKED: Oklahoma governor signs executive order banning DEI in state institutions …Read more

EXCLUSIVE INVITE: Boston mayor defends excluding White people from holiday party …Read more

Get the latest updates from the 2024 campaign trail, exclusive interviews and more on FoxNews.com.

EXCLUSIVE: A GOP lawmaker on the House Oversight Committee is calling for Rep. Eric Swalwell, D-Calif., to be punished by Congress for helping Hunter Biden on Wednesday morning.

Swalwell had reserved a spot outside the Senate side of the U.S. Capitol where Hunter Biden later made a brief statement to the press before skipping a planned deposition by the House Oversight Committee.

“Nobody gets to do that,” Rep. Andy Biggs, R-Ariz., told Fox News Digital of Hunter Biden’s deliberate absence. “He was sent subpoenas. He was told to appear.”

“We’re going to vote to hold him in contempt. We probably need to vote Eric Swalwell in contempt, because the rumor is that Mr. Swalwell aided and abetted him by setting up his facilities so he could have his [press] conference across the way.”

WH SPURNS BIDEN FAMILY ‘CONSPIRACY THEORIES’ AHEAD OF LIKELY IMPEACHMENT INQUIRY VOTE, HUNTER BIDEN DEPOSITION

Swalwell admitted to Politico on Wednesday that he had reserved the spot for Hunter Biden, telling the outlet, “There is absolutely zero evidence Hunter or his father acted corruptly. . . . So I’m not going to sit quietly and let MAGA Republicans do Trump’s bidding in Congress.”

Fox News Digital reached out to his office for comment but did not immediately hear back.

HUNTER BIDEN FACES BACKLASH AFTER DEFYING SUBPOENA WITH PRESS CONFERENCE ‘STUNT’: ‘HOLD HIM IN CONTEMPT!’

House Republicans are seeking to hear from Hunter Biden and the president’s brother James Biden as part of their probe into whether President Biden committed any impeachable offenses. They suspect that he used his position as vice president in the Obama administration to enrich himself and his family.

Lawmakers wanted to hear from Hunter Biden in detail about his involvement with foreign businesses in China and Ukraine. He is also currently under federal investigation over tax and firearms charges.

If the House holds Hunter Biden in contempt over skipping his deposition, which Biggs called for, the conservative Republican argued that precedent should compel Attorney General Merrick Garland to charge him.

HUNTER BIDEN CLAIMED HE DIDN’T ‘STAND TO GAIN ANYTHING’ IN CONTROVERSIAL BURISMA ROLE DESPITE MAKING MILLIONS

“He went after Steve Bannon and several others. He should go after Mr. Biden as well,” Biggs said, citing Bannon’s contempt charge for failing to cooperate with the now-defunct January 6 select committee’s investigation.

“We were all sitting there. We had a court reporter there, Democrats were there. Republicans were there. We were ready . . . Mr. Biden chose not to come.”

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP 

A defiant Hunter Biden told reporters on Wednesday morning, “For six years, I have been the target of the unrelenting Trump attack machine, shouting, ‘Where’s Hunter?’ Well, here’s my answer: I am here,”

“I am here to testify at a public hearing, today, to answer any of the committees’ legitimate questions. Republicans do not want an open process where Americans can see their tactics, expose their baseless inquiry or hear what I have to say,” he said.

The New York State Appellate Division First Department has rejected former President Trump’s challenge to the gag orders imposed by Judge Arthur Engoron. 

The non-jury civil trial stems from New York Attorney General Letitia James’ lawsuit against Trump and his businesses in the state.

Back in September, Engoron ruled that Trump and the Trump Organization had committed fraud while building his real estate empire, by deceiving banks, insurers and others, by overvaluing his assets and exaggerating his net worth on paperwork used in making deals and securing financing.

“He ruled against me without knowing anything about me,” Trump said on the stand. “He called me a fraud, and he didn’t know anything about me.”

JUDGE IMPOSES PARTIAL GAG ORDER IN TRUMP ORG TRIAL, BLOCKING PARTIES FROM VERBAL ATTACKS AGAINST COURT STAFF

Following the ruling, Engoron imposed a partial gag order to prevent all parties from engaging in any verbal attacks against court staff after Trump criticized a member of the judge’s office on social media.

Engoron added that “personal attacks on members of my court staff are unacceptable, not appropriate” and warned they would not be tolerated.

TRUMP, JUDGE ENGORON TRADE JABS DURING FORMER PRESIDENT’S TESTIMONY IN CIVIL TRIAL STEMMING FROM NYAG LAWSUIT

Without naming the former president, Engoron was referring to a now-deleted Trump post on his Truth Social account about Engoron’s law clerk, Allison Greenfield.

SUPREME COURT: TRUMP MUST RESPOND TO SPECIAL COUNSEL’S PRESIDENTIAL IMMUNITY PETITION BEFORE CHRISTMAS

Trump and his family have denied any wrongdoing and have claimed that the former president has repeatedly said his assets were actually undervalued.

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

FIRST ON FOX: A number of conservative groups and former border officials are urging Republican lawmakers to reject a potential compromise on border funding that falls short of the House signature legislation passed this year — as the clock ticks down on a potential deal.

Negotiations are ongoing between Republicans, Democrats and the Biden administration over a $106 billion supplemental spending agreement for the border, Israel and Ukraine. Republicans have demanded policy changes, including asylum limits, to restrict the entry of migrants into the U.S. as part of the deal.

Republicans in the House and conservative groups have called for the inclusion of the entirety of H.R. 2 — the House signature legislation passed in the chamber this year which ramps up border security, restarts border wall construction, brings back the Remain-in-Mexico policy and limits the use of asylum and humanitarian parole among other sweeping changes.

REPUBLICANS SEE PROGRESS IN BORDER TALKS, BUT UNCLEAR IF DEAL WITHIN REACH AS CRISIS RAGES

A Senate working group released a slimmer version of proposals taken in part from H.R. 2, but that was rejected by the White House and Senate Democrats. This week it was reported that the administration was open to a Title 42-type expulsion authority in certain circumstances, expanded expedited removal and a broadening of immigration detention. Those proposals drew optimism from some Senate Republicans, even as some Democrats and immigration activists condemned them.

However, the conservatives — who are part of a coalition that previously warned Congress against “watering down” H.R. 2, — say that it falls short of what is required to fix the ongoing crisis at the border which has hit historic highs in terms of migrant encounters.

Kevin Roberts, president of Heritage Action, said in a statement to Fox News Digital that “years of backroom deals and weakness from Congress have given us the worst illegal immigration crisis in American history” and that Americans are “sick and tired” of secret negotiations that end in “do-nothing bills.”

“The border is in chaos because of Biden’s intentional destruction of the enforcement measures that discouraged illegal immigration. Lawmakers cannot trust this administration with more money and more power to make up the rules as they go. Conservatives have already passed a plan to secure the border. H.R. 2 gets the job done,” he said. “Anything less would be a defeat for the American people and the rule of law.” 

“Allowing the Biden administration to use a Christmas deadline and false promises of border security to pass billions in foreign funding is unacceptable. Conservative members of Congress shouldn’t take these negotiations seriously—the American people surely do not,” he said.

Lora Ries, director of the Heritage Foundation’s Border Security and Immigration Center and a former DHS official, dismissed reported claims by the Biden administration that it would deport and detain more.

“That’s current law, which they’ve ignored for three years. That’s neither a ‘concession’ nor credible,’ she said.

CONSERVATIVE COALITION WARNS GOP LEADERS AGAINST ‘WATERING DOWN’ BORDER MEASURES TO CLINCH SPENDING DEAL

Tom Homan, a former acting director of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and a Heritage visiting fellow, called the policies in H.R. 2 a “no-brainer”

“Because we proved they worked under the Trump administration and implementing these policies resulted in the most secure border of my lifetime,” he said. “Why would anyone negotiate proven success? Now is the time to be strong and act. 

“The FBI has publicly stated that the threat stream to this nation is very high. The time for negotiating is over,” Homan said. “We can no longer accept the Democrats delaying action on Israel and Ukraine because continuing an open border national security failure is more important to them.”

Former acting Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Commissioner Mark Morgan accused Senate Democrats of “negotiating with themselves to water down what they already agreed was the path to success.” 

“Throwing more money at the crisis and begging the current administration to enforce the laws they have disregarded for three years, without the inclusion of the policy changes contained in H.R. 2, is not a solution – it’s failure. What’s happening at our borders is not about immigration – it’s about our ability to safeguard our nation against a vast set of complex threats pouring across them,” he said. “When did it become acceptable to ‘compromise’ on protecting and defending our borders and our sovereignty?”

MIGRANT ENCOUNTERS AGAIN TOP 10K IN SINGLE DAY AS LAWMAKERS EYE NEW BORDER LIMITS

Chris Chmielenski, President of the Immigration Accountability Project, said that the proposal “falls short” of addressing the crisis and warned that “any Republican that goes along will join the Biden Administration in owning it.” The only way to end the crisis, he said, is to pass H.R. 2.

“Then, and only then, will a loud and clear message be sent around the world that the U.S. border is closed,” he said.

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

Lawmakers are due to leave Washington on Thursday for the holiday break, it is unclear if a deal will be reached before then. Meanwhile, sources confirmed to Fox News this week that encounters breached the 10,000 mark at the southern border in a single day on Tuesday.