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The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) reportedly reassigned multiple senior officials across various divisions ahead of the anticipated confirmation of President Donald Trump’s nomination for U.S. attorney general, Pam Bondi.

Fox News is told that multiple career staffers in the criminal and national security divisions at the DOJ were removed from their current posts and reassigned.

While it is difficult to fire a career person “just because,” reassigning is possible, and that appears to have happened.

Of those who were moved to other positions within the DOJ was Bruce Schwartz, head of the office of internal affairs, which handles extradition matters, a person familiar with the matter who spoke on condition of anonymity told The Associated Press. The same person reportedly told the wire service that about 20 officials had been reassigned.

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Also, reportedly moved was George Toscas, a veteran deputy assistant attorney general in the national security division who not only helped oversee major terrorism and espionage investigations but also was a key figure in politically motivated probes over the last 10 years.

Toscas was involved in the investigation into Hillary Clinton’s handling of classified information as well as the investigation into Trump’s possession of classified documents at Mar-a-Lago in Florida.

Toscas’ reassignment was confirmed to The Associated Press by another person familiar with the matter.

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“He has seen everything in both counterterrorism and counterintelligence,” a former colleague of Toscas’ who spoke on condition of anonymity, told The Washington Post. “There is no one in the department who knows as much about prosecuting and investigating terrorists and spies as George Toscas.”

The Washington Post also learned from sources familiar with the matter that Eun Young Choi, another deputy assistant attorney general in the national security division, was reassigned within the department, and was notified of the change by way of email on Monday afternoon.

The DOJ declined to comment on the changes.

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Hours after Trump took the oath of office, the DOJ removed at least four senior officials from the division that operates the nation’s immigration courts, which are currently backlogged.

The Washington Post reported that there is a 120-day moratorium on some staff reassignments after newly confirmed leaders begin their appointments, under federal guidelines. Bondi has not yet been confirmed; therefore, the moratorium is not yet in effect in the DOJ.

Currently, James McHenry is running the DOJ as acting U.S. attorney general after Merrick Garland left the department on Friday. 

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The reasons for the moves were not immediately known, though it is common for a new administration to appoint its own hires to lead the DOJ.

The moves could also foreshadow additional changes, given Trump’s interest in the department, which investigated him during his first term and indicted him twice last year in separate cases that never reached trial and were withdrawn after Trump’s election win in November.

WASHINGTON, D.C.—The White House’s Office of Personnel Management notified heads of agencies and departments that they must begin taking steps to close all Diversity, Equity and Inclusion offices by the end of the day Wednesday and place government workers in those offices on paid leave, Fox News Digital has learned. 

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Acting Director of the Office of Personnel Management Charles Ezell sent a memo to heads and acting heads of departments and agencies Tuesday evening directing them to, no later than 5:00 p.m. on Wednesday, Jan. 22 to:

• Send an agency-wide notice to employees informing them of the closure and asking employees if they know of any efforts to disguise these programs by using coded or imprecise language.
• Send a notification to all employees of DEIA offices that they are being placed on paid administrative leave effective immediately as the agency takes steps to close/end all DEIA initiatives, offices and programs.
• Take down all outward facing media (websites, social media accounts, etc) of DEIA offices.
• Withdraw any final or pending documents, directives, orders, materials, and equity plans issued by the agency in response to now-repealed Executive Order 14035, Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Accessibility (DEIA) in the Federal Workforce (June 25, 2021).
• Cancel any DEIA-related trainings, and terminate any DEIA-related contractors.

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The memo also directed the heads of agencies and departments, by 12:00pm Thursday to share with OPM: 

• a complete list of DEIA offices and any employees who in those offices as of November 5, 2024.
• a complete list of all DEIA-related agency contracts as of November 5, 2024.
• any agency plans to fully comply with the above Executive Orders and this memorandum.

By Friday at 5pm, agency heads must submit to OPM: 

• a written plan for executing a reduction-in-force action regarding the employees who work in a DEIA office.
• a list of all contract descriptions or personnel position descriptions that were changed since November 5, 2024 to obscure their connection to DEIA programs.

TRUMP TO TAKE MORE THAN 200 EXECUTIVE ACTIONS ON DAY ONE

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The memo comes after President Trump signed an executive order to eliminate all DEI programs from the federal government. 

The president also signed an order making it “the official policy of the U.S. government to only recognize two genders: male and female.” 

FIRST ON FOX: Republican Sens. Ted Cruz, R-Texas and Todd Young, R-Indiana are urging historical museums in Washington, D.C., to “respect” the First Amendment rights of pro-life protesters who are expected to descend upon the city on Friday.

“This peaceful exercise of First Amendment rights has historically provided participants with a positive, welcoming experience in our nation’s capital,” the senators wrote in a letter to the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum and the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA).

Two years ago, the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum booted several Catholic students and their chaperones for wearing pro-life attire. Students and chaperones from Our Lady of the Rosary School in Greenville, South Carolina, traveled to Washington, D.C., to participate in the annual National March for Life. The group stood out in matching blue beanies emblazoned with the words “Rosary PRO-LIFE.”

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At the time, the American Center for Law and Justice (ACLJ), representing some students’ parents, claimed museum staff mocked the group, used expletives, and argued the museum was a “neutral zone” prohibiting political or religious messages.

In a settlement reached on March 18, 2024, the Smithsonian Institution resolved a lawsuit with students removed from the National Air and Space Museum for wearing pro-life beanies. As part of the agreement, the Smithsonian committed to providing the students a tour and an apology, updating its policy on clothing with religious and political speech for public-facing security staff, sharing video footage and investigative details of the incident, and paying $50,000.

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“While we are pleased that the victims of this harassment received justice, it clearly never should have happened in the first place. No sum of money could truly undue the atrocious acts: officers bearing the badge and force of the federal government openly intimidated and violated the First Amendment rights of peaceful students,” the senators wrote to the museums last week. 

“Moreover, American taxpayers footed the bill for the Smithsonian Institution employees’ egregious behavior and apparent lack of adequate training. This cannot happen again,” they said.

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That same year, NARA settled a lawsuit in December 2023 after staff reportedly asked visitors to remove pro-life clothing during the March for Life protest earlier that year. The visitors, represented also by the ACLJ, claimed their First Amendment rights were violated. NARA apologized, admitted the incident breached its policies, and agreed to pay $10,000 in legal fees while implementing staff training to prevent future violations.

The senators are urging the institutions to answer questions about whether they have honored prior settlements regarding the treatment of visitors displaying religious or political messages and whether staff have been reminded of policies protecting free speech. NARA is also being asked to commit to maintaining these protections after a key injunction expires in January 2025. Both agencies have been asked to provide detailed explanations of their actions and preparations.

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In an email to Fox News Digital, Smithsonian Institution spokesperson Pamela Baker-Masson said, “We will correspond with the Senators.”

NARA did not respond to a request for comment by press deadline.

Republican Arizona Congressman Andy Biggs announced his interest Tuesday in running for governor in 2026 as the GOP looks to defeat incumbent Democratic Gov. Katie Hobbs.

Biggs, an ally of President Donald Trump and former chair of the conservative Freedom Caucus, filed a statement of interest, which is required before he can start collecting signatures to qualify for the ballot. 

However, filing a statement doesn’t mean a candidate will follow through. 

In a statement posted on X, Biggs said he “will bring my experience home to my native state to help it fulfill its tremendous capacity. I have a firm understanding of what the state needs to thrive.”

INFLUENCERS PRAISE TRUMP FOR DECLARING ‘ONLY TWO GENDERS’ WILL BE RECOGNIZED BY US: ‘TRUTH IS WINNING!’

Biggs chaired the Freedom Caucus from 2019 to 2021 and was one of eight Republicans who helped oust former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., in 2023. 

If Biggs does run, it could result in a fight between him and Karrin Taylor Robson, also a Trump ally. 

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“Are you running for governor? I think so Karrin, because, if you do, you’re going to have my support, OK?” Trump told a crowd last month at Turning Point USA’s Americafest event in Phoenix. 

Robson ran for governor in 2022 but lost to Kari Lake, who Trump endorsed. Lake lost that year’s election to Hobbs and recently lost a bid for the U.S. Senate.

In his statement, Biggs said he looks “forward to conversing with my fellow Arizonans as I consider this weighty decision.”

State Sen. Jake Hoffman, a Republican and founding chair of the Arizona Freedom Caucus, endorsed Biggs on X. 

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“Andy will make an INCREDIBLE Governor and ensure Arizona is safe & prosperous for everyone,” he wrote. 

President Donald Trump revoked former National Security Advisor John Bolton’s Secret Service protection after his inauguration as the 47th president on Monday, Bolton told Fox News Digital. 

“I am disappointed but not surprised that President Trump has decided to terminate the protection previously provided by the United States Secret Service,” Bolton said in a statement provided to Fox News Digital on Tuesday. “Notwithstanding my criticisms of President Biden’s national-security policies, he nonetheless made the decision to extend that protection to me in 2021. “

Bolton has faced threats from Iran going back years, including an alleged plot to assassinate him in 2021 and the Department of Justice subsequently charging a member of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps for the plot in 2022. Trump had ousted Bolton from his first administration in 2019, and Biden had granted him a security detail in 2021. 

Fox News Digital reached out to the White House regarding Bolton’s claim, but did not immediately receive a reply. 

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“The Justice Department filed criminal charges against an Iranian Revolutionary Guard official in 2022 for attempting to hire a hit man to target me. That threat remains today, as also demonstrated by the recent arrest of someone trying to arrange for President Trump’s own assassination,” Bolton continued in his statement. “The American people can judge for themselves which President made the right call.”

The Iranian threats against Bolton were likely sparked by the January 2020 U.S. strike that killed Qassem Soleimani, the head of Iran’s Quds Force, the Department of Justice reported in 2022. 

Bolton served as Trump’s national security advisor between 2018 and 2019, before Trump ousted him because they “disagreed strongly” on policy issues. 

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“I informed John Bolton last night that his services are no longer needed at the White House,” Trump tweeted in 2019. “I disagreed strongly with many of his suggestions, as did others in the Administration, and therefore I asked John for his resignation, which was given to me this morning. I thank John very much for his service. I will be naming a new National Security Advisor next week.”

In the following years, Trump repeatedly has slammed Bolton, including claiming he would have sparked “World War Six,” and calling him “one of the dumbest people in Government” back in 2023. 

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Bolton also has taken his shots at Trump, claiming in a 2020 interview that Trump lacks “the competency to carry out the job.” 

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“I don’t think he’s fit for office,” Bolton said in 2020. “I don’t think he has the competency to carry out the job. There isn’t really any guiding principle that I was able to discern, other than what’s good for Donald Trump’s reelection.”

Democratic senators on the Armed Services Committee are reviewing an affidavit that alleges secretary of defense nominee Pete Hegseth made his second wife fear for her safety. 

Fox News has obtained an affidavit from Hegseth’s former sister-in-law, Danielle Hegseth, which alleges he has an alcohol abuse problem and at times made his ex-wife, Samantha, fear for her safety. Danielle Hegseth was married to Pete Hegseth’s brother. She is not the sister of Samantha, Pete Hegseth’s second wife.

The Senate Armed Services Committee was provided the affidavit, and members are in the process of reviewing it. 

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In a statement to Fox News, Pete Hegseth’s lawyer, Tim Parlatore said, “Sam has never alleged that there was any abuse. She signed court documents acknowledging that there was no abuse and recently reaffirmed the same during her FBI interview. Belated claims by Danielle Dietrich, an anti-Trump, far-left Democrat who is divorced from Mr. Hegseth’s brother and never got along with the Hegseth family, do nothing to change that.  

“After an acrimonious divorce, Ms. Dietrich has had an ax to grind against the entire Hegseth family. Ms. Dietrich admits that she saw nothing but is now falsely accusing Sam of lying to both the court and to the FBI because of private, undocumented statements that she allegedly made 10 years ago.”

Danielle Hegseth provided an anecdote in the document, recalling that Samantha once hid in a closet from her husband.

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But Danielle Hegseth added that she never witnessed any abuse herself, physical or sexual, from Pete against Samantha. 

The affidavit provided additional anecdotes about Hegseth’s alleged heavy drinking, referring to several specific occasions, including one at a strip club. 

In the document, Danielle Hegseth also said her former brother-in-law is not fit to be secretary of defense.

Jack Reed, D-R.I., the committee’s ranking member, said in a statement, “As I have said for months, the reports of Mr. Hegseth’s history of alleged sexual assault, alcohol abuse and public misconduct necessitate an exhaustive background investigation. I have been concerned that the background check process has been inadequate, and this affidavit confirms my fears. 

“The alleged pattern of abuse and misconduct by Mr. Hegseth is disturbing. This behavior would disqualify any service member from holding any leadership position in the military, much less being confirmed as the secretary of defense.”

Samantha Hegseth denied any physical abuse in a statement first reported by NBC News. 

“There was no physical abuse in my marriage. This is the only further statement I will make to you. I have let you know that I am not speaking and will not speak on my marriage to Pete. Please respect this decision,” she reportedly said. 

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Sen. Jacky Rosen, D-Nev., who is on the committee, told reporters, “This only confirms what we already know about Mr. Hegseth’s behavior and the way he has lived his life and the kinds of opinions that he had towards women.”

“So, we’ll let the Republicans make their own statement, but I think it just confirms we already know that he is absolutely 100% unqualified for this job, his disposition, his demeanor, the issues we have with sexual abuse, with financial mismanagement,” she said. 

“I am telling you, there is a great deal in this affidavit, and, any part of which would disqualify a candidate to lead our military,” Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., another member of the committee, told reporters. 

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However, Republicans on the committee aren’t necessarily going to be swayed by the allegations. 

New Sen. Tim Sheehy, R-Mont., who also sits on the committee, wrote on X, “This is a desperate, last-minute attempt by Dems and the media to smear Pete Hegseth and tank his nomination. Pete’s ex-wife is on record saying the claims are false, but the media doesn’t care because it hurts a Republican. Nobody should fall for this.”

FIRST ON FOX: The anti-woke beer company Ultra Right has officially released its annual swimsuit calendar highlighting “MAGA Babes” after the calendar went viral on social media last year.

The calendar, named “Conservative Dad’s™ MAGA Babes: Make America Hot & Healthy Again,” is being billed by Ultra Right as “a bold and unapologetic celebration of health, beauty, and American values.”

“America is entering a new golden age in 2025—leaving woke culture in the dust. Companies like Sports Illustrated clearly missed the memo,” Ultra Right said in a press release. ” Their 2025 bikini calendar features a morbidly obese woman, promoting poor health as something to celebrate. The MAGA Babes Calendar is here to set the record straight: it’s time to take health and fitness seriously—and look hot doing it.”

The calendar is available for purchase on the company’s website and has over $200 in discounts. 

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“Each month highlights a different MAGA Babe wearing a MAGA hat and how they stay ‘Hot & Healthy’, hilarious woke-free holidays and fun, includes an exclusive discount or promo code, and showcases the “Dad Joke of the Month,’” the press release states.

Seth Weathers, Ultra Right’s CEO, told Fox News Digital in a statement that “MAGA Babes are in and woke is out.”

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“The left tried to drag us down to their drab, overweight, blue-haired level—but on November 5th, America said no!” Weathers said. “Throughout history, men have conquered nations and waged wars for the love of beautiful, cheerful women. We’re bringing that attitude back. We’ll probably start with Greenland, but who knows what we’ll conquer for these MAGA Babes!”

“Led by our iconic First Lady, real beauty is finally being celebrated once again.”

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Ultra Right, a ‘woke-free’ beer company that was launched as an alternative to Bud Light after its promotion of transgender influencer Dylan Mulvaney that received significant pushback from conservatives, released a similar calendar last year featuring former NCAA swimmer Riley Gaines and several other conservative influencers. 

The company devoted 10% of its calendar sales to the Riley Gaines Center to defend women’s sports from “extreme leftist ideology seeking to destroy women’s athletics.”

Gaines told FOX Business after the calendar was released that the campaign raised $20,000 for her group. 

“Beer companies used to be about great beer, American patriotism, fun, fast cars, and beautiful real women,” Weathers said at the time. “We’re bringing back all these things, but better than ever.”

The attorneys general of Louisiana, Kansas, Ohio and West Virginia are suing to block the U.S. Census Bureau from including illegal immigrants in the count used to apportion congressional seats and electoral votes.

The lawsuit filed in Louisiana federal court on Sunday – the day before President Donald Trump took office – alleges that the Biden administration decided to include illegal immigrants counted in the 2020 census as part of the population tally to apportion congressional seats and electoral votes. That allegedly resulted in Ohio and West Virginia each losing a congressional seat and an electoral vote to other states with larger populations of illegal immigrants and temporary visa holders living there.

The lawsuit says Texas gained one congressional seat and one electoral vote, and California kept a congressional seat and an electoral vote “that it would have otherwise lost.”

The attorneys general argue Louisiana and Kansas are each likely to lose a congressional seat and an electoral vote in the 2030 reapportionment if the practice continues.

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“We shouldn’t lose representation in Congress due to the presence of illegal aliens harbored by other states,” Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill said in a statement. “Counting Illegal Aliens in the census to determine Congressional seats and electoral votes is unlawful. We have sued to stop it.” 

In February 2018, the U.S. Census Bureau developed criteria for the 2020 census, dubbed the “Residence Rule,” stating that foreign nationals living in the U.S. are counted in the census and allocated to the state where their “usual residence” is located. The lawsuit notes how that was regardless of whether those foreign nationals are lawfully present in the U.S. and “regardless of whether any visa they may possess is temporary.” 

After the 2020 census, the lawsuit says former President Biden’s Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo, as well as the Census Bureau and its director, Robert Santos, decided to include “illegal aliens and aliens holding temporary visas (‘nonimmigrant aliens’) in the census figures used for determining the apportionment of the House of Representatives and Electoral College votes.” 

The lawsuit says the Residence Rule violates the Fourteenth Amendment’s equal representation principle by “robbing the people of the Plaintiff States of their rightful share of political representation, while systematically redistributing political power to states with high numbers of illegal aliens and nonimmigrant aliens,” as well as Article II, Section 1, of the United States Constitution by “necessitating an unconstitutional distribution of Electoral College votes among the states.” 

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“The Residence Rule also breaches the federal government’s constitutional obligation to conduct an ‘actual Enumeration’ of the number of “persons in each State,” the lawsuit says. “The phrase ‘persons in each State’ was understood at both the Founding and in the Reconstruction era to be restricted to United States citizens and permanent resident aliens who had been lawfully admitted to the body politic constituted by the Constitution.” 

It continues, “Aliens who are unlawfully or temporarily present in the United States did not qualify because they are not entitled to political representation. It has long been understood that foreign diplomats temporarily in the U.S. also did not qualify.” 

“But, in any case, the Fourteenth Amendment separately requires that illegal aliens who have been denied the right to vote be excluded from state apportionment,” the lawsuit says. “Thus, the actual enumeration of the population of the states cannot include such aliens. Only U.S. citizens and lawful permanent residents (“LPRs,” also known as “green card holders”) can be included.” 

The attorneys general argue that illegal immigration “affects the distribution of seats in the House of Representatives and the Electoral College because the illegal alien population is both large and highly concentrated in a minority of states.” 

The lawsuit goes on to summarize research suggesting there are about 11.7 million illegal immigrants in the U.S., stating that over the last three decades, the United States “has been undergoing the largest wave of immigration in American history.” 

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“Counting illegal aliens in the census takes voting power from some Americans and gives it to others,” the lawsuit says. 

President Trump has promised mass deportations and declared a state of emergency at the southern border on his first day in office. It’s unclear how the lawsuit will impact the incoming Trump administration. 

FIRST ON FOX: Arizona’s legislature is considering significant legislation to ensure the key border state cooperates with the mass deportation push by the new Trump administration amid questions about the extent to which states will aid the government.

Senate President Warren Petersen, a Republican, is introducing the “AZ ICE Act,” which would require sheriff’s departments and the Arizona Department of Corrections to enter into co-operative agreements with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).

The agreements are based on 287(g) of the Immigration and Nationality Act, which allows ICE to delegate to state and local law enforcement officers certain immigration functions, including identifying and detaining suspected illegal immigrants.

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“The 287(g) program allows ICE — through the delegation of specified immigration officer duties — to enhance collaboration with state and local law enforcement partners to protect the homeland through the arrest and removal of noncitizens who undermine the safety of our nation’s communities and the integrity of U.S. immigration laws,” ICE’s website says.

Petersen’s bill would also require law enforcement to comply with ICE detainers — which are requests that ICE be notified when an illegal immigrant is being released from state or local custody. “Sanctuary” jurisdictions do not comply with detainers.

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The bill would also direct additional funding to local law enforcement.

“Ending the border crisis requires an all-hands-on-deck approach. This commonsense legislation will not only allow federal and local law enforcement to work together to protect our citizens, but it will also prevent government obstruction,” Petersen said in a statement. 

“Arizona voters spoke loud and clear last November. They overwhelmingly approved the ‘Secure the Border Act’ that Republicans referred to the ballot because they want the law enforced, and they want safe communities,” he said. “I look forward to the AZ ICE Act passing the Legislature, and I’m hopeful the Governor will listen to our citizens by signing the bill when it hits her desk.” 

President Donald Trump was sworn into office on Monday and immediately signed a slew of executive orders to tackle border security and illegal immigration. His administration is planning to launch a mass deportation operation and is already taking steps to make that happen.

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Some local jurisdictions have pledged their support for the measures, but other officials have promised to either resist or not comply with the upcoming deportation operation.

Gov. Katie Hobbs, a Democrat, told ABC News in November that she was hopeful that ongoing partnerships with the federal government can continue, but she said the state would not be complying with what she called a “misguided” deportation operation.

“I am very hopeful that that partnership can continue, and that the incoming administration will listen to, not only my administration, but the experts here on the ground, the people that are doing the work about what is most needed, and what we can continue to do that will be most helpful in securing our border,” she said.

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She then added, “What I will unequivocally say is that, as governor, I will not tolerate efforts that are part of misguided policies that harm our communities, that threaten our communities, that terrorize our communities, and Arizona will not take part in those.”

Republican New York Rep. Elise Stefanik touted her fiery grillings of college administrators on Tuesday when she appeared before Senate lawmakers as part of her confirmation process to serve as the ambassador to the U.N., saying it was a “watershed moment” that exposed “antisemitic rot” in the U.S. colleges. 

“My oversight work led to the most viewed testimony in history, in the history of Congress. This hearing with university presidents was heard around the world and viewed billions of times because it exposed the antisemitic rot in colleges and universities, and was a watershed moment in American higher education,” Stefanik said Tuesday while speaking before the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations,

Since 2023, Stefanik has served as a conservative firebrand who has repeatedly grilled “morally bankrupt” college leaders over their handling of antisemitism on campus following Hamas attacking Israel on Oct. 7, 2023. 

During last year’s college school year, agitators and student protesters flooded college campuses nationwide to protest the war in Israel, which also included spiking instances of antisemitism and Jewish students publicly speaking out that they do not feel safe on some campuses. 

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Most notably, Stefanik grilled Ivy League college administrators from Penn and Harvard, her alma mater, in December 2023 regarding whether “calling for the genocide of Jews” violates the respective school’s codes of conduct. The school leaders, however, waffled in their responses. 

“It can be, depending on the context,” Harvard’s then-President Claudine Gay responded when asked if “calling for the genocide of Jews” violated school conduct rules. 

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“Antisemitic speech when it crosses into conduct that amounts to bullying, harassment, intimidation – that is actionable conduct, and we do take action,” Gay said when pressed to answer “yes” or “no” if calls for the genocide of Jews breaks school rules. 

Both Gay and Penn’s then-President Liz Magill resigned from their high-profile positions shortly after the hearing, while footage of the exchanges spread like wildfire on social media. 

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President Donald Trump nominated Stefanik to serve as ambassador to the U.N. back in November, celebrating her as an “incredibly strong, tough, and smart America First fighter.” 

Stefanik said in her opening remarks on Tuesday that Trump sees “great promise” for the United Nations if it returns to its roots of promoting peace around the globe. 

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“When discussing this nomination with President Trump, the President shared with me that he sees great promise in the United Nations if it focuses on its founding mission of international peace and security. President Trump has long advocated for peace and no new wars,” she said. 

Illinois Democratic Gov. JB Pritzker bashed President Trump’s executive order ending birthright citizenship for children of illegal immigrants.

“That’s unconstitutional. We will not follow an unconstitutional order,” Pritzker told reporters on Monday while speaking at an unrelated event, Politico reported.

Trump’s order, “Protecting the Meaning and Value of American Citizenship,” asserts that the 14th Amendment of the Constitution does not automatically confer American citizenship to individuals who are born within the United States. 

The amendment states: “All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside.”

TRUMP SIGNS ORDER ENDING BIRTHRIGHT CITIZENSHIP FOR CHILDREN OF ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS

Some legal experts have said that such a move is a constitutional change and cannot be made by executive order. The move will almost certainly face a challenge in court from civil rights groups and immigration activists.

Trump advisers and some conservative legal scholars have previously argued that the idea of giving birthright citizenship to children of illegal immigrants is based on a misreading of the amendment.

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The Democratic governor also took several swings at Trump as the 47th president unleashed a flurry of executive actions intended to make good on campaign promises to crack down on illegal immigration, end federal DEI programs and more. Pritzker, who is known to harbor presidential ambitions, said the rapid fire executive actions from Trump were not communicated to state governors ahead of time.

“They have not communicated with us. I’m reading the same thing you are,” he said. “This is indicative of what you’re going to see of the Trump administration for the next four years. It’s chaos.”

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He also echoed concerns former President Biden raised in his farewell address of an oligarchy of ultra-wealthy entrepreneurs who have cozied up to Trump. Silicon Valley titans Elon Musk, Mark Zuckerberg and Jeff Bezos were high-profile attendees at Trump’s inauguration.

“He’s got the oligarchs sitting on the front row of his inauguration. It shows who he cares about. It’s the wealthiest people in America who are cow-towing to him and not ordinary Americans. He does not care about ordinary Americans,” said Pritzker, who himself is a billionaire member of the wealthy Pritzker family, which owns the Hyatt hotel chain.

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Pritzker claimed his biggest problem with the new administration is “the intent to attack people’s rights. That is something we will have to put up with or deal with every single day of this administration.”

A federal judge on Tuesday blocked the release of the second volume of former Special Counsel Jack Smith’s report on his investigation into President Trump.

Judge Aileen Cannon had allowed the first volume to be released to a small group within Congress. The first volume relates to Smith’s investigation into alleged election interference by Trump, while the second relates to the classified documents investigation.

This is a developing story. Check back soon for updates.

EXCLUSIVE: The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) on Monday issued memos to repeal limits on Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents imposed by former DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas — and a review of the use of humanitarian parole to admit migrants.

The first memo, a draft of which was reviewed by Fox News, rescinds a 2021 memo by Mayorkas, which provided an expanded list of areas that are “protected areas” where ICE could not engage in immigration enforcement. It said the policy was designed to make sure enforcement did not limit “people’s access to essential services or engagement in essential activities.”

Those areas include schools, universities, healthcare facilities, places of worship, “places where children gather,” social service establishments, food banks, religious or civil ceremonies and disaster or emergency response and relief centers.

“In our pursuit of justice, including in the execution of our enforcement responsibilities, we impact people’s lives and advance our country’s well-being in the most fundamental ways. As a result, when conducting an enforcement action, ICE and CBP agents and officers must first examine and consider the impact of where actions might possibly take place, their effect on people, and broader societal interests,” Mayorkas said in a statement at the time.

‘NATIONAL EMERGENCY’: TRUMP DECLARES AMBITIOUS ILLEGAL IMMIGRATION CRACKDOWN IN INAUGURAL ADDRESS

The memo issued Monday rescinded that guidance and said that common sense should be used instead.

“Going forward, law enforcement officers should continue to use that discretion along with a healthy dose of common sense,” the new memo said. “It is not necessary, however, for the head of the agency to create bright line rules regarding where our immigration laws are permitted to be enforced.”

ICE agents who spoke to Fox News said they believe that rescinding the Mayorkas order is going to free them up to go after more illegal immigrants, because illegal immigrants have until now been able to hide near schools and churches and avoid arrest.

TRUMP TO DEPLOY MILITARY TO BORDER, END BIDEN PAROLE POLICIES IN FLURRY OF DAY 1 EXECUTIVE ORDERS

A separate memo, also reviewed by Fox, focuses on the use of humanitarian parole, which was used broadly by the Biden administration to allow hundreds of thousands of migrants to enter the U.S., including nearly 1.5 million via the CBP One app and parole processes for nationals from Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua and Venezuela (CHNV.) The administration also launched parole programs for nationals from Ukraine and Afghanistan.

The memo notes that the statute demands the authority be used on a “case by case basis,” something that Republican critics claim the administration has abused. It emphasizes that parole is “a limited use authority, applicable only in a very narrow set of circumstances.”

It also claims that “it has been repeatedly abused by the Executive Branch over the past several decades in ways that are blatantly inconsistent with the statute.”

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“Most important, the parole statute does not authorize categorical parole programs that make aliens presumptively eligible on the basis of some set of broadly applicable criteria,” it says.

The memo directs the heads of (ICE) and Customs and Border Protection (CBP) to compile a list of instructions, policies and procedures related to parole, review them, and formulate a plan to phase out any that are not in accord with the statute.

They will then provide a report to the DHS secretary, while also pausing, modifying or ending any programs that they believe were not enacted properly, and that they can do in a way that is consistent with statutes, regulations and court orders.

The memos came just hours after Trump signed a slew of 10 border-related executive orders, including orders deploying the military to the border, ending Biden’s parole programs and ending birthright citizenship for children of illegal immigrants.

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The orders also declare a national emergency, and order the resumption of construction of the wall at the southern border.

“All illegal entry will immediately be halted,” Trump said moments after being inaugurated. “And we will begin the process of returning millions and millions of criminal aliens back to the places from which they came.”

Two more of President Trump’s nominees will face questions from senators Tuesday, while a third, Treasury nominee Scott Bessent, will get a committee vote.

Former Rep. Doug Collins, an Air Force Reserve chaplain, will testify before the Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee as he seeks confirmation to lead the Veterans Affairs Department. And Rep. Elise Stefanik, R-N.Y., will appear before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee as Trump’s nominee to be the next U.S. ambassador to the United Nations.

The Senate Finance Committee, meanwhile, will convene at 10:15 a.m. and vote on whether to advance Bessent’s nomination to be secretary of the Treasury. 

Collins will be the first potential cabinet official to receive a hearing after Trump’s whirlwind of a first day in office. After announcing that a “Golden Age of America” had begun in his inaugural address, the president swiftly took more than 200 executive actions on Monday to see his policy vision come to life. It remains for the Senate to confirm the key officials who will carry out Trump’s orders.

MARCO RUBIO CONFIRMED BY SENATE TO BE NEXT SECRETARY OF STATE, BECOMES FIRST TRUMP CABINET PICK TO BE APPROVED

Florida Sen. Marco Rubio became the first of Trump’s cabinet picks to receive congressional approval late Monday with a unanimous vote by the Senate. His confirmation was not surprising, as many of his colleagues on both sides of the aisle praised his strong foreign policy background as a longtime member of the Senate Foreign Relations and Intelligence Committees. 

Collins is likewise not expected to face a difficult confirmation fight. A former congressman from Georgia and Navy veteran, as VA secretary he would be tasked with overseeing a beleaguered system of healthcare and benefits for the nation’s veterans. Long wait times to see providers, lack of access to community care, inadequate mental health support and budget shortfalls are just a few of many problems that have plagued secretaries past in both Republican and Democratic administrations.

A report published by the VA last month showed that there were more than 6,400 suicides among veterans in 2022, fewer than 12 of 14 previous years but slightly more than in 2021. Ending veteran suicide was a top priority for the Biden administration. In November, the VA announced that veteran homelessness had fallen to the lowest number on record under President Biden, although more than 32,000 former service members remained on the streets between Jan. 2023 and Jan. 2024. 

Under Trump’s direction, the next VA secretary will likely also be tasked with rooting out diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives in the department, as well as ending Biden-era policies that provide abortions and transgender medical procedures.

HUNDREDS OF VETERANS TO DESCEND ON DC TO MARCH IN SUPPORT OF PETE HEGSETH’S CONFIRMATION

Collins was due to receive a confirmation hearing last week, but an incomplete background check delayed the proceeding.

While the Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee convenes to question Collins at 10 a.m., the Senate Foreign Relations Committee will meet elsewhere in the Dirksen Senate Office Building to consider Stefanik’s nomination to represent the U.S. at the U.N.

Stefanik, the fourth-ranking Republican in the U.S. House, is likely to face questions about her relative lack of foreign policy experience and adamant support for Israel, as well as her views on the war between Russia and Ukraine.

In her opening remarks, excerpts of which were obtained by Fox News Digital, Stefanik will say that Trump sees great promise in the U.N. “if it focuses on its founding mission of international peace and security. President Trump has long advocated for peace and no new wars.” 

STEFANIK PLANS TO PUSH TRUMP’S ‘AMERICA FIRST’ AGENDA AT UN, MAKE SURE IT ‘SERVES THE INTERESTS’ OF US PEOPLE

Stefanik is expected to sail to confirmation in the U.N. role. Sen. John Fetterman, a Democrat from Pennsylvania, has already said he will vote for her – they are both strong Israel supporters. She served on the Intelligence and Armed Services Committees, but she went viral for her work on the other side of the table last year when she questioned university presidents and their policies surrounding pro-Gaza protests during Education Committee hearings.

Meanwhile, the Senate Finance Committee will vote on whether to advance the nomination of Bessent, a Wall Street investor and hedge fund manager, to lead the Treasury Department. 

During his confirmation hearings, Bessent said the U.S. must extend the 2017 tax cuts Trump signed into law in his first term. 

“This is the single most important economic issue of the day,” Bessent told senators. “This is pass-fail. If we do not fix these tax cuts, if we do not renew and extend, then we will be facing an economic calamity, and as always, with financial instability that falls on the middle and working class.”

Democrats pressed Bessent on the impact Trump’s tax cuts have had on the federal deficit and whether they disproportionately benefit the rich at the expense of the poor and middle classes. They also asked whether Trump’s proposed tariffs on foreign imports would increase inflation, but Bessent insisted they would not.

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The Treasury nominee, who hails from South Carolina, emphasized that Trump’s policies would prioritize Main Street over Wall Street.

“I believe Wall Street has done great the past few years, and that Main Street has suffered. I think it’s Main Street’s time,” Bessent said.

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

President Trump was inaugurated for a second time on Monday. 

The inauguration kicked off the day on a historic note, with the ceremony moved indoors due to freezing temperatures. Notable moments played out throughout the day, including Trump’s fiery speech shortly after being sworn in, to an audio mishap that inadvertently turned into a collaborative singing effort. 

Here are the top five moments from Trump’s second inauguration. 

TRUMP’S SECOND INAUGURAL ADDRESS A TRIUMPH FOR HIM, HIS SUPPORTERS

Trump ushers in ‘Golden Age of America,’ bashes Biden-Harris admin in inaugural speech 

“The golden Age of America begins right now,” Trump said shortly after being sworn in. “From this day forward, our country will flourish and be respected again all over the world.”

Trump started out his first speech officially as president by saying the U.S. would now be “the envy of every nation, and we will not allow ourselves to be taken advantage of any longer.”

The president assailed the Biden-Harris administration as the former president and vice president looked on. Trump specifically slammed the “vicious, violent, and unfair weaponization of the Justice Department and our government” and said the country has been operating under “a radical and corrupt establishment.”

“While the pillars of our society lay broken and seemingly in complete disrepair, we now have a government that cannot manage even a simple crisis at home,” Trump said.

DEMS PROMISE TO ‘STAND UP TO’ TRUMP BUT LAUD ‘PEACEFUL TRANSFER OF POWER’ AFTER SPEECH

Trump criticized the Biden administration’s handling of various national disasters, including hurricane damage in North Carolina and recent wildfires in California. 

“Jan. 20th, 2025, is Liberation Day,” Trump said. “It is my hope that our recent presidential election will be remembered as the greatest and most consequential election in the history of our country.”

President Donald Trump and his wife, First Lady Melania Trump, did their first dance together as POTUS and FLOTUS Monday night at the Commander-in-Chief Inaugural Ball at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center in Washington, D.C. The dance featured a nifty spin move by the President.

First lady Melania Trump donned a white, strapless gown with black detailing following a full day of inauguration festivities. She coupled the dress with a black choker.

The ball is one of two others that Trump made an appearance in: the Liberty Ball and Starlight Ball.

Vice President J.D. Vance and his wife, Usha, also joined Trump and Melania onstage for a quick dance, before they exchanged partners with military servicemembers.

TRUMP’S INAUGURATION BRINGS OUT SPORTS WORLD’S KEY FIGURES

From the best to worst dressed: Melania Trump, Sen. John Fetterman draw eyes over fashion choices 

First lady Melania Trump donned a weather-appropriate outfit for her husband’s second inaugural ceremony. Melania was pictured wearing a custom Adam Lippes double-breasted navy coat with a matching boater hat designed by Eric Javits while on her way to a service at St. John’s Church on Inauguration Day, according to Page Six. 

Social media users flocked to X, formerly Twitter, to post compliments on the first lady’s inaugural getup, with many saying she looked “elegant” and “classy.”

TRUMP VOWS ‘NEW ERA OF NATIONAL SUCCESS,’ SAYS AMERICA’S ‘DECLINE IS OVER’ IN INAUGURAL ADDRESS

Pennsylvania Sen. John Fetterman, on the other hand, had a slightly more warmer-weather-style outfit for the inauguration ceremony. Fetterman was seen sporting gray gym shorts, a dark hoodie and sneakers as he arrived at Capitol Hill.

The senator’s attire also drew attention given the chilly temperatures on Monday. Trump’s second inauguration notably marked the coldest presidential inauguration ceremony in more than 40 years.

Trump’s awkward kiss attempt with Melania 

Trump tried to kiss Melania shortly before his swearing-in after initially entering the Capitol Rotunda, leading to an awkward air-kiss encounter. 

Trump and Melania were surrounded by former presidents and their wives along with Cabinet nominees, foreign dignitaries and other high-profile guests upon entering the building. Trump leaned in to give Melania a kiss on the cheek when Melania’s hat got in the way.

They ultimately settled on an air kiss.

Carrie Underwood sings a cappella following music mishap

Country singer Carrie Underwood showed she was a true professional during her rendition of “America the Beautiful” after a hiccup with the music. 

Underwood was welcomed with a round of applause as she was introduced. Once on stage, Underwood patiently waited for the instrumentals to start, which ultimately never came.

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“If you know the words, help me out here,” she finally said before launching into an a cappella version of the song.

Members of the audience, including the former president and vice president, joined in singing the song.

Underwood wrapped up her performance by shaking Biden’s hand and sharing a moment with Trump and Vice President Vance before leaving the room.

Massachusetts must pay the federal government $2.1 billion over the next 10 years to resolve a debt after the state under former GOP Gov. Charlie Baker’s administration mistakenly used federal pandemic funds to cover unemployment benefits.

Current Gov. Maura Healey, a Democrat, and her deputies released details on Monday of a settlement they reached with the outgoing Biden administration last week in which the state will repay most of the money it owed because of the error, the State House News Service reported.

In 2023, Healey announced that her administration uncovered that the prior administration improperly used about $2.5 billion in federal pandemic relief funds to cover unemployment benefits that should have been funded by the state.

The total liability exceeded $3 billion, including fees and interest, according to Healey’s office. Negotiations with the U.S. Department of Labor dropped the total owed to $2.1 billion over the next decade.

DEM MASSACHUSETTS NOW WANTS TO LIMIT ILLEGALS IN CRIME-RIDDEN MIGRANT SHELTERS

“We were dismayed to uncover early on in our term that the previous administration misspent billions of dollars in federal relief funds and that our state was facing what could have been a more than $3 billion tab to pay it back,” Healey said in a statement on Monday.

“For the past year and a half, we have engaged in extensive negotiations with the U.S. Department of Labor to minimize the impact on Massachusetts residents, businesses and our economy,” she continued. “Today, we have reduced our potential liability by over $1 billion and negotiated a decade-long payment window to mitigate the impact.”

The governor added that it is “incredibly frustrating that the prior administration allowed this to happen” but that the current administration is “going to use this as a moment to come together with the business and labor community to make meaningful reforms to the Unemployment Insurance system.”

Payments will begin Dec. 1 and continue each year for the next decade.

The agreement states that principal payments must come from the Unemployment Insurance (UI) Trust Fund, which is funded by a tax on employers and is also used to cover benefits, according to the State House News Service. Interest payments will come from the state’s General Fund.

Healey’s office said businesses will not face higher rates on their unemployment insurance payments through at least the end of next year, at which point rates will depend on system reforms.

BLUE STATE GOV CHANGES TUNE AFTER VOWING TO FIGHT TRUMP DEPORTATION EFFORTS, NOW HOPES HE FIXES BORDER

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The governor vowed to pursue changes to soften the burden on employers, who already face higher costs to support an uptick of claims during the pandemic, according to the State House News Service.

Healey directed state Labor Secretary Lauren Jones and Administration and Finance Secretary Matthew Gorzkowicz to “conduct a comprehensive review of the solvency of UI and assess potential reforms.”

The Healey administration projected the UI Trust Fund would be hundreds of millions of dollars in debt by the end of 2028, even before taking into account the $2.1 billion in additional payments.

President Trump did not pardon or commute the prison sentence of Ross Ulbricht, the founder of the anonymous marketplace website Silk Road, despite his promise on the campaign trail to free him on “day one.”

Ulbricht was convicted because his website, which was founded in 2011 and used cryptocurrency for payments, was used to sell illegal drugs, even though he did not sell any of the illicit substances himself.

After being sworn into office on Monday, Trump issued several executive actions, including efforts to reduce immigration, designating cartels as foreign terrorist organizations, a move to resume federal executions and pardoning or commuting sentences to time served of people convicted in the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol riot.

But Trump’s first day back in the White House came to an end with Ulbricht still behind bars without a pardon or commutation from the president, who pledged to do so last spring.

TRUMP VOWS TO COMMUTE PRISON SENTENCE OF SILK ROAD FOUNDER ROSS ULBRICHT

In May, Trump delivered a speech at the Libertarian National Convention to a hostile crowd of boos in an attempt to win over Libertarian voters. Libertarians believe government investigators overreached in their case against Silk Road and generally oppose the War on Drugs.

While the attendees were not favorable to Trump for most of the event, they did give a big cheer when he said he would commute Ulbricht’s sentence to time served, as the crowd chanted “Free Ross” in the hopes that the then-presidential candidate would take action if elected to allow the Silk Road founder to return home to his family after more than a decade behind bars.

“If you vote for me, on day one I will commute the sentence of Ross Ulbricht, to a sentence of time served. He’s already served 11 years. We’re going to get him home,” Trump told the crowd of Libertarians, many of whom were holding signs that read “Free Ross.”

Ulbricht reacted to Trump’s comments the following day on the social media platform X.

“Last night, Donald Trump pledged to commute my sentence on day 1, if reelected,” he wrote. “Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. After 11 years in prison, it is hard to express how I feel at this moment. It is thanks to your undying support that I may get a second chance.”

Last month, Ulbricht wrote: “For my last monthly resolution of 2024, I intend to study every day and to get up to speed as much as I can as I prepare for freedom.”

Trump later reiterated his promise to commute Ulbricht’s life sentence at a bitcoin conference, which he received loud cheers for.

Despite Trump failing to deliver on his promise to free Ulbricht on his first day back in office, the president reportedly may still grant him clemency as early as Tuesday.

“Pres. Trump’s staff just confirmed to me Ross’s pardon will be issued late tonight or tomorrow morning,” Libertarian Party chair Angela McArdle wrote Monday night on X.

Elon Musk, who serves in the newly formed Department of Government Efficiency in the Trump administration, also said Ulbricht would be released soon.

“Ross will be freed,” Musk wrote on X.

Many Libertarians have said they supported Trump in November’s election, citing, in part, his commitment to free Ulbricht.

TRUMP PARDONS NEARLY ALL 1/6 DEFENDANTS

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During his first term, Trump considered intervening to release Ulbricht before ultimately deciding against a pardon.

Ulbricht, now 40, operated the website from 2011 until his arrest in 2013. He was sentenced two years later to life in prison.

“I was trying to help us move toward a freer and more equitable world,” Ulbricht said from prison in 2021. “We all know the road to hell is paved with good intentions, and now here I am. I’m in hell.”

“Trump is done signing EOs and pardons for the night,” 2024 Libertarian presidential candidate Chase Oliver wrote on X. “Hopefully, we will see a #FREEROSSULBRICHT commutation in the morning.”

President Trump, immediately upon taking office, flexed his presidential powers as he followed through on some of the major pledges he made on the campaign trail.

“Today I will sign a series of historic executive orders. With these actions, we will begin the complete restoration of America and the revolution of commonsense,” the nation’s 47th president vowed during his inauguration address Monday at the U.S. Capitol.

Hours later, Trump followed through, with an avalanche of executive order signings at Washington’s Capitol One Arena, in front of thousands of supporters – a first in the nation’s history – and later in the more traditional Oval Office setting at the White House.

“It’s just pure Trump. He’s the first president in a new connected world in which you have to govern from the outside in. You have to mount support and bring the people with you,” veteran Republican strategist Alex Castellanos told Fox News Digital.

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Trump’s immigration promises were a centerpiece of his successful presidential campaign to win back the White House.

“On Day One, I will launch the largest deportation program of criminals in the history of America,” the then-Republican presidential nominee vowed during a late October rally at New York City’s Madison Square Garden.

And Trump took immediate action during his first hours back in office.

FIRST ON FOX: TRUMP VOWS OVER 200 EXECUTIVE ACTIONS ON DAY 1

The new president declared a national emergency along the southern border with Mexico and ordered the deployment of U.S. troops to help support immigration agents. Trump also ordered the restart of a policy from his first administration that forced asylum seekers to wait over the border in Mexico. But it’s unclear if Mexico would accept migrants again.

Trump also directed the federal government to resume border wall construction, begun during his first term but halted by President Biden. 

And Trump signed an order ending birthright citizenship for children of illegal migrants. But with birthright citizenship enshrined in the U.S. Constitution, Trump’s executive order is sure to face immediate legal challenges in court from civil rights groups and immigration activists.

“I will declare a national emergency at our southern border. All illegal entry will immediately be halted. And we will begin the process of returning millions and millions of criminal aliens back to the places from which they came. We will reinstate my remain in Mexico policy. I will end the practice of catch and release. And I will send troops to the southern border to repel the disastrous invasion of our country,” Trump emphasized in his inauguration address.

TRUMP VOWS TO ACT WITH ‘HISTORIC SPEED’ AS INAUGURATION BRINGS REDEPMPTION 

And the president also announced that “we will also be designating the cartels as foreign terrorist organizations. And by invoking the Alien Enemies Act of 1798, I will direct our government to use the full and immense power of federal and state law enforcement to eliminate the presence of all foreign gangs and criminal networks.”

During his two-year run to return to the White House, Trump repeatedly vowed to “drill, baby, drill,” and pledged to end the Biden administration’s electric vehicle mandate.

On Monday, Trump followed through, as he tied his energy executive orders to his efforts to keep inflation in check.

“I will direct all members of my cabinet to marshal the vast powers at their disposal to defeat what was record inflation, and rapidly bring down costs and prices. The inflation crisis was caused by massive overspending and escalating energy prices,” Trump argued. 

And he said “that is why today I will also declare a national energy emergency. We will drill, baby, drill. America will be a manufacturing nation once again, and we have something that no other manufacturing nation will ever have. The largest amount of oil and gas of any country on earth.”

During the 2024 cycle, Trump and Republicans repeatedly targeted Democrats up and down the ballot over the Biden administration’s protections for transgender students

“We’re going to end it on Day One,” Trump vowed last May. “Don’t forget, that was done as an order from the president. That came down as an executive order. And we’re going to change it — on Day One, it’s going to be changed.”

Trump followed through, taking executive action from what the president’s advisers said would “defend women from gender, ideology, extremism and restoring biological truth to the federal government.”

“As of today, it will henceforth be the official policy of the United States government that there are only two genders, male and female,” the president said.

The president also signed orders terminating diversity, equity and inclusion programs – best known by their acronym DEI – within the federal government. The orders direct the White House to identify and end the programs within the government.

Another promise from the campaign trail – pardoning the defendants and commuting the sentences of many of those convicted of charges from the Jan. 6, 2021 attack on the U.S. Capitol by Trump supporters who unsuccessfully tried to halt congressional certification of President Biden’s 2020 election victory. 

Trump didn’t mention the pardons in his inauguration address, but minutes later as he spoke to supporters gathered in an overflow room in the U.S. Capitol, he reiterated his longstanding unproven claim that the 2020 presidential election “was totally rigged.”

A couple of hours later, in front of cheering supporters packed into Washington DC’s downtown arena, Trump touted that he would be “signing pardons for a lot of people…to get them out” immediately.

He wasn’t kidding.

The president, back at the White House, ended up pardoning around 1,500 people – including some convicted of attacking police officers – obliterating the Justice Department’s effort to punish those who stormed the Capitol on one of America’s darkest days.

“These people have been destroyed,” Trump argued as he signed the pardons. “What they’ve done to these people has been outrageous.”

Trump also took action on something that didn’t come up on the campaign trail.

“A short time from now, we are going to be changing the name of the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America,” Trump declared in his inauguration address. 

And pointing to Alaska’s Mount Denali, which is North America’s tallest peak, the president said “we will restore the name of a great president, William McKinley, to Mount McKinley, where it should be and where it belongs.”

“He’s flooding the zone. He’s making a case for action. He’s demonstrating action. He is rallying a wave of American support for a massive transformation of government,” Castellanos, a veteran of numerous GOP presidential campaigns, told Fox News. “I think it’s overwhelming and Democrats just don’t know what’s hitting them.”

“Could you imagine Biden doing this. I don’t think so,” the president said, as he signed executive orders in front of thousands of his supporters.

But Trump didn’t follow through on all of his campaign promises. 

TRUMP ENVOY SETS LONGER TIMETABLE TO END RUSSIA-UKRAINE WAR

One of his most prominent vows he didn’t act on during his first day in office involved immediately ending a deadly war in Eastern Europe.

Trump repeatedly touted on the campaign trail that he would end the nearly three-year-long war between Russia and Ukraine “in one day.”

“They’re dying, Russians and Ukrainians. I want them to stop dying. And I’ll have that done — I’ll have that done in 24 hours,” Trump vowed during a May 2023 town hall.

And in September, during his single debate with Vice President Kamala Harris, Trump vowed “I will get it settled before I even become president.”

That, obviously, didn’t happen.

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And earlier this month, retired Gen. Keith Kellog, Trump’s special envoy to Ukraine, offered a longer timetable.

“I would like to set a goal on a personal level, professional level, I would say let’s set it at 100 days,” he said in a Fox News Channel interview.

WASHINGTON, DC— Several hundred protesters gathered in Washington, D.C. as President Trump was being sworn into office on Monday and several told Fox News Digital they braved the frigid temperatures to speak out against “colonialism” and “fascism” they believe is coming under Trump’s term.

“I’m coming out because I think it’s important to make a stand against the country’s slide towards fascism and against war and genocide and to just show that people are going to keep fighting no matter what attacks come down, and we know that they’re going to happen,” Gregory, who said he traveled from New Orleans to attend the We Fight Back rally at Meridian Hill Park in Washington, D.C., told Fox News Digital.

“We know the conditions are going to keep getting worse. We’ve just got to keep fighting.”

Maxwell, who traveled to the inauguration protest from Baltimore, told Fox News Digital, “I’m here to make a stand to say that we’re not going away and that the dangers of poverty and wealth inequality, misogyny, discrimination against the LGBTQ community and immigrants who make up the people of our nation deserve to have a voice and deserve to have people stand up for them domestically and also to end imperialism and colonialism and, you know, to discontinue that oppression enacted by the United States government and that’s why we’re here today.”

PRESIDENT BIDEN PARDONS HIS SIBLINGS JUST MINUTES BEFORE LEAVING OFFICE

Many of the protesters brought signs and props, including one man who rolled a large guillotine replica, which he told Fox News Digital was an “art piece” that is “open to interpretation.”

“I want people to know that they have the power to make themselves heard, to voice their anger and to say, you know, to send a message to the people that are above us, people that are ruling us, that, you know, we are here, we’re powerful, and they better, you know, tread lightly. You know, it’s just a sculpture, but it should be a little scary.”

An inscription beneath the guillotine said, “come get sum.”

Mara, who identifies as transgender, told Fox News Digital that Trump is a “fascist.”

TRUMP VOWS THE ‘BIGGEST FIRST WEEK’ IN PRESIDENTIAL HISTORY DURING VICTORY RALLY: ‘EXTREMELY HAPPY’

“It’s important for me to be here. First of all, Donald Trump, with his extreme right wing agenda, has, among other things, to label trans people as pedophiles and then execute them,” Mara said. “So as a trans person, that’s kind of alarming. In addition to that, he has been said not just by left-wing people, but by his own conservative generals, he’s been called a fascist. So I’m out here to reject fascism and say it has no place in our America.”

The signs in the crowd contained phrases that included “socialism beats fascism” and “fight Trump’s agenda.”

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After the speeches wrapped up, many of which included rallying cries to “Free Palestine” and end Israel’s “genocide” in Gaza, the group walked out of the park and marched down the local streets.

Counter-protesters showed up as the march got underway, and several individuals engaged in shouting matches.

Protests against Trump’s inauguration were far more subdued than the protests that took place at the start of his first term in office and do not appear to have been violent, which it was eight years ago when hundreds of protesters were arrested.

Trump was sworn in as the 47th president of the United States on Monday, marking his return to the Oval Office with a pledge to restore America to a “golden age.”

Trump addressed the nation after taking the oath of office for the second time and used his inaugural address remarks to call for a “revolution of common sense.”

“I return to the presidency confident and optimistic that we are at the start of a thrilling new era of national success. A tide of change is sweeping the country,” Trump said. “My message to Americans today is that it is time for us to once again act with courage, vigor, and the vitality of history’s greatest civilization.”

Fox News Digital’s Brooke Singman contributed to this report