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President Donald Trump’s declaration that he won’t sign any new bills until the Senate passes voter ID legislation threatens to derail his own legislative priorities and sideline confirmation of the newest addition to his Cabinet. 

Trump wants Senate Republicans to ram the Safeguarding American Voter Eligibility (SAVE) America Act through the upper chamber with the talking filibuster, even at the cost of the Senate’s most valuable commodity: floor time.

“It must be done immediately. It supersedes everything else. MUST GO TO THE FRONT OF THE LINE. I, as President, will not sign other Bills until this is passed,” Trump said on Truth Social. 

SCHUMER ONCE BLOCKED TRUMP’S MOVE TO FILL THE NATION’S OIL RESERVES, NOW HE WANTS THEM OPENED

But that comes as the Senate is wrestling with reopening the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), which entered its fourth week of being shut down. A White House official told Fox News Digital that Trump was “referring to other bills, not DHS funding.”

“If the Democrats do the right thing and pass funding for DHS, the president will, of course, fund the agency,” the official said. 

Trump’s edict and push for the Senate to turn to the talking filibuster has intensified the pressure on Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., who has vowed to have a vote on the bill, but could not guarantee it would pass. 

When asked about the growing campaign from both Trump and social media to use the talking filibuster, Thune said, “A lot of that is, it’s in that kind of, you know, paid influencer ecosystem.” 

“But there’s a lot of support for it,” Thune said. “Like I said, we’re, I think, for the most part, not everybody, but there’s a lot of really strong support among Republican senators for the policy. But the process and how do you ultimately try and get a result is still unclear to me.” 

SCHUMER, DEMS HOLD FIRM ON DHS FUNDING DESPITE NOEM’S BOMBSHELL OUSTING

Republicans are also working to advance a massive affordable housing package that Trump backs, to consider a likely supplemental spending package to resupply munitions for the conflict with Iran, and go through the confirmation process for Sen. Markwayne Mullin, R-Okla., the president’s latest pick to lead DHS.

Senate Majority Whip John Barrasso, R-Wyo., noted that the top priority for the GOP right now is funding DHS.

“The Democrats have blocked that right now,” Barrasso told Maria Bartiromo on “Sunday Morning Futures.” “And the greatest threat to the American people today is terrorism.”

And while the SAVE America Act is supported by most Senate Republicans, it’s not an easy bill to pass in the upper chamber, given the hardline stance Senate Democrats have taken against it. 

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., reiterated that the bill is “Jim Crow 2.0. It would disenfranchise tens of millions of people.”

“If Trump is saying he won’t sign any bills until the SAVE Act is passed, then so be it: there will be total gridlock in the Senate,” Schumer said on X. “Senate Democrats will not help pass the SAVE Act under any circumstances.”

THUNE GUARANTEES VOTER ID BILL TO HIT THE SENATE DESPITE SCHUMER, DEM OPPOSITION: ‘WE WILL HAVE A VOTE’

Turning to the talking filibuster is unlikely, too, because of a major fear among Republicans it would dominate floor time for hundreds of hours of debate. But another factor is that there may not be unity among Republicans to kill amendments put forth by Senate Democrats. 

Further complicating matters is which version of the SAVE America Act Trump wants. 

House Republicans advanced the SAVE America Act last month, which would require voter ID to vote, proof of citizenship to register to vote in federal elections, mandate states to actively verify and remove noncitizens from voter rolls, expand information sharing with federal agencies, including DHS, to verify citizenship and create new criminal penalties for registering noncitizens to vote.

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But Trump asked Republicans to “GO FOR THE GOLD” with a bill to show voter ID and proof of citizenship, nix mail-in ballots except for military service members or people with illnesses, disabilities or travel issues, no men in women’s sports and “NO TRANSGENDER [MUTILATION] FOR CHILDREN!”

That version of the bill would again have to go through the House before making its way to the Senate. Whether it could survive either chamber is an open question. Thune acknowledged that Trump wanted a modified iteration of the bill, but still remained firm that the talking filibuster, or nuking the current filibuster, likely weren’t going to happen. 

“The one thing I’ve said all along is, and I’ve told him and others that I can’t guarantee an outcome. I can’t guarantee a result,” Thune said. “If the result is only achieved by nuking the legislative filibuster, we don’t have the votes to do that. And so that’s just not a realistic option. And I’ve made that clear to anybody who’s asked.”

Senate Republicans are accusing their Democratic counterparts of playing “political games” as the caucus appears ready to escalate the standoff over funding the Department of Homeland Security (DHS).

There’s been little movement to reopen DHS during the weekslong partial shutdown, leading to outcry from Republicans over long wait times and missed flights at airports across the country. Some Democrats are threatening to continue their blockade of DHS funding unless serious action is taken to rein in President Donald Trump’s war powers in the Middle East. 

“We shouldn’t let Republicans debate other legislation until they bring a war authorization to the United States Senate,” Sen. Chris Murphy, D-Conn., told NOTUS on Monday.

Murphy, the top Democrat on the appropriations panel overseeing DHS funding, has helped lead his party’s push to withhold funding for the department absent sweeping reforms to immigration enforcement.

SENATE DEMS REFUSING TO BUDGE ON DHS FUNDING MAY CAUSE HEADACHE FOR WORLD CUP TRAVELERS

His new threat to freeze Senate business over Trump’s Iran strikes underscores that some Democrats are prepared to extend the funding fight despite mounting impacts on air travel. 

The Senate rejected a bipartisan resolution last week that would have narrowed Trump’s ability to launch future strikes on Iran. However, Murphy is signaling that Democrats’ attempts to limit the president’s power to wage war against Iran are just getting started. 

Sen. Katie Britt, R-Ala., the chair of the Senate Homeland Security funding panel, scoffed at Murphy’s edict.

“The delay tactics we’re seeing from Democrats don’t change the fact that, because of their political games, lines at airports are growing, and the people tasked with keeping our homeland safe are being forced to do so without a paycheck,” Britt said in a statement to Fox News Digital.

Britt, who Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., tapped to lead DHS negotiations with Senate Democrats, accused her counterparts of refusing to sit down with Republicans as the partial shutdown enters its fourth week. 

“I urge my Democratic colleagues to stop putting politics above people and do what’s right for the security of our nation,” she said. “That starts with having a conversation so that we can find a pathway forward.”

DHS SHUTDOWN TRIGGERS TSA ‘EMERGENCY MEASURES’ AS LAWMAKER WARNS AIRPORTS COULD FEEL ECONOMIC PAIN

Airports nationwide reported a spike in absences among Transportation Security Administration (TSA) employees on Monday. Roughly 50,000 TSA personnel — who are employed by DHS — are reporting to work without pay after receiving just a fraction of their salaries last week. 

The agents will not receive another paycheck until the partial shutdown ends. 

The New Orleans airport on Monday advised passengers to arrive at least three hours before their flight, citing a shortage of TSA employees. Passengers traveling through the Houston airport system have also been urged to arrive four to five hours before their departure.

“The shutdown is having very real consequences, and hardworking federal aviation workers, the airline industry and our passengers are being used as a political football once again,” Chris Sununu, CEO of Airlines for America and former New Hampshire governor, said in a statement. “This is simply unacceptable and un-American.”

TSA employees were also forced to forgo pay during the record-breaking government shutdown in late 2025.

A majority of Democratic lawmakers in both chambers voted to continue the DHS shutdown last week despite new security concerns over Trump’s military operation in Iran. The bipartisan measure that Democrats overwhelmingly opposed would fund DHS through the remainder of the fiscal year.

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., has demanded that federal immigration officers stop wearing masks and obtain judicial warrants before entering homes and businesses, among other reforms, in order to unlock funding for the agency.

Senate Democrats and the White House have been negotiating, but a deal has yet to materialize. The last counteroffer from the administration came nearly two weeks ago but has so far not been accepted by congressional Democrats. 

Some Republicans hoped that Trump’s decision to tap Sen. Markwayne Mullin, R-Okla., to lead DHS could soften Democrats’ opposition, but the party has continued to take a hard line against funding the agency. Democrats had advocated for outgoing DHS Secretary Kristi Noem’s ouster as part of their numerous demands.

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A Democratic blockade of Senate business would jeopardize the passage of a bipartisan housing bill aimed at growing the supply of affordable homes, which is currently under consideration in the upper chamber. Trump-endorsed voter ID legislation would also be impacted, but Democrats were already expected to widely oppose the measure, known as the SAVE America Act.

Fox News Digital reached out to Murphy’s office for additional comment.

In a little over a year, the United States has carried out dozens of airstrikes on vessels in the Caribbean tied to alleged narco-trafficking networks, launched sustained operations against Houthi forces in the Red Sea, captured Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, struck Iranian nuclear facilities and now embarked on an extended military campaign aimed at degrading Tehran’s missile, drone and command infrastructure.

The tempo marks one of the most assertive stretches of American force projection in recent years, spanning Latin America, the Middle East and critical maritime corridors.

For War Secretary Pete Hegseth, it also represents a striking turn. 

HEGSETH BLASTS BRITS, SAYS IRAN’S CHAOTIC RETALIATION HAS DRIVEN ITS OWN ALLIES ‘INTO THE AMERICAN ORBIT’

Just before the 2024 presidential election, he described himself as a “recovering neocon,” expressing regret over his support for Iraq-era interventionism and warning against open-ended wars.

Several analysts say the defining feature of the administration’s approach may be less about ideological evolution and more about alignment and execution.

“Unlike in Trump one, everyone in Trump’s cabinet now — Hegseth, Rubio, etc. — understands that the president is the boss,” said Matthew Kroenig, a defense strategist at the Atlantic Council. “In Trump 1.0 you had some Cabinet officials who thought their job was to save the Republic from Trump, the so-called adults in the room. And so I think it’s pretty clear the president wanted to go in this direction, and I think Hegseth sees himself as supporting the president’s vision.”

‘Validation of … leadership’ 

That cohesion has coincided with a pattern of risk-taking. 

Several of the administration’s most consequential military moves, from Venezuela to the Houthis to the current Iran campaign, carried the potential for escalation.

Some strategists say the relative absence of early blowback from those interventions may have reinforced the administration’s willingness to escalate into the Iranian theater. 

PENTAGON POLICY CHIEF GRILLED AS DEM CLAIMS TRUMP BROKE PROMISE ABOUT GOING TO WAR WITH IRAN

“I’m not sure I would have advised this,” Kroenig said of the Iran operation. “It is pretty risky, but it’s going well so far.” 

Iranian missile launches have declined in volume. Regional allies have not broken ranks. Whether that constitutes strategic success, however, depends on the metric.

Justin Fulcher, a former Pentagon adviser to Hegseth, argued the early phases of the campaign reflect what he described as a “return to strategic clarity.”

“Deterrence is only credible when our allies actually believe that if President Trump says something, we will back it up,” Fulcher said. “This is a validation of Secretary Hegseth and President Trump’s leadership.”

TRUMP SAYS IRAN’S SUCCESSION BENCH WIPED OUT AS ISRAELI STRIKE HITS LEADERSHIP DELIBERATIONS

Hegseth, a former Army officer who served in both Iraq and Afghanistan, has argued that the current campaign bears little resemblance to those conflicts.

“This is not Iraq. This is not endless. I was there for both,” Hegseth said at a press conference in early March. “Our generation knows better and so does this president.”

In a separate interview, he added, “This is not a remaking of Iranian society from an American perspective. We tried that. The American people have rejected that.”

Danielle Pletka, a senior fellow at the right-leaning American Enterprise Institute think tank, said the campaign has unfolded largely as expected.

“I think things have gone reasonably well,” Pletka said, pointing to degraded air defenses and what she described as repeated miscalculations by Iran. “All they’ve really done is made everybody quite mad, and that was a really bad calculation on their part.”

At the same time, she cautioned against interpreting the administration’s actions as part of a fixed doctrine.

“I don’t think that it is doctrinal,” Pletka said. “I think this is ad hoc.”

Some longtime Trump supporters have said the current conflict is not what they expected from Trump, who campaigned on ending wars and “America First.”

“It feels like the worst betrayal this time because it comes from the very man and the admin who we all believed was different and said no more,” Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., wrote on X.  “Instead, we get a war with Iran on behalf of Israel that will succeed in regime in Iran. Another foreign war for foreign people for foreign regime change. For what?” 

In Pletka’s view, the president has shown a pattern of attempting diplomacy first and shifting to force only when he concludes negotiations are unserious. She argues that posture distinguishes the current moment from past interventions.

She also emphasized that much of the operational credit belongs to the professional military.

“The planning behind this is credit to the U.S. military and to the CENTCOM commander and to the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs,” she said.

That distinction complicates efforts to attribute the current posture solely to Hegseth’s personal worldview. While the defense secretary has become a public face of the administration’s deterrence messaging, the execution of high-tempo campaigns rests heavily with career military leadership. 

Some critics argue the administration has yet to clearly articulate an end state for the Iran campaign.

“Pete Hegseth needs to check with his boss on what the objective is,” former national security advisor John Bolton recently said on CNN. “How does Hegseth explain that we’ve already changed the regime, which wasn’t our objective? I think the Pentagon top leadership, civilian top leadership, needs some attitude adjustment. I think the military’s doing fine, but I wonder about the civilian leadership.”

The White House pushed back forcefully on criticism of the campaign. 

Anna Kelly, a White House spokesperson, said Monday that Hegseth “is doing an incredible job leading the Department of War,” pointing to what she described as the “ongoing success of Operation Epic Fury” and other missions. 

Kelly said Iranian retaliatory attacks “have declined by 90 percent because the Department of War is destroying Iran’s ballistic missile capabilities,” and added that Hegseth works “in lockstep with President Trump every day” to ensure the U.S. military “continues to be the greatest, most powerful fighting force in the world.”

The Pentagon echoed that assessment. 

“Operation Epic Fury continues to advance with overwhelming success and precision,” Chief Pentagon Spokesman Sean Parnell said, describing a “resolute, full-spectrum campaign” aimed at the “total dismantlement of Iran’s terrorist network or its unconditional surrender.”

Others see the moment in broader historical terms.

Peter Doran, a foreign policy analyst, described the campaign as a potential attempt to “end a 47-year war” waged by the Islamic Republic against the United States, but on Washington’s terms.

“This is a clear effort to end a 47-year war that Iran has been waging against the United States,” Doran said.

He argued that visible American military performance could reverberate beyond the Middle East, particularly in Beijing.

“They look good,” Doran said of U.S. forces. “That will serve, I hope, as a disincentive for adventurism.”

If the operation ultimately succeeds in significantly degrading Iran’s military infrastructure, Doran argued, it could reshape the Middle East and expand diplomatic opportunities such as broader Arab-Israeli normalization.

“It changes everything in the Middle East,” he said.

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Yet even supporters acknowledge that long-term effects remain uncertain. In Venezuela, Maduro’s removal marked a dramatic shift in U.S. policy, but the governing apparatus he built remains largely intact. Degrading missile stockpiles and drone infrastructure in Iran may buy time, but whether it produces durable deterrence or simply postpones reconstitution remains to be seen.

For now, the administration’s willingness to take calculated risks and its ability to avoid immediate escalation have reinforced the perception of restored American assertiveness. Whether that assertiveness translates into lasting strategic gains will likely define Hegseth’s tenure far more than the rhetoric that preceded it.

Hegseth and the Pentagon did not respond to requests for comment. 

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott is warning state health agencies about potential Chinese spying through medical technology.

Abbott directed Texas state health agencies and public university systems to address potential cybersecurity risks linked to Chinese-manufactured medical devices, citing concerns that sensitive patient data could be accessed by foreign actors.

“Governor @GregAbbott_TX released a letter directing state health agencies to mitigate data privacy concerns related to Chinese-sourced medical technologies,” Abbott’s office wrote Monday on X, releasing the letter.

“The Chinese Communist Party will not be allowed to spy on Texans.”

CONDUENT DATA BREACH HITS MILLIONS ACROSS MULTIPLE STATES

In Monday’s letter to the Texas Health and Human Services Commission (HHSC), the Department of State Health Services (DSHS), the Texas Cyber Command (TXCC), and public university system chancellors, Abbott said recent federal warnings about vulnerabilities in certain patient monitoring devices underscore the need for heightened safeguards.

“Maintaining Texans’ physical security and protecting their personal privacy, especially as it relates to something as important and intimate as personal medical data, is of paramount importance,” Abbott wrote. “I will not let Communist China spy on Texans. State-owned medical facilities must ensure there are safeguards in place to protect Texans’ private medical data.”

The directive follows notices issued by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) warning that certain Chinese-manufactured patient monitors — including the Contec CMS8000 and Epsimed MN-120 — contain cybersecurity vulnerabilities that could allow unauthorized remote access and the exfiltration of protected health information.

HOUSE REPUBLICANS SOUND ALARM OVER CCP-LINKED FAKE RESEARCH THREATENING US TAXPAYER-FUNDED SCIENCE

“These notices confirm the warnings of experts who have elevated the proliferation of Chinese-manufactured smart medical devices across our healthcare system as a serious data privacy concern,” Abbott wrote.

Under Abbott’s order, HHSC, DSHS, and public higher education systems must review procurement policies to ensure compliance with Executive Order GA-48, catalog network-connected medical devices, and assess cybersecurity protections at state-owned medical facilities.

The Texas Cyber Command is tasked with reviewing whether certain devices should be added to the state’s prohibited technology list and recommending further safeguards.

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Agencies must submit reports and recommendations to the governor’s office by April 17.

Those responses will help Abbott propose legislation next session aimed at protecting Texans’ medical data from foreign adversaries.

EXCLUSIVE: President Donald Trump rejected former President Joe Biden’s assertion of executive privilege over a tranche of documents requested by the Senate as part of various probes into the 46th president, determining it is “not in the best interests of the United States.” 

White House counsel David Warrington wrote Monday in a letter addressed to the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) and obtained by Fox News Digital that Trump “does not uphold the former President’s assertion of privilege” over records sought in four congressional probes. The letter directs NARA to provide the materials to Congress.

The dispute centers on documents related to investigations into Biden’s health, alleged politically motivated probes into Trump and his allies, and the Biden family’s financial dealings, which Republicans argue go to the heart of Congress’ constitutional authority to conduct oversight.

The letter came as a response to communication from NARA on Dec. 10 informing the White House that the former president had asserted executive privilege over the requested materials.

DOJ SIGNALS IT’S STILL DIGGING INTO BIDEN AUTOPEN USE DESPITE REPORTS PROBE FIZZLED

Warrington said the assertion “is not justified” as to documents identified in two letters Biden sent to NARA on Oct. 22 and Dec. 3.

The first category of documents involved a request from the Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations for records related to what the letter described as the “coverup of former President Biden’s health and cognitive decline.”

“The abuse of the autopen that took place during the Biden Presidency, and the extraordinary efforts to shield President Biden’s diminished faculties from the public, must be subject to a full accounting to ensure nothing similar ever happens again,” Warrington wrote, quoting a prior letter.

TRUMP TO VOID ALL DOCUMENTS ALLEGEDLY SIGNED BY BIDEN VIA AUTOPEN, THREATENS PERJURY CHARGE

Biden also asserted privilege over two Senate Judiciary Committee requests concerning “coordinated efforts by the Biden administration against President Trump and his staff through politically motivated investigations.”

The White House argued that “the constitutional protections of executive privilege should not be used to shield from Congress evidence of a President’s efforts to imprison his opponent.”

A third set of documents related to the “Biden family’s financial dealings and potential conflicts of interest,” the letter noted, referencing Biden’s use of private email accounts and his work on Ukraine as vice president while his son Hunter Biden held a lucrative position on the board of an energy company there.

CONSTITUTIONAL SCHOLAR USES BIDEN AUTOPEN TO FLIP DEMS’ ‘DEMOCRACY’ SCRIPT AGAINST THEM: ‘SCANDAL’

Warrington acknowledged that the Supreme Court has recognized executive privilege as protecting presidential decision-making and deliberations but said he was “unaware of a Supreme Court ruling or constitutional text that extends those protections to former President Biden’s efforts to assist his son’s shady business deals,” underscoring a fight about how expansive the scope of executive privilege is in the face of Congress’ oversight demands.

“President Trump instructs you to provide to these congressional committees the pages identified as privileged by the former President,” Warrington wrote.

Warrington previously denied Biden’s privilege request over documents related to the Biden administration’s use of the autopen, Fox News Digital exclusively reported in December. Biden has denied accusations that official presidential documents were signed by the autopen without his knowledge, brushing them off as “ridiculous.”

“Let me be clear: I made the decisions during my presidency. I made the decisions about the pardons, executive orders, legislation, and proclamations,” Biden said in a statement in June as Trump and Republicans sounded off about what they alleged was a scandal. “Any suggestion that I didn’t is ridiculous and false.”

Concerns over Biden’s mental acuity had simmered for years before reaching a boiling point in June 2024.

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Republicans sounded the alarm that it appeared Biden’s mental edge was slipping before even the 2020 election cycle. The media and Biden’s longtime Democratic allies joined conservatives in their alarm following Biden’s failed debate against Trump in early summer of 2024.

Biden dropped out of the race, but investigations and concerns over an alleged Biden administration coverup continue into the second Trump administration.

Fox News Digital reached out to a Biden representative and NARA for comment on Monday morning. 

A new national poll is the latest to indicate that Democrats are facing major problems with their party’s image.

Just 30% of registered voters in an NBC News poll view the Democratic Party positively, compared to 52% who view it negatively.

The poll, the latest over the past year to indicate the Democratic Party brand, in some cases, hitting historic lows, comes as Democrats aim to escape the political wilderness and win back House and Senate majorities in the 2026 midterm elections.

The GOP, which is working to defend its slim congressional majorities in the 2026 ballot box showdowns amid a rough political climate that doesn’t favor the party in power, doesn’t fare much better in the poll, which was conducted Feb. 27 through March 3.

WHAT OUR LATEST FOX NEWS NATIONAL POLL SAYS 

Thirty-seven percent of registered voters said they viewed the Republican Party positively, with 51% seeing the GOP in a negative light.

Helping to sink the Democratic Party’s underwater ratings are Democrats themselves. Only 62% of Democrats questioned in the survey viewed their party positively, compared to 77% of Republicans who gave the GOP a favorable rating.

The release of the NBC News survey came a few days after the latest Fox News national poll indicated a record 70% of registered voters disapproved of the job Congressional Democrats are doing, up 6 points since December 2025. Views of congressional Republicans weren’t much better, with 64% disapproving.

Only 63% of Democrats questioned in the Fox News poll approved of the job their party was doing in Congress, compared to 77% of Republicans who gave GOP lawmakers on Capitol Hill a thumbs up.

There are some silver linings for Democrats in the NBC News poll.

GOP CALLS TRUMP ITS ‘SECRET WEAPON’ — BUT POLLS SHOW WARNING SIGNS HEADING INTO MIDTERMS

The party holds a six-point advantage over Republicans in the battle for control of Congress in this autumn’s midterm elections. And nearly three quarters of Democrats say they have a high interest in the midterms, compared to 61% of Republicans.

The survey also indicated Democrats have pulled even with Republicans on the question of which party would do better dealing with the economy, with 40% choosing each party.

But according to the poll, voters trust President Donald Trump and Republicans more than Democrats to handle border security and immigration.

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Trump’s approval rating in the NBC News poll stood at 44%, with 54% disapproving of the job he’s doing in the White House.

The president stood at 43% approval and 57% disapproval in the latest Fox News national poll.

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The Department of Homeland Security blamed Democrats for travelers facing long security lines amid a DHS funding lapse.

“Americans are now enduring the severe fallout from the Democrat shutdown of DHS. Today, travelers are facing TSA lines of up to nearly 3 hours long at some major airports causing missed flights and massive delays during peak travel,” DHS deputy assistant secretary for public affairs Lauren Bis said in a statement, according to Transportation Security Administration posts Sunday on X.

“This chaos is a direct result of Democrats and their refusal to fund DHS. These political stunts force patriotic TSA officers, who protect our skies from serious threats, to work without pay,” the statement asserted. “These frontline heroes received only partial paychecks earlier this month and now face their first full missed paycheck, leading to financial hardship, absences, and crippling staffing shortages.”

Bis called upon Democrats to fund the department.

“Democrats are shamelessly playing politics with national security, punishing hardworking TSA workers and their families. Enough is enough: stop holding national security and everyday Americans hostage. Democrats must fund DHS now,” she declared.

NOEM THANKS TRUMP FOR NEW SHIELD OF THE AMERICAS SPECIAL ENVOY ROLE AFTER DHS OUSTER

DHS hammered Democrats over the issue on X.

“SPRING BREAK UNDER SIEGE,” a post declared. “The Democrats’ DHS shutdown has led to HOURS long security lines at airports across the country, leading Americans to miss their spring break flights.”

“There is ZERO reason for spring break travel to be held hostage for political points — Democrats must end this DHS shutdown NOW,” the post added. 

KRISTI NOEM OUSTED FROM HOMELAND SECURITY POST AMID RECENT TURMOIL

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President Donald Trump announced last week that he is tapping Sen. Markwayne Mullin, R-Okla., for the role of Homeland Security secretary, and that current DHS Secretary Kristi Noem will instead serve as special envoy for an initiative called “Shield of the Americas.”

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Airfares could rise in the weeks ahead as the Iran conflict disrupts energy markets and squeezes jet-fuel supplies, increasing costs for airlines and passengers.

Fuel traders are watching the Strait of Hormuz closely, because disruptions from U.S.-Israeli strikes and retaliatory Iranian drone and missile attacks could quickly ripple through global oil and gas flows.

Just about 21 miles wide at its narrowest, the Strait of Hormuz, between Iran and Oman, is a global energy choke point. Roughly 20 million barrels of oil move through the waterway each day, along with about one-fifth of global liquefied natural gas (LNG), making it a high value target when regional tensions flare.

When that energy bottleneck tightens, crude and refined fuel markets can jump. Jet fuel is typically one of airlines’ biggest operating costs, so even a modest spike can ripple into ticket prices and fees.

Jaime Brito, an energy market analyst, said distributors and airlines value supply security enough to pay a premium, so jet fuel is typically bought in advance through long-term contracts. 

Jet fuel can be especially vulnerable to disruptions since inventories are typically thinner and storage requires specialized tanks. Unlike gasoline or diesel, there’s very little spot buying in jet fuel markets, which can amplify price swings when supply gets tight.

WATCH SHIPPING THROUGH THE STRAIT OF HORMUZ GRIND TO A HALT AMID IRAN CONFLICT

That vulnerability is especially relevant now because a sizable share of global jet fuel supply comes from the Middle East.

“According to our estimates, the Middle East exports a total of around 1.1 million barrels per day of aviation jet fuel, about 17% of what the world consumes,” explained Brito, executive director of refining and oil products at OPIS.

In the U.S., the Argus U.S. Jet Fuel Index, a daily benchmark averaging prices in Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles and New York, climbed to $3.88 a gallon on Friday, after hovering mostly in the low-to-mid $2 range for weeks.

NEW SATELLITE IMAGES SHOW FIRES, NAVAL BASE DAMAGE ACROSS IRAN AFTER US-ISRAELI STRIKES

Brito said that some airports have proportionately higher jet fuel consumption, pointing to Singapore and Frankfurt, so concentration and distance from suppliers create an additional layer of market jitters that is reflected in current prices.

Market anxiety is already showing up in Singapore, Asia’s key trading hub, where jet fuel surged 72% to a record $225.44 a barrel on Wednesday as traders worried about future supplies tied to the Strait of Hormuz.

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But even if tensions ease in the coming weeks and shipping lanes remain open, fuel contracts, shipping schedules and inventory constraints can keep the disruption, and its price impact, embedded in the supply chain.

How much passengers pay will depend on how long the disruption lasts and how much fuel carriers have already locked in through hedging.

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The Pentagon on Sunday announced that U.S. forces have carried out a lethal strike on a vessel allegedly carrying suspected narco-traffickers in the Eastern Pacific, killing six people on board.

The U.S. Southern Command said it conducted “a lethal kinetic strike on a vessel operated by Designated Terrorist Organizations” at the direction of the new leader of the Southern Command, Gen. Francis L. Donovan of the Marine Corps, who took over in January.

“Intelligence confirmed the vessel was transiting along known narco-trafficking routes in the Eastern Pacific and was engaged in narco-trafficking operations,” the Southern Command said in a press release.

Six men on the ship were killed but no U.S. forces died in the attack on the vessel, according to the Southern Command.

The latest strike brings the death toll in the Trump administration’s attacks on ships carrying people it accuses of drug smuggling to at least 156, according to The New York Times.

This was the 45th strike since the U.S. began targeting boats in the Caribbean and the Eastern Pacific in early September and comes amid a recent increase in the pace of strikes, the newspaper reported.

BIPARTISAN PUSH GROWS IN SENATE TO FORCE RELEASE OF UNEDITED CARIBBEAN STRIKE FOOTAGE

The attack on Sunday was one of the deadliest boat strikes the military has conducted in recent weeks.

“Going on offense with Operation Southern Spear has restored deterrence against the narco-terrorist cartels that profited from poisoning Americans,” Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth said last week. “Last month, we went a few weeks without targeting a single boat. Why? Well, because we couldn’t find a whole lot of boats to sink, and that’s the whole point is to establish deterrence from narco-terrorists who have been able to traffic almost unfettered.”

The Pentagon has refused to release the identities of those killed in the strikes since last fall or provide evidence of drugs on board.

The administration has been scrutinized in recent months over the strikes, including by Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., who has raised concerns about killing people without due process and the possibility of killing innocent people.

“I look at my colleagues who say they’re pro-life, and they value God’s inspiration in life, but they don’t give a s‑‑- about these people in the boats,” Paul said in January. “Are they terrible people in the boats? I don’t know. They’re probably poor people in Venezuela and Colombia.”

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The senator previously cited Coast Guard statistics that show a significant percentage of boats boarded on suspicion of drug trafficking are innocent.

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Fresh satellite images give a rare aerial view of the damage across Iran after U.S.-Israeli strikes and what Tehran’s retaliation left behind across the region.

Planet Labs satellite imagery captured burning ships and damaged facilities at the Konarak base in southern Iran, as well as significant destruction at Iran’s naval headquarters in Bandar Abbas on the Persian Gulf, reflecting the scale of the strikes on military infrastructure.

Imagery from Vantor shows damage to facilities and vessels located in Iran’s Bushehr port in the Persian Gulf.

In addition to naval assets, satellite photos show a bunker at Bushehr air base hit by a strike, leaving a large crater and destroying several nearby small buildings.

More strikes targeted the Choqa Balk drone facility in western Iran.

Radar systems at the Zahedan air base in eastern Iran — near the country’s borders with Pakistan and Afghanistan — were also struck.

The two facilities are about 800 to 900 miles apart, underscoring the broad reach of the coordinated strikes.

Satellite imagery also reveals damage to aircraft on the tarmac at Shiraz air base, including scorch marks and debris around several parking areas.

Satellite imagery from Planet Labs shows thick smoke plumes rising above Tehran, signaling explosions and fires inside the Iranian capital.

The smoke underscores how the conflict has moved beyond isolated military sites and into the heart of Iran’s political center.

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Iran has since responded with missile and drone strikes of its own, expanding the conflict across the region. 

Satellite images reveal damage to the port city of Sharjah in the United Arab Emirates. Sharjah is the third most populous after Dubai and Abu Dhabi.

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The Jebel Ali Port, the region’s largest maritime hub, was also targeted, underscoring how the retaliation extended beyond military sites to key infrastructure.

The new satellite imagery comes on the heels of U.S.-Israeli strikes that killed Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, and several top members of the regime, triggering a succession crisis.

President Donald Trump warned on Sunday that Iran’s new leader is “not going to last long” without U.S. approval as Operation Epic Fury marches into a third week. 

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The new battleground in the Gulf isn’t just on the water — it’s in the insurance market, where war-risk coverage can determine which oil tankers sail and which stay put.

With the conflict driving gasoline prices higher, the White House is weighing steps to keep oil flowing through the Strait of Hormuz and to keep prices from climbing further.

The Strait of Hormuz, a narrow passage between Iran and Oman, carries roughly 20 million barrels of oil a day and about one-fifth of global supply of liquefied natural gas. When conflict flares in the region, even the threat of disruption can rattle markets because so much of the world’s energy moves through that single corridor.

And with so much at stake, the White House is turning to an unlikely tool: insurance.

President Donald Trump said the U.S. could use a government-backed insurance program to lower war-risk premiums for vessels in the region. Under a backstop, the government would absorb part of any major losses, easing pressure on private insurers and shipowners.

Because when danger rises, the bill rises.

Insurers charge more to cover ships and cargo, shippers add “war-risk” surcharges and some vessels slow down, detour or pause altogether. Those delays can tighten supply and push crude prices higher even if oil production hasn’t changed.

Against that backdrop, the latest disruption, sparked by U.S.-Israeli strikes starting on Feb. 27 and retaliatory Iranian drone and missile attacks across the region, is forcing shippers and insurers to rethink whether it’s safe to transit the waterway. 

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Some global insurers are already tightening terms. Maritime insurance titans Gard, Skuld, NorthStandard, the London P&I Club and the American Club, have already canceled war-risk coverage, leaving voyages through Iranian and nearby waters without insurance.

Not all coverage is disappearing though. Lloyd’s of London, an insurance marketplace that brings together multiple insurers to cover large, high-risk voyages, said its vessels operating in the Gulf region have a combined hull value exceeding $25 billion. It added that coverage is still in place.

A Lloyd’s spokesperson told Reuters the market is in talks with U.S. officials about possible options. Separately, global insurance broker Marsh said it met with Trump administration representatives to discuss the idea.

Matt Smith, an analyst at Kpler, said coverage is a baseline requirement for ships transiting the Strait of Hormuz, but it doesn’t eliminate the risk. 

“It’s essential for all of these tankers to have insurance. You simply cannot pass through the Strait of Hormuz if you don’t have the insurance, given the high possibility of getting struck by a missile,” Smith told Fox News Digital.

“But even with that insurance in place, it’s little comfort for those on the ship if there’s a chance the vessel is going to be attacked,” he added.

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With that calculus in mind, Maersk, widely regarded as a bellwether for global ocean freight, said it will suspend all vessel crossings through the Strait of Hormuz until further notice and warned service to Arabian Gulf ports could be delayed.

When big shippers hit the brakes, the ripple effects can be felt fast. If oil becomes more expensive or slower to reach buyers, those increases can move through the supply chain and show up for Americans at the pump.

How much Americans feel at the pump will depend on how long the disruption lasts and whether shipping and insurance markets stabilize. Until then, the world’s most important energy chokepoint is likely to keep traders and drivers on edge.

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President Donald Trump said Sunday that Iran’s new leader is “not going to last long” without U.S. approval as Operation Epic Fury continues into its second week.

“He’s going to have to get approval from us,” Trump told ABC News in an interview. “If he doesn’t get approval from us he’s not going to last long. We want to make sure that we don’t have to go back every 10 years, when you don’t have a president like me that’s not going to do it.”

“I don’t want people to have to go back in five years and have to do the same thing again or worse let them have a nuclear weapon,” the president continued.

Trump’s comments come after Iranian state media reported that a majority consensus had been reached on a new supreme leader following the Feb. 28 assassination of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

Mohammadmehdi Mirbaqeri, who serves on Iran’s Assembly of Experts, the clerical body tasked with selecting the supreme leader, did not offer any names but acknowledged to the Mehr News Agency that there are still “some obstacles.”

ABC News reported that Trump said it’s possible he would be in favor of someone with ties to the old regime.

“I would, in order to choose a good leader I would, yeah, I would. There are numerous people that could qualify,” he said.

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The Associated Press reported that several figures are being viewed as potential successors to Iran’s supreme leadership. They include:

• Mojtaba Khamenei — Son of late Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei
• Ali Reza Arafi — Senior Shiite cleric

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• Hassan Rouhani — Former president of Iran
• Hassan Khomeini — Grandson of Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, founder of the Islamic Republic
• Mohammed Mehdi Mirbagheri — Head of the Islamic Cultural Center in Qom

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Israel’s Defense Minister Israel Katz warned Iranian leadership in a post on X last week that any successor who tries to “destroy Israel, to threaten the United States and the free world and the countries of the region, and to suppress the Iranian people” will be an “unequivocal target for elimination.”

“It does not matter what his name is or the place where he hides,” Katz said.

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President Donald Trump is vowing to reject signing any new bills into law until the SAVE America Act is passed by the Senate, a tall order with just 53 Republicans seated and the 60-vote filibuster threshold a high hurdle.

“Great Job by hard working Scott Pressler on Fox & Friends talking about using the Filibuster, or Talking Filibuster, in order to pass THE SAVE AMERICA ACT, an 88% issue with ALL VOTERS,” Trump wrote Sunday morning on Truth Social. “It must be done immediately.”

“It supersedes everything else,” Trump added. “MUST GO TO THE FRONT OF THE LINE.”

The vow to halt all new law signings is a new one coming from the White House and notable because of the Senate hesitation to follow the urgings of Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, to force the Senate to bring the bill forward through the talking filibuster.

“I, as President, will not sign other Bills until this is passed,” Trump’s post continued, “AND NOT THE WATERED DOWN VERSION – GO FOR THE GOLD: MUST SHOW VOTER I.D. & PROOF OF CITIZENSHIP: NO MAIL-IN BALLOTS EXCEPT FOR MILITARY – ILLNESS, DISABILITY, TRAVEL: NO MEN IN WOMEN’S SPORTS: NO TRANSGENDER MUTILIZATION FOR CHILDREN! DO NOT FAIL!!!”

While Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., has publicly acknowledged a willingness to bring a vote on the SAVE America Act before the upper chamber, there is hesitation within the Republican Party about forcing the talking filibuster under the current Senate rules.

The talking filibuster would force Democrats to speak on the Senate floor to argue against a voter identification position widely supported by Americans, as Trump noted, but it would also force Republicans to sit in attendance with a quorum. That has been rebuked by longtime Senate GOP veterans as something that would “waste time.”

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Former Senate GOP Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., has been publicly opposed to forcing a talking filibuster because of the time constraints it would force on the Senate GOP, and he remains one of the few Senate Republicans not signing on to support the SAVE America Act.

Another development that clouds the SAVE America Act filibuster is the recent appointment of Sen. Markwayne Mullin, R-Okla., to serve as the next Department of Homeland Security secretary, perhaps resigning from the Senate by the end of March.

Fox News Digital reached out to Mullin’s office for comment. McConnell’s office declined to comment on Trump’s Truth Social vow to block all new law signings amid the standoff on the DHS funding that has the government in a partial shutdown and the Senate sitting on the House-passed SAVE America Act.

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“We’re going to have a vote on this, but in terms of what the president is willing to sign, Maria, we need to get the Department of Homeland Security funded,” Senate Majority Whip John Barrasso, R-Wy., told Maria Bartiromo on “Sunday Morning Futures.”

“The Democrats have blocked that right now. And the greatest threat to the American people today is terrorism. So I want to make sure that the Democrats work with us to pass and fund the Department of Homeland Security, because I’m worried about the lone wolf, the sleeper cells and the cyber terrorism that’s coming our way because of what Iran is telling people around the world to do to continue this reign of terror,” Barrasso said.

Getting to 60 votes in the Senate is unlikely with just Sen. John Fetterman, D-Pa., as the lone potential Democrat vote to side with the Senate GOP on the SAVE America Act.

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“The Democrats are against so many of the things that I think help this country,” Barrasso added to Bartiromo. “They’d rather stand with illegal immigrant criminals than with the safety and security of the American people. I want to get the Save act to the floor. I want to have a vote.”

“That’s the next step on this need to get the Department of Homeland Security open and funded,” he continued. “The Democrats are bowing to the liberal left: The people that want to eliminate ICE, the people that want open borders again, and the people that really aren’t looking out for the best interest of the American people.

“As the president said in the State of the Union, it is the first duty of the American government to protect American citizens, not illegal aliens. But that’s what not one single Democrat stood up for that when every Republican stood and cheered loudly.”

Barrasso, the Senate GOP member whipping up support, considers the SAVE America Act “common sense.”

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“You want to make sure that only citizens can vote,” he concluded to Bartiromo. “You want to make sure that when people show up, they have a photo ID to prove they are who they say they are. You need a you need a photo ID to buy a beer, to board a plane, all of those things. And it’s 90% popular with the American people. The only people against this are the Democrats because they want to make it easier to cheat.”

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FIRST ON FOX: Nearly 28,000 Americans have returned from the Middle East, according to the State Department, which outlined a large-scale evacuation effort as Senate Democrats escalated criticism over the conflict in Iran.

A top State Department official, in a letter to Senate Democrats first obtained by Fox News Digital, noted that since fighting in Iran escalated following Operation Epic Fury, the agency has “taken proactive, rapid action to support Americans in the region.”

That has included chartered flights, ground transport from closed-airspace areas and round-the-clock crisis staffing.

Paul Guaglianone, the State Department’s senior bureau official of legislative affairs, wrote in a letter to several Senate Democrats on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee that before the strikes, the agency “planned immediate measures to protect and evacuate U.S. citizens.”

The letter comes as diplomats and officials have faced “multiple direct strikes from the Iranian regime.“

“The professionalism and competence of America’s diplomatic corps are inspiring,” Guaglianone wrote. “The Department has taken all necessary steps to protect its safety, both in the region and at posts worldwide.”

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“Despite ongoing threats, our diplomats remain active and focused,” he continued. “They continue to communicate with our allies and partners and advance American diplomatic interests.”

His letter responds directly to criticism from Senate Democrats, led by Sen. Jeanne Shaheen, D-N.H., who argued that Secretary of State Marco Rubio and the Trump administration have “not prioritized getting experienced ambassadors in place in the Middle East,” leading to a breakdown in evacuating diplomats and Americans since the strikes began.

The lawmakers noted that three ambassadors were dismissed in Qatar, Kuwait and Egypt “without explanation,” and that the administration is behind in finding replacements and filling vacancies.

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“Of the 14 countries where the Department urged Americans to urgently leave last Monday, only six have confirmed ambassadors,” the lawmakers wrote. “There are currently no pending nominees before the Senate for ambassadorships in the Middle East. As a result, many key posts are without experienced senior leadership at a time of crisis.”

“Simply put, abrupt decision-making and lack of planning by State Department leadership to ensure the safety and security of its own staff left our personnel and their families unnecessarily at risk,” they continued. “Days into the conflict, the Department still appears caught off-guard and lacks a clear, comprehensive plan to safeguard American personnel, their families or other Americans in the region.”

Guaglianone noted that the agency is providing frequent updates to more than 106,000 Americans enrolled in the Smart Traveler Enrollment Program, operating a 24/7 call center with no wait times and responding quickly to congressional inquiries while coordinating closely with lawmakers to assist constituents.

He also wrote that the agency is chartering additional planes for Americans as more commercial flights become available in Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Jordan and Oman, and that ground transportation is being offered to expand relocation options for Americans in places with closed airspace.

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Americans in Oman, Kuwait, Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Israel who complete the Crisis Intake form receive direct outreach about upcoming charter aviation and ground transportation options from the agency.

“At this time, nearly one in three American citizens who requested help departing turn down U.S. government-provided transportation options when contacted,” Guaglianone wrote. “Some American citizens wish to remain in-country, while others prefer an alternative departure option.”

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FIRST ON FOX: The nation’s history is akin to someone who has faced adversity in life, suggested North Carolina Rep. Addison McDowell’s Chief of Staff, Alex Vargo, 34, who almost lost his life in a roll-over car crash at age 16.

Sunday marks the 18th anniversary of the car crash that nearly killed Vargo and helped shape his life after facing several hurdles in the aftermath of the accident.

Rep. McDowell, R-N.C., himself also faced adversity in his life after losing his brother to a fentanyl overdose, something that the North Carolina congressman has indicated drives him and his policymaking. During an interview with Fox News Digital, Vargo pointed out how the story of adversity, such as the events that he and the congressman have faced, is very similar to the story of America. 

“Our country is not an old country, but I think in our history we’ve gone through periods of real trial – civil wars, massive pandemics that shut down our life – but I think we’re not defined by those tragedies,” Vargo told Fox News Digital. “We’re not defined by wars, we’re defined by how we came back after, how our country stuck together … The whole story of America is one of triumph. It’s one of going through hard times and coming out on the other side.”

Vargo, who grew up in Pittsburgh, was driving home in the snow one day, when, just four days before his 17th birthday, he lost control of his car going down a hill before it slid off the road, went into a hillside, flipped and ultimately “imploded inward,” the chief of staff recounted. Half of his left hand ended up being severed and required 8-hours of emergency surgery to put back together. 

“People say they’re in shock – that’s the first time I’ve been in real shock,” Vargo said. “There are events in your life, not many but a handful that really shape how you view the world, what your purpose is, and that was definitely one.”

Vargo said his purpose became more defined after the incident. He underwent months of painful therapy, where he re-learned how to use his hand for things like typing and dribbling a basketball. According to Vargo, he was given a second chance at life and wanted to make good use of it. It was through those life experiences that drove the decision for him to enter into “the battle of ideas,” and be part of the conservative movement. 

The now-chief of staff has been working in Congress as far back as 2014. Starting as an intern on Capitol Hill, Vargo quickly rose in rank, leading him to serve alongside McDowell in now-Sen. Ted Budd, R-N.C. office, while he was in the House. Vargo has worked in the halls of Congress for the better part of a decade, but he feels the most consequential mission he’s been part of was his time in the Florida legislature where he worked for former House Speaker Paul Renner during the time when Florida had the “Session of the Century.” 

“Alex was a pivotal member of our team as we enacted transformational reforms in Florida. He was a strong advocate during my time as Speaker,” Renner told Fox News Digital. “Together, we protected life, strengthened Florida’s gun laws, and passed the largest expansion of school choice in the nation. He’s turned personal trials into triumphs, and I’m grateful for his friendship.” 

“Together, we protected life, strengthened Florida’s gun laws, and passed the largest expansion of school choice in the nation. He’s turned personal trials into triumphs, and I’m grateful for his friendship,” Renner continued, referring to Vargo. 

Vargo also has spent time with multiple grassroots organizations, such as Heritage Action For America and was the 2024 Campaign Manager for Rep. Neal Dunn, R-Fla. 

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“Going through trials is not unique to me or to the congressman. People go through trials, whether it’s in the three-mile radius we’re in right now, or throughout the country. I think it’s kind of the story of our country,” added Vargo. “As a country, we’ve gone through trials. But we’re not really defined by our imperfections. We’re defined by our principles and our values.”

When asked whether Vargo’s tragic incident led him to focus on certain policy areas, he responded in the affirmative, pointing to healthcare affordability. Vargo said that through his accident he saw how “awesome” American healthcare is on one hand, but he also recalled how his experience opened his eyes to “how messed up of a system we have in terms of financing” healthcare. 

Meanwhile, when asked about specific policy solutions, Vargo pointed to the integration between insurance companies, hospital systems, pharmacy benefit managers and pharmaceutical companies. 

“They all play a role, but I think there’s not enough time when people are advocating for the consumer,” Vargo said.

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McDowell, who Vargo admitted has been through much more tragedy losing his brother than he did through his car crash, told Fox News Digital that from the first time he met Vargo he could tell he was “driven by a cause,” like himself, which McDowell described to Fox News Digital as “something bigger than himself.” 

“When I got President Trump’s endorsement, I called my wife, my political consultant and then Alex to tell him he was going to be my chief when I won,” McDowell recalled.

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The House voted Thursday on a Democrat-led Iran War Powers Resolution, aimed at limiting President Donald Trump’s military authority in Tehran — bringing to the fore a sharp debate over executive powers, and reviving fresh questions as to what level of consultation, if any, presidents must seek from Congress before proceeding with future military strikes. 

If passed, the Democrat-led Iran War Powers Resolution would have required Trump to terminate the use of any U.S. armed forces against Iran unless it was “explicitly authorized” by Congress. House lawmakers are largely split on the issue along party lines. 

Speaking to Fox News Digital in an interview after the House vote, Rep. Pramila Jayapal, D-Wash., defended her support for the new Iran War Powers Resolution. She said that, in her view, Trump had exceeded his authority and impinged upon Article I of the Constitution. “It’s about our Article I power,” she said. 

Congress alone “has the power to declare war, and we cannot be putting our troops at risk based on the ‘opinion’ of any President unilaterally,” Jayapal said in a statement. 

The vote came amid escalating tensions in the Middle East following the U.S. strike on Iran days earlier— and as some Democrats have accused the Trump administration of racing to involve the U.S. in yet another long-running conflict in the Middle East without first consulting Congress. 

Republicans, meanwhile, maintain that the White House is acting within its authority in the best interests of the country.

Jayapal told Fox News Digital that she has long been a critic of other presidents who failed to consult Congress before taking military action — including under former President Joe Biden, after he ordered a U.S. airstrike on an Iran-backed militia in Syria.

“I spoke out against Biden as well,” Jayapal said of Biden’s 2021 airstrike in Syria.

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“I spoke out against every Democratic and Republican president who tried to go to war without authorization, because I don’t think it should be partisan,” she continued, adding: “It’s about our Article I power.”

Her remarks come as the Democrat-led measure has sparked fierce opposition from nearly all GOP House members, and a small group of Democrats in the chamber, who noted that the commander-in-chief must retain some level of flexibility to respond to foreign threats and protect U.S. personnel and interests abroad.

They also criticized Democrats who supported the Iran War Powers Resolution for taking a posture of second-guessing military decisions during a sensitive moment overseas. 

Earlier this week, a group of Democrats urged House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., to keep the House of Representatives in D.C. next week, citing the “rapidly evolving” situation in Iran.

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Backers argue that restricting a president’s authority— and doing so in the middle of a volatile national security situation— could embolden foreign adversaries and undermine the U.S. ability to respond. 

Democrats, meanwhile, have continued to cite concerns that Trump has failed to demonstrate an “imminent” threat that would justify unilateral military action under his Article II powers.

The vote underscores a broader, long-running bipartisan debate over the scope of executive war powers and Congress’ role in authorizing the use of force — a tension that has spanned multiple administrations and conflicts.

Jayapal, for her part, appeared unfazed by the GOP pushback. 

She noted that, in her view, the U.S. action in Iran could be long-lasting, and is likely to have “much bigger consequences” than the U.S. involvement in Syria.

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“There are real troops on the ground here in a way that wasn’t the case in Syria,” Jayapal said. “And I think it’s a much, much, much bigger war with no imminent threat.”

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Former NFL quarterback Tim Tebow appeared on Capitol Hill this past week to urge lawmakers on the Senate Judiciary Committee to pass legislation to better combat child exploitation, trafficking, and abuse — describing the effort as a fight “for people who cannot fight for themselves” and in their “darkest hour of need.” 

Tebow, the founder and chair of his eponymous Tim Tebow Foundation, used the impassioned testimony before the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee to shore up support for the Renewed Hope Act of 2026, or bipartisan legislation that seeks to increase federal resources to fight child exploitation and abuse. 

Framing the crisis as a “fight for people who cannot fight for themselves in their darkest hour of need,” Tebow said his foundation is working “imperfectly, but in every way that we can” to support the fight against child exploitation, including by providing additional support to law enforcement, and funding long-term restoration efforts to support victims.

His foundation currently provides support for some 52 safe homes, and is in the process of expanding the support to an additional 19 homes.

“It is a thin line between tortured and treasured,” Tebow told lawmakers Tuesday. “And you are that thin line,” he said, urging the chamber to take swift action to approve the bill.

“I spent way too much of my life chasing a much less important MVP,” Tebow added. “I want to spend the rest of my life chasing the most vulnerable people.”

The Renewed Hope Act of 2026, which cleared House committee markup earlier this year, seeks to establish a dedicated workforce of more than 200 analysts, investigators, and forensic specialists working within DHS’s Homeland Security Investigations, or HSI, to “deconflict, coordinate, and synchronize child sexual exploitation investigations.” 

The bill would equip and specially train officers on victim identification, location, and rescue operations for unknown children or children identified in sexual abuse databases.

Support for the legislation comes as the number of unidentified child victims in exploitation databases has surged in recent years. According to the Tim Tebow Foundation, there are an estimated 57,000 unidentified victims of child trafficking. The foundation emphasizes that these children remain hidden from official statistics and protection systems — as echoed by others who testified in Tuesday’s emotional hearing.  

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In the last six months alone, Tebow noted that more than 338,000 unique IP addresses based in the U.S. have been identified trading child sexual abuse images across so-called “peer-to-peer” networks.

“Every day, [these children] are praying that we are going to respond,” Tebow said in his testimony. “But how are we going to respond?”

“I am deeply grateful to the members of Congress on both sides of the aisle who are coming together to support the Renewed Hope Act of 2026. This legislation gives our nation the opportunity to build a stronger rescue team of analysts and investigators so that children who are suffering can be identified and protected. This is a problem we can solve.”

Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., who chairs the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Crime and Counterterrorism, has long prioritized issues of child trafficking, which he assailed as a “scourge” on our society.

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“I am convening this subcommittee hearing to expose how our youth are groomed, exploited, and overlooked by the existing system,” he said this week. “Congress must dismantle the criminal networks that profit from exploiting the most vulnerable among us and put an end to child trafficking.”

Fox News Digital’s Scott Thompson contributed to this report. 

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President Donald Trump on Saturday said that U.S. and Israeli forces have “wiped out” Iran’s navy, air force and much of its missile capability in just one week of war, declaring the regime’s military “almost non-existent” as he continues to press Tehran to surrender for “a much safer world.”

Speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One, the president said the sweeping offensive has exceeded expectations, noting Iran’s navy “is now at the bottom of the sea.”

“We’ve wiped out their Navy — 44 ships. We’ve wiped out their air force — every plane. We’ve wiped out most of their missiles — you see their missiles aren’t coming much anymore,” Trump said. 

He added military strikes have hit missile manufacturing areas “very hard,” and the country’s drone capacity is “way down.”

The president said he is seeking an “unconditional surrender” from Iran, explaining the term means “they cry uncle, or when they can’t fight any longer.”

“Or there’s nobody around to cry uncle to, because we wiped out their leadership numerous times already,” he continued. “It’s if they surrender, or if there is nobody around to surrender, but they’re rendered useless in terms of military [capabilities].”

Discussing atrocities allegedly carried out by the regime, Trump said the war was 47 years coming and “no president had the guts to do it.”

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“They are about the most evil people ever on Earth,” he said. “They cut babies’ heads off. They chop women in half. Take a look at October 7th, take a look at what they’ve done over the last 47 years. … When this ends, we’re going to have a much safer world.”

Despite concerns about rising gas prices on the home front, Trump said he is not worried.

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“They’ll come down very fast, and we will have gotten rid of a major, major cancer on the face of the earth,” the president said. “We’ll have taken out a cancer. … What we’re doing is a great thing, not only for our country, not only for Israel, not only for the Middle East, but for the world.”

It is unclear if ground troops will be sent to secure the enriched uranium at Iranian nuclear sites targeted by joint forces, though the president described the attacks as “a total obliteration.”

“They haven’t been able to get to it, and at some point, maybe we will be,” he said. “It would be a great thing, but right now, we’re just decimating them. We haven’t gone after it, but [it’s] something we could do later.”

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Trump concluded by calling the war “a minor excursion” that in the end will make the world a safer place. 

“When this ends, we’re going to have a much safer world, you know, so, you know, this is a minor excursion,” he said. “And we will have gotten rid of a lot of sick and demented people, the leadership. So we got rid of one leadership. We got rid of the second level of leadership. Now they’re on that third or fourth level of leadership. And they have leaders right now that nobody even knows who they are.”

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President Donald Trump on Saturday slammed British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, saying he was joining the war in Iran after the U.S. has “already won.”

“The United Kingdom, our once Great Ally, maybe the Greatest of them all, is finally giving serious thought to sending two aircraft carriers to the Middle East,” Trump wrote on Truth Social. “That’s OK, Prime Minister Starmer, we don’t need them any longer — But we will remember. We don’t need people that join Wars after we’ve already won!”

Trump’s statement came after the U.K. Ministry of Defense said that one of the country’s two aircraft carriers had been placed on advanced readiness in Portsmouth, England, for a possible mobilization to the Middle East, according to the BBC.

A British destroyer, HMS Dragon, is also in Portsmouth, waiting to leave for Cyprus after delays.

Starmer said that while the U.K. wasn’t involved in the strikes, they are “operating defensively in the region.”

In an address to the British people on Sunday, Starmer condemned “indiscriminate” attacks by Iran following the U.S. strikes, adding, “the only way to stop the threat is to destroy the missiles at source.”

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He added that Britain has agreed to the United States’ request to use British bases for that “limited” purpose.

After the strikes, Trump told the Telegraph in the U.K. that he was “very disappointed” in Starmer, claiming it “took far too long” for the prime minister to allow the U.S. to use British bases in the region. 

British fighter jets are also flying over Jordan, Cyprus and Qatar to strengthen defense in the region, and a Merlin helicopter is on the way for additional airborne surveillance, according to the Ministry of Defense.

“While the region has been plunged into chaos, my focus is providing calm, levelheaded leadership in the national interest,” Starmer said this week. “That means deploying our military and diplomatic strength to protect our people. And it means having the strength to stand firm by our values and our principles, no matter the pressure to do otherwise. The longstanding British position is that the best way forward for the regime and world is a negotiated settlement with Iran where they give up their nuclear ambitions.”

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He said that’s why he made the decision that the U.K. would not join the initial coordinated strikes launched by the U.S. and Israel on Feb. 28.

In Parliament this week, Starmer added, “We all remember the mistakes of Iraq, and we have learned those lessons. Any U.K. ‌actions must ⁠always have a lawful basis, and a viable, thought-through plan,” Starmer said. “This government does not believe in regime change from the skies.”

Former British Prime Minister Liz Truss reposted Trump’s Saturday Truth Social comments on X, writing, “Justified and damning.”

Fox News Digital has reached out to Starmer’s office for comment.

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During the Shield of the Americas summit in Florida on Saturday, outgoing Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Kristi Noem thanked President Donald Trump for appointing her to a newly created role after she was ousted from overseeing the agency.

Noem, who is moving to the newly created position of special envoy for the Shield of the Americas, showed no ill feelings toward the president and said she was proud of her work at DHS, arguing the department had secured the border and eliminated public safety threats.

“I do want to thank the president for creating this and for giving me the honor and the opportunity to serve as a special envoy to this region, to the Western Hemisphere,” Noem said during the summit at Trump National Doral outside Miami. 

“This Shield of the Americas will be a powerful example to the rest of the world about what’s possible.”

Trump announced this week that Noem would shift into the new role after cutting short her tenure at DHS. 

Noem was removed as the nation’s immigration chief after a turbulent stretch marked by internal clashes and two contentious congressional hearings where even some Republicans pressed her over leadership missteps, including the ad campaign, which she claimed the president had signed off on.

Noem framed the initiative as an effort to expand border security cooperation beyond the United States.

“The way that we cooperate on our shared ideals of freedom and of democracy and safety and security will be a shining light to all of those who wish to be more like all of us,” she said.

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Noem, who previously served in Congress and as South Dakota governor before leading DHS, defended her record overseeing immigration enforcement during the past year.

“In the last year, as secretary of Homeland Security, we have focused on securing our border,” she said. “We have transformed our country from one that was being invaded by enemies, millions of them that were coming in unvetted, that we didn’t know who was there and who wished to harm us.”

“We’ve secured that border,” she continued. “We’ve focused on removing public safety threats, and over 3 million people have been deported or removed from our country in the last year.”

Noem argued that stronger border enforcement has allowed the administration to pivot toward economic and diplomatic engagement with neighboring nations.

“Secure borders has changed everything for our country,” she said. “Now that America is secure and our borders are secure, we want to focus on our neighbors and to help our neighbors with their borders and challenges that they have so that they may have the security that we enjoy.”

Trump announced on Truth Social that Sen. Markwayne Mullin, R-Okla., will replace her effective March 31, while Noem shifts to the newly created envoy role.

Members of Trump’s Cabinet, including Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Secretary of War Pete Hegseth, Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick and United States Trade Representative Jamieson Greer attended Saturday’s summit. 

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Leaders from other nations included Argentina’s Javier Milei, El Salvador’s Nayib Bukele Ortez, Bolivia’s Rodrigo Paz Pereira, Costa Rica’s Rodrigo Chaves Robles, Panama’s José Raúl Mulino Quintero, and Trinidad and Tobago’s Kamla Persad-Bissessar, Chile’s Jose Antonio Kast, the Dominican Republic’s Luis Rodolfo Abinader Corona, Ecuador’s Daniel Roy Gilchrist Noboa Azín, Guyana’s Mohamed Irfaan Ali, Honduras’ Nasry “Tito” Asfura and Paraguay’s Santiago Peña.

Notably missing were the leaders of Venezuela, Delcy Rodríguez, and Mexico, Claudia Sheinbaum Pardo.

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

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