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President Donald Trump said Wednesday he was open to providing exemptions for certain U.S. companies hit especially hard by tariffs through no fault of their own. 

The president and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent spoke to reporters Wednesday afternoon and were asked repeatedly about the effect their tariff moves have had on financial markets and whether they will let their recent declines affect future trade decisions. 

Trump was asked specifically if he would consider “exempting” some larger U.S. companies that have been hit especially hard by the new tariffs, and the president said he would consider it. 

“I’ll take a look at it as time goes by. We’re going to take a look at it,” Trump responded. “There are some that have been hard — there are some that, by the nature of the company, get hit a little bit harder, and we’ll take a look at that.”

DONALD TRUMP’S ALLIES, SUPPORTERS AND DONORS, LED BY ELON MUSK, PUSH TO END TARIFF WAR

President Donald Trump holds a chart as he delivers remarks on reciprocal tariffs during an event in the Rose Garden at the White House in Washington, D.C., April 2, 2025. (Brendan Smialowski/AFP via Getty Images)

When asked how he would determine which companies might receive such an exemption, Trump responded, “Instinctively.”

“You almost can’t take a pencil to paper. It’s really more of an instinct than anything else,” Trump added. “Some companies, through no fault of their own, they happen to be in an industry that is more affected by these things than others. You have to be able to show a little flexibility, and I’m able to do that.

CHARLIE GASPARINO BREAKS DOWN TRUMP’S TARIFF PAUSE: ‘THIS IS WHAT FORCED THE HAND’

“You have to have flexibility,” Trump said Wednesday. “I could say, ‘Here’s a wall, and I’m going to go through that wall. I’m going to go through it, no matter what. Keep going, and you can’t go through the wall. Sometimes you have to be able to go under the wall, around the wall or over the wall.”  

A television broadcasts market news on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange in New York April 4, 2025. (Michael Nagle/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

After the president’s “Liberation Day” tariff announcements, which included a 10% universal tariff on all imported goods and higher “reciprocal” tariffs targeting other countries like China and the European Union, the Trump administration did release a list of carve-outs related to roughly $644 billion in imports, according to a report from The Wall Street Journal.

The exemptions include $185 billion in goods from Canada and Mexico, but the countries remain subject to other tariffs, according to the report.

WHITE HOUSE WARNS AGAINST TARIFF RETALIATION, SAYS TRUMP ‘HAS SPINE OF STEEL AND HE WILL NOT BREAK’

A truck with vehicles crosses the Blue Water Bridge border crossing into the United States from Sarnia, Ontario, Canada, April 3, 2025. (Geoff Robins/AFP via Getty Images)

Additionally, the Trump administration has exempted certain industries, such as the pharmaceutical and semiconductor industries, from new tariffs, but the president has signaled that could change. These sectors and others are facing an ongoing probe, called a Section 232 investigation, according to Market Watch, to assess the need for imposing tariffs.

No matter the outcome of the investigation, it appears Trump has his sights set on placing higher tariffs on the pharmaceutical industry. He told an audience at a dinner hosted by the National Republican Congressional Committee Tuesday night that “a major tariff on pharmaceuticals” would be announced very soon. 

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The White House declined to comment for this article.

EXCLUSIVE: Sen. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., is clapping back against accusations from Democrats that Republicans are trying to make cuts to Social Security and Medicare benefits for seniors.

“The message to seniors is really pretty simple. We are going to strengthen Social Security. That is our goal. And one of the ways we’re doing that is by rooting out waste, fraud, abuse,” she told Fox News Digital in an exclusive interview, saying the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) has been an effective tool for doing so.

The senator is touting the RETIREES FIRST Act, which would raise the income bar for somebody to be required to pay federal taxes on their Social Security payouts.

ELON MUSK DUNKS ON SEN. CHUCK SCHUMER, DECLARING ‘HYSTERICAL REACTIONS’ DEMONSTRATE DOGE’S IMPORTANCE

Department of Government Efficiency chief Elon Musk and seven other members sit down for an exclusive interview on “Special Report.’ (Fox News)

“Now, there’s also legislation I have — and the president’s talked about this a lot — and it’s removing a federal income tax from Social Security benefits. And as we work on the tax package, you’re going to see this in one of those reconciliation packages,” she said.

“The left and the mainstream media continues to talk a lot about cutting Social Security, and we are not doing that,” she said. Blackburn’s office is circulating a memo highlighting a quote from President Donald Trump on “Sunday Morning Futures” last month saying he’s “not going to touch Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid. Now, we’re going to get fraud out of there.”

“What we’re doing is strengthening. We are not cutting. What we are doing is making certain that people that are defrauding the system, people who are abusing the system, are no longer going to be able to do that. People that have paid into Social Security deserve to get every penny that they are in line to receive as a benefit, and we want to make certain that that happens,” the Republican said.

ELON MUSK SCRAPS WITH CHUCK SCHUMER, SUGGESTING THE SENATOR PROFITS FROM GOVERNMENT FRAUD

Social Security card (Kurt “CyberGuy” Knutsson)

Blackburn also took aim at the state of California, which made it a state law in 2024 to provide Medicaid, known in the state as Medi-Cal, to illegal immigrants. The program is now being partially blamed for the state going nearly $3.5 billion over budget for Medi-Cal, and the governor’s office has had to ask for billions in loans to cover the costs.

“So it’s all taxpayer money, and when you hear of a state like California who decided — they made a conscious decision, a very intentional decision — that they wanted to provide healthcare for those that were illegally entering the country, and they wanted the taxpayers to pay for it. And Tennesseans will say, ‘Well, we don’t want to shoulder that burden because that’s a policy we don’t agree with,'” Blackburn said.

DEMOCRATS HAVE BEEN ‘WRONG’ ON EVERY ISSUE: SEN. MARSHA BLACKBURN

Sen. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., speaks at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee on July 15, 2024.  (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., and other Democrats in Congress have raised alarms about cuts made to the Social Security Administration, including 7,000 staff layoffs.

“Make no mistake: What Elon Musk is doing at Social Security is cutting benefits. And Senate Republicans are standing with him. They blocked our amendments last week to protect Social Security from DOGE and reverse the Social Security layoffs and office closures,” Schumer tweeted Monday.  

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However, Elon Musk said cutting benefits for people actually taking them is not the case.

“The intern running Schumer’s social media account is lying,” Musk said in response to Schumer’s post Tuesday. 

Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts on Wednesday agreed to temporarily halt the reinstatement of two fired federal board members, delivering another near-term win to President Donald Trump as his administration continues to spar in federal courts over the extent of his executive branch powers.

The brief stay handed down by Roberts is not a final ruling on the reinstatement of the two board members, National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) member Gwynne Wilcox and Merit Systems Protection Board (MSPB) member Cathy Harris – two Democratic appointees who were abruptly terminated by the Trump administration earlier this year. 

Both had challenged their terminations as “unlawful” in separate suits filed in D.C. federal court.

But the order from Roberts does temporarily halt their reinstatements from taking force two days after a federal appeals court voted en banc to reinstate them.

APPEALS COURT BLOCKS TRUMP FROM FIRING FEDERAL BOARD MEMBERS, TEES UP SUPREME COURT FIGHT

National Labor Relations Board member Gwynne Wilcox and Merit Systems Protection Board member Cathy Harris sued the administration after they were terminated from their posts. (NLRB; AP Photo; US District Court)

Judges for the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit voted 7-4 Monday to restore Wilcox and Harris to their respective boards, citing Supreme Court precedent in Humphrey’s Executor and Wiener v. United States as the backing for their decision. 

They noted that the Supreme Court had never overturned or reversed the decades-old precedent regarding removal restrictions for government officials of “multimember adjudicatory boards” – including the NLRB and MSPB. “The Supreme Court has repeatedly told the courts of appeals to follow extant Supreme Court precedent unless and until that Court itself changes it or overturns it,” judges noted in their opinion. 

Monday’s ruling from the full panel was expected to spark intense backlash from the Trump administration, which has lobbed accusations of so-called “activist judges” that have slowed or halted some of Trump’s executive orders and actions.

The Trump administration appealed the ruling to the Supreme Court almost immediately. 

TRUMP’S AUTHORITY TO FIRE OFFICIALS QUESTIONED IN COURT BATTLE OVER NLRB SEAT

Members of the Supreme Court (L-R) associate justices Amy Coney Barrett, Neil M. Gorsuch, Sonia Sotomayor and Clarence Thomas, Chief Justice John G. Roberts, Jr., and Associate Justices Ketanji Brown Jackson, Samuel A. Alito, Jr., Elena Kagan, and Brett M. Kavanaugh pose in the Justices Conference Room prior to the formal investiture ceremony of Associate Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson Sept. 30, 2022, in Washington, D.C. (Collection of the Supreme Court of the United States via Getty Images)

The en banc decision was the latest in a dizzying flurry of court developments that had upheld, then blocked, and upheld again the firings of the two employees, and came after D.C.-based federal judges had issued orders blocking their terminations. 

“A President who touts an image of himself as a ‘king’ or a ‘dictator,’ perhaps as his vision of effective leadership, fundamentally misapprehends the role under Article II of the U.S. Constitution,” U.S. District Judge Beryl Howell, who oversaw Wilcox’s case, wrote in her opinion. 

Likewise, U.S. District Judge Rudolph Contreras, who was presiding over Harris’s case, wrote that if the President were to “displace independent agency heads from their positions for the length of litigation such as this, those officials’ independence would shatter.”

Both opinions cited the 1935 Supreme Court precedent, Humphrey’s Executor v. United States, that notably narrowed the president’s constitutional power to remove agents of the executive branch, in support of Wilcox’s and Harris’s reinstatements. 

Back in February, Trump’s Justice Department penned a letter to Illinois Democratic Sen. Dick Durbin stating that it was seeking to overturn the landmark case. 

“To the extent that Humphrey’s Executor requires otherwise, the Department intends to urge the Supreme Court to overrule that decision, which prevents the President from adequately supervising principal officers in the Executive Branch who execute the laws on the President’s behalf, and which has already been severely eroded by recent Supreme Court decisions,” Acting Solicitor General Sarah Harris wrote in the letter. 

In February, Trump’s Justice Department penned a letter to Illinois Democratic Sen. Dick Durbin saying it was seeking to overturn the landmark case.  (Getty Image)

The Trump administration appealed the orders to the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals, where a three-judge panel ruled 2-1 in favor of the Trump administration, allowing the firings to proceed. 

Wilcox and Harris – now as a consolidated case – filed a motion for an en banc hearing, requesting the appeals court hear the case again with the entire bench present. 

In an en banc ruling issued on April 7, the D.C. Circuit voted to block the terminations, reversing the previous appellate holding. 

SUPREME COURT RULES ON STATUS OF TENS OF THOUSANDS OF FIRED PROBATIONARY EMPLOYEES

Hampton Dellinger, a Biden appointee previously tapped to head the Office of Special Counsel, also sued the Trump administration over his termination. (U.S. Office of Special Counsel/Handout via Reuters )

The judges voted 7-4 to restore Wilcox and Harris to their posts. 

Harris’s and Wilcox’s cases are just several legal challenges in a grander scheme of cases attempting to clearly define the executive’s power. 

Hampton Dellinger, a Biden appointee previously tapped to head the Office of Special Counsel, also sued the Trump administration over his own termination. Dellinger filed suit in D.C. district court after his Feb. 7 firing. 

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He had maintained the argument that, by law, he could only be dismissed from his position for job performance problems, which were not cited in an email dismissing him from his post. 

Dellinger ultimately dropped his suit against the administration after the D.C. appellate court issued an unsigned order siding with the Trump administration. 

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

Welcome to the Fox News Politics newsletter, with the latest updates on the Trump administration, Capitol Hill and more Fox News politics content.

Here’s what’s happening…

-Homeland Security to scan migrants’ social media posts for antisemitism: ‘No room for terrorist sympathizers’

-Elon Musk, conservatives drag Trump-appointed justice following Venezuelan deportations ruling

–Biden aides ‘scripted’ everything, allowed his faculties to ‘atrophy,’ new book claims

Number Crunch

Americans’ concerns over the economy, and specifically inflation and tariffs, appear to be partially fueling the downward trend of President Donald Trump’s approval ratings in a new national poll.

Trump stands at 41% approval and 53% disapproval in a Quinnipiac University survey conducted April 3-7 and released on Wednesday.

The president stood at 46%-43% approval/disapproval in a Quinnipiac poll conducted during his first week back in the White House, in late January. And Trump was slightly underwater at 45%-49% in mid-February. But the president’s approval ratings are basically unchanged from Quinnipiac’s previous survey, which was in the field early last month…Read more

WASHINGTON, DC – APRIL 3: U.S. President Donald Trump gestures to members of the media before boarding Marine One on the South Lawn of the White House on April 3, 2025 in Washington, DC. Trump spoke a day after announcing sweeping new tariffs targeting goods imported to the U.S. on countries including China, Japan and India.(Photo by Andrew Harnik/Getty Images) (Getty Images )

White House

‘DARK-ARTS OPERATION’: Harris launched ‘dark-arts operation’ against opponents for VP spot in 2020, new book claims

BLOCKING BIDEN: Federal judge blocks Biden nursing home staffing mandate

SURVEILLANCE BALLOON: Biden officials coordinated with Beijing on Chinese spy balloon days before informing US public, officials say

The White House said on Friday President Joe Biden would not shoot down the suspected Chinese spy balloon, despite calls from lawmakers and others. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images/Larry Mayer/The Billings Gazette via AP/Keith Tsuji/Getty Images)

TRADE POWER STRUGGLE: Trump pushes back on ‘rebel’ Republicans over tariffs: ‘You don’t negotiate like I negotiate’

AI IN THE WHITE HOUSE: WH rolls out implementation of AI for federal employee records

World Stage

CRIME AND COMPENSATION: U.S.-recognized Venezuelan opposition leader Edmundo Gonzales promises to give financial reparations to Americans hurt by crimes of Tren de Aragua

SHOOTING FOR THE MOON: Astronauts stand alongside NASA Administrator nominee Jared Isaacman at Senate confirmation hearing

‘FIRST AND FREE’: ​​Hegseth says Panama agreed to allow US warships to travel ‘first and free’ through canal

SINGLED OUT: Bessent singles out Beijing amid tariff pause: ‘They are the problem for the rest of the world’

Scott Bessent, US treasury secretary, departs following a tariff announcement in the Rose Garden of the White House in Washington, DC, US, on Wednesday, April 2, 2025. (Photographer: Jim Lo Scalzo/EPA/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

Capitol Hill

HUCKABEE ADVANCES: Mike Huckabee confirmed as US ambassador to Israel in bipartisan vote

SCHIFF TIFF: Schiff fires back after Trump rips ‘watermelon-head’ Democrat at GOP dinner

‘PIECE OF THE ACTION’: Elon Musk scraps with Chuck Schumer, suggesting the senator profits from government fraud

‘POLITICAL PETTINESS’: VP Vance blasts McConnell’s vote against Trump Pentagon nominee: ‘Political pettiness’

‘TANKING OUR ECONOMY’: Dem takes aim at Trump in 2026 Senate launch video for ‘tanking our economy’

APPROVED: Senate approves Peter Hoekstra as next US ambassador to Canada

Senate approves Peter Hoekstra as ambassador to Canada. 4/9/25 (Background image: Photo by Lyle Stafford/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images, Image of Trump: Al Drago/Bloomberg via Getty ImagesImage of Heokstra: Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)

‘YOU SOUND IGNORANT’: Greene and Garcia clash over RFK Jr. and vaccines, measles outbreak

INCOMING: Senators formally introduce bill to eliminate U.S. Department of Education

‘FEELING THE HEAT’: Schumer says Trump ‘feeling the heat’ after reciprocal tariff pause

Across America

JUSTIFYING VIOLENCE: Violent attacks from anti-Musk, anti-Trump protesters plague nation, compel GOP lawmakers to take precautions

The protesters’ goal, according to the organization’s website, is to send a crystal clear message that they are against Tesla CEO Elon Musk, describing itself as a decentralized grassroots movement that will “protest Tesla for as long as Elon Musk continues to shred public services.” Organizers plan to hold rallies at over 200 Tesla location across the U.S. (Getty Images)

STANDING ALONE: California sheriff vows to defy statewide sanctuary law: ‘This is common sense’

DEM WALKOUT: Trump’s border czar gets GOP cheers, Democratic tears at Arizona state capitol

Get the latest updates on the Trump administration and Congress, exclusive interviews and more on FoxNews.com.

Fox News Digital has learned that the U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM) will post an updated Privacy Impact Assessment (PIA) at the close of business Wednesday that paves the way for artificial intelligence to improve government efficiency and enhance the federal record-keeping process. 

This will be the first time the United States government has applied the use of artificial intelligence for federal employee record-keeping after President Donald Trump issued an executive order in January to “solidify [America’s] position as the global leader in AI and secure a brighter future for all Americans.”

A senior White House official spoke with Fox News Digital, outlining the implementation process, detailing that the Federal Risk and Authorization Management Program (FedRAMP)-approved AI system will be used to drastically speed up the retirement process for the roughly 2.3 million federal employees and improve the accuracy of what is now mostly paper-based record keeping.

WHITE HOUSE: US WILL LEAD IN AI, BUT CHINA IS CATCHING UP

Department of Government Efficiency head Elon Musk and seven other members sit down for an exclusive interview on ‘Special Report.’ (Fox News)

While the AI system will not be immediately operational, updating the PIA is the first step in opening the door to a full-scale roll-out. The senior White House official explained that the artificial intelligence program has already been tested to 100% accuracy in a simulated environment, but that no testing on actual data can be completed without the updated PIA.

Part of the inspiration for using AI to improve federal record keeping comes from Elon Musk’s DOGE keying in on a decommissioned, underground mine in Boyers, Pennsylvania. The mine, which is home to more than 400,000,000 personal records for federal employees, is heavily reliant on an ineffective paper-based system. 

Though federal employee records are now filed through OPM’s electronic Official Personnel Folder (eOPF), there is also a duplicate paper record printed as a PDF that is stored at the Pennsylvania mine.

Operating under the current system, processing the retirement of a federal employee can take weeks or months, per file, and there is still room for human error.

With the implementation of artificial intelligence, the senior White House official told Fox it could take less than one second to finalize a federal employee’s retirement.

SECURING THE AI FUTURE: HOW PRESIDENT TRUMP’S ACTION PLAN CAN POSITION AMERICA FOR SUCCESS

General view of the White House garden tour in Washington, D.C., on Sunday, April 6, 2025. (Yuri Gripas for Fox News Digital)

While there is no intention to digitize or remove the hundreds of millions of files that exist in the mine, the AI system would ensure that no new paper files would be added to the already overwhelming number of physical copies that exist. 

Outdated filing systems have placed a burden on the efficiency of federal record keeping, as many of the files are old, illegible PDFs that can take several employees days or weeks to review, and the results have a higher chance of being inaccurate.

“Antiquated, inefficient, and slow are words synonymous with government, all of which ended the day President Trump took office,” Harrison Fields, Principal White House Deputy Press Secretary, told Fox News Digital, “Today’s action follows the president’s historic AI Executive Order and will usher in historic efficiency at the Office of Personnel Management, streamlining the organization tasked with serving as the human resources agency and personnel policy manager for the Federal Government.”

THE UNITED STATES NEEDS TO BECOME THE ‘LEADER’ IN AI, GOP LAWMAKER ARGUES

President Donald Trump sits for an interview with Fox News. (Fox News / Hannity)

The White House also issued an AI-focused concentrated fact sheet Tuesday, establishing federal “Agency Chief AI Officer roles” who “are tasked with promoting agency-wide AI innovation and the adoption of lower-risk AI, mitigating risks for higher-impact AI, and advising on agency AI investments and spending.”

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The senior White House official clarified to Fox News Digital that despite the AI implementation, federal employees will still be able to self-review and assess personal records at their discretion.

Preston Mizell is a writer with Fox News Digital covering breaking news. Story tips can be sent to Preston.Mizell@fox.com and on X @MizellPreston

President Donald Trump’s border czar, Tom Homan, received a warm welcome from the Republican legislature in Arizona – while Democrats walked out of the special joint session in protest within seconds of his 30-minute speech.

“I think this is just another reason why it just shows again that the Democrats are totally out of touch with Americans,” Arizona Senate President Warren Peterson told Fox News Digital in an interview. “We expanded our majorities because immigration is a top issue, especially here in Arizona as a border state. I guess what’s surprising is that they keep doubling down on issues that they’re completely losing on.”

State Democrats walked out while holding pieces of paper with the names of people deported under the Trump administration’s mass deportation program, as Homan appeared unfazed, saying, “I love it. Thank you for making my day. I love haters, they make my day every day.” 

UP TO 1M MIGRANTS WHO USED BIDEN’S CBP ONE APP ORDERED TO DEPORT BY TRUMP ADMIN

Border czar Tom Homan was boycotted by Democrat lawmakers at the Arizona legislature within seconds of speaking about the administration’s mass deportation program. (Getty Images)

“We won because of the Hispanic male voting Republican, and the Democrats are completely out with their base on this issue,” Petersen said. “So, they do have some people that are extreme, that are opposed to border security. But what I am finding is that the majority of Hispanics want Arizona to be safe and they want the borders to be secure.”

Instead of attending Homan’s speech, several Democrats gathered outside the state Capitol to rally and denounce the administration’s immigration policies, with Rep. Anna Abeytia reportedly in tears as she spoke about the growing “rise of anti-immigration sentiment” in her community.

State Sen. Catherine Miranda, a Democrat, called it “disturbing” that Republicans would give “a platform to someone who has caused so much harm in our community.” 

Miranda claimed Homan is not just responsible for deporting people, but for “kidnappings, disappearances and the deportation of individuals for reasons as unjust as having tattoos, protesting or being in the wrong place at the wrong time.”

“Right now, they might only be going after the right to due process for immigrants, but soon they will be coming for you or your loved one’s due rights processes as well,” Miranda said in a statement.

State Rep. Betty Villegas, another Democrat, called ICE “cruel” under Homan’s leadership, “even by Trump-era standards.”

COLORADO DEMS ARE ‘POKING THE BEAR’ BY DEFYING TRUMP’S ORDERS, GOP LAWMAKER WARNS

ICE agents arrested seven illegal immigrants during a workforce operation raid. (U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement)

Homan was invited by Arizona Senate and House Republicans to talk about the status of illegal border crossings and missing migrant children. At the end of his speech, he signaled his support for state measure Proposition 314, the Secure the Border Act, passed by Arizona voters in November. 

“Congratulations on your immigration legislation. I know it’s being litigated, but you will win,” Homan said.

Homan also said the administration is “not going to apologize” for deporting illegal immigrants through the Alien Enemies Act.

“They came here to unsettle this country, to cause harm,” he said. “We will not apologize for sending two planeloads of terrorists out of this country.”

MEXICAN MAN CONVICTED OF KILLING HIS CHILD TO BE DEPORTED AFTER ENCOUNTERING ICE OFFICERS IN MONTANA JAIL

Migrants walk along the U.S.-Mexico border fence in Lukeville, Arizona, on Tuesday, Dec. 12, 2023. (Eric Thayer/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

The Trump administration initiated deportation flights targeting alleged members of the Venezuelan criminal gang Tren de Aragua, invoking the Alien Enemies Act of 1798. Despite a federal judge’s order to ground the planes, the administration went ahead, arguing the flights were already en route and beyond U.S. airspace when the injunction was issued.

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The Supreme Court later ruled that the administration could continue deportations under the Alien Enemies Act but said deportees must be notified and allowed to challenge their removal. 

Former Vice President Kamala Harris engaged in a “dark-arts operation” to undercut other potential running mates for former President Joe Biden in the 2020 election, according to a new book. 

The book, “Fight: Inside the Wildest Battle for the White House,” published April 1 by William Morrow and Company, claims that Harris spread unfavorable information about other possible vice presidential picks for Biden. 

“In 2020, when she beat out a crowded field to join Biden’s ticket, Harris advisers ran a dark-arts operation to undermine the competition, circulating negative information on her rivals,” write political journalists Jonathan Allen of NBC News and Amie Parnes of The Hill.

TENSIONS ALLEGEDLY RISE BETWEEN BIDEN WHITE HOUSE AND HARRIS CAMPAIGN: ‘TOO MUCH IN THEIR FEELINGS’

Vice President Kamala Harris speaks during a campaign rally, Nov. 2, 2024, at the PNC Music Pavilion in Charlotte, North Carolina. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)

Specifically, the book singled out Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass, former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Susan Rice, former Democratic Georgia gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams, and Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer. 

“‘We stabbed Karen Bass a little bit. We stabbed Susan Rice a little bit. We stabbed Stacey Abrams a little bit,” one adviser said of the effort four years earlier. ‘We stabbed Gretchen Whitmer.’”

The book did not delve into the specifics Harris took to undercut her opponents as they all vied for the vice presidential nomination. 

But any steps Harris took to undermine those women didn’t damage their relationships enough to stop them from backing her in the 2024 election. 

Bass endorsed Harris, and both Whitmer and Abrams appeared at Harris campaign events in 2024. Additionally, Rice also defended Harris in July after Rep. Ted Burchett, R-Tenn., described Harris as a “DEI hire.” Rice described the comment as “incredibly insulting,” in an interview with CNN. 

KAMALA HARRIS WAS ‘VERY ANNOYED’ WITH OBAMA AS SHE SOUGHT HIS ENDORSEMENT, BOOK REVEALS

Michigan Gov. Whitmer supported Harris in the 2024 election, and appeared at a campaign event with the vice president. (Getty Images)

Harris, who previously served as a senator from California, has signed with CAA Speakers, which represents high-profile celebrities. CAA did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Fox News Digital.

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“Fight” chronicles how President Donald Trump secured the White House for a second term. Allen and Parnes conducted interviews with more than 150 political insiders for the book, according to the book’s description.

The book also details how former President Barack Obama remained wary of supporting Harris in the 2024 election to replace Biden, amid concerns about his mental fitness. Likewise, the book shares that Obama doubted Biden’s political abilities as the race dragged on. 

Sen. Adam Schiff fired back late Tuesday after President Donald Trump mocked the California Democrat during a black-tie Republican dinner in Washington, D.C.

“The President of the United States seems oddly focused on me,” Schiff posted after footage of Trump’s jokes made the rounds.

“Shouldn’t he be focused on the economy he’s crashing?” he wrote.

During the event hosted by the National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) – the House Republicans’ campaign arm – Trump wove in a few insults about the Boston-born Angeleno’s appearance into a verbal indictment of his role in the 2016 Russia collusion investigation.

KASH PATEL ENRAGES ADAM SCHIFF IN CLINTONIAN BATTLE OVER THE WORD ‘WE’

“Adam ‘Schifty’ Schiff – can you believe this guy?” Trump said. “He’s got the smallest neck I’ve ever seen – and the biggest head: We call him Watermelon-Head.” Trump went on to ruminate about how Schiff’s “big fat face” could “stand on a neck” the size of the president’s finger. 

“It’s the weirdest thing – it’s a mystery; no one can understand it.”

Trump went on to call Schiff “one of the most dishonest human beings I’ve ever seen,” and wondered aloud how people like Schiff could be able to run for office.

FLASHBACK: SCHIFF, WHO REPEATEDLY CLAIMED EVIDENCE OF RUSSIAN COLLUSION, DENOUNCES DURHAM REPORT AS ‘FLAWED’

President Donald Trump, left, and Sen. Adam Schiff. (Getty)

“He was in charge of the fake witch hunt – with ‘Russia, Russia, Russia’ – it was a made-up story,” he said, playing off the “Brady Bunch” line “Marsha, Marsha, Marsha.”

In 2020, Schiff managed the House’s impeachment probe into Trump, leading off his opening remarks that January by comparing former Treasury Secretary Alexander Hamilton’s 1792 warning to then-President George Washington about future American leaders who would rise to the executive “despotic in [their] ordinary demeanor.”

“When a man unprincipled in private life desperate in his fortune, bold in his temper, possessed of considerable talents, having the advantage of military habits… known to have scoffed in private at the principles of liberty—when such a man is seen to mount the hobby horse of popularity—to join in the cry of danger to liberty—to take every opportunity of embarrassing the General Government & bringing it under suspicion—to flatter and fall in with all the nonsense of the zealots of the day—It may justly be suspected that his object is to throw things into confusion that he may ‘ride the storm and direct the whirlwind,” Schiff said at the time.

Sen. Adam Schiff. (Getty)

Since then, he and Trump have often traded criticisms, with Trump also referring to him in the past as a “structural marvel,” with an appearance like a “finger on a basketball.”

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In October, Trump compared Schiff to the “enemy from within” and called him a “sleazebag” on FOX Business before lamenting that the Democrat would likely defeat former MLB star Steve Garvey for California’s open U.S. Senate seat.

For his part, Schiff has also clapped back at Republicans for their criticisms – responding in July to a report that now-Vice President JD Vance had lamented campaign name-calling after Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz called the GOP ticket “weird.”

“Shifty Schiff, pencil neck and watermelon head, would like a word, JD,” Schiff responded at the time on Facebook.

Fox News Digital reached out to Schiff for additional comment but did not immediately hear back.

Business tycoon Elon Musk floated the idea that Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., is somehow profiting off of government fraud, though the lawmaker has pushed back.

“Chuck, I’m starting to think you’re getting a piece of the action with the government fraud. But no, that couldn’t possibly be the reason, could it?” Musk posted early Tuesday morning.

Musk, who has been spearheading the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) effort to expose waste, fraud and abuse in the federal government, made the comment in response to a Monday post in which Schumer accused DOGE of “sabotaging” Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid — the post reflected sentiments Schumer had conveyed during a Senate speech.

ELON MUSK DUNKS ON SEN CHUCK SCHUMER, DECLARING ‘HYSTERICAL REACTIONS’ DEMONSTRATE DOGE’S IMPORTANCE

Elon Musk, left, and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y. (BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI/AFP via Getty Images | Kayla Bartkowski/Getty Images)

Schumer fired back in response to Musk’s suggestion he could be benefiting from government fraud.

“Another Elon lie. He wants you to think anyone who dares to stand up to him is committing fraud, meanwhile he’s taking tens of billions from the government,” Schumer declared in a post on Tuesday.

MUSK SPARS WITH WHITE HOUSE TRADE ADVISOR PETER NAVARRO: ‘DUMBER THAN A SACK OF BRICKS’

Early Tuesday morning, Musk fired off a response to a post in which Schumer suggested that Musk is slashing Social Security benefits.

“Make no mistake: What Elon Musk is doing at Social Security is cutting benefits,” Schumer said in a post on Monday, which echoed his speech. 

“The intern running Schumer’s social media account is lying,” Musk shot back Tuesday on X.

SCHUMER SLAMS UNITED AUTO WORKERS UNION FOR PRAISING THE TRUMP TARIFFS HE SAYS ‘HURT EVERYBODY’

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During the speech, Schumer claimed that “Elon Musk is cutting Social Security benefits.”

“When offices close down, when websites crash, when phone lines shut off, that’s no different than cutting benefits,” Schumer said.

FIRST ON FOX: Venezuelan opposition leader and U.S.-recognized President-elect Edmundo Gonzalez Urrutia promised to offer “reparations” to Laken Riley’s family and other Americans affected by the crimes of street gang Tren de Aragua. 

In a letter to Riley’s family, González and fellow opposition leader María Corina Machado wrote, “Laken’s life, full of potential and promise, was tragically cut short by an individual who should have never been allowed to cross your border.”

Secretary of State Marco Rubio spoke with González and Machado in January, reaffirming that Urrutia is the “legitimate president” of Venezuela. The Biden administration had previously referred to Urrutia as the “president-elect” before leaving office.

In their letter, the opposition leaders called Riley’s murder a “direct consequence of Nicolás Maduro’s regime, which has fostered an environment where criminal organizations like Tren de Aragua can flourish with impunity.”

FEDERAL JUDGE POSTPONES DHS’S ATTEMPT TO END TEMPORARY PROTECTED STATUS FOR VENEZUELANS

Venezuela’s opposition leader Edmundo Gonzalez Urrutia wrote a letter to the family of Laken Riley. (ERNESTO BENAVIDES/AFP via Getty Images)

Urrutia vowed that, if officially installed as president, he would “hold accountable all those responsible for the devastation they have wrought, both within Venezuela and internationally.”

“We intend to establish a comprehensive framework for reparations, both for the countless Venezuelans harmed by this narco-state and also for victims abroad, including your family.”

Gonzales also noted that the “vast majority of Venezuelans who have sought safety in the United States are committed to upholding the law and contributing to your nation’s economy and society.”

“They long for the day they can return home to reunite with their families and work toward a free and prosperous Venezuela. We look forward to welcoming them back,” they added. 

“Please accept this letter as a message of our deepest condolence and a solemn promise: Laken will never be forgotten. She will be remembered as an innocent victim of tyranny and a powerful catalyst for the change we are determined to bring about.” 

WH MAY REVERSE DECISION TO KILL BIDEN-MADURO OIL DEAL, APPLY TARIFFS INSTEAD TO AVOID HURTING US FIRMS

Supporters cheer during a campaign rally of Venezuela’s opposition candidate Edmundo Gonzalez and opposition leader Maria Corina Machado ahead of the July elections. (REUTERS/Isaac Urrutia)

The Trump administration was allowed to move forward with a plan to invoke the Alien Enemies Act, a wartime immigration law dating back to 1798, to immediately deport Venezuelan nationals believed to be affiliated with Tren de Aragua. Legal battles over the deportation effort intensified when a federal district court temporarily blocked the policy – prompting Trump allies to call for the impeachment of Judge James Boasberg.

According to United Nations estimates, roughly 7.7 million Venezuelans have fled the country over the past decade, escaping economic collapse marked by hyperinflation, which peaked at 130,000% in 2018, and widespread poverty.

Since taking power in 2013, Nicolás Maduro’s regime has been plagued by allegations of corruption, authoritarianism, money laundering and drug trafficking. While many nations recognized González’s election victory in July, Maduro has refused to relinquish power.

READ THE LETTER BELOW. APP USERS: CLICK HERE

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Maduro has issued an arrest warrant for González, who fled into exile in Spain last September.

Riley, a 22-year-old nursing student, was killed while jogging on the University of Georgia campus in February 2024. The suspect, José Ibarra – a Venezuelan national who entered the U.S. illegally – was arrested and charged with her murder. The killing sparked nationwide outrage and led to new immigration legislation that Trump signed into law shortly after taking office this year.

President Donald Trump on Tuesday blasted some Republican members of Congress for trying to limit his presidential powers on instituting tariffs so that Congress could retake control.

Trump delivered a speech to the National Republican Congressional Committee, calling out “rebel” Republicans while speaking about his trade policies.

“And then I see some rebel Republican, some guy who wants to grandstand, say, ‘I think that Congress should take over negotiations.’ Let me tell you, you don’t negotiate like I negotiate,” Trump said.

Rep. Don Bacon, R-Neb., is leading a bipartisan bill to block Trump from instituting tariffs and retake that power for Congress. Bacon told reporters earlier on Tuesday that he didn’t like “the thought of waging a trade war with the entire world.” 

TRUMP TRADE REP TAKES BIPARTISAN FIRE OVER TARIFFS AS DEM LAUNCHES BID TO HALT THEM

President Donald Trump speaks as he attends the National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) dinner at the National Building Museum in Washington, D.C., on Tuesday. (Reuters/Nathan Howard)

In the Senate, a bipartisan group led by Sens. Rand Paul, R-Ky., and Ron Wyden, D-Ore., is also introducing a resolution to repeal Trump’s global tariffs. 

Sens. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, and Maria Cantwell, D-Wash., have already introduced a bipartisan bill that would require the president to notify Congress about any new tariffs within 48 hours of imposition and require Congress to approve new tariffs within 60 days or allow them to expire.

Trump chewed out the Republicans over the proposed bills.

Trump blasted some Republican members of Congress for trying to block his powers on instituting tariffs. (Reuters/Nathan Howard)

“I just saw it today, a couple of your congressmen,” Trump said before launching into an impression of a lawmaker. “‘Sir, I think we should get involved in the negotiation of the tariffs.’ Oh, that’s what I need, I need some guy telling me how to negotiate.”

WHITE HOUSE WARNS AGAINST TARIFF RETALIATION, SAYS TRUMP ‘HAS SPINE OF STEEL AND HE WILL NOT BREAK’

Trump said that should Congress take over tariff negotiations, China would be “the happiest people in the world.”

“They wouldn’t be paying 104%,” Trump said of China. “I’d say they’d be paying no percent — we’d be paying them 104%.”

Trump said that even the talk around Capitol Hill about limiting his tariff powers “hurts your negotiation,” adding, “And then the fake news wants to build it up, and it has no chance anyway.”

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“We have to remain united as I defend workers from unfair trade,” Trump said.

Vice President JD Vance spoke out against Sen. Mitch McConnell’s, R-Ky., vote against confirming Elbridge Colby to serve as undersecretary of defense for policy.

“Mitch’s vote today—like so much of the last few years of his career—is one of the great acts of political pettiness I’ve ever seen,” Vance declared in a post on X.

Colby was confirmed in a 54-45 vote on Tuesday. McConnell was the only Senate Republican to vote against confirmation, while three Democrats voted in Colby’s favor.

ELBRIDGE COLBY CONFIRMED TO TOP PENTAGON POLICY POST AFTER HESITATION FROM GOP HAWKS

Left: Vice President JD Vance speaks at the U.S. military’s Pituffik Space Base on March 28, 2025 in Pituffik, Greenland; Right: Sen. Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., walks through the U.S. Capitol on April 8, 2025 in Washington, D.C.  (Left: Jim Watson – Pool / Getty Images; Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)

President Donald Trump announced Colby as his pick for the Pentagon post when he was the president-elect.

“Elbridge Colby’s long public record suggests a willingness to discount the complexity of the challenges facing America, the critical value of our allies and partners, and the urgent need to invest in hard power to preserve American primacy,” McConnell said in a statement.

“The prioritization that Mr. Colby argues is fresh, new, and urgently needed is, in fact, a return to an Obama-era conception of a la carte geostrategy. Abandoning Ukraine and Europe and downplaying the Middle East to prioritize the Indo-Pacific is not a clever geopolitical chess move. It is geostrategic self-harm that emboldens our adversaries and drives wedges between America and our allies for them to exploit,” the senator asserted.

VANCE VISITS CAPITOL HILL TO URGE SENATORS TO CONFIRM ELBRIDGE COLBY FOR PENTAGON NO. 3 POST

Elbridge Colby, President Donald Trump’s nominee to be under secretary of defense for policy, prepares for his confirmation hearing before the Senate Armed Services Committee in the Dirksen Senate Office Building on Capitol Hill on March 4, 2025 in Washington, D.C.  ( Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

McConnell has voted against multiple Trump nominees this year.

“Mr. Colby’s confirmation leaves open the door for the less-polished standard-bearers of restraint and retrenchment at the Pentagon to do irreparable damage to the system of alliances and partnerships which serve as force multipliers to U.S. leadership. It encourages isolationist perversions of peace through strength to continue apace at the highest levels of Administration policymaking,” McConnell said.

DISPUTED DOD NOMINEE IS ‘BEST PERSON’ TO IMPLEMENT TRUMP AND HEGSETH AGENDA, KEY CONSERVATIVE GROUP SAYS

Vice President JD Vance greets his friend and President Donald Trump’s nominee to be undersecretary of defense for policy. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

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Vance spoke out in support of Colby last month at a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing on Colby’s nomination.

Biden administration State Department officials held private talks with Beijing counterparts about the Chinese spy balloon that intercepted U.S. airspace in 2023, and discussed the implications the balloon’s publicity would have on the relationship between the U.S. and China, according to Trump administration officials. 

U.S. officials identified the spy balloon infiltrating U.S. airspace on Jan. 28, 2023, and an Air Force fighter jet shot down the Chinese spy balloon off the coast of South Carolina Feb. 4, 2023, two days after the Pentagon issued a statement on the matter.  

Biden officials held discussions with Beijing Feb. 1, 2023, about the balloon, and discussed the impact disclosing the balloon to the public could have on the relationship with China, internal State Department documents show, two Trump administration officials told Fox News Digital.  

CHINESE SPY BALLOON EQUIPPED WITH TECH FROM AT LEAST 5 US FIRMS: REPORT 

The suspected Chinese spy balloon drifts to the ocean after being shot down off the coast in Surfside Beach, South Carolina, U.S. Feb. 4, 2023.  (Randall Hill/Reuters)

An internal State Department readout of the talks between Blinken and a top Chinese diplomat said Blinken stated that if the presence of the balloon were revealed publicly, it could have “profound implications for our relationship” with China, particularly amid efforts to stabilize the bilateral relationship with Beijing, two Trump administration officials familiar with the documents told Fox News Digital. 

The readout said that the incident could also have complicated Blinken’s travel plans to China in early February 2023, if not quickly resolved. Blinken ultimately postponed the trip until June 2023. 

A former Biden administration official told Fox News Digital that the State Department summoned senior Chinese diplomat Zhu Haiquan Feb. 1, 2023, so that the U.S. could notify China to remove the balloon, and issue a warning that the U.S. could take action to eliminate the balloon. 

“Former Secretary Blinken advocated strongly to tell the American people about China’s rogue balloon, which is exactly what happened,” a spokesperson for the former secretary of state said in a Tuesday statement to Fox News Digital. “He has a long history of being tough on China while actually delivering results.”

Likewise, another senior State Department official also held private talks on Feb. 1, 2023, with Chinese counterparts. A readout from that discussion says that the official claimed the longer it took to mitigate the issue would only increase the likelihood that news of the balloon would become public, posing greater challenges managing the situation, the Trump administration officials said. 

WHATEVER HAPPENED TO … THE INVESTIGATIONS INTO THE CHINESE SPY BALLOON

American forces recover debris from a shot-down Chinese surveillance balloon in South Carolina.  (US Fleet Forces)

Ultimately, the Pentagon issued a statement Feb. 2, 2023, claiming that the U.S. government had detected a “high-altitude surveillance balloon.” 

While then-White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre told reporters that Biden received a briefing on the balloon on Jan. 31, 2023, she did not provide details regarding why his administration didn’t issue a statement on the matter until Feb. 2, 2023. 

Secretary of State Marco Rubio, then a U.S. senator from Florida, repeatedly criticized the Biden administration for how it handled disclosing information to the public about the balloon — and how long it took the administration to shoot it down. 

Biden’s failure to address the situation sooner was the “beginning of dereliction of duty,” Rubio said during an appearance on CNN with Jake Tapper. 

“Why didn’t the president go on television?” Rubio told Tapper. “He has the ability to convene the country in cameras and basically explain what we’re dealing with here.” 

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U.S. Air Force pilot looks down at the suspected Chinese surveillance balloon as it hovered over the Central Continental, United States February 3, 2023. Recovery efforts began shortly after the balloon was downed.  (US Department of Defense / Handout/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)

On Feb. 4, 2023, an Air Force F-22 Raptor fighter jet from Virginia’s Langley Air Force Base shot down the balloon off the coast of South Carolina with an AIM-9X Sidewinder missile. 

At the time, the Pentagon said that while the balloon was not a military or physical threat, its presence in U.S. airspace did violate U.S. sovereignty. The Pentagon also shut down China’s initial claims that the balloon was a weather balloon blown off course and labeled such statements false. 

“This was a PRC surveillance balloon,” a senior defense official told reporters at the time. “This surveillance balloon purposely traversed the United States and Canada, and we are confident it was seeking to monitor sensitive military sites.”

The Pentagon also said after shooting down the balloon that similar balloons from China transited continental U.S. airspace in at least three instances during Trump’s first administration. 

Sailors assigned to Assault Craft Unit 4 prepare material recovered off the coast of Myrtle Beach, S.C., in the Atlantic Ocean from the shooting down of a Chinese high-altitude balloon, for transport to the FBI, at Joint Expeditionary Base Little Creek in Virginia Beach, Va., on Feb. 10, 2023.  (Ryan Seelbach/U.S. Navy via AP)

Additionally, Biden “gave his authorization to take down the Chinese surveillance balloon as soon as the mission could be accomplished without undue risk to us civilians under the balloon’s path,” the senior defense official said, noting that there was concern debris could harm civilians. 

The Pentagon later said in June 2023 that it did not believe that the balloon gathered information as it traveled across the U.S.

Blinken is now a speaker with CAA Speakers, which represents high-profile celebrities.

A spokesperson for Biden did not immediately provide comment to Fox News Digital. 

FIRST ON FOX: Schools around the country could soon be able to opt into the “Congressional Fitness Challenge,” including legendary boxer Mike Tyson’s own academy.

House Concurrent Resolution 20, introduced by Rep. Abe Hamadeh, R-Ariz., would create a voluntary program that would allow students who successfully complete the challenge to receive a signed certificate from the speaker of the House, president pro tempore of the Senate, and the student’s senator and congressman.

“Listen, because we need to be in shape, man,” Tyson told Fox News Digital in an interview.

“We can’t physically get into an army because we’re out of shape. And that’s embarrassing. So it comes across we’re the most heavy, heaviest people in the planet. We’re the fattest people in world, Americans,” he continued. Specifically, Tyson noted 77% of Americans aged 17 to 24 would need a wavier in order to serve in the military, according to the Department of Defense.

“It’s just mental. It’s just a shame, but it can be helped,” Tyson said of the issue.

‘ENOUGH IS ENOUGH’: HOUSE REPUBLICAN TOUTS GOP EFFORT TO PASS BILL CRACKING DOWN ON ‘ROGUE’ JUDGES

Rep. Abe Hamadeh, R-Ariz., introduced House Concurrent Resolution 20, which would create a voluntary program that would allow students who successfully complete the challenge to receive a signed certificate from the speaker of the House, president pro tempore of the Senate, and the student’s senator and congressman. (Abe Hamadeh)

It would apply to students in K-12 public and private schools, groups that provide the testing to home schoolers, and members of Congress who hold a “community-based event” for the challenge, the current text states.

According to the resolution, the benchmarks will be inspired by “historical” lines for the Presidential Physical Fitness Test, which was popularized under the Eisenhower, Kennedy and Johnson administrations in the 1960s.

“So we got to make sure that they’re physically fit. Now is the perfect time to be instituting this once again, because we understand President Trump through his Cabinet picks and through what his campaign promises have been with the America First agenda, where he wants to make America healthy again,” Hamadeh said.

The test itself would entail a mile-long run or walk, pull-ups or a flexed arm hang, curl-ups, sit-ups, shuttle runs, and sit-and-reach. Those who perform well would be divided into gold, silver, and bronze levels. The gold level would be in the top 85th percentile, silver would cover the top 75th percentile, and bronze would be in the top 50th percentile, the legislation states.

Tyson added that actions like this give him hope for the future.

“I think this is going to improve, and people are going to get better, and people want to get healthier. I just believe that,” he said.

MIKE TYSON TALKS SUPPORT FOR FELLOW ‘FIGHTER’ PRESIDENT TRUMP

Schools around the country could soon be able to opt into the “Congressional Fitness Challenge,” including legendary boxer Mike Tyson’s own academy. (Tayfun Coskun/Anadolu via Getty Images)

Tyson is at the helm of Tyson Transformational Technologies Academy, a private school in Arizona that is part of the My Life My Power International Preparatory Academy, which has campuses in Florida and West Virginia as well. The academies plan on taking up the challenge.

“I believe in this country and I believe we’re going to get well and we’re going to be in good condition. And we’re gonna be able to go into the army and defend our country,” Tyson said.

Other athletes have come out in support of the resolution, including former Green Bay Packers quarterback Brett Favre and former Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver Antonio Brown.

NFL LEGEND BRETT FAVRE MAKES PREDICTION ON POSSIBILITY OF INTERNATIONAL SUPER BOWL

Other athletes have come out in support of the resolution, including former Green Bay Packers quarterback Brett Favre and former Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver Antonio Brown. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

“Love this! So important for our Youth,” Brown posted to X. 

“As a former pro athlete, one of us knows first-hand the doors that physical fitness can open— confidence, leadership, the drive to succeed. As a Member of Congress and former US Army Captain and Intelligence Officer, the other sees the broader picture – healthier kids mean a healthier, more prosperous America,” Favre and Hamadeh co-wrote in an op-ed for OutKick in March. 

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The resolution is co-sponsored by Republican Reps. Tony Wied and Martin Stutzman.

“Right now, people are really focused on what foods have been going into their bodies and how come the obesity rate has tripled,” Hamadeh said. “And it’s a real problem in terms of a national security perspective. So the government has an invested interest in this. but also the American people do it themselves as well.”

EXCLUSIVE: Legislation will be introduced Tuesday to expand the list of crimes that would require a migrant to be taken into custody.

The “Safeguarding American Property Act” would add arson, vandalism and trespassing to the crimes that would require those in the country illegally to be placed into federal custody.

“Property rights are a fundamental American value,” Rep. Troy Downing, R-Mont., said in a statement to Fox News Digital.

TRUMP SIGNS LAKEN RILEY ACT INTO LAW AS FIRST LEGISLATIVE VICTORY IN NEW ADMINISTRATION

Immigrants wait to be processed by the U.S. Border Patrol after crossing the border from Mexico, on Aug. 6, 2022, in Yuma, Arizona. (Qian Weizhong/VCG via Getty Images)

“Those who disregard our laws by committing acts of vandalism or trespassing on private property, especially those who broke our laws crossing our borders, must not be allowed to remain. This bill builds on the good work of the Laken Riley Act and takes another step toward reversing Biden’s border crisis. I appreciate the support of the bill’s cosponsors, and I look forward to getting this legislation passed into law to keep our communities safe,” he continued.

Specifically, it would amend the Immigration and Nationality Act. The Montana Republican’s legislation is meant to help rural communities, which could have limited law enforcement resources to protect property. 

Many properties along the southern border faced damage as a result of the high volume of migrants that came across throughout the Biden administration, which triggered the state of Texas to create the Landowner Compensation Program to help repay those in agricultural communities.

LAKEN RILEY ACT UNLEASHES FEDS TO HUNT VENEZUELAN GANG MEMBERS IN FLORIDA: LAWMAKER

Cattle graze at a ranch in Blanchard, Oklahoma, on Dec. 2, 2021. (Nick Oxford/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

“Illegal aliens crossing the Texas-Mexico border at Joe Biden’s invitation leave behind a trail of destruction that harms Texas agricultural land,” Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton said in May 2024. “This program will provide needed relief to Texans whose property is damaged by foreign aliens waved into the country by the federal government. I am glad to help the farmers and ranchers on our borderlands who bear the costs of Biden’s destructive policies.”

Downing’s proposal builds off the Laken Riley Act, which was signed into law by President Donald Trump this winter. The act garnered some bipartisan support, as it made theft, similar criminal charges or assaulting an officer triggers for federal authorities to detain illegal immigrants for potential deportation.

LAKEN RILEY MURDER: JUDGE SENTENCES COLLEGE STUDENT KILLER AFTER FAMILY ADDRESSES ‘MONSTER’ IN COURT

Laken Riley was found dead near a lake on the University of Georgia campus on Feb. 22, 2024. (Laken Riley/Facebook)

The law is named after a late 22-year-old nursing student who was killed by illegal immigrant Jose Ibarra while on a jog on the University of Georgia campus.

Ibarra had been arrested in the past but was not taken into ICE custody, and he’s now facing life behind bars.

“This horrific atrocity should never have been allowed to happen,” Trump said at the time, as it was the first bill signed in his second term. “And as president, I’m fighting every single day to ensure that such a tragedy never happens again.”

Fox News’ Diana Stacy contributed to this report. 

What’s most striking about President Trump’s tariff war is that he’s being pressured by some of his closest advisers and supporters to end the crusade that has upended the world economy.

It’s not just media conservatives like Ben Shapiro, Rich Lowry, Ben Domenech and the Wall Street Journal editorial page. It’s longtime wealthy donors like Ken Langone, co-founder of Home Depot, who denounced the tariffs and cited the 46 percent levy on Vietnam as an example of “bull****,” telling the Financial Times that “right now what everybody’s terrified of is a trade war.” 

Another billionaire, hedge fund investor Bill Ackman said, “The consequences for our country and the millions of citizens who have supported the president…are going to be severely negative.” Jamie Dimon, CEO of JP Morgan, said “whether or not the menu of tariffs causes a recession remains in question, but it will slow down growth.”

WHITE HOUSE SAYS BEIJING MISSED DEADLINE TO LIFT RETALIATORY TARIFFS, US TO HIKE CHINA TARIFFS TO 104%

The most famous defector is Elon Musk, who, according to the Washington Post, privately urged Trump not to go ahead with the sky-high tariffs. Now he’s gone public: 

“Ideally, both Europe and the United States should move to a zero-tariff situation, effectively creating a free trade zone between Europe and North America.” Even the world’s richest man and chief budget cutter couldn’t convince the boss, and he is off the reservation.  

Musk is also taking shots at the strongest tariff booster in the White House, Peter Navarro, calling him “truly a moron,” “dumber than a sack of bricks,” and, in a particularly juvenile jab, “Peter Navarrdo.”

In addition to sounding off against President Trump’s tariffs, Elon Musk has thrown a few rhetorical punches at the staunchly pro-tariff Peter Navarro. (AP)

The aforementioned Navarro, you’ll be happy to hear, went on Fox and guaranteed there will be no recession. So you can all resume regular breathing.

It doesn’t help Trump that after an early rebound rally yesterday ran out of gas, the Dow dropped another 320 points, after a dramatic decline that has decimated people’s stock holdings and 401-Ks. The Constitution, by the way, says Congress is in charge of tariffs.

Almost no one is safe, including Bibi Netanyahu, who came to the White House on Monday in a ring-kissing gesture, has imposed no levies on the U.S., but still got hit with a 17 percent tariff. Against Israel, our chief ally in the Middle East and the region’s only democracy?

And the escalation with China, our biggest adversary, was predictable. Trump had hit Beijing with a 54 percent tariff (including an earlier 20 percent levy). Beijing hit back, as promised, with a 34 percent tariff on U.S. goods, battling what it calls blackmail. 

Wouldn’t we have done the exact same thing if the roles were reversed?

But Trump acted as though he was personally insulted, and is now vowing an additional 50 percent tariff on the Chinese. This is how trade wars spiral out of control. And China has cut off negotiations on the sale of TikTok to an American owner.   

Media blunders also fueled the market’s volatility. On Monday, Bloomberg – that is, someone identified as Walter Bloomberg, not connected to any news outlet – posted this: “HASSETT: TRUMP IS CONSIDERING A 90-DAY PAUSE IN TARIFFS FOR ALL COUNTRIES EXCEPT CHINA.”

Media blunders – including one claiming Kevin Hassett, director of the White House economic council, said Trump was considering a 90-day tariff pause – only exacerbated market volatility. (Andrew Harrer/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

This goosed the stock market. Except that Kevin Hassett, director of the White House economic council, never said that. 

But CNBC morning anchor Carl Quintanilla told viewers, “I think we can go with this headline. Apparently, Hassett’s been saying that Trump will consider a 90-day pause in tariffs for all countries except for China.”

Reuters then ran with this headline: “Wall Street reverses course after Hassett’s comments on tariff pause.”

What Hassett actually said, when asked on Fox if Trump would consider a 90-day tariff pause: “I think the president is gonna decide what the president is gonna decide.” Not exactly the same thing. But the market shot up.

The wire service later admitted the mistake: “Reuters has withdrawn the incorrect report and regrets its error.”

TRUMP, EYEING 3RD TERM, KEEPS ATTACKING ELITE INSTITUTIONS – AND MANY ARE CAVING

A CNBC spokeswoman said later, “As we were chasing the news of the market moves in real-time, we aired unconfirmed information in a banner. Our reporters quickly made a correction on air.”

Meghan McCain posted a broader swipe against the media: “There are so many hypocritical talking heads on TV saying they don’t care about losing money or being in financial pain for a while. Most of you are married to finance bros, come from rich families or have huge media contracts. You have a cushion…

“One of my best friends buys her groceries for her family based on what coupons each store has. I assure you a possible recession or huge rise in prices everywhere will be a different experience for her family than you.”

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

Is there an exit ramp? White House officials say 70 countries have been in touch, seeking a negotiated settlement. Some, of course, were doing that in the runup to “Liberation Day.” The president could reach many of the settlements, declare victory and credit his tariff war.

At the moment, he shows no inclination to do that, having pushed the tariff idea since the 1980s and repeatedly promising such an approach during last year’s campaign. 

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I wrote a book on Wall Street and the media, talked to many top traders as well as business anchors and commentators. I understand the hair-trigger nature of the culture. Everyone expected that Donald Trump would impose hefty tariffs, just not at this stratospheric level.

Wall Street rebounded into the green as multiple foreign countries came to the tariff negotiating table with President Donald Trump – but that was not enough to assuage some lawmakers’ critiques of the “alla prima” tariff actions, as one Republican put it.

U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer testified Tuesday the U.S. has long-suffered from “China Shock” – the surge in manufacturing outputs from the Communist nation since the turn of the century – and that the U.S. had to do something substantive but strategic about the 5 million manufacturing jobs lost and 90,000 factories closed since the middle of the Clinton administration.

“President Biden left us with a $1.2 trillion trade deficit-in-goods – the largest of any country in the history of the world,” Greer said.

“During COVID, we were unable to procure semiconductors to build our cars or materials for pharmaceuticals and personal protective equipment. During World War II, we built nearly 9,000 ships. Last year, the United States built only three ocean-going vessels,” he said.

STOCKS JUMP AS TRUMP TARIFF NEGOTIATIONS BEGIN

U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer testifies before the Senate Finance Committee in the Dirksen Senate Office Building. (Getty Images)

Greer said the U.S. historically was on the surplus side of agriculture trade but that, as of late, purportedly friendly countries like Australia have essentially rejected beef and pork exports, while America has not reciprocated with their livestock.

That became a sore subject during a particularly heated exchange between Greer and Sen. Mark Warner, D-Va., as the lawmaker claimed Trump unnecessarily “clobbered” Canberra with a 10% tariff.

“We have a free trade agreement with Australia,” he said, questioning Trump’s “fancy Greek formula” for determining tariffs.

Democrats and media figures previously mocked Trump for tariffing uninhabited Australian islands in the Indian Ocean – which Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick suggested over the weekend was to close any potential loophole to circumvent tariffs on such countries’ mainland.

Greer argued the “lowest rate available” was imposed on Australia, leading Warner to ask again “why did they get whacked in the first place.”

“Despite the [free trade] agreement, they ban our beef, they banned our pork, they’re getting ready to impose measures on our digital companies – It’s incredible,” Greer said.

OPINION: TRUMP RISKS IT ALL ON TARIFFS

Warner later acknowledged markets had rebounded a “blip” by midday but said a Wall Street contact equated it to a “good day in hospice.”

Meanwhile, during his opening remarks, Senate Finance Committee ranking member Ron Wyden said he has drafted a bipartisan resolution to “end the latest crop of global tariffs that are clobbering American families and small businesses.”

“Members on both sides of the aisle ought to know that this is a call to action and Congress must step in to rein this president on trade,” Wyden said.

He called the tariffs “aimless” and “chaotic” and said it showed Congress ceded the executive branch too much constitutional power.

In his testimony, Greer called trade imbalance an indicator of both an economic and national security emergency.

He also suggested America’s allies have been foisting unfair policies on the American consumer – including the European Union.

“[They] can sell us all the shellfish they want, but the EU bans shellfish from 48 states. The result is a trade deficit in shellfish with the EU,” he said.

CHINA REFUSES TO BACK DOWN ON TARIFFS

“We only charge a 2.5% tariff on ethanol, but Brazil charges us an 18% tariff. The result? We have a large trade deficit in ethanol with Brazil.”

“Our average tariff on agricultural goods is 5%, but India’s average tariff is 39%. You understand the trend here.”

In response to some of Wyden’s concerns, Greer said Vietnam has already negotiated a lower tariff on U.S. cherries and apples exported from Oregon and the Northwest.

“This is exactly the right direction that we want to go in,” Greer said.

Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., struck a more middling tone on tariffs, saying that he has never been a “great fan of free trade,” and cited his work ending NAFTA and opposing normalized relations with China.

Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee Chairman Bernie Sanders in the Dirksen Senate Office Building on Capitol Hill on April 20, 2023 in Washington. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

He also cited the outsourcing of manufacturing to Mexico, saying it killed hundreds of thousands of American jobs and has many Mexican workers “living in cardboard boxes.”

“That is the type of trade policy which I detest. But I want to move to an area, to talk about the legal basis of what President Trump has done,” he said.

Sanders said he lives 50 miles from Canada and does not see the same empirical data on illegal immigration and fentanyl smuggling that Trump accused Ottawa of failing to act on – and incorporated into his tariff calculations.

On the Republican side, Chairman Michael Crapo, R-Idaho, was largely deferential to Trump and Greer, while some other Republicans voiced concerns.

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Sen. Charles Grassley of Iowa questioned whether Congress “delegated too much authority to the president” but said he supports the president so long as his mission is to “turn tariffs into trade deals to reduce tariff and non-tariff barriers” versus any plot to “feed the U.S. Treasury through them.”

“I made very clear throughout my public service that I’m a free and fair trader. The Constitution gives Congress the authority to regulate interstate and foreign commerce. I believe that Congress delegated too much authority to the president in the Trade Expansion Act of 1962 and Trade Act of 1974,” he said.

Additionally, Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C., pressed Greer on who should be considered the person that will take ultimately responsibility for either praise or accountability depending on the outcome of the tariff actions.

“Whose throat do I have to choke,” he said, underlining that the phrase was borrowed from a management consulting mantra.

House Republicans are divided over how to proceed on a massive piece of legislation aimed at advancing President Donald Trump’s agenda as a possible vote on the measure looms Wednesday afternoon.

Fiscal hawks are rebelling against GOP leaders over plans to pass the Senate’s version of a sweeping framework that sets the stage for a Trump policy overhaul on the border, energy, defense and taxes.

Their main concern has been the difference between the Senate and House’s required spending cuts, which conservatives want to offset the cost of the new policies and as an attempt to reduce the national deficit. The Senate’s plan calls for a minimum of $4 billion in cuts, while the House’s floor is much higher at $1.5 trillion.

“The problem is, I think a lot of people don’t trust the Senate and what their intentions are, and that they’ll mislead the president and that we won’t get done what we need to get done,” Rep. Rich McCormick, R-Ga., told reporters on Tuesday. “I’m a ‘no’ until we figure out how to get enough votes to pass it.”

SENATE GOP PUSHES TRUMP BUDGET FRAMEWORK THROUGH AFTER MARATHON VOTE SERIES

Republicans aren’t necessarily on the same page just yet about budget reconciliation. (Reuters)

McCormick said there were as many as 40 GOP lawmakers who were undecided or opposed to the measure.

A meeting with a select group of holdouts at the White House on Tuesday appeared to budge a few people, but many conservatives signaled they were largely unmoved.

“I wouldn’t put it on the floor,” Rep. Chip Roy, R-Texas, told reporters after the White House meeting. “I’ve got a bill in front of me, and it’s a budget, and that budget, in my opinion, will increase the deficit, and I didn’t come here to do that.”

Senate GOP leaders praised the bill as a victory for Trump’s agenda when it passed the upper chamber in the early hours of Saturday morning.

Trump urged all House Republicans to support it in a Truth Social post on Monday evening.

Meanwhile, House Republican leaders like Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., have appealed to conservatives by arguing that passing the Senate version does not in any way impede the House from moving ahead with its steeper cuts.

The House passed its framework in late February.

Rep. Chip Roy, R-Texas, who was at the White House meeting on Tuesday afternoon, is still skeptical about the Senate plan. (Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)

Congressional Republicans are working on a massive piece of legislation that Trump has dubbed “one big, beautiful bill” to advance his agenda on border security, defense, energy and taxes.

Such a measure is largely only possible via the budget reconciliation process. Traditionally used when one party controls all three branches of government, reconciliation lowers the Senate’s threshold for passage of certain fiscal measures from 60 votes to 51. As a result, it has been used to pass broad policy changes in one or two massive pieces of legislation.

Passing frameworks in the House and Senate, which largely only include numbers indicating increases or decreases in funding, allows each chamber’s committees to then craft policy in line with those numbers under their specific jurisdictions. 

MEET THE TRUMP-PICKED LAWMAKERS GIVING SPEAKER JOHNSON A FULL HOUSE GOP CONFERENCE

Members of the conservative House Freedom Caucus have pushed for Johnson to allow the House GOP to simply begin crafting its bill without passing the Senate version, though both chambers will need to eventually pass identical bills to send to Trump’s desk.

“Trump wants to reduce the interest rates. Trump wants to lower the deficits. The only way to accomplish those is to reduce spending. And $4 billion is not – that’s … anemic. That is really a joke,” Rep. Eric Burlison, R-Mo., told reporters.

He said “there’s no way” the legislation would pass the House this week.

The measure will likely go through the House Rules Committee, which acts as the final gatekeeper for most legislation getting a chamber-wide vote.

Rep. Eric Burlison, R-Mo., who was not at the White House meeting, is also skeptical of the Senate plan. (Bill Clark/CQ-Roll Call via Getty Images)

However, tentative plans for a late-afternoon House Rules Committee meeting on the framework, which would have set up a Wednesday vote, were scrapped by early evening on Tuesday.

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The legislation could still get a House-wide vote late on Wednesday if the committee meets in the morning.

As for the House speaker, he was optimistic returning from the White House meeting on Tuesday afternoon.

“Great meeting. The president was very helpful and engaged, and we had a lot of members whose questions were answered,” Johnson told reporters. “I think we’ll be moving forward this week.”

Fox News’ Ryan Schmelz and Aishah Hasnie contributed to this report.

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton announced on Fox News’ The Ingraham Angle Tuesday night that he will run for the U.S. Senate. 

The announcement comes as Paxton no longer faces the cloud of a federal corruption investigation that loomed over him as he rose up the ranks in the Republican Party. 

The announcement by Paxton, a close ally of President Donald Trump and a MAGA firebrand, comes two weeks after Republican Sen. John Cornyn officially launched his re-election campaign as he bids for a fifth six-year term serving Texas in the Senate.

“It’s time for a change in Texas,” Paxton told Fox News’ Laura Ingraham, before acknowledging Sen. Ted Cruz, Texas’ other Republican senator. “It’s time that we have another great senator that will actually stand up and fight for Republican values, fight for the values of the people of Texas and also support Donald Trump in the areas that he’s focused on in a very significant way.”

EXTRAMARITAL AFFAIR DETAILS SURFACE IN HISTORIC IMPEACHMENT TRIAL OF TEXAS AG KEN PAXTON

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton speaks at a news conference in Dallas, June 22, 2017. On Tuesday, Paxton announced that he will run for the U.S. Senate.  (AP Photo/Tony Gutierrez, File)

On Sunday, Cornyn said he was looking forward to “the competition” amid rumors of Paxton’s candidacy. 

“Ken Paxton is a fraud,” Cornyn’s campaign charged in a social media post after Paxton’s announcement. “He talks tough on crime and then lets crooked progressive Lina Hidalgo off the hook. He says his impeachment trial was a sham but he didn’t contest the facts in legal filings which will cost the state millions.”

TEXAS AG PAXTON ACQUITTED ON ALL IMPEACHMENT CHARGES: ‘THE TRUTH PREVAILED’

“He says he’s anti-woke but he funnels millions of taxpayer dollars to lawyers who celebrate DEI,” the post continued. “And Ken claims to be a man of faith but uses fake Uber accounts to meet his girlfriend and deceive his family.”

Cornyn’s campaign noted that the incumbent senator has voted with Trump more than 95% of current senators. Trump and Texas need a “battle-tested conservative” who knows how to protect his agenda in the Senate and won’t be outsmarted by Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and the Democrats, the campaign said. 

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton and U.S. Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas.  (Fox News Digital)

The announcement from Paxton puts the gears in motion for what may be an extremely expensive and bruising GOP primary battle, pitting the remaining establishment and business factions of the Republican Party versus the ascendant MAGA wing.

“It sets the table for the most expensive primary in Texas. It will be a brutal battle,” veteran Republican strategist Dave Carney told Fox News. Carney, the longtime top political adviser to Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, noted that the announcement by Paxton also “opens up the attorney general’s race. There will probably be a very competitive primary for that and we’re going to have a lot of musical chairs down ballot.”

Matt Mackowiak, a veteran Republican strategist and communications consultant based in Texas and Washington, D.C., said “this is going to be the most expensive, nastiest, most aggressive, most personal U.S. Senate primary in Texas history.”

“You have two candidates who are going to raise significant funds, who are in significant positions, who do not like each and have not liked each other, whose teams do not like each other and the stakes could not be higher,” he emphasized.

WILL DEMOCRATS ONCE AGAIN CHASE THE ‘GHOST OF A BLUE TEXAS’ IN NEXT YEAR’S SENATE RACE?

Paxton’s announcement was not a huge surprise, as he has long claimed Cornyn does not represent the conservative values of Texans and has accused the senator of not being an ally of Trump.

He has also regularly labeled Cornyn a “RINO,” a “Republican in name only” and an insult MAGA and “America First” Republicans have regularly used to criticize more mainstream or establishment members of the GOP.

Paxton, who has been Texas’ top prosecutor since 2015, has regularly criticized his GOP rival, pointing to Cornyn’s position on a border wall and opposing Trump during the 2016 election. 

Cornyn also previously came under criticism from conservatives after he helped push a bipartisan gun control bill after the 2022 mass shooting at a Uvalde, Texas elementary school that killed 19 students and two teachers. 

Republican Attorney General Ken Paxton at his primary night celebration, on March 1, 2022, in McKinney, Texas. (Fox News – Paul Steinhauser)

Paxton, for a couple of years, had flirted with a primary challenge against the 73-year-old Cornyn, a former state senator, former Texas Supreme Court justice, and former state attorney general, who first won election to the U.S. Senate in 2002.

FACING POSSIBLE PRIMARY CHALLNGE FROM A TRUMP ALLY, LONGTIME TEXAS SENATOR ANNOUNCES RE-ELECTION

“I can’t think of a single thing he’s accomplished for our state or even for the country,” Paxton said in a September 2023 interview on the Fox News Channel. “Somebody needs to step up and run against this guy,” adding, “everything’s on the table for me.”

Fast-forward to earlier this year, and Paxton, at a county GOP meeting in Texas, told supporters that one of the things “we need to do, and I might play a role in this, is replace John Cornyn in the U.S. Senate.”

And in a Fox News Digital interview in January, Paxton acknowledged that he was “looking potentially at the U.S. Senate.”

Attorney General Ken Paxton speaks at an event outside the Texas Statehouse, on Feb. 28, 2022 in Austin. (Fox News – Paul Steinhauser)

Cornyn, during the early stages of the 2024 Republican presidential nomination race, had said he would prefer that the GOP take a new direction, which angered Trump. But the senator endorsed Trump in late January of last year, after the then-former president won both the Iowa caucuses and the New Hampshire primary, the first two contests in the Republican presidential nomination calendar.

Since Trump returned to the White House three months ago, Cornyn has been supportive of the president’s Cabinet nominees and agenda.

ONLY ON FOX NEWS: SENATE REPUBLICAN CAMPAIGN CHAIR REVEALS HOW MANY SEATS HE’S AIMING FOR IN 2026

And in the senator’s campaign launch video last month, the announcer highlighted that during Trump’s first term in office, “Texas Sen. John Cornyn had his back.”

As he gears up for what will most certainly be his roughest re-election of his decades-long career, Cornyn has the backing of the top Republican in the Senate, Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D.

And Republican sources confirm to Fox News that Thune, as well as National Republican Senatorial Committee chair Sen. Tim Scott, have personally asked Trump to back Cornyn.

Sen. John Cornyn speaks during a Senate Finance Committee hearing, on Capitol Hill, March 14, 2025. (AP Photo/Ben Curtis)

The president’s grip on the GOP is stronger than ever and any endorsement Trump may make in the emerging Republican Senate primary in Texas would be extremely influential.

Making Cornyn’s path to renomination even more difficult is a possible Senate bid by Rep. Wesley Hunt, who represents a Houston area district.

The third-term 43-year-old Texas Republican and rising MAGA star has made his case to the president’s political team, sources confirm to Fox News. Hunt’s argument is that he’s the only person who can win both a GOP primary and a general election, a source familiar with the discussions confirmed to Fox News.

An outside group supportive of Hunt is currently spending seven figures to run ads across the Lone Star State to increase the lawmaker’s name ID.

CORNYN’S RE-ELECTION CAMPAIGN SPARKS QUESTIONS ON BOTH PARTY FLANKS AS DEMS CHASE ‘THE GHOST OF A BLUE TEXAS’

GOP Rep. Wesley Hunt of Texas headlines the opening of the first Trump campaign office in Pennsylvania, on June 4, 2024, in Philadelphia. (Fox News – Paul Steinhauser)

Some Republican operatives and strategists worry that a primary battle in Texas could cost up to $100 million, potentially diverting much-needed resources from other races.

While Paxton is very popular with the conservative base of the party, it’s not clear at this point what Trump will do regarding the race. And political strategists note that toppling Cornyn in a GOP primary will likely be a very expensive proposition, and it’s not clear if Paxton can raise the money needed for victory.

“This says two things. One, Paxton sees an opportunity. And two, him getting in this early shows he needs the maximum time possible to try to raise money,” Mackowiak said. He added that Paxton “has received some negative feedback on fundraising.”

Paxton grabbed national attention in 2020 for filing the unsuccessful Texas vs. Pennsylvania case in the Supreme Court that tried to overturn former President Joe Biden’s razor-thin win over Trump in the Keystone State, and for speaking at the Trump rally near the White House that immediately preceded the deadly Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol by right-wing extremists aiming to disrupt congressional certification of Biden’s Electoral College victory.

During Biden’s four years in the White House, Paxton took the administration to court numerous times.

While Paxton, who’s in his third four-year term as Texas attorney general, has long been a legal warrior in the MAGA movement, he also has plenty of personal political baggage.

Paxton was indicted on securities fraud charges soon after taking office in 2015, and more recently came under investigation by the FBI over bribery and corruption allegations from former top staffers. And in 2022, he survived a bruising primary amid his many legal difficulties.

In 2023, Paxton was impeached by the Texas House of Representatives, but he was later acquitted of all charges by the state Senate. 

The charges in the long-running federal corruption probe were dropped during the final weeks of the Biden administration. 

The attorney general also faced an investigation by the Texas State Bar for his efforts to overturn the 2020 election results.

While Paxton for years has denied any wrongdoing and has survived his legal fights, he would likely continue to face tough optics and plenty of incoming fire over his past predicaments during a Senate showdown.

Colin Allred, last year’s Democratic Senate nominee in Texas, speaks at a campaign rally in Houston on Oct. 25. (Reuters/Marco Bello)

The eventual winner of next year’s GOP primary will be considered the favorite in the general election against whomever the Democrats nominate.

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Former Rep. Colin Allred has said he’ll decide by this summer if he’ll mount a 2026 Senate campaign.

Allred, a former Baylor University football player and NFL linebacker who later represented Texas’ 32nd Congressional District (which includes parts of Dallas and surrounding suburbs), was last year’s Democratic challenger in the race against Cruz.

President Donald Trump touted the record-breaking fundraising numbers garnered by the National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) during its annual president’s dinner Tuesday evening. 

“You know, we’ve done very well in this room before,” Trump told attendees at the annual dinner Tuesday night. “But right now we broke every record. I just heard from Mike Johnson, he said, ‘We broke every record, sir.’ There is over $35 million. That’s not bad, for an evening.”

The fundraising numbers achieved during Tuesday night’s dinner rival what the NRCC has garnered across entire quarters. In July, the group highlighted a “record-shattering” fundraising haul for the second quarter of 2024, which was only $2 million more than what the NRCC was able to garner Tuesday night. 

TRUMP’S NAME CONTINUES TO BE FUNDRAISING BEHEMOTH FOR BOTH POLITICAL PARTIES: ‘CENTER OF THE UNIVERSE’

Estimates, in advance of the Tuesday night dinner, suggested it might only bring as much as $10 million for the NRCC, a source familiar told Fox News Digital.

Republicans and Democrats elicit President Donald Trump’s name in fundraising messages.   (Getty)

“Next year we’ll do 45 or 50 million, right?” Trump asked the crowd, garnering cheers. “A lot of people, you broke your record attendance, and you broke your money record, and that’s a great tribute to the Republicans and the party and everything it stands for.”

Tuesday’s event had “giving levels” as high as $310,100, with the lowest costing seat being $6,000 per person, or $10,000 per couple.

“We have some unbelievable supporters of our House Republican majority with us, as you know, and with the help of everyone in this room the next year’s Republican Party is going to defy history. We’re going to really defy it, and we already are.”

TRUMP, HEGSETH REVEAL WHOPPING FIGURE THEY WANT FOR THE NEXT PENTAGON BUDGET

Former US president and Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump leaves Trump Tower to attend his trial for allegedly covering up hush money payments linked to extramarital affairs in New York, on April 22, 2024. (CHARLY TRIBALLEAU/AFP via Getty Images)

To illustrate this point, Trump pointed to the “fortune” America is making with his new tariff plan. 

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“Two billion dollars a day – do you believe it? I was told $2 billion a day,” Trump told the crowd. “You know I get hit by the press about tariffs, we’re making $2 billion – billion – this isn’t $35 million, that’s peanuts. $2 billion a day.”

“In addition, we have a lot of countries coming to see us – they want to make a deal. And we’re doing – we’re doing things that nobody’s ever even thought about.”