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A moderate Democrat is expressing cautious optimism at President Donald Trump’s stance on tariffs in a stark departure from most of his party’s infuriated reaction.

Rep. Jared Golden, D-Maine, pointed out in a lengthy statement that he himself proposed a 10% blanket tariff on U.S. imports earlier this year and said he was happy Trump’s baseline policy was the same.

“What I can say now is I’m pleased the president is building his tariff agenda on the foundation of a universal 10% tariff like the one I proposed in the BUILT USA Act. This ring fence around the American economy is a good start to erasing our unsustainable trade deficits,” Golden said.

“I’m eager to work with the president to fix the broken ‘free trade’ system that made multinational corporations rich but ruined manufacturing communities across the country. But tariffs must be paired with policies that prioritize American families’ prosperity.”

TREASURY SECRETARY BESSENT TELLS COUNTRIES NOT TO RETALIATE AFTER SWEEPING ‘LIBERATION DAY’ TARIFFS

He noted, however, that Trump “introduced a number of new tariff policies” alongside the 10% universal tax, and that he would need time to review the policies in detail before weighing in on them further.

Golden also said tariffs “must be paired with policies that prioritize American families’ prosperity.”

“We need to make sure that the new approach benefits working people – that means supporting unions, the trades and apprenticeship programs, cutting regulations that hold back production, unleashing American energy and using tariff revenue to support domestic manufacturers that create good-paying jobs for Americans,” he said.

“Tariffs are a first step in rewriting a rigged trade system, but they cannot be the last one.”

While it’s far from a full embrace of Trump’s tariff plan, Golden’s comments are still more optimistic than those of his fellow Democratic lawmakers.

FRANCE ASKS US TO BE ‘COOPERATIVE’ INSTEAD OF ‘CONFRONTATIONAL’ FOLLOWING TRUMP’S ‘LIBERATION DAY’ TARIFFS

“I have always said that when used strategically, tariffs are a critical tool,” Rep. Debbie Dingell, D-Mich., told Axios. “However, the key word is ‘strategically.’ I’m concerned about the chaotic and immediate implementation of these wide-reaching tariffs.”

Meanwhile, Rep. Gregory Meeks, D-N.Y., the top Democrat on the House Foreign Affairs Committee, pledged to force a vote targeting the new national emergency Trump is using to justify the 10% blanket tariff.

“I’ll soon introduce a privileged resolution to force a vote on ending the made up national emergency Trump is using to justify these taxes. Republicans can’t keep ducking this – it’s time they show whether they support the economic pain Trump is inflicting on their constituents,” Meeks said in a statement.

Golden has been known to break from his party on several key occasions. 

Maine’s 2nd Congressional District, which he has represented since January 2019, was won by Trump by roughly 10% in 2024.

Fox News Digital reached out to Golden’s office for further comment but did not hear back by press time.

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Trump’s plan involves a 10% blanket tariff on all imports into the U.S., as well as tariffs of up to 50% on both adversaries and allies.

It also introduces some level of reciprocal tariffs on countries that tax U.S. exports, though in most cases, the U.S. rate is lower than the foreign country’s.

“April 2, 2025, will forever be remembered as the day American industry was reborn. The day America’s destiny was reclaimed. And the day that we began to make America wealthy again,” Trump said in remarks announcing his plan Wednesday.

EXCLUSIVE: The only Cuban-born member of Congress is calling on the Trump administration to “starve the regime” in Havana by cutting off some of its last economic lifelines connected to the U.S.

Rep. Carlos Gimenez, R-Fla., who recently returned to the island for the first time in 64 years as part of a congressional delegation to Guantanamo Bay, said that despite the decadeslong economic embargo and travel restrictions, there are still many ways Americans can incidentally aid the regime.

On Thursday, Gimenez will write to Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, requesting the “cessation of all travel” to and from the communist island, as well as a ban on remittances from U.S. citizens to relatives or friends there—except for specific funds approved by Secretary of State Marco Rubio.

Gimenez told Fox News Digital that dictator Miguel Diaz-Canel’s government ends up with a substantive cut of remittances, and any way to further turn the economic screws to the regime is something the U.S. government should look into.

CUBAN-BORN REP RECOUNTS EMOTIONAL RETURN TO CUBA FOR FIRST TIME IN 64 YEARS

“The regime in Cuba is a listed state sponsor of terrorism, harbors criminal fugitives of American justice, and prevents a clear threat to the safety of the United States and our citizens,” Gimenez will write to Bessent.

“As you know, this issue is one of great importance to the Cuban-American community and to millions of Americans who hold freedom, democracy, and human rights as our guiding principles.”

He praised President Donald Trump for reversing the Obama-era “disastrous appeasement” policies that allowed some daylight between Havana and Washington.

Former President Barack Obama also notably visited with then-dictator Raul Castro, resulting in the famous photo of Castro awkwardly holding up Obama’s arm and smiling during a public appearance.

“We applaud and welcome the administration’s most recent policies to ban vessels arriving from communist Cuba at U.S. ports, but more must be done. I urge you, Mr. Secretary, to take swift and decisive action in halting all travel to and from Communist Cuba and eliminating the flow of remittances to the island,” Gimenez will tell Bessent.

VENEZUELAN OPPO LEADER JOINS CUBAN-BORN GOP LAWMAKER TO LAUD TRUMP POLICIES

“The murderous dictatorship in Cuba is on life support. The regime cannot even keep the lights on, and America must stand with the Cuban people to topple this pathetic gang once and for all…. The time is now.”

“There’s plenty of travel happening between Cuba and the United States,” Gimenez said when asked how strong the current restrictions are.

“All you’ve got to do is go to MIA and you’ll see all kinds of flights from the United States to Cuba and back — that needs to stop.”

A partial travel ban is not enough, as the regime will always find loopholes to exploit, he said – and that if there were to be exceptions to what he is asking, Rubio would be the right official to determine their viability.

He said that large amounts of money in the form of remittances flow particularly out of Miami-Dade to Cuba every year.

“So these are efforts to basically starve the regime. A lot of times when flights are going from Miami to Cuba, a lot of those people are taking goods and products, et cetera,” he said. “The regime can’t even provide electricity to their own people. It needs to fail on its own weight; America can’t provide any more oxygen to that regime.”

Gimenez added there may be some short-term pain in Miami and elsewhere, but that there is the “long-term gain” of potentially accelerating the collapse of the Castro/Diaz-Canel government, which has been otherwise cut off from U.S. trade since 1959.

When asked why Cuba appears to be treated differently than other official state sponsors of terror like Iran and Afghanistan, Gimenez said the 90-mile proximity to the U.S. and the large numbers of Cuban refugee families living in Florida and beyond do create a different dynamic.

“Many family members in Miami and in the United States try to help their [Cuba-resident] family and friends as much as possible, and they want to visit every once in a while.”

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“But I’ve never gone – [until] a month ago in Guantanamo. I’ve never gone back to visit any family. I’ve never sent one penny to Cuba for anything during my time in the United States; over 60 years.”

“There are different circumstances for different people, but now it’s time to say enough.”

The Senate on Wednesday approved a resolution opposing President Donald Trump’s tariffs on imports from Canada hours after his event championing “Liberation Day.”

Four Republicans – Sens. Rand Paul and Mitch McConnell, of Kentucky; Susan Collins, of Maine; and Lisa Murkowski, of Alaska, sided with Democrats in voting for a resolution that would repeal the emergency declaration that permitted Trump to levy taxes on Canada by citing deadly fentanyl flowing across the border. The measure, introduced by Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Va., passed the upper chamber of Congress by a 51-48 vote. 

The resolution likely won’t survive the GOP-controlled House, but its passage was a small victory for Democrats looking for their best attack line before the midterms. 

WHAT IS TRUMP’S NEW LIBERATION DAY AND WHAT TO EXPECT APRIL 2?

Paul defended his decision to cross party lines in a speech on the Senate floor in which he quoted American revolutionary James Otis in saying, “Taxation without representation is tyranny.” The senator said it was that longstanding principle that originated from the Magna Carta that sparked the American revolution and was incorporated into the Constitution by the Founding Fathers.

“And yet today, we are here before the Senate because one person in our country wishes to raise taxes,” Paul said. “Well, this is contrary to everything our country was founded upon. One person is not allowed to raise tax. The Constitution forbids it.” 

Paul said the Founding Fathers “so feared the power of taxation that they gave it only to Congress.” 

“I stand against the idea of skipping democracy, of skipping the constitutional republic, of rejecting our founding principles, not because I have any animus towards the president,” Paul said. “I do this because I love my country, and I want to see the division of power enabled such that it protects us all from the amalgamation of power into one person such that it can be abused. Another name for emergency rule is martial law.” 

“This is a tax, plain and simple,” he said of Trump’s Canada tariffs. “Taxes should not be enacted by one person. So I will vote today to end the emergency. I will vote today to try to reclaim the power of taxation, the power of the tariff, to where the Constitution designated it should properly be, and that is in Congress.” 

Trump called out Paul, McConnell, Collins and Murkowski in a post to Truth Social early Wednesday, saying that the four would hopefully “get on the Republican bandwagon, for a change, and fight the Democrats wild and flagrant push to not penalize Canada for the sale, into our Country, of large amounts of Fentanyl, by Tariffing the value of this horrible and deadly drug in order to make it more costly to distribute and buy.” 

THESE ARE THE ‘DIRTY 15’ COUNTRIES TRUMP MIGHT TARGET WITH LIBERATION DAY TARIFFS

“They are playing with the lives of the American people, and right into the hands of the Radical Left Democrats and Drug Cartels,” Trump wrote. “The Senate Bill is just a ploy of the Dems to show and expose the weakness of certain Republicans, namely these four, in that it is not going anywhere because the House will never approve it and I, as your President, will never sign it. Why are they allowing Fentanyl to pour into our Country unchecked, and without penalty. What is wrong with them, other than suffering from Trump Derangement Syndrome, commonly known as TDS?” 

The president said the four Republicans have been “extremely difficult to deal with” and “unbelievably disloyal” to Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D.

The Democratic Party has been battling an identity crisis since November’s election resulted in Republicans controlling both chambers of Congress and the White House. 

As Democrats strategized on how to emphasize Republican internal divisions, Kaine used one of the few ways the minority party could force a floor vote. Congress has the authority to overturn emergency resolutions. 

The measure opposing Trump’s tariffs on Canada passed hours after the president hosted a “Make America Wealthy Again” event in which he announced an executive order instituting “reciprocal tariffs” on various countries.

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“In the face of unrelenting economic warfare, the United States can no longer continue with a policy of unilateral economic surrender. We cannot pay the deficits of Canada, Mexico, and so many other countries. We used to do it. We can’t do it anymore. We take care of countries all over the world,” Trump said. “But we have to take care of our people, and we’re going to take care of our people first.”

“Today we’re standing up for the American worker, and we are finally putting America first,” he added. 

A federal judge will hear from government lawyers Thursday to determine whether the Trump administration defied court orders when it deported hundreds of migrants to El Salvador last month.

The hearing marks the latest clash between President Donald Trump and U.S. District Judge James Boasberg, who Trump has publicly attacked as an “activist” judge and called for his impeachment. At issue is whether the administration knowingly violated Boasberg’s emergency order, which temporarily blocked the deportations and required that any individuals removed under a centuries-old immigration law be “immediately” returned to U.S. soil. Flights carrying migrants, including those deported under the 1798 Alien Enemies Act, still landed in El Salvador that same night.

“Oopsie…” El Salvador’s president, Nayib Bukele, wrote on X after they landed in his country. “Too late.”

Boasberg, who issued the emergency orders at the center of the controversial and complex case, has said he intends to find out whether the administration knowingly violated them, and who, if anyone, should be held accountable.

‘WOEFULLY INSUFFICIENT’: US JUDGE REAMS TRUMP ADMIN FOR DAYS-LATE DEPORTATION INFO

“The government isn’t being forthcoming,” Boasberg told Justice Department attorney Drew Ensign during an earlier hearing. “But I will get to the bottom of whether they complied with my order, who violated it and what the consequences will be.”

At Thursday’s hearing, Boasberg is expected to revisit many of the same questions he raised earlier, including how many planes left the U.S. carrying individuals deported “solely on the basis” of the Alien Enemies Act. Other questions include how many individuals were on each plane and what time and from which location each plane took off. 

Although the administration has already appealed the case twice – first to the D.C. Circuit, which upheld Boasberg’s order, and then to the Supreme Court – the judge is still pressing for answers. Thursday’s hearing is part of his effort to determine whether the government defied the court when it carried out the deportation flights.

APPEALS COURT BLOCKS TRUMP ADMIN’S DEPORTATION FLIGHTS IN ALIEN ENEMIES ACT IMMIGRATION SUIT

The Alien Enemies Act, passed in 1798, has been used only three times in American history – during the War of 1812 and the two world wars – making its modern application by the Trump administration a rare legal maneuver.

Trump officials have argued invoking the law is necessary to expel dangerous individuals, including alleged members of the Tren de Aragua gang, who were flown to El Salvador under the administration’s new deportation policy.

Meanwhile, plaintiffs have pushed back on the administration’s use of the 1798 law, calling its use during peacetime “unprecedented.”

In a brief filed to the Supreme Court earlier this week, plaintiffs argued the law permits immediate deportations only in cases of a “declared war” or an “invasion or predatory incursion” by a foreign nation, conditions they say don’t apply to the Venezuelan nationals targeted for removal.

Government lawyers have declined to disclose key details about the deportation flights, including whether any planes departed after Boasberg’s order, citing national security protections.

Boasberg had previously warned the administration of consequences if it violated his order and criticized earlier filings as “woefully insufficient,” noting the government also refused his offer to submit information under seal.

APPEALS COURT BLOCKS TRUMP ADMIN’S DEPORTATION FLIGHTS IN ALIEN ENEMIES ACT IMMIGRATION SUIT

The case has become a political flash point over the balance of power between the courts and the executive branch. Trump allies dismiss much of the judiciary’s involvement as the work of “activist” judges seeking to rein in the president and overstep their constitutional role.

Trump’s demand for Boasberg to be impeached prompted a rare public rebuke from Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts.

“For more than two centuries, it has been established that impeachment is not an appropriate response to disagreement concerning a judicial decision,” Roberts said in a statement. “The normal appellate review process exists for that purpose.”

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The White House has kept up its criticism of the lower courts, with press secretary Karoline Leavitt last month accusing judges of overstepping their bounds and infringing on the president’s authority.

“The administration will move quickly to pursue Supreme Court review, defend the Constitution, and protect the American people,” Leavitt said in a statement.

Federal and state authorities are operating within the bounds of the U.S. Constitution when they deny federal prisoners access to taxpayer-funded sex change procedures for transgender inmates, Indiana Attorney General Todd Rokita told a U.S. district court this week.

Rokita filed a 24-state amicus brief in support of President Donald Trump’s legal effort to uphold his executive order, “Defending Women from Gender Ideology Extremism and Restoring Biological Truth to the Federal Government,” which prohibits the use of federal taxpayer dollars for transgender procedures for inmates.

“If we’re to lose this case, the floodgates will open, and you will see an unending amount of these cases being filed. Costs are going to go up for the state of Indiana to accommodate these unneeded, unnecessary and dangerous surgeries,” Rokita told Fox News Digital in an interview Wednesday.

TRANS INMATE IN PRISON FOR KILLING BABY MUST GET GENDER SURGERY AT ‘EARLIEST OPPORTUNITY’: JUDGE

Rokita is also helping his state fight a two-year legal battle brought on by the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) on behalf of a transgender inmate — convicted of killing his 11-month-old baby — to receive a sex-change surgery.

The federal judge in the case, Clinton appointee Richard Young, repeatedly ruled that the inmate must be given gender surgery at the “earliest opportunity,” despite Indiana’s law barring the state Department of Corrections from using taxpayer funds to cover sex reassignment surgeries for inmates. Rokita has filed an appeal of that decision.

“It’s absolutely imperative that not only President Trump’s executive orders stand, but that Indiana wins this case,” Rokita said. 

ACLU SUES INDIANA OVER DENIAL OF SEX REASSIGNMENT SURGERY FOR INMATE WHO STRANGLED 11-MONTH-OLD TO DEATH

Both Rokita and the Trump administration’s cases deal with the accusation that prohibiting so called “gender-affirming care” for inmates violates the Eighth Amendment’s prohibition of “cruel and unusual punishment.”

In the Trump case, an inmate anonymously identified as Maria Moe, is being represented by advocacy groups GLBTQ Legal Advocates & Defenders and National Center for Lesbian Rights and Lowenstein Sandler LLP. Once Trump signed the executive order, Moe was transferred to a men’s prison facility, and BOP records changed the sex from “female” to “male,” the complaint says.

Several inmates who signed onto the lawsuit as plaintiffs were also transferred to men’s facilities to match their biological sex, but are now being sent back to women’s facilities after U.S. District Judge Royce Lamberth, a Reagan appointee, issued a preliminary injunction blocking the executive order last week.

TRANS INMATE WHO KILLED BABY AND IDENTIFIES AS MUSLIM WOMAN SUES CHAPLAIN FOR ALLEGEDLY NOT ALLOWING HIJAB

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“The politics of some of these courts these days, and playing into this is really a head scratcher,” Rokita said. “But the chaos that would ensue in the prison system, with all these jailhouse lawyers, all of a sudden… the expense of the taxpayer would be astronomical.”

President Donald Trump announced reciprocal tariffs during a highly anticipated “Make America Wealthy Again” event, which he said will restore the American dream and bolster jobs for U.S. workers. 

“American steel workers, auto workers, farmers and skilled craftsmen,” Trump said from the White House Rose Garden on Wednesday afternoon. “We have a lot of them here with us today. They really suffered, gravely. They watched in anguish as foreign leaders have stolen our jobs, foreign cheaters have ransacked our factories, and foreign scavengers have torn apart our once-beautiful American dream. We had an American dream that you don’t hear so much about. You did four years ago, and you are now. But you don’t too often.” 

“Now it’s our turn to prosper, and in so doing, use trillions and trillions of dollars to reduce our taxes and pay down our national debt,” he continued. “And it will all happen very quickly. With today’s action, we are finally going to be able to make America great again, greater than ever before. Jobs and factories will come roaring back into our country, and you see it happening already. We will supercharge our domestic industrial base.”

TRUMP TO DELIVER ‘LIBERATION DAY’ ANNOUNCEMENT FROM ROSE GARDEN FLANKED BY CABINET MEMBERS

Trump was joined by members of his Cabinet for the highly anticipated announcement, which marked the first official presidential event held in the Rose Garden since Trump’s January inauguration. 

“For nations that treat us badly, we will calculate the combined rate of all their tariffs, nonmonetary barriers and other forms of cheating. And because we are being very kind, we will charge them approximately half of what they are and have been charging us. So the tariffs will be not a full reciprocal. I could have done that. Yes. But it would have been tough for a lot of countries,” he said. 

Trump pointed to the European Union, and explained the U.S. will charge its nations a 20% tariff, compared to its 39% tariffs on the U.S. Japan will see 24% tariffs, compared to the 46% the country charges the U.S., while China will be hit with a 34% tariff, compared to the 67% it charges the U.S.

Trump rattled off the countries that will face the reciprocal tariffs, which also included nations such as Chile, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and others. 

Other nations will face 10% baseline tariffs, Trump said. 

Trump also railed against “non-tariff barriers” imposed on the U.S. Non-tariff barriers are understood as trade restrictions that limit international trade through means other than tariffs, such as quotas or regulations. Non-tariff barriers imposed by other countries on the U.S. commonly focus on agricultural goods, such as limits on meats and fresh produce the nation can export abroad. 

“For decades, the United States slashed trade barriers on other countries, while those nations placed massive tariffs on our products and created outrageous non-monetary barriers to decimate our industries,” Trump said. “And in many cases, the non-monetary barriers were worse than the monetary ones. They manipulated their currencies, subsidized their exports, stole our intellectual property, imposed exorbitant taxes to disadvantage our products, adopted unfair rules and technical standards, and created filthy pollution havens.”  

WALL STREET FIRMS SEE RECESSION RISK RISING OVER TARIFFS, TRADE WAR  

Trump said that for more than 100 years, the U.S. was a tariff-backed nation, which provided a surge of wealth. 

“From 1789 to 1913, we were a tariff-backed nation. And the United States was proportionately the wealthiest it has ever been,” he said. “So wealthy, in fact, that in the 1880s they established a commission to decide what they were going to do with the vast sums of money they were collecting. We were collecting so much money so fast, we didn’t know what to do with it. Isn’t that a nice problem to have?” 

Trump added that if nations “complain” about the tariffs, they should set up shop in the U.S.

“And my answer is very simple. If they complain, if you want your tariff rate to be zero, then you build your product right here in America. Because there is no tariff. If you build your plant, your product in America. And we’ve seen companies coming in like we’ve never seen before,” he said. 

Trump and his administration have for weeks touted April 2 as “Liberation Day,” arguing that reciprocal tariffs will even the playing field for the U.S. after decades of unfair trading practices. 

“April 2nd, 2025, will go down as one of the most important days in modern American history,” White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said during Tuesday’s White House press briefing. “Our country has been one of the most open economies in the world, and we have the consumer base, hands down — the best consumer base. But too many foreign countries have their markets closed to our exports. This is fundamentally unfair.” 

Trump and his administration have touted that the tariff plan will encourage business in the U.S. as industries set up shop on American soil to avoid tariffs, opening up job opportunities for U.S. workers. 

TRUMP IS ‘ALWAYS UP FOR A GOOD NEGOTIATION,’ WHITE HOUSE SAYS, AS APRIL 2 ‘LIBERATION DAY’ TARIFFS LOOM

White House trade advisor Peter Navarro previewed during a “Fox News Sunday” interview over the weekend that the new tariffs will generate $600 billion annually for the U.S. — or $6 trillion during the next decade.

Details on Trump’s tariff plan remained hazy until his Wednesday announcement. The Liberation Day tariffs follow other tariffs Trump has leveled against foreign nations, including a 25% tariff on all aluminum and steel imports and a 20% tariff on goods from China that were leveraged to help curb the flow of the deadly synthetic opioid fentanyl from China into the U.S.

Trump’s previously announced 25% tariffs on Mexico and Canada are also slated to take effect Wednesday after Trump granted temporary exemptions that expire on “Liberation Day.” 

EU THREATENS ‘FIRM COUNTER-MEASURES’ AS TRUMP’S TARIFF DEADLINE LOOMS  

Trump also announced a 25% tariff on all imported cars that will take effect Thursday, and another 25% tariff on all car parts will take effect no later than May 3, as well as a 25% tariff on nations that purchase oil from Venezuela that took effect Wednesday. 

The trade announcements have sparked uncertainty about the cost of goods to Americans, which Leavitt brushed aside Tuesday during a press briefing, arguing the tariff plan “is going to work.”

Trump’s tariff advisors are “not going to be wrong,” Leavitt told Fox News’ Peter Doocy on Tuesday when asked about concerns over the plan. “It is going to work. And the president has a brilliant team of advisors who have been studying these issues for decades. And we are focused on restoring the Golden Age of America and making America a manufacturing superpower.”

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Trump also rolled out tariff trade policies during his first administration, including 25% tariffs on steel imports and 10% tariffs on aluminum imports, which the second administration championed as proof tariffs are an “effective tool for achieving economic and strategic objectives,” the White House said in a Wednesday press release ahead of the tariff announcement. 

The Supreme Court appeared divided Wednesday over whether a state can block Medicaid funding for Planned Parenthood clinics, in a technical interpretation over healthcare choices that has become a larger political fight over abortion access.

In nearly two hours of oral arguments, the court’s conservative majority offered measured support for South Carolina’s position.

The specific issue is whether low-income Medicaid patients can sue in order to choose their own qualified healthcare provider. The federal-state program has shared responsibility for funding and administering it, through private healthcare providers.

Federal law bans taxpayer money from going to fund almost all abortions, but Planned Parenthood also provides a range of other medical services with and without Medicaid subsidies, including gynecological care and cancer screenings.

PLANNED PARENTHOOD APOLOGIZES FOR ‘INADVERTENTLY’ GIVING SEXUALLY EXPLICIT COLORING BOOK TO CHILDREN

Blocking the provider from Medicaid networks could effectively defund it. Given the divisive underlying issue of abortion, groups on both sides rallied outside the high court ahead of the arguments. 

South Carolina’s governor in 2018 signed an executive order blocking Medicaid funding for the state’s two Planned Parenthood clinics, saying it amounted to taxpayers subsidizing abortions. 

Courts have put that order on hold, leading to the current case. 

South Carolina now bans abortion around six weeks of pregnancy, or when cardiac activity is detected, with limited exceptions. 

The key provision in the 1965 Medicaid Act guarantees patients a “free choice of provider” that is willing and qualified. 

Much of the court session dealt with whether Planned Parenthood was a “qualified provider” under the Medicaid law, and whether individual patients have an unambiguous “right” to sue to see their provider of choice, under its specific language.

“It seems a little bit odd to think that a problem that motivated Congress to pass this provision was that states were limiting the choices people had,” said Justice Sonia Sotomayor. “It seems hard to understand that states didn’t understand that they had to give individuals the right to choose a provider.”

TRUMP ADMIN WITHHOLDS MILLIONS FROM PLANNED PARENTHOOD FOR CIVIL RIGHTS AND EXECUTIVE ORDER VIOLATIONS: REPORT

“The state has an obligation to ensure that a person… has a right to choose their doctor,” added Justice Elena Kagan. “It’s impossible to even say the thing without using the word ‘right.'”

But some conservative justices questioned how to interpret a provision that does not contain the word “right.”

“One can imagine a statute written as an individual benefit that’s mandatory on the states but isn’t right-creating” for the patient, said Justice Neil Gorsuch. “I mean, that’s an imaginable scenario.” 

Justice Samuel Alito added it was “something that’s quite extraordinary” to give individuals that right to sue under the Constitution’s spending clause. 

The votes of Chief Justice John Roberts and Justice Amy Coney Barrett could be key: They asked tough questions of both sides.

Barrett offered a hypothetical of the right of a patient to go to court over their doctor accused of medical malpractice. “Does it make sense in that circumstance for Congress to want plaintiffs to be able to sue?” she asked.

Planned Parenthood says its future is at stake, noting nearly $700 million — about a third of its overall nationwide revenue — originates from Medicaid reimbursements, and government grants and contracts.

But the group notes just $90,000 in Medicaid funding goes to Planned Parenthood facilities every year in South Carolina, which is comparatively small to the state’s total Medicaid spending.

Julie Edwards, a South Carolina resident, sued along with Planned Parenthood South Atlantic, which operates two clinics in Columbia and Charleston. She has type-1 diabetes and associated medical complications and wanted to choose the Columbia clinic for its range of services, including reproductive care. 

A federal appeals court ruled against the state in 2024, concluding the “free choice of provider” provision “specifies an entitlement given to each Medicaid beneficiary: to choose one’s preferred qualified provider without state interference.”

In a 2023 Supreme Court opinion involving care for nursing home residents, the justices concluded that a different law from Medicaid gives individuals the right to sue. 

A year earlier, the high court overturned its Roe v. Wade precedent of a nationwide right to abortion.

Several states — including Texas, Missouri and Arkansas — have already done what South Carolina wants to do by cutting Medicaid funding to Planned Parenthood, and more could follow if South Carolina prevails. 

“The people in this state do not want their tax money to go to that organization,” said Republican South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster, who attended the oral argument. “I believe the decision of this court will be that the people of South Carolina have the right to make this decision for themselves, for our state. Other states may make a different decision, but not ours. South Carolina stands for the right to life, and we’ll do whatever is necessary to protect that.”

‘A BIRTH IS MORE EXPENSIVE THAN AN ABORTION’: CO DEMS ARGUE FISCAL VIRTUES OF LIBERAL HEALTHCARE BILL

The Trump Justice Department is supporting the state, and abortion rights groups say the issue is about patient choice.

“Our health centers serve an irreplaceable role in the state’s healthcare system, providing birth control and cancer screenings to people who can’t afford those services anywhere else,” said Paige Johnson, interim president and CEO of Planned Parenthood South Atlantic. “Government officials should never block people from getting healthcare or be able to decide which doctor you can or cannot see.” 

One concern raised by healthcare advocates is finding gynecological and family planning services in states with limited facilities. Low-income women often have greater difficulty traveling long distances to get such quality care, a requirement for Medicaid providers.

Justice Brett Kavanaugh said he would make it his mission to bring as much clarity over when patients can go to court, which he called a 45-year “odyssey.”

Much of the public arguments dealt with whether a “right” to sue was a magic word to automatically decide the matter.

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“I’m not allergic to magic words, because magic words — if they represent the principle — will provide the clarity that will avoid the litigation that is a huge waste of resources for states, courts, providers, beneficiaries,” said Kavanaugh.

The case is Medina (SC DOH) v. Planned Parenthood South Atlantic (23-1275). A ruling is likely by early summer.

Trump administration officials tell Fox 85 miles of new border wall is expected to go up this year with plans for hundreds of miles more in 2026 and beyond.

“Our absolute intent is to build as much wall as we need to get the border under control,” says Border Patrol Chief Michael Banks. He recently boasted on X “back in business” with photos of one project along the Rio Grande in Texas.  

Over the past week, Fox has spotted work crews plugging gaps in the existing wall line east of Yuma, Ariz., and in a rugged area of San Diego known locally as “Smuggler’s Gulch.”

CBP RELEASES MARCH BORDER CROSSING NUMBERS, MARKING LOWEST TO DATE EVER RECORDED

“Operational control is what we are trying to achieve,”  Jeffrey Stalnaker, San Diego Border Patrol Sector Chief, said Tuesday. “We’re trying to detect anyone and everything coming across the border illegally. And to have 100 percent situational awareness of what’s going on in our area of responsibility.”

Other planned projects for this year include Jacumba, Calif., where, during the Biden administration, thousands of migrants – many from China – were seen crossing over the rugged landscape to then claim asylum.  Most of whom were then released into the country to await further proceedings. That location and many others along the border are now much quieter than in recent years.

In October, the San Diego sector averaged 451 illegal crossings every day.  In March, under President Trump, that average daily number fell to 39.

“If you’ve got laws that aren’t being enforced, or if you have an administration like the Biden administration that refuses to allow the border patrol to actually enforce the law and provide a consequence, then walls by themselves don’t work,” Banks told Fox.  “We’ve gotten the border under more control than it’s ever been, but the goal is operational control, and we’re not going to quit until we get there.”

MIGRANT BORDER ENCOUNTERS PLUMMET UNDER TRUMP VS. BIDEN’S RECORD HIGHS

On that front, Banks wants to expand the use of large blocking buoys in the middle of the Rio Grande and backstop them with walls on the shoreline. It’s a multi-layered security zone that exists in other areas of the border.  “What you’ll have is a two-tiered system,” Banks says.

“So, you’ll have the buoy systems in the river in Texas. If you were to make it past those buoys and made it to the shore, then you still would have the actual border wall system.”

All told, Border Patrol officials would like to add up to nearly 1,000 miles of additional barriers in the years to come – if Congress provides the funding. Sen. Katie Britt (R-Ala.) introduced a bill in January that would allocate $25 billion for that purpose.

In the meantime, crews continue to plug gaps like the one in Smuggler’s Gulch.

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“We’re going to catch everyone that’s crossing and be aware of what’s going on in our area of responsibility,” Stalnaker said as a bulldozer behind him cleared the way for the next wall panel to go into the ground.

A Virginia family in Washington, D.C., got an image for the ages when former President Barack Obama accidentally photobombed a shot of their two children next to the area’s treasured cherry blossom trees, prompting the former commander-in-chief to apologize on social media. 

Obama was seen accidentally strolling into the background of a professional photograph of Belle, 4, and Preston, 1, at the Tidal Basin on Monday, the New York Post reported. 

“Preston and Belle, hope you enjoyed peak bloom,” Obama wrote on Instagram. “My bad for stepping into the shot.”

Millions of tourists from all over flock to the nation’s capital each spring to catch a glimpse of the blossom trees.

TRUMP QUIPS HE’S ‘LOVE’ TO RUN AGAINST OBAMA IN HYPOTHETICAL THIRD-TERM PRESIDENCY

The photo shows the pair of children smiling under a branch with pretty pink petals with the Washington Monument in the background. Obama is shown walking behind the pair while wearing a cap and sunglasses, with his hands in his pockets.

The children had just finished posing with their parents, Portia Moore and Damien Thomas, when their dad noticed Obama making the unexpected cameo, Moore wrote on Instagram.

“Look who strolled by in our picture for our family Cherry Blossom photo shoot!” she wrote. 

“Story time! It’s the kids turn to take a photo together and Damien is saying something to me,” she added. “I’m just focused on Preston not running towards the water (peak mom moment). After that shoot was done I pick Preston up and asked Damien ‘what were you saying’? He goes ‘that was President Obama who just walked by’ and looks his direction. I was like whaaaaat?! I ran to the photographer and asked her if she got the picture. She scrolls through and BOOM there is it! The perfect shot!”

TRUMP MAKES ENDORSEMENT IN ‘IMPORTANT’ WISCONSIN SUPREME COURT RACE

Photographer Briana Inell, who was taking pictures of Moore’s young children, told the Washington Post that she’s been photographing families and newborns for over a decade. 

She said she’s used to people walking in the background, mostly tourists. 

“I go to the Tidal Basin every single year,” Inell said. “I’m very used to people walking in on my pictures. I tell my clients ‘don’t worry they will be Photoshopped out.'”

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In addition to his apology, Obama also posted about the day on his own Instagram account. 

“It’s fun to be able to play tourist once in a while. The cherry blossoms were beautiful this morning!” he wrote.

A Democrat-led resolution undoing President Donald Trump’s tariffs against Canada advanced past the Senate on Wednesday after multiple Republicans joined their counterparts in support of it. 

Republican Sens. Susan Collins of Maine, Lisa Murkowski of Alaska and Mitch McConnell and Rand Paul of Kentucky supported the resolution, bucking the president to do so. The final vote was 51 to 48. 

“As I have always warned, tariffs are bad policy, and trade wars with our partners hurt working people most. Tariffs drive up the cost of goods and services,” former GOP Senate leader McConnell said in a statement afterward. 

SENATE DEMS FORESHADOW MORE FORCED VOTES TO BLOCK TRUMP’S EMERGENCY ORDERS

Senate Majority Whip John Barrasso slammed the resolution’s passage, saying in a statement, “Senator Kaine’s goal was not to make law. It was simply an effort to undermine President Trump’s successful work to secure the Northern Border.”

 “Speaker Johnson already declared Senator Kaine’s resolution dead on arrival in the House of Representatives. It will never make it to President Trump’s desk,” he explained. “This meaningless messaging resolution will not stop Senate Republicans from making America’s communities safer.”

The privileged resolution was introduced by Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Va., and would end the emergency Trump declared at the northern border on Feb. 1. 

In a statement of administrative policy ahead of the vote, Trump’s White House said his advisors would urge the president to veto the resolution if it passed the Senate. 

“President Trump promised to secure our borders and stop the scourge of fentanyl that’s poisoning our communities, and he’s delivering. Democrat Senator Tim Kaine is trying to undermine the President’s Emergency Declaration at our Northern Borders—a measure that prioritizes our national security—for reasons that defy logic,” a White House official told Fox News Digital in an exclusive statement on Tuesday.

“Under Joe Biden’s failed leadership, criminal networks, fentanyl, and terrorists ran rampant along the northern border. Today’s stunt by Tim Kaine proves once again how woefully out of touch the Democrat Party is with the American people as they use a matter of national security for political gamesmanship. The stakes are too high to reverse course; the declaration must stay in place,” they continued. 

SCOOP: LINDSEY GRAHAM AMENDMENT SIGNALS GOP BUDGET BREAKTHROUGH, SETS STAGE FOR TRUMP AGENDA

Kaine pushed back, telling Fox News Digital in a statement, “The Trump Administration’s own threat assessment report on fentanyl did not mention Canada—not even once. Trump’s order is a blatant abuse of his authority, and it is critical that Congress push back before he inflicts even more damage to our economy and to the relationship with one of our top trading partners and closest allies.”

The resolution was required to be brought to the floor for a vote, due to its privileged nature, and it only required a simple majority vote of 51 senators to pass.

TRUMP, SENATE GOP BUDGET LEADERS HUDDLE AT WHITE HOUSE ON RECONCILIATION BILL

Trump took to Truth Social on Wednesday to call out multiple Republicans he warned against voting in favor of the resolution.

“Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, Susan Collins of Maine, Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, and Rand Paul, also of Kentucky, will hopefully get on the Republican bandwagon, for a change, and fight the Democrats wild and flagrant push to not penalize Canada for the sale, into our Country, of large amounts of Fentanyl, by Tariffing the value of this horrible and deadly drug in order to make it more costly to distribute and buy,” he said in a post. 

Collins revealed in floor remarks earlier in the day that she would vote in favor of the resolution.

“Mr. President, the price hikes that will happen for Maine families, every time they go to the grocery store, they fill their gas tank, they filled their heating oil tank, if these tariffs go into effect, will be so harmful. And as price hikes always do, they will hurt those the most who can afford them the least. Therefore, I will support this resolution, and I urge my colleagues to do so likewise,” she said. 

DISTRICT JUDGES’ ORDERS BLOCKING TRUMP AGENDA FACE HEARING IN TOP SENATE COMMITTEE

Paul has been a vocal critic of tariffs during his entire tenure, including during the Trump administration. He is a co-sponsor of the Kaine resolution. 

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He told reporters before the vote, “I think tariffs on trade between US and Canada will threaten our country with a recession. I think they’re a terrible idea economically and will lead to higher prices. Tariffs are simply taxes. Republicans used to be and conservatives, in particular, used to be against new taxes.”

Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, and Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., sparred during a hearing on federal judges’ nationwide orders against the Trump administration, and the Democrat dismissed her colleague’s claims of “lawfare.”

“Understand this is the second phase of lawfare,” Cruz said during the Senate Judiciary Committee’s hearing, “Rule by District Judges II: Exploring Legislative Solutions to the Bipartisan Problem of Universal Injunctions.” 

“Now that their efforts to indict President Trump and stop the voters from re-electing him have failed, they’re going and seeking out individual radical judges,” the Texas Republican claimed. 

GOP DEFECTORS HELP SENATE ADVANCE RESOLUTION TO CANCEL TRUMP TARIFFS DESPITE WHITE HOUSE VETO WARNING

Klobuchar disputed this, telling Cruz the injunctions from federal judges were a result of President Donald Trump “violating the Constitution.”

“Why would Trump-appointed judges …,” the Minnesota Democrat began before being interrupted by Cruz.

SENATE DEMS FORESHADOW MORE FORCED VOTES TO BLOCK TRUMP’S EMERGENCY ORDERS

“Why don’t you file them in red districts?” Cruz asked. “Why are the Democrat attorneys general seeking out left-wing, blue swing districts?”

Klobuchar claimed the spike in nationwide injunctions from district judges halting Trump administration actions are not because “these judges are crooked or lunatics or evil.” And she warned that making such claims could instigate threats and violence against them. 

SCOOP: LINDSEY GRAHAM AMENDMENT SIGNALS GOP BUDGET BREAKTHROUGH, SETS STAGE FOR TRUMP AGENDA

Cruz criticized Democrats for not sufficiently denouncing threats against conservative Supreme Court justices in recent years. But Klobuchar called that a lie, explaining, “We came together and got more funding for the judges and changed things so that they had more protection.”

While multiple Democrats criticized “judge shopping” during the hearing, they were careful not to get behind Republican bills to end all nationwide injunctions. 

“It’s impossible to separate the hearing from President Trump’s record in office,” said ranking member Dick Durbin, D-Ill.

TRUMP, SENATE GOP BUDGET LEADERS HUDDLE AT WHITE HOUSE ON RECONCILIATION BILL

But ending judge shopping, as Democrats have proposed in the past, wouldn’t completely address the issue, said majority witnesses John N. Matthews, a law professor at Notre Dame Samuel Bray, and Jesse Panuccio, partner at Boies Schiller Flexner. He was previously the acting associate attorney general at the Department of Justice (DOJ), chairman of the DOJ’s Regulatory Reform Task Force and vice chairman of the DOJ’s Task Force on Market Integrity and Consumer Fraud. 

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“I think the incentive for forum shopping is that you think you can get a judge who can be a ruler for the whole nation. So, fix the problem of judges overreaching,” Panuccio. 

The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) paid hundreds of thousands of dollars a month for website changes before canceling the contract and having an internal staffer take over, according to the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE).

While combing through loads and loads of data, DOGE discovered a previous contract by the VA for its website maintenance.

“Good work by @DeptVetAffairs,” DOGE said in a post on X on Wednesday. “VA was previously paying ~$380,000/month for minor website modifications. That contract has not been renewed, and the same work is now being executed by 1 internal VA software engineer spending ~10 hours/week.”

Fox News Digital has reached out to the VA for comment about the former contract.

SENATE CONFIRMS DOUG COLLINS TO LEAD THE DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS

VA Secretary Doug Collins has defended DOGE cuts at the VA as part of the new administration’s efforts to reform the department and better serve veterans.

In February, the VA announced that the dismissal of more than 1,000 employees would enable the department to redirect over $98 million per year in resources back to health care, benefits and services for VA beneficiaries.

Billionaire Elon Musk has been the face of DOGE since President Donald Trump signed an executive order establishing the department on Jan. 20.

‘CHANGES THAT ACTUALLY HELP OUR VETERANS’: VA SECRETARY DEFENDS PROPOSED 15% WORKFORCE REDUCTION

Trump tasked the organization with optimizing the federal government, streamlining operations and slashing spending and gave the agency 18 months to do it.

Along with discoveries like the former contract VA signed for website maintenance, DOGE continues to find waste and fraud among federal agencies.

Last week, DOGE announced the termination of 113 contracts valued at $4.7 billion, including a U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) consulting contract for Peru’s climate change activities.

WHITE HOUSE ADVISOR LOSES PATIENCE WITH REPORTER OVER QUESTIONS ABOUT TRUMP’S TARIFF STRATEGY

DOGE also announced the Department of Labor had canceled $577 million in “America Last” grants, totaling $237 million in savings.

The funding that was canceled included $10 million for “gender equity in the Mexican workplace,” $12.2 million for “worker empowerment in South America” and $6.25 million for “improving respect for workers’ rights in agricultural supply chains” in the countries of Honduras, Guatemala and El Salvador.

As of April 2, DOGE claims on its site it has saved Americans $140 billion, or $869.57 per taxpayer.

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DOGE critics contend the organization has too much access to federal systems and should not be permitted to cancel federal contracts or make cuts to various agencies.

Former Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich, fresh off a pardon from President Donald Trump, has a new job representing the interests of a politician known as the “Bosnian Bear,” who also has close ties to Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Blagojevich, who was pardoned by Trump in February, has agreed to lobby on behalf of the Republic of Srpska, a Serb-majority territory in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Politico reported. The region has long been mired in ethnic tension.

“RRB Strategies LLC will provide communications and public affairs support on behalf of the Republic of Srpska,” according to the registration statement filed by Blagojevich’s firm. 

Registration is required under the Foreign Agents Registration Act.

ROD BLAGOJEVICH RIPS BIDEN, DEMOCRATS FOR LYING ABOUT PARDONING HUNTER: MADE ‘CHUMPS OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE’

In a post on Wednesday, Blagojevich said Interpol, the global police organization, denied a request from “the unelected Bosnian High Representative to arrest Milorad Dodik, known as the ‘Bosnian Bear’ for his big physique, the duly elected President of the Republic of Srpska.”

Interpol’s denial came as Dodik traveled to Israel to meet with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and to attend a conference on how to combat antsemitism, the former governor said. 

Earlier this week, Blagojevich said left-wing courts, prosecutors and officials were trying to “jail populist conservative leaders elected by the people & bar them from holding office.”

He cited efforts to push back against Trump, Marine Le Pen in France and Dodik, who has long advocated for Srpska to separate from Bosnia and Herzegovina and join Serbia.

TRUMP PARDONS FORMER ILLINOIS GOV. ROD BLAGOJEVICH: ‘HE WAS SET UP BY A LOT OF BAD PEOPLE’

In February, he was sentenced to a year in prison for defying the country’s Constitutional Court. He has since fled to Moscow.

In March, Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Dodik was undermining Bosnia and Herzegovina’s institutions and threatening its security and stability. 

“Our nation encourages political leaders in Bosnia and Herzegovina to engage in constructive and responsible dialogue,” he said. “We call on our partners in the region to join us in pushing back against this dangerous and destabilizing behavior.”

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Trump reportedly weighed tapping Blagojevich to serve as U.S. ambassador to Serbia before picking former Arizona Attorney General Mark Brnovich.

The White House is clapping back against media reports alleging intelligence officials have been using the end-to-end encrypted messaging app Signal to send classified information, describing the allegations as “false” in a statement to Fox News Digital. 

The statement from National Security Council (NSC) spokesman Brian Hughes comes after Politico published a report suggesting Trump National Security Advisor Mike Waltz and his team have used the app frequently to discuss sensitive communications on a variety of different issues. 

“This is a clear attempt by some in media and the Democrats to obscure the simple truth: The President and his national security team are delivering for the nation by confronting our adversaries and standing with our allies to bring peace through strength,” Hughes said in a statement to Fox News Digital.

WHITE HOUSE CONSIDERS SIGNAL CHAT LEAK CASE ‘CLOSED,’ REITERATES SUPPORT FOR WALTZ, PRESS SECRETARY SAYS

Hughes added that Signal is “an approved” messaging app, particularly as it pertains to unclassified info, “and any claim NSC officials are sending classified information over these channels is false.”

Questions have circulated about the Trump administration’s use of Signal since The Atlantic’s Jeffrey Goldberg released his exposé alleging he was accidentally invited by Waltz to a sensitive group chat on the encrypted messaging app. Critics of the Trump administration have said the messages included “war plans” for an attack on Houthi rebels in Yemen.

There have also been debates over whether the information discussed in the chat uncovered by Goldberg was classified information or contained “war plans.”  

Media reports from The Wall Street Journal, Politico and The Washington Post have claimed Waltz and his team have frequently used Signal and other public messaging platforms to discuss sensitive topics and official government business. 

TRUMP PICK FOR JOINT CHIEFS CHAIR TELLS SENATE ‘ELEMENT OF SURPRISE’ SHOULD BE GUARDED AMID SIGNAL CHAT LEAK

“Using Signal to send unclassified information is appropriate, and these same facts have been reported multiple times in the last few days,” Hughes said, noting there are federal agencies that “automatically install” Signal on government devices.

“Some in NSC, like those in the media and many areas across the federal government, use the Signal app,” Hughes added. “All communications are a reflection of a thoughtful dialog of those committed to the effective implementation of the president’s agenda.”

In December, before President Trump took over the White House from Joe Biden, the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency called on senior government and political officials to switch to end-to-end encrypted messaging platforms like Signal.

DEMS HAVE LONG HISTORY OF SUPPORTING ENCRYPTED SIGNAL APP AHEAD OF TRUMP CHAT LEAK

Still, critics of the Trump administration are demanding answers. On Tuesday, Democrats on the House Oversight Committee sent letters to “non-principal agency officials” who were part of the original Signal group chat that accidentally included Goldberg. 

The letters call for the individuals, who Democrats say may have “firsthand knowledge concerning the discussion of sensitive and/or classified national security information on Signal,” to appear before Congress for transcribed interviews.

Rep. Gerry Connolly, D-Va., ranking member of the House Oversight Committee, sent another letter to Waltz Tuesday as well, demanding he and his staff stop using Google’s Gmail for official government business after The Washington Post published a report claiming members of the president’s National Security Council were using personal Gmail accounts to discuss official business. 

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The letter to Waltz demanded he turn over all communications relating to official government business that he or his staff sent over Signal or other “unauthorized messaging and email applications and platforms.”

Waltz has taken responsibility for the leaked Signal chat that Goldberg accidentally accessed, but he also insisted “no classified information” was ever discussed in the messaging thread.   

FIRST ON FOX: The White House is taking a top-down approach in making sure Republicans are united on President Donald Trump’s sweeping tariffs plan.

U.S. trade representative Jamieson Greer briefed House Republican staffers on the administration’s strategy on Wednesday evening, Fox News Digital was told.

Greer opened the call stressing that Trump was ushering in a magnitude of economic change not seen since the post-World War II era.

He also said the U.S. had been subjected to unfair trade practices for decades since lowering its own tariffs against other countries in a bid to bolster global trade, Fox News Digital was told.

WALL STREET FIRMS SEE RECESSION RISK RISING OVER TARIFFS, TRADE WAR  

Examples Greer cited for Capitol Hill aides included both Brazil and the European Union, while stressing that exemptions would be made for foreign products already subject to U.S. penalties — rather than double up on the taxes.

While political communications offices often hold coordinated messaging calls on important issues, a source familiar with the matter told Fox News Digital that it was the first such communications policy call between this White House and House Republican staff.

It underscores tariffs’ importance in the Trump administration’s policy platform, as the White House works to ensure the GOP is in lock-step on its messaging.

When reached for comment by Fox News Digital, a White House official emphasized that the Trump administration has been the most transparent in history, and that the president wants to ensure his allies are armed with the most up-to-date information.

And while the vast majority of Republicans are praising Trump’s moves, some GOP lawmakers have conceded to at least some concerns.

“I think tariffs that are equal to what they’re charging are defensible. We want a level playing field,” Rep. Don Bacon, R-Neb., told Fox News Digital on Wednesday evening. “The automobile one can be messy because the parts are from all over.”

Meanwhile, Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine., spoke out in support of a Democratic bid to exempt Canada from tariffs on the Senate floor Thursday, hours before Trump’s formal announcement.

“The price hikes that will happen for Maine families, every time they go to the grocery store, they fill their gas tank, they fill their heating oil tank, if these tariffs go into effect, will be so harmful,” Collins said of the Canada tariffs specifically.

“And as price hikes always do, they will hurt those the most who can afford them the least. Therefore, I will support this resolution, and I urge my colleagues to do so likewise.”

Another GOP lawmaker who spoke with Fox News Digital on Thursday, however, downplayed any longstanding concerns. 

“I think as long as it’s a short-term tool, folks will be OK with it,” the GOP lawmaker said.

During the Thursday evening call rallying House GOP aides, first-term Rep. Julie Fedorchak, R-N.D., sent out a statement backing Trump’s move but conceding she understood the concerns.

TRUMP TO DELIVER ‘LIBERATION DAY’ ANNOUNCEMENT FROM ROSE GARDEN FLANKED BY CABINET MEMBERS

“The U.S. is taking action to address decades of unfair trade barriers that have put American manufacturers, producers, and businesses at a huge disadvantage. I support President Trump’s efforts to create a level playing field and his long-term strategy to strengthen our critical domestic supply chains,” Fedorchak said.

“At the same time, I recognize the challenges these tariffs create for North Dakota’s farmers and producers, and I will continue to advocate for expanding market opportunities for our products as well as other policies to help counter the negative impacts tariffs may create for producers.”

A number of Republican lawmakers were at the White House in support of the announcement on Thursday, including Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La.

“President Trump is sending a clear message with Liberation Day: America will not be exploited by unfair trade practices anymore,” Johnson said in a public statement. “These tariffs restore fair and reciprocal trade and level the playing field for American workers and innovators. The President understands that FREE trade ONLY works when it’s FAIR!”

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Rep. Andy Biggs, R-Ariz., a close Trump ally, wrote on X, “President Trump’s reciprocal tariffs are a brilliant economic strategy. Joe Biden left the United States with a whopping $1.2 trillion trade deficit at the end of his regime.”

Fox News Digital also reached out to the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative for comment but did not immediately hear back.

Trump’s plan involves a 10% blanket tariff on all foreign imports into the U.S., as well as tariffs up to 50% on both adversaries and allies.

It also introduces some level of reciprocal tariffs on countries that tax U.S. exports, though in most cases, the U.S. rate is lower than the foreign country’s.

Questioned by Fox News Digital, “Squad” member and leading Democratic Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York refused to answer whether she believes Democrats’ inflammatory rhetoric against Elon Musk has any connection to the violent attacks and vandalism against Tesla owners and dealers across the country.

Ocasio-Cortez also refused to answer whether she still owns a Tesla, citing “security reasons.”

Democrats have been critical of Musk for his role leading the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), with some labeling him a “Nazi” and a “threat to democracy.”

The congresswoman has also been critical of the DOGE chief, saying in a March 1 X post, “this guy is a leech on the public.”

MUSK NOT LEAVING YET, WRAPPING UP WORK ON SCHEDULE ONCE ‘INCREDIBLE WORK AT DOGE IS COMPLETE’: WHITE HOUSE

“No matter how many billions he gets in tax cuts and government contracts, it will never be enough for him. Now he’s going after the elderly, the disabled, and orphaned children so he can pocket it in tax cuts for himself. It’s disgusting,” she wrote.

During her “fight oligarchy” rally tour with Sen. Bernie Sanders, D-Vt., Cortez claimed “an extreme concentration of power and corruption is taking over this country like never before.”

Fox News Digital asked Cortez whether she sees a connection between language against Musk and the violent incidents across the nation.

Cortez began to answer, saying, “Yeah, I mean, again, I’ve seen Republicans call me communist and that I hate this country,” before trailing off.

NUMBER OF TESLA ATTACKS SOARS PAST 50 AS VIOLENCE TARGETING MUSK’S COMPANY ESCALATES

Pressed whether she still owns the Tesla Model 3 she bought in 2020, Cortez declined to answer, saying, “Um, for security reasons, I’m not commenting.”

After weeks of Democrats condemning Musk for his role at DOGE, there have been at least 80 acts of vandalism against Tesla vehicles in the U.S. and Canada and at least 10 incidents of vandalism and arson against Tesla dealerships, charging stations and properties. 

EXCLUSIVE: GOP FIREBRAND DARES DEMS TO CONDEMN ATTACKS ON ELON MUSK’S TESLA

U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi has said the Justice Department is treating the incidents as “domestic terrorism.”

On March 20, the Justice Department charged three people with domestic terrorism after they allegedly used Molotov cocktails to attack Tesla properties around the country.

“The days of committing crimes without consequence have ended,” Bondi said. “Let this be a warning: If you join this wave of domestic terrorism against Tesla properties, the Department of Justice will put you behind bars.”

All three face charges carrying a minimum penalty of five years and up to 20 years in prison, the department said.

Despite this, few Democrats have spoken out against the vandals, and key leaders like House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-New York, and Rep. Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., declined to comment on the issue.

DEM SENATOR WHO DITCHED TESLA TO PROTEST MUSK REFUSES TO CALL VIOLENCE AGAINST CARS ‘DOMESTIC TERRORISM’

Though she would not comment on the acts of terror against Tesla owners and workers, Ocasio-Cortez, considered  one of the country’s leading Democratic voices, has previously accused her Republican opponents of engaging in “stochastic terrorism,” using inflammatory language to incite violent action, by criticizing her, which she said prompted her to hire security.

Speaking on CNN in 2023, she said, “It’s uncomfortable serving with people who engage in what many experts deem stochastic terrorism, which is the incitement of violence using digital means and large platforms so that individuals themselves may not be the one that’s wielding a weapon.

“I’ve consistently had to ride in 20,000-pound armored vehicles, engaging in some of the most gruesome threats that you can imagine that were incited by Republican members,” she said. “This is not just about a tweet. It’s about what life looks like and the marshaling of hundreds, thousands, if not millions of people into doing something.”

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During the same interview, she also accused President Donald Trump of being aware his rhetoric stokes violence, saying, “He uses and used his rallies very strategically in order to engage in political intimidation that he deems his political enemies.”

Fox News Digital’s Peter D’Abrosca and Sarah Rumpf-Whitten contributed to this report.

Ron DeSantis intensified his attacks on Randy Fine Wednesday, blaming the representative-elect’s “unique problems” for a thin special election victory in a district known as a Republican stronghold.

The Trump-endorsed candidate won Tuesday night’s special election to take over former Congressman Mike Waltz’s seat by 14 points, the slimmest margin of victory for a Republican in the district since 2018. 

DeSantis, who had already been criticizing Fine’s ability to pull out a victory, called the representative-elect a “squish” who Republican voters didn’t even want to cast their ballots for Tuesday night.   

“The president really had to bail him out at the end because this race would have been much closer had the president sat on the sidelines,” DeSantis said. “I think these were voters who didn’t like Randy Fine but who basically were like, ‘You know what? We’re going to take one for the team.'” 

EXCLUSIVE: JUBILANT MIKE JOHNSON CLAIMS VICTORY AS FLORIDA HELPS HOUSE GOP GROW MAJORITY

The governor also challenged media reports characterizing the close race as a reflection of President Donald Trump’s agenda. 

“I don’t think that’s true at all for this district,” DeSantis said at the press conference. “I think you have a candidate in Randy Fine, who, one, he’s a squish.” 

DeSantis added that Fine “repels” people, including his former colleagues in the state legislature. During the press conference Wednesday, the governor recounted how lawmakers in the state requested he nominate Fine to be the president of Florida Atlantic University so he would not have to serve in the legislature anymore. 

TIME TEBOW, WIFE PAY VISIT TO TRUMP, FELLOW FLORIDA ALUM MARCO RUBIO IN OVAL OFFICE

“I did, and the whole board [at Florida Atlantic] would have resigned rather than make him president,” DeSantis said.

DeSantis and Fine have had a contentious relationship for some time, which can be traced back to at least 2023, when Fine was the first Florida Republican to switch his endorsement from DeSantis to Trump during the 2024 Republican presidential nomination battle. Fine articulated his decision to endorse Trump over DeSantis during the 2024 presidential primary in a subsequent op-ed that slammed the Florida governor for failing to tamp down antisemitism after Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023, attacks on innocent Israelis.

According to DeSantis, Fine has supported restrictions on the Second Amendment, tried to defeat his immigration proposal earlier this year aimed at boosting the enforcement of immigration laws and tried to enact a de facto sanctuary city policy.

3 TAKEAWAYS FROM FLORIDA’S SPECIAL ELECTION

In response to DeSantis’ criticisms, Fine responded on X alongside video of the governor’s remarks at the press conference Wednesday.

“A dying star burns hottest before it fades into oblivion. I’m focused on working with President Donald Trump to stop Democrats from taking this country backwards, not working with them,” Fine wrote. “Let’s go.”

Allies of Fine have been unhappy about DeSantis’ public criticisms of the representative-elect, who will now add another crucial vote to the GOP’s narrow House majority that had dwindled as a result of several members going to work in the Trump administration. 

“Ron and Casey DeSantis are disloyal and consistently put their agenda ahead of the president’s,” a national Republican operative in Trump’s orbit told Fox News Digital. “With the congressional majority on the line in their own backyard, Ron and Casey didn’t lift a finger to help President Trump’s endorsed candidates. Worse, Ron undermined President Trump, openly attacked his candidates leading up to the special election, which could have suppressed Republican turnout, and then crowed about it on Fox News.

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“DeSantis’ personal politics once again betrayed the Trump agenda and the MAGA movement.”

Gov. DeSantis’ office declined to provide comment for this article. 

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…

-Dozens arrested in major border state bust targeting bloodthirsty Venezuelan gang

-Bitter House GOP divisions erupt after Johnson shuts down votes over Republican mutiny

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Elon Musk will exit his role with the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) on schedule later this spring, once “his incredible work at DOGE is complete,” the White House confirmed Wednesday. 

“This ‘scoop’ is garbage,” White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt posted to X Wednesday. “Elon Musk and President Trump have both *publicly* stated that Elon will depart from public service as a special government employee when his incredible work at DOGE is complete.” 

Leavitt was referring to a Wednesday Politico article reporting that “Trump has told his inner circle & members of his Cabinet that” Musk “will be stepping back in the coming weeks from his current role.” Musk, however, has long been anticipated to step back from DOGE when his 130 days as a “special government employee” run out in May…Read more

White House

HIGH VEEPSTAKES: Vance’s active VP role is a historical rarity, ‘huge asset’ to US, says top GOP ally

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OLD SICKORY: Does President Trump really need to cut down Andrew Jackson’s magnolia tree? Expert weighs in

DEPORTATION FIGHT: Trump tells Supreme Court his authority is under siege in deportation showdown

‘LIVE NOT BY LIES’: Vance says we can ‘reclaim’ society from totalitarian left if we ‘keep on fighting’

BLOCKED: Federal judge blocks Trump admin’s terminations of probationary federal workers at 18 agencies

TALKING TAXES: Trump, Senate GOP budget leaders huddle at White House on reconciliation bill

‘MOST IMPORTANT’ DAY: What is Trump’s new Liberation Day and what to expect April 2?

Capitol Hill

BETTING ON THE BUDGET: Lindsey Graham amendment signals GOP budget breakthrough, sets stage for Trump agenda

PARTY CRASHER: Rising star Dem critical of Schumer’s leadership launches 2026 bid in key Senate battleground

‘SHADY EIGHT’: ‘Shady trial lawyer pipeline’ funneling millions to Democrats

‘OUTRAISED AND UNDERESTIMATED’: Jubilant Mike Johnson claims victory as Florida helps House GOP grow majority

‘ABUSE OF POWER’: Booker called filibuster an ‘abuse of power’ years before setting Senate speech record

EXPIRED: Dem AGs take Trump-Kennedy HHS to court over cuts to COVID-era grants

JUST ANOTHER DAY: April Fools’ on Capitol Hill

FAMILY DYNASTY?: Daughter of late Dem congressman launches campaign for father’s seat: ‘Building something powerful’

‘WON BIG’: 3 takeaways from Florida’s special election

Across America 

‘CLIMATE IDEOLOGY’: DeSantis rebukes Republicans for backing bill for carbon sequestration task force: ‘Absolutely embarrassing’

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

The U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland, is pitching almost 400 books from its library, in accordance with directives from the Trump administration to eliminate content related to diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI). 

“We can confirm the U.S. Naval Academy has removed nearly 400 books from their Nimitz Library collection in order to ensure compliance with all directives outlined in Executive Orders issued by the President,” a Navy spokesperson told Fox News Digital Wednesday. “Nimitz Library houses roughly 590,000 print books, 322 databases, and over 5,000 print journals and magazines to support the academic inquiries and intellectual development of Midshipmen.”

A list of the books tossed was not available and no other details were immediately provided. 

President Donald Trump has signed multiple executive orders instructing federal agencies to remove DEI content, including an order in January that barred kindergarten through 12th grade institutions that receive federal funding from including DEI material in their curriculum. But the U.S. military service academies had previously remained exempt because they are not a kindergarten through 12th grade institution. 

NAVAL ACADEMY CLOSING DEI OFFICES TO ALIGN WITH TRUMP EXECUTIVE ORDERS: MEMO

The Naval Academy’s purge stemmed from an order from Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth’s office, according to the Associated Press – although it’s unclear if Hegseth issued the directive himself or if it came from a staffer. 

The Pentagon did not respond to a request for comment from Fox News Digital about whether Hegseth’s office directed the order, and if it had instructed the other service academies to purge DEI books from its libraries. Instead, the Pentagon directed Fox News Digital to the U.S. Naval Academy and shared a statement from chief Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell: “All service academies are fully committed to executing and implementing President Trump’s Executive Orders.”

US NAVAL ACADEMY ENDS AFFIRMATIVE ACTION IN ADMISSIONS: ‘IMPLEMENTING ALL DIRECTIVES’ 

Hegseth has remained vigilant about weeding out DEI programs from the Department of Defense. In January, he announced that the Pentagon would follow all orders from Trump to scrap DEI efforts from the military. 

“The President’s guidance (lawful orders) is clear: No more DEI at Dept. of Defense,” Hegseth wrote in an X post. “The Pentagon will comply, immediately. No exceptions, name-changes, or delays.”

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The Pentagon’s effort to eliminate DEI from its social media and websites initially prompted the removal of a swath of DOD web pages, including references to the Enola Gay aircraft responsible for dropping the atomic bomb in Hiroshima, Japan, in 1945. 

However, the Pentagon moved to restore some of these web pages – including ones that referenced Black veterans such as U.S. Army veteran and baseball player Jackie Robinson and the Tuskegee Airmen, the first Black military aviators in the Army Air Corps during World War II. 

Meanwhile, the Naval Academy’s library scrub comes days after documents from the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals were made public Friday disclosing that the service academy will not take into account race, ethnicity or sex in admissions to the institution, in response to an executive order Trump issued in January. 

The Supreme Court ruled in 2023 that considering race in the higher education admissions process was unconstitutional, however, it provided a caveat for U.S. military academies. Previous legal filings from the Naval Academy said that while race rarely served as a factor in the admissions process, it occasionally did in a “limited fashion.” 

The U.S. Naval Academy is one of several elite service military academies, and trains undergraduate midshipmen for careers as officers in the U.S. Navy and Marine Corps. 

The Associated Press and Fox News’ Alexandra Koch contributed to this report. 

Senate Democrats signaled more challenges to President Donald Trump’s emergency declarations at a press conference ahead of a forced floor vote to undo his tariffs against Canada. 

“One at a time,” Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Va., told reporters on Wednesday when asked if we would also be introducing a privileged resolution canceling Trump’s emergency declaration in Mexico. 

“Let’s get this one done. And if we can get this one done and succeed, then we also have to see what President Trump does this afternoon,” he explained, referencing the president’s planned remarks on tariffs at 4 p.m. in the White House’s Rose Garden. 

SCOOP: LINDSEY GRAHAM AMENDMENT SIGNALS GOP BUDGET BREAKTHROUGH, SETS STAGE FOR TRUMP AGENDA

“There may be a whole new series of trade or tariff-related motions coming your way soon,” the Virginia Democrat said. 

Kaine did note that “Canada and Mexico are not completely the same because of some of the issues with respect to fentanyl,” so it’s unclear whether he would seek to challenge the Mexico emergency specifically. 

The Wednesday press conference was led by Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., to rail against Trump’s Canadian tariffs. 

“So we’re going to fight these tariffs tooth and nail,” he said. “Trump’s done a lot of bad things. This is way up there.” 

The White House did not immediately provide comment to Fox News Digital. 

TRUMP, SENATE GOP BUDGET LEADERS HUDDLE AT WHITE HOUSE ON RECONCILIATION BILL

Kaine’s challenge to Trump’s Canadian tariffs will get a vote on Wednesday evening, and it runs the risk of being agreed to and sent to the White House, as some Republicans have expressed concerns. 

“Mr. President, the price hikes that will happen for Maine families, every time they go to the grocery store, they fill their gas tank, they fill their heating oil tank, if these tariffs go into effect, will be so harmful. And as price hikes always do, they will hurt those the most who can afford them the least. Therefore, I will support this resolution, and I urge my colleagues to do so likewise,” Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, said in floor remarks on Wednesday. 

Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., who has been a longtime critic of tariffs, even under Trump, will also be voting in favor of the resolution and is a co-sponsor. 

DISTRICT JUDGES’ ORDERS BLOCKING TRUMP AGENDA FACE HEARING IN TOP SENATE COMMITTEE

Trump took to social media to call out those he suspected might vote against him. “Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, Susan Collins of Maine, Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, and Rand Paul, also of Kentucky, will hopefully get on the Republican bandwagon, for a change, and fight the Democrats wild and flagrant push to not penalize Canada for the sale, into our Country, of large amounts of Fentanyl, by Tariffing the value of this horrible and deadly drug in order to make it more costly to distribute and buy,” he wrote on Truth Social. 

Last month, Kaine similarly forced a vote to end Trump’s emergency declaration to “unleash American energy” and increase oil drilling and production of natural gas. 

The resolution was voted down, and the White House claimed Kaine wanted “to impoverish Americans.”

“President Donald Trump’s executive order brings America into the future and unleashes prosperity. Senator [Tim] Kaine wants to cost the economy trillions and risk losing nearly a million jobs,” deputy press secretary Anna Kelly said at the time. 

DEMS MUM ON TRUMP’S COURT FIGHTS DESPITE TRYING TO LIMIT BIDEN-BLOCKING JUDGES

The White House has also warned of a likely veto if the Canadian tariff resolution is agreed to in the Senate. 

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A White House official told Fox News Digital in an exclusive statement on Tuesday, “President Trump promised to secure our borders and stop the scourge of fentanyl that’s poisoning our communities, and he’s delivering. Democrat Senator Tim Kaine is trying to undermine the President’s Emergency Declaration at our Northern Borders – a measure that prioritizes our national security – for reasons that defy logic.”