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The Justice Department is launching a criminal probe into a leak related to Tren de Aragua, the Venezuelan gang that has been a primary focus of the Trump administration’s mass deportation efforts. 

In a statement, Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche said the DOJ was opening an investigation related “to the selective leak of inaccurate, but nevertheless classified, information from the Intelligence Community” on the street gang, which was designated a terrorist organization by the U.S. State Department in February. 

PUERTO RICO NO LONGER SAFE BET FOR ILLEGAL MIGRANTS AS TRUMP CRACKDOWN EXPANDS TO US TERRITORY

The U.S. Attorney’s Office and law enforcement agencies in Tennessee announced the indictment of multiple people in the state with ties to the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua (TdA). (Left: Obtained by New York Post Center: Edward Romero Right: DEA)

“We will not tolerate politically motivated efforts by the Deep State to undercut President Trump’s agenda by leaking false information onto the pages of their allies at the New York Times,” said Blanche. “The Alien Enemies Proclamation is supported by fact, law, and common sense, which we will establish in court and then expel the TDA terrorists from this country.”

Earlier this month, President Donald Trump declared that he would use Alien Enemies Proclamation to fast track deportations of TdA members living illegally in the United States. 

HEARING SET FOR TRUMP ADMINISTRATION OVER FEDERAL JUDGE’S BLOCK OF DEPORTATION FLIGHTS

Trump and the DOJ logo. Getty Images. (Getty images)

The proclamation, a wartime law, authorizes expedited removal of Venezuelan citizens ages 14 and older deemed members of the group who are not U.S. citizens or lawful permanent residents.

The last time the act was invoked was during World War II, when it was used to put many noncitizens of Japanese, German and Italian descent in internment camps.

Still image from social media video shows suspected juvenile Tren de Aragua members based out of the Roosevelt Hotel in New York City, who have allegedly been attacking the nearby Times Square in a string of robberies. (Obtained by New York Post)

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A federal judge has temporarily blocked the deportations of Venezuelans under the wartime act. 

NASA is considering getting rid of its Washington, D.C., headquarters as part of the Trump administration’s effort to shrink the size of the federal government, according to a report. 

The move could affect as many as 2,500 jobs at the space agency and redistribute operations to NASA’s 10 field centers, Politico reported Friday, citing two sources familiar with the matter. 

“The NASA headquarters building lease is up in 2028, and the agency is looking at options to lease a different facility in the Washington, D.C., area,” a NASA spokesperson told Fox News Digital in a statement. “NASA does not have plans to build a new headquarters. In compliance with the executive order signed Jan. 20, NASA employees, including at NASA headquarters, returned to full-time onsite work by Feb. 28.”

It also comes after the administration recently let about 20 people go from its D.C. headquarters, including its chief scientist, according to The New York Times. 

EXPERTS REVEAL HOW LONG IT WILL TAKE NASA ASTRONAUTS TO RECOVER AFTER NINE MONTHS STRANDED IN SPACE

NASA is considering getting rid of its Washington, D.C., headquarters as part of the Trump administration’s effort to shrink the size of the federal government, according to a report.  (Celal Gunes/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)

Members of Congress earlier this year proposed moving NASA’s headquarters to Florida, where its Kennedy Space Center is located, or to Cleveland, home of its Glenn Research Center. 

“This is a no-brainer for @DOGE,” Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said of moving NASA’s headquarters there. “Right now the Feds are planning on a building a new, expensive headquarters in DC for NASA — even though very few NASA employees have showed up to the current DC office over the past four years!”

SPACEX TO SEND STARSHIP TO MARS NEXT YEAR, ELON MUSK CONFIRMS 

“To optimize our workforce, and in compliance with an executive order, NASA is beginning its phased approach to a reduction in force, known as a RIF,” Cheryl Warner, a NASA spokeswoman, said in an email, according to The New York Times. “A small number of individuals received notification Monday they are a part of NASA’s RIF.”

Much of the day-to-day work of NASA happens at its 10 field centers in eight states, but its Washington headquarters connects it more to Congress and the federal government, according to Politico. 

One proposal suggests moving NASA’s headquarters to Florida.  (Joe Raedle/Getty Images)

In addition to limiting its influence within Washington, the absence of a D.C. headquarters would make coordinating with international partners on matters like the International Space Station more difficult. 

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NASA’s 10 field centers include Ames Research Center, Armstrong Flight Research Center, the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in California, the Glenn Research Center in Ohio, the Goddard Space Flight Center in Maryland, the Johnson Space Center in Texas, the Kennedy Space Center in Florida, the Langley Research Center in Virginia, the Marshall Space Flight Center in Alabama and the Stennis Space Center in Mississippi. 

A federal judge in Colorado issued an order Friday blocking immigration officials from deporting “abolish ICE” activist and illegal immigrant Jeanette Vizguerra before a hearing scheduled for next week.

The order places a temporary injunction on local ICE officials Johnny Choate and Ernesto Santacruz, DHS Secretary Kristi Noem and U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi from ordering Vizguerra’s removal while her case is being considered by the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals.

Vizguerra, 53, is a Mexican national illegally present in the country for years. After a deportation order was issued against her, Vizguerra voluntarily left the country in 2012, only to illegally return a year later.

While in the U.S., Vizguerra has become an outspoken advocate for abolishing ICE and reforming immigration laws to be more permissive.

DEMOCRAT MAYOR BLASTED FOR VOWING TO MAKE MAJOR CITY ‘SAFE HAVEN’ FOR ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS

A federal judge in Colorado issued an order Friday blocking immigration officials from deporting “abolish ICE” activist and illegal immigrant Jeanette Vizguerra before her hearing, which is scheduled for next week. (Getty Images)

She was arrested by ICE in Aurora, Colorado, Monday, a move that created national controversy with many Democrats and media outlets rushing to her defense.

Denver Mayor Mike Johnston was among those who denounced Vizguerra’s arrest, saying, “This is not immigration enforcement. This is Soviet-style political persecution of political dissidents under the guise of immigration enforcement.”

BUCKING BIG-CITY TREND: MAJOR TEXAS CITIES NOW ALERTING ICE OF ILLEGAL IMMIGRANT ENCOUNTERS

Friday’s order, issued by U.S. District Judge Nina Wang, said, “In light of these unusual circumstances, this Court respectfully concludes that an injunction is necessary to preserve the status quo and permit this Court the opportunity to thoughtfully consider the issues raised by both sides.”

The order states that government officials “shall not remove” Vizguerra until the court or the 10th Circuit vacates the order.

Though the order claims Vizguerra’s case “raises complex issues,” Andrew Arthur, a former immigration judge and policy expert at the Center for Immigration Studies, told Fox News Digital the case is simple.

Jeanette Vizguerra, who is in the U.S. illegally, holds her son Santiago May 12, 2017, in Denver, Colo. (Getty Images)

“This is a woman who unlawfully entered the United States twice. … She is subject to removal from the United States, and she is removable,” said Arthur. “Simply because she has spoken out against the immigration policies in the United States doesn’t render her immune from removal.

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“It’s almost like a person who robbed the bank, goes to jail, robs another bank and then complains about the penal system in the United States,” he said. “Simply because you have thoughts about incarceration rates in this country doesn’t mean that you’re not still going to be subject to some sort of response because of your subsequent unlawful activity.”

Matt O’Brien, director of investigations at the Immigration Reform Law Institute, a watchdog group opposed to abuses against immigration law, told Fox News Digital that, despite the uproar, he believes Vizguerra’s arrest is “100% justified.”

BLUE SANCTUARY STATE OPERATING AS ‘CONTROL’ CENTER FOR VICIOUS MIGRANT GANG: ACTING DEA CHIEF

Rep. Gabe Evans, R-Colo. (RJ Sangosti/MediaNews Group/The Denver Post via Getty Images)

He said “the only reason” Vizguerra evaded arrest for so long was “because the State of Colorado and the Biden administration were complicit in helping her to remain in the United States through their application of misguided policies that encouraged more lawless behavior and left Americans less safe and secure.”

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Rep. Gabe Evans, R-Colo., a freshman congressman whose district includes portions of north Denver, also commented on Vizguerra’s case, telling Fox News Digital it proves Colorado Democrats are not sincere about wanting to help deport criminal aliens.

Evans said Colorado Democrats “always say they want to work with the federal government to remove criminal illegal immigrants and that they’ll honor court orders signed by federal judges. Jeanette Vizguerra qualifies for both these categories, and yet Democrats are still opposed to her arrest, proving that Colorado is run by sanctuary state apologists who can’t even follow their own statements.” 

A federal judge grilled Trump administration lawyers Friday over the deportation of Venezuelan nationals to El Salvador despite an earlier court order explicitly blocking the move. It was the latest in a legal dispute that could reach the Supreme Court.

During a motion hearing, U.S. District Court Judge James Boasberg questioned Deputy Assistant Attorney General Drew Ensign about why the Trump administration failed to comply with an emergency court order that temporarily blocked its use of the 1798 Alien Enemies Act to deport Venezuelan nationals, including alleged members of the gang Tren de Aragua, from U.S. soil for 14 days.

At least 261 migrants were deported Saturday from the U.S. to El Salvador, including more than 100 Venezuelan nationals who were subject to removal “solely on the basis” of the law temporarily blocked by the court.

Boasberg used the first portion of Friday’s hearing to press Ensign for details over the government’s deportation flights to El Salvador.

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

U.S. District Court Judge James Boasberg  (Getty)

“Why was this proclamation signed in the dark on Friday, early Saturday morning, and then these people rushed onto the planes?” Boasberg asked Justice Department attorneys. “To me, the only reason to do that is if you know the problem, and you want to get them out of the country before a suit is filed.”

Ensign was also pressed at length over what he knew about the deportations during last week’s court hearing, when Boasberg ordered the Trump administration to temporarily halt any planned removals of Venezuelan migrants subject to the Alien Enemies Act.

Boasberg also issued a bench ruling Saturday ordering the immediate return of any planes deporting the Venezuelan nationals targeted for deportation under the Alien Enemies Act.

JUDGES V TRUMP: HERE ARE THE KEY COURT BATTLES HALTING THE WHITE HOUSE AGENDA

“Can I ask you now how you interpreted that statement when we had a conversation on Saturday?” he asked Ensign. “Did you not understand my statement during that hearing?

“You told me you had no details on the plane flights. Then we held a recess for 38 minutes for you to find details,” the judge reminded Ensign. “And then when you came back — and even though the flights were in the air — you represented that you had no details of the flights?” 

“That’s correct,” Ensign responded, telling the judge no one would give him the information he sought about the deportation flights. “I did not know they were in the air.”

Former President Donald Trump’s personal attorneys, Todd Blanche, Emil Bove and John Lauro, depart federal court in Washington, D.C., in 2024.  (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)

Boasberg has ordered Trump administration officials to explain by Tuesday why they failed to comply with his order requiring the deportation flights to return and whether they knowingly defied his ruling. 

Though the judge acknowledged the Trump administration has “wide latitude” to enforce immigration law, he has repeatedly expressed frustration with the government and its failure to answer major questions about the flights.

WHO IS JAMES BOASBERG, THE US JUDGE AT THE CENTER OF TRUMP’S DEPORTATION EFFORTS?

He reiterated these concerns Friday and raised new concerns about the administration’s apparent defiance of federal judges.

“The hypotheticals are frightening,” Boasberg told Ensign. “If the courts can’t review” the administration’s use of the wartime-era deportation law, “then the president could say anyone is invading. If some foreign fisherman comes into U.S. waters, the president could say that’s an invasion.

“Even you would say that’s alarming.”

“That’s up to Congress,” Ensign responded.

President Donald Trump arrives with Attorney General Pam Bondi to speak at the Justice Department in Washington, March 14, 2025.  (Pool via AP)

In a court order filed Thursday, Boasberg castigated lawyers for the Justice Department for failing to answer his questions about the deportation flights, even after he let them do so under seal, noting that the government had “again evaded its obligations.” 

It remains unclear whether the Trump administration will invoke the state secrets privilege in the court battle, which could allow it to withhold certain information for national security purposes.

In a court declaration filed Friday morning, U.S. Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche told Boasberg he is aware of Cabinet-level discussions invoking that privilege. The administration could present that argument at an appellate court hearing next week.

Invoking that privilege “is a serious matter that requires careful consideration of national security and foreign relations, and it cannot properly be taken in just 24 hours,” Blanche told the court Friday. 

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President Donald Trump, for his part, demanded in a social media post Friday that the Supreme Court move to rein in federal judges who have blocked over 300 of his executive orders and actions. 

In a Truth Social post, Trump implored the Supreme Court to “STOP NATIONWIDE INJUNCTIONS NOW, BEFORE IT IS TOO LATE.”

“If Justice Roberts and the United States Supreme Court do not fix this toxic and unprecedented situation IMMEDIATELY, our Country is in very serious trouble!” he added.

Columbia University has caved in to demands from the Trump administration in an effort to restore $400 million in federal funding that was yanked over how the school addresses antisemitism on campus.

The Ivy League school agreed to ban masks, empower 36 campus police officers with new powers to arrest students and appoint a senior vice provost with broad authority to oversee the department of Middle East, South Asian and African Studies as well as the Center for Palestine Studies, The Wall Street Journal reported.

Student protesters gather in protest inside their encampment on the Columbia University campus, Monday, April 29, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Stefan Jeremiah)

Columbia became the epicenter of anti-Israel protests following Hamas’ attack on Israel on Oct. 7, 2023. Students, outsiders and faculty members voiced opposition to Israel during the demonstrations. Meanwhile, Jewish students voiced concerns about antisemitism on the New York City campus, as well as disruptions by protestors. 

Earlier this month, the Trump administration revoked $400 million in grants and contracts from the school over its failure to address antisemitism on its campus.

“Since October 7, Jewish students have faced relentless violence, intimidation, and anti-Semitic harassment on their campuses – only to be ignored by those who are supposed to protect them,” said Education Secretary Linda McMahon said at the time. 

“Universities must comply with all federal antidiscrimination laws if they are going to receive federal funding,” she added. “For too long, Columbia has abandoned that obligation to Jewish students studying on its campus. Today, we demonstrate to Columbia and other universities that we will not tolerate their appalling inaction any longer.”

Fox News Digital has reached out to the university.  

EXCLUSIVE: A disruption over the Trump administration’s cost-cutting efforts turned physical after protesters crashed an event in a red New York district, prompting a Republican lawmaker to raise concerns over Democratic efforts to “organize protests” in GOP districts.

Protesters disrupted a private luncheon hosted by the Rockland Business Association on Thursday, targeting one of the speakers, Rep. Mike Lawler, R-N.Y., over Republican efforts to cut federal spending.

A video obtained by Fox News Digital shows the protesters, who had bought tickets to the event, screaming, “Lawless Lawler” while holding up a sign that read, “Elon’s Puppet” in an apparent reference to cost-cutting efforts by the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE). The disruption quickly turned physical as the protesters wrestled with the event attendees, who were trying to put an end to the disruption.

Lawler’s team, responding to the protest, pointed to comments by Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., where he said that Democrats were sending people to Republican districts to oppose their policies and make them “face the consequences.”

CHAOS ERUPTS AT GOP LAWMAKER’S TOWN HALL AFTER LEFT-WING GROUPS PROMOTE PROTESTS

Protesters disrupted a private luncheon hosted by the Rockland Business Association. (Office of Congressman Mike Lawler)

“We are mobilizing in New York. We have people going to the Republican districts and going after these Republicans who are voting for this and forcing them to either change their vote or face the consequences,” Schumer said during a recent interview with PBS. “This is a long, relentless fight that we fight every day. And I am confident that we will bring Trump’s popularity, numbers and strength down if we keep at it, and keep at it, and keep at it.”

Ciro Riccardi, communications director for Lawler, told Fox News Digital, “It’s outrageous that Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer is inciting far-left activists to harass and intimidate Republican members of Congress.”

“Yesterday, he appeared on PBS and declared: ‘We are mobilizing in NY. We have people going to the Republican districts, going after Republicans who vote for this & forcing them to change their vote or face consequences.’ Earlier that day, a bipartisan Rockland Business Association luncheon was violently disrupted by protesters, including known provocateur Walter Masterson from Brooklyn,” Riccardi said in a statement. 

Lawler, a Republican from New York, at the U.S. Capitol in Washington on Wednesday, March 6, 2024. (Tierney L. Cross)

“They assaulted multiple seniors in the process of reading from scripted remarks on their phones. Are these the kinds of ‘consequences’ Schumer is endorsing?” Riccardi told Fox.

Lawler, in a repost of Schumer’s interview on X, said that “in other words, @SenSchumer admits that he is coordinating with far-left activists and groups like Indivisible to organize protests and gaslight folks.”

The protest is one of several disruptions at congressional events this week. 

Schumer is seen in Washington on March 14, 2025.  (Nathan Posner/Anadolu)

A town hall hosted by Rep. Mike Flood, R-Neb., was disrupted by protesters who heckled for over an hour during the congressman’s event.

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Fox News Digital reached out to Schumer for comment but did not immediately receive a response.

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…

–Illiterate high school grads sue school districts as Ivy League professor warns of ‘deeper problem’

-Court order halting deportation flights ‘unconstitutionally impedes’ on executive branch, Trump allies argue

–Bernie Sanders, AOC take aim at Trump and Musk, as well as Democrats, at rallies

A Question of Privilege, Your Honor

The Justice Department said Friday it is considering invoking the state secrets privilege in its ongoing court battle over the Trump administration’s deportation flights to El Salvador, a tool that could allow them to withhold certain information for national security purposes.

In a declaration filed Friday morning, U.S. Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche told U.S. District Court Judge James Boasberg that he is aware of the Cabinet-level discussions invoking state secrets privilege. 

Invoking that privilege “is a serious matter that requires careful consideration of national security and foreign relations, and it cannot properly be taken in just 24 hours,” Blanche said…Read more

President Donald Trump is seen in a side-by-side split photo with U.S. District Judge James Boasberg for the U.S. District Court of Columbia.  ( (Photo credit Associated Press/Getty Images))

White House

TRUMP EFFECT: Puerto Rico no longer safe bet for illegal migrants as Trump crackdown expands to US territory

TRUMP CARD: Trump crackdown on transgender athletes in girls’ sports gets GOP backup in House bill

‘LOOKING FOR YOU’: Trump warns of jail time for Tesla vandals, anyone funding the attacks

Five Tesla vehicles were set on fire and shot at in what police are investigating as a “targeted attack” at a local repair center in Las Vegas, Nevada on Tuesday, March 18, 2025. (Hal Sparks via Storyful)

HAVE GUN, WILL GAVEL: Trump-appointed judge chides colleagues’ ignorance on guns in unique video dissent

F-35 CLUB: Trump eyes lifting sanctions, potential sale of prized fighter jet to Turkey

World Stage

‘STRENGTH AND SWORD’: Israel orders IDF to seize more Gaza territory if Hamas doesn’t release hostages

‘DEEPLY FLAWED’: Ex-Haiti envoy slams ‘deeply flawed’ approach of Biden admin

‘ACT OF WAR’: Canadian politician claims Trump admin’s ’51st state’ rhetoric is an ‘act of war’

FIRST OF ITS KIND: Trump’s hostage envoy Boehler met with Taliban in Kabul in first in person meeting since takeover

U.S. citizen George Glezmann stands at Kabul airport, following his release from Afghan custody, with U.S. hostage envoy Adam Boehler, former U.S. special representative for Afghanistan Reconciliation Zalmay Khalilzad and Qatari diplomats, before departing for Doha, Qatar, in Kabul, Afghanistan March 20, 2025.  (Qatar Ministry of Foreign Affairs/Handout via REUTERS   )

Capitol Hill

‘STOP THE COVID-19 VACCINES’: Greene calls for yanking FDA approval of COVID-19 vaccines

SHAM APPLICATIONS: Husband of former Rep. Cori Bush charged with wire fraud linked to COVID relief funds: DOJ

‘IRRESPONSIBLE’: GOP bill would ban use of autopen to sign pardons after Trump deems Biden’s ‘void’

Rep. Buddy Carter’s legislation would require presidential pardons be signed by hand, not autopen. (Getty Images/Ap Images)

‘DEAL WITH IT’: Fetterman takes swipe at AOC: ‘We kept our government open.’

Across America

BUCKING AUTHORITY: Satanic group defies Kansas officials, plans ‘black mass’ at state Capitol

DOGE MADNESS: ‘Sweet 16’ bracket set up as craziest federal waste competes for championship

SHIFTING RESPONSIBILITIES: Student loans, Pell grants will continue despite DOE downsizing, expert says

‘ACTIVIST JUDGES’: Musk PAC steps deeper into Wisconsin Supreme Court election with $100 offer to voters

‘INCREDIBLY HAPPY’: Tesla arsons probed as ‘domestic terrorism’ cheered by ‘anti-capitalist’ group linked to 2020 riots

BOEING BUILDING: Boeing to build next-gen ‘F-47’ US fighter jet, Trump announces

Boeing has won a contract to develop the F-47 fighter jet. (David Ryder/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

LONE STAR LEADING: San Antonio police to begin notifying ICE of illegal immigrant encounters

SHIFTING FOCUS: HHS slashes over $350 million in grant funding for gender ideology, DEI research projects

‘HOMICIDE SCHOLARSHIPS’: NM lawmaker whose son was murdered rips Dems for ‘homicide scholarships’ after her crime bill was tanked

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

FIRST ON FOX: President Donald Trump is considering lifting sanctions on and resuming the sale of fighter jets to Turkey after a conversation with President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. 

Trump expressed an intent to help finalize the sale of F-16 fighter jets to Turkey and is open to the idea of selling Turkey its true prized goal, F-35 jets, if the two sides can come to an agreement that renders Turkey’s Russian S-400 system inoperable, two sources confirmed to Fox News Digital. 

That agreement could look like partially disassembling the machinery or moving it to a U.S.-controlled base in Turkey. 

Congress approved the $23 billion sale of 40 F-16s and modernization kits for 79 in its current fleet to Turkey last year, but there are ongoing negotiations between Turkey’s defense ministry and Lockheed Martin, which builds the jet. 

TURKISH AUTHORITIES ARREST KEY RIVAL OF ERDOGAN

President Donald Trump is exploring the possibility of bringing Turkey back into the F-35 program. ( REUTERS/Marco Garcia/File Photo)

Trump’s team has asked for legal and technical analysis of how it could avoid finding Turkey in violation of Countering America’s Adversaries Through Sanctions Act (CAATSA) sanctions, according to one source familiar with the request. 

The State Department and National Security Council could not be reached for comment. 

The U.S. agreed to extend a waiver allowing Turkey to buy Russian natural gas until May, Bloomberg reported on Thursday. 

Trump and Erdogan spoke by phone on Sunday, and the Turkish government is looking to firm up plans to bring Erdogan to the U.S. to visit with Trump in the near future. 

The Turkish embassy pointed to a readout of the call from Erdogan’s office which said the president had expressed to Trump, “in order to develop cooperation between the two countries in the field of defense industry, it is necessary to end CAATSA sanctions, finalize the F-16 procurement process and finalize Türkiye’s re-participation in the F-35 program.”

Erdogan asked the U.S. to lift sanctions on Syria, where a new governing force, HTS, overthrew Bashar al-Assad with Turkish backing. The U.S. side did not provide a readout of the call. 

Turkey was kicked out of the F-35 program following its purchase of a Russian S-400 mobile missile-to-air system due to spying concerns associated with having a Kremlin-operated system so close to a high-level U.S. technology like the F-35.

“The F-35 cannot coexist with a Russian intelligence collection platform that will be used to learn about its advanced capabilities,” the White House said in 2019, adding that the purchase would have “detrimental impacts” on Turkey’s participation in NATO. 

Turkey was removed from the F-35 program after it purchased Russia’s S-400 air defense system in 2019. (REUTERS/Evgenia Novozhenina)

Ankara, Turkey’s capital, had brokered the $2.5 billion deal with Russia for the S400s in 2017, despite U.S. warnings that there would be political and economic consequences. In an effort to deter Turkey, the U.S. offered to sell them the Patriot system, but Ankara wanted the system’s sensitive missile technology along with it, and the U.S. declined. 

The U.S. considerations come after the United Kingdom offered a price proposal to Turkey to purchase 40 of its Eurofighter Typhoon fighter jets last week. 

A move to sell Turkey F-35s would prove controversial, and prompt concern from U.S. allies like Israel, where Turkey cut off all relations due to the Gaza war last year, and Greece due to disputes over Cyprus and the surrounding waters.

Experts describe the F-35 as a “status symbol.” “The F-35 club is really for trusted allies,” said Jonathan Schanzer, executive director at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies. 

“This is a Turkey that supports the Houthis, which President Trump is bombing and supports Hamas and supports Hezbollah,” said Endy Zemenides, executive director of the Hellenic American Leadership Council. “We know that they don’t want to be a customer, they want to be a competitor in the arms market.” 

TRUMP UNIQUELY PLACED TO ‘WHISPER’ IN ERDOGAN’S EAR OVER TURKISH REGIONAL AMBITIONS: GREEK DEFENSE MINISTER

Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s team is looking to finalize a meeting with President Donald Trump, left, soon. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais, File)

However, isolating Turkey, which has the second-largest standing military after the U.S. in NATO, could push them to go to Russia and China for weapons supplies. 

“Trump’s about making a business deal here, right? We don’t need Turkey with nearly one million soldiers on the other side and leaning more towards Russia and China, right?” said Jonathan Bass, Argent LNG CEO and international trade expert.

“Turkey is an unresolved thorn in the side of the NATO alliance,” said Schanzer, “It certainly seems to be a priority right now for the Trump administration to try to bring them back into the fold.”

However, he added, “There’s the democracy deficit and the autocratic tendencies of Erdogan. All of these things are creating a very cloudy picture for U.S. engagement. So it’s buyer beware.” 

“Turkey is a major economy. We need them to come down on the right side of the fence. We need them from a supply chain standpoint,” countered Bass. 

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He added that the U.S. needs to partner with Turkey on mining for rare earths minerals. “Turkey has a lot more mining infrastructure,” he said. “They can help us with mining operations in Africa. We don’t have the people willing to do that.”

“If you don’t give Erdogan a seat at the table, he’s going to make his own table,” Bass warned. 

“He wants to be respected as he should. He’s got 80 million people that he represents. But we need to give him clear lines of engagement.” 

FIRST ON FOX: House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, is joining President Donald Trump this weekend at the NCAA men’s wrestling championships, a source familiar with his plans tells Fox News Digital.

The White House confirmed Friday that Trump would attend the event with Jordan and Sen. Dave McCormick, R-Pa.

McCormick previously confirmed that Trump would be in attendance at the event in the senator’s home state of Pennsylvania.

“I’m thrilled to be in Philadelphia this weekend with [Trump] for the [NCAA Wrestling] Championship,” McCormick wrote on X. “I grew up wrestling in small towns across PA and at West Point. It taught me grit, resilience, and hard work.”

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

Trump is attending the NCAA men’s wrestling championships with lawmakers, including Rep. Jim Jordan, who was a college wrestling star. (Getty Images/Wisconsin Athletics)

Jordan himself was a noted wrestling champion during his time in high school and later at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, where he won the NCAA Division I men’s wrestling title twice. 

INJUNCTION LIFTED ON TRUMP EXECUTIVE ORDERS SLASHING FEDERAL DEI SUPPORT

He was later an assistant coach at Ohio State University’s wrestling program from 1987 to 1995.

Jordan is chairman of the House Judiciary Committee. (Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc. via Getty Images.)

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Fox News Digital emailed Jordan’s office for comment but did not immediately hear back.

As President Donald Trump moves to downsize and eventually dismantle the Department of Education, an expert in contact with White House stakeholders assured that the department’s programs, including funding, student loans and civil rights protections, will continue.

“They want to make sure, especially with things like Title I schools for disadvantaged students, and high poverty areas to civil rights protections for girls in sports, to race equality in education through Title Six will continue to be enforced through the federal Department of Education until and unless those burdens, those responsibilities, can be shifted to other departments, and that would take place by congressional action,” Sarah Parshall Perry, top legal expert at Heritage Foundation, told Fox News Digital in an interview.

Trump signed a long-anticipated executive order Thursday to do away with the Education Department and directed Education Secretary Linda McMahon to initiate the shutdown process and transfer key functions, such as Pell Grants and Title I funding, to other federal agencies.

DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION SIGNIFICANTLY DISMANTLED IN NEW TRUMP EXECUTIVE ORDER

President Donald Trump vowed on the campaign trail to eliminate the Department of Education and bring power over education policy to the states. (Getty Images)

Perry said Thursday’s order “is going to be the first step in a very long, consistent, labor-intensive process to be able to continue the work of downsizing.”

“Which is exactly what we’ve seen the Department of Education already do, but also specifically continue enforcing civil rights and financial aid responsibility through the federal government until those particular duties are passed to other agencies,” she said.

For instance, Perry said, civil rights enforcement would shift to the Department of Justice, while student loan processes would be handled by the Department of the Treasury.

“They fully understand, and this is gratifying to hear that the White House has to work with Congress to offload the full responsibilities to other agencies and to ultimately unwind the Department of Education,” she added.

INJUNCTION LIFTED ON TRUMP EXECUTIVE ORDERS SLASHING FEDERAL DEI SUPPORT

President Donald Trump has tapped Linda McMahon to lead the Department of Education. (Reuters)

Perry said the initial cuts so far within the agency have been narrowly focused on slashing critical race theory and diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives, in line with Trump’s other executive orders.

“But the only two provisions in the executive order are taking legal steps to continue narrowing the agency’s focus and continuing to enforce civil rights and administer ongoing federal financial programs, because those duties cannot be offloaded to other agencies without shifting the burden by congressional action,” she said.

Students attending college or private schools with student loans or Pell grants will continue to receive their federal funding under Trump’s order. Perry said there is “a misconception” that schools would be forced to close or raise taxes due to budget shortfalls caused by downsizing the department, but “federal taxpayer spending actually makes up less than 10% per pupil funding in the state, so the remaining amount is generally split between local and state taxpayers, not federal taxpayers.”

Since its establishment in 1979, the Education Department’s budget has grown from approximately $14 billion to about $268 billion in Fiscal Year 2024, accounting for 4% of total federal spending, according to the Office of Management and Budget.

Prior to the department’s creation, federal student loans were administered through the Guaranteed Student Loan Program, established in 1965 under the Higher Education Act. This program involved the federal government guaranteeing loans provided by banks and non-profit lenders to students attending eligible institutions.

SCHOOL CHOICE ACTIVISTS WARN PARENTS ABOUT BLUE STATE’S HOMESCHOOL BILL WITH JAIL-TIME PROVISION

The Department of Education was established by an act of Congress in 1979. (Erin Scott/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

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Perry said the focus should be on strengthening education at the state and local levels, while ensuring continued federal oversight of student loans, civil rights laws, and Title One funding for underprivileged and low-income students.

“So the federal government is always going to have a responsibility to enforce, apply and sort of interpret and send these particular protections and their financial associations,” Perry said.

She suggested that these federal programs could be separated or “divested” from the Department of Education, meaning the department’s role in administering them can be reduced or transferred to other agencies.

Trump’s executive order fulfills a major campaign promise, aiming to restore local control of education and back school choice amid the ongoing culture war.

FIRST ON FOX: America First Legal (AFL) and Texas GOP Rep. Brandon Gill are supporting President Donald Trump‘s invocation of a 1798 wartime law, arguing a previous order blocking Trump’s deportation plans “unconstitutionally impedes” his presidential authority. 

U.S. District Judge James Boasberg came under fire this past week after blocking the Trump administration on Saturday from invoking the Alien Enemies Act (AEA) to deport Venezuelan nationals, including alleged members of the gang Tren de Aragua (TdA), for 14 days. 

In his order, Boasberg ordered any flights in the air to return to U.S. soil immediately.

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

“This law was passed by Congress in 1798,” America First Legal Senior Counsel James Rogers said in a statement released. “Until now — for more than 226 years — courts have universally held that they do not have the power to interfere with the President’s authority as Commander in Chief to decide when to invoke the Act and expel aliens under its terms.”

America First Legal and Texas GOP Rep. Brandon Gill are supporting President Donald Trump’s invocation of a 1798 wartime law. (Getty Images)

In its amicus filing, AFL states that Gill “believes that Tren de Aragua poses a clear and present danger to the United States,” saying he supports the president’s efforts to “neutralize this threat quickly and efficiently.”

“He sees the President’s use of the Enemy Aliens Act as vital to ensuring the safety of his constituents,” the filing reads. 

SCOOP: IMPEACHMENT ARTICLES HIT JUDGE WHO ORDERED TRUMP TO STOP TREN DE ARAGUA DEPORTATION FLIGHTS

AFL argues that the AEA “confers on the President the power to invoke the Act’s provisions in cases of invasion or predatory incursion,” saying such authority is not reviewable by the courts. 

The filing notes the president’s commander in chief post, as vested by the Constitution, saying that the AEA “statutorily grants the President wartime powers,” and courts cannot appropriately “second-guess” the president’s decisions and discretion over the AEA’s implementation.

Fox News Digital was the first to learn that Rep. Brandon Gill had filed impeachment articles against Judge James Boasberg. (Getty Images)

“At best, the Plaintiffs seek to use the federal courts to deliver a political victory,” the filing reads. “There is no dispute that the Plaintiffs are here illegally. Enjoining implementation of the TdA Proclamation unconstitutionally impedes the President’s ability to respond to national security threats.”

On Thursday, Boasberg said the administration had missed a previously-set court deadline to disclose information on the deportation flights to El Salvador. Boasberg noted in an order issued that day that the government “again evaded its obligations” to submit the requested information even after he had allowed them to submit it under seal. 

WHO IS JAMES BOASBERG, THE US JUDGE AT THE CENTER OF TRUMP’S DEPORTATION EFFORTS?

The filing they submitted hours after the deadline failed to answer his questions.

Boasberg said the court had received a six-paragraph declaration from a regional ICE office director in Harlingen, Texas, that stated Cabinet secretaries are “actively considering whether to invoke the state secrets [act] privileges over the other facts requested by the Court’s order.”

“This is woefully insufficient,” Boasberg said. 

Rep. Brandon Gill’s resolution accuses Judge James Boasberg, right, of abusing his power in levying an emergency pause on the Trump administration’s deportation plans. (Getty Images)

Following Boasberg’s Saturday emergency order siding with the plaintiffs, Democracy Forward and the ACLU, Fox News Digital was first to learn that Gill had filed impeachment articles against Boasberg, saying at the time, “This is another example of a rogue judge overstepping his…authority.”

“For the past several weeks, we’ve seen several rogue activist judges try to impede the president from exercising, not only the mandate voters gave him, but his democratic and constitutional authority to keep the American people safe,” Gill told Fox News Digital. 

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Gill’s resolution accuses Boasberg of abusing his power in levying an emergency pause on the Trump administration’s deportation plans. 

The resolution text says the order “jeopardizes the safety of the nation, represents an abuse of judicial power, and is detrimental to the orderly functioning of the judiciary. Using the powers of his office, Chief Judge Boasberg has attempted to seize power from the Executive Branch and interfere with the will of the American people.”

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

As many Democratic-run major cities across America double down on resisting the Trump administration’s illegal immigration crackdown, law enforcement agencies in Texas’ two largest cities are now alerting ICE of encounters with illegal immigrants.

This comes after ICE filed administrative warrants in the National Crime Information Center to arrest and deport some 700,000 illegal immigrants.

The Houston Chronicle first reported that police officers in Texas’ largest city will call federal immigration authorities whenever they encounter an illegal immigrant with a federal administrative warrant against them.

In line with this policy, Houston Police Department officers are directed to communicate with ICE once an illegal immigrant with an administrative warrant is detected. Officers are then directed to discuss options for transferring the illegal immigrant to ICE custody, which could include holding them on the scene until ICE arrives.

BLUE SANCTUARY STATE OPERATING AS ‘CONTROL’ CENTER FOR VICIOUS MIGRANT GANG: ACTING DEA CHIEF

Law enforcement agencies in Texas’ two largest cities are now alerting ICE of encounters with illegal immigrants. (ICE)

According to the Chronicle, this policy is already being implemented. The outlet reported that Jose Armando Lainez Argueta, a 40-year-old Salvadoran national illegally present in the country, was arrested by ICE after his name came up in the system during a routine traffic stop by Houston police.

Meanwhile, local outlet News 4 San Antonio reported that the police in San Antonio, the second-largest city in Texas and seventh largest in the U.S., will also be following a similar policy, alerting local ICE officials of encounters with illegal immigrants who come up in the National Crime Information Center system as having federal administrative warrants against them.

The outlet obtained an email sent to San Antonio Police Department officers in which officers were told to “contact the ICE Law Enforcement Service Center … and request an ICE officer come to the scene to arrest the individual.”

The email said the types of illegals who may come up in the system include previously deported felons, aliens who have been previously ordered deported or removed, and individuals with civil immigration detainer orders against them.

‘OPERATION TAKE BACK AMERICA’ RESULTS IN OVER 80 ILLEGAL ALIEN ARRESTS

Federal law enforcement officers take Jorge Carvajal Castrejon, 36, into custody in Houston on Jan. 28. (ICE)

The San Antonio Police Department did not respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment by the time of publication.

However, the department’s sister agency, the Bexar County Sheriff’s Office, told Fox News Digital that while it does not directly alert ICE of illegal immigrant encounters, it does have a policy of coordinating with ICE and regularly has immigration officials visit county jails to conduct interviews.

Bexar Deputy Sheriff Johnny Garcia told Fox News Digital that ICE officials enter county jails to conduct interviews as often as “every three hours.”

The sheriff’s office also gives ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations officials 48-hour notice of when an illegal immigrant with an immigration detainer is set to be released from jail.  

‘BRING IT ON’: SHERIFF PUSHES BACK AFTER BLUE-STATE LEADERS SUE TO STOP IMMIGRATION ENFORCEMENT

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, a Republican, seated, has been an outspoken supporter of President Donald Trump’s immigration crackdown. (Texas governor’s office)

“They’re visiting the jail just to make contact with any new persons that may be arrested. So there’s no obstruction in that regard,” he explained. “They come in just like any other officer of law enforcement official who has access and authority to enter the jail for official purposes. They, too, have that ability to come into the jail and conduct their business as needed.”

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Garcia told Fox News Digital that their policy of cooperating with ICE is simply in line with all state and federal laws.

“We do what is required of us by the law,” he said.

‘CLOSING TIME’: WHITE HOUSE, BORDER PATROL TROLL WITH DEPORTATION MEME VIDEO

ICE and several other federal, state and local agencies launched a weeklong immigration enforcement operation in the Houston area, which resulted in the arrest of 646 illegal immigrants. (U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement)

An ICE spokesperson told Fox News Digital that though the agency “does not comment on the agency’s internal methods for operational security reasons,” he said the use of administrative arrest warrants is a “vital tool to protect public safety and reduce the amount of taxpayer resources needed to fund law enforcement at all levels of government.”

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“ICE is leveraging all available law enforcement resources to aggressively pursue these aliens to restore law and order in our communities and integrity to our nation’s immigration laws,” he said. “By taking advantage of all lawful means to carry out our critical mission, it not only bolsters public safety, national security and border security, it also lessens the threat that our officers face each day when they bravely go out into the community to apprehend these violent criminal aliens.” 

Puerto Rico, which for years was seen as a sanctuary for illegal immigrants, is now facing increased attention under the Trump administration, and an immigration expert tells Fox News Digital the U.S. island territory has long been a favored jurisdiction for evading immigration restrictions.

More than 200 people have been arrested since deportation operations in Puerto Rico ramped up on Jan. 26, 149 of which have been citizens of the Dominican Republic, according to U.S. Customs and Immigration data provided to the Associated Press. Local migrants are “panicking,” Jose Rodriguez, the president of the Dominican Committee of Human Rights, told the AP. “They’re afraid to go out; they’re afraid to take their children to school.”

Illegal migrants have lived in Puerto Rico “for decades,” according to the report, which added that many had been staying in the U.S. territory “without fear of arrest” while many have been allowed to open bank accounts, obtain driver’s licenses and even open their own businesses.

But Heritage Foundation Border Security and Immigration Center director Lora Ries tells Fox that’s long been a problem with island territories like Puerto Rico and Guam.

TRUMP POLICY ON BORDER JUMPERS EMPOWERS USE OF ‘MAXIMUM CONSEQUENCES,’ BORDER AGENT TELLS FOX

Police said they processed a group of illegal migrants, mainly from China, on Jan. 28, 2025, in Coral Gables, Fla. Two alleged smugglers were arrested, one from Cuba and one from Puerto Rico. (Pedro Portal/Miami Herald/Tribune News Service via Getty Images)

“These localities allow them to open bank accounts, give driver’s licenses, allow them to open businesses, it’s just facilitating and prolonging this illegal immigration,” Ries said. “And then, of course, the immigrants, the aliens, if they are put into removal proceedings by ICE, then they use that as a shield, a defense, saying, ‘You can’t deport me because I’ve been here so many years, and I have a business here, and I have these financial ties.'”

The recent raids have “shattered the perception” that the island territory is a sanctuary for illegal immigrants, causing many to live in fear about their own fate.

Ries said that despite the perception of safety, illegal migrants in any U.S. territory face the same potential consequences as those on the mainland United States.

“They always skip over personal responsibility. They knew they broke the law. They knew they were continuing to break the law. They knew that they could be arrested and removed and detained for breaking the law … don’t try to shift responsibility to the U.S. government and then play victim,” Ries said.

Ries noted that U.S. territories, including those in the Pacific such as Guam, are often jumping-off points for illegal migrants, who first enter there and then find easier travel to the mainland United States. Meanwhile, others start a life that they try to later use as a “shield” from immigration authorities.

INFLUX OF ILLEGAL CHINESE MIGRANTS THREATENS US TERRITORY; ISLAND MUST SHOW ‘STRENGTH OF THE NATION’

President Donald Trump has increased deportation efforts across the U.S. (Sean Rayford/Getty Images)

A U.S. Department of Homeland Security spokesperson told the AP that the agency has focused its efforts in Puerto Rico on those with a criminal record or those who have received a final court ruling to leave the country.

Nevertheless, the AP report said there has been a surge in support for Puerto Rico’s illegal immigrant population, noting that volunteers have been working to provide meals to families too afraid to leave their house, while government officials from multiple jurisdictions have moved to limit cooperation with federal authorities.

Ries argued the situation is no different from those that have played out in many areas of the U.S., where so-called “sanctuary” jurisdictions have severely limited cooperation with federal authorities and prioritized illegal migrants over their native citizens.

TRUMP PUTTING TROOPS ON BORDER WAS GAME CHANGER, SAN DIEGO SECTOR CHIEF SAYS: ‘FORCE MULTIPLIER’

U.S. Border Patrol agents Elvis Torres, left, and John Almond prepare to escort illegal migrants they allegedly found hiding in the bushes after they arrived in Aguadilla, Puerto Rico. (Joe Raedle/Getty Images)

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“It’s the same thing,” Ries said. “It’s local officials not cooperating with federal agents, or local officials dedicating very limited resources and time and attention to illegal aliens rather than their own constituents. They need to do a better job representing their citizens to giving their resources to citizens.”

ICE did not immediately respond to a Fox News Digital request for comment.

Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., declared that U.S. Food and Drug Administration approval for COVID-19 vaccines should be yanked, asserting that the jabs “are causing permanent harm and deaths.”

“FDA approval for COVID-19 vaccines needs to be pulled and they need taken off the childhood vaccine schedule ASAP,” she said Thursday in a post on X. “I’ve been saying this ever since they were created and my personal Twitter account was permanently banned for my outspoken stance against the vaccines until Elon Musk bought Twitter, changed it to X, and restored my account along with thousands of people who were censored and silenced.”

The child and adolescent immunization schedule on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention website includes COVID-19 vaccine recommendations for children 6 months old and above.

FIVE YEARS AFTER COVID LOCKDOWNS: THE 5 MOST BIZARRE ‘STOP-THE-SPREAD’ MOMENTS

Chair of the Subcommittee on Delivering On Government Efficiency (DOGE) U.S. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., presides over a hearing of the House Oversight Subcommittee in the U.S. Capitol on Feb. 26, 2025 in Washington, D.C. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)

Greene contends that the jabs should never have been approved in the first place.

“COVID-19 vaccines should have never received approval and they’ve known the entire time how bad the side effects are and deaths caused by them. It’s time to do the right thing. Stop the COVID-19 vaccines,” she declared in her post.

PUBLIC WAS MISLED BY THE SCIENTIFIC COMMUNITY ABOUT COVID ORIGINS, NY TIMES COLUMNIST ARGUES

But the CDC notes, “COVID-19 vaccination is recommended for everyone ages 6 months and older in the United States for the prevention of COVID-19. There is currently no FDA-approved or FDA-authorized COVID-19 vaccine for children younger than age 6 months. CDC recommends that people stay up to date with COVID-19 vaccination.”

“Cases of myocarditis and pericarditis have rarely been observed following receipt of COVID-19 vaccines used in the United States,” the CDC indicates.

“Evidence from multiple monitoring systems support a causal association for mRNA COVID-19 vaccines (Moderna or Pfizer-BioNTech) and myocarditis and pericarditis. Cases have occurred most frequently in adolescent and young adult males within 7 days after receiving the second dose of an mRNA COVID-19 vaccine (Moderna and Pfizer-BioNTech); however, cases have also been observed in females and after other doses.”

LINGERING LUNG DISORDERS 5 YEARS POST-COVID: HERE’S WHAT TO KNOW

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Rep. Thomas Massie has also expressed the view that the FDA should nix approval for the COVID-19 vaccines. 

“FDA should immediately revoke approval of these shots,” he tweeted last month.

FIRST ON FOX: Sen. Mike Rounds, R-S.D., said he has been in discussions with President Donald Trump’s White House to revive his bill to dismantle the Department of Education, which would codify the latest executive order. 

In the lead up to Trump’s much-anticipated executive order to abolish the department, his administration had been in talks with a longtime advocate of doing so: Rounds. 

His office shared with Fox News Digital that the senator and Trump’s White House have talked about bringing back his bill to abolish the department and pushing for it. 

‘EDUCATORS WILL BE FIRED’: REPUBLICANS CHEER TRUMP ORDER DISMANTLING EDUCATION DEPARTMENT AS DEMS SEETHE

Sen. Mike Rounds, R-S.D., left, debuted a bill that would dissolve the Department of Education. (Reuters/ Istock)

Rounds is planning to re-introduce the bill now that Trump has signed the executive order. 

“The federal BUREAUCRACY of Education has never educated a single student,” the senator told Fox News Digital in a statement. “It’s time to shut it down. Today’s news is a step in the right direction. Congress should follow the executive branch’s lead and act accordingly. I am working on legislation that would return education decisions to states and local school districts while maintaining important programs like special education and Title I. We are discussing this legislation with Secretary McMahon, and we believe there is a very good path forward.”

BIDEN’S FORMER SPOKESMAN SLAMS TRUMP AND GOP ‘COLLUDING TO IMPEACH’ JUDGES

President Donald Trump holds an executive order after signing it in the East Room of the White House in Washington, D.C., on Thursday. (Mandel Ngan)

He introduced the “Returning Education to Our States Act” in the last Congress, but it never came to the floor, which was controlled by Democrats. 

Rounds’ bill would abolish the Department of Education and charge various other departments with certain responsibilities and programs that are currently administered by it. 

Trump notably claimed on the 2024 campaign trail, “One thing I’ll be doing very early in the administration is closing up the Department of Education in Washington, D.C., and sending all education and education work it needs back to the states.” 

DEM SENATOR ON SCHUMER FUTURE: ‘IMPORTANT’ TO KNOW ‘WHEN IT’S TIME TO GO’

Morning sun lights the front of the Department of Education building in Washington, D.C., on Feb. 4. (Reuters/Kevin Lamarque)

He previewed his plans to do so for months prior to signing the Thursday executive order. 

During the signing ceremony, Trump explained, “The department’s useful functions such as… Pell Grants, Title I funding resources for children with disabilities and special needs will be preserved, fully preserved.”  

SCOOP: BILL PREVENTING ACTIVIST JUDGES FROM BLOCKING TRUMP’S AGENDA BACKED BY WHITE HOUSE

President Donald Trump speaks in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, D.C., on March 7. (Chris Kleponis/CNP/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

“They’re going to be preserved in full and redistributed to various other agencies and departments that will take very good care of them,” the president continued.

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“But beyond these core necessities, my administration will take all lawful steps to shut down the department.”

Fox News Digital reached out to the White House but did not immediately receive a response.

Arizona could see a boost in border security funding in this year’s state budget, Fox News Digital has learned.

The state House of Representatives recently passed legislation in hopes of raising the budget meant to crack down on border-related crimes to $50 million, which would be a significant hike from the $17 million allotted last year.

“We are expanding funding to give law enforcement the resources they need to fight border-related crime. This $50 million proposal is a direct investment in public safety and reinforces the House Republican Majority’s commitment to securing our communities. We certainly don’t want a California-style justice system that lets criminals off the hook while law-abiding citizens pay the price,” Republican state Rep. Quang Nguyen told Fox News Digital in a statement.

WORLD LEADER AGREES WITH VANCE THAT MASS MIGRATION IS THREAT TO ‘DAILY LIFE’

A sign warning of smuggling and illegal immigration stands in the Organ Pipe National Monument near the U.S.-Mexico border on Dec. 8, 2023. (John Moore/Getty Images)

Budget negotiations usually take place between the Republican legislative leadership and Democratic Gov. Katie Hobbs’ office throughout the session. The governor’s office indicated that border security funding increases could be on the table for the final proposal, even if it’s not that exact amount.

“The department shall use the monies to fund local law enforcement officer positions for border drug interdiction to deter and apprehend any individuals who are charged with drug trafficking, human smuggling, illegal immigration, and other border-related crimes,” the legislation itself states. 

CLICK HERE FOR MORE IMMIGRATION COVERAGE

Her executive budget proposal already includes an increase of roughly $6 million to the fund.

“The Governor’s Executive Budget dedicates $23 million to the same fund. The final amount will be negotiated in the budget. And she does not consider that $23 million number a cap,” Christian Slater, a spokesperson for Hobbs, told Fox News Digital in a statement.

Past bipartisan agreements on border security funding are mostly tied to efforts to thwart the flow of drugs such as meth and fentanyl into the state and nationwide, and Arizona authorities regularly conduct seizures independent of the federal government.

TOP ARIZONA ELECTION OFFICIAL EYES BID FOR BORDER CONGRESSIONAL SEAT AFTER HOUSE DEMOCRAT DIES

This photo shows migrants at the southern border encountered in Arizona. (U.S. Border Patrol)

The bill passed the Senate Committee on Military Affairs and Border Security on Monday along party lines. Part of the suggested increase has to do with the fate of Prop. 314, a law passed by voters in November that makes crossing into Arizona illegally a state crime on top of already being a federal one.

However, the provision is already held up in federal court because of Texas Senate Bill 4, so it’s unknown whether it will be legally enforceable, according to Courthouse News Service. On the campaign trail, the proposition was frequently criticized as an unfunded mandate that could lead to the racial profiling of Arizonans, regardless of their immigration status. It passed with over 60% support. 

BORDER STATE LAWMAKER REVEALS WHAT ‘DRASTIC’ CHANGES CAN BE SOLIDIFIED WITH MAJOR CONGRESSIONAL ACTION

Bundles of blue pills containing fentanyl intercepted at the border (U.S. Customs and Border Protection)

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“This bill, I believe, is not the right use of our state payer dollars. Instead of using state dollars for duplicate efforts that the federal government should be paying for, we should address the real priorities impacting Arizonans here at home every day,” Democratic state Rep. Mariana Sandoval said in opposition to the bill on March 5, when the House vote took place.

State Rep. Kevin Volk, the only Democrat to vote in favor of the bill in the House, said he promised on the campaign trail to “increase funding to help secure our border.”

Migrant encounters at the southern border have significantly decreased since President Donald Trump took office in January, which included vast policy changes, including the end of the CBP One app and sending troops to the border. 

A liberal Canadian member of Parliament claimed the Trump administration has committed an “act of war” over President Donald Trump repeatedly referring to Canada as the U.S.’ “51st state” and for leveling tariffs on the nation. 

“Well, I think Marco Rubio probably needs to be sent back to school because when you say that someone doesn’t have a right to have a country, that’s an act of war. When you rip up, arbitrarily, trade agreements and threaten and say you’re going to break a country, that’s an act of war. And Canadians have responded in kind,” Canadian MP Charlie Angus, who is a member of the country’s liberal New Democratic Party, said Monday during an interview with the MeidasTouch Network. 

Angus was reacting to a clip of Secretary of State Marco Rubio speaking with reporters during his recent trip to Canada for the G7 Foreign Ministers’ Meeting. Rubio was repeatedly asked by the press to weigh in on Trump referring to Canada as the U.S.’ “51st state.” 

“The president has made his argument as to why he thinks Canada would be better off joining the United States… for economic purposes,” Rubio said on March 14 when asked about Trump’s “51st state” comments, explaining the issue was not addressed during the G7 meeting. “There’s a disagreement between the president’s position and the position of the Canadian government. I don’t think that’s a mystery coming in, and it wasn’t a topic of conversation, because that’s not what this summit was about.”

Rubio further explained that the origin of the “51st state” rhetoric was born during a meeting between Trump and former Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. Trump began using the “51st state” title for Canada in November 2024, following his election win. 

CANADA ‘RAGE ROOM’ LETS VISITORS SMASH TRUMP, VANCE, MUSK PORTRAITS TO RELEASE TARIFF ANGST

President Donald Trump, left, talks with Canada’s Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. (Nicholas Kamm)

Trump was meeting with Trudeau, “and Trudeau basically says that if the U.S. imposes tariffs on Canada, Canada couldn’t survive as a nation-state, at which point the president said, ‘Well, then you should become a state.’ And that’s where this began,” Rubio recounted of the Trump–Trudeau meeting. “He made an argument for why Canada would be better off joining the United States from an economic perspective and the like. He’s made that argument repeatedly, and I think it stands for itself.”

Trudeau announced his resignation as the country’s prime minister in January after nine years in the position. Mark Carney was sworn-in as the nation’s next prime minister on March 14 after he was elected the new leader of Canada’s Liberal Party earlier in the month.  

During his interview, Angus said that Canada’s boycott of U.S. products over tariffs leveled on the nation would be “punishing” to the U.S.

STEVE MOORE: TARIFFS WILL BRING FREER AND FAIRER TRADE

“The boycott that Canada has launched against the United States is punishing. We were told in January a 10% drop in Canadian travel to the United States would cost 140,000 jobs,” he continued. 

Trump leveled a 25% tariff on all imports of steel and aluminum from other nations on March 12, while Canada specifically is set to face a 25% tax on all imported goods beginning April 2. The tariffs have sparked boycotts of U.S. goods. 

Canada’s Liberal Leader and Prime Minister Mark Carney speaks after being elected as the new Liberal Party leader in Ottawa, Ontario, on March 9.  (Getty Images)

NEW CANADIAN PM BLASTS TRUMP’S 51ST STATE IDEA: ‘CRAZY’

Trump joined Fox News’ Laura Ingraham on Tuesday, where he railed against how the U.S. has subsidized “Canada by $200 billion a year.”

President Donald Trump speaks during a news briefing at the White House.  (Evan Vucci/The Associated Press)

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“Here’s my problem with Canada,” Trump said on Fox News. “Canada was meant to be the 51st state because we subsidize Canada by $200 billion a year. We don’t need their cars, we don’t need their lumber, we have a lot of lumber. … We don’t need their energy, we don’t need anything, we certainly don’t want their automobiles… millions of automobiles are sent in, I’d rather have them made in Michigan, I’d rather have them made in South Carolina.”

Fox News Digital’s Charles Creitz contributed to this report. 

As Ukraine enters its fourth year of war with Russia, the latest Fox News Poll finds Americans’ approval of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy waning even as a majority continues to support giving his country financial aid.

The Fox News survey, released Thursday, was conducted before President Donald Trump’s back-to-back calls with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday and Zelenskyy on Wednesday, during which the foreign leaders agreed to a limited ceasefire, though talks are still ongoing.

A 56% majority of U.S. voters approve of Zelenskyy’s response to the Russian invasion. That represents an 18-point decrease from 74% approval in February 2023 (the most recent time Fox asked the question), and a 20-point decrease since the war’s onset in March 2022 (76%).

FOX NEWS POLL: TRUMP, REPUBLICANS AT RECORD-HIGH RATINGS AS DEMOCRATS FALTER

That decline is mostly due to a 42-point drop in approval among Republicans (76% approved in 2022 vs. 34% today). There was also a 9-point drop among Independents while Democrats held steady (roughly 8 in 10 approving).

Fifty-six percent of voters favor continuing financial aid for the Ukrainians. That is unchanged since last year, but down 7 points from a high of 63% in January 2023.

FOX NEWS POLL: VOTERS HAVE CONCERNS ABOUT DOGE, EVEN AS THEY SEE NEED FOR CUTS 

“Republican support for U.S. assistance to Ukraine has dropped as the new president and vice president have pushed for a ceasefire and offered only conditional support of Zelenskyy,” says Republican pollster Daron Shaw, who conducts the Fox News Poll with Democrat Chris Anderson. “Elite cues matter for partisan opinion.”

Half of voters, 50%, approve of the U.S. providing financial aid to the Israeli government for its military, down 2 points from last June and 10 points from November 2023 (just weeks after the Hamas attack).

Regarding the conflict itself, 55% side more with the Israelis than the Palestinians, about where it was in January (54%). However, support has been on a steady decline since the start of the war in October 2023, when 68% favored the Israelis.

Overall, 32% support the Palestinians, nearly double the 18% backing them in 2023.

Just a third of Democrats back the Israelis (34%) while half support the Palestinians (50%), a reversal from the start of the war when 6 in 10 supported the Israelis (59%) and a quarter the Palestinians (25%). Majority support for the Israelis has mostly held steady among Republicans (77% now, 79% October 2023) and Independents (53%, 58%).     

When asked a more general question about how much the U.S. should be spending on humanitarian foreign aid, voters are divided: 36% want to keep it the same as last year, 39% want it decreased, while 23% want to see it increased.

Trump is generally underwater when it comes to his handling of foreign affairs. His job ratings are net negative by 5 points on his handling of Israel (45% approve, 50% disapprove), by 7 points on China, by 8 points on Mexico, by 10 points on Ukraine, by 16 points on Russia, and by 23 points on Canada.

Trump’s job approval numbers on Russia have improved by 5 points since Fox last asked the question (from 35% in April 2018 to 40% today), while on China they have declined by 4 points (49% in April 2017 to 45% today).

Overall, 49% approve of the job Trump is doing as president – matching a record high.

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Conducted March 14-17, 2025 under the direction of Beacon Research (D) and Shaw & Company Research (R), this Fox News survey includes interviews with a sample of 994 registered voters randomly selected from a national voter file. Respondents spoke with live interviewers on landlines (123) and cellphones (648) or completed the survey online after receiving a text (223). Results based on the full sample have a margin of sampling error of ±3 percentage points. Sampling error associated with results among subgroups are higher. In addition to sampling error, question wording and order can influence results. Weights are generally applied to age, race, education, and area variables to ensure the demographics of respondents are representative of the registered voter population. Sources for developing weight targets include the American Community Survey, Fox News Voter Analysis, and voter file data.