Donald Trump Poll News

With countless legal challenges to the Trump administration’s federal spending actions, legal experts say plaintiffs in these suits are attempting to block President Donald Trump‘s agenda as the courts navigate conceivably new territory. 

“I think this is a continuation of the warfare that we’ve seen over the past four-plus years during the Biden administration,” Zack Smith, Senior Legal Fellow at the Heritage Foundation, told Fox News Digital. 

“The only difference now is that the instigators of the lawfare are outside of government, and they’re trying to use different advocacy groups, different interest groups to try to throw up obstructions to Donald Trump’s actions.”

LAWSUIT TRACKER: NEW RESISTANCE BATTLING TRUMP’S SECOND TERM THROUGH ONSLAUGHT OF LAWSUITS TAKING AIM AT EOS

The Trump administration so far has become the target of more than 90 lawsuits since the start of the president’s second term, many of which are challenging the president’s directives. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

The Trump administration so far has become the target of more than 90 lawsuits since the start of the president’s second term, many of which are challenging the president’s directives. 

Plaintiffs ranging from blue state attorneys general to advocacy and interest groups are specifically challenging Trump’s federal spending actions, including the administration’s attempt to halt federal funding to various programs and the Department of Government Efficiency’s (DOGE) efforts to slash excess government spending.

Smith said he suspects these plaintiffs are attempting to “slow down” the Trump administration’s progress and agenda via these lawsuits “even if they know or suspect their lawsuits will ultimately not be successful.”

UC Berkeley Law Professor John Yoo told Fox News Digital that the plaintiffs in the spending cases are showing “political weakness” by seeking judicial recourse rather than going to Congress.

“I think that what you’re seeing is political weakness, because, if they had popular support, they should go to Congress,” Yoo said. “That’s the branch for which the Founders expected to be responsible in containing or reacting to any expansion of presidential power that went too far.”

JUDGE BLOCKS DOGE FROM ACCESSING EDUCATION DEPARTMENT RECORDS

Despite the public outcry from conservatives that judges blocking Trump’s federal spending actions are “activist judges,” Yoo said the judges are “confused.”

“There’s a lot of confusion going on in the lower courts,” he said. “I think they misunderstand their proper role.”

Smith said that in the cases at hand, many judges are “interposing their own views of what [are] appropriate actions for the executive branch of government,” saying this is “not the proper role of a judge.” 

Plaintiffs ranging from blue state attorneys general to advocacy and interest groups are specifically challenging Trump’s federal spending actions. (Leigh Green for Fox News Digital)

“And yet you see some of these judges who are issuing these TROs, they’re being very aggressive, and they’re impeding on core executive branch functions when it really should be the president and his advisers who get to make important decisions,” Smith said. 

Smith added he hopes the Supreme Court is “taking a skeptical eye towards some of these actions by these judges.”

Both Smith and Yoo said they expect these challenges to eventually make their way up to the Supreme Court, with Smith saying the high court “is going to have to confront some questions that it’s been trying to skirt for several years now.”

JUDGE ORDERS TRUMP OFFICIALS TO SIT FOR DEPOSITIONS IN LAWSUIT OVER DOGE ACCESS TO FEDERAL DATABASES

“This has to go to the Supreme Court because you’re seeing confusion in the lower courts about what is the proper procedural way to challenge spending freezes,” Yoo said. 

On Wednesday, Chief Justice John Roberts paused a federal judge’s order that required the Trump administration to pay around $2 billion in foreign aid funds to contractors by midnight. Smith called the move by Roberts “actually pretty stunning.”

Chief Justice John Roberts on Wednesday paused a federal judge’s order that required the Trump administration to pay around $2 billion in foreign aid funds to contractors by midnight. (Shawn Thew-Pool/Getty Images)

“And I think a reasonable interpretation of that would be that the justices, particularly the Chief Justice, is kind of sending a shot across the bow to some of these judges that, ‘Look, if you keep this up, we’re going to step in and intervene,'” Smith said. 

Yoo said he expects the Trump administration to ultimately prevail on many of the suits launched against him, saying that “he’s really, in many ways, following the decisions of the Roberts Court itself about how far executive power goes.”

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“Now, just because Trump won an election doesn’t mean he gets to do whatever he wants — he has to achieve his mandate through constitutional processes, which I think he’s doing,” Yoo said. 

“He’s litigating, he’s appearing at the Supreme Court, so he’s not ignoring the courts. He’s doing what you should do if you’re the president and you have the responsibility to execute the law,” Yoo continued. 

Fox News Digital’s Bradford Betz contributed to this report. 

MIAMI – FIRST ON FOX: The only Cuban-born member of Congress hosted Venezuelan opposition leader Juan Guaidó and several Venezuelan and Colombian community leaders from the U.S. in a show of support for President Trump’s reversal of a Biden-era oil deal with Caracas’ dictator.

“This is personal to me,” said Rep. Carlos Gimenez, R-Fla., who hosted the gathering at a private lounge inside Miami International Airport on Thursday. 

There, he lambasted Nicolas Maduro and condemned the idea that the U.S. under former President Joe Biden had ever concocted a deal with the dictator in the first place.

On Wednesday, Trump canceled a deal that had allowed Chevron to operate inside oil-rich Venezuela, saying the U.S. would “revers[e] concessions that Crooked Joe Biden gave to Nicolas Maduro… on the oil transaction agreement [from] 2022 and also having to do with electoral conditions within Venezuela which have not been met…”

TRUMP SAYS HE’S TERMINATING CHEVRON’S VENEZUELA OIL AGREEMENT

Venezuelan opposition leader Juan Guaidó speaks at Miami International Airport on Thursday. (Charlie Creitz)

Trump also noted Maduro was not cooperating with U.S. immigration authorities trying to deport violent illegal aliens.

In Miami, Gimenez said in response to a reporter’s question about Tren de Aragua members wreaking havoc in New York City that there is a major difference between Venezuelan civilians fleeing oppression and criminals illegally sneaking into the U.S. that are of a certain descent.

Gimenez noted how he and his family “fled for freedom” from a similar dictatorship in Cuba and that therefore any individual or group persecuted by dictatorial governments will “always have a friend in me.”

“So will [Florida Republican Rep.] Mario [Diaz-Balart], so will [Florida Republican Rep.] Maria [Salazar], and so will [Sen.] Rick Scott, and so will President Donald J. Trump,” Gimenez said before introducing several leaders, including Guaidó.

In an exclusive interview afterward with Fox News Digital, Gimenez said Venezuela, Cuba and Nicaragua are “all pretty much tied together” in the fact they are dictatorial regimes repressing their own people, who yearn to be free.

“I expect this is just the first step in trying to liberate these countries. The people of Cuba, Venezuela, Nicaragua deserve freedom,” he said.

RUBIO: MADURO A ‘HORRIBLE DICTATOR’

Rep. Carlos Gimenez, R-Fla., speaks to Fox News Digital at Miami International Airport. (Charlie Creitz)

Gimenez said the answer should be to convert the “enemy states” into friends of the U.S., noting there is national interest on multiple levels.

Cuba, for instance, is less than 90 miles off the maritime border of Gimenez’s own district in Key West.

“I’m confident that President Trump understands this, and he stands for freedom and he stands for democracy; not only in the United States, but in our hemisphere and around the world,” he said.

During the gathering, Guaidó also offered remarks in Spanish praising Trump and slamming Central American despots.

“[W]e need a strong, prosperous and safe Latin America – and one that will be safe, with democracy and freedom,” he said.

“I have no doubt in President Trump, and in the message that he is sending directly to the heart of those who financed the coup d’état perpetrated by the dictatorship on July 28, 2024 (the disputed/corrupt re-election of Maduro)…,” he said.

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Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro delivers the annual address at Teatro Teresa Carreno in Caracas on Jan. 15. (Jesus Vargas/Getty)

“It is accurate, correct and timely to confront that dictatorship and also [send] a message to those who today usurp [power] in Cuba and Nicaragua that they will not have impunity,” Guaidó added.

In further remarks to Fox News Digital, Gimenez said he has full faith in his fellow Miamian, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, in his and Foggy Bottom’s ability to confront these regimes that lie within America’s own hemisphere.

“I don’t have to speak to the secretary of state about Cuba; we both have Ph.D’s in that,” he quipped.

The country’s top weather and climate monitoring agency has become the latest target of layoffs within the federal government, according to Democratic lawmakers speaking out against the Trump administration. 

At least 880 workers at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), the country’s national weather service, were fired Thursday, Sen. Maria Cantwell, D-Wash., said in a press release as the Trump administration works to downsize and cut federal costs.

“The firings jeopardize our ability to forecast and respond to extreme weather events like hurricanes, wildfires and floods — putting communities in harm’s way,” Cantwell added.

Sen. Chris Van Hollen, D-Md., in a post on X Thursday, seconded Cantwell’s claim, writing, “Today, we learned that Trump and Musk are firing HUNDREDS of vital NOAA employees — another blatantly illegal action that must be stopped.”

‘FIRED ME ILLEGALLY’: EMOTIONAL EX-USAID EMPLOYEES LEAVE BUILDING WITH BELONGINGS AFTER MASS LAYOFFS

Democratic lawmakers say Musk is behind the layoffs at NOAA.  (Getty Images)

Another Democrat, Rep. Grace Meng, D-N.Y., also reported “unconscionable” mass firings at the weather agency.

‘IF YOU DON’T ANSWER … YOU’RE FIRED’: TRUMP STANDS BEHIND MUSK’S DOGE PRODUCTIVITY EMAIL

“Once again, the reckless Trump Administration is inflicting tremendous harm upon the American people. Today, hundreds of employees at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), including weather forecasters at the National Weather Service (NWS), were given termination notices for no good reason,” Meng wrote in a statement.

Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk speaks at the Conservative Political Action Conference at the Gaylord National Resort Hotel And Convention Center Feb. 20, 2025, in Oxon Hill, Md.  (Andrew Harnik)

The reported layoffs come just weeks after Van Hollen said he heard reports that Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) was “targeting” the weather agency in early February.

Daniel Swain, a climate scientist at UCLA, wrote the cuts were “profoundly alarming” and affected “meteorologists, data and computer scientists responsible for maintaining and upgrading weather predictive models, and technicians responsible for maintaining the nation’s weather instrumentation network.

Over 800 employees were reportedly fired from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration this week. (AP Images)

“This is not, in short, an acceptable setting in which to ‘move fast and break things.'”

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A NOAA spokesperson told Fox News Digital, “Per long-standing practice, we are not discussing internal personnel and management matters,” adding the agency “remains dedicated to its mission, providing timely information, research and resources that serve the American public and ensure our nation’s environmental and economic resilience.”

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy reacted publicly for the first time since his Oval Office blowup with President Donald Trump on Friday with a social media post thanking the United States.

“Thank you America, thank you for your support, thank you for this visit,” Zelenskyy posted on X. “Thank you @POTUS. Congress, and the American people. Ukraine needs just and lasting peace, and we are working exactly for that.”

The post was Zelenskyy’s first comment since a meeting with Trump and Vice President JD Vance turned into a shouting match at the White House with the three leaders arguing over what “cards” Ukraine holds and whether Zelenskyy has shown enough gratitude to the United States. 

A scheduled press conference on Friday was canceled after the heated exchange and Zelenskyy was seen briskly exiting the White House into an awaiting car and driving away. 

TRUMP, VANCE AND ZELENSKYY SPAR OVER RUSSIAN WAR IN TENSE EXCHANGE: ‘VERY DISRESPECTFUL’

President Donald Trump and Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy meet in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, DC, February 28, 2025.  (SAUL LOEB/AFP via Getty Images)

TUNE IN: BRET BAIER INTERVIEWS ZELENSKYY ON ‘SPECIAL REPORT,’ 6 PM ET ON FOX NEWS

A scheduled press conference on Friday was canceled after the heated exchange and Zelenskyy was seen briskly exiting the White House into an awaiting car and driving away. 

“Mr. President, with respect, I think it’s disrespectful for you to come into the Oval Office to try to litigate this in front of the American media,” Vance told Zelenskyy. “Right now, you guys are going around and forcing conscripts to the front lines, because you have manpower problems. You should be thanking the president for bringing it, to bring it into this country.” 

Zelenskyy later said that under war, “everybody has problems, even you” and that the U.S. would feel the war “in the future.”

TRUMP SAYS ZELENSKYY CAN ‘COME BACK WHEN HE IS READY FOR PEACE’ AFTER FIERY WHITE HOUSE EXCHANGE

Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky gives a press conference in Kyiv on February 26, 2025 (Getty Images)

“You don’t know that,” Trump responded as Zelenskyy said “God bless you” to Trump.

“Don’t tell us what we’re going to feel. We’re trying to solve a problem. Don’t tell us what we’re going to feel,” Trump continued. 

At one point, Trump pointed at Zelenskyy and told him that what he’s doing is “very disrespectful” to the United States. 

After the exchange, it was announced that a scheduled press conference had been canceled, and Zelenskyy was seen briskly leaving the White House with no word on the mineral rights deal that had been expected to be signed on Friday.

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FILE – President Donald Trump speaks with reporters in the Oval Office at the White House, Tuesday, Feb. 11, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon, File) (AP Photo/Alex Brandon, File)

“We had a very meaningful meeting in the White House today,” Trump posted on Truth Social after the meeting. 

“Much was learned that could never be understood without conversation under such fire and pressure. It’s amazing what comes out through emotion, and I have determined that President Zelenskyy is not ready for Peace if America is involved, because he feels our involvement gives him a big advantage in negotiations. I don’t want advantage, I want PEACE. He disrespected the United States of America in its cherished Oval Office. He can come back when he is ready for Peace.”

Vice President JD Vance defended President Donald Trump and his administration’s foreign policy agenda Friday during a tense exchange with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy — inserting himself into a spotlight rarely seen by vice presidents. 

Trump and Vance sparred in the Oval Office Friday with Zelenskyy amid negotiations to end the war in Ukraine — an exchange that ultimately prompted Trump to announce an end to peace negotiations and request that the Ukrainian leader leave the White House. 

A source familiar with the meeting told Fox News Digital that there was no expectation of the meeting leading to a combative exchange, and that Trump and Vance were both caught off guard by Zelenskyy’s behavior. 

While vice presidents traditionally remain in the wings while the president takes center stage, Friday’s encounter with Zelenskyy exposed the weight Vance carries directing and advancing the Trump administration’s America First agenda — both at home and abroad. 

Edward-Isaac Dovere, a senior CNN reporter, said the moment may have amounted to one of the most significant for the vice presidency, just behind Vice President Dick Cheney’s efforts backing the U.S. to invade Iraq. 

“Possible that JD Vance today had the most significant 90 seconds of his vice presidency, and the biggest impact any VP other than Cheney has had on shifting American foreign policy in the way he changed the trajectory of the conversation in the Oval Office today,” Dovere said in a Friday post on X. 

The Oval Office encounter with Zelenskyy also comes on the heels of Vance’s Feb. 14 appearance at the Munich Security Conference — an event that left a lasting impression on European nations and their relationships with the U.S. 

Specifically, Vance said Russia and China don’t pose as great a threat to European nations as the “threat from within,” in reference to issues like censorship and illegal immigration. 

“To many of us on the other side of the Atlantic, it looks more and more like old entrenched interests hiding behind ugly Soviet-era words like misinformation and disinformation, who simply don’t like the idea that somebody with an alternative viewpoint might express a different opinion or, God forbid, vote a different way, or even worse, win an election,” Vance said. 

The remarks prompted backlash from European leaders, including German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius, who said he interpreted the remarks as a comparison to “conditions in parts of Europe with those in authoritarian regimes.” 

Tensions escalated in the Oval Office Friday after Zelenskyy pushed back on Vance’s statements that the path forward was through diplomacy, asserting that Russian President Vladimir Putin has broken other agreements in the past. 

WHERE ZELENSKYY IS HEADED FOLLOWING TENSE WHITE HOUSE EXCHANGE WITH TRUMP, VANCE

President Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky meet in the Oval Office at the White House on Feb. 28, 2025.  (Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)

“What kind of diplomacy, JD, you are speaking about?” Zelenskyy said. “What do you mean?”

In response, Vance said, “I’m talking about the kind of diplomacy that’s going to end the destruction of your country.”

“Mr. President, with respect, I think it’s disrespectful for you to come into the Oval Office to try to litigate this in front of the American media,” Vance told Zelenskyy. “Right now, you guys are going around and forcing conscripts to the front lines because you have manpower problems. You should be thanking the president for bringing it, to bring it into this country.”

Zelenskyy then asked Vance if he’d ever visited Ukraine, prompting Vance to question again if Zelenskyy disagreed that Ukraine has had challenges recruiting new troops. 

“And do you think that it’s respectful to come to the Oval Office of the United States of America and attack the administration that is trying to prevent the destruction of your country?” Vance said. 

Zelenskyy replied that everyone faces challenges during wartime, and that although an ocean protected the U.S. from Russia, he cautioned that the U.S. would feel the threat eventually. 

“Don’t tell us what we’re going to feel,” Trump said. “We’re trying to solve a problem. Don’t tell us what we’re going to feel.

“You are in no position to dictate that, remember that.”

Vance and Zelenskyy also sparred when Vance asked if Zelenskyy had ever said “thank you once this entire meeting,” prompting Zelenskyy to assert that Vance was speaking “loudly.” 

Trump then snapped at Zelenskyy and warned him that Ukraine was in “big trouble.” 

“Wait a minute,” Trump said. “No, no, you’ve done a lot of talking. Your country is in big trouble.”

TRUMP SAYS ZELENSKYY CAN ‘COME BACK WHEN HE IS READY FOR PEACE’ AFTER FIERY WHITE HOUSE EXCHANGE

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy leaves the White House on Feb. 28, 2025, in Washington, D.C.  (Getty Images)

Zelenskyy visited Washington amid negotiations to end the war in Ukraine and was expected to sign a minerals agreement that would allow the U.S. access to Ukraine’s minerals in exchange for support the U.S. has provided the country since Russia’s invasion in 2022. 

But after the tense exchange in the Oval Office, Trump announced a halt to peace negotiations and said that Zelenskyy could return to the White House when he was “ready for Peace.” Additionally, Zelenskyy left the White House without signing the minerals deal. 

“I have determined that President Zelenskyy is not ready for peace if America is involved, because he feels our involvement gives him a big advantage in negotiations,” Trump wrote in a Truth Social post Friday. “I don’t want advantage, I want PEACE. He disrespected the United States of America in its cherished Oval Office. He can come back when he is ready for Peace.”

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Zelenskyy also followed up with a social media post on X expressing gratitude to the U.S. for its support. 

“Thank you America, thank you for your support, thank you for this visit,” Zelenskyy said. “Thank you @POTUS, Congress, and the American people. Ukraine needs just and lasting peace, and we are working exactly for that.”

The exchange prompted mixed reactions from those on Capitol Hill. Republican Sen. Lindsay Graham of South Carolina said Zelenskyy should resign, while Democrat Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer of New York said that “Trump and Vance are doing Putin’s dirty work.” 

The Associated Press and Fox News’ Emma Colton contributed to this report. 

Democrats and Republicans in Congress are gearing up to blame each other for a potential partial government shutdown next month, even as negotiations to avoid the pitfall continue.

“The federal government will run out of money on March 14. Republicans, who control Congress and thus decide whether the government shuts down, will bring to the floor tomorrow arguably one of the worst budget bills ever,” Rep. Greg Landsman, D-Ohio, wrote on X recently.

With just over 10 days left in session before the deadline, congressional Republicans are tentatively looking at passing a short-term extension of last year’s federal funding, known as a continuing resolution (CR), while potentially modifying it to account for priorities set by President Donald Trump, Fox News Digital was told.

It could also include extra funding for military readiness to ease defense hawks’ concerns.

BLACK CAUCUS CHAIR ACCUSES TRUMP OF ‘PURGE’ OF ‘MINORITY’ FEDERAL WORKERS

House Speaker Mike Johnson, left, and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries’ parties are working toward avoiding a partial government shutdown. (Getty Images)

Trump himself weighed in on Truth Social on Thursday night: “We are working very hard with the House and Senate to pass a clean, temporary government funding Bill (“CR”) to the end of September. Let’s get it done!”

But Republicans have drawn a red line at Democrats’ demands for added assurances that Trump will not move to unilaterally cut cash flows already appropriated by Congress.

House Appropriations Committee Chairman Tom Cole, R-Okla., said in a closed-door GOP meeting last week that the Democrats’ price was too high, a lawmaker at the meeting told Fox News Digital.

On Friday, the top two Democratic negotiators released a blistering statement accusing Republicans of “walking away from bipartisan negotiations to fund the government — and raising the risk of a shutdown in so doing.”

And Democratic lawmakers for weeks have already been positioning to place the blame on Republicans if no agreement is reached.

House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., dodged a question from Fox News Digital earlier this week about whether Democratic leaders would encourage their members to reject a funding bill if it did not meet their demands.

“The appropriations process at this moment is in the hands of [House Appropriations Committee ranking member Rep. Rosa DeLauro, D-Conn.] on behalf of House Democrats,” he said.

House Appropriations Committee Chairman Tom Cole, R-Okla., told fellow Republicans last week that Democrats were asking for too high a price. (Getty Images)

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., wrote on X this week, “Republicans are spending precious time trying to cater to the wishes of Trump’s billionaire buddies INSTEAD OF working to avoid a disastrous government shutdown that would hurt tens of millions of American families. Democrats are fighting for families.”

Since Republicans took back control of the House in 2023, any government funding bill that’s been signed into law has needed Democratic support in both chambers to pass.

But this year, some Democrats are arguing that Republicans will fully own a shutdown, since they now control both chambers of Congress and the White House.

KEY CONSERVATIVE CAUCUS DRAWS RED LINE ON HOUSE BUDGET PLAN

Republicans, however, have accused Democrats of being unreasonable and are readying to blame them if a shutdown occurs. 

“If that happens, that’s because the Democrats do not want to do the necessary work of getting waste and inefficiency out of our government,” Rep. Byron Donalds, R-Fla., told Fox News’ Bill Hemmer.

House Democratic Caucus Chair Pete Aguilar, D-Calif., suggested liberals were still playing hardball earlier this week during his weekly press conference.

House Democratic Caucus Chair Pete Aguilar, D-Calif., said of the GOP, “If they are interested in collaborating with us and us putting up votes to fund government, then they have to work with us.” (Nathan Posner/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)

“If they are interested in collaborating with us and us putting up votes to fund government, then they have to work with us. If they walk away, that is a signal that they have this on their own… We’re not interested in putting up votes just because,” he said. 

“We’re interested in funding a government that protects vulnerable populations, protects our communities, makes investments in our national security and defense. Those are the things that Democrats care about. If Republicans don’t want to partner with us, then, clearly they must have a strategy to fund this on their own, using their own votes.”

Senate Appropriations Committee Chair Patty Murray, D-Wash., said Democrats “are at the table negotiating in good faith to fund the government.”

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“But Republicans are the majority in the House and Senate. If they want our votes, they need to work with us,” she said, warning Republicans not to “follow [Elon Musk] toward a shutdown.”

The Trump administration’s efforts to broker a peace negotiation ending the war in Ukraine came to a halt Friday following a testy exchange between President Donald Trump, Vice President JD Vance and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. 

The encounter ultimately led to a canceled press conference, Trump requesting Zelenskyy to leave the White House, and the failure to sign a rare-earth minerals deal between the U.S. and Ukraine that would have allowed the U.S. access to Ukraine’s minerals. 

Tensions escalated in the Oval Office after Zelenskyy challenged Vance, who said that the path forward was through diplomacy. Instead, Zelenskyy issued a caution and noted that Russian President Vladimir Putin has broken other agreements in the past. 

“What kind of diplomacy, JD, you are speaking about?” Zelenskyy said. “What do you mean?”

In response, Vance said: “I’m talking about the kind of diplomacy that’s going to end the destruction of your country.”

“Mr. President, with respect, I think it’s disrespectful for you to come into the Oval Office to try to litigate this in front of the American media,” Vance told Zelenskyy. “Right now, you guys are going around and forcing conscripts to the front lines because you have manpower problems. You should be thanking the president for bringing it, to bring it into this country.”

Trump also snapped at Zelenskyy and warned him that Ukraine was in “big trouble” and was “gambling with World War III.” 

TRUMP SAYS ZELENSKYY CAN ‘COME BACK WHEN HE IS READY FOR PEACE’ AFTER FIERY WHITE HOUSE EXCHANGE

President Donald Trump meets with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy at the White House in Washington, D.C., Feb. 28, 2025.  (Brian Snyder/Reuters)

Following the encounter, Trump announced a pause to peace negotiations and said that Zelenskyy could return to the White House when he was “ready for Peace.” Additionally, Zelenskyy left the White House without signing the minerals deal. 

“I have determined that President Zelenskyy is not ready for peace if America is involved, because he feels our involvement gives him a big advantage in negotiations,” Trump said in a Truth Social post Friday. “I don’t want advantage, I want PEACE. He disrespected the United States of America in its cherished Oval Office. He can come back when he is ready for Peace.”

Zelenskyy also followed up with a social media post on X expressing gratitude to the U.S. for its support. 

“Thank you America, thank you for your support, thank you for this visit,” Zelenskyy said. “Thank you @POTUS, Congress, and the American people. Ukraine needs just and lasting peace, and we are working exactly for that.”

Despite the fallout from the meeting, Zelenskyy told Fox News’ Bret Baier on Friday that the relationship between Ukraine and the U.S. could be salvaged. 

Here’s what else happened at the White House this week:

Large-scale reductions in force 

The Trump administration also sent a memo instructing agencies across the federal government to launch plans for “large-scale reductions in force” and construct reorganization plans by mid-March. 

The White House’s Office of Management and Budget and Office of Personnel Management sent a memo on Wednesday ordering agencies to prepare to cut staffers and share reorganization plans by March 13. 

“The federal government is costly, inefficient, and deeply in debt,” the memo said. “At the same time, it is not producing results for the American public.”

Several federal government roles are exempt from the order, including those “necessary to meet law enforcement, border security, national security, immigration enforcement, or public safety responsibilities,” according to the memo. 

First Cabinet meeting

Trump held his second administration’s first meeting with Cabinet members Wednesday, where he shared plans to massively cut the Environmental Protection Agency and seek to retrieve military equipment left in Afghanistan. 

Trump revealed that EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin is eyeing cutting 65% of federal employees from the agency.

WORLD LEADERS BACK ZELENKSYY FOLLOWING TRUMP, VANCE OVAL OFFICE SPAT

President Donald Trump convened his first cabinet meeting on Wednesday. (Getty Images)

“I spoke with Lee Zeldin, and he thinks he’s going to be cutting 65 or so percent of the people from Environmental, and we’re going to speed up the process too at the same time,” Trump said. “He had a lot of people that weren’t doing their job, they were just obstructionists, and a lot of people that didn’t exist.”

Trump also shared that he wanted back the military equipment U.S. troops left behind when withdrawing from Afghanistan, but didn’t share plans on how the U.S. would retrieve the equipment. 

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“We left billions, tens of billions of dollars worth of equipment behind, brand new trucks,” Trump said Wednesday. “You see them display it every year, or their little roadway, someplace where they have a road and they drive the, you know, waving the flag and talking about America … that’s all the top of the line stuff. I think we should get a lot of that equipment back.”

The Taliban seized most of the more than $7 billion worth of equipment U.S. troops left in Afghanistan at the time of the withdrawal in August 2021, according to a Department of Defense report released in 2022.

English official US language 

Trump signed an executive order Friday mandating English as the official language of the U.S. The order eradicates a previous mandate from President Bill Clinton in 2000 requiring federal agencies and recipients of federal funding to issue language assistance to those who don’t speak English. 

The executive order allows each federal agency to determine whether it will offer services in languages besides English. 

The U.S. is an anomaly in that it has never had an official language, whereas roughly 180 countries out of the 195 countries in the world have official languages, a White House official told Fox News Digital. 

Fox News’ Emma Colton and Brooke Singman contributed to this report. 

Several House Republicans who support Ukraine were left alarmed after an explosive Oval Office meeting ended with Kyiv’s leader being booted from the White House.

“The U.S. is now on the wrong side of this war, against freedom,” Rep. Don Bacon, R-Neb., told Fox News Digital. 

Bacon compared President Donald Trump and Vice President JD Vance to Democrats during the Cold War, a time when Republicans were the significantly more hawkish party on Russia.

“Trump and Vance sound like the Democrats from the 1970s and 1980s. Role reversals. I’m still with Reagan,” Bacon said.

BLACK CAUCUS CHAIR ACCUSES TRUMP OF ‘PURGE’ OF ‘MINORITY’ FEDERAL WORKERS

From left: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, President Donald Trump and Vice President JD Vance meet in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, D.C., on Friday. (Getty Images)

Another GOP lawmaker granted anonymity to speak freely placed blame on both sides, calling the meeting “a missed opportunity for both Ukraine and the United States and a big win for Vladimir Putin.”

Zelenskyy was expected to sign a deal with Trump on Friday to give the U.S. access to revenues from Ukraine’s supply of critical minerals. 

But that appears to have skewed off course after the exceptionally testy meeting for both sides, where Trump told Zelenskyy he was acting “ungrateful” for the U.S.’ aid against Russia’s invasion.

“You don’t have the cards right now. With us, you start having cards,” Trump told him. “You’re gambling with World War III. And what you’re doing is very disrespectful to the country.”

Vance accused Zelenskyy of trying to litigate their issues in front of the U.S. media, adding, “Offer some words of appreciation for the United States of America and the president who’s trying to save your country, please.”

Zelenskyy shot back, “Have you ever been to Ukraine? Have you seen the problems we have? Come once.”

Sources who spoke with Fox News Digital said the meeting left them stunned and concerned for Ukraine’s future.

Rep. Don Bacon, R-Neb., is among the Republicans speaking out about the meeting. (AP Photo)

“Sane Republicans are pissed,” a Republican foreign policy source told Fox News Digital. “[The Russian government] will break every agreement, cheat, lie, and come right back for everything the minute we look away. If Trump thinks his rapport with Putin will change a thousand years of Russian mindset, he’ll find out the hard way.”

A senior House GOP aide said, “What happened in the White House today was a disgrace. We are actively emboldening Putin and ceding U.S. strength and global leadership by turning our backs on Ukraine.”

Rep. Mike Lawler, R-N.Y., wrote on X without implicating either side more than the other, “As someone who fundamentally believes that Russia, China, and Iran are not our friends or allies and continues to believe it is important to support Ukraine, it was extremely short-sighted to engage in that type of exchange in front of the US and international press as you work towards an agreement.”

The vast majority of GOP lawmakers who spoke out publicly, however, praised Trump and Vance.

That includes Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., a noted Ukraine supporter, who suggested Zelenskyy may not be the best person to lead the country.

KEY CONSERVATIVE CAUCUS DRAWS RED LINE ON HOUSE BUDGET PLAN

“Gone are the days of foreign leaders walking all over us and snubbing their noses at America’s generosity. There’s a new President and Vice President in town. World leaders would be wise to humble themselves,” Rep. Andy Biggs, R-Ariz., wrote on X.

House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Brian Mast, R-Fla., said in a statement, “America won’t be taken advantage of and America won’t be taken for granted. Thank you, President Trump and Vice President Vance for standing up for America.”

A source close to Vance told Fox News Digital after the meeting that the combativeness during the meeting came from Zelenskyy, and that it was “unexpected” by Trump and Vance.

Rep. Mike Lawler, R-N.Y., said the argument was “short-sighted” but did not blame one side more than the other. (Tierney L. Cross)

“The vice president and president did not expect Zelenskyy to engage in such disrespectful behavior,” the source close to Vance said.

When reached for comment by Fox News Digital, the White House pointed to Trump’s statement on the meeting posted to Truth Social.

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“We had a very meaningful meeting in the White House today. Much was learned that could never be understood without conversation under such fire and pressure,” Trump wrote. “It’s amazing what comes out through emotion, and I have determined that President Zelenskyy is not ready for Peace if America is involved, because he feels our involvement gives him a big advantage in negotiations. I don’t want advantage, I want PEACE. He disrespected the United States of America in its cherished Oval Office. He can come back when he is ready for Peace.”

But former Rep. Adam Kinzinger, R-Ill., a top Trump critic who recently said he’s beginning to identify more with Democrats, wrote on X, “Zelenskyy made Trump look like a little b—-.”

FIRST ON FOX: A group of top Republican lawmakers, MAGA world personalities and key allies of President Donald Trump are descending on Washington D.C., to gather and chart even more accomplishments under his leadership in his first 100 days. 

Republican Sens. Rick Scott of Florida, Mike Lee of Utah, Ron Johnson of Wisconsin, Dan Sullivan of Alaska and Bill Hagerty of Tennessee will be guests at an event next week, hosted by Rescuing the American Dream (RAD), a group run by Scott allies. 

“The First 100 Days: How Conservatives Can Help President Trump Accomplish His Agenda” will also feature Ohio gubernatorial candidate Vivek Ramaswamy and businessman and star of Shark Tank Kevin O’Leary, among others. 

GABBARD SAYS BIDEN ADMIN IGNORED ‘HIGHLY INAPPROPRIATE’ CHATS HAPPENING AT NATIONAL SECURITY AGENCIES

A Rick Scott-tied group is hosting an event with an all-star line-up of MAGA world figures to discuss how they can further assist President Trump to score more wins before his 100th day in office. (Reuters)

“Rescuing the American Dream is looking forward to hosting this event next week to highlight the accomplishments of the Trump Administration and Republicans in Washington and plan for more successes to come. We’re looking forward to hearing from leaders from across Washington and the conservative movement for in depth and insightful conversations,” RAD spokesperson Chris Hartline said in a statement. 

The guests will come together in the U.S. capital over March 5 and 6 to discuss how they can best work with the Trump administration to deliver more wins in the president’s first 100 days, which he will hit on April 30. 

Representatives for Ramaswamy and O’Leary did not immediately provide comment to Fox News Digital.

BIPARTISAN DUO LOOKS TO FEND OFF FOOD SUPPLY CYBER THREATS AS GLOBAL TENSIONS PERSIST

Rescuing the American Dream (RAD) is run by allies of Sen. Rick Scott.  (Fox News Digital)

The event will specifically explore how allies can best assist Trump in the crucial budget reconciliation process on Capitol Hill, in American business and manufacturing and through shutting down lawfare in and out of the Department of Justice (DOJ), Fox News Digital has learned. 

SCOOP: INSIDE ELON MUSK’S MEETING WITH THE SENATE DOGE CAUCUS

Trump and Republicans are working out a budget reconciliation package. (Fox News Digital/Trump-Vance Transition Team)

Other speakers include Trump-world familiar faces regulars such as Alex Bruesewitz, campaign advisor to the president and CEO of X Strategies LLC and Senate Leadership Fund (SLF) Executive Director Alex Latcham, as well as Tiffany Smiley, Founder of Endeavor Pac and Political Commentator, Founder and CEO of American Majority Ned Ryun and Sentinel Action Fund President and Founder Jessica Anderson.

TOP INTEL REPUBLICAN TOM COTTON SEEKING RE-ELECTION TO SENATE IN 2026

Trump will mark 100 days in office in April. (AP/Ben Curtis)

After an action-packed first month of his second administration, Trump shows no signs of slowing down. He will mark 50 days in office on March 11, followed by 100 on April 30. 

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With Republican control of both houses of Congress, the president has more ability to usher through his policies than ever before, and many GOP lawmakers are working to do their part and help rack up swift wins for Trump. 

Ukraine President Vlodomyr Zelenskyy departed the White House ahead of schedule on Friday, following a heated exchange with President Donald Trump and Vice President JD Vance that culminated in the U.S. leader showing Zelenskyy the door. 

Zelenskyy was seen hopping into his SUV outside the White House on Friday afternoon after he got into a heated exchange with the president and vice president in a meeting that was intended to bring Ukraine closer to ending a yearslong war with Russia. 

The Ukraine president traveled to the U.S. on Friday to meet with Trump at the White House, just hours after Trump celebrated that a peace negotiation to end the war between Ukraine and Russia was in its final stages. 

The Trump administration, as part of the peace deal, was working to ink an agreement with Ukraine that would allow the U.S. access to Ukraine’s minerals in exchange for support the U.S. has offered the nation since war broke out in 2022. Instead, the deal was not signed and a planned press conference was canceled after Trump asked Zelenskyy to leave the White House, a White House official told Fox News. 

TUNE IN: BRET BAIER INTERVIEWS ZELENSKYY ON ‘SPECIAL REPORT,’ 6 PM ET ON FOX NEWS

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, left, and President Donald Trump meet in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, D.C., on Friday. (Saul Loeb/AFP via Getty Images)

Zelenskyy was scheduled to speak before the Hudson Institute, a D.C.-based think tank, late Friday afternoon, but event coordinators reportedly announced the speech was canceled. 

He is still slated to join Fox News’ Bret Baier for an exclusive interview on “Special Report” at 6 p.m. ET.

TRUMP, VANCE AND ZELENSKYY SPAR OVER RUSSIAN WAR IN TENSE EXCHANGE: ‘VERY DISRESPECTFUL’

The White House meeting grew tense in its final approximate 10 minutes, after Vance said that peace would be reached between Russia and Ukraine through U.S. diplomacy efforts.

“Mr. President, with respect, I think it’s disrespectful for you to come into the Oval Office to try to litigate this in front of the American media,” Vance told Zelenskyy. “Right now, you guys are going around and forcing conscripts to the front lines because you have manpower problems. You should be thanking the president for bringing it, to bring it into this country.” 

“Have you’ve ever been to Ukraine that you say what problems we have?” Zelenskyy shot back. 

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy leaves the White House in Washington, D.C., on Friday. (Getty Images)

“I’ve actually watched and seen the stories and I know that what happens is you bring people, you bring them on a propaganda tour,” Vance continued. “Mr. President, do you disagree that you’ve had problems bringing people into your military? And do you think that it’s respectful to come to the Oval Office of the United States of America and attack the administration that is trying to, trying to prevent the destruction of your country?” 

Zelenskyy continued that under war, “everybody has problems, even you,” and that the U.S. would feel the war “in the future.”

TRUMP SAYS UKRAINE RARE EARTH MINERALS DEAL WILL LEAD TO ‘SUSTAINABLE’ FUTURE BETWEEN US, UKRAINE

“Don’t tell us what we’re going to feel,” Trump shot back at Zelenskyy. 

“You’re gambling with the lives of millions of people,” President Donald Trump said at one point during the exchange with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. “You’re gambling with World War III.”  (Jim Watson, Tetiana Dzhafarova/AFP via Getty Images)

“You’re gambling with the lives of millions of people,” Trump added at another point during the exchange. “You’re gambling with World War III. You’re gambling with World War III. And what you’re doing is very disrespectful to the country, this country.”

Vance interjected, asking Zelenskyy if he had “said thank you once this entire meeting.”

“You went to Pennsylvania and campaigned for the opposition in October — offer some words of appreciation for the United States of America and the president who’s trying to save your country,” Vance said. 

TRUMP AND ZELENSKYY WAR OF WORDS HEATS UP EVEN AS US LOOKS TO WIND DOWN WAR IN UKRAINE 

“The problem is I’ve empowered you to be a tough guy, and I don’t think you’d be a tough guy without the United States,” Trump said before the meeting concluded. “And your people are very brave. But you’re either going to make a deal or we’re out. And if we’re out, you’ll fight it out. I don’t think it’s going to be pretty, but you’ll fight it out. But you don’t have the cards. But once we sign that deal, you’re in a much better position. But you’re not acting at all thankful. And that’s not a nice thing. I’ll be honest. That’s not a nice thing.” 

President Donald Trump and Vice President JD Vance meet with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, D.C., on Friday. (Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)

Trump posted to his Truth Social account shortly after the meeting that Zelenskyy was “not ready for Peace.”

“We had a very meaningful meeting in the White House today,” Trump wrote. “Much was learned that could never be understood without conversation under such fire and pressure.” 

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“It’s amazing what comes out through emotion, and I have determined that President Zelenskyy is not ready for Peace if America is involved, because he feels our involvement gives him a big advantage in negotiations,” he wrote. “I don’t want advantage, I want PEACE. He disrespected the United States of America in its cherished Oval Office. He can come back when he is ready for Peace.”

Zelenskyy posted his own social media post Friday afternoon, profusely thanking U.S. officials for their support. 

“Thank you America, thank you for your support, thank you for this visit,” he posted to X. “Thank you @POTUS, Congress, and the American people. Ukraine needs just and lasting peace, and we are working exactly for that.” 

Fox News Digital’s Diana Stancy contributed to this report. 

During a heated exchange between President Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in the Oval Office on Friday, Ukrainian Ambassador Oksana Markarova appeared distraught with her head in her hand.

The moment was captured in a number of viral photos and videos as Trump questioned Zelenskyy about not wanting a ceasefire with Russia at a live White House press event.

As shaky microphones hovered above the spatting leaders, Markarova lowered her head to her right hand and closed her eyes.

Oksana Markarova, Ukrainian ambassador to the U.S., puts her head in her hand during a heated exchange Friday between President Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy at the White House. (Photo/Pool)

ZELENSKYY BREAKS SILENCE ON SOCIAL MEDIA AFTER FIERY OVAL OFFICE EXCHANGE WITH TRUMP: ‘THANK YOU AMERICA’

President Trump addressed Zelenskyy, saying, “You’re saying you don’t want a ceasefire. I want a ceasefire because you get a ceasefire faster than an agreement.”

The Ukrainian president chimed in, “I said to you … with guarantees. Ask our people about [a] ceasefire, [about] what they think.”

Trump starkly halted the conversation, saying “that wasn’t with me.”

President Donald Trump and Vice President JD Vance meet with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, left, in the Oval Office at the White House Friday in Washington, D.C. (Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)

ZELENSKYY LEAVES WHITE HOUSE AFTER BEING ‘KICKED OUT’ FOLLOWING HEATED MEETING

The leaders were expected to sign a deal sharing Ukraine’s rare earth minerals and discuss a peace deal with Russia when the conversation turned contentious.

After questions were posed by Zelenskyy about diplomacy, Vice President JD Vance reprimanded him for “try[ing] to litigate” in front of the American media, calling his actions “disrespectful.” 

“Do you think that it’s respectful to come into the Oval Office of the United States of America and attack the administration that is trying to prevent the destruction of your country,” Vance asked Zelenskyy.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and President Donald Trump in the Oval Office of the White House Friday in Washington, D.C. (Getty Images)

Sources close to Zelenskyy noted tensions were high prior to the meeting, Fox News Digital previously reported.

Zelenskyy reportedly rejected the mineral security agreement before Friday’s meeting due to the absence of security guarantees protecting Ukraine from another Russian invasion. 

Even though the Ukrainian president warned he would need those assurances to sign the deal, sources said the dismissal angered Trump and Vance.

Just minutes after reporters asked their first questions, the heated disagreement unfolded.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy departs the Oval Office Friday. (Saul Loeb/AFP via Getty Images)

Reporters watched in shock as the meeting came to an abrupt halt, and Zelenskyy was rushed out of the White House.

Minutes later, Trump posted to Truth Social, saying, “President Zelenskyy is not ready for Peace if America is involved, because he feels our involvement gives him a big advantage in negotiations. I don’t want advantage, I want PEACE.”

Zelenskyy subsequently posted to X, thanking America and Trump for their support and allowing the visit.

“Ukraine needs just and lasting peace, and we are working exactly for that,” he wrote in the post.

Oksana Markarova, the Ukrainian ambassador to the U.S., right, is recognized during President Joe Biden’s State of the Union address in the House Chamber of the U.S. Capitol Feb. 7, 2023.     (Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc. via Getty Images)

Markarova was ambassador for roughly a year when Russia invaded Ukraine, thrusting her into the spotlight.

In September, Fox News Digital exclusively reported that House Speaker Mike Johnson wrote a letter to Zelenskyy seeking Markarova’s firing after she allegedly organized a U.S. taxpayer-funded tour of an American manufacturing site for Zelenskyy in Pennsylvania, a key battleground state, ahead of the 2024 presidential election.

Johnson, R-La., said the tour “purposely excluded” Republicans, calling it “election interference.” 

Rep. Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., left, shakes hands with Oksana Markarova, the Ukrainian ambassador to the U.S., during an event unveiling a photography exhibit about the war in Ukraine in 2022 in Washington, D.C.  (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin, File)

“The facility was in a politically contested battleground state, was led by a top political surrogate for Kamala Harris and failed to include a single Republican because — on purpose — no Republicans were invited,” Johnson wrote in the letter.

He said the “shortsighted and intentionally political move” prompted Republicans to “lose trust” in Markarova’s ability to fairly and effectively serve as a diplomat.

Speaker of the House Mike Johnson, R-La., talks with reporters at the Capitol in Washington Jan. 7, 2025.  (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite, File)

“She should be removed from her post immediately,” Johnson wrote.

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The Embassy of Ukraine to the United States of America did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.

Fox News Digital’s Caitlin McFall and Brooke Singman contributed to this report.

Tulsi Gabbard, the new director of national intelligence, thanked President Donald Trump Friday for his “unwavering leadership” after his clash with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy during a meeting in the Oval Office earlier in the day. 

“Thank you @realDonaldTrump for your unwavering leadership in standing up for the interests of the American people, and peace,” Gabbard wrote on X Friday evening, hours after the fiery exchange. 

“What you said is absolutely true: Zelensky has been trying to drag the United States into a nuclear war with Russia/WW3 for years now, and no one has.” 

Tensions increased during the Oval Office meeting between Trump, Zelenskyy and Vice President JD Vance about a potential peace deal between Russia and Ukraine after Zelenskyy said Russian President Vladimir Putin couldn’t be trusted and had breached other agreements.

ZELENSKYY SPEAKS OUT AFTER PUBLIC SPAT WITH TRUMP, VANCE, SAYS DUSTUP ‘BAD FOR BOTH SIDES’

Trump and Vice President JD Vance then accused Zelenskyy of not being grateful for the support the U.S. has provided over the years and said the Ukrainian leader was in a “bad position” at the negotiating table. 

Donald Trump with Tulsi Gabbard at a campaign event in August.  (Scott Olson/Getty Images)

“You’re playing cards,” Trump said. “You’re gambling with the lives of millions of people. You’re gambling with World War III. You’re gambling with World War III. And what you’re doing is very disrespectful to the country, this country.”

After Vance told Zelenskyy Ukraine had manpower and military recruiting problems, Zelenskyy said war means “everybody has problems, even you,” adding the U.S. would feel the war “in the future.”

“Don’t tell us what we’re going to feel,” Trump responded. “We’re trying to solve a problem. Don’t tell us what we’re going to feel.”

Zelenskyy was asked to leave the White House after the exchange, a press conference was canceled and a deal for Ukraine to give the U.S. its rare earth minerals was left unsigned. 

President Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy clashed in the Oval Office Friday.  (AP Photo/ Mystyslav Chernov)

Zelenskyy expressed his gratitude for America’s help after the meeting.

“Thank you America, thank you for your support, thank you for this visit,” he wrote on X. “Thank you @POTUS, Congress, and the American people. Ukraine needs just and lasting peace, and we are working exactly for that.” 

The Ukrainian president told Fox News’ Bret Baier in an interview after the meeting he believes Ukrainian-U.S. ties can be salvaged.

“Yes, of course, because it’s relations more than two presidents,” he said in the exclusive interview on “Special Report.” “It’s the historical relations, strong relations between our people. And that’s why I always began … to thank your people from our people.

Zelenskyy was asked to leave the White House after the tense exchange in the Oval Office.  (AP Photo/ Mystyslav Chernov)

“Of course, thankful to the president and, of course, to Congress,” he said, “But, first of all, to your people … we wanted very much to have all this strong relations and where it counted. We will have it.”

Zelenskyy said he was “not sure we did something bad” when asked about the heated exchange but conceded the dustup was “bad for both sides.”

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Trump also received support from Republicans like Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who said Trump was “standing up for America,” while Democrats like Arizona Sen. Mark Kelly wrote on X, “To be clear, the only winner in this shouting match in the Oval Office is Putin. Almost can’t believe this happened.” 

President Donald Trump reclaimed items seized during a 2022 raid on his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida, which was executed by former special counsel Jack Smith.

Trump staff members were seen loading boxes onto Air Force One at Joint Base Andrews Friday after the Department of Justice (DOJ) returned them to the president’s possession.

“The Department of Justice has just returned the boxes that Deranged Jack Smith made such a big deal about. They are being brought down to Florida and will someday be part of the Trump Presidential Library,” Trump said in a post on Truth Social Friday evening. 

“Justice finally won out. I did absolutely nothing wrong. This was merely an attack on a political opponent that, obviously, did not work well. Justice in our Country will now be restored.”

JUDGE UNSEALS FBI FILES IN TRUMP CLASSIFIED DOCUMENTS CASE, INCLUDING DETAILED TIMELINE OF MAR-A-LAGO RAID

The FBI agents seized 33 boxes of documents in August 2022 from Mar-a-Lago, spurring a legal battle that Trump has called a “scam.” Former Attorney General Merrick Garland appointed Smith to oversee the investigation, resulting in 40 felony counts against Trump, including his alleged violation of the Espionage Act, making false statements to investigators and conspiracy to obstruct justice. 

Trump staffers load boxes containing items removed from Mar-a-Lago during the FBI raid of the estate in 2022. (Pool)

The FBI at the time told a judge there was “probable cause to believe” that classified documents at Mar-a-Lago were being improperly stored and that investigators would find “evidence of obstruction.” 

Trump pleaded not guilty to the charges and slammed the case as an “Election Inference Scam” promoted by the Biden administration and “Deranged Jack Smith.”

“The FBI is giving the President his property back that was taken during the unlawful and illegal raids,” White House communications director Steven Cheung said. “We are taking possession of the boxes today and loading them onto Air Force One.”

TRUMP LAWYERS CLAIM MAR-A-LAGO SEARCH DONE WITHOUT PROBABLE CAUSE AS PROSECUTORS SLAM ‘CONSPIRACY THEORY’

President Donald Trump (Getty)

Trump counselor Alina Habba told reporters during a gaggle Friday the boxes were with the FBI and contained personal items.

For example, Habba said the FBI raided Trump’s son Barron’s closet and wife Melania’s closet and went through drawers, making a mockery of the justice system.

She reiterated that personal items like pictures, newspaper articles and things “completely irrelevant” to lawsuits were removed from the home and are now being returned to Trump.

FEDERAL JUDGE POSTPONES TRUMP’S CLASSIFIED RECORDS TRIAL WITH NO NEW DATE

Returning the items to the president, she explained, brought the issue full circle.

“I personally actually carried some of the boxes with the team to get them back to where they belong, which is where they were unlawfully taken from, and that is Florida,” Habba said. “So, it is truly an honor and full circle to be on this trip.

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“The boxes are going back, and frankly, this was a hoax, as we knew. So, I think that the biggest message in America today is that justice is going to be restored.”

FIRST ON FOX: Republicans are demanding records showing the extent to which the Biden administration used taxpayer money to defend its position that student-athletes are employees of the universities for which they play.

Representatives Tim Walberg, R-Mich., and Rick Allen, R-Ga., made the request in a letter to Marvin Kaplan, the National Labor Relations Board’s (NLRB) newly appointed chairman, and acting General Counsel William Cowen. They demanded a full accounting of the expenditures incurred during the Biden administration’s years-long case against the University of Southern California, the Pac-12 Conference and the NCAA.

President Joe Biden’s NLRB argued the entities intentionally obscured the rights of college athletes by labeling them “student-athletes” and not “employees.”    

The request for expenditure reports from Walberg, who chairs the House Committee on Education and Workforce, and Allen, who chairs the House Subcommittee on Health, Employment, Labor and Pensions, comes as there is a growing appetite on Capitol Hill to enact reforms for the NCAA’s new name, image and likeness (NIL) rules. 

COLLEGE FOOTBALL COUNTRY SEEKS KEY TAX EXEMPTION FOR ATHLETES TO ENHANCE RECRUITMENT, BOOST TEAM CONTINUITY

Representatives Tim Walberg, R-Mich., and Rick Allen, R-Ga., want a full accounting of how much the Biden administration spent on defending the labor rights of student-athletes, arguing it is important information as Congress contemplates potential reforms.  (Getty Images)

The rule change allowed student-athletes to profit from their NIL, which was previously prohibited by the NCAA. Walberg and Allen’s letter said the expenditure records will “provide important assistance to Congress in determining whether legislative changes are warranted.”

“The Committee is concerned that the Biden-Harris NLRB spent significant taxpayer resources pursuing a case meant to curry favor with union interests for nearly three years,” the letter states. “The outcome could have upended intercollegiate athletics and stripped numerous scholarship opportunities from American students.”

The NLRB’s general counsel during the Biden administration, Jennifer Abruzzo, issued a September 2021 memo explaining that the National Labor Relations Act, the nation’s primary federal law protecting union organizing, “fully support[s] the conclusion that certain Players at Academic Institutions are statutory employees.” The announcement came just a few months after the NCAA began letting students profit from NIL after public pressure and state court cases. 

While the change in how college athletes are treated has been welcomed by many, others have been concerned about the move’s potential implications. Earlier this month, the Trump administration rescinded the Biden administration NLRB’s September 2021 memo insisting college athletes be recognized as employees under federal labor laws. 

The Trump administration this month also revoked guidance issued by President Joe Biden on his way out of the White House that required schools to distribute direct NIL payments equally to female and male athletes. 

HOW NAME, IMAGE AND LIKENESS LAWS HAVE CHANGED COLLEGE SPORTS

Aaron Withe, an expert in government unionization and a former college athlete, said he fears continued momentum toward viewing college athletes as strictly employees will destroy college sports. 

A player announces his choice to sign with the USC Trojans on National Signing Day at Long Beach Poly High School in Long Beach, Calif.  (Chris Williams/Icon Sportswire/Corbis/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

“Are unions going to step in between a coach and their athletes for yelling at the players, or because practice went long or because they’re making them run an exceptional amount of lines?” Withe wondered. “If you’re represented by a union, they’re now your bargaining agent. You have no ability to go represent yourself in anything with the university if it is deemed they are your employer. You’ve got no ability to go negotiate with them anymore.”

Withe pointed out that the move could also lead schools to cut sports programs if they are not generating enough revenue, will affect the long-held tradition that meritocracy is the root of athletic competition and increase the financial burden on schools hoping to keep their athletic programs competitive.

“Public institutions, they’re already forking over a cost for the NIL deals. Providing college athletes the same protections as typical employees is just going to increase their tax burden because it’s going to be paying players that ordinarily wouldn’t be getting paid. Schools are going to be forced to pay those guys, so there’s going to be a bigger tax bill associated with it,” Withe said.

FORMER MIAMI BASKETBALL COACH JIM LARRANAGA LEFT ‘EXHAUSTED’ BY NIL’S IMPACT ON COLLEGE SPORTS 

“Attracting top-tier talent is going to be the hardest thing,” he added. “Because you’ve got a contract among all of your athletes — let’s say, for football or basketball or whatever — you can’t then go and bring in a superstar, a stud quarterback, because you can’t pay them the same level that you could without the union. … Basically, money would sort of have to go over to the bigger revenue-generating sports to compensate everyone equally.”

The letter from Walberg and Allen added that, under an employee-employer relationship, student-athletes could be forced to start paying federal taxes on any scholarship funds they receive.

St. John Bosco football stars simulate signing their letters of intent during a National Signing Day event in Bellflower Dec. 31, 2022. (Brittany Murray/MediaNews Group/Long Beach Press-Telegram via Getty Images)

Proponents of the move to classify college athletes as employees say it is high time student-athletes begin getting their piece of the financial pie. 

“Colleges and universities have profited off student athletes for decades. It’s the government’s job — not its burden — to make sure student athletes’ rights are respected and they get their fair share,” Karla Walter, senior fellow for Inclusive Economy at the Center for American Progress, told Fox News Digital.

“The Senate and House labor committees should be more worried about the fact that the Trump administration has effectively shuttered the agency charged with enforcing most Americans’ labor rights.”

EX-NFL COACH JON GRUDEN RIPS STATE OF COLLEGE SPORTS

Walter added that unionization is viewed favorably among those who don’t have the option to be in one.

“Half of non-union workers say they would join a union if they could, but unionization rates hover around 6% in the private sector,” she said. 

“Student-athletes generate tens of millions of dollars for their universities,” said Andrew Stettner, director of economy and jobs at The Century Foundation. “Just like anyone else whose labor enriches a broader entity, they have a right under the National Labor Relations Act to collectively bargain for things like revenue sharing, workplace conditions and protections from injury,”

President Donald J. Trump alongside an image of young athletes (Gregory Rec/Portland Press Herald via Getty; Trump-Vance Transition Team)

Last year, the GOP-controlled Committee on Education and Workforce passed legislation to prevent college athletes from being considered employees, but it went no further. Texas GOP Sen. Ted Cruz, a proponent of NIL reform, has signaled plans to reform the system.

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There is no current federal legislation on the books regulating the NIL framework. However, numerous states have enacted laws to permit NIL payments for recruiting, with the first coming in 2019, two years before the NCAA bowed to pressure and changed its rules. 

“Right now, the current world of college sports is the wild West,” Cruz said during a podcast in November. “Name image and likeness, open transfer portals. We are going to address it.”

Russia-Ukraine peace negotiations came to a screeching halt Friday after an Oval Office meeting between President Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy erupted in anger. 

The world is now left wondering where negotiations go from here and whether the two world leaders can repair their relationship enough for the U.S. to broker peace. Some say Europe may need to step up and get involved to help end the hostilities, while others think Zelenskyy either needs to do major damage control or step down. 

“It is hard to foresee what happens next,” one European official told Fox News Digital. “The optics of it were simply terrible. … This is another sign for Europe to get its act together and support Ukraine. Mobilize Russia’s foreign assets. Purchase arms for Ukraine. Increase defense spending this year. Move forward with EU membership. There are things Europe can do to help Ukraine build leverage.” 

Trump said he did not believe Zelenskyy was “ready” for U.S. involvement in the peace process, and Republicans who once supported aiding Ukraine’s fight against Russia seem to have grown tired of the Ukrainian leader. 

TUNE IN: BRET BAIER INTERVIEWS ZELENSKYY ON ‘SPECIAL REPORT,’ 6 PM ET ON FOX NEWS

Russia-Ukraine peace negotiations came to a screeching halt Friday after an Oval Office meeting between President Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy erupted in anger.  (Reuters/Brian Snyder   )

Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., a one-time staunch supporter of Ukraine, said after the meeting that the war-torn nation may need to seek a new leader who can work with Trump. 

“The question for me, for the Ukrainian people … I don’t know if Zelensky can ever get you where you want to go with the United States. Either he dramatically changes or you gotta get someone new,” said Graham. 

Another former State Department official said Europe needs to have an “emergency meeting” to figure out how to move forward. 

“I think we’re gonna have to see an emergency meeting of the Europeans with the United States, and I think there’s gonna have to be a little bit of a cooling down right now between Zelenskyy and the U.S.,” said Joel Rubin, a deputy assistant secretary of state during the Obama administration. 

TRUMP SAYS ZELENSKYY CAN ‘COME BACK WHEN HE IS READY FOR PEACE’ AFTER FIERY WHITE HOUSE EXCHANGE

“That Oval meeting was either the bane of Zelenskyy’s political career or the bane of Ukraine,” said former Rep. Mike Garcia, a Republican who served as an informal liaison between Speaker Mike Johnson and rank-and-file House members on Ukraine. “One of those two will cease to exist in the next few months.”

He added that Friday’s spat was a natural result of Zelenskyy operating under a “blank check mentality.” 

“The pill that Zelenskyy seems to not have swallowed yet is that he’s not going to get everything that he wants,” Garcia told Fox News Digital. “He was humiliated on the global stage in a time when his people needed him to be a little more gracious and grateful for this stuff that he’s gotten.

Russian President Vladimir Putin delivers his address to the nation in Moscow March 23, 2024. (Mikhail Metzel/Pool/AFP via Getty Images)

“He needs to come back and say he is very grateful for what he has gotten, say ‘I am alive because of the United States. I’m willing to sit down and negotiate in good faith for a peace agreement that may not yield everything that I want and may not, you know, certainly won’t get us to the borders that we had in 2012-2013 before the Crimea invasion.’”

The White House was taken by surprise at Zelenskyy’s “combativeness” after President Donald Trump accused him of being a “dictator” last week and invited him to the White House to sign a mineral deal this week. 

SCOOP: GOP UKRAINE SUPPORTERS ALARMED AFTER EXPLOSIVE TRUMP, ZELENSKYY MEETING

“The president and vice president did not expect Zelenskyy to engage in such disrespectful behavior,” a source close to Vance said. 

The testy White House meeting was cut short as aides escorted Zelenskyy off the premises before closed-door negotiations had even begun. 

“You don’t have the cards right now. With us, you start having cards,” Trump told Zelenskyy.

Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., speaks outside the White House after the Oval Office meeting between Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and U.S. President Donald Trump in Washington, D.C., Feb. 28, 2025. (Reuters/Nathan Howard)

Vance accused Zelenskyy of trying to litigate their issues in front of the U.S. media.

“Offer some words of appreciation for the United States of America and the president who’s trying to save your country, please,” Vance told Zelenskyy.

“Have you ever been to Ukraine? Have you seen the problems we have? Come once,” the Ukrainian president replied. 

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Trump announced after the meeting that Zelenskyy may return to the Oval Office “when he is ready for peace.” 

“We had a very meaningful meeting in the White House today. Much was learned that could never be understood without conversation under such fire and pressure,” Trump wrote. 

“It’s amazing what comes out through emotion, and I have determined that President Zelenskyy is not ready for Peace if America is involved, because he feels our involvement gives him a big advantage in negotiations. I don’t want advantage, I want PEACE. He disrespected the United States of America in its cherished Oval Office. He can come back when he is ready for Peace.”

Iowa Republican Gov. Kim Reynolds signed a bill on Friday that removes protections for transgender people in the state’s civil rights code. 

While not every state has protections for transgender people, Iowa Democrats added them to the civil rights code in 2007. 

Iowa is the first state to remove gender identity protection from its state civil rights code. 

The new law follows President Donald Trump’s executive orders only recognizing two sexes, restricting sex change operations and restricting trans people in the military, as well as state efforts to ban trans women from women’s bathrooms and women’s sports. 

TRUMP ORDER RESTRICTING SEX-CHANGE PROCEDURES FOR MINOR IN LINE WITH ‘DO NO HARM,’ DOCTOR SAYS

Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds signed a bill on Friday that removes protections for transgender people in the state’s civil rights code.  (AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall, File)

The bill also defines male and female based on the person’s reproductive organs at birth. 

Iowa’s civil rights code will still include protections for race, color, creed, sex, sexual orientation, religion, national origin and disability status.

Reynolds described the bill in a video she uploaded to X on Friday. 

“Today I’m signing into law a bill that safeguards the rights of women and girls,” she said. “It’s commonsense to acknowledge the obvious biological differences between men and women. In fact, it’s necessary to secure genuine equal protection for girls. It’s why we have men and women’s bathrooms, but not men and women’s conference rooms. Girls’ and boys’ sports, but not girls’ math, boys’ math.” 

She said that “these commonsense protections were at risk because, before I signed this bill, the civil rights code blurred the biological line between the sexes.” 

Protesters fill the Iowa State Capitol in Des Moines, Iowa, on Thursday to denounce a bill that would strip the state civil rights code of protections based on gender identity. (AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall)

Reynolds acknowledged that it is a “sensitive issue for some, many of whom have heard misinformation about what this bill does. The truth is that it simply brings Iowa in line with the federal civil rights code, as well as most states.”

She added that every Iowan, “without exception, deserves respect and dignity. We are all children of God and no law changes that.” 

Trump signaled his approval of the law on Thursday, shortly before it was signed. 

PENTAGON SAYS TRANSGENDER TROOPS ARE DISQUALIFIED FROM SERVICE WITHOUT AN EXEMPTION 

“Iowa, a beautiful State that I have won BIG every time, has a Bill to remove Radical Gender Ideology from their Laws,” Trump wrote on Truth Social. “Iowa should follow the lead of my Executive Order, saying there are only two genders, and pass this Bill – AS FAST AS POSSIBLE. Thank you Iowa!”

Critics of the law say it will allow transgender people to be discriminated against in all aspects of life. 

Democratic Iowa state Rep. Aime Wichtendahl reacts after speaking during a debate on the bill on Thursday. (AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall)

Democratic Iowa state Rep. Aime Wichtendahl, who identifies as a transgender woman, said, “The purpose of this bill and the purpose of every anti-trans bill is to further erase us from public life and to stigmatize our existence. The sum total of every anti-trans and anti-LGBTQ bill is to make our existence illegal.”

Protesters also filled the state Capitol’s rotunda on Thursday, holding up signs like “Trans rights are human rights” and shouting, “No hate in our state!” 

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Keenan Crow, who directs policy and advocacy for the LGBTQ advocacy group One Iowa, told The Associated Press that the group will take any legal action “available,” adding that they’re still trying to understand how the law will be enforced. 

All Democrats in the state House and Senate voted against the bill and were joined by five House Republicans. 

The law goes into effect July 1. 

The Associated Press contributed to this report. 

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

Here’s what’s happening…

-Here’s who Biden blames for his 2024 election loss, Trump divulges after private convo

-‘Fired me illegally’: Emotional ex-USAID employees leave building with belongings after mass layoffs

-‘Great job’ or ‘no idea what he’s doing’? Elon Musk email sets Capitol Hill ablaze

Off the rails at the White House

Conversations about a peace deal between Ukraine and Russia came to a screeching halt Friday after a tense meeting between President Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy led to a canceled press conference, a minerals deal off the table and Trump asking the Ukrainian president to leave, a White House official confirmed.  

Trump accused Zelenskyy of “disrespecting” the U.S. during their meeting Friday and said the Ukrainian leader was not ready to secure peace for his country. 

“I have determined that President Zelenskyy is not ready for peace if America is involved, because he feels our involvement gives him a big advantage in negotiations,” Trump said in a Truth Social post Friday. “I don’t want advantage, I want PEACE. He disrespected the United States of America in its cherished Oval Office. He can come back when he is ready for Peace.”…Read more

President Donald Trump and Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy meet in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, D.C., Feb. 28, 2025.  (Getty Images)

Trump v. Zelenskyy

‘YOU’VE TALKED TOO MUCH’: Trump, Vance and Zelenskyy spar over Russian war in tense exchange: ‘very disrespectful’

‘SIDING WITH DICTATORS’: Furious Dems attack Trump, Vance after explosive Oval Office meeting: ‘Siding with dictators’

Trump and Zelenskyy were involved in an Oval Office shouting match on Friday (Fox News )

MANY ‘THANKS’: Zelenskyy breaks silence on social media after fiery Oval Office exchange with Trump: ‘Thank you America’ 

‘DISGRACE’: GOP Ukraine supporters alarmed after explosive Trump, Zelenskyy meeting

White House

‘TERRORISTS’: White House touts extradition of cartel figures amid Trump admin crackdown

World Stage

FINANCING TERROR: Illegal immigrant ISIS operative charged with financing terror, firearms violations and immigration fraud

Mansuri Manuchekhri, 33, pictured with firearms. Manuchekhri is accused of proving support to the Islamic State terror group, as well as immigration fraud. (Justice Department )

Capitol Hill

‘DETERRENCE’: Top House Republican threatens to expose CCP officials if China invades Taiwan

‘MASTER DEALMAKER’: Inside Trump’s budget bill victory amid House GOP rebellion

‘CHAOTIC’: Democratic lawmaker demands Musk, OPM stop sending mass emails to staffers

Across America 

TICK TOCK: Pam Bondi sends fiery note to Kash Patel accusing FBI of withholding docs

‘SUPERCHARGE’: Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy to ‘streamline’ FAA hiring process amid air traffic control shortage

LOOKING THE OTHER WAY: Gabbard says Biden admin ignored ‘highly inappropriate’ chats happening at national security agencies 

Gabbard was one of several women cabinet members at the meeting.  (Getty Images)

‘INSUFFICIENT FUNDING’: Biden-era Coast Guard failed to ‘consistently’ stop drug smugglers: watchdog

‘FULL COOPERATION’: Virginia gov promises ‘full cooperation’ with ICE to deport illegal immigrants

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

Vice President JD Vance shared that although he was “surprised” by Pope Francis’ criticism on the Trump administration’s immigration policy, he believes the pontiff is “fundamentally a person who cares about the flock of Christians.”

While speaking at the National Catholic Prayer Breakfast in Washington, D.C., on Friday, Vance – a convert to Catholicism – said that although he disagrees with Francis and some Catholic bishops on certain stances, he and his children pray for the pope daily.

Francis, 88, is currently suffering from pneumonia and an infection in both lungs and is being treated in Rome’s Gemelli Hospital. 

Earlier this month, Francis issued a major rebuke of the Trump administration’s plans for the mass deportations of migrants, stressing that the forceful removal of people simply for their immigration status deprives them of their inherent dignity and “will end badly.”

US CONFERENCE OF CATHOLIC BISHOPS SUES TRUMP OVER IMMIGRATION, REFUGEE FUNDING FREEZE

Vice President JD Vance speaks at the National Catholic Prayer Breakfast in Washington, DC, on Feb. 28, 2025.

Francis wrote a letter to the U.S. bishops, in which he appeared to criticize Vance’s religious argument in defense of the deportation policies.

Despite this, Vance shared a message of unity between Catholics and Christians, saying, “I don’t think it’s good for us as Christians to constantly fight with one another over every single controversy in the church.”

“Sometimes we should let this stuff play out a little bit and try to live our faith as best we can, under the dictates of our faith and under the dictates of our spiritual leaders but not hold them to the standards of social media influencers because they’re not,” he added. “My goal is not to litigate when I’m right and when they’re wrong or vice versa. My goal is to maybe articulate the way that I think about being a Christian in public life when you also have religious leaders in public life who have a spiritual duty to speak on the issues of the day.”

The vice president even led attendees in a prayer for the pope.

POPE FRANCIS’ CONDITION IMPROVING BUT WILL REMAIN ‘GUARDED’ UNTIL HE IS STABLE FOR SEVERAL DAYS: VATICAN

Pope Francis waves from his popemobile after the weekly Angelus prayers, at Saint Peter’s Square in the Vatican on October 20, 2024. (Filippo Monteforte/AFP/Getty)

“I believe that the pope is fundamentally a person who cares about the flock of Christians under his leadership, and he’s a man who cares about the spiritual direction of the faith,” said Vance. “Every day me and my children have said a prayer for the Holy Father, and we pray for his health, and we pray for his comfort as he deals with what appears to be a pretty serious health crisis.”

He shared a significant memory of his of the pope’s message of courage and hope in the earliest days of the COVID-19 Pandemic, which began just weeks after his daughter’s birth.

VANCE VOWS TRUMP ADMINISTRATION WILL BE ‘BIGGEST DEFENDERS OF RELIGIOUS LIBERTIES,’ CATHOLICS

“I will always remember the Holy Father, whether he makes his way through this illness – and I certainly hope that he does – I will always remember the Holy Father in March of 2020, at a time of incredible stress for really the entire world … the Holy Father standing in an empty Saint Peter’s Square, holding the Eucharist above his head and giving a sermon that I return to consistently, because it was incredibly meaningful to me at the time, [and] it remains meaningful today.”

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Concluding, Vance said, “If the Holy Father can hear us, I hope he knows that there are thousands of faithful Catholics in this room and millions of faithful Catholics in this country who are praying for him as he weathers his particular storm.”

Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., called for Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to resign on Friday after a disastrous Oval Office meeting with President Donald Trump and Vice President JD Vance, after which the president asked him to leave. 

“He either needs to resign and send somebody over that we can do business with, or he needs to change,” Graham, a longtime advocate for Ukraine and foreign policy hawk, told reporters at the White House. 

The South Carolina Republican called the Friday meeting a “complete utter disaster.”

TRUMP SAYS ZELENSKYY CAN ‘COME BACK WHEN HE IS READY FOR PEACE’ AFTER FIERY WHITE HOUSE EXCHANGE

Lindsey Graham said Zelenskyy needs to either resign or change because Americans may not be willing to do business with him. (Reuters)

“I have never been more proud of the president. I was very proud of JD Vance standing up for our country,” Graham said. 

He slammed the “disrespectful” Oval Office display from Zelenskyy, going as far as saying, “I don’t know if we can ever do business with Zelenskyy again.”

According to the senator, he doesn’t think Americans saw the Ukrainian president as someone they feel comfortable going “into business with,” following the televised dispute. 

TRUMP SAYS UKRAINE RARE EARTH MINERALS DEAL WILL LEAD TO ‘SUSTAINABLE’ FUTURE BETWEEN US, UKRAINE

“The way he handled the meeting, the way he confronted the president was just over the top.”

Graham stressed that the Ukrainian-American relationship is “vitally important.” However, he cast doubt on whether Zelenskyy could ever “do a deal with the United States.” 

“After what I saw, I don’t know.”

FURIOUS DEMS ATTACK TRUMP, VANCE AFTER EXPLOSIVE OVAL OFFICE MEETING WITH ZELENSKYY: ‘SIDING WITH DICTATORS’

President Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy meet in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, DC, Feb. 28, 2025.  (Getty Images)

Following the public fallout between Zelenskyy, Trump and Vance, the Ukrainian president’s speaking event at the Hudson Institute for Friday afternoon was abruptly canceled. 

He is still slated to appear on Fox News’ Special Report at 6 p.m. for an exclusive interview with Chief Political Anchor Bret Baier.

TRUMP, VANCE AND ZELENSKYY SPAR OVER RUSSIAN WAR IN TENSE EXCHANGE: ‘VERY DISRESPECTFUL’

President Donald Trump (C) and Vice President JD Vance (R) meet with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in the Oval Office at the White House on Feb. 28, 2025 in Washington, DC.  (Getty Images)

After the Friday meeting, Zelenskyy wrote on X, “Thank you America, thank you for your support, thank you for this visit. Thank you @POTUS. Congress, and the American people. Ukraine needs just and lasting peace, and we are working exactly for that.”

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He has yet to react to Graham’s call for his resignation. A representative for Zelenskyy did not immediately provide comment to Fox News Digital.

The planned release of the MLK and RFK assassination files has garnered renewed interest amid fallout from the widely panned release of Epstein files by the Department of Justice on Thursday evening. 

In accordance with President Donald Trump‘s executive order in January to declassify files on the assassinations of former President John F. Kennedy, his brother Robert F. Kennedy and civil rights icon Martin Luther King Jr., the Director of National Intelligence (DNI) and the attorney general were expected to release their proposed plan for the declassification of the JFK files on Feb. 7. 

Likewise, in line with the order, the plan to release the RFK and MLK files is expected on March 9. 

EPSTEIN FILES: AG PAM BONDI SENDS LETTER TO KASH PATEL ACCUSING FBI OF WITHHOLDING DOCS

The deadline to establish a plan for the release of the MLK and RFK assassination files is on the horizon after the Epstein files release fallout Thursday evening.  (Getty)

The RFK and MLK files’ release plan deadline comes just weeks after the Department of Justice revealed a batch of Jeffrey Epstein files Thursday, with many of the documents already having been released during the federal criminal trial of Ghislaine Maxwell, Epstein’s former lover and convicted accomplice. The lack of new material provoked criticism of the Trump administration’s handling of the Epstein files – and questions about what the RFK and MLK documents could hold. 

Gerald Posner, author of “Case Closed,” told Fox News Digital he expects “there will be news in there, but it’s not going to be something that turns upside down our understanding of what really happened with those cases.”

After committing earlier this week to release Epstein-related documents sometime Thursday afternoon, U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi sent FBI Director Kash Patel a fiery letter accusing federal investigators in New York of withholding thousands of pages of Epstein documents. 

“I repeatedly questioned whether this was the full set of documents responsive to my request and was repeatedly assured by the FBI that we had received the full set of documents,” Bondi wrote. “Late yesterday, I learned from a source that the FBI Field Office in New York was in possession of thousands of pages of documents related to the investigation and indictment of Epstein.”

JEFFREY EPSTEIN CONTACT LIST: AG PAM BONDI RELEASES HIGHLY ANTICIPATED DOJ DOCUMENTS

Bondi said she had previously requested the full Epstein file prior to Patel’s confirmation to head the FBI last week, and had received approximately 200 pages of files – fewer than the number of pages released last year as part of a civil lawsuit connected to Maxwell. 

“People’s expectations sort of got too high, based upon the executive order that the president signed,” Posner said on the Epstein file release. 

Bondi said the FBI had never disclosed that those files existed and gave the agency a Friday-morning deadline for the documents to be turned over. 

Attorney General Pam Bondi sent FBI Director Kash Patel a fiery letter accusing federal investigators in New York of withholding thousands of pages of Epstein documents.  (Reuters)

“By 8:00 a.m. tomorrow, February 28, the FBI will deliver the full and complete Epstein files to my office, including all records, documents, audio and video recordings, and materials related to Jeffrey Epstein and his clients, regardless of how such information was obtained,” Bondi wrote. “There will be no withholdings or limitations to my or your access.”

Patel posted on X on Thursday evening, saying, “The FBI is entering a new era – one that will be defined by integrity, accountability, and the unwavering pursuit of justice.”

DEADLINE LOOMS FOR RELEASE OF JFK ASSASSINATION FILES

Patel stated, “There will be no cover-ups, no missing documents, and no stone left unturned – and anyone from the prior or current Bureau who undermines this will be swiftly pursued. If there are gaps, we will find them. If records have been hidden, we will uncover them.”

The FBI director also stated that the agency would be bringing “everything we find” to the DOJ to share the information with the American public, “as it should be.” 

Trump’s declassification executive order came after he promised to declassify the documents upon entering his second term while on the campaign trail. (Pool)

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Trump’s declassification executive order came after he promised to declassify the documents upon entering his second term while on the campaign trail, saying at the time, “When I return to the White House, I will declassify and unseal all JFK assassination-related documents. It’s been 60 years, time for the American people to know the truth.”

Trump had initially promised to release the last batch of documents during his first term, but such efforts ultimately dissipated. Trump then blocked the release of hundreds of records on the assassination, following several CIA and FBI appeals.

Fox News’ David Spunt and Michael Ruiz contributed to this report.