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The Democratic National Committee (DNC) launched its first-ever ad buy Friday targeting Elon Musk and the millions of dollars he has injected into the Wisconsin Supreme Court race, previewing what could be a broader strategy for the party going forward.

The DNC ad buys, which are slated to run through Tuesday in seven local newspapers across Wisconsin, take aim at the $19 million Musk and his affiliated PACs have spent on behalf of conservative candidate, Brad Schimel, in a high-stakes state Supreme Court election that will determine whether the court retains its current 4-3 liberal majority.

Musk “has threatened Medicare, gutted Social Security services, and now he thinks he can buy himself a seat on the Wisconsin Supreme Court,” DNC Chair Ken Martin said in a statement Friday. “That’s why, today, the DNC is out with our first paid media explicitly calling out Musk for his attempts to meddle in Wisconsin’s elections.”

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

A photo of the DNC’s ad, taking aim at Elon Musk ahead of the Wisconsin state Supreme Court race. The ad will run in seven newspapers ahead of the April 1, 2025 election. (Democratic National Committee )

DNC officials told Fox News Digital that the ads will run in seven local newspapers across the state – the Chippewa Herald, the Manitowoc Herald Times Reporter, the Beloit Daily News, the Daily Jefferson County Union, the Janesville Gazette, the Watertown Daily Times and the Oshkosh Northwestern – and highlight the message, “Wisconsin is not for sale.”

“Wisconsinites deserve a Supreme Court justice who looks out for them, not the ultra-wealthy,” Martin said. “Now and forever, Wisconsin is not for sale.”

The closely-watched state Supreme Court in Wisconsin is already the most expensive judicial election in U.S. history, reaching a total of more than $81 million in spending and far eclipsing the $56 million spent on the state Supreme Court race just two years earlier, according to figures compiled by the Brennan Center for Justice. 

Musk’s two super PACs spent more than $17 million on Schimel’s behalf, while Musk personally donated $3 million to the Wisconsin Republican Party earlier this year – funds that in turn can be used for Schimel’s campaign. 

Wisconsin Supreme Court candidates Brad Schimel and Susan Crawford are seen before a televised debate on Wednesday, March 12, 2025 in Milwaukee. (AP Photo/Morry Gash)

President Donald Trump and Musk have thrown their weight behind conservative candidate Schimel, with Trump himself stumping for Schimel during a Thursday evening tele-town hall event and billing the race as one that could have an “outsized impact on the future of the country.”

“I know you feel it’s local, but it’s not,” Trump said, adding, “The whole country is watching.”

Meanwhile, former President Barack Obama and other notable Democrats have thrown their weight behind liberal opponent Susan Crawford, the current Dane County circuit judge whose campaign has attracted more than $25 million in funding ahead of the race. 

AFTER STINGING ELECTION DEFEATS, DNC EYES RURAL VOTERS AS KEY TO 2026 MIDTERM SUCCESS

Judge Susan Crawford, candidate for the Wisconsin Supreme Court, greets supporters during a campaign stop at the Racine County Democratic Party headquarters on March 23, 2025 in Racine, Wisconsin. (Scott Olson/Getty Images)

Democrats, for their part, see the race as fertile proving grounds to test their attack against Musk as they look to retain a critical state Supreme Court seat in Wisconsin and gear up for the 2026 midterm elections.

The efficacy of the ad campaign in Wisconsin, a that narrowly elected Trump in both the 2016 and 2024 presidential contests, remains to be seen. 

However, it comes as Democrats have struggled to coalesce around a unifying message in the aftermath of the 2024 elections, which could make Musk, and his Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), more attractive targets. 

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Polling numbers in Wisconsin also bear this out. Fifty-three percent of Wisconsin voters said earlier this month that DOGE is disrupting programs required by law, according to a survey from Marquette University Law School, while a slightly lower 47% said the quasi-agency is carrying out Trump’s agenda. 

A larger 59% majority said Trump’s freezing spending and his closing of federal agencies is beyond his governmental authority.  

Sen. Mark Kelly, D-Ariz., fired back after Elon Musk unflinchingly stood behind the decision to label the lawmaker a “traitor.” 

Musk made the accusation earlier this month when replying to a post in which the senator, who is also a Navy veteran and retired astronaut, argued that it is important for the U.S. to “stand with Ukraine.”

When Fox News’ Bret Baier asked Musk why he leveled the accusation, Musk indicated that Americans should care about U.S. interests over those of another nation, adding, “if they don’t, they’re a traitor.”

ELON MUSK TO GIVE TALK IN WISCONSIN AHEAD OF CLOSELY WATCHED STATE SUPREME COURT CONTEST: ‘SUPER IMPORTANT’

Left: White House Senior Advisor to the President and Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk departs the U.S. Capitol Building on March 5, 2025 in Washington, D.C.; Right: Sen. Mark Kelly, a Democrat from Arizona, speaks to members of the media outside the West Wing of the White House in Washington, D.C., on Tuesday, June 4, 2024. (Left: Andrew Harnik/Getty Images; Right: Al Drago/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

“But he’s a decorated veteran, a former astronaut, a sitting U.S. senator,” Baier pressed.

Musk said that does not mean it is “OK” for Kelly to place the interests of another nation over the U.S.

Kelly fired back during an appearance on CNN. 

ELON MUSK, DOGE TEAM OFFER UNPRECEDENTED PEEK BEHIND THE CURTAIN OF TRUMP’S COST-CUTTING DEPARTMENT

“My entire life has been about serving this country,” he declared, asserting that he always supports America’s best interests and “standing with our allies and standing up for democracy is in the best interests of the United States.”

Kelly added that he would categorize Musk as being “much closer to Russia.”

Earlier this month, after Musk called him a “traitor,” the senator announced that he would get rid of his Tesla electric vehicle, saying he did not want to drive a “car built and designed by an a–hole.” 

VETERAN DEM SENATOR DEMANDS HEGSETH RESIGN OVER SIGNAL CHAT LEAK

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“I bought a Tesla because it was fast like a rocket ship. But now every time I drive it, I feel like a rolling billboard for a man dismantling our government and hurting people. So Tesla, you’re fired! New ride coming soon,” he tweeted.

He later announced that his “new ride” is a Chevrolet Tahoe SUV.

Eight inspectors general abruptly fired by President Donald Trump at the start of his second term appeared in federal court Thursday to challenge their dismissals — a long-shot case that nonetheless sparked fireworks during oral arguments.

U.S. District Judge Ana Reyes acknowledged on Thursday that it would be difficult for the court to reinstate the eight ousted inspectors generals, who were part of a broader group of 17 government watchdogs abruptly terminated by Trump in January, just four days into his second White House term. 

In a lawsuit last month, the eight inspectors general challenged their firings as both “unlawful and unjustified” and asked to be reinstated — a remedy that Reyes acknowledged Thursday would be exceedingly difficult, even if she were to find that their firings were unconstitutional.

 “Unless you convince me otherwise,” she told the plaintiffs, “I don’t see how I could reinstate the inspectors general” to their roles.

AXED GOVERNMENT WATCHDOG SAYS TRUMP HAS RIGHT TO FIRE HIM

President Donald Trump signs executive orders in the Oval Office. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)

Reyes suggested that the best the court could do would be to order back pay, even as she told both parties, “I don’t think anyone can contest that the removal of these people — the way that they were fired — was a violation of the law.”

The preliminary injunction hearing comes more than a month after the eight fired inspectors general filed a lawsuit challenging their termination as unconstitutional. Plaintiffs asked the judge to restore them to their positions, noting in the filing, “President Trump’s attempt to eliminate a crucial and longstanding source of impartial, non-partisan oversight of his administration is contrary to the rule of law.”  

Still, the remedies are considered a long shot — and Trump supporters have argued that the president was well within his executive branch powers to make such personnel decisions under Article II of the Constitution, Supreme Court precedent and updates to federal policy.

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

The E. Barrett Prettyman U.S. Court House in Washington, D.C. (Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)

In 2022, Congress updated its Inspector General Act of 1978, which formerly required a president to communicate to Congress any “reasons” for terminations 30 days before any decision was made. That notice provision was amended in 2022 to require only a “substantive rationale, including detailed and case-specific reasons” for terminations.

The 30-day period was a major focus of Thursday’s hearing, as the court weighed whether inspectors general can be considered “principal” or inferior officers. 

The White House Director of Presidential Personnel has claimed that the firings are in line with that requirement, which were a reflection of “changing priorities” from within the administration. 

Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, suggested earlier this year that Congress should be given more information as to the reasons for the firings, though more recently he has declined to elaborate on the matter.

Ana Reyes, nominee for district court judge in Washington, testifies before the Senate Judiciary Committee on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., on June 22, 2022. (Reuters)

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Reyes, for her part, previously did not appear to be moved by the plaintiffs’ bid for emergency relief.

She declined to grant their earlier request for a temporary restraining order — a tough legal test that requires plaintiffs to prove “irreparable” and immediate harm as a result of the actions — and told both parties during the hearing that, barring new or revelatory information, she is not inclined to rule in favor of plaintiffs at the larger preliminary injunction hearing.

Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) head Elon Musk said late Thursday he will be giving a talk to voters in Wisconsin this weekend ahead of the state’s highly anticipated state Supreme Court election. 

“On Sunday night, I will give a talk in Wisconsin. Entrance is limited to those who have voted in the Supreme Court election,” Musk wrote on his social media platform X. 

The billionaire said he would “personally hand over two checks for a million dollars each in appreciation for you taking the time to vote.” 

“This is super important,” Musk added. 

OBAMA VS TRUMP: POLITICAL GIANTS BACK OPPOSING CANDIDATES IN WIDELY-WATCHED WISCONSIN SUPREME COURT CONTEST

Elon Musk looks on during a Cabinet Meeting in the Cabinet Room of the White House on March 24, 2025 in Washington, DC. (BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI/AFP via Getty Images)

Musk announced Wednesday night that a Green Bay man had been awarded $1 million for signing a petition from America PAC – which is funded by Musk – against “activist judges in Wisconsin.” 

Musk said the next million-dollar award would be announced Friday.  

The payment is similar to a lottery that Musk’s political action committee ran last year in Wisconsin and other battleground states before the election in November. 

WATCH: ELON MUSK AND DOGE TEAM GIVE EXCLUSIVE LOOK AT HOW THEY’RE CUTTING WASTE, HANDLE CRITICS

America PAC announced last week that it was offering $100 to voters who signed its petition. Musk did not say that there would be $1 million prizes at that time, nor was it clear who determined the winner of the $1 million or how it was done. 

Circuit Court Judge Brad Schimel, candidate for the Wisconsin Supreme Court, speaks to supporters during a campaign stop in Jefferson, Wisconsin.  (Scott Olson/Getty Images)

The upcoming election on Tuesday – filling a seat held by a liberal justice who is retiring – will determine whether Wisconsin’s highest court will remain under 4-3 liberal control or flip to a conservative majority.

The race is being closely watched, becoming a proxy battle over the nation’s politics, with Trump supporters lined up behind the Republican candidate, Brad Schimel. 

Dane County Circuit Court Judge Susan Crawford, candidate for the Wisconsin Supreme Court, speaks to supporters during a campaign stop at the Racine County Democratic Party headquarters. (Scott Olson/Getty Images)

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The campaign for Schimel’s Democratic-supported opponent, Susan Crawford, has blasted Musk’s $1 million payment as a supposed illegal attempt to buy influence on the court in a state where Tesla, Musk’s electric car company, has a lawsuit pending that could end up before the court. 

Fox News Digital’s Alex Nitzberg and The Associated Press contributed to this report.

FIRST ON FOX: Secretary Robert F. Kennedy’s Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) terminated more than $330 million in National Institutes of Health (NIH) grants related to diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) and gender research in the state of California alone, Fox News Digital learned Thursday. 

“HHS terminated more than $330 million in wasteful research funding to organizations in California that is not aligned with NIH and HHS priorities,” HHS spokesperson Andrew Nixon said in a Thursday statement to Fox News Digital. 

“The terminated research grants are simply wasteful in studying things that do not pertain to American’s health to any significant degree, including DEI and gender ideology. As we begin to Make America Healthy Again, it’s important to prioritize research that directly affects the health of Americans.”

Fox News Digital examined the list of terminated grants, all of which were related to DEI initiatives or gender-related issues, and predominantly were issued to colleges within the California public school system, such as the University of California, San Francisco and UCLA, as well as private colleges and research institutes located in the Golden State. 

HHS SLASHES OVER $350M IN GRANT FUNDING FOR GENDER IDEOLOGY, DEI RESEARCH PROJECTS

Robert F. Kennedy Jr. testifies during his Senate confirmation hearing on Capitol Hill, Jan. 30, 2025. (Rod Lamkey Jr./The Associated Press)

“Harnessing the power of text messaging to reduce HIV incidence in adolescent males across the United States,” one $5,122,427 grant that was awarded to a nonprofit called the Center for Innovative Public Health Research reads, Fox Digital learned. 

“Sex hormone effects on neurodevelopment: Controlled puberty in transgender adolescents,” was the title of a terminated $3,692,048 grant to Stanford University, according to HHS. 

LIBERAL NORTH CAROLINA CITY’S DEI PLAN FOR HURRICANE RELIEF SHUT DOWN BY HUD SECRETARY

“#TranscendentHealth – Adapting an LGB+ inclusive teen pregnancy prevention program for transgender boys,” reads another $1,319,024 grant awarded to the Center for Innovative Public Health Research. 

The University of California, San Francisco’s $2,554,402 grant for “Structural Racism and Discrimination in Older Men’s Health Inequities” also was canceled, Fox Digital learned, as was a $822,539 grant to UCLA called “Buddhism and HIV Stigma in Thailand: An Intervention Study.”

A total of 61 National Institutes of Health research grants focused on gender and DEI in the state of California were canceled. (Ty O’Neil/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)

A total of 61 NIH research grants focused on gender and DEI in the state of California were canceled. 

TRUMP NIH APPOINTEE DEFENDS PRESIDENT’S RESEARCH FUNDING CUTS, LAYS OUT NEW VISION FOR FUTURE

Health and Human Services is canceling millions in National Institutes of Health research grants related to gender and DEI studies. (Adobe Stock)

The grant cancellation announcement comes after President Donald Trump signed a series of executive orders removing DEI initiatives from the fabric of the government following President Joe Biden’s tenure. 

TRUMP ADMIN PAUSES $175M IN FEDERAL FUNDING TO UPENN OVER INCLUSION OF TRANS ATHLETES IN WOMEN’S SPORTS 

Trump, on his first day in office, signed an executive order focused on “ending radical and wasteful government DEI programs” and one focused on restoring merit-based opportunity and “ending illegal discrimination,” which ended DEI practices at the federal level in favor of merit-based systems.

Robert F. Kennedy Jr. visits “The Story With Martha MacCallum” at Fox News Channel Studios. (Jason Mendez/Getty Images)

TRUMP’S ‘MAKE AMERICA HEALTHY AGAIN’ COMMISSION TO TARGET AUTISM, CHRONIC DISEASES

Federal agencies across the board have since worked to gut federal offices of DEI initiatives to abide by the president’s orders. On Friday, HHS announced it had terminated hundreds of other NIH research grants related to DEI and gender that totaled more than $350 million. 

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The research grants included research on “multilevel and multidimensional structural racism,” “gender-affirming hormone therapy in mice” and “microaggressions,” among others. 

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

President Donald Trump late Thursday signed an executive order to end collective bargaining with federal labor unions in agencies with national security missions.

The order cites his authority granted under the Civil Service Reform Act of 1978 and will affect most of the federal government. 

Agencies such as the Departments of State, Defense, Veterans Affairs, Energy, Health and Human Services, Treasury, Justice and Commerce and the part of Homeland Security responsible for border security are just a few listed in the executive order.

TRUMP TO TAKE MORE THAN 200 EXECUTIVE ACTIONS ON DAY ONE

U.S. President Donald Trump displays a signed executive order in the East Room of the White House in Washington, DC, US, on Thursday, March 20, 2025. (Kent Nishimura/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

The need to end collective bargaining with federal unions in these agencies is because of their role in safeguarding national security, according to the order. 

“President Trump is taking action to ensure that agencies vital to national security can execute their missions without delay and protect the American people. The President needs a responsive and accountable civil service to protect our national security,” according to a White House fact sheet regarding the order.

TRUMP’S FIRST 100 DAYS | FOX NEWS

A view of the United States Department of State logo in Washington D.C., United States on January 9, 2023.  (Celal Gunes / Anadolu Agency)

It also claims that “Certain Federal unions have declared war on President Trump’s agenda,” and that the “largest Federal union describes itself as ‘fighting back’ against Trump. It is widely filing grievances to block Trump policies.”

According to the administration, VA’s unions have filed 70 national and local grievances over President Trump’s policies, averaging over one a day since the inauguration.

U.S. President Donald Trump talks to reporters from the Resolute Desk. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

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“President Trump supports constructive partnerships with unions who work with him; he will not tolerate mass obstruction that jeopardizes his ability to manage agencies with vital national security missions,” the White House said.

Police and firefighters will continue to collectively bargain.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin, a Republican, joined Fox News’ “Hannity” to discuss President Donald Trump’s handling of illegal immigration as compared with his predecessor. 

Youngkin’s appearance comes after Henrry Josue Villatoro Santos, a top MS-13 gang member who’d been in the U.S. for over a decade, was arrested in Virginia. 

Santos was taken into custody on an outstanding warrant and was charged with illegal gun possession upon a search of his home. 

Youngkin was instrumental in assisting an interagency task force with the operation, including the FBI and the Department of Justice. 

AG BONDI DETAILS ARREST OF ALLEGED TOP MS-13 LEADER WHO REPORTEDLY JOINED THE VISCIOUS GANG IN MIDDLE SCHOOL

Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin answers questions from the media about his announcement to ban cell phones in K-12 schools in the state during an event at Hampton Roads Planning District on July 9, 2024, in Chesapeake, Virginia. (Kendall Warner/The Virginian-Pilot/Tribune News Service via Getty Images)

In just a few weeks, the task force has arrested 28 MS-13 gang members, 19 Tren de Aragua gang members, and dozens of other members in trans-organized crime. 

Alleged top leader of MS-13 was arrested in Virginia on Thursday, March 27, 2025. ((The Ingraham Angle))

Speaking to “Hannity,” Youngkin chastised Biden for having “turned America into a sanctuary state.” He then praised President Donald Trump’s leadership for having taken a tougher stance on illegal immigration. 

“Today, this collaboration between state police, our Department of Corrections, Homeland Security, the FBI, ICE, and lots of folks from the U.S. Attorney’s Office – we went to work and they brought down one of the top MS-13 operatives in America,” Youngkin said. “And let me tell you, Virginia is safer.” 

Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin and and former President Donald Trump meet ahead of 2024 election.  (Trump campaign)

Youngkin said he did not have this level of cooperation between the state and federal government during the Biden administration. 

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“I didn’t have it for three years. And as soon as President Trump showed up, we went to work,” Youngkin said. “And we’re making America and Virginia safer.” 

The U.S. and Colombia have agreed to partner up to deploy biometric capabilities to help authorities manage migration and stop criminal activity.

U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Kristi Noem met with Colombia Foreign Minister Laura Sarabia in Bogota on Thursday, where the two signed an agreement to utilize biometric capabilities.

“Today we have signed a statement of intent for biometric cooperation, and it will reaffirm our strong, and our resilient, and our enduring partnership,” Noem said after signing the agreement.

The agreement comes just months after President Donald Trump and Colombia President Gustavo Petro clashed over the treatment of Colombians on deportation flights from the U.S.

COLOMBIA LEADER QUICKLY CAVES AFTER TRUMP THREATS, OFFERS PRESIDENTIAL PLANE FOR DEPORTATION FLIGHTS

U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem meets with Colombian Foreign Minister Laura Sarabia in Bogota, Colombia, March 27, 2025.  (Alex Brandon/Pool via REUTERS)

In January, U.S. officials sent two flights of Colombian illegal aliens back to their country of origin, though Petro rejected the flights, saying the U.S. cannot “treat Colombian migrants as criminals.”

Petro also demanded the U.S. establish protocol for the dignified treatment of migrants before his country receives them.

In response, Trump threatened to unleash a slew of punishments, including ordering a 25% tariff on all goods coming into the U.S. from Colombia. After a week, Trump added, the tariffs would rise to 50%. Trump also ordered a travel ban and visa revocations for all Colombian government officials, plus “allies and supporters.”

TRUMP DHS REPEALS KEY MAYORKAS MEMO LIMITING ICE AGENTS, ORDERS PAROLE REVIEW

Colombian Foreign Minister Laura Sarabia gives a joint press conference with U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem after signing a Biometric Data Sharing Program Letter of Intent in Bogota, Colombia, March 27, 2025.  (Alex Brandon/Pool via REUTERS)

Ultimately, the two countries came to an agreement and deportations resumed, though Petro has urged Colombian migrants to return home.

Noem acknowledged Colombia’s efforts to resume the repatriation of migrants, adding that the sharing of biometric data will make the cooperation between the U.S. and Colombia more efficient.

BILLIONAIRES COZY UP TO TRUMP WITH SEVEN FIGURE INAUGURAL DONATIONS AFTER PAST FEUDS WITH PRESIDENT

South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem looks on at the start of a Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee hearing on her nomination to be Secretary of Homeland Security, on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC, on January 17, 2025. (Photo by SAUL LOEB / AFP) (Photo by SAUL LOEB/AFP via Getty Images) (Getty)

“We’re going to strengthen our regional security systems and make sure that we’re disrupting the movement of threatening actors that perpetuate illegal activity and also facilitate illegal trafficking of migrants across the Western Hemisphere,” she said. “Through this expansion of sharing of biometric data, it will be much more efficient, effective, accurate, and it will also build cooperation that will open doors to new ways that we can continue to work together.”

The memorandum of understanding signed by both Noem and Sarabia is intended to strengthen the sharing of migratory information, the latter said, while also ensuring migrants’ dignity and rights are respected.

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Noem was also expected to meet with Petro during her visit.

Fox News Digital’s Andrea Margolis and Landon Mion, as well as Reuters contributed to this report.

The Trump administration was warned by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit on Thursday to not act against transgender military members while a federal judge’s order to block a ban on them was being appealed.

The Department of Defense (DOD) led by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, filed a notice to appeal Washington, D.C.-based U.S. District Judge Ana Reyes’ denial of their motion to dissolve her order that prevents the military from denying transgender people the ability to enlist in the military on Wednesday.

The Biden-appointed judge presided over a hearing on March 21, when she requested the DOD delay its original deadline to enact the policy on March 26.

On March 21, the defendants in the suit, who include President Donald Trump and Hegseth, filed a motion to dissolve the injunction blocking the Pentagon’s ban. The filing argued that the policy is not an overarching ban but instead “turns on gender dysphoria – a medical condition – and does not discriminate against trans-identifying persons as a class.”

FEDERAL JUDGE DENIES TRUMP ADMIN’S EFFORT TO BAN TRANSGENDER PEOPLE FROM MILITARY

The Pentagon is seen from Air Force One as it flies over Washington, March 2, 2022.  (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky)

The Trump administration further requested that, if the motion to dissolve is denied, the court should stay the preliminary injunction pending appeal.

Reyes denied the motion to dissolve, and the Trump administration filed an appeal.

On Thursday, the D.C. Circuit said the purpose of the administrative stay is to give the court enough opportunity to consider the emergency motion for stay while under appeal.

HEGSETH SUGGESTS JUDGE REPORT TO MILITARY BASES AFTER RULING THAT PENTAGON MUST ALLOW TRANSGENDER TROOPS

The court added that the stay should not be construed as a ruling on the merits of the motion.

“If any action occurs that negatively impacts service members under the Hegseth Policy and [Military Department Identification (MDI) Guidance] before the court lifts the administrative stay, the plaintiffs may file a motion to lift the administrative stay, and the court will consider it expeditiously,” the court wrote.

It added that appellees have until noon on April 1 to file a response.

The government cited new guidance issued March 21 that it expected to enact the policy if not for the ongoing litigation. The guidance clarified that “the phrase ‘exhibit symptoms consistent with gender dysphoria’” solely applies to “individuals who exhibit such symptoms as would be sufficient to constitute a diagnosis.”

TRUMP ADMIN ASKS FEDERAL JUDGE TO DISSOLVE INJUNCTION BARRING TRANSGENDER MILITARY BAN

President Donald Trump and Judge Ana Reyes. (Getty/Reuters)

Reyes said she wanted to allow more time for the appeals process. She also said she had previously allowed plenty of time to appeal her earlier opinion blocking the ban from going into effect.

On Saturday, Hegseth said Reyes should report to military bases since she is “now a top military planner.” 

“Since ‘Judge’ Reyes is now a top military planner, she/they can report to Fort Benning at 0600 to instruct our Army Rangers on how to execute High Value Target Raids…after that, Commander Reyes can dispatch to Fort Bragg to train our Green Berets on counterinsurgency warfare,” Hegseth wrote on X. 

On Wednesday, Reyes acknowledged that Military Department Identification Guidance (MIDI Guidance) is new, but the argument presented by the defense is not.

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“Defendants re-emphasize their ‘consistent position that the [Hegseth] Policy is concerned with the military readiness, deployability, and costs associated with a medical condition,’” the judge wrote. “Regulating gender dysphoria is no different than regulating bipolar disorder, eating disorders, or suicidality. The Military Ban regulates a medical condition, they insist, not people. And therein lies the problem.

“Gender dysphoria is not like other medical conditions, something Defendants well know,” Reyes continued. “It affects only one group of people: all persons with gender dysphoria are transgender and only transgender persons experience gender dysphoria.”

Fox News Digital’s Haley Chi-Sing contributed to this report.

The decision by President Trump to withdraw the nomination of Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-N.Y.) as UN Ambassador is about the math.

In so many ways.

Yes. There has been a tight House GOP majority all Congress. And that was a factor. But not the only one.

TRUMP ASKS STEFANIK TO WITHDRAW FROM UN AMBASSADOR CONTENTION OVER RAZOR-THIN HOUSE MAJORITY

In November, House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) said he “begged and pleaded” with Mr. Trump not to recruit any more House members for his administration after Mr. Trump drafted National Security Advisor and former Rep. Michael Waltz (R-Fla.) former Attorney General nominee and Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.) and Stefanik to serve in his administration. It was believed that the Senate was poised in the next week or two to confirm Stefanik as UN Ambassador. She would have resigned from the House immediately. But this would come as the GOP feared losing one if not two of those special elections to succeed Gaetz and Waltz. Plus, if Stefanik resigned, it would take about three months for a special election to hit in upstate New York to fill her seat. And – because of splintering in the New York GOP – there is concern that Republicans could lose that seat in a special election.

But Fox is told that the problem wasn’t so much the potential of losing the special election in upstate New York – but when the VACANCY for that seat would come.

President Trump on Thursday withdrew the nomination of Rep. Elise Stefanik, R-N.Y., as UN Ambassador. (Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)

The House is trying right now pass President Trump’s “big, beautiful bill.” House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) backed off the idea of advancing the bill before Easter.

It frankly will take weeks if not a few more months to pass that bill.

Here’s another parliamentary issue:

Rep. Kat Cammack (R-Fla.) just announced this week she is pregnant and due in August.

REPORTER’S NOTEBOOK: SHOULD THE HOUSE ALLOW MEMBERS OF CONGRESS TO VOTE REMOTELY?

Rep. Anna Paulina Luna (R-Fla.) is now sparring with Johnson over her plan to go over his head and compel the House to allow for remote voting for expectant or new mothers. Luna and the co-sponsor of her resolution, Rep. Brittany Pettersen (D-Colo.), have spoken at length about how tough it is to travel and make votes late in a pregnancy. One source told Fox that Republicans could be worried about losing ANOTHER GOP member if Cammack is unavailable for votes ahead of giving birth – as the House attempts to pass the “big, beautiful bill.”

That, of course, presumes that Luna and Pettersen aren’t successful with their initiative to allow for remote voting.

Reps. Anna Paulina Luna, R-Fla., and Brittany Pettersen, D-Colo., have pushed hard to allow for remote voting by expectant and new mothers. With Rep. Kat Cammack, R-Fla., having recently announced her pregnancy, such a rule change could save Republicans from having their majority further whittled down. (Getty/AP)

Here’s something else to consider:

The president also indicated that Stefanik would return to the House GOP leadership table – although how is unclear. Stefanik previously served as the House Republican Conference Chairwoman. Rep. Lisa McClain (R-Mich.) now holds that position. Multiple senior House Republican sources told Fox all day before the withdrawal that they weren’t aware of anything going on. “I hope not,” replied one member of the House GOP brain trust when asked about a potential withdrawal. And yet now President Trump is shoehorning Stefanik back into the GOP leadership when House Republican leaders appeared to have no clue that the President was about to yank Stefanik’s nomination.

DEMOCRATIC REP. RAUL GRIJALVA DEAD AT 77

Now, here’s something which will cook your noodle.

This is completely hypothetical. But worth exploring.

The House is currently comprised of 431 members. There are 218 Republicans and 213 Democrats. There are four vacancies.

Former Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.) did not take office. Former Rep. Michael Waltz (R-Fla.) resigned. Late Reps. Sylvester Turner (D-Texas) and Raul Grijalva (D-Ariz.) died.

Let’s just say the Republicans – although unlikely – lose the two House special elections in Florida. With Democratic victories, the House would then have 433 members with 218 Republicans and 215 Democrats. Still two vacancies with the deaths of Turner and Grijalva.

But if the Senate confirmed Stefanik, and she resigned, the House would be 217 Republicans and 215 Democrats with three vacancies: Stefanik, Turner and Grijalva.

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However…

Had Turner and Grijalva lived, DEMOCRATS would have control of the House at 218-217 under that scenario. And notably, the House has never flipped in the middle of a Congress.

This is why Johnson pleaded last November for Mr. Trump not to poach any other Republicans from the House.

Attorney General Pam Bondi directed compliance review investigations Thursday into admissions policies at Stanford University and multiple University of California schools.

The investigation, headed by the Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division, will look into diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) policies at Stanford; University of California, Berkeley; UCLA; and the University of California, Irvine. 

After the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Students for Fair Admissions Inc. v. President & Fellow of Harvard Coll., colleges and universities are prohibited from using DEI discrimination in admissions.

Students walk past graffiti near Stanford University President Richard Saller’s office in Palo Alto, Calif., June 5, 2024.  (AP Photo/Nic Coury)

60 UNIVERSITIES UNDER INVESTIGATION BY TRUMP ADMIN FOR ‘ANTISEMITIC DISCRIMINATION AND HARASSMENT’

The Department of Justice (DOJ) is demanding compliance.

“President [Donald] Trump and I are dedicated to ending illegal discrimination and restoring merit-based opportunity across the country,” Bondi said. “Every student in America deserves to be judged solely based on their hard work, intellect and character, not the color of their skin.”

For decades, elite colleges and universities “prioritized racial quotas over equality of opportunity,” according to a news release from the DOJ’s public affairs office.

Students examine graffiti at Stanford University in Palo Alto, Calif., June 5, 2024.  (AP Photo/Nic Coury)

COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY PUNISHES STUDENTS WHO TOOK OVER BUILDING DURING ANTI-ISRAEL PROTESTS

The DOJ claims the practice divided Americans and discriminated against entire groups of applicants.

The Trump administration this week filed an emergency Supreme Court appeal, which, if granted, would allow the slashing of hundreds of millions of dollars in grants from the Education Department.

Fox News Digital reported this week that multiple Virginia colleges cut their DEI departments and initiatives, falling in line with Trump’s executive order directives. 

Stanford University in Stanford, Calif., Sept. 14, 2023. (David Paul Morris/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

The prior administration “advanced the ideology behind this illegal practice and did nothing to protect the civil rights of American students,” the DOJ wrote in the release.

“The Department of Justice will put an end to a shameful system in which someone’s race matters more than their ability,” said acting Associate Attorney General Chad Mizelle. “Every college and university should know that illegal discrimination in admissions will be investigated and eliminated.”

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The compliance investigations into these universities “are just the beginning of the department’s work in eradicating illegal DEI and protecting equality under the law,” according to the DOJ.

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

President Donald Trump signed an executive order on Thursday aimed at restoring what he calls “truth and sanity” in American history by reforming the Smithsonian Institution, protecting national monuments, and countering divisive ideology in public institutions.

Trump’s order directs Vice President Vance to work on eliminating “improper, divisive, or anti-American ideology” from Smithsonian museums, research centers, as well as the National Zoo. 

It also pushes Congress to ensure taxpayer dollars do not fund exhibits or programs that “degrade shared American values” or promote ideologies which divide Americans by race.

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

“Americans have witnessed a concerted effort to rewrite history and force our nation to adopt a factually baseless ideology aimed at diminishing American achievement,” the order states. 

The Smithsonian is criticized in the EO for promoting narratives that claim American and Western values are harmful. Trump specifically calls out exhibits that suggest sculpture has been used to “promote scientific racism” and that the United States has maintained power through racial systems.

A new Executive Order from the Trump administration seeks to end DEI policies at several Smithsonian museums. (MANDEL NGAN/AFP via Getty Images)

The order also takes issue with the National Museum of African American History and Culture, which previously suggested that “hard work,” “individualism,” and “the nuclear family” are aspects of “White culture.”

Additionally, the EO declares that the Smithsonian “celebrate women’s achievements in the American Women’s History Museum and do not recognize men as women.”

SUSIE WILES SAYS TRUMP A ‘DIFFERENT PERSON’ IN SECOND TERM AFTER ‘LAWFARE,’ ASSASSINATION ATTEMPT

The Executive Order also directs the Secretary of the Interior to restore national parks, monuments, and statues that have been “improperly removed or changed” in recent years to fit what it calls a false revision of history. 

Under the Executive Order, agencies must complete restorations and improvements to Independence Hall before our nation’s 250th anniversary in 2026.

U.S. President Donald Trump signs a series of executive orders in the Oval Office at the White House.  ((Photo by Andrew Harnik/Getty Images))

The order also revives Trump’s effort to protect historical monuments from vandalism and establish a National Garden of American Heroes, a project he first proposed on Independence Day in 2020 to honor key figures in American history.

“This administration is committed to ensuring that American history is celebrated accurately, fairly, and with pride,” Trump’s order concludes.

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The Smithsonian did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.

FIRST ON FOX: Mississippi taxpayers will get significant relief with the incremental elimination of the state’s income tax.

Republican Gov. Tate Reeves is signing legislation into law Thursday evening that will lower that tax from 4.7% to nothing over the next few years, including getting it down to 3% by 2030, then eventually down to zero.

House Bill 1, the “Build Up Mississippi Act,” also slashes the grocery tax to 5% from 7%.

REPUBLICAN GOVERNOR SAYS DOGE IS RESTORING OPTIMISM IN FISCAL RESPONSIBILITY

Mississippi Republican gubernatorial candidate Tate Reeves, left, stands with President Donald Trump during a Keep America Great campaign rally at BancorpSouth Arena Nov. 1, 2019, in Tupelo, Miss. (Brandon Dill/Getty Images)

“I am proud to sign into law a complete elimination of the individual income tax in the state of Mississippi,” Reeves said in a statement. 

“Let me say that again: Mississippi will no longer tax the work, the earnings or the ambition of its people. The legislation I’m signing today puts us in a rare class of elite, competitive states. There are only a handful of states in the country that do not tax income. Today, Mississippi joins their ranks, and, in doing so, we plant our flag.”

Proponents of the legislation believe it will help boost economic development in the state. Only nine states do not charge an individual income tax: Tennessee, Florida, South Dakota, New Hampshire, Florida, Nevada, Wyoming, Alaska and Washington.

ICE ARRESTS 16 ILLEGAL MIGRANTS CAUGHT FLEEING OUT BACK OF MISSISSIPPI BUSINESS DURING RAID

Items used to prepare taxes   (Kurt “CyberGuy” Knutsson)

“This is more than a policy victory. This is a transformation. And it’s a transformation that I have believed in, fought for and worked toward for many years,” the governor stated.

“Generations from now, when our kids are raising families of their own in a stronger, more prosperous Mississippi, they will look back on this moment and say, ‘This is when we took our shot.’ To the people of Mississippi, you are the real winners today.”

MISSISSIPPI CITY DROPS LIBEL LAWSUIT AGAINST LOCAL PAPER FORCED TO REMOVE EDITORIAL CRITICAL OF OFFICIALS

The Mississippi governor’s mansion in Jackson, Miss. in October 1971. (UPI/Bettmann Archive/Getty Images)

The state legislature had disagreements on how to best approach tax policy, and a typo considered a happy accident by proponents paved the way for a faster schedule on how soon the cuts can be made, according to The Clarion Ledger. The outlet reported that some Democrats are opposed to the legislation, citing potential concerns about its effect on the public sector.

The new policy comes as major tax changes are being proposed at the federal level. The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 expires this year, and President Donald Trump has pledged to extend it. He is also hoping to make good on a promise to scrap the federal income tax on tipped wages and overtime pay. 

Judge James E. Boasberg, chief judge of the Federal District Court in Washington, D.C., stands for a portrait at E. Barrett Prettyman Federal Courthouse in Washington, D.C., March 16, 2023. (Carolyn Van Houten/The Washington Post via Getty Images)

U.S. District Judge James Boasberg on Thursday ordered all parties involved in the Trump administration’s leaked Signal chat to preserve disclosed messages, giving him additional time to evaluate the administration’s handling of the infamous group chat. 

A lawsuit filed by the left-leaning government transparency group American Oversight asks whether senior Cabinet officials violated federal recordkeeping laws by using Signal to discuss plans for a military strike on the Houthis in Yemen. 

The chat became infamous after it was revealed that top U.S. officials had inadvertently included Atlantic editor-in-chief Jeffrey Golberg for several days of their discussions.

Boasberg said during a 25-minute hearing that the federal government must “preserve all Signal communications between March 11 and March 15,” roughly the window of the communications about the military action in Yemen.

TRUMP REVEALS WHO WAS BEHIND SIGNAL TEXT CHAIN LINK

The Atlantic’s Jeffrey Goldberg published a piece saying he was inadvertently invited to a Trump administration text group chat discussing the White House’s plans to strike Houthi militants in Yemen. (Reuters )

Boasberg, already under fire from the Trump administration for issuing a restraining order that temporarily blocked the president’s use of the 1798 Alien Enemies Act to deport Venezuelan nationals, emphasized at the start of Thursday’s hearing he was randomly assigned to the case through a docket computer system, not by choice.

His remarks came hours after President Donald Trump accused Boasberg on social media of “grabbing the ‘Trump Cases’ all to himself,” a claim Boasberg quickly sought to refute by detailing the court’s random assignment process, including the electronic card system used to distribute cases among judges.

“That’s how it works, and that’s how all cases continue to be assigned in this court,” he said. 

JUDGE TELLS GOVERNMENT WATCHDOGS FIRED BY TRUMP THERE’S NOT MUCH SHE CAN DO FOR THEM

President Donald Trump and U.S. District Judge James Boasberg  (Getty Images)

Boasberg has sparred with the Trump administration over its failure to comply with the court’s requests for information on its deportation flights earlier this month, which sent around 261 migrants, including Venezuelan nationals and alleged members of the gang Tren de Aragua, from the U.S. to El Salvador. 

The flights appeared to have departed from Texas around the time Boasberg issued an emergency restraining order and were not returned to the U.S. despite a bench ruling explicitly ordering their immediate return.

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The Justice Department this week invoked the state secrets privilege in the ongoing court battle, a national security tool that could allow the Trump administration to withhold certain information from the courts for national security purposes.

Most recently, the Trump administration vowed to immediately appeal to the Supreme Court a ruling from the D.C. appellate court, which voted 2-1 to uphold Boasberg’s ruling and allow, for now, the block on Trump’s deportation flights to continue.

Fox News’s William Mears contributed to this report.

The top Republican and Democrat on the Senate’s Armed Services Committee requested the Pentagon’s inspector general probe whether classified defense information was shared on Signal, an encrypted messaging platform. 

“This chat was alleged to have included classified information pertaining to sensitive military discussions in Yemen,” Chairman Roger Wicker, R-Miss., and ranking member Jack Reed, D-R.I., wrote in a letter to acting Inspector General Steven Stebbins. “If true, this reporting raises questions as to the use of unclassified networks to discuss classified and sensitive information.”

The letter was sent Wednesday evening, a committee spokesperson said, after The Atlantic published messages in full that included details about a planned strike on the Houthis in Yemen and revealed a target had been successfully killed when a building he was in collapsed. 

White House officials have insisted the information Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and national security advisor Mike Waltz shared in the chat was not classified. 

TRUMP TEAM’S SIGNAL SNAFU SPARKS DEBATE OVER SECURE COMMS: ‘RUSSIA AND CHINA ARE LISTENING’

The top Republican and Democrat on Senate’s Armed Services Committee requested the Pentagon’s inspector general probe Signal chat. (AP Photo)

Stebbins is the acting Pentagon watchdog after President Donald Trump fired 17 inspectors general, including the Defense Department’s IG, shortly after taking office. 

Wicker told reporters Wednesday he would seek an “expedited” investigation. 

Hegseth’s Signal messages revealed F-18, Navy fighter aircraft, MQ-9s, drones and Tomahawks cruise missiles would be used in the strike on the Houthis.

“1215et: F-18s LAUNCH (1st strike package),” Hegseth said in one message notifying the chat of high-level administration officials that the attack was about to kick off.

“1345: ‘Trigger Based’ F-18 1st Strike Window Starts (Target Terrorist is @ his Known Location so SHOULD BE ON TIME – also, Strike Drones Launch (MQ-9s)” he added, according to the report. 

“1410: More F-18s LAUNCH (2nd strike package)”

“1415: Strike Drones on Target (THIS IS WHEN THE FIRST BOMBS WILL DEFINITELY DROP, pending earlier ‘Trigger Based’ targets)”

“1536 F-18 2nd Strike Starts – also, first sea-based Tomahawks launched.”

“MORE TO FOLLOW (per timeline)”

“We are currently clean on OPSEC” – that is, operational security.

TRUMP NOT PLANNING TO FIRE WALTZ AFTER NATIONAL SECURITY TEXT CHAIN LEAK

Later, Waltz wrote that the mission had been successful. “The first target—their top missile guy—was positively ID’d walking into his girlfriend’s building. It’s now collapsed.”

The Atlantic’s Jeffrey Goldberg, who was unintentionally added to the chat, published an initial story that did not include specifics about the strike he believed to be sensitive. After the White House insisted the information was not classified, he asked them if they would object to him publishing its contents. 

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt responded that they would object. 

“No locations. No sources & methods. NO WAR PLANS,” Waltz wrote on X on Wednesday.

Government officials frequently use Signal to communicate, even for sensitive information, given that they don’t always have quick access to a sensitive compartmented information facility (SCIF). 

National security advisor Mike Waltz and Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth claim no one shared “war plans” in the chat. (Reuters/Brian Snyder)

“This is an approved app. It’s an encrypted app,” Leavitt insisted to reporters Wednesday.

Still, even some Republicans have grumbled about how the situation has been handled. 

Rep. Nick LaLota, R-N.Y., a Navy veteran with a top secret clearance, said adding Goldberg to the chat was “totally sloppy,” and the information shared was either classified “or at the very least highly sensitive.” 

“In the wrong hands, like the Houthis or any of America’s adversaries, this kind of Intel could have jeopardized the mission and put our troops at greater risk,” he told Fox News Digital. “It was wrong when Hillary put all that classified information on an unclassified server. It was wrong when Biden had the sensitive files in his garage. And it’s wrong now.” 

The Senate letter asked for “what was communicated and any remedial actions taken as a result” and an assessment of whether proper policies had been followed related to government officers “sharing sensitive and classified information on non-government networks and electronic applications.” 

It also asked for the IG to probe how the policies of DOD, the intelligence community, the National Security Council and the White House differ on the matter. 

Rep. Nick LaLota said adding Goldberg to the chat was “totally sloppy,” and the information shared was either classified “or at the very least highly sensitive.” (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky, File)

The DOD IG’s office confirmed receiving the letter yesterday to Fox News Digital and said it was in the process of reviewing it. 

Earlier this week, Wicker and Reed said they would “likely” hold a bipartisan hearing on the Signal chat. But given the political nature of the storyline, it may be easier to allow an independent watchdog to conduct a fact-finding mission. 

“This is precisely why independent offices of inspectors general are so valuable. When a situation becomes a hot-button political issue, it’s incredibly helpful to have an objective, nonpartisan group of trained professionals to do the fact-finding and answer the hard questions,” former State Department inspector general Diana Shaw told Fox News Digital. 

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She warned not to expect the IG to give any answers on whether criminal conduct had taken place, and not to expect a quick probe given the crossover of agencies implicated in the chat. 

“It’s very difficult to do anything quickly when it involves the Interagency – an interagency review requires navigation through a complex maze of jurisdictional boundaries. The committee may get some of its questions answered quickly, but it will likely have to wait some time for answers to the more central questions it’s posed.”

Rep. August Pfluger, R-Texas, said that his constituents are feeling optimistic once again about the future of the oil and gas industry in his district and beyond.

The Republican represents parts of central Texas that are critical to the industry, including the Permian Basin, as the Trump administration has famously promised to “drill, baby, drill.”

“Think about the hardworking men and women of the Permian Basin, or the Bakken or the Marcellus, or any other producing area. They were demonized. President Biden said, ‘What you do is evil. You producing oil and gas is evil.’ I mean, they basically demonized them,” he told Fox News Digital in a recent interview.

ENERGY CHIEF SLASHES RED TAPE THAT LED TO 60% COST IN INFLATION, BURDENED WORK IN ‘CRITICAL’ LABS

Rep. August Pfluger, R-Texas, participates in the House Republicans news conference in the Capitol to discuss defunding the Homeland Security Departments Disinformation Governance Board on Wednesday, May 11, 2022.  (Bill Clark/CQ-Roll Call, Inc. via Getty Images)

“So, the outlook was pretty bleak in a lot of places. What President Trump has said is, ‘I hear you, I appreciate you, and we are going to make you and your job the centerpiece of the American economy. We’re going to bring that economy back using the work that you’re doing.’ So the outlook was pretty bleak for a couple of years. And it’s a lot better now.” 

Pfluger touted how the Congressional Review Act, recently signed by President Donald Trump, ended what is considered a tax on natural gas and petroleum production for “waste emissions” put in place during the Biden administration, an effort the Texas congressman helped to lead.

LOWER GAS PRICES AREN’T LUCK. TRUMP’S ENERGY POLICIES ARE FUELING AMERICAN INDEPENDENCE

President-elect Trump has vowed to unleash American energy. (Getty Images)

“So, what President Biden did, both in the [Inflation Reduction Act] and also through the rules that were promulgated by the EPA, was to overreach, and they certainly started to tax the emissions that you see in production of oil and gas – that you see in the transmission of natural gas – that you see in the whole industry,” the Republican said. 

“It didn’t give credit to the industry for the gains that had already been made to reduce emissions over the past decade, which have been very impressive more than any other developed nation in the world,” he added.

“We want to undo the red tape, undo the bureaucratic morass that the Biden administration basically waged war on the industry. They wanted to make it harder to produce affordable, reliable energy. They wanted to tax it. They wanted to make it more expensive,” the lawmaker said. 

AMERICA’S ENERGY FUTURE: BREAKING FREE FROM CHINA’S INFLUENCE

Pipes for the Keystone XL pipeline stacked in a yard near Oyen, Alberta, Canada, on Tuesday, Jan. 26, 2021.  (Photographer: Jason Franson/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

Looking forward, the congressman stressed the importance of codifying the president’s executive orders on energy into law through Congress, as well as creating a “structure” where the industry can thrive in the long term, including setting up a system to make sure a project like the Keystone XL Pipeline cannot be quickly shot down by future administrations.

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“Let’s give people the predictability so that they can invest where we get caught up. And this is the biggest complaint I get, not just in my district but around the country, is that it’s not predictable and they have to compete with the government and they don’t know when the government is going to put a halt to something that they put billions of dollars into,” he said.

Regent’s all-electric boat-plane hybrid project got a major boost from the government this week. 

The Marine Corps Warfighting Lab extended its collaboration with Regent with an estimated $10 million contract on Wednesday, following the successful completion of a $4.75 million contract. 

This new phase of testing will focus on examining its seaglider’s capabilities on medical evacuation missions. 

For CEO Billy Thalheimer, a new era of global conflict centered on the Indo-Pacific represents a “reversion to World War II-style tactics,” and the needs of the Pentagon will be once again focused on maritime operations instead of desert warfare like the war on terror in the Middle East. 

NO SIGNAL, NO PROBLEM: INTELLIGENCE FIRM DEBUTS DRONE TECH EQUIPPED TO BEAT GPS JAMMERS

Regent craft launching at Quonset Point and sea trials on Narragansett Bay, RI. (Regent )

Thalheimer said Regent identified the “capability gap” in the logistics of moving troops and supplies between island chains in the Indo-Pacific. 

“We want something affordable and mass-produced. We do not have enough boats, the nation is working on our shipbuilding capabilities, we want something easy to operate and easy to crew, because it currently takes two years to train a pilot,” he said. 

The seaglider travels up to 180 miles at up to 180mph speed. It can take off and land on water, “eliminating the need for vulnerable runway infrastructure,” according to the company. 

The aircraft is all-electric, which Thalheimer says makes it easier to refuel anywhere there is electricity, rather than having to transport in gas. 

“You think about a gallon of fuel today, you know, $6. If we’re buying it in the U.S., which can go to 100 to $150 when it’s delivered to those, disparate island chains,” he said. 

Regent’s Viceroy, which holds 12 passengers with a 65-foot wingspan, completed a successful sea test on Rhode Island’s Narragansett Bay earlier this month. 

LASERS, SPACE RADARS, MISSILE INTERCEPTORS: DEFENSE LEADERS LAY OUT VISION FOR TRUMP’S ‘GOLDEN DOME’ PROJECT

Regent’s “float, foil, fly” motto describes the flight path of the seaglider. First, it floats on the ocean’s surface, then as it picks up speed, it “foils” before flying. (Regent )

Regent’s “float, foil, fly” motto describes the flight path of the seaglider: First, it floats on the ocean’s surface, then as it picks up speed it “foils,” meaning it gliders over the water’s surface with wing-like structures known as hydrofoils, which then retract as it lifts into the air. 

The vehicle leverages “ground effect,” avoiding the turbulence of the sky by hovering just around 30 feet in the air.

The glider’s earth-hugging flight path is also designed to avoid enemy radar.

“There’s this great opportunity to fly below radar, but really above sonar in this hard-to-see space.”

One key mission Regent hopes to fulfill is medical evacuations, given the quick turn-around its seagliders can have from floating on the sea near a port to flying. 

Regent has submitted its design basis agreement (DBA) to the Coast Guard for its Viceroy seaglider to the Coast Guard and expects approval next year. 

Regent aims to use its seagliders for resupply and medevac in theaters where travel between missions and bases is over the sea.  (Regent)

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“We are incredibly proud to extend our collaboration with the U.S. Marine Corps Warfighting Lab and continue to validate how REGENT’s high-speed, low-signature, low-cost seagliders will enable defense missions,” said Tom Huntley, VP of Government Relations and Defense at REGENT. “The second phase of our agreement will demonstrate their use cases for contested logistics operations in the maritime domain, fulfilling a critical national security need.”

The company has garnered over $90 million in investment from investors including 8090 Industries, Founders Fund, Japan Airlines and Lockheed Martin.

FIRST ON FOX: The brother-in-law of a top Democratic senator has repeatedly hosted diplomats working on behalf of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) at his office and recruited multiple Chinese businesses to lease office space as part of his family’s sprawling real estate empire, a Fox News Digital review found.

Anthony “Tony” Malkin is the Harvard-educated brother-in-law of Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., and the chairman and CEO of Empire State Realty Trust, Inc., which includes nearly 600 tenants and 732 residential units. He has hosted multiple consuls general of the People’s Republic of China in New York dating back over 15 years and reportedly traveled to China to recruit companies to lease office space in New York City.

In 2011, Chinese state media outlet China Daily published a profile piece on Chinese companies helping boost office rentals overseas in the United States. Malkin, the brother of Sen. Blumenthal’s wife, Cynthia, was featured in the profile that noted how he “recently visited China to find tenants, hoping to benefit from the previous flood of Chinese buyers of commercial housing who are now spilling into the office rental market.”

The profile piece continued by highlighting how Malkin “secured leases” with multiple Chinese companies, including state-owned Air China LTD, Hong-Kong-based telecommunications company PCCW-HKT DataCom Services Ltd, and People’s Daily Online, which is controlled by People’s Daily, the Chinese propaganda network directly run by the CCP’s Central Committee, according to the China Media Project. 

COZY TIES BETWEEN TOP NEWSOM ALLY AND CCP OFFICIAL UNEARTHED ON NETWORKING SITE: ‘SHE HELPED ME A LOT’

The brother-in-law of Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., has repeatedly hosted diplomats working on behalf of the Chinese Communist Party at his office. (Getty/Consul General Chen Li via X)

The China Media Project went on to highlight how People’s Daily Online “runs the Chinese Communist Party News Network” and requires applicants applying for jobs to “[love] the party,” which refers to the CCP.

“People’s Daily Online left its space at the Empire State Building nearly a decade ago,” an Empire State Realty Trust (ESRT) spokesperson told Fox News Digital about the former tenant’s lease. “Air China, which is defined as a publicly traded company that is partially owned by the Chinese government, has an office at the Empire State Building, but is only about 3,000 square feet in the 7.8 million square feet of our office portfolio.”

However, a multinational Hong Kong-based group called Li & Fung Ltd, whose chairman has multiple CCP ties, reportedly rented the largest office space from Malkin, according to the 2011 China Daily article. While Li & Fung no longer has the largest office space, it is still currently a tenant of the ESRT, according to financial data reviewed by Fox News Digital. A 2024 ESRT report lists the Chinese company occupying over 149,000 square feet, having multiple leases ending in October 2028 and an annual rent of over $8.3 million.

A Fox News Digital review found that Victor Fung, who has played an instrumental leadership role for several years with the company that his grandfather founded, was a longtime member of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) between 2003 and 2018 and is currently serving as a vice chairman of the China-United States Exchange Foundation (CUSEF). He was also reportedly one of the business executives who met with Chinese President Xi Jinping last year to lay out his vision for Hong Kong becoming a supply chain center for Chinese businesses.

The CPPCC is the “key mechanism for multi-party cooperation and political consultation” under the leadership of the CCP, according to the CPPCC website. CUSEF is the CCP front group founded by Tung Chee-hwa, who served as a vice chair of the CPPCC and has colluded with U.S. leaders to gain influence. Fox News Digital previously exposed how Julia Wilson, a Black public relations consultant, was paid over $1 million by Chee-hwa’s CUSEF to help the Chinese government learn about Black Americans and gain influence with Black universities and leaders.

SCHUMER SPOTTED POSING FOR PHOTO WITH CCP OFFICIAL AS WARNINGS SWIRL ABOUT CHINA INFLUENCE

Tung Chee-hwa, vice chairman of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference. (YouTube/Screenshot)

In addition to securing these leases, Malkin reportedly launched a “China business desk” in an attempt to keep up with the demand of Chinese businesses and was “cooperating with Chinese tour groups,” which was seen as a lucrative business opportunity. However, an ESRT spokesperson pushed back and claimed, “Mr. Malkin had never seen this 2011 article” and added that the quote in the story “is not part of any attributed quote, and not something Mr. Malkin or Malkin Holdings ever did.”

The ESRT spokesperson continued by pointing out that China was a “large growth market” in 2011 for inbound tourism and that Malkin’s business trip to China revolved around that, adding, “On behalf of our stakeholders, ESRT will always from around the world solicit tenants and tourists.”

The China National Tourism Office of New York, which was under the control of China National Tourism Administration, a state-owned travel agency that had overseas offices in several countries and was previously in coordination with the CCP’s chief administrative State Council authority, used to be located in the Empire State Building in the early 2000s until it appeared to have moved locations in 2009. Malkin was the president of Malkin Holdings LLC, the predecessor to Empire State Realty Trust’s REIT, when this office was operating in the Empire State Building. 

‘WARM HOSPITALITY’: UNIVERSITY PRESIDENT HAS REPEATEDLY COZIED UP TO TOP CCP OFFICIALS

Sen. Blumenthal’s office told Fox News Digital that the Connecticut senator “has absolutely nothing to do with any of this.”

“Senator Blumenthal’s wife is one of literally thousands of shareholders in a publicly traded real estate company, and just like the rest of those shareholders, she doesn’t have control over anything this company does. Senator Blumenthal has absolutely nothing to do with any of this,” Blumenthal spokesperson Maria McElwain said. 

“Senator Blumenthal supports a ban on Members of Congress and their spouses as well as the Vice President and President from holding individual stocks,” she continued. “He also voted in favor of the STOCK Act, and supports more stringent measures to further eliminate conflicts of interest.”

In addition to Blumenthal’s brother-in-law leasing out rental space to Chinese companies, he has repeatedly given a major platform to multiple Chinese diplomats working in New York City on behalf of the Chinese government over the last 15-plus years. 

In November, the newly-installed Chinese Consul General Chen Li, who was recently photographed posing with Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., and anti-Trump Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg, posted on his X account that he met with Malkin and looked forward to “working with Tony to promote connections and friendship between our peoples!”

Sen. Richard Blumenthal, a Democrat from Connecticut and chair of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations, speaks during a hearing in Washington, D.C., on Wednesday, Dec. 4, 2024. (Photographer: Al Drago/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

A couple of months later, Chen posted photos and a video of the Empire State Building and touted how “NYC’s icon will Turn CHINESE RED for the 25th consecutive year TONIGHT!”

Chen, like his predecessor Huang Ping, has repeatedly praised the CCP and denied China’s alleged genocide against the Uyghur population, which has been condemned by many on the world stage, including the United Nations. Malkin also had a cozy relationship with Ping while he served as the Chinese consul general between 2018 and late 2024. 

Michael Sobolik, an expert on U.S.-China relations and a Hudson Institute senior fellow, told Fox News Digital that the “Chinese Communist Party is always looking for ways to penetrate U.S. businesses and civil society. We shouldn’t make their job easier for them.”

Ping’s exit from the position occurred shortly after he was referenced dozens of times in an unsealed indictment against Gov. Kathy Hochul’s former deputy chief of staff, Linda Sun, who was charged “with violating and conspiring to violate the Foreign Agents Registration Act, visa fraud, alien smuggling, and money laundering conspiracy,” according to a Justice Department press release. 

Now-former Chinese Consul General Huang Ping, left, and Chairman, President and CEO of Empire State Realty Trust, Inc. Anthony E. Malkin light the Empire State Building in celebration of the Lunar New Year at the Empire State Building on Jan. 20, 2023 in New York City. (Photo by John Lamparski/Getty Images for Empire State Building)

The indictment revealed then-Lt. Gov. Hochul wanted to mention the “Uyghur situation” in China for her 2021 Lunar New Year message, but the plight of the minority group being persecuted by the Chinese government was ultimately omitted after Sun overruled the speechwriter. 

The indictment alleges Sun revealed to Ping what the speechwriter wanted to include, but insisted that she would not let her boss mention Uyghurs after admitting that she was “starting to lose her temper” with the speechwriter. The indictment later detailed other exchanges she had with Ping and said he gifted her parents with Nanjing-style salted ducks prepared by his chef in exchange for her help in influencing the governor’s policies.

Fox News Digital pressed Blumenthal’s office on whether the senator, who has been a key voice on Uyghur human rights issues, was concerned about his brother-in-law recruiting Chinese businesses to New York and partnering with CCP diplomats who have denied Uyghur genocide. However, his spokesperson did not address this in the office’s response.

When asked about Malkin’s relationship with the Chinese consuls general, an ESRT spokesperson told Fox News Digital that “Throughout its nearly 94-year history, the Empire State Building has partnered with countless government organizations, charities, and companies to celebrate important international celebrations and events.

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“The Lunar New Year lighting of the Empire State Building, for example, has been celebrated for more than 15 years in partnership with the local Chinese consulate and local Chinese organizations, shops, bakeries, and teahouses,” the spokesperson added.

Ping and Malkin have met several times, including an October 2021 virtual meeting that revolved around cooperation between the United States and China, according to a press release from the Chinese Consulate General, which noted their relationship with the Empire State Building dates back to 2008.

“Malkin said the pandemic has dramatically changed the world and the U.S., which also highlights the significance of international cooperation to meet challenges. The enhancement of cultural exchanges really matters to the U.S.-China relations,” the press release continued. “Hope the two peoples can overcome obstacles and deepen mutual understanding by exchanges and communications. I am willing to keep on working closely with Mr. Consul General as well as the Chinese Consulate General in New York, contributing to the friendship between the two peoples.”

Huang Ping meets with Philadelphia Mayor Cherelle Parker. (China Consulate of New York)

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In 2023, the Chinese Consulate shared multiple photos of Ping and Malkin at the Empire State Building with the caption, “Chinese Consulate General in NY and [Empire State Building] held a Chinese New Year Lighting Ceremony today, to celebrate the [Year of the Rabbit] CG Huang Ping and ESB Chairman Mr. Anthony Malkin attended the event and together lit up the building with Chinese Red.” 

Malkin and Ping also met in 2019 to light up the Empire State Building in honor of the 70th anniversary of the founding of the People’s Republic of China, which was amplified by Chinese state media.

Prior to Ping serving as the Chinese consul general, Malkin repeatedly met with then-Consul General Zhang Qiyue, who previously served in several top CCP positions, including the deputy director of the Information Department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. In 2017, Qiyue and Malkin smilingly posed for a photo ahead of the lighting of the Empire State Building to celebrate the Chinese Mid-Autumn Festival. They also met in 2015 and 2016 to light up the Empire State Building to celebrate the Lunar New Year, a Fox News Digital review found.

Sun Guoxiang, who served as a consul general between 2011 and 2014 in New York and held multiple CCP titles, also repeatedly visited the Empire State Building. In a 2014 ESRT press release, the group said, “To kick-off the festivities, Ambassador Sun Guoxiang, Consul General of the People’s Republic of China in New York, will preside over a lighting ceremony.” Jean-Yves Ghazi, who currently serves as the president of the ESRT Observatory TRS, L.L.C., appears to have been the ESRT executive who oversaw that lighting.

WASHINGTON – EXCLUSIVE: Seventeen Department of Energy National Laboratories represent the legacy of American scientific research, development and technological innovation stemming from collective postwar investment – but in the decades since, some of their work has been stymied by ever-increasing regulation, the U.S. energy chief tells Fox News Digital.

In an interview Wednesday, Energy Secretary Chris Wright said he took what lab officials told him was the rare step of meeting with all 17 to find out what they needed to be most effective in their work. When he came back to Washington, Wright compiled an order implementing the most common fixes laboratory leaders asked for.

Wright quipped that “as a kid who was in love with physics in high school, the national labs are simply scientifically tremendous” and that they had been neglected by past energy secretaries – which led him to make them an early focus of his tenure.

In an order obtained exclusively by Fox News Digital, Wright demanded several actions by lab officials seeking to streamline what has been considered a burdensome permitting process for new lab buildings, as the postwar infrastructure in many have well served their purpose, he said, but must be more easily replaced. 

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Energy Secretary Chris Wright, President Donald Trump and Interior Secretary Doug Burgum (Reuters)

One effort will expand the use of the National Nuclear Security Administration’s (NNSA) “OSHA-Plus” framework for subcontracted construction projects at the National Laboratories, increasing competition for contracts and reducing costs while not sacrificing safety.

Another topline piece of the four-part order seeks to analyze risks and benefits to cutting some labor-agreement provisions from contracts. The order was dated the 21st but will be made public midday Friday.

“These measures are representative of focused and purposeful actions to prudently streamline our processes, place decision-making authority at the appropriate level, and reduce unnecessary administrative burden on both the laboratories and federal stewards to more efficiently and effectively enable critical mission objectives,” Wright said in the order.

Wright said that while many of the labs may not be known by name, Americans recognize their immense contributions to science and national security.

Los Alamos, in New Mexico, was where J. Robert Oppenheimer developed and tested the atomic bomb. Oak Ridge in Tennessee is the nation’s premier energy technology development incubator.

“They are the biggest factories for producing Nobel prizes on the planet. These are national gems, and they came out of World War II,” he said, adding that bureaucracy has stifled some of their luster. 

“If something went wrong, they have a new rule passed; there’s people’s pet issues; or they’re layered with DEI and cultural stuff; crazy safety regulations with impossible permitting. 

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Los Alamos labs in 2000 (Getty)

“So what we’ve done is we’ve taken these great laboratories of science and innovation, and we’ve shackled them with bureaucracy and inefficiency – those don’t go together.”

Wright recounted a top issue from his meetings with laboratory leaders, who collectively said it can cost them 60% more to build or purchase a building than it does standard businesses located even just across the street.

Dr. Steven Ashby, director of the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, lauded the order, saying Wright’s “bold action to empower the national laboratories to more efficiently deliver transformative scientific and technological outcomes” will benefit American taxpayers. 

“This is the most substantive and quickest change in improving lab operations that I have seen in my many years with DOE.”

The secretary underlined that additional regulations that may increase costs are wise for Energy Department installations that deal with plutonium pits or dangerous or sensitive technologies – but that an environmental or energy-production-focused laboratory shouldn’t be held to the same standard as others.

“We said you no longer have to pay more. For all other buildings that are in all senses commercial facilities, we’re going to get rid of that bureaucracy and make buildings able to be built faster and built simpler,” he said.

Labs have been weighed down by an additional set of safety regulations on top of OSHA, which itself is considered the gold standard – and when the labs seek contracts, they don’t get the highest quality bidders because the contractors don’t want to deal with unnecessary, additional red tape.

“You get a small number of bidders that are willing to go into a much more cumbersome regime, means it can be more expensive to build that building,” Wright said.

These orders and changes, he said, are directly in line with President Donald Trump’s overall effort to streamline government and make it more cost-efficient for the taxpayer.

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The Y-12 complex near Knoxville (Reuters)

Separate from the labs, but near the Oak Ridge installation, Wright also spoke of a building he visited at the Y-12 National Security complex so decrepit that part of its roof was falling in.

The facility, outside Knoxville, was built around 1943 in under 18 months, Wright said – comparing that efficiency to today’s as an aside.

“It is in that building that the majority of the enriched uranium you need to build a bomb, was produced in these Calutron machines. So this played a huge legacy role in the United States’ weapons program. Here we are 80 years later, it is still in operation and still a key part of our nuclear fabrication facilities,” he said.

EXCLUSIVE: After a hard-hitting hearing by the House DOGE Subcommittee, Rep. Ronny Jackson, R-Texas, is introducing a bill Thursday to pull all government funding from “chronically biased” outlets NPR and PBS, which he says have been “pushing Democrat talking points under the fake banner of ‘public media.’”

Jackson’s bill – titled the “No Partisan Radio and Partisan Broadcasting Services Act” or simply the “NPR and PBS Act” – would fully cut off any direct and indirect government funding for both outlets, forcing them to compete instead of being propped up by the government.

This comes amid Elon Musk’s sweeping cuts to wasteful government programs through the Department of Government Efficiency.

The move also follows a high-intensity House DOGE Subcommittee hearing in which NPR’s Katherine Maher and PBS’ Paula Kerger attempted to explain why their outlets still deserve public funding.

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After a hard-hitting hearing by the House DOGE Subcommittee, Rep. Ronny Jackson is introducing a bill Thursday to pull all government funding from “chronically biased” outlets NPR and PBS. (Getty Images)

During the hearing, Maher conceded that NPR botched coverage of Hunter Biden’s infamous laptop, saying, “We made a mistake.” At the time, NPR representatives publicly called the story unserious and a distraction. During the hearing, Maher said, “We were mistaken in failing to cover the Hunter Biden laptop story more aggressively and sooner.”

She also expressed regret about remarks she made about President Donald Trump, calling him “a fascist and a deranged racist sociopath.”  

Meanwhile, Kerger’s PBS was slammed for producing such programs as “Real Boy,” which follows a transgender character exploring sexuality.

DOGE Subcommittee Chair Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., bashed PBS as “one of the founders of the trans child abuse industry.” 

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President and CEO of National Public Radio Katherine Maher testifies during a House Oversight and Government Reform Committee hearing at the U.S. Capitol on March 26, 2025. (Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)

Following the NPR and PBS leaders’ testimonies, Greene called the outlets “out of touch with everyday Americans,” saying: “I think from what we have heard here today, the American people will not continue to allow such propaganda to be funded through the federal government with their hard-earned tax dollars.”

Jackson told Fox News Digital that though NPR and PBS were originally founded to produce non-biased, informational and educational content, the outlets have since “turned into taxpayer-funded propaganda machines for the radical left, pushing Democratic talking points under the fake banner of ‘public media.’”

A statement by Jackson’s office further said the two outlets’ “chronically biased” programming has made them simply a “messaging arm for woke, radical Democrats.”

“Hardworking Americans are sick of footing the bill,” said Jackson. “It’s time to cut them off and stop forcing taxpayers to pay for their liberal lies!”

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Rep. Ronny Jackson on the House steps of the Capitol on Jan. 4, 2021. (Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)

Trump has expressed he is open to defunding NPR and other “biased” publicly funded outlets, meaning he would be likely to sign a bill doing so if passed by Congress.

“They spend more money than any other network of its type ever conceived, so the kind of money that’s being wasted, and it’s a very biased view, you know that better than anybody,” said Trump. “And I’d be honored to see it end.”  

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Musk has also called to defund NPR. In February, he posted a 2022 video of Maher in which she said, “Our reverence for the truth might have become a bit of a distraction that is preventing us from finding consensus and getting things done.”

Commenting on Maher’s speech, Musk said NPR “should survive on its own.”  

Fox News Digital’s Brian Flood and Joseph A. Wulfsohn contributed to this report.