Politics (RSS)

Former Trump White House official Alyssa Farah Griffin shares insights about how former President Donald Trump praised improvements to the security of US elections in a February 2020 Oval Office meeting before casting doubt on the election weeks later.

The Justice Department announced charges Monday against a third person who allegedly participated in a firebombing attack on a California Planned Parenthood last spring.

The Republican-controlled Oklahoma Senate met in a special session Monday and overrode GOP Gov. Kevin Stitt’s vetoes of two bills to extend existing agreements with Native American tribes for another year. The overrides were the latest development in an ongoing dispute between Stitt and several Oklahoma-based tribes. Stitt, himself a citizen of the Cherokee Nation, wants to renegotiate tribal compacts on the sale of tobacco products and the issuance of motor vehicle tags by tribes. OKLAHOMA STATE ELECTION BOARD LAUNCHES NEW ONLINE VOTER REGISTRATION SYSTEM Several of the state’s most powerful tribal leaders were in the gallery during Monday’s debate and praised the Senate for overriding the governor’s vetoes. Stitt has raised concerns that the existing compact language needs to be rewritten in light of a landmark U.S. Supreme Court ruling in 2020 that led to the reservation boundaries of several Oklahoma-based tribes being upheld. FEDERAL APPEALS COURT RULES TULSA POLICE LACK JURISDICTION TO PROSECUTE NATIVE AMERICAN FOR SPEEDING "I am trying to protect eastern Oklahoma from turning into a reservation, and I’ve been working to ensure these compacts are the best deal for all four million Oklahomans," Stitt said in a statement. The two bills he vetoed would extend those compacts for another year. Senate President Pro Tempore Greg Treat said he wants to give the governor more time to renegotiate the terms of the deal and has been openly critical of Stitt's disputes with the tribes. Treat also said he would consider changing state law to give the Legislature a greater role in compact negotiations if the governor doesn't negotiate in good faith. The bill to extend the compact over the sale of tobacco still must be overridden by the House, which is expected to meet July 31.

The "major policy change" is aimed at reducing public confusion and improving safety for agents, the agency

The Biden administration has argued the river barriers set up by Texas have endangered migrants and obstructed Border Patrol agents from doing their jobs.

Do you believe the government is hiding something? What about if we asked if you think the government is hiding something about UFOs? "I believe there is something else out there," said Rep. Tim Burchett, R-Tenn., at a recent press conference. "Dadgumit, whatever the truth may be, we're done with the cover-up." Burchett leads the House’s second big hearing on UFOs in 15 months Wednesday. GOVERNMENT ‘100%’ COVERING UP UFO INFORMATION: REP. TIM BURCHETT Burchett certainly falls into the category of believing the government is hiding something. He says his constituents do, too. "I’m stopped every weekend back in Knoxville," said Burchett. "People will stop me and tell me about their experiences (with UFOs). Decorated veterans. Why would they risk their reputations and careers over something that they’re lying about?" Rep. Anna Paulina Luna, R-Fla., is an Air Force veteran who aligns with Burchett when it comes to UFOs. "If we continue to get stonewalled, if we smell that they’re giving us a bunch of BS, we are going to do the field hearings directly at those locations," said Luna of the military. "Full transparency really is what we need in this situation." Toss Rep. Jared Moskowitz, D-Fla., into the camp of those who are skeptical about what the government is saying about UFOs – or UAPs as they’re sometimes called. That’s short for unidentified aerial phenomena. UFO HEARINGS IN CONGRESS NEXT WEEK WILL BE ‘HISTORIC’: JOURNALIST SAYS "It is really about getting to greater government transparency," said Moskowitz. "If the answers are, ‘No, there are no unidentified aerial phenomena,’ then say that. But that’s not what the answers are. The answer are, ‘We can’t tell you.’ And so that leads to speculation." Rep. Eric Burlison, R-Mo., characterized himself as a UFO skeptic. But he joined with Burchett, Luna and Moskowitz about getting to the truth on UAPs – and shutting off noise and conjecture. "I don't give into conspiracies," said Burlison. "But too often the federal government works outside of the public eye and in conspiracies. Rumors tend to flourish in places where the federal government is silent or not transparent." The House Intelligence Committee held the first open hearing in five decades on UFOs last spring. It took some cajoling, but Burchett managed to schedule a House Oversight subcommittee to conduct its hearing on UFOs Wednesday. Among the witnesses: Ryan Graves, executive director of Americans for Safe Aerospace. Graves was a Navy pilot who flew F/A-18F Super Hornets. He reported multiple sightings during training flights. Graves grew concerned that UAPs posed safety risks to American pilots. Cmdr. David Fravor is a former Navy aviator. He spotted a UAP during a 2004 training mission. He shot what is known in UFO circles as the "Tic Tac" video. The UAP looked like a flying Tic Tac hard candy. Then, there is a whistleblower. David Grusch is a former intelligence officer who saw action in Afghanistan. He led the UAP task force for the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency. Grusch told lawmakers the government may have in its possession pieces of a non-human spacecraft and potentially, the remains of an extra-terrestrial pilot. "We’re going to have witnesses who can speak frankly to the public about their experiences. We've had a heck of a lot of pushback about this hearing. We've had members of Congress who fought us. We've had members of the intelligence community and also the Pentagon. Even NASA backed out on us," said Burchett. "There are a lot of people who don't want this to come to light." This comes back to the old Latin maxim, "falsus in uno, falsus in omnibus." Lie once, perhaps you’re lying all the time. If the government is covering up UFOs, what else might it hide? "If they can do it here, what else are they doing?" asked Moskowitz. "That's a scary thought that they don't trust us." Bipartisan lawmakers accused the Pentagon of blocking attempts to talk to pilots and see UAP photos when they traveled to Eglin Air Force Base in Florida. "We actually got into an argument with the general of that base," said Luna.  Burchett doubts the purported technology belongs to American adversaries like China or Russia. "If Russia owned it, they wouldn't be battling in Ukraine. It'd be over," said Burchett. UFOS ARE A ‘MATTER OF NATIONAL SECURITY’: RYAN GRAVES Many military personnel and civilians have described various UFOs as maneuvering and gyrating in ways that don’t comport with contemporary science. They also accelerate and dash away at insane speeds – believed in one instance to be as fast as 13,000 mph. "When you see the Tic Tac videos and listen to the pilots, it defies all of our laws of physics," said Burchett. "The human body would not be able to withstand the pressure from this thing." After last year’s hearing, Congress tucked a provision into the annual defense policy bill to require the military document and review claims of UAPs. Lawmakers say the Pentagon sometimes ignored reports of UAPs – and viewed those who say they saw the unexplained as kooks. Many lawmakers are pleased with the new reporting and documentation system. But Burchett is far from satisfied. Senior administration officials are coy when pressed about UAPs and the new reporting regime. "We're not saying what they are," said National Security Council spokesman John Kirby when asked about UAPs. "We're saying it has had an effect on some of our training operations." Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., wants to add a provision to this year’s defense bill to create a special agency dedicated to studying UFOs and de-classifying certain information. LAWMAKERS CLAIM UFO ‘COVER-UPS’ FROM PENTAGON, MILITARY AS WITNESSES HEAD TO CONGRESS "It'll be very helpful for the American people to see exactly what's there," said Schumer. "Otherwise, there are all sorts of rumors flying around." To say nothing of UAPs. However, House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., is unconvinced about the existence of UFOs. "If we had found a UFO, I think the Department of Defense would tell us because they probably want to request more money," said McCarthy. And if the spacecraft are evidence of aliens from another galaxy, cruising through the Milky Way, could humans accept the premise that we are not alone? Rep. Andre Carson, D-Ind., is a member of the House Intelligence Committee. He convened last year’s hearing on UAPs. "We saw what happened with the (Orson Welles radio broadcast) ‘War Of the Worlds.’ We saw what happened in 1947 (in Roswell, New Mexico). We saw what happened with radio programs in the ‘30s and folks were jumping out of buildings," said Carson. Perhaps the best quotation about these circumstances doesn’t come from movies like "Close Encounters of the Third Kind" or "E.T. the Extraterrestrial." It may emanate from "A Few Good Men." Can the public "handle the truth?" "Are we OK with the federal government keeping information from the American people because they’re trying to prevent us from having anxiety on all sorts of issues?" asked Moskowitz. "What else are we going to give them authority to not tell the American people because they’re interested in controlling and keeping us in a bubble?" Yours truly asked Carson if he could deal with learning that the alleged aircraft are otherworldly. Carson chuckled.  "I'm a Muslim. I'm a Black man. I'm from Indiana," said Carson. "I can deal with a lot."  But is everyone else ready for this?  CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP Burchett gently chided the press corps. "Every time you play this (news conference), you play the theme from the X-Files. I get it," said Burchett. "You better be careful about a government that doesn’t trust its people because there’s no telling what they’ll pull on you."

Special counsel Jack Smith's office has asked former US officials about a February 2020 Oval Office meeting where then-President Donald Trump praised improvements to the security of US elections, according to multiple people familiar with the matter.

Lawmakers should take action to address a judge's ruling that Pennsylvania's system of funding public schools violates the constitutional rights of students in poorer school districts now that the decision won't be appealed, lawyers for the districts and groups that sued said Monday. The deadline to appeal the February decision came and went over the weekend, the lawyers said. The lawsuit, filed in 2014, argued that Pennsylvania’s system of paying for public schools is failing the poorest districts and lawyers for the plaintiffs contend that billions more dollars are necessary to meet the state's constitutional obligation. PENNSYLVANIA COUNTIES BRACE FOR MISSED SOCIAL SERVICE PAYOUT AMID BUDGET STALEMATE While the judge agreed, she also did not direct the Legislature on how much state aid to distribute, or how. Lawyers for the plaintiffs — including six school districts, the NAACP and the Pennsylvania Association of Rural and Small Schools — want lawmakers to comply with the judge's ruling. "The decision is now final and there is no excuse for state lawmakers to delay action any further," the plaintiffs' lawyers — from the Public Interest Law Center, the Education Law Center and the law firm of O’Melveny — said in a statement. Leaders of the House and Senate Republicans in Pennsylvania had opposed the lawsuit. They hadn’t previously said whether they would appeal the decision to the state Supreme Court and did not immediately comment Monday. Gov. Josh Shapiro, a Democrat, had supported the plaintiffs. The plaintiffs are seeking more money for poor districts. They presented evidence during last year’s trial that schools are underfunded by $4.6 billion, an estimate that they said doesn't account for gaps in spending on special education, school buildings and other facilities. DEMOCRATS ARE THROWING KIDS UNDER THE SCHOOL BUS AND HERE'S WHY Litigation in the case may not necessarily end. Neither Shapiro nor lawmakers have assembled a plan to address the court's findings and the experience in other states suggests there’s no guarantee of swift, significant or longstanding change for the poorer school districts that sued. The judge wrote that students in areas with low property values and incomes "are deprived of the same opportunities and resources" as those in more affluent areas. That disparity is unjustified, violating both the state’s obligations to educate students and the equal protection rights of students, the judge wrote.

Democratic New York City Mayor Eric Adams offered a bizarre response after a woman appeared to curse him out over his treatment of homeless people on Monday. After a woman, who appeared to be protesting, screamed obscenities at Adams, the New York City mayor responded that "one should be happy" if another person wants to "make love to them." The eyebrow-raising exchange came during a press conference Adams hosted to unveil his efforts to remove scaffolding from city streets and kickstart a recovery of the city's business district. "F--- you, a--hole!" the protester appeared to say during the press conference Monday. "She said I'm messing with homeless people," Adams responded, chuckling. "One should be happy if someone wants to make love to them. You know?" NYC MAYOR ERIC ADAMS BERATES WOMAN AFTER QUESTION ABOUT HIGH RENT: ‘I’M A GROWN MAN’ Adams didn't explain what he meant, instead taking a question from a reporter on an unrelated topic. His office didn't immediately respond to a request for comment. New York City continues to experience rising homelessness that is at its highest level since the Great Depression of the 1930s, according to the Coalition for the Homeless. As of December 2022, there were 68,884 homeless people, including 21,805 children, housed in New York City’s main shelter system. NYC MAYOR ERIC ADAMS SAYS 'NO MORE ROOM' FOR MIGRANTS: 'OUR CUP RUNNETH OVER' The press conference Monday comes less than a month after Adams was criticized over his similarly-bizarre response to a woman concerned about high rent prices. That woman interrupted Adams during a town hall event in June to accuse the mayor of raising New York City rent and supporting increases "If you are going to ask a question, don't point at me and don't be disrespectful to me," Adams told the woman. "I'm the mayor of the city. Treat me with the respect I deserve to be treated. I'm speaking to you as an adult. Don't stand in front like you treating someone that's on the plantation that you own. Give me the respect I deserve and engage in the conversation up here in Washington Heights."  "Treat me with the same level of respect I treat you," Adams continued. "So, don't be pointing at me, don't be disrespectful to me. Speak with me as an adult because I'm a grown man. I walked into this room as a grown man, and I'll walk out of this room as a grown man. I answered your question." CLICK TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP On June 21, the New York City Rent Guidelines Board announced recommendations paving the way for landlords to increase rents by 3% this year. Adams endorsed the board's decision, saying it found the "right balance." It was later revealed the woman Adams compared to a plantation owner was housing activist Jeanie Dubnau whose family fled to New York City from Nazi Germany in the mid-1900s.

Americans no longer have to fear the Internal Revenue Service showing up unannounced at their door.

The Wisconsin Department of Justice plans to ask legislators Tuesday for permission to bow out of a multistate lawsuit challenging former President Donald Trump's decision to divert billions of dollars from National Guard units to his border wall. Republicans passed statutes before then-Gov. Scott Walker left office in 2018 designed to weaken incoming Democratic Gov. Tony Evers and Attorney General Josh Kaul's powers. The statutes require Kaul to seek permission from the Legislature's GOP-controlled finance committee to settle lawsuits. DEMOCRATS SUE TO REINSTATE ABSENTEE DROP BOXES IN WISCONSIN According to court documents and a memo the state Justice Department prepared for the finance committee, Wisconsin joined a number of states in federal lawsuits filed in 2019 and 2020 challenging Trump's decision to divert up to $6.7 billion meant for National Guard units, military construction projects and police to border wall construction. The move called for shifting $8 million to build a Wisconsin National Guard gun range to the wall. The 9th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals ruled in favor of the states, prompting the federal government to petition the U.S. Supreme Court for review. President Joe Biden issued an executive order after he took office in 2021 halting wall construction using the money in question; the Supreme Court vacated the appellate ruling and sent the case back to federal district court for further proceedings in light of the order. WISCONSIN GOV. EVERS SIGNS SCHOOL READING OVERHAUL INTO LAW Settlement negotiations ensued with a number of states deciding to drop out of the proceedings. Wisconsin's claims are still pending, however. The federal government has since restored the money for the Wisconsin National Guard gun range, according to a memo written to the finance committee by Lara Sutherlin and Winn Collins, administrator and deputy administrator, respectively, of the state Justice Department's Division of Legal Services. In light of that, there's no reason to continue court proceedings, they wrote. The finance committee's co-chairs, Rep. Mark Born and Sen. Howard Marklein, didn't immediately respond to an email seeking comment.

Senate Judiciary Democrats have joined Republicans in unanimously approving a measure that formally condemns the sort of racist attacks against Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas used recently by progressive pundits and elected Democratic officials. Last week during a committee meeting debating a Supreme Court ethics bill, Sen. John Kennedy, R-La., requested that an amendment be adopted that would condemn inflammatory remarks made by Democrat lawmakers and media personalities who have targeted the Black conservative jurist. That amendment, eventually voted through by every Republican and Democrat on the committee, states that Congress "condemns all racial attacks and comments leveled against any current or former Supreme Court Justice, including Justice Thomas, including those likening him to an 'Uncle Tom' figure or any other repugnant stereotype…"  The amendment details those comments recently made by Minnesota Democratic Attorney General Keith Ellison, who last week went on a racially charged rant comparing Thomas to a house slave character in Quentin Tarantino’s 2012 film "Django Unchained." THOMAS BLASTS JACKSON'S 'RACE-INFUSED WORLD VIEW' IN SUPREME COURT RULING OUTLAWING AFFIRMATIVE ACTION Also called out in the amendment is Georgia state Sen. Emanuel Jones, who used "racially charged language" to characterize Thomas, including calling him an ‘‘Uncle Tom’’ figure, in February.  MSNBC host Joy Reid was also singled out for "cast[ing] aspersions on Justice Thomas in a racially offensive manner for several years, in light of her disagreement with his jurisprudence." "Racially charged insults and defamatory comments have surged in the wake of recent Supreme Court decisions, in an attempt to humiliate, punish, and demean Justice Thomas," the amendment recognizes.  The amendment "condemns racial attacks on any government official or person merely for expressing a view that some deem ‘conservative,' recognizes the importance of judging a person on the basis of the merits of his ideas and the content of his character, rather than on the basis of offensive and derogatory racial stereotypes." It also "recognizes that Justice Thomas’ jurisprudence does not excuse racial aggression against him." 'DANGEROUS' DEMOCRAT JUDICIAL ETHICS BILL WOULD ALLOW ANY 'JACKALOON' TO DEMAND A RECUSAL, SEN. KENNEDY SAYS The amendment was agreed to only after Kennedy and Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, D-R.I., sparred over it.  Whitehouse initially encouraged his Democratic colleagues to vote the amendment down because it included a provision that called on the Biden administration to enforce a federal code to "to protect Supreme Court justices, including Justice Thomas, in light of flagrant violations of the law designed to intimidate justices." "We've had a lot of time in this committee trying to make sure that the White House and the political side of the executive branch is kept out of internal Department of Justice law enforcement decisions," he said, asking his colleagues to vote the amendment down.  "I don't care how many lawyers can dance on the head of a pen," Kennedy fired back. "Don't try to pretend that this is a, some sort of a technical mistake in this amendment. It's not complicated… It says all this stuff about Clarence Thomas, calling him a house slave and other racist, disgusting statements we condemn. Now you either condemn it, or you don't. And that's all this amendment does."  "It's un-American. It's unconscionable, and I can't believe we wouldn't condemn it," Kennedy charged. SUPREME COURT DEFENDS JUSTICE SOTOMAYOR AGAINST REPORT CLAIMING STAFFERS 'PRODDED' COLLEGES TO BUY HER BOOKS Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, and Judiciary Chairman Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill, eventually negotiated the amendment to include language that references all past and future justices, and eliminated the controversial provision calling the Biden administration into action to enforce the "picketing" law that protects justices. The bill to which the amendment is attached, the Supreme Court Ethics, Recusal, and Transparency (SCERT) Act, cleared the committee last week in a party-line vote. It's not yet clear if or when Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., will bring the legislation to a full vote. The ethics measure would, among other things, impose a code of conduct for justices on the court. Republicans argued that there are pre-existing ethics rules in places for the justices, governed by a separate body, which just recently updated its rules for disclosures.  Kennedy said the bill is "as dead as a fried chicken," indicating that he did not believe the measure would earn the 60 votes needed to advance on the Senate floor.

The Biden administration quietly entered into a court settlement late Friday with a coalition of environmental groups who have pushed for more wildlife protections from offshore oil development activity.  In a stipulated stay agreement filed with the U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland, the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) agreed to a number of conditions requested by the coalition of four eco groups led by the Sierra Club which, in response, agreed to temporarily pause litigation in the case. Fossil fuel industry groups, though, blasted the settlement, saying it would hamper domestic energy production. "This private settlement agreement between the federal government and environmental activists places unfounded restrictions on operations in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico that severely hamper America's ability to produce energy in a region that is responsible for the lowest carbon-intensive barrels in the world," the American Petroleum Institute (API) and EnerGeo Alliance said in a joint statement.  "Despite no evidence to warrant this far-reaching ban on operations after extensive data collections, today’s agreement undermines the integrity of legitimate conservation and habitat protection efforts, violates the explicit directives of Congress in enacting the Inflation Reduction Act, and harms America’s energy independence," the two industry groups added. BIDEN ADMIN UNVEILS SWEEPING NEW ACTIONS INCREASING COSTS FOR OIL, GAS LEASING Under the settlement, the Biden administration agreed to create expanded protection areas for the Rice’s whale species that environmental groups argued weren't properly protected under previous assessments. However, the government stated it had no "reason to believe" whales would be harmed by oil and gas activities in the newly expanded Gulf of Mexico protection areas. In addition, the administration agreed to exclude about 11 million acres with rich oil resources in the Gulf of Mexico from future lease sales. That acreage would likely have been available for future lease sales mandated under the Inflation Reduction Act. BIDEN ADMIN MAKES STUNNING ADMISSION ON CLIMATE AGENDA IN LEAKED INTERNAL MEMO And the federal government will impose new restrictions on oil and gas vessels, but not the thousands of vessels operated in other industries in the area. As such, oil and gas vessels must operate at slower speeds, which could cut transit windows to less than 40% of the time annually and 25% during the winter, according to API. Overall, the restrictions could have the impact of ensuring that future lease sales in the Gulf of Mexico aren't economically viable. The case dates back nearly three years when, in October 2020, the environmental group coalition — which additionally included the Center for Biological Diversity, Friends of the Earth and Turtle Island Restoration Network — sued the NMFS for failing to properly assess the oil industry impacts on endangered and threatened marine wildlife in the Gulf of Mexico. The lawsuit came after the NMFS coordinated a multiagency consultation studying the effects all federally regulated oil and gas activities would have on species listed under the Endangered Species Act in the Gulf of Mexico over the next 50 years. The groups argued in the original complaint that the NMFS' biological opinion resulting from its consultation was not based on the best science. "The feds are ignoring the harm offshore drilling in the Gulf does to sperm whales, loggerhead sea turtles and other endangered species. They’ve shunned science, and we need the court to intervene," Kristen Monsell, a senior attorney at the Center for Biological Diversity, said at the time. The NMFS declined to comment and the Sierra Club didn't respond to a request for comment.

Some of the top officials in Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis' 2024 presidential campaign are telling top donors that a campaign "reset" is underway. The officials acknowledged Sunday during a meeting with leading campaign contributors and bundlers that they spent too much money in the two months since DeSantis declared his candidacy for the White House, sources with knowledge of the gathering confirm to Fox News. And they promised that more changes were ahead as DeSantis aims to rebound from what's characterized as a disappointing start to his campaign.  News of the meeting, which took place in Utah at the upscale Stein Eriksen Lodge at the Deer Valley resort, was first reported by Politico. CHECK OUT THE LATEST FOX NEWS POLL IN THE LEAD OFF STATE OF IOWA Campaign officials, according to sources familiar with the meeting, acknowledged that money had been spent on unsuccessful operations and that Team DeSantis would run a leaner, "insurgent" type campaign going forward. "Something needs to change and there needs to be a new ignition," a leading DeSantis donor told Fox News. WHERE TRUMP, DESANTIS, REST OF THE FIELD STAND IN LATEST POLL IN KEY PRIMARY STATE Former President Donald Trump, who's the commanding front-runner in the GOP nomination race as he makes his third straight White House run, has expanded his large double-digit lead over DeSantis in many polls in the two months since the Florida governor launched his campaign. And DeSantis' lead over the rest of the large field of 2024 Republican presidential candidates has shrunk since late spring WHO'S IN AND WHO'S ON THE SIDELINES — YOUR GUIDE TO THE 2024 GOP PRESIDENTIAL NOMINATION RACE DeSantis raised an impressive $20.1 million during the first six weeks of his campaign. But nearly half – $8.2 million – came in the first 24 hours after DeSantis declared his candidacy. And peeking past the top lines, only a small percentage of the cash DeSantis raised came from donors contributing less than $200, with much of his fundraising coming from top-dollar donors, some of whom have now maxed out and are prevented by Federal Election Commission rules from giving further contributions to the governor. Trump, by comparison, saw the lion's share of his fundraising come from small-dollar, grassroots donations. DeSantis has also been burning through his campaign coffers at a quicker rate than Trump. The governor’s campaign spent $7.9 million in half the time that Trump’s team shelled out $9.1 million.

A Donald Trump ally has turned over thousands of documents to special counsel Jack Smith related to efforts to find supposed voter fraud in the 2020 presidential election -- including materials that haven't been previously disclosed to investigators looking into events surrounding January 6, 2021.

Responding to intensifying concerns among his supporters, top advisers to Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis met with key donors and fundraisers over the weekend in Utah, where they promised a new direction to jumpstart his fledgling White House bid.

A Chinese marketing firm likely organized and promoted protests in Washington last year as part of a wide-ranging pro-Beijing influence campaign, according to new research.

Political figures of all types grabbed for the legs of a doll-turned-movie-turned-cultural moment, with predictable results.

The recently released Barbie movie has provided an opportunity for a bipartisan coalition of commentators and elected officials to see value in its dissection.

The United States has surpassed 400 mass shootings in 2023, setting the stage for a record-breaking year in gun violence without any significant federal firearm legislation on the horizon.

Republican presidential candidates are supposed to face off in Milwaukee on Aug. 23. But Donald Trump, the field’s front-runner, may not show up, and others have yet to make the cut.

Senator Marco Rubio of Florida and Donald J. Trump at a 2016 Republican debate. The Republican National Committee’s rules for the 2024 debates have created uncertainty around who will appear onstage in August.

FIRST ON FOX: Republicans are mounting their own effort at an expanded child tax credit that includes applying the credit to fetuses in the womb. Rep. Ashley Hinson, R-Iowa, is leading a package of bills in the House called the Providing For Life Act, an ambitious attempt at overhauling the federal government’s family care system. Hinson told Fox News Digital her legislation "charts the policy course for a culture of life in America." "By expanding the child tax credit to include the unborn and providing additional support to working families, empowering women to care for their babies regardless of socioeconomic status or zip code and improving access to community resources, we can make a meaningful difference for those in need," Hinson said. MISSOURI SUPREME COURT TO DECIDE FATE OF ABORTION LEGALIZATION AMENDMENT AMID REPUBLICAN INFIGHTING "These provisions, and others championed by the pro-life community, will ensure we protect the most vulnerable and make critical investments in the long-term well-being of our families." The marquee item would see the refundable child tax credit expand to a $3,500 cap for children 5 and under, and $4,500 for ages 6-17. Parents would have to be employed to get the credit under the GOP bill. It would also retroactively expand the tax credit to unborn children. When a dependent is born, parents would become eligible to claim the tax credit in the prior year during the pregnancy, in addition to gaining access to the regular child tax credit in the current year. MAINE GOV. JANET MILLS EXPANDS ABORTION ACCESS LATER IN PREGNANCY IF DEEMED MEDICALLY NECESSARY BY DOCTOR The expanded child tax credit without work requirements was a popular measure during the COVID-19 pandemic, but Democrat-led efforts to make it permanent failed. As of the most recent tax cycle, the credit is worth up to $2,000 per dependent. Other measures in the package include an option allowing parents to draw from their Social Security to finance up to three months of paid parental leave and enhancing certain benefits for new mothers. It also includes incentives for states to set guidelines on fathers paying for part of a woman’s pregnancy costs and would force cooperation with any child support requirements to receive SNAP food benefits. The bill comes as the issue of abortion access continues to be a political lightening rod since the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in June 2022. In addition to more economic benefits for young families, Hinson’s legislation seeks to provide expecting parents with support programs on college campuses and at pregnancy resource centers and aims to establish "a federal clearinghouse of resources" and bolster support for social service programs at places of worship. IOWA GOV. KIM REYNOLDS PLANS TO APPEAL BLOCK ON STATE'S NEW ABORTION LAW For parents in low-income or other vulnerable communities, it "funds local demonstration programs providing volunteer mentoring and peer support services." The package’s Senate counterpart was recently introduced by Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., who said it meant "real assistance" for children and families. "Supporting pregnant mothers and their unborn children is essential, not just because it’s the right thing to do, but because America’s continued strength depends on the next generation," Rubio told Fox News Digital. "This comprehensive legislation will provide real assistance for American parents and children in need. We need policies like these to show America that conservatives are pro-life across the board."

Recreational marijuana will become legal in Minnesota on August 1, and multiple cities across the state are considering whether to restrict its use in public places. Lakeville Mayor Luke Hellier is concerned about the state's law, which will allow people 21 and older to possess and use marijuana, FOX 9 reported. "We're the seventh-largest city in the Twin Cities, the 30th fastest growing city in the country. So in my opinion, we're doing something right," Hellier told Fox 9. "The last thing I want is a nuisance of marijuana smoke or vaping in the downtown that could prevent people from wanting to come to these businesses." The Lakeville City Council is considering ordinances Monday that would ban smoking in parks and other public places. The ordinances would make it a petty misdemeanor to use cannabis in public. MINNESOTA GOV WALZ EXPECTED TO SIGN BILL LEGALIZING RECREATIONAL MARIJUANA Cannabis will be allowed on private property for people 21 and older unless the owner prohibits it, the Minnesota Office of Cannabis Management said, according to FOX 9. Hellier said cities across the state had assumed that marijuana use would only be allowed in private spaces, but two weeks ago, local governments learned it would become legal in private and public. "We were really surprised that even that this was something we'd have to talk about because the state had basically signaled that they were going to be making all the rules," Hellier said. "This new interpretation that popped up in early July kind of has cities scrambling." Minnesota's new law also makes it legal to possess or transport up to two ounces of cannabis flower in a public place. Rep. Zack Stephenson told the outlet the law does not state whether people can smoke on the sidewalk or at a public park, and that the decision for those spaces will be left up to cities. "There’s a fair amount of local in the bill, and so I think it’s entirely natural that cities are taking this approach," Stephenson told Fox 9. Stephenson also compared the city ordinances to prohibiting alcohol consumption in a park or on the sidewalk. Cannabis will remain prohibited while driving at public and charter schools, on school buses, at state correctional facilities, in places where the smoke could be inhaled by minors or on federal property. MINNESOTA SENATE PASSES BILL TO LEGALIZE RECREATIONAL MARIJUANA Minnesota Clean Indoor Air Act also bans smoking and vaping in most indoor public places and workplaces. Hellier said Lakeville's ordinance would rely on resident complaints. "A business would have to file a complaint, call the city or the police department, say ‘Hey, someone's smoking outside of my restaurant or out front of my business, and it's causing a nuisance,’ and so then, we would come and cite that person," Hellier said. The Lakeville City Council will also address a potential ban on all cannabis sales in the city until 2025, but Hellier said this would require further discussion, in part, because of how it would impact businesses already licensed to sell hemp products. In Duluth, city councilors introduced an ordinance last week that intends to ban smoking marijuana in city parks and other locations. The city councils in West St. Paul and Inver Grove Heights will be asked at meetings on Monday night whether to implement an ordinance restricting the use of cannabis in public spaces. The proposed ordinance in Inver Grove Heights was modeled after similar proposals in Apple Valley and Prior Lake. The Prior Lake City Council voted last week to ban the operation of cannabis businesses, as well as the use of cannabis in public, including smoking, vaping and edibles. Cannabis use in public will be a petty misdemeanor. On July 13, Apple Valley ordered staff and the city attorney’s office to craft an ordinance regulating cannabis use within public property and public places.

Hoping to break through a crowded presidential field in 2024, the former Texas congressman is pitching himself as a modern and moderate Republican with a bipartisan vision.

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