Author: NOVA Corp

  • Hundreds of jailed illegal aliens released back onto blue-state streets despite ICE detainers, records show

    FIRST ON FOX: Chicago-area officials released more than 400 illegal immigrants arrested on criminal charges amid the Trump administration’s 2025 immigration enforcement surge, public records obtained by a conservative legal group show. 

    “Cook County and the State of Illinois have turned sanctuary policies into a deadly shield for criminal illegal aliens,” Will Scolinos, an America First Legal attorney, said in a comment to Fox News Digital of the data. 

    “By releasing hundreds of illegal aliens despite explicit ICE detainers in just one year, sanctuary laws endangered American lives. The tragic murder of Sheridan Gorman is the predictable outcome of pro-illegal alien madness that has infiltrated the Blue States,” he added. 

    Illinois law generally bars state and local law enforcement from honoring ICE detainers or transferring people to immigration authorities unless presented with a federal criminal warrant. Sanctuary policies like those in Illinois have become a political flash point, drawing the ire of the Trump administration as it accuses Democratic governors of imperiling community safety by failing to hand over illegal immigrants.

    ICE WARNS ILLINOIS IS RELEASING VIOLENT CRIMINAL ILLEGAL ALIENS DESPITE DETAINERS, RISKING PUBLIC SAFETY

    “The safest way to arrest and remove criminal illegal aliens from our streets is by lodging arrest detainers,” a Department of Homeland Security spokesperson told Fox News Digital on Wednesday. “Because sanctuary cities refuse to work with ICE law enforcement, criminal illegal aliens are released from jails into American communities to perpetuate more crimes.”

    America First Legal’s data, which was obtained through a public records request, covers January to December 2025.

    Though Cook County released most of the illegal immigrants federal authorities wanted to apprehend, records show that the county transferred 86 jailed illegal immigrants to federal custody in 2025.

    The DHS spokesperson noted that some of the illegal immigrants held in jails may have committed serious crimes in their home countries that don’t appear in American records.

    Controversy surrounding how Illinois handles illegal immigrants arrested by local law enforcement came to a head in March when Jose Medina-Medina, an illegal immigrant from Venezuela, allegedly shot and killed Sheridan Gorman, an 18-year-old college student in Chicago. 

    Medina-Medina was previously arrested in Illinois on charges of shoplifting in 2023 and was released rather than deported, which conservatives have pointed to while criticizing the state’s approach to immigration enforcement.

    President Donald Trump blamed Illinois’ sanctuary policies for the death, while Democratic Gov. J.B. Pritzker accused the president of “politicizing” the killing and called on his administration to provide more public safety funding.

    ILLINOIS GOV PRITZKER ADMITS ‘REAL FAILURES’ AS SLAIN CHICAGO STUDENT’S HOMETOWN PAYS TRIBUTE IN LIGHTS

    Illegal immigrants are far less likely to be convicted of crimes than native-born Americans, data compiled by the libertarian Cato Institute has found. Democrats cite similar findings to counter the Trump administration’s claim that illegal immigrants are dangerous. Illegal immigrants detained in connection with suspected crimes, however, may pose a greater risk than the broader population of illegal immigrants.

    The DHS spokesperson claimed that “nearly 70% of ICE arrests” involve illegal immigrants charged or convicted of a crime in the United States.

    Pritzker, a vocal opponent of federal deportation efforts, signed the Illinois Way Forward Act in 2021. The legislation prohibits local law enforcement agencies from signing immigration enforcement contracts with the federal government and limits their ability to investigate the immigration status of individuals detained on suspicion of crimes.  

    PRITZKER CALLS ON TRUMP OFFICIALS TO TESTIFY OVER ICE CRACKDOWN, WHITE HOUSE BLASTS MOVE AS ‘POLITICAL STUNT’

    “Throughout my governorship, I’ve directed my administration to adopt policies that make Illinois a welcoming state for immigrants, and I’m proud to sign these accountability measures into law to advance our cause,” Pritzker said at the time. “Every family, every child, every human being deserves to feel safe and secure in the place they call home. I am committed to making sure that value defines what it means to live in Illinois.”

    The Trump administration has threatened to withhold funding from jurisdictions that refuse to cooperate with federal immigration enforcement operations, including Chicago.

    Fox News Digital reached the Illinois Office of the Governor via email on Tuesday morning for comment. 

  • ‘Shark Tank’ star backs Trump’s White House ballroom plan amid security concerns: ‘It’s bipartisan’

    “Shark Tank” star and investor Kevin O’Leary backed President Donald Trump’s push for a White House ballroom as a way to showcase the “American Dream” and serve future administrations of both parties, days after the White House Correspondents’ Dinner shooting.

    “I don’t think the ballroom’s a partisan issue, it’s bipartisan because one day there’ll be a Democratic president that’ll use the ballroom,” O’Leary told Fox News Digital.

    The comments come as congressional Republicans push to approve the ballroom following the shooting at the Washington Hilton ballroom during the annual event attended by hundreds of journalists and Cabinet officials. Lawmakers believe this would offer a secure venue for future events.

    O’Leary argued the project, opposed by many Democrats, would also elevate the “American brand” on the world stage.

    REPUBLICANS EYE PICKING UP $400M TAB FOR TRUMP’S BALLROOM AS SOME DEMS OPEN TO ‘DISCUSS’ IDEA

    “I want the ballroom because I believe in pomp and circumstance, the American brand,” he added.

    He said the nation’s image is more than just the economy.

    “People think it’s exporting technology or exporting energy,” he said. “It’s not. It’s the American Dream and so you want to showcase that.”

    He added the ballroom would bring this image to life.

    “Let’s get that ballroom fired up and show the world the American Dream,” he said. “That’s what it is.”

    He noted the project would not rely on taxpayer dollars. President Trump said the project would be privately financed through personal contributions and outside donors.

    WALZ REPEATS DEBUNKED CLAIM THAT TRUMP CONSIDERS WHITE HOUSE BALLROOM ‘TOP PRIORITY’

    “My lobbyist over here said the taxpayers are not paying for it,” he said. “So then why not let them have a ballroom? I don’t get it.”

    However, Sens. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., Katie Britt, R-Ala., and Eric Schmitt, R-Mo., proposed new legislation this week that would fund the project using customs fees on imports to cover the cost.

    A lawsuit and court-ordered injunction halted construction of the 90,000-square-foot, $400 million ballroom. A federal court ruled in March that construction must stop without congressional approval, but an appeal allowed limited below-ground construction to continue.

    O’Leary addressed Saturday’s shooting, saying it unfolded “at a moment’s notice.”

    “No one was hurt, thank goodness,” he said. “I think there’ll be a lot of investigations on that stuff.”

    The suspect was identified as Cole Allen, 31, of Torrance, Calif. He is facing charges of attempting to assassinate the President of the United States, transporting a firearm across state lines and discharging a firearm during a crime of violence.

    STEPHEN A SMITH TELLS POLITICIANS, MEDIA TO STOP GIVING ‘LIP SERVICE’ ON CIVILITY AFTER WHCA DINNER SHOOTING

    Authorities said the suspect sent a manifesto to family members outlining his intent to target President Trump and other Cabinet officials.

    President Trump said at a news conference Saturday night the shooting reinforces the need for a White House ballroom.

    “We need the ballroom,” he said. “That’s why the Secret Service, that’s why the military are demanding it. They’ve wanted the ballroom for 150 years for lots of different reasons. But today is a little bit different, because today we need levels of security that probably nobody’s ever seen before.”

    O’Leary expressed doubts about the future of the White House Correspondents’ Dinner and raised concerns about securing large-scale events.

    “I also wonder about long-term if that dinner’s going to survive, because providing the security for 2,600 people is next to impossible,” he said.

    Fox News Digital’s Adam Pack and Alex Miller contributed to this report.

  • Trump’s behind-the-scenes enforcer pulls back the curtain in rare public move

    White House chief of staff Susie Wiles, one of President Donald Trump’s most influential but least public-facing advisers, launched an X account Tuesday to share updates from inside the administration.

    “I’m joining X to share occasional updates about the work we do at the White House. We are relentlessly focusing on advancing President Trump’s agenda and delivering on promises to the American people,” her first post read. “I welcome different viewpoints. Follow along for insights and information.”

    Her newly formed account has amassed nearly 300,000 followers since its launch this week. Wiles is seen very often with the president, sitting in on high-level meetings and standing by his side at events, but Trump’s chief of staff rarely speaks directly to the public.

    WHO IS SUSIE WILES, TRUMP’S WHITE HOUSE CHIEF OF STAFF? 5 THINGS TO KNOW

    Her account only follows six users, all media outlets: Fox News, The Wall Street Journal, CNN, ABC News, The New York Times, and CBS News.

     “NEW MUST FOLLOW: White House Chief of Staff @SusieWiles47,” the White House’s Rapid Response account shared her first post writing. 

    JOE CONCHA: MY TOP FIVE ‘CRINGE’ JEAN-PIERRE MOMENTS

    The White House directed Fox News Digital to her first post when approached for additional comment. 

    Trump made history when he appointed the first woman to serve as his chief of staff, saying Wiles was integral to his 2016 and 2020 campaigns.

    FOX NEWS POLITICS NEWSLETTER: TRUMP DECLARES HIMSELF VENEZUELA’S ‘ACTING PRESIDENT’

    Wiles has been dubbed the “Ice Maiden” by Trump, which he noted in his 2024 victory speech, for hard-nosed approach to handling business. 

    Wiles is a longtime Trump ally, first throwing her support behind him in 2015 when she became the Trump campaign’s co-chairwoman in Florida.

    “As a card-carrying member of the G.O.P. establishment, many thought my full-throated endorsement of the Trump candidacy was ill-advised — even crazy,” Wiles told the New York Times in a rare public statement back in 2016. 

  • WATCH: Trump EPA chief sparks explosive hearing showdown over global warming alarm from Dems: ‘I’m talking’

    Fresh off his viral bout with Rep. Rosa DeLauro, D-Conn., EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin engaged in another heated exchange with Rep. Robert Menendez Jr., D-N.J., during a Tuesday session and afterward appeared to make a cryptic reference to the congressman’s father, who was imprisoned for corruption.

    Zeldin and Menendez Jr. sparred over the agency’s policy changes, which the Democratic lawmaker said are exacerbating climate change and related costs, as well as former DHS Secretary Kristi Noem’s tenure and government waste, as Menendez became increasingly frustrated with the administrator.

    In a post on X after the blowup, Zeldin quipped that Menendez Jr. “starts doing some really weird things with his hands when he starts hearing about ‘gold bars’ getting tossed around.”

    ADAM SCHIFF TELLS EPA’S LEE ZELDIN HE’LL CAUSE CANCER AFTER SHOUTFEST: ‘COULD GIVE A RAT’S A–‘

    Former Sen. Robert Menendez Sr., D-N.J., was dubbed “Gold Bar Bob” by the New York City press after federal prosecutors found gold bars in his home while investigating the corruption scandal that landed him and his second wife behind bars in 2025.

    Earlier Tuesday, Menendez Jr. and Zeldin cut each other off as the lawmaker raised his voice during a line of questioning about how Zeldin would have managed New York on the environmental front if he had been elected governor in 2022 and faced with Trump-era policies.

    Menendez asked whether Zeldin understood that climate change will reportedly create $45 billion in healthcare costs by 2050 after his agency rescinded an Obama-era “endangerment finding” that had governed greenhouse gas emissions and led to new consumer requirements like automobile “start-stop” features.

    Zeldin had previously told DeLauro that she did not understand the Loper Bright Supreme Court decision that his office analyzed in making the change, while telling Menendez the rescission is in line with the Clean Air Act.

    Menendez also pressed Zeldin on climate change’s role in Superstorm Sandy, which battered both their home states, and added that if he were governor, he would have to deal with millions in cuts to EPA grants, as well as the Trump administration’s reductions to Medicaid increases and added restrictions on what SNAP benefits the federal government would cover.

    Zeldin quipped that it was “interesting” how those questions were posed.

    EPA CHIEF LEE ZELDIN BLASTS NY TIMES OVER CLAIM AGENCY WILL STOP CONSIDERING ‘LIVES SAVED’ IN POLLUTION RULES

    “Because it’s either, or, right — what would you do if you were governor of New York?” Menendez shot back before Zeldin interjected to ask whether Menendez understood how liberal governance has cost New Jersey residents in his state:

    “You know how much energy prices are up in New Jersey in the last five years?” Zeldin said before quipping that President Donald Trump’s 2027 budget does not account for “how much [Democrats] are going to raid it.”

    Menendez interjected that Zeldin has said “other crazy stuff today” and would move on, to which Zeldin spoke over him to accuse Democrats of “grandstanding” and not allowing answers.

    A frustrated Menendez then turned to Chairman Morgan Griffith, R-Va., and asked “Are you going to do anything [about this] at some point?”

    When Menendez pivoted to questioning President Donald Trump’s reported policy pledges to the fossil fuel industry, Zeldin shot back to ask whether the Democrat was going to allow him to answer.

    “I’m going to start an answer and you’re going to cut me off – that’s how this works, right?”

    In response, a fuming Menendez said he wanted to also ask about the Noem-era advertising campaign which he said cost $220 million.

    When Zeldin tried to respond, Menendez boomed, “I’m talking.”

    “How about the conflicts of interest during the Biden EPA — how about the Gold Bars being thrown off the Titanic?” Zeldin shot back as the two talked over each other, and Zeldin could be heard pressing Menendez on why New Jersey and New York have seen about a 50% spike in energy costs under policies opposed to the Trump administration’s.

    EPA CHIEF LEE ZELDIN DOUBLES DOWN AFTER FIERY EXCHANGE WITH REP DELAURO OVER LANDMARK SCOTUS CASES

    As Menendez’s time expired, Griffith cut in to say that Zeldin was there solely to address EPA matters.

    “He also has a right to answer the question, let’s try to be a little more civil on all parts,” he said.

    The gold bars reference cited a prior statement by Zeldin that Biden-era “throwing gold bars off the Titanic are over” and that “self-dealing and conflicts of interest, unqualified recipients, and intentionally reduced agency oversight pose unacceptable risk” in the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund were ending under his tenure with the March 2025 termination of $20 billion in funding — a topic Menendez referenced in his criticism.

    While some observers heard “gold bars” mentioned in the tense exchange and hearkened back to Sen. Robert Menendez Sr.’s federal case, in which gold bars were found in his possession, an EPA source told Fox News Digital that Zeldin was not directly referencing that scandal.

    “When Dems hear the truth, they implode,” Zeldin said in a statement on X.

    Fox News Digital reached out to Menendez Jr. for comment on the uproar and the mention of gold bars during the exchange.

  • Thomas leaves nothing left unsaid on racial gerrymandering decision: ‘go further’

    Justice Clarence Thomas said Wednesday the Supreme Court should go further than its latest Voting Rights Act ruling, arguing the law’s key anti-discrimination provision was divisive and should never apply to redistricting cases. 

    “As I explained more than 30 years ago, I would go further and hold that [section two] of the Voting Rights Act does not regulate districting at all,” Thomas, who was joined by Justice Neil Gorsuch, wrote in a concurrence.

    Thomas’ remarks came as part of the Supreme Court’s 6-3 decision in Louisiana v. Callais, which upheld a finding that one of the state’s majority-Black congressional districts was an unconstitutional racial gerrymander. 

    The decision had broad implications, serving to narrow section two of the Voting Rights Act, a civil rights-era law making it illegal for voting policies to discriminate based on race. The ruling already restricted states’ ability to use race as a factor when drawing majority-minority districts, but Thomas’ concurrence went further, saying the statute should not be used for redistricting under any circumstance.

    CHICAGO MAYOR BRANDON JOHNSON TAKES JAB AT CLARENCE THOMAS WHILE DEFENDING CITY’S REPARATIONS TASK FORCE

    “Today’s decision should largely put an end to this ‘disastrous misadventure’ in voting-rights jurisprudence,” Thomas wrote, quoting himself from a 1994 concurrence.

    Thomas argued the high court’s prior interpretations of section two of the Voting Rights Act have encouraged states to engage in discriminatory race-based map drawing. He said the text of section two covers access to ballots and voting procedures, not how states draw district lines, and that it should therefore not be used in lawsuits about maps.

    Thomas, an appointee of President George H. W. Bush, has long advocated gutting the Voting Rights Act provision. The conservative justice, the second Black justice in history after Justice Thurgood Marshall, said in the 1994 case, Holder v. Hall, that people who use section two of the law to claim redrawn districts have diluted racial minorities’ votes are reading it incorrectly.

    “The assumptions upon which our vote dilution decisions have been based should be repugnant to any nation that strives for the ideal of a color blind Constitution,” Thomas wrote at the time.

    REVISITING JUSTICE SCALIA’S SAME-SEX MARRIAGE DISSENT: PROPHETIC OR INFLAMMATORY?

    The majority opinion, authored by Justice Samuel Alito, stopped short of Thomas’ position. Alito wrote that while compliance with the Voting Rights Act could sometimes involve the use of race, Louisiana was not required to create a second majority-Black district, meaning its map was unconstitutional.

    “‘Our acceptance of race-based state action has been rare for a reason,’” Alito wrote, saying Louisiana had “no compelling interest” in packing Black voters into the district.

    The yearslong case arose from Louisiana’s redistricting efforts after the 2020 census, during which the state added a second majority-Black district after a lower court said the Voting Rights Act required it. That new map was then struck down as a racial gerrymander, setting up the new lawsuit that rose to the Supreme Court.

    The three liberal justices argued in a dissent, authored by Justice Elena Kagan, an Obama appointee, that the majority’s decision, and Thomas’ more stringent view, stripped protections against diluting racial minorities’ votes. The decision “renders Section 2 all but dead letter,” Kagan wrote.

    “Under the Court’s new view of Section 2, a State can, without legal consequence, systematically dilute minority citizens’ voting power,” she wrote.

  • Mamdani says if he speaks to King Charles, he’d tell him to return controversial gem to India

    New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani said that if he has a chance to speak with King Charles during a 9/11 memorial event in New York City on Wednesday, he’d ask the British monarch to return a controversial 105.6-carat diamond to India.

    Mamdani was taking questions from reporters when he was asked what he’d say if King Charles happened to stop and chat at the event, a wreath laying at Ground Zero to honor those killed on 9/11 ahead of the 25th anniversary of the attacks.

    “You know, if I was to speak to the King separately from that, I would probably encourage him to return the Koh-i-Noor diamond,” Mamdani said, after first saying that he was focused primarily on the evening’s memorial event.

    The diamond, which is now set in the crown of the Queen Mother that was worn by Queen Elizabeth, the wife of King George VI and mother to Queen Elizabeth II, has a controversial history.

    EVERY STOP ON KING CHARLES, QUEEN CAMILLA’S US VISIT: HERE’S WHERE THEY’RE TRAVELING IN AMERICA

    The Koh-i-Noor, which means “Mountain of Light,” was likely discovered in South India in the 13th century and is believed to have changed hands countless times over the following centuries.

    In 1849, the gem wound up in Britain’s possession following its annexation of the Punjab and forcing its 10-year-old king to sign the Treaty of Lahore, requiring him to hand sovereignty — and the diamond — over to the British, according to Smithsonian Magazine.

    DEADLY DIAMONDS AND CURSED CROWNS

    The diamond became part of Britain’s Crown Jewels and was worn by several queens before it was set in the front of the crown of the Queen Mother worn by Queen Elizabeth, in which the gem has remained as it sits on display in the Tower of London.

    India is one of several countries that have pushed for Britain to return the gem. Other countries laying claim to famous diamond include Pakistan, Iran and Afghanistan.

    So far, neither Britain nor the Royal Family has given any indication that the diamond would be returned.

  • After third assassination attempt, debate grows over whether Trump attack warrants another investigation

    When a bullet grazed President Donald Trump’s ear, Congress immediately launched investigations into how a gunman was able to pull the trigger. Two attempts later, and lawmakers are now less interested in taking swift action.

    There have been few calls to hold hearings or launch probes into the latest incident as conspiracies swirl online after the third alleged assassination attempt over the weekend at the White House Correspondent’s Association Dinner.

    “I just happen to think it’s — for the most part, it’s a waste of time,” Sen. John Kennedy, R-La., told Fox News Digital. “Security held. The guy didn’t get through. Wasn’t even close.”

    REPUBLICANS EYE PICKING UP $400M TAB FOR TRUMP’S BALLROOM AS SOME DEMS OPEN TO ‘DISCUSS’ IDEA

    Top lawmakers on the House Oversight and Senate Judiciary committees met with Secret Service Director Sean Curran this week for briefings, but have so far stopped short of calling for hearings or full-scale investigations.

    Two years ago, when a gunman tried and failed to assassinate Trump on the campaign trail in Butler, Pa., two major bipartisan investigations were launched to address failures by the Secret Service and other agencies and find out how a gunman got so close to ending Trump’s life.

    And in the case of Ryan Routh, who was caught with a rifle in another attempt against Trump while he was golfing at his club in Florida just months after the shooting at Butler, lawmakers folded that investigation in with their ongoing inquiry into the first attack.

    Following the weekend shooting at the annual White House Correspondents’ Association (WHCA) dinner, where a gunman was foiled while attempting to enter a packed ballroom where Trump, his Cabinet, Vice President JD Vance and several journalists sat, lawmakers aren’t rushing to figure out what happened this time.

    Trump’s appearance on Saturday marks the first time he decided to go to the dinner while serving as president — he has been twice in the past. He also promised at a press conference after the dinner was canceled to reschedule the event within the next 30 days.

    The alleged shooter, Cole Allen, bolted past a security check point with a rifle, handgun and several knives on his person. But the Secret Service was able to neutralize the suspect before he ever entered the ballroom where Trump was sitting.

    Still, some Republicans are demanding that the incident be given a thorough review, or at least a hearing.

    REPUBLICANS SCRAMBLE TO FUND SECRET SERVICE AFTER TRUMP ASSASSINATION ATTEMPT AMID RECORD-BREAKING SHUTDOWN

    “I mean, this is the third assassination attempt on the life of the president in two years,” Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., told Fox News Digital. “You know, we need to look carefully at all of the procedures and protocols.”

    Hawley wants Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee Chair Rand Paul, R-Ky., to hold a hearing on presidential security in the aftermath of the shooting.

    The very same committee led an investigation into the Butler attempt and determined that the shooting was preventable and caused by a series of failures in security protocol, planning, and funding, among several others.

    The bipartisan investigation landed on more than 40 recommendations for actions that should be taken in the future to prevent a repeat.

    Paul didn’t appear ready to rush into a hearing on the matter. He told Fox News Digital that lawmakers investigated that attempt for over a year and believed that the probe “arrived at several bits of wisdom, insight, and advice.”

    “I think there will be items from this that need to be reviewed and made better,” Paul said. “We’re gonna get a briefing from the Secret Service on what to learn from this attempt, and we’ll decide after that if we need to do anything further. But absolutely, the Secret Service needs to investigate and see what they can do to make the president safer.”

    REPUBLICANS RUSH TO GREEN-LIGHT WHITE HOUSE BALLROOM FOLLOWING THIRD TRUMP ASSASSINATION SCARE

    Like Hawley, Rep. Ralph Norman, R-S.C., has several questions about how a gunman was able to blow past security measures and fears what could come next.

    “When is it going to be a suicide bomber? When is it going to be an army of people behind the one person that went in and blow up the whole building? Look, that’s where we are, and I have questions about the three assassination attempts,” Norman told Fox News Digital.

    Meanwhile, there is a growing wave of skepticism online about whether the latest attempt on Trump’s life was even real. Many users are claiming that the incident was “staged.”

    Sen. Bernie Moreno, R-Ohio, told Fox News Digital that “some of these people need … serious help.”

    Moreno was comfortable that White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles would lead a “necessary and important conversation” about the White House Correspondents’ Association dinner incident, but rebuked any attempt by Democrats to push for answers.

    “If there’s a Democrat having that conversation, you can shut the f— up given that they won’t fund [the Department of Homeland Security],” Moreno said.

  • Dems’ ‘No Kings’ rhetoric backfires as critics lambaste ‘confusing’ reaction to actual king

    Democratic lawmakers, who have frequently accused President Donald Trump of acting like a “king” upon his return to the White House, were brutally mocked on Tuesday for applauding and warmly greeting King Charles III during his joint address to Congress. 

    “Quite the confusing scene on the House floor today. Many of Congressman Hamadeh’s Democratic colleagues, who have spent months chanting ‘No Kings,’ just gave one a standing ovation,” Arizona Republican Rep. Abe Hamadeh’s office posted to X.

    The “No Kings” protests began on Presidents Day in February 2025 as a backlash to the Trump administration’s Department of Government Efficiency and broader efforts to shrink the federal government. The movement broke into the national spotlight in June of that year, when Trump’s military parade celebrating the Army’s 250th anniversary gave demonstrators a new focal point for their claims that Trump was conducting himself more like a monarch than a president. 

    Some Democratic lawmakers encouraged or joined the protests, with conservative social media commenters pointing out what they viewed as hypocrisy on Tuesday as Democrats applauded a king. 

    ‘AMERICA IS BACK’: LAWMAKERS RALLY AROUND TRUMP AFTER ‘PHENOMENAL’ JOINT ADDRESS TO CONGRESS

    “I’m hearing no Democrats plan to attend King Charles’ speech because ‘No Kings.’ They’d never be gaslighters,” said Republican Florida Rep. Randy Fine posted to X. 

    The official White House X account posted a photo of Trump with Charles seemingly trolling the left, captioning the pic, “TWO KINGS.”

    FIT FOR A KING? EX-PRIME MINISTER TRUDEAU WEARS SNEAKERS TO SEE KING CHARLES’ THRONE SPEECH

    Congresswoman Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., was seen smiling and snapping photos of Charles on Tuesday. She was among lawmakers who have joined the “No Kings” protests. 

    Minnesota showed up in huge numbers today and it was a delight to address the largest #nokings rally in the country,” she posted to Instagram in March, accompanied by footage of a “No Kings” protest. 

    Fox News Digital reached out to Omar’s office for any comment on the matter. 

    KING CHARLES HEADS TO TRUMP WHITE HOUSE AS AMERICA MARKS 250 YEARS SINCE BREAKING FROM THE CROWN

    Actor Tim Allen even weighed in, posting a photo of Charles in front of Vice President JD Vance and House Speaker Ron Johnson, R-La., at the podium.

    “Would have been funny to see the facial reactions of an actual King with a no Kings parade yelling at him,” said Allen.

    One video went viral, with over 4 million views, showing top Democrats such as former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., and Sen. Cory Booker, D-N.J., standing up to applaud the king.

    “NO KINGS! Am I doing it right, Democrats?” said conservative commentator Steve Guest on X.

    “Seems kind of embarrassing for an actual King to get cheered by No Kings people,” wrote co-host of “The Big Money Show” Brian Brenberg.

    The king and Queen Camilla will conclude their trip on Wednesday, returning to the UK.

    Charles’ address to Congress was a historic moment. His mother, Queen Elizabeth II, was the first and only other British monarch to address a joint meeting of Congress when she did so in 1991.

  • Speaker Johnson one step closer to renewing controversial spy program after conservatives fall in line

    House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., is one step closer to averting a lapse in a controversial surveillance program after GOP privacy hawks fell in line to back a procedural measure amid weeks of infighting.

    House lawmakers approved a test vote teeing up a three-year extension of Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) for a vote on final passage as early as Wednesday evening. The procedural measure also includes a Senate-passed budget resolution funding immigration enforcement for the rest of President Donald Trump’s term and mammoth agriculture and nutrition legislation known as the farm bill. 

    GOP leadership held the vote open for more than two hours as they worked to flip dozens of conservative holdouts. Every Republican present ultimately voted yes during the marathon session in a major victory for Johnson.

    Johnson could afford to lose just a handful of GOP defections given House Republicans’ razor-thin majority.

    HOUSE CONSERVATIVES SKEPTICAL AS SENATE DEAL SACRIFICING DHS SPENDING REACHED: ‘NON-STARTER’

    The successful procedural vote came after a sustained lobbying campaign from the Trump administration and Republican leadership to sell GOP privacy hawks on an extension of the spy law.

    “This is by far the most collaborative effort that I’ve seen on FISA, and we’ve had a number of these kinds of fights,” Rep. Warren Davidson, R-Ohio, a leading FISA skeptic, told reporters earlier this week. “So I think it’s a very collaborative work product, and that’s why I say I support it.”

    “It’s not to say I don’t think there’s other reforms that I would support, but I think this is a good win, and we should focus on a broader set of reforms that apply way beyond the scope of 702,” the Ohio Republican added.

    House conservatives also appeared to soften their opposition after leadership included language permanently banning central bank digital currencies (CBDC) in the procedural measure.

    GOP privacy hawks have long pushed for adding a CBDC ban to a legislative vehicle, casting it as a necessary effort to ward off government surveillance.

    But Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., has warned that any FISA renewal bill with CBDC language is “dead on arrival” in the Senate. 

    “They know that,” Thune told reporters Tuesday, referring to House Republicans.

    The Senate could also move to pass a rival FISA plan and force the House to swallow it ahead of Thursday’s deadline to extend the spy law.

    “FISA is critical to our national defense and our national security,” Sen. Mike Rounds, R-S.D., told Fox News. “If we lose FISA, we lose the ability to defend this country the way that it should be defended. We use that information to find out what the bad guys are doing, where they’re at, what they’re looking to attack, what their strategies are.”

    “I know we’ve got folks out there that are concerned about protecting Americans and so forth,” Rounds added. “We really need them to take a look at the other side of this, which is, are you going to hurt Americans?”

    ‘HELL WEEK’ IN WASHINGTON: A LOOK AT HOUSE REPUBLICANS’ CURRENT BIND, AND HOW WE GOT HERE

    Johnson is also seeking to clear the Senate budget resolution funding immigration enforcement and the farm bill before the end of the week.

    Leadership has scheduled votes on both measures, but it is not clear if House Republicans will support either bill without modifications. 

    Rep. Anna Paulina Luna, R-Fla., secured an amendment to strip out controversial pesticide language from the farm bill, arguing it would block lawsuits against some pesticide manufacturers.

    “On behalf of all the moms and dads that aren’t in office, I am not going to be bullied into supporting a bill that is providing protections and immunity to corporations that are responsible for giving children and adults cancer,” Luna wrote on social media. “This is literally above party affiliation.”

    Trump has urged House Republicans to quickly pass the Senate’s budget blueprint to fund immigration enforcement.

    “It is imperative that Congress immediately fund DHS and its critical operations to protect the Homeland,” the White House Office of Management and Budget wrote in a memo to Hill offices on Tuesday that was obtained by Fox News Digital. “Failure to pass the budget resolution will jeopardize paychecks for the DHS personnel that keep the Homeland safe.”

  • Walz a no-show at key fraud hearing despite being in the building on other business: GOP leader

    EXCLUSIVE: Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz was absent from a state fraud hearing on Tuesday, and the Republican lawmaker leading the hearing believes he was in the building at the time — and the reason for his absence, according to the lawmaker, was the governor’s “arrogance.”

    “I think he just feels above it all and doesn’t need to answer to the people of Minnesota,” state Rep. Kristin Robbins, chair of the House Fraud Prevention and State Agency Oversight Committee, told Fox News Digital after Walz was a no-show at the committee’s hearing on Tuesday seeking more answers in the massive fraud scandal that has enveloped the state in recent years.

    “The only reason he testified in D.C. is because he was under subpoena. And, you know, he doesn’t have to come to our committee. I expected him to. I really did, because Minnesotans are owed an explanation of how billions of our tax dollars could be stolen on his watch.”

    GOP LAWMAKER UNVEILS WALZ ACT AFTER BILLIONS LOST IN MINNESOTA FRAUD SCANDAL

    Robbins says the committee reached out on March 9 asking Walz to speak at one of several hearings this week, including Tuesday, and that at 6 p.m. on Monday he informed the committee he wasn’t attending.

    Walz was scheduled to deliver his final State of the State address in the Minnesota State Capitol on Tuesday night, leading Robbins to believe he was in the building that afternoon, but still didn’t attend the hearing.

    “He was in the building!” Robbins posted on X.

    NAME OF WALZ’S NEW 3-WORD PAC DRAWS IMMEDIATE ONLINE MOCKERY

    I cannot defend his arrogance that he would not come and answer questions for the historic, unprecedented level of fraud in our state and in the country,” Robbins told Fox News Digital.

    Fox News Digital reached out to Walz’s office for comment. 

    Walz delivered his final State of the State address on Tuesday night and Robbins reacted to that speech in her interview with Fox News Digital.

    “It was ridiculous,” Robbins said about Walz’s comments on the fraud scandal. “He somewhat said, ‘Oh the buck stops with me,’ but then he immediately pivoted to blame everyone else.”

    Walz touted his efforts to crack down on fraud during his speech while claiming that red states have more fraud than blue states and suggesting the legislature needs to do more to adopt his proposal to fight fraud.

    We’ve created additional checks and balances,” Walz said. “We’ve brought on more investigators, more auditors, more law enforcement agencies, as well as an outside firm to take a look at high-risk programs. People who have ripped us off are getting caught and they are going to jail, just like today.”

    Walz’s reference to “today” was in relation to federal raids carried out across Minneapolis earlier that day, which the governor faced criticism over, including from FBI Director Kash Patel, after he seemingly took credit for actions the federal government says it directed and orchestrated.

    Robbins told Fox News Digital Walz’s proposals will do “nothing but create more bureaucracy” and said the Republican proposals are more “serious” to actually address the issue.

    He can keep gaslighting people but nobody buys it anymore,” Robbins said.

    Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., failed to show up to speak before the same committee earlier this month over questions surrounding her ties to individuals and locations implicated in the Feeding Our Future scandal in Minnesota. 

    Omar’s absence prompted Robbins to send a letter to Omar demanding answers to a variety of questions by May 5, Fox News Digital first reported.

    Robbins, who is currently running for Minnesota governor, told Fox News Digital the committee has not heard back from Omar’s office as of Tuesday.

    “They do have till May 5, so I’m hoping they will. But, you know, they ghosted us all the way up to the hearing, so I don’t know if they will respond,” Robbins said. “But again, this isn’t just because we’re the legislature, it’s because we are representing the taxpayers who deserve answers from their public officials. And the fact that they don’t deign to come and answer questions on the record and just think that they can be above it all, it’s really an affront to Minnesotans.”