Author: NOVA Corp

Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. defended comments about President Donald Trump‘s mental health following a tense exchange during a congressional hearing.

During Friday’s hearing, Rep. Mark Takano (D-Calif.) addressed Trump’s recent social media posts, pointing to an AI-generated image that critics said depicted him as Jesus Christ and his criticism of Pope Leo as evidence he is mentally unwell.

“Millions of Americans are questioning this president’s mental fitness, his emotional stability, and whether he can carry out the duties of his office. Do you share their concerns about his mental health?” Takano asked Kennedy.

Kennedy began to answer, saying, “I call your attention to…” before the representative cut him off and demanded a more direct response.

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“Mr. Secretary, my question was: Do you share their concerns about his mental health?” Takano reiterated. “We need a leader that we know has full command of his mental faculties and is emotionally stable as he sends uniformed American men and women into harm’s way.”

“Millions of Americans are now wondering if this president is delusional and thinks he is Jesus Christ,” he continued. “Mr. Secretary, given everything that I’ve shown you today, will you insist that President Trump undergo an assessment of his mental fitness and his emotional stability?”

“Absolutely not,” Kennedy quickly interjected.

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Takano followed up by asking whether Kennedy would support invoking the 25th Amendment, which allows for a transfer of power if the president dies, resigns, or is incapacitated.

“There hasn’t been a president who is more sane or stable …” Kennedy began to answer before the congressman interrupted him again.

“Mr. Secretary, my question is would you vote to invoke the 25th Amendment,” Takano said.

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The heated exchange came one day after Kennedy engaged in a shouting match with Rep. Terri Sewell, D-Ala., over previous comments he made about Black children.

“Mr. Secretary, you’ve already admitted that you are not a board-certified physician, and you’ve already admitted you did not go to medical school. Have you ever reparented or parented, I should say, a Black child?” Sewell said, referencing his appearance on a 2024 podcast.

As the two argued back and forth, Kennedy claimed he never made those remarks and refused to answer her question.

The exchanges mark a pattern of escalating confrontations as Kennedy faces continued scrutiny from Democratic lawmakers.

Fox News Digital’s Elaine Mallon contributed to this report.

A congressional hearing featuring the victims of crimes tied to illegal immigration erupted into a tense confrontation Thursday.

Rep. Hank Johnson, D-Ga., drew fierce backlash from grieving mothers and Rep. Brandon Gill, R-Texas, for appearing to dismiss their tragedies while pivoting to attacks on “MAGA Republicans.”

The fiery exchange happened during a hearing focused on “The Human Toll of Sanctuary Policies,” during which Johnson claimed the victims’ families’ comments were a “Steve Miller-approved” stunt with the sole purpose of “stir[ring] up passion and prejudice against immigrants who are people of color.”

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After offering brief condolences to the families of victims allegedly killed and critically injured by illegal immigrants, Johnson immediately pivoted to a partisan attack, arguing the committee should instead be holding hearings on the “human toll” of the “Trump MAGA tax cuts,” Trump’s foreign policy with Iran or the “cover up of the Epstein files.”

He went on to list a string of violent crimes committed by White men and noted the death of Renee Good, who was killed by federal authorities in January while protesting immigration enforcement.

“I’m not minimizing the tragedy that is before us today with you three women, but the other tragedies at the hands of non-immigrants are just as important,” Johnson said.

He also accused the Republican majority of strategically “sandwich[ing]” a Democrat witness between the victims’ families for “dramatic effect.”

Gill fired back, calling Johnson’s tirade “one of the most disgusting testimonies I have ever heard” and blaming Democrat lawmakers for the tragedies during four years of open borders under the Biden administration.

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However, the most stinging reply to Johnson’s comments came from Jen Heiling, the mother of victim Brady Heiling, 18, who was killed along with his girlfriend, Hallie Helgeson, 18, in 2025, when an illegal immigrant from Honduras was allegedly driving the wrong way on I-90 while intoxicated, crashing into the teens’ car.

“You can put me in whatever order, in whatever seat. My tragedy is never going to be OK,” Heiling told Johnson. “Today’s our day. Hear us. Leave your butts in your seat. I don’t want to hear your butts.”

She described how her 11-year-old and 16-year-old children are still waiting for the teens to come home, noting that her garage stall remains empty because her son’s car is still being held as police evidence.

“We can’t pick a headstone because that makes it too real. But you can sit here and tell us about what kind of hearing this should be,” Heiling said. “Renee Good is not the same as angel families. She made a choice. … Brady and Hallie didn’t get a choice. … They were living [by] American laws … and they were stolen by somebody who doesn’t care.”

Patricia Fox, mother of Carissa Aspnes, who was seriously injured in a hit-and-run allegedly caused by an illegal immigrant, followed Heiling’s remarks by shooting back at Johnson’s comments about race, noting, “I don’t know if anybody has noticed, but I am not White. I wake up Brown every day.”

“I’m not sure what race has to do with any of this,” Fox said. “There’s four kids that we talked about today, and y’all can’t seem to stay on topic for what — an hour of your time. 

“Today, we’re talking about sanctuary policies and how they have wrecked our families. Y’all come and y’all feed Carissa. You get her up from her bed using a crane, and then you tell me and lecture me what this hearing should be about.”

Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito is not expected to step down this term and has already hired all four law clerks for the upcoming annual term despite speculation the high court justice was weighing retirement, multiple sources said.

Alito “is not stepping down this term and is in the process of hiring the rest of his clerks for the next term,” a source told Fox News Digital. Two other sources told Fox News that Alito is not retiring this term, which lasts until the Supreme Court’s new year kicks off in October.

Justices tend to hire their clerks two to three years in advance, although that process is not necessarily indicative of a justice’s retirement plans.

The revelation that Alito is reportedly not planning to step down comes after President Donald Trump told Fox Business’ Maria Bartiromo he is “prepared” to appoint up to three Supreme Court justices if vacancies arise. Trump added he has a shortlist of nominees in mind, though he did not mention any names.

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“In theory, it’s two or three, they tell me — if you just read statistics — it could be two, could be three, could be one,” Trump told Bartiromo. “I don’t know. I’m prepared to do it. But when you mention Alito, he is a great justice.”

Trump said he thinks Alito, who has sided with him on most high-profile cases, is “in very good physical health” and called him “one of the great justices of our time.”

“Justice Alito is an unbelievable justice,” Trump said.

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Rumors about Alito, 76, potentially retiring have grown because of his age, his two-decade tenure on the bench and speculation that he may want to make sure a conservative successor is confirmed by the current Republican-led Senate before the upcoming midterm elections. Former President George W. Bush nominated him for the nation’s highest court in 2005. 

The rumors were further fueled when it was revealed Alito was treated last month for dehydration after becoming ill at a Federalist Society dinner. A Supreme Court spokesperson clarified at the time that the justice was “thoroughly checked” and quickly returned to the bench.

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Justice Clarence Thomas, an appointee of President George H. W. Bush, has drawn less retirement speculation despite being one year older than Alito at 77 and in his own lengthy tenure. Thomas has been a conservative fixture on the court for more than three decades and holds a record as the second-longest serving justice in history.

Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, told reporters earlier this week he would recommend Sens. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, or Mike Lee, R-Utah, as top candidates if Alito were to retire. Grassley said he hoped Alito would not step down but said his committee is “fully prepared” to process a nominee before the midterm elections. 

Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., told reporters Tuesday the GOP majority would be able to fill a Supreme Court vacancy quickly.

“That’s a contingency I think around here you always have to be prepared for. And if that were to happen, yes, we would be prepared to confirm,” Thune said.

Fox News’ Bill Mears contributed to this report. 

Democratic California Gov. Gavin Newsom’s political action committee spent more than $1.5 million buying thousands of copies of his new memoir — accounting for about two-thirds of all copies sold nationwide — according to campaign finance filings. 

The PAC spending helped propel Newsom’s memoir, “Young Man in a Hurry,” onto the New York Times bestseller list and is raising new scrutiny as his national profile builds ahead of a possible 2028 presidential run.

In November, the Campaign for Democracy Committee launched a book campaign asking donors to contribute any amount to the PAC to receive the memoir when it was released on Feb. 24. Newsom spokesperson Nathan Click told the New York Times that the PAC bought about 67,000 copies—representing a substantial portion of the 97,400 total sold.

“We were thrilled with the response,” Click told the New York Times. “Our goal was to deepen the relationship between him and the millions of folks who have already expressed support for Governor Newsom’s work.”

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The PAC made two payments totaling over $1.5 million to Porchlight Book Company, according to a FEC filing posted on Wednesday and reviewed by Fox News Digital. The governor will not receive royalties from the books sold through the campaign, the New York Times reported. 

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When asked about the book’s ranking on the best seller list, a New York Times spokesperson explained the outlet places a dagger symbol on the list to indicate when a book’s ranking has been influenced by a bulk purchase.

“When The Times has reason to believe that sales of a book include a mix of organic and bulk sales, the book’s best-seller ranking is accompanied by a dagger. That’s what we did with the Newsom book,” Nicole Taylor, spokesperson for The Times, said in a statement to Fox News Digital.

Fox News Digital reached out to representatives for Newsom but did not immediately reply. 

Book promotion is common among politicians, but Newsom’s PAC spending outpaces similar political committee purchases. The Republican National Committee, for example, spent about $100,000 in 2019 purchasing Donald Trump Jr.’s book, the New York Times noted in its report.  

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Newsom’s memoir is focused on the challenges he faced in his upbringing, addressing his battle with dyslexia and having divorced parents, as well as his political career. 

Newsom’s book tour, which included visiting cities across the nation, drew criticism from conservatives for the Democrat governor allegedly putting himself over leading California. 

Chairwoman of the California Republican Party Corrin Rankin told Fox Digital, in response to the book campaign, she believes Newsom is trying to “rebrand his national image” while abandoning issues at home, as recent data underscores ongoing challenges in the state.

Social media commenters have not shied away from mocking Newsom over the book sales, including Republican California gubernatorial candidate and former Fox News host Steve Hilton. 

“Gavin Newsom’s ‘bestseller’ memoir just got the ultimate California treatment: his PAC dropped $1.56 million of donor cash to buy 67,000 free copies and mail them to anyone who donated any amount,” Hilton posted to X on Thursday. “That’s two-thirds of all print sales. Nothing says ‘Young Man in a Hurry’ like rigging your own book numbers with political slush funds while California burns.”

Newsom is considered a top potential 2028 presidential candidate for the Democrat Party, though he has not confirmed whether he will officially throw his hat in the ring. 

Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson linked the restaurant industry to “slavery” Wednesday as he defended his push to eliminate the tipped wage, doubling down after surviving a City Council effort to block the policy.

Johnson’s remarks came after the Chicago City Council failed to override his veto of a measure that would have halted the city’s phaseout of the subminimum wage for tipped workers — a policy set to raise base pay to the full minimum wage by 2028 that is opposed by restaurant owners who warn it could drive up prices and cut jobs.

He called on Chicagoans to “challenge city council not to do stuff like take wages away from Black and Brown people,” claiming that minorities living in Chicago primarily work in service industry jobs reliant on tips.

“You just watched the entire city council in transparency try to take wages away from the very people who are part of an industry that has its ties to slavery is hiding from that,” Johnson said. “I am boldly declaring that we need reparations in this city, and that’s why I’m funding it.”

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City aldermen voted last month to end the wage increase for tipped workers, but Johnson vetoed it.

Restaurant owners and associations have pushed back on the city’s phaseout of the subminimum wage, saying it will shrink their already tight profit margins. Chicago’s City Council failed to meet the 34-vote requirement to overturn the phaseout.

Johnson’s comments came in response to a question from a person who claimed that Johnson’s Reparations Task Force was not in compliance with Illinois state law, which mandates that all public bodies hold public meetings. Johnson denied the assertion that his task force, which he launched in June 2024, was not being transparent with the public.

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“I’m a black man in America calling for the reparations of black people,” Johnson said. “There is no hiding or escaping that. I’m taking a bold statement here.”

Johnson allotted $500,000 to the task force in 2024.

On Thursday, the task force and city kicked off a bus tour as part of “Repair Chicago,” a community engagement effort created to explore firsthand the “impacts of systemic harm faced by Black Chicagoans.”

A spokesperson from Johnson’s office doubled down on Johnson linking tipped wages to slavery, suggesting that it became common practice for “white employers in the South” following the Emancipation.

“Today, many Black workers, particularly women, continue to rely on tips and subminimum wages to support themselves and their families,” the spokesperson said in a statement. “The institutionalized reliance on tipping remains a uniquely American phenomenon, and Mayor Johnson is proud to be a leader in the movement to ensure working people across the country receive the dignity and respect they deserve in the workplace, and have the ability to support themselves and their loved ones in a system that has historically denied them fair and stable wages.”

One month after President Donald Trump ordered a government-wide halt on artificial intelligence firm Anthropic’s technology following a clash with the Pentagon, the company’s CEO is back at the White House for high-level talks — as officials reconsider whether a system they sidelined over national security and political concerns may be too important to ignore.

A source familiar with the meeting told Fox News White House chief of staff Susie Wiles met with Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei Friday. 

Anthropic’s new artificial intelligence model, Mythos Preview, is considered so advanced that the company has restricted its release, limiting access to a small group of partners over concerns about potential misuse.

The meeting signals a rapid reversal inside the Trump administration, as officials weigh whether a system previously flagged as a national security risk could also be critical to defending U.S. infrastructure — exposing a growing internal tension over how to handle powerful AI tools with both defensive and offensive potential.

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The talks come despite a recent clash inside the Trump administration, as officials reconsider a company the Pentagon flagged as a supply chain risk. Its ties to former Biden officials and past criticism of Trump by its CEO have added a political dimension to the debate over whether its technology should return to government use.

That potential and the risks that come with it already have triggered tensions inside the U.S. government.

The meeting comes after a sharp break between Anthropic and the Pentagon earlier in 2026.  

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth designated the company a national security “supply chain risk,” effectively cutting it out of military systems and barring contractors from using its technology.

Anthropic is now challenging the designation in court, after filing multiple lawsuits against the Pentagon and other federal agencies arguing the “supply chain risk” label is unlawful and retaliatory. 

The designation, which effectively bars contractors from using Anthropic’s technology and has been compared to measures typically reserved for foreign adversaries, already has faced conflicting rulings in federal court, with one judge temporarily blocking parts of the policy while an appeals court declined to halt its enforcement. The legal fight is ongoing, leaving contractors and agencies navigating uncertainty over whether and how Anthropic’s systems can be used.

The move followed a dispute over how the Pentagon could use Anthropic’s AI. 

The company declined to grant open-ended authorization for “all lawful purposes,” instead insisting its systems not be used for mass domestic surveillance or fully autonomous weapons. While Pentagon officials said they do not rely on AI for either purpose, they rejected being constrained by a private company’s restrictions.

Trump then directed federal agencies to stop using Anthropic’s models altogether, escalating the standoff beyond the Defense Department into a government-wide halt.

Now, just weeks later, the company is back in high-level talks with the White House as officials weigh whether its new Mythos system — despite the earlier ban — could shift the balance of cyber defense and attack.

The dispute also has taken on a political dimension.

Amodei previously has drawn attention for his criticism of Trump, at one point likening him to a “feudal warlord” in a pre-2024-election Facebook post, according to a Wall Street Journal report.

In an internal message posted on Anthropic’s Slack platform and later leaked to The Information, Amodei suggested the Trump administration’s dispute with the company was driven in part by its refusal to offer what he described as “dictator-style praise.” 

The message, written during a rapid escalation of tensions in early March, later was cited by the Wall Street Journal and other outlets. Amodei subsequently apologized for the tone, saying the post did not reflect his considered views.

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When asked about Anthropic’s governance, hiring and broader political ties, a White House official said the administration “continues to proactively engage across government and industry to protect the United States and Americans,” including “working with frontier AI labs to ensure their models help secure critical software vulnerabilities.”

The official added that “any new technology that would potentially be used or deployed by the federal government requires a technical period of evaluation for fidelity and security,” and said “the collective effort of all involved will ultimately benefit industry, and our country, as a whole.”

Beyond the immediate dispute, the company’s broader ties to Washington also have drawn attention.

Anthropic’s governance structure has also drawn attention as the administration weighs closer engagement. The company is overseen in part by an independent “Long-Term Benefit Trust,” an unusual mechanism designed to give nonfinancial stakeholders influence over corporate decisions. 

The trust holds special voting shares that allow it to appoint and eventually control a majority of the company’s board, with members drawn from national security, public policy and global development backgrounds.

Current trustees include Clinton Health Access Initiative CEO Neil Buddy Shah, Carnegie Endowment president Mariano-Florentino Cuéllar, a Democrat who was appointed to the California Supreme Court by former Gov. Jerry Brown in 2014, and Center for a New American Security CEO Richard Fontaine — who advised John McCain’s 2008 presidential campaign. The group is a mix of policy and national security leaders that underscores the company’s deep ties to Washington and global policy circles.

Anthropic’s backers also have placed it at the center of overlapping tech, policy and political networks. 

Early funding for the company included investments from figures such as Facebook co-founder Dustin Moskovitz and former Google CEO Eric Schmidt, both longtime Democratic donors, and a major early investment from Sam Bankman-Fried’s FTX.

At the same time, the company has since attracted a broad range of major institutional investors — including Amazon, Google and Microsoft — reflecting its growing role in the global AI race and complicating efforts to characterize it along purely political lines.

The company also has brought on several officials from the Biden administration into key policy roles, further embedding Anthropic in Washington’s AI policy ecosystem. Among them is Tarun Chhabra, a former National Security Council official who now leads the company’s national security policy work, as well as other advisers and staff with experience shaping federal AI and technology strategy.

Anthropic also has sought to build ties across party lines as it expands its presence in Washington. 

The company employs policy staff with Republican backgrounds, including legislative analyst Benjamin Merkel and lobbyist Mary Croghan, and in February added Chris Liddell — a former deputy White House chief of staff under Trump — to its board. It has contributed $20 million to Public First Action, a bipartisan group that backs candidates from both parties who support AI regulation.

The company has also faced criticism from within the Trump administration. 

White House AI adviser David Sacks has accused Anthropic of pursuing a “regulatory capture” strategy, arguing the firm is using concerns about AI safety to push rules that could benefit its own position while slowing competitors. 

Anthropic has pushed back on those claims, saying its approach reflects genuine concerns about the risks posed by advanced AI systems.

Anthropic declined to comment on the White House meeting and questions about its political ties.

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The new technology could help developers identify and fix long-standing security flaws, but it could also give hackers a powerful new tool to target U.S. businesses and government systems.

“Given the rate of AI progress, it will not be long before such capabilities proliferate, potentially beyond actors who are committed to deploying them safely,” Anthropic said in its announcement. “The fallout — for economies, public safety, and national security — could be severe.”

Anthropic has not released Mythos publicly, instead limiting access through a program called Project Glasswing, where a select group of companies use the model to scan critical systems for vulnerabilities.

The company says the system has already uncovered thousands of previously unknown flaws — some decades old — underscoring both its defensive value and the risk it could be used to accelerate cyberattacks if the technology spreads.

Fox Business’ Edward Lawrence contributed to this report.

Rep. Lauren Boebert, R-Colo., lashed back at accusations she “weaponized” a social media post with Dave Chappelle, arguing the comedian had already waded into the political debate over transgender issues.

“Dave Chappelle can have his little counseling session with NPR,” Boebert told Fox News Digital, referring to an interview Chappelle gave earlier this week when he criticized a post of the two of them together at the U.S. Capitol.

“That’s fine. You know, I took a photo with 50 Cent, a lot of people and posted about them. And none of them cried over it,” Boebert said.

Boebert snapped a picture with Chappelle in November 2023 and posted the image to Twitter with the caption: “Just three people who understand that there’s only two genders.”

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The original tweet, which also included Rep. Anna Paulina Luna, R-Fla., has since been deleted.

The incident resurfaced earlier this week when Chappelle told interviewers he resented the moment.

“I was on Capitol Hill and everybody ran up to take pictures with me from every congressional office. I didn’t ask how they vote or what their voting record is. And then here comes Lauren Boebert,” Chappelle recalled.

“And she said ‘can I get a picture?’ And I had already taken 40 pictures, I didn’t want to say no in front of everybody… She instantly weaponized it — or politicized it. You should never do that to a person like me.”

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Chappelle has repeatedly tackled transgender issues in his Netflix specials, including “Sticks & Stones,” “Equanimity” and “The Closer” — material that has drawn both backlash and support and put him at the center of the broader cultural debate he now says Boebert pulled him into.

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Boebert noted as much, suggesting Chappelle has already inserted himself into these national conversations through his comedy.

“I think he’s done that quite a bit, has he not?” Boebert said.

When asked if she believed she had politicized the moment with Chappelle, Boebert said she believes the gravity of the issue merits political discourse.

“They’re castrating our children and destroying them, absolutely ruining their lives over it. In Colorado … We castrate bulls not baby boys. Okay? And that’s what it should be,” Boebert said.

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton is suing Houston city officials over the adoption of a “sanctuary” ordinance designed to limit cooperation between local authorities and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).

The ordinance, passed by a 12-5 vote last week, ended a Houston police policy that required officers to wait at least 30 minutes for ICE to arrive if a suspect had an immigration warrant. 

The lawsuit names Houston Mayor John Whitmire, the city’s 16 council members, and Houston Police Chief J. Noe Diaz as defendants.

Paxton argued the ordinance violates Senate Bill 4, a state law passed in 2017 that prevents local governments from adopting, enforcing, or endorsing policies that prohibit or materially limit the enforcement of federal immigration laws.

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“I will not allow any local official to push sanctuary policies that make our communities less safe,” Paxton said in a statement. “Under my watch, no Texas city will be a safe harbor for illegals.

“The Texas Legislature passed strong legislation that specifically stops the type of lawless ordinance that Houston adopted,” he added. “Houston has no authority to ignore the Constitution and the laws duly enacted by the Legislature. I’m calling on Houston to immediately repeal this ordinance.”

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In a statement, Whitmire said it was “unfortunate that so much time and resources are being spent on an issue that should not be partisan.” He added, “It interferes with our responsibility to keep Houston safe and protect all residents.”

Houston City Council member Alejandra Salinas urged the city to defend the ordinance in court.

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“It’s no longer a question about whether the City should go to court,” she wrote on X. “We’re already there. The Mayor and City Council must vigorously defend the law we voted for and that the City Attorney deemed legal. I stand ready to work with my colleagues to defend our laws and protect Houstonians’ constitutional rights.”

Fox News Digital has reached out to several city council members for comment.

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott has also threatened to freeze public safety funding if Houston moves forward with the ordinance.

“Houston received more than $100 million from the state based on a written agreement that they will comply with immigration enforcement,” Abbott wrote on X in a Tuesday post. “If they refuse to comply, they better get out their checkbook. It will be costly if they refuse to keep their streets safe.”

A special City Council meeting scheduled for Friday was pushed back after Abbott extended the deadline for the city to respond to his funding freeze threat.

Republican Utah Gov. Spencer Cox and top state lawmakers ordered an independent investigation Friday into a state Supreme Court justice over allegations she had an unethical relationship with an attorney who worked on a high-stakes redistricting case.

Justice Diana Hagen, who was appointed by Cox, stands accused by her ex-husband of sending what he described as “inappropriate” text messages to an attorney who helped challenge a Republican-friendly map that maintained four red congressional seats in Utah. Hagen joined a unanimous decision to toss out Republicans’ redistricting plan in July 2024, a ruling that led to one of the seats flipping blue in time for the 2026 midterms.

The revelation of a possible relationship between Hagen and the attorney, David Reymann, who worked on behalf of progressive voting rights groups in the case, stemmed from a complaint that a lawyer for Hagen’s husband submitted to Chief Justice Matthew Durrant and the Judicial Conduct Commission, according to local outlet KSL.

Hagen and Reymann have both denied the allegations. Fox News Digital reached out to a Utah Supreme Court representative and Reymann for comment.

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The Judicial Conduct Commission, described on its website as an independent body comprising several state lawmakers, judges and members of the public, conducted a preliminary investigation based on the complaint and chose not to pursue the matter further, the outlet reported. Fox News Digital reached out to the Judicial Conduct Commission for comment.

The Utah Supreme Court issued a public statement on behalf of Hagen Friday afternoon in which she said she never had a conflict of interest.

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“My last involvement in the redistricting case was October 2024,” Hagen said. “I voluntarily recused myself from all cases involving Mr. Reymann in May 2025, and my recusal was reflected in the Court’s September 15, 2025 opinion in League of Women Voters. I took prompt, prudent, and transparent steps in response to the allegations made by my ex-husband, including reporting them myself to the Judicial Conduct Commission and submitting a sworn statement. The Judicial Conduct Commission recently reviewed the matter, dismissed the complaint, and closed the case. I remain committed to upholding the highest standards of judicial ethics, integrity, and impartiality.”

The complaint and interviews conducted by the Judicial Conduct Commission found that Hagen and her husband began discussing divorce in September 2024, had interacted together with Reymann toward the end of that year and that Hagen did not meet one-on-one with Reymann until 2025, according to KSL.

Cox, along with Senate President Stuart Adams and House Speaker Mike Schultz, who joined the governor in launching the new investigation, said in a joint statement that more “transparency” was needed on the matter, signaling that the public’s trust in the state’s highest court was at stake, especially after a polarizing decision in a redistricting case set to affect the midterms.

“An initial review by the Judicial Conduct Commission and the court left important questions unresolved,” they said. “Allegations of this nature, especially involving public officials, must be examined with transparency and accountability to establish the facts and to maintain public confidence.”

A Virginia judge expressed concern over the mental state of former Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax while ruling on a child custody case involving two teenage children, commenting on his behavior and isolation.

Fairfax County Circuit Court Judge Timothy J. McEvoy detailed these concerns in a March 30 court order involving Fairfax, his estranged wife, and their two children, writing that Fairfax’s “isolation, drinking and lack of participation in family life are manifestations of what seems to be a sense of fatalism and hopelessness,” WTOP reported.

Fairfax killed his wife, Dr. Cerina Fairfax, and then himself in a shocking murder-suicide early Thursday morning. The two were living under the same roof during ongoing divorce proceedings.

The split followed sexual assault allegations made against Fairfax in 2019.

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“At that time, [Fairfax] was the Lieutenant Governor of Virginia and was an ascendant political figure who was eyeing a run for Governor. The assault allegations deeply affected [him] and appear to have put an end to those plans,” court documents state.

Fairfax served as lieutenant governor from 2018 to 2022. In 2019, two women accused him of sexually assaulting them while they were students at Duke University.

The killing occurred just days before an April 21 divorce hearing and an April 30 court-ordered deadline for Fairfax to move out of the couple’s home. Authorities confirmed that Fairfax had recently been served with paperwork related to the upcoming court hearing.

EX-BIDEN STAFFER CLAIMS ACCIDENTAL SHOT KILLED GIRLFRIEND AS DAD BLASTS TOXIC, ABUSIVE RELATIONSHIP: REPORT

McEvoy’s order detailed a 2022 incident in which Fairfax purchased a handgun, which he possessed during a “kind of adverse psychological event.” The gun was allegedly purchased with money intended for his children’s horseback riding lessons.

At one point, he left his home with the weapon and was found by relatives in a nearby public park “after frantic searching.” Fairfax’s brother eventually called a mental health professional after being “unable to calm him down over the course of several hours,” the judge wrote.

According to the New York Post, Fairfax was drinking so heavily that he would lock himself in his home office, living among “empty wine bottles, trash and piles of dirty laundry.” The documents allege he would only emerge “long enough to get food or smoke cigarettes.”

McEvoy noted there was no evidence that Fairfax had sought professional help, but did not order psychological therapy.

The judge described the tension in the couple’s home life as “extremely high for an extended period of time,” noting that their living arrangements were exacerbating the situation. He had ordered Fairfax to move out of the home in Annandale, located outside Washington, D.C.

Authorities believe the acrimonious divorce likely played a role in Fairfax’s decision to kill his wife before taking his own life.