Author: NOVA Corp

Vice President JD Vance warned Wednesday that states could lose federal funding if they fail to aggressively pursue Medicaid fraud, escalating the Trump administration’s pressure campaign on governors and state Medicaid officials.

“We are sending letters that will require them to show that they are effectively and aggressively prosecuting Medicaid fraud in their states. And if they do not, if they do not aggressively prosecute Medicaid fraud, we are going to turn off the money that goes to these anti-fraud units,” said Vance during a fraud press conference on Wednesday.

Vance said the federal government has provided states with “billions of dollars” for Medicaid Fraud Control Units and warned that funding could be cut off if states fail to comply with the crackdown. He pointed to states that have received billions of dollars in federal funding to protect against fraud, but have yet to produce a conviction or indictment. 

The warning came as the administration announced it is deferring $1.3 billion in Medicaid reimbursements from California, with Vance accusing the state of failing to take fraud seriously. California officials have disputed the administration’s claims.

HOUSE GOP LAUNCHES NEW TASK FORCE, PROBES ALLEGED $250B MEDICAID FRAUD IN OHIO

“We’re announcing that the federal government is deferring $1.3 billion in Medicaid reimbursements from the state of California. And the simple reason is because the state of California has not taken fraud very seriously,” Vance added. 

Vance said that Ohio, a red state, and Maryland, a blue state, have been good examples of states they have been working with that are taking the “fraud seriously.”

Ohio governor Mike DeWine issued a press release on the same day announcing a series of new measures his state is taking to crackdown on suspected fraud, including proposing a six-month moratorium on new home healthcare and hospice providers enrolling in Medicaid. 

As for other states, Vance pointed to a handful of Democrat-led jurisdictions for not tackling the fraud scandals more aggressively. 

“This does not have to be a red state or a blue state issue. This is just basic good government. However, states like California, states like Hawaii, states like New York have completely not taken the fraud issue seriously in the Medicaid program and so for those states that refuse to get serious about fraud, we are going to turn off that anti-fraud money,” said Vance.

VANCE ANTI-FRAUD TASK FORCE SUSPENDS 221 CALIFORNIA HOSPICE AND HEALTHCARE PROVIDERS SO FAR

He continued that if states do not take the fraud crackdown seriously, other resources within their Medicaid programs could be turned off too.

“We don’t want to turn off any money. What we want to do is ensure that people are taking fraud seriously. We want to protect Medicaid,” said Vance. “We want to protect Medicare, but we can’t do that if the states that are administering those programs are allowing those programs to be fleeced by fraudsters.” 

READ: DR. OZ PUTS ALL 50 GOVERNORS ON NOTICE OVER BILLIONS LOST TO MEDICAID FRAUD

Oz previously gave governors and state Medicaid leaders 10 business days on April 23 to tell CMS whether they will commit to conducting a swift “revalidation” of high-risk Medicaid providers and provide a proposed timetable, Fox News Digital exclusively reported at the time, alongside a separate 30-day deadline for a broader provider-revalidation strategy, escalating federal pressure on states to tighten anti-fraud enforcement.

“While the factors contributing to fraud are multifaceted and require a comprehensive approach to address, a revalidation process for high-risk providers will immediately deter criminal actors from continuing their fraud schemes, as the federal and state governments closely review and scrutinize the qualifications of providers to suspend or terminate clearly abusive actors from the program,” Oz wrote in a letter.

The letters targeted providers at “high risk of waste, fraud, abuse, and corruption,” particularly those with “less rigorous enrollment and billing requirements,” with CMS directing states to include any provider operating without a National Provider Identifier.

A second letter was also sent to each state Medicaid director reiterating the call for a revalidation strategy tailored to each state.

“Our analysis of national trends strongly suggests a persistent and growing Medicaid threat posed by sophisticated actors knowingly exploiting these complex systems for financial gain,” Oz wrote.

Fox News Digital reached out to the office of the vice president and CMS for additional comment.

Customs and Border Protection (CBP) worked with local authorities to foil California’s sanctuary city policies and took into custody a gang member from Mexico who concluded a 12-year prison sentence for second-degree murder.

Local law enforcement in southern California handed over Valentin Galvez-Quintero, a member of the Sureños-13 gang, over to federal agents outside the John J. Benoit Detention Center immediately after concluding his sentence last week, according to CBP.

The apprehension contrasts sharply with sanctuary city policies that have thrown up roadblocks for federal-state coordination. It also highlights the payoff that could happen with the types of partnerships the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) hoped to build with local authorities during President Donald Trump’s administration.

IMMIGRATION AUTHORITIES HIGHLIGHT CRIMINAL HISTORY OF MULTIPLE MIGRANTS ARRESTED IN LOS ANGELES

“This is a prime example of the great strides local, state and federal law enforcement can deliver to the American public in terms of safety when common sense cooperation exists,” Daniel Parra, acting chief patrol agent at El Centro Sector, said in a statement to Fox News Digital.

“Honoring federal detainers, such as in this case, makes our communities safer.”

Galvez-Quintero was first deported in 2014 by an immigration judge but was apprehended in the U.S. twice in 2015 under the Obama Administration.

If local authorities did not work with CBP, it’s possible that the gang member could have been released from jail and escaped into the U.S. without detection by immigration authorities.

DEM GOVERNOR IN THE HOT SEAT AFTER TESTING LIMITS OF AUTHORITY WITH MAJOR MOVE AGAINST ICE

The recent arrest follows moves by Democrats, such as New York Gov. Kathy Hochul, to restrict federal-local partnerships. Last week, Hochul urged New York lawmakers to ban the 287(g) program — a law that allows local officers to assume authority to conduct immigration-related work normally carried out by federal officials.

Lauren Bis, acting assistant secretary for public affairs for the Department of Homeland Security, blasted the push by Hochul, which follows other blue states seeking to stifle federal immigration operations.

“Instead of working with us, Governor Hochul is choosing to release violent criminals from her jails directly back into our communities to perpetrate more crimes and create more victims,” Bis said.

IGNORED ICE DETAINERS ‘PUT LIVES AT RISK,’ DHS SAYS, TARGETING NEWSOM, PRITZKER, HEALEY

In addition to the second-degree murder conviction, Galvez-Quintero’s criminal history includes felony possession of a firearm, taking a vehicle without consent, battery and providing false identification to an officer.

Galvez-Quintero won’t be deported immediately as he faces federal prosecution for reentry after deportation, according to CBP. 

If he is sentenced, he will serve a sentence in federal prison.

The Sureños-13 gang, one of many groups that operates in and around Southern California, mainly deals in mid-level drug distribution schemes, according to records from the Department of Justice.

Vice President JD Vance brushed off questions about a possible 2028 Republican ticket with Secretary of State Marco Rubio after President Donald Trump floated the pair as a political force earlier this week. 

“I love Marco. I think he’s a great secretary of state. He’s become a very, very dear friend. But I think both of us are very much focused on accomplishing the American people’s business right now,” said Vance during a press conference on Wednesday focused on the administration’s fraud crackdown. 

Trump teased a potential ticket with Vance and Rubio earlier this week, but the president did not say who would be the one to fill his shoes. Vance had previously said the media was creating “conflict” when asked in recent months about alleged tension between the pair as Washington, D.C., inches closer to 2028. 

“Who likes J.D. Vance? Who likes Marco Rubio? All right. Sounds like a good ticket,” Trump said Monday, adding, “By the way, I do believe that’s a dream team.”

JD VANCE ADDRESSES POSSIBLE PRESIDENTIAL RUN WITH MARCO RUBIO AFTER TRUMP TEASES ‘UNSTOPPABLE’ TICKET

Vance shared that it is one of the topics he least likes to discuss when he is “having a good time and trying to do good work in the job that the American people already elected me to do.”

“If I was the American people, there are a few things that I would hate more than a person who’s barely been in one office for a year and a half, is angling for a job two and a half years down the road,” said Vance, referencing himself.

VANCE TAPPED AS ‘FRAUD CZAR’ AS TRUMP TARGETS BLUE STATES OVER TAXPAYER THEFT

A second reporter followed up during the press conference that the media was not promoting 2028 tension between the pair, as the president had directly floated the potential ticket. 

“I just don’t think it sounds like the president of the United States to have a televised competition for who would succeed him as his apprentice,” quipped Vance in response. “I just think that’s not at all what you would expect the president to do.”

Vance added it was “natural” for Trump to joke around with him and Rubio, adding that the president has “always been fascinated by politics.”

RUBIO HEADS TO ROME WITH TRUMP’S IRAN CLASH LOOMING OVER POPE LEO, MELONI TALKS

Vance’s big initiative has been cracking down on fraud, waste, and abuse while leading the White House Task Force to Eliminate Fraud.

The press conference on Wednesday was held as Vance holds down the fort at the White House while Trump is in China for high-stakes meetings alongside administration leaders, such as Rubio and Secretary of War Pete Hegseth. 

FIRST ON FOX — Democrats campaigning in Pennsylvania inadvertently posted online a video giving a look behind the curtain on their 2026 midterm strategy and how they’re preparing to appear more authentic and win back voters who felt ‘left behind.’

The clip viewed by Fox News Digital and not previously reported shows Democratic Pennsylvania candidate Bob Brooks in a conversation with Biden-era Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg — who couldn’t even remember what district he was campaigning in. The pair received coaching from an off-screen staffer, urging them to stay on message.

“Think about your audience,” the staffer prompted. “Why is this race so important? We need to win the House [of Representatives] — all of that. Winning over people who feel like they’re left behind by the party, flipping the district; all of that I think is really strong, showing up for working people, affordability.”

FORMER OBAMA STAFFERS URGE DEMOCRATS TO STOP SPEAKING LIKE A ‘PRESS RELEASE,’ LEARN ‘NORMAL PEOPLE LANGUAGE’

The rare look at a behind-the-scenes campaign moment, filmed by Democratic campaign arm The Bench, highlights the efforts the party is taking to underscore affordability, appeal to everyday voters and come across as naturally as possible after losing swaths of their base in the 2024 election.

“We are going to have a really normal conversation with three cameras pointing at you,” the staffer joked.

“Everybody act normal,” Buttigieg chuckled.

“—And remind me the district number we’re in?” he asked the staffer before the conversation commenced.

The staffer also gave Buttigieg and Brooks guidance on a pair of beer cans set out as “props.”

Brooks, who faces a tight primary race next week, has attracted the support of a wide swath of the Democratic Party figures, garnering endorsements from the likes of Buttigieg, Sen. Bernie Sanders, D-Vt., and Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro.

BUTTIGIEG SAYS HE’S ‘LOOKING AT’ POSSIBLE SENATE RUN IN BATTLEGROUND STATE

His background as a firefighter has also drawn the support of the Bench, a campaign group that acts as an extension of the Democratic National Committee (DNC).

The group describes its ideal candidates as “community-rooted, values-driven, and ready to connect with voters across party lines.” The Bench also supports Texas Senate candidate James Talarico, Michigan Senate candidate Mallory McMorrow and Iowa House candidate Sarah Trone Garriott.

Brooks faces a four-way primary for a chance to unseat Republican incumbent Rep. Ryan Mackenzie, R-Pa.

Pennsylvania’s seventh district is among the most competitive in the country. The nonpartisan Cook Political Report places the race as a “toss-up” — just one of 18 seats to receive that designation this year.

DEMOCRATIC CANDIDATE APOLOGIZES FOR PAST PRO-POLICE, PRO-GUN POSTS IN KEY BATTLEGROUND RACE

Despite their coaching, the off-screen staffer told Brooks they would try to avoid directing the interview too much.

“Bob, feel free to prompt Pete with a question: why this race, why here in the Lehigh Valley and we will interject if needed to do a little directing but we’re going to be mostly hands off,” the staffer said.

Capitol Hill lawmakers are clashing over President Donald Trump’s proposal to suspend the federal gas tax as prices climb past $4 a gallon amid the conflict with Iran.

Democrats are urging the president to “end the war,” while Republicans are split on whether the plan would deliver real relief.

“He’s got to bring this war to an end if he wants these gas prices to come down,” Sen. Chris Murphy, D-Conn., said. “And he’s gotta stop this war and stop looking for other gimmicks.”

“Why doesn’t he just end the Iran war, which is an illegal war, so that would take care of those issues?” Sen. Mazie Hirono, D-Hawaii, said. “He did not get authorization. It’s on President Trump. And the rise in gasoline and everything else, it’s on him.”

DEMOCRATS POUNCE ON $4 A GALLON GAS, BLAME TRUMP’S IRAN WAR FOR ‘BROKEN PROMISE’

Lawmakers’ comments came after Trump backed a temporary suspension of the federal gas tax on Monday as escalating tensions with Iran pushed fuel prices higher nationwide. Gas prices have climbed to an average of $4.51 a gallon, and diesel prices have risen to $5.66 as of Wednesday, according to AAA.

“I mean we want to keep costs low,” Rep. Don Bacon, R-Neb., said. “Higher gas prices add costs to groceries and everything else, and so I think it’s something worthy to consider, and I’d be amenable to it.”

The suspension would potentially slash the cost of each gallon of gasoline by 18.4 cents and 24.4 cents per gallon of diesel. 

Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., introduced legislation Monday to suspend the federal gas tax after Trump backed the idea. Hawley’s Gas Tax Suspension Act would provide relief at the pump for at least 90 days, while also allowing for an additional 90-day extension if prices remain elevated.

ENERGY SECRETARY WRIGHT SAYS TRUMP ADMINISTRATION OPEN TO SUSPENDING FEDERAL GAS TAX AMID PRICE SURGE

Support for suspending the gas tax has emerged from both parties, but other lawmakers have proposed alternative methods to address rising gas prices. 

“I think that year-round E-15 is a better idea,” Sen. Roger Marshall, R-Kan., said. “Year-round, E-15 would bring down the price of gas maybe 30, 40 cents a gallon. You throw in our credit card bill, it would bring it down another dime, 15 cents a gallon. So I think those are probably two better ideas to do it.”

E-15 is a cheaper, ethanol-blended gasoline that cannot be sold nationwide during the summer months due to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s pollution rules. Some Republicans, like Marshall, argue year-round access to E-15 would lower gas prices more effectively than a gas tax suspension.

ARAB ALLIES RECOGNIZE IRAN’S DANGER, LAWMAKERS SAY, AS REGION VIEWS REGIME CHANGE CAUTIOUSLY

While some lawmakers focused on lowering costs at the pump, others argued the U.S. should maintain or even escalate pressure on Iran despite rising prices.

“Let’s finish Iran, the IRGC anyway, once and for all,” Bacon said. “The Iranian people are great people, but their government is our enemy. They’ve been the most ruthless enemy that we’ve had over four decades.”

“They should be pummeled,” he said.

Bacon’s comments reflect a group of Republicans who argue the surge in gas prices is a consequence of taking on Iran, warning that backing off pressure could carry far greater risks.

“Iran with a nuclear weapon is a threat to America and the whole region,” Bacon said.

American women are having children later than ever with birth rates hitting record lows and the divide between red and blue states becoming even more stark.

A new analysis of birth rates highlights Washington, D.C., and Mississippi as emblematic of trends among first-time mothers. The findings highlight how education, economic opportunities, costs of living and access to reproductive healthcare are reshaping when — and if — Americans start families.

But it’s also hard to ignore the party-line divide between areas with the highest age of first-time mothers and the lowest.

ROGAN WARNS OF US ‘POPULATION COLLAPSE’ DUE TO TOXIC CHEMICALS AND DELAYED PARENTHOOD TANK BIRTH RATES

The top ten states with the highest average age of first-time moms all turned blue in the past five presidential elections; meanwhile, nine of the ten states with the lowest age have turned red in those same elections.

Data shows that Washington, D.C., where three-quarters of voters are registered Democrat, has the highest average age of women becoming moms for the first time at 30.8, while Mississippi, a deep red state often ranked poorest in the U.S., is lowest at 24.7.

In the decades since the 1960s sexual revolution, which ushered in oral contraceptives and a challenge to traditional gender roles, American women have steadily delayed motherhood. The average age of first-time mothers rose from 21 in 1972 to 27.5 in 2024, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

And the analysis breaking down the age disparities between different jurisdictions shows a significant six-year gap between the states where the youngest and oldest first-time moms are living.

In Washington, D.C., later motherhood is closely tied to higher levels of education, greater career opportunities and broader access to reproductive healthcare.

In contrast, women tend to start families at younger ages in Mississippi, where educational achievements are lower and economic opportunities are more limited compared to the nation’s capital.

The 10 states ranked highest in age for first-time moms all voted blue in the 2024 presidential election and the youngest 10 all voted red.

Institute for Family Studies senior fellow Brad Wilcox hypothesized that young people living in blue states, particularly in the Northeast, are more motivated by career, while young people in other regions are more family oriented.

“So, what we see in blue states across the country is that men and women are more likely to embrace a kind of Midas mindset where there’s a premium on work and money and education, and they’re less likely to embrace a kind of marriage mindset where there’s a premium on focusing on love, marriage and starting a family,” Wilcox told Fox News Digital.

“And, so, what we see as a consequence of that is that the age of first birth is more likely to be markedly higher in blue states, which often also have higher levels of education and income for women as well.”

Data from the CDC reflected that women with higher levels of education tend to delay having their first child. On average, women with a professional or doctorate degree have their first child at the age of 34. Meanwhile, women with a high school diploma will have their first child at the average age of 27.2.

And women continue to outpace men when it comes to earning college degrees, with 47% of American women between the ages of 25 and 34 with degrees. Meanwhile, only 37% of men in that age range have college degrees, according to Pew Research. Wilcox suggested that modern men are falling out of step in the workplace.

“Men on the employment front are sort of floundering,” Wilcox said. “And, so, these trends we’re seeing just make it harder, I think, for men to find their footing and to have a kind of constructive role to play, both in the family and society too often.”

Maggie McKneely, director of government Relations at Concerned Women for America, suggested that women are seeking men with an equal educational or economical status, and they aren’t finding it.

“Men in particular are more reticent to settle down,” McKneely told Fox News Digital. “But I think another part of it is that women are more educated than they ever have been before, and many of them do not want to choose a partner less successful than themselves.”

Raquel Debono, a single 30-year-old conservative influencer living in New York City, just passed the average age when women in her state have their first child, which is 29.1 years old. She told Fox News Digital the general sentiment among women in the post-feminism era is that delaying motherhood is “empowering.”

“In cosmopolitan cities especially, women are rewarded for becoming the main character of their own lives first,” Debono said. “The degree, the promotions, the chic apartment, the solo trip to Italy, the emotionally unavailable boyfriend who ‘isn’t ready right now.

“Motherhood becomes something you schedule in between Pilates and a board meeting.”

THE STATES REVEALED AS BEST TO START A FAMILY AMID CRATERING BELIEF IN THE AMERICAN DREAM

Debono claims that dating apps also make settling down more difficult.

“Dating apps convinced everyone there’s always someone better one swipe away: taller, richer, hotter, more emotionally intelligent, less avoidant, more spiritually evolved,” she told Fox News Digital. “So, people keep optimizing instead of choosing.

“Women have never had more freedom, yet many feel more anxious about love, commitment and timing than ever before.”

As they push to flip the House and capture the chamber’s majority in this year’s midterm elections, Democrats are facing a steeper hill to climb, thanks to two blockbuster court rulings.

A Virginia Supreme Court decision last week that struck down the state’s voter-passed congressional redistricting ballot measure, coupled with a ruling a week earlier by the Supreme Court to slash a key protection in the 1965 Voting Rights Act, were major setbacks for Democrats.

The twin rulings gave President Donald Trump and Republicans a major boost in their high-stakes mid-decade redistricting battle with Democrats, giving the House GOP a bit of breathing room as it defends its razor-thin majority in the midterms. 

At stake is which party will control the House and the Senate during the final two years of Trump’s second term in the White House.

SOUTH CAROLINA REPUBLICANS DEFY TRUMP, TANK REDISTRICTING, FOR NOW

The Virginia decision negated four more likely left-leaning congressional districts in that state. Meanwhile, the Supreme Court ruling, which determined that race should not dictate the redrawing of legislative district maps, spurred a slew of Republican-controlled southern states to quickly redraw their maps and create more right-leaning seats ahead of the midterms.

“We have a battlefield, a map, that favors Republicans,” Rep. Richard Hudson of North Carolina, the chair of the National Republican Congressional Committee, noted Monday in a Fox News Channel interview as he pointed to the possibility of the GOP having a net gain of up to a dozen more right-tilting House districts as a result of redistricting initiated by Trump a year ago.

But some Republicans are raising concerns that the newly drawn GOP-controlled districts could put once safe red seats in play by diluting the percentage of Republican voters in those districts.

“You could, in essence, take … like here in Texas, take big cities, which are typically Democrat and split them up among several sort of suburban and rural Republicans and thereby reduce their margin and make [House Republicans] more vulnerable in an election year,” veteran GOP strategist and longtime Fox News contributor Karl Rove said Sunday in an interview on the Fox News Channel.

House Democrats vow to keep fighting in the redistricting wars.

DEMOCRACY ’26: STAY UP TO DATE WITH THE FOX NEWS ELECTION HUB

House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries wrote in a letter Monday to fellow congressional Democrats, “Our effort to forcefully push back against the Republican redistricting scheme will not slow down. We are just getting started.”

But with the clock quickly ticking toward midterm filing deadlines and the conservative majority on the nation’s highest court unlikely to cooperate, the Democrats‘ legal options seem limited at best.

Democrats, though, still enjoy campaign tailwinds due to a rough political landscape facing Republicans.

Republicans — as the party in power — were already up against traditional political headwinds that lead to a loss of congressional seats. Add to that the challenging climate fueled by persistent inflation, soaring gas prices tied to what polls show is an unpopular war with Iran and President Trump’s increasingly negative approval ratings.

Democrats have spotlighted affordability as they’ve won and overperformed in a slew of ballot box showdowns in the more than 15 months since Trump returned to the White House, including flipping legislative seats in red-leaning districts.

That messaging campaign will only intensify going forward, especially after this week’s economic reporting indicating inflation soaring to 3.8% as gas prices top a national average of $4.50 per gallon. Prices overall are outpacing wages for the first time in three years.

ALABAMA REPUBLICANS PLOW FORWARD ON REDISTRICTING

Add to that Trump this week saying “I don’t think about Americans’ financial situation” while discussing what factors come into play as he tries to negotiate to end the war with Iran. The comments were an instant political gift to Democrats.

“Given the highly unfavorable political environment confronting House Republicans, the extremists will not meaningfully benefit from their scandalous gerrymandering scheme. Quite the opposite,” Jeffries argued in his letter to Democrats.

Despite the redistricting setbacks, top nonpartisan political handicappers still give the Democrats the upper hand in the midterm battle for the House majority as they point to the current political atmosphere.

The Cook Report said it still believes Democrats are “favored to win control of the House due to the poor national environment for the GOP. But they are no longer overwhelming favorites.”

And Sabato’s Crystal Ball said it “still think(s) the Democrats are favored overall in the House, particularly if the environment does not improve for Republicans.”

President Donald Trump has instructions tucked away in the Oval Office for Vice President JD Vance should he ever need to succeed him as president, deputy assistant to the president Sebastian Gorka said in a recent podcast interview. 

“There is a letter in the drawer in the Resolute Desk that is addressed to the vice president should something happen to him,” Gorka said on the “Pod Force One” podcast on Wednesday.

Trump has faced repeated threats to his life, with an attempted assassination just weeks ago at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner drawing concerns about the president’s safety and growing political violence from left-wing actors. Gorka cast doubts that foreign countries would attempt to take out the president as Trump attends a high-stakes summit in Beijing. 

WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENTS’ DINNER SHOOTING LATEST IN YEARS OF ATTACKS TARGETING TRUMP, CONSERVATIVES

“Everybody wants recognition from this man. This is the most powerful individual we have seen since the likes of Eisenhower. Right? This is a man everybody wants to be at the table with him, to have the state dinner, to have the recognition,” said Gorka. “The idea that you do something that undermines your recognition goes against what they wish to have.”

IF IRAN ATTEMPTS ASSASSINATION, ‘THEY GET OBLITERATED’: PRESIDENT TRUMP

“We have protocols, trust me. Not ones I can discuss, but we have protocols,” he added of the letter. 

A White House spokesperson pointed Fox News Digital to a recent Trump interview when asked for comment on Gorka’s remarks that such a letter exists. 

Trump told NewsNation in January that he has “very firm instructions” if he were to be taken out by the Iranian regime.

MELANIA TRUMP ADVISOR REVEALS WHAT FIRST LADY WAS THINKING AS SECRET SERVICE RUSHED WHCA DINNER

“Like if I were here and they were making that threat to somebody, even not even a president, but somebody like they did with me, I would absolutely hit them so hard,” said Trump. “Anything happens, they’re going to wipe them off the face of this earth.”

Under the Constitution, the vice president is first in line to the presidency. The Presidential Succession Act of 1947 sets the order after the vice president, beginning with the House speaker and Senate president pro tempore before moving through eligible Cabinet officials.

Acting U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Director Todd Lyons announced that federal investigators have uncovered more than 10,000 foreign students connected to “suspect employers” as part of another potentially massive fraud scheme, this time involving the federal STEM Optional Practical Training (OPT) extension program.

In a news conference on Tuesday, Lyons said the cases uncovered thus far are “just the tip of the iceberg.”

OPT is a U.S. immigration program that lets international students on F-1 visas work temporarily in the country in jobs related to their field of study. Lyons said that when the program was first created under the Bush administration and expanded under the Obama administration, the Department of Homeland Security expected “only a few thousand foreign students would receive training approval before returning home.”

“Instead,” Lyons said, that OPT “ballooned into an uncontrolled guest worker pipeline with hundreds of thousands of foreign students working in the United States.”

He added that “as the program size exploded, so has the fraud.”

TRUMP ADMINISTRATION BEGINS NEW WAVE OF INTERNATIONAL STUDENT VISA REVOCATIONS: ‘NO ONE HAS A RIGHT TO A VISA’

“Today, we are announcing we have identified over 10,000 foreign students who claim to be working for highly suspect employers, and that’s just among the top 25 OPT employers. This is only the tip of the iceberg,” he said, adding, “We’ve dramatically expanded our oversight of OPT and can report that we found fraud nationwide.”

According to Lyons, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) officers have visited “problematic OPT worksite employers” in Virginia, Texas, Georgia, Illinois, New York, New Jersey, North Carolina and Florida. He said that many of the suspicious employers include nongovernmental organizations.

According to Lyons, investigators have “discovered empty buildings and locked doors at addresses where hundreds of foreign students are allegedly employed.” Investigators have also found hundreds of foreign students listed as working out of residential addresses.

“In many places,” he continued, “multiple OPT employers claim to operate from the same address, but none actually lease the facility.”

ICE PROBES SUSPECTED MINNESOTA FRAUD SITES AS OFFICIALS FOLLOW POTENTIAL $9B MONEY TRAIL

“When someone does open the door, their statements are inconsistent, or they claim no knowledge of the business,” said Lyons.

The ICE director also said investigators uncovered what he referred to as “phantom employees,” who he said are foreign students who obtained work authorization through OPT but never actually showed up for work at the sites they claimed to work out of.

“This is not accidental,” Lyons concluded. “This is deliberate, coordinated and criminal.”

He added that “this fraud is not victimless,” calling it a “blatant attack on the goodwill of the American people.”

EX-BIDEN DHS HEAD CONCEDES ADMINISTRATION COULD HAVE ACTED SOONER ON ILLEGAL IMMIGRATION

Vice President JD Vance, who President Donald Trump appointed “fraud czar,” celebrated the discovery in an X post as “another great win for our fraud task force.”

Vance wrote that the administration “will not tolerate foreign nationals abusing our visa system at the expense of the American people.”

The Senate cleared Kevin Warsh on Wednesday to lead the Federal Reserve, ushering in a new era at the central bank under President Donald Trump’s nominee.

The Senate confirmed Warsh, 54–45, concluding a monthslong search that began last summer for a successor to Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell as his term neared its end. The vote was largely along party lines, with only Pennsylvania Democrat Sen. John Fetterman crossing over in support.

Earlier in the week, Warsh was confirmed to the Fed’s Board of Governors, a 14-year appointment and a required step before serving as chair. He previously served on the board as its youngest member at age 35 and now returns to lead the central bank at a pivotal moment.

Though the Federal Reserve operates largely out of public view, its decisions shape borrowing costs, job growth and interest rates for millions of Americans, making Warsh’s confirmation a pivotal moment for how that influence will be wielded.

Warsh, a lawyer and financier, steps into the role at a particularly volatile time.

FROM MORTGAGES TO CAR LOANS: HOW AFFORDABILITY RISES AND FALLS WITH THE FED

The central bank is grappling with persistent inflation, the economic fallout from the war in Iran, and a looming Supreme Court decision involving Fed Governor Lisa Cook, all while political pressure builds ahead of the midterm elections in November.

The 56-year-old multimillionaire has already signaled a clear break from the central bank’s current approach.

In testimony before lawmakers on April 21, Warsh pledged to keep monetary policy “strictly independent” and said he intended to keep the central bank “in its lane,” warning that the Fed had become too involved in social policy.

He has also taken aim at what he sees as a complacent central bank, warning that large institutions are prone to inertia and that clinging to the “status quo” in a fast-moving economy is not just outdated, but dangerous.

WATCH: SEN. WARREN UNLOADS ON TRUMP’S FED NOMINEE KEVIN WARSH IN EXPLOSIVE HEARING SHOWDOWN

At the same time, he has signaled openness to closer coordination with elected leaders and to work with the White House and Congress on non-monetary matters — an approach that could reshape how the Fed operates in Washington.

How that balance is struck could define not only Warsh’s tenure, but the future direction of the institution that plays a major role in the financial lives of millions of Americans.

Warsh will take the reins from Powell, whose eight-year tenure as Fed chair concludes Friday. Powell, widely considered the most crisis-tested Fed chair, is not leaving the central bank entirely.

Powell’s term on the Fed board runs through 2028, and he has indicated he plans to remain in place until all investigations into a renovation project at the Fed’s headquarters are complete.

POWELL WILL REMAIN AT THE FED FOR NOW, SETTING UP POTENTIAL CLASH WITH TRUMP

If Powell stepped aside entirely, it would have opened a seat for Trump to fill, giving him another opportunity to shape the Fed’s leadership. By staying on, Powell retains influence over U.S. monetary policy, potentially intensifying tensions with the president.

“I plan to keep a low profile as a governor. There is only ever one chair of the Federal Reserve Board. When Kevin Warsh is confirmed and sworn in, he will be that chair,” Powell told reporters at a news conference at the Federal Reserve on April 29.

Powell said that decision ultimately depends on the outcome of the investigation.

“I will not leave the board until this investigation is fully resolved with transparency and finality,” Powell said. “I’m encouraged by recent developments, and I am watching the remaining steps in this process carefully. My decisions on these matters will continue to be guided entirely by what I believe is in the best interest of the institution and the people we serve.”

Powell’s tenure at the central bank dates back to 2017, when he was selected by Trump to succeed Janet Yellen. He was reappointed to a second four-year term by President Joe Biden in 2022, which expires on May 15.

The White House and Federal Reserve did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.