Category: USA Politics

An immigration appeals board has issued a final order of removal for anti-Israel protester Mahmoud Khalil, advancing the Trump administration’s effort to deport the Columbia University graduate, according to his legal team.

The Justice Department’s Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA) ruled Thursday to deny Khalil’s bid to dismiss the case, marking a significant development in the administration’s push to deport him from the U.S.

Khalil, a 31-year-old lawful permanent resident, has been at the center of a broader federal crackdown on noncitizens involved in anti-Israel campus protests tied to the war in Gaza. He was the first person whose arrest became publicly known as part of the crackdown.

His legal team blasted the decision as “baseless and politically motivated,” arguing the government is retaliating against his speech and lacks evidence to support the case.

MAHMOUD KHALIL AVOIDS EXPLICIT HAMAS CONDEMNATION, CRITICIZES ‘SELECTIVE OUTRAGE’ AMID PALESTINIAN SUFFERING

“In all my decades as an immigration lawyer, I have never seen such a baseless and politically motivated decision,” Khalil’s lead attorney, Marc Van Der Hout, said in a statement issued by the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU). “The BIA’s decision has absolutely no support in the record, violates a federal court order, and we’ll be fighting it until the end.”

The Trump administration has argued Khalil’s protest activity was “aligned with Hamas,” a claim cited by the Department of Homeland Security and other officials, though authorities have not publicly detailed specific evidence linking him to the terrorist group.

Khalil has also denied allegations of antisemitism. Officials have also cited a rare foreign policy provision of U.S. immigration law, sometimes referred to as a “Rubio determination,” as well as alleged issues tied to his green card application.

Despite the ruling, Khalil’s attorneys say he cannot be deported while his separate federal habeas case continues to play out in court.

A federal judge in New Jersey previously found the government’s justification for detaining Khalil was likely unconstitutional and ordered his release.

After his arrest, Khalil spent 104 days in immigration detention, missing the birth of his first child before a federal judge in New Jersey ordered his release.

Khalil later suffered a setback in his federal case when a U.S. appeals panel ruled that the New Jersey judge overstepped his authority by ordering his release. In a 2-1 decision, the panel found the case must proceed through the immigration court system before it can be challenged in federal court.

His lawyers are now requesting the full appeals panel reconsider that decision and have asked one of the judges to step aside over his prior role as a Justice Department official involved in investigating student protesters.

Khalil has denied wrongdoing and said the case is an attempt to silence him.

“I am not surprised by this decision from the biased and politically motivated Board of Immigration Appeals. I have committed no crime. I have broken no law. The only thing I am guilty of is speaking out against the genocide in Palestine — and this administration has weaponized the immigration system to punish me for it,” Khalil said in a statement released by the ACLU.

DHS FIRES BACK AFTER MAHMOUD KHALIL TARGETS TRUMP ADMIN FOR $20M OVER DETENTION

“My family is here. My life is here. I reject any attempt to intimidate me out of my home based on lies and ideological attacks,” he said. “This is not justice. This is just another attempt to retaliate against me.”

Khalil, a prominent organizer of anti-Israel protests at Columbia University in 2024 who the Trump administration is seeking to deport, was initially arrested in 2025 at his university-owned apartment in New York City.

Homeland Security Investigations, a division of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), told him at the time they were revoking his green card, according to his attorney, Amy Greer. He was later transferred to a detention center in Louisiana.

Khalil played a major role in protests against Israel that rocked Columbia University in 2024 and met with school officials on behalf of Columbia University Apartheid Divest, a coalition of student groups pushing the university to divest from Israel. He completed the requirements for a Columbia master’s degree in late 2024.

Born in Syria, he is the grandson of Palestinians who were forced to leave their homeland, his lawyers said in a legal filing. His wife, a U.S. citizen, gave birth to the couple’s child while he was in detention.

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt previously defended the Trump administration’s actions following Khalil’s arrest in March, saying he allegedly distributed pro-Hamas propaganda fliers on campus.

“This administration is not going to tolerate individuals having the privilege of studying in our country and then siding with pro-terrorist organizations that have killed Americans,” Leavitt told reporters at a White House press briefing at the time, noting that on her desk were the “pro-Hamas propaganda fliers with the logo of Hamas” on them that Khalil allegedly was distributing.

“We have a zero-tolerance policy for siding with terrorists, period,” she said.

Fox News Digital has contacted the Justice Department for comment.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Congressional Democrats want President Donald Trump ousted through extraordinary measures, despite previously dismissing similar calls targeting former President Joe Biden.

More than 50 Democratic lawmakers have called on Trump’s Cabinet to effectively depose him using the 25th Amendment, arguing that the president is unfit to serve over his comments and actions regarding Iran. Their demands were sparked by his social media declaration that a “whole civilization will die” unless the Iranian government agreed to reopen the Strait of Hormuz.

“I certainly think the president should be removed,” Sen. Andy Kim, D-N.J., said. “I mean, he’s unfit for office. I think the 25th Amendment, and if not, then impeachment.”

But less than two years ago, Republicans made the same argument against Biden that Democrats ignored.

SENATE DEM ACCUSES TRUMP OF BEING ‘UNFIT FOR OFFICE,’ JOINS GROWING CALL TO IMPEACH, OUST PRESIDENT

Sen. Eric Schmitt, R-Mo., at the time wrote a letter to then-Secretary of State Antony Blinken calling for him, along with Vice President Kamala Harris, to invoke the 25th Amendment.

“If President Biden is unwilling to resign, for the sake of our great nation, you must do your duty to relieve him of his constitutional powers and duties,” Schmitt wrote.

Now, only a small group of Senate Democrats have made the case for Trump’s ouster, while most of the enthusiasm has come from the House.

Democrats’ calls to remove Trump through impeachment and conviction or the 25th Amendment cannot happen without widespread GOP support. House Democratic leadership, however, continues to provide a platform for those discussions.

House Judiciary Committee Ranking Member Jamie Raskin, D-Md., will hold a caucus-wide briefing on the workings of the 25th Amendment Friday afternoon.

EX-TRUMP ALLY MARJORIE TAYLOR GREENE JOINS LEFT-WING CALLS FOR THE 25TH AMENDMENT AS IRAN DEADLINE NEARS

In the summer of 2024, Republicans demanded that Biden be removed from office after a disastrous debate performance against Trump and following a report from former Special Counsel Robert Hur that called into question the then-president’s cognitive ability and handling of classified documents.

House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., said at the time, “There’s a lot of people asking about the 25th Amendment, invoking the 25th Amendment right now, because this is an alarming situation.”

GOP INFIGHTING REPLACES CLASH WITH DEMS, DERAILS PATH TO END HISTORIC DHS SHUTDOWN

“Our adversaries see the weakness in this White House, as we all do,” Johnson added. “I take no pleasure in saying that. I think this is a very dangerous situation.”

Democrats quickly closed ranks and disputed accusations that Biden’s mental acuity was rapidly declining. Some, however, did call for Biden to drop out of the race against Trump over fears he would not be able to beat his political foe in a rematch after stumbling during their only debate.

Top congressional Democrats, Rep. Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., and then-Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., reportedly urged Biden privately to step aside, and dozens of Democrats publicly called on him to exit the race while there was still time to find a replacement.

Neither, however, called for the 25th Amendment to be invoked against Biden. Pelosi did, however, renew her call to see Trump ousted through that process in recent days. 

“Donald Trump’s instability is more clear and dangerous than ever,” Pelosi said on X. “If the Cabinet is not willing to invoke the 25th Amendment and restore sanity, Republicans must reconvene the Congress to end this war.”

Schumer has so far stopped short of calling for Trump’s removal from power.

Trump, when pressed on next moves in Iran, joked in April during a Cabinet meeting that if he revealed what comes next, his own Cabinet would oust him.

“I can’t say what we’re going to do because if I did, I wouldn’t be sitting here for long. They’d probably — what is it called? The 25th Amendment — They’d institute the 25th Amendment,” Trump said. “Which they didn’t do with Biden, which is shocking.”

The Navy is canceling a long-delayed overhaul of the USS Boise after costs ballooned to nearly $3 billion, with Secretary of the Navy John Phelan saying the submarine no longer made financial or strategic sense to repair.

In an exclusive interview with Fox News Digital, Phelan said the Los Angeles-class attack submarine had already consumed roughly $800 million and would require another $1.9 billion to complete — despite offering only about 20% of its remaining service life. Instead, the Navy plans to redirect funding and skilled labor toward building and delivering newer Virginia- and Columbia-class submarines, part of a broader push to accelerate ship production and overhaul troubled acquisition programs.

“At some point, you just cut your losses and move on,” Phelan said.

The Navy originally awarded a roughly $1.2 billion contract in 2024 under the Biden administration to overhaul the submarine, nearly a decade after it was first slated for repairs, but updated estimates later showed the total cost to complete the work had surged far beyond initial projections.

“The Boise has been pier-side since 2015, cost nearly $800 million already, and it’s only 22% complete — the math really does not work,” he added.

TRUMP UNVEILS MARITIME ACTION PLAN AS CHINA DOMINATES GLOBAL SHIPBUILDING

The decision comes as the Navy faces mounting pressure to expand and maintain its fleet amid growing competition with China, which has built the world’s largest navy by number of ships. U.S. officials have increasingly emphasized the need to speed up shipbuilding and submarine production to keep pace with rising global demands.

Boise’s problems long predate the canceled contract.

The submarine last deployed in 2015 and was slated to begin a routine overhaul the following year, but delays at Navy shipyards left it waiting years for an available dry dock.

As maintenance was pushed back, the situation worsened. The submarine lost its full operational certification in 2016 and its ability to dive in 2017, effectively sidelining it from combat operations.

Despite being a frontline attack submarine, Boise remained tied up at port for years as the Navy struggled with a growing backlog of repairs across its fleet, driven by limited dry dock space, workforce shortages and competing maintenance priorities.

The overhaul originally was planned to begin in 2016 but was repeatedly delayed for nearly a decade before the Navy finally awarded a contract in 2024 — by which point the submarine had already spent years out of service.

US TO EXPEDITE NUCLEAR-POWERED SUBS TO AUSTRALIA THAT WILL SIT NEAR CHINA’S DOORSTEP

Even after work began, the timeline stretched further, with repairs not expected to be completed until 2029 — meaning the submarine would have spent roughly 15 years inactive by the time it returned to sea.

Over time, Boise became one of the clearest examples of the Navy’s broader maintenance and shipyard challenges, frequently cited by lawmakers and defense analysts as a case study in delays, rising costs and declining readiness.

Phelan said a key factor in the decision was freeing up scarce shipyard labor and engineering talent currently tied up in the Boise overhaul, which he said could be better used to accelerate construction of newer submarines.

“One of our big constraints in our shipyards, particularly in submarine building, is labor and engineering talent,” Phelan said. “We have a lot of that dedicated to this, which we could free up and put onto the Virginia-class submarine or Columbia and try to shift the schedule left on those.”

He argued the overhaul no longer made sense from a return-on-investment perspective, comparing the cost of repairing the aging submarine to building a new one.

“The Boise represents 65% of the cost of a new Virginia-class submarine, yet it only delivers 20% of the remaining service life,” Phelan said, adding that equates to roughly three deployments.

The Boise, commissioned in 1992, is a Cold War-era attack submarine designed primarily for open-ocean combat, while newer Virginia-class submarines are quieter, more versatile and better suited for modern missions, including intelligence gathering, special operations and operating in contested coastal environments.

“Is it time we just simply pull the plug on that one?” Sen. Mike Rounds, R-N.D., asked during a confirmation hearing in June 2025.

Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Daryl Caudle called the situation “an unacceptable story” and “like a dagger in the heart” for the submarine force.

No public criticism immediately surfaced after the decision was announced Friday.

Phelan described the program’s failure as the result of multiple factors over more than a decade, including engineering challenges, shifting priorities and strain on the Navy’s industrial base.

“I can’t point to one thing that killed it,” he said. “I think it was a combination … the complexity of the engineering, COVID impacts, and pressure on the industrial base.”

The cancellation is part of a broader effort by Navy leadership to reevaluate underperforming programs and change how the service approaches acquisitions, Phelan said.

“We’re reviewing every program,” he said, adding the Navy is pushing for “radical transparency” and a shift away from what he described as a culture of accepting delays and rising costs.

Phelan said the decision reflects a broader push to prioritize speed and efficiency in delivering war-fighting capability to the fleet.

“We need to be more disciplined and move out faster,” he said. “The president wants things yesterday.”

A hefty backdrop sign toppled toward Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro, a Benjamin Franklin reenactor and a woman portraying Betsy Ross on Thursday as the governor unveiled headliners for the “Commonwealth Concert Series” in anticipation of the nation’s semiquincentennial. 

Shapiro, Franklin and Ross announced five free, star-studded concerts would take place around the commonwealth leading up to America’s 250th birthday on July 4 – at a cost of $675,000 from Pennsylvania’s Marketing to Attract Marquis Events program.

As Shapiro joked that state Rep. Eddie Day Pashinski, D-Wilkes-Barre, would be a good singer for a concert in that city, he pivoted to announcing the finale of the series. 

“Then on June 27th, in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, at the newly refurbished, refashioned, redone Point State Park,” he boomed, before being interrupted by a crashing sound as the large “America250PA” backdrop fell forward, nearly clipping him, Ross and Franklin.

$20M ‘ONE SMALL STEP’ CAMPAIGN AIMS TO REBUILD AMERICAN PRIDE AHEAD OF 250TH ANNIVERSARY

“You all right, Doctor Franklin?” Shapiro asked.

“I feel like Sandra Day O’Connor,” Franklin replied – referencing a near-catastrophic incident in 2003 in Philadelphia as the Reagan-appointed Supreme Court justice was announcing the opening of the Constitution Center on Independence Mall.

At that event, Day O’Connor counted down to the pulling of ribbons to unveil the center, and when her count hit zero, a large horizontal beam crashed down within inches of her head.

WASHINGTON MONUMENT TO BECOME ‘BIRTHDAY CANDLE’ AS US MARKS START OF 250TH YEAR

Shapiro announced several acts including Lady A (formerly Lady Antebellum), The Fray, Cole Swindell and Gabby Barrett, before the sign crashed down. 

After ensuring all on the dais were unharmed Thursday, Shapiro finished his announcement, saying that Third Eye Blind would headline that final concert at the park – which is at the “point” confluence of the Allegheny, Monongahela and Ohio Rivers.

“I don’t know if you saw this the other day, we redid the fountain there. Austin Davis, the great lieutenant governor of Pennsylvania, y’all should give them a little grief for this. He turned that fountain on so high, he soaked himself and every other guest who was there that day,” Shapiro quipped.

“Third Eye Blind and Nelly, that’s going to be a good one.”

It’s only 2026, but the first major cattle call of potential Democratic presidential contenders in the 2028 White House race is underway.

Eight Democrats who may launch presidential campaigns are speaking in New York City at the National Action Network’s 35th Anniversary Convention.

The gathering, hosted by the civil rights organization’s founder, the Rev. Al Sharpton, gives White House hopefuls an opportunity to speak directly to an influential group of Black leaders and activists who are key players in the Democratic Party’s base.

Govs. Josh Shapiro of Pennsylvania, JB Pritzker of Illinois and Wes Moore of Maryland, along with Rep. Ro Khanna of California, spoke over the past two days, while Gov. Andy Beshear of Kentucky and Sen. Mark Kelly of Arizona are scheduled to appear Saturday.

KAMALA HARRIS’ TRAVELS AND COMMENTS CLEARLY POINT TO 2028

On Friday, two veterans of former President Joe Biden’s administration are in the spotlight: former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg and the convention’s biggest draw, former Vice President Kamala Harris.

Harris, in front of a very friendly crowd, was interrupted by chants of “run again.”

Asked by Sharpton if she would seek the presidency again, Harris answered, I might. I might. I’m thinking about it….I’ll keep you posted.”

The preseason moves in the next race for the Democratic presidential nomination have been underway for a year, with the potential contenders making stops in the early voting nominating states, such as New Hampshire, South Carolina, Nevada and Iowa, as well as in other key electoral battlegrounds.

The showdown for the 2028 Democratic nomination is expected to draw a crowded and competitive field.

“We have a pretty good bench. In fact, you’ve invited so many of them to come right here, they’ve been on this stage, or they’re going to be,” Pritzker told Sharpton on Thursday.

HARRIS, NEWSOM, STIR 2028 SPECULATION AT MAJOR DEMOCRATIC PARTY MEETING

Sharpton said earlier this week that when it comes to the potential contenders, he wants to “know what their vision is now, and what they’re doing now. So I’ve invited all of the people that could run.”

Black voters have long played a very influential role in Democratic Party presidential politics.

Case in point: the 2020 White House race.

After fourth and fifth place finishes in the Iowa caucuses and the New Hampshire primary, a battered and bruised Joe Biden finished a distant second to Sen. Bernie Sanders in the Nevada caucuses.

21 DEMOCRATS WHO MAY RUN FOR THE WHITE HOUSE IN 2028

But a major backing from Black voters fueled Biden’s landslide victory in the next contest, the South Carolina primary, which launched him towards the Democratic nomination and eventually the White House.

The Republican National Committee (RNC) is giving thumbs down to the White House hopefuls appearing at Sharpton’s confab.

“Democrats are kicking off the 2028 primary by parading Kamala Harris and a roster of failed governors trying to outrun their own records,” RNC national press secretary Kiersten Pels told Fox News.

Fox News’ Alexis McAdams contributed to this report

Israel Flores Ortiz, an 18-year-old illegal immigrant accused of groping more than a dozen high school girls in Fairfax County, Virginia, was found guilty on nine counts Thursday. The guilty verdict came after critics of Soros-funded Democratic Commonwealth Attorney Steve Descano accused him of flubbing the case by not subpoenaing witnesses until the day before. 

After an all-day hearing in which a dozen victims testified, a judge found Flores Ortiz guilty of nine misdemeanor counts of assault and battery and not guilty of three other counts, reported local outlet WUSA9. One charge was thrown out by the judge, according to WJLA reporter Nick Minock. 

Flores Ortiz, 18, was facing 13 counts of assault and battery for allegedly inappropriately touching female classmates at a Fairfax County, Virginia, school, according to police. 

Flores Ortiz is an illegal immigrant from El Salvador who was released into the U.S. under the Biden administration in 2024, according to the Department of Homeland Security. He was attending 11th grade. 

‘VIRGINIA FATHER’ CHARGED WITH MURDERING INFANT DAUGHTER IS ILLEGAL ALIEN, SAYS DHS

Local police were alerted March 5 by Fairfax High School about reports of multiple assaults on campus. An arrest warrant was issued, and Flores Ortiz turned himself in on March 7.

His sentencing is set for April 21. 

During the hearing, Sean Kennedy, president of Virginians for Safe Communities, accused Descano of intentional “incompetence” and of purposely reducing the charges so that it would be harder to deport Flores Ortiz.

“DESCANO DOES IT AGAIN(,) Fairfax HS illegal alien groping case collapsing TODAY because FFX Soros DA Steve Descano only subpoenaed victims & witnesses yesterday!” Kennedy wrote on X Thursday. “This IS NOT incompetence—it’s intentional.” 

After the hearing, Kennedy, who was present in court during the hearing, told Fox News Digital that Descano’s office “deserves no credit for this verdict — a Pyrrhic victory as it is.” 

“First, Descano undercharged the illegal alien groper with simple assault and battery instead of sexual battery which would have entailed registering as a sex offender or the more serious charge of aggravated sexual battery carrying a felony sentence of 20 years,” he said. “Then, Descano sought to release the offender on bail which the judge rightly rejected. Next, prosecutors sent out the witness and victims subpoenas only the day before — imperiling the case altogether.” 

Despite this, he credited the guilty verdict to the victims, saying, “the girls showed up in force and forced Descano to try the case.”

“Disgustingly, Descano’s chief deputy diminished Flores Ortiz’s sexual assaults as ‘grabbing butts’ in her opening statement supposedly advocating on behalf of victims after having tried to block the media from covering the case,” he said. “This victory belongs entirely to the courageous and relentless victims who got themselves a modicum of justice.”

“Fortunately,” he concluded, “despite the likely light sentence Flores Ortiz will get ICE will provide him with free transportation home to El Salvador.” 

WATCH: ICE IMPERSONATOR BRUTALLY BEATEN BY STREET MOB, DHS SAYS MAN NOT ASSOCIATED WITH AGENCY

This comes as Fairfax County, Virginia’s most populous county and a major suburb of Washington, D.C., is facing increased national scrutiny for a spate of crimes and violence by criminal illegal immigrants. The Trump administration has appealed to the county’s Democratic leadership, as well as new Democratic Gov. Abigail Spanberger, to not release illegal immigrants being charged with serious crimes.

During the hearing, the Department of Homeland Security revealed that U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers were prepared to arrest Flores Ortiz for deportation if he was released Thursday. 

“If Fairfax County’s sanctuary politicians choose to release this predator back into our communities, (ICE) stands ready to take him into custody and deport this sexual deviant,” DHS posted on X. 

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement said a detainer has been filed and that he could face removal from the country.

CHILD OF CHINESE ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS CHARGED WITH PLANTING EXPLOSIVE AT US MILITARY BASE

Virginia parents expressed disgust, frustration and fear about Fairfax High School’s handling of complaints alleging Flores Ortiz groped several girls from behind on school grounds.

Parent Stacy Langton told Fox News Digital recently that “it’s terrifying as a parent, because when I send my daughters to school, I think they’re safe in the care of the school.”

“And in this case, they absolutely were not safe, and I don’t know what parent wouldn’t be completely distraught at the idea that their daughters could be getting sexually battered while they’re changing classes,” Langton said.

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

House Democrats are weighing a long-shot scenario to remove President Donald Trump using the 25th Amendment but are declining to say whether they’ll act before the November midterm elections.

House Judiciary Committee Ranking Member Jamie Raskin, D-Md., will brief congressional Democrats Friday afternoon on the constitutional mechanism that would rely heavily on Trump’s Cabinet agreeing to push him out of office.

The 25th Amendment has never been used before to involuntarily remove a president and is effectively moot without widespread Republican buy-in. But a bevy of House Democrats have embraced that scenario following the president’s escalating conflict with Iran.

“Donald Trump’s deranged threat to destroy ‘a whole civilization’ in Iran is a threat to commit war crimes and genocide,” Raskin wrote on social media Tuesday. “Republicans in Congress must prevail upon Vice President Vance, now campaigning for Putin’s puppet Viktor Orban in Hungary, to return to the U.S. and invoke Section 4 of the 25th Amendment.”

MASSIE-LED PUSH TO HANDCUFF TRUMP ON IRAN GETS JEFFRIES’ BACKING

“The 25th Amendment should be invoked to spare our country and the world from his increasingly unhinged behavior,” Rep. Zoe Lofgren, D-Calif., a member of the Judiciary Committee, also said Tuesday. 

Dozens of House Democrats have continued to press for the president’s ouster despite the announcement of a two-week ceasefire.

“All options should be on the table,” Rep. Sara Jacobs, D-Calif., said Thursday.

House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., has offered support for the briefing and ongoing discussions about the president’s removal, saying Democrats are considering a “range of accountability mechanisms.”

The lead Democrat, however, has remained ambiguous about his personal views despite signaling that all options remain on the table. That is largely in keeping with Jeffries’ efforts over the past year to keep the focus away from impeachment talk while leaning into policy fights over health care costs, tariffs and immigration enforcement. 

Fox News Digital reached out to members of House Democratic leadership but did not receive a response before publication.

A spokesperson for the House Judiciary Committee declined to comment on the 25th Amendment briefing. 

LONGTIME TRUMP CRITIC REVEALS WHY SHE THINKS HIS IRAN ACTIONS ARE WRONG, WARNS IT’S A ‘MUCH BIGGER WAR’

Jeffries largely sidestepped a question Thursday regarding why Democrats are having conversations about removing Trump during a news conference in New York City.

“We have a responsibility as a separate and co-equal branch of government to defend the American people, and we want to be able to do it in an informed way,” Jeffries said before pivoting to criticizing Republicans over the cost of living.

“We’ve ruled nothing out, and we’ve ruled nothing in,” Jeffries told MS NOW when asked about whether he thought the 25th Amendment should be invoked.

In both appearances, Jeffries did not acknowledge that Democrats, who are effectively powerless in Washington, lack the numbers to successfully push impeachment or constitutional mechanisms to oust Trump. 

In the 25th Amendment scenario, the power rests with Vice President JD Vance and Trump’s Cabinet, who would have to agree the president is unfit to serve. Assuming Trump were to challenge that decision, two-thirds of the House and Senate — meaning a significant number of Republicans in Congress — would have to vote in support of that judgment.

At present, Democrats also have a math problem when it comes to impeachment and conviction, which requires a two-thirds majority in the Senate. Congressional Democrats failed twice to convict Trump in his first term. 

This story discusses suicide. If you or someone you know is having thoughts of suicide, please contact the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline at 988 or 1-800-273-TALK (8255).

The nation’s second-largest school district is under federal scrutiny for a policy allowing staff to hide students’ gender identity from parents, after federal officials cited allegations tied in part to a student’s suicide.

The Los Angeles Unified School District, comprising hundreds of K-12 schools and more than a half a million students according to public data, recently received notice from the Department of Justice Civil Rights Division indicating that it had come under investigation for the policy.

The investigation follows a broader parental rights battle that the Supreme Court recently weighed in on. The high court found last month that California must give school districts the option to have policies that require education administrators to notify parents if their child engages in gender transition, which dealt a massive religious freedom win to the parents who sued and sent a warning shot to other states and school districts across the country.

PARENTS, NOT BUREAUCRATS, RAISE AMERICA’S CHILDREN AND THE SUPREME COURT AGREES 

The Civil Rights Division sent a letter on March 25 to the school district informing it of the investigation and that division head Harmeet Dhillon had authorized it, the New York Times reported this week. The DOJ “will not tolerate policies that deny parents’ fundamental rights,” Dhillon told the newspaper.

Reached for comment by Fox News Digital, Dhillon said some allegations against the school were confidential and that she could not provide additional information.

The letter from the Civil Rights Division reportedly cited a lawsuit brought by parents of a high school student who died by suicide, which the parents directly attributed to the controversial policy.

The letter, according to the New York Times, also cited a female student’s sexual harassment claim.

FBI RAIDS HOME AND OFFICES OF MAJOR LOS ANGELES SCHOOL DISTRICT SUPERINTENDENT

The lawsuit was brought by the parents of Dylan Parke, who said their son suffered from serious depression and that they had been pursuing professional help for him when his school intervened without telling them.

“These harmful actions by employees and agents of Palisades Charter High School and Los Angeles Unified School District included referring Dylan to a counselor not employed by Palisades Charter High School without notifying Plaintiffs or seeking their consent or involvement,” lawyers for the parents wrote in the complaint. “These policies and practices promoted the intentional withholding of material information from parents regarding their child’s gender identity in furtherance of gender-affirming care.”

Parke disclosed to the school that he was “coming out publicly as transgender,” and “school personnel engaged in gender affirming care to facilitate Dylan’s social gender transition at school without parental knowledge, involvement, or consent,” the parents’ lawyers alleged.

When asked for comment about the DOJ probe, a school district spokesperson said, “Because this matter involves a pending investigation, we are unable to comment on the specifics.” 

Republican Rep. Randy Fine of Florida has joined the ranks of the conservative House Freedom Caucus.

“HUGE NEWS: I’m proud to announce that I have officially joined the strongest group of conservative patriots in Congress,” he declared in a Thursday post on X.

“The House @freedomcaucus exists to save our country and preserve freedom, not manage our decline. That’s what I love about this group. I look forward to continuing the fight alongside my HFC colleagues to advance the MAGA agenda and fight for conservative principles,” he added.

GOP REP RANDY FINE DECLARES THAT DEPORTING ALL ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS IS THE TOP WAY TO MAKE THE US AFFORDABLE

Fine, who represents Florida’s 6th Congressional District, took office last year after winning a special election to fill the seat previously held by Republican Mike Waltz.

President Donald Trump backed Fine shortly before he launched his congressional bid. In a November 2024 Truth Social post, the president declared, “Should he decide to enter this Race, Randy Fine has my Complete and Total Endorsement. RUN, RANDY, RUN!”

REPUBLICAN LABELS MAMDANI AS ‘LITTLE MORE THAN A MUSLIM TERRORIST,’ ADVOCATES YANKING CITIZENSHIP, DEPORTATION

Trump declared in a Truth Social post last year that the lawmaker “is doing a fantastic job representing Florida’s 6th Congressional District!” The president said the congressman “has my Complete and Total Endorsement.”

“I found in my first year in Congress that there are two types of Republicans: those who want to save America and those who want to manage our decline politely,” Fine noted, according to The Daily Signal. “They were unquestionably the group whose values were most in line with mine.”

LAWMAKER SAYS IRAN TARGETED HIM IN PHISHING ATTACK DISGUISED AS TV INTERVIEW

“Trying to manage the budget, trying to get the government under control, trying to stand up to the Left — they seemed to be the group whose values were most in line with mine,” he said, according to the outlet.

A new DoorDash report tracking millions of purchases shows inflation cooling ahead of the midterms, though the cost of everyday essentials still varies widely across the country.

The findings offer a closer look at how those shifts are playing out for consumers, with affordability still shaped largely by where they live.

The State of Local Commerce report highlights evolving spending patterns as price pressures ease in key categories.

To track those changes, DoorDash analyzed affordability trends using three key measures: the Everyday Essentials Index, the Cheeseburger Index and the Breakfast Basics Index, which reflect price movements across household goods, restaurant meals and groceries.

DOORDASH ROLLS OUT EMERGENCY GAS RELIEF AS PRICES SQUEEZE DRIVERS

The analysis shows inflation easing across several categories, with some posting notable year-over-year declines. Egg prices have dropped significantly, lowering breakfast costs, while household goods prices have remained relatively stable.

“There’s really no single story across local economies,” Jessica Lachs, DoorDash’s chief analytics officer, told Fox News Digital. “National averages are a useful benchmark, but economic conditions can vary significantly at the local level.”

Lachs said the company designed its indexes to go beyond raw data and help illustrate what price changes mean in everyday life for consumers.

ONE LITTLE-KNOWN MEETING HELPS DECIDE WHAT AMERICANS CAN AFFORD — AND WHAT THEY CAN’T

The Everyday Essentials Index, which monitors staples like toothpaste, shampoo, toilet paper, laundry detergent, pain medicine and diapers, found that the average cost of these items has remained largely flat over the past 12 months. The most affordable city is Memphis, Tennessee, where the basket costs $51.93.

While household costs have held steady, fast-casual spending has climbed slightly higher.

DoorDash’s Cheeseburger Index, which tracks the cost of a classic meal of a burger, fries and a soda, found prices up just 3.7% over the past year, rising from $17.70 to $18.35 nationally. The index closely mirrors government data, tracking alongside the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ food-away-from-home consumer price index, which rose 3.9% in February.

But that national figure masks wide variation at the local level.

“When you look at the top 100 cities, you see some pretty stark differences in how much a cheeseburger meal can cost,” Lachs said.

For example, in Lincoln, Nebraska, the meal averages $12.47, while in Anchorage, Alaska, it jumps to $26.96.

In an analysis of its Breakfast Basics Index – which tracks items like eggs, a glass of milk, a bagel and an avocado – DoorDash found that prices fell 22.3% in the past year, due in part to declining egg prices.

THE COST OF THIS GROCERY STAPLE IS NEARING RECORD HIGHS — AND AMERICANS CAN’T GET ENOUGH

The cities with the best deals for these food items are Greensboro, North Carolina, at $2.60, Richmond, Virginia, at $2.67 and Fort Worth, Texas, at $2.81.

While national trends provide a helpful benchmark, the data shows that economic conditions still differ widely across local areas, where unique factors can influence prices in ways national averages may not capture.