Category: USA Politics

You’ll hear volumes from congressional Republicans about the importance of passing the SAVE America Act in the coming days. The bill requires proof of citizenship to vote.

“We need to make it easy to vote and hard to cheat in America,” said Sen. Jon Husted, R-Ohio.

“The SAVE America Act is an important bill,” said Sen. Rick Scott, R-Fla., on Fox News. “So we’ve got to figure out how to get it passed.”

TRUMP-BACKED VOTER ID BILL FACES GOP RESISTANCE AS TILLIS VOWS TO STOP IT

And that is the conundrum facing Senate Republicans — figuring out how to get it passed.

The SAVE America Act is the touchstone of President Donald Trump’s legislative agenda. In fact, the president warned he wouldn’t sign any other bill into law — except perhaps a DHS funding measure — until Congress aligns with his demands.

Republicans agree on the importance of the SAVE America Act, but Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D. is promising everything but passage.

“I will be bringing the SAVE America Act to the floor, and we will be having a full and robust debate,” said Thune.

That’s because Republicans can’t break a Democratic filibuster.

“This is one of the worst things we’ve seen in America in a very long time,” said Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y.

SCHUMER SWINGS AT HEGSETH OVER KING CRAB MEALS FOR THE TROOPS, BUT BIDEN-ERA RECEIPTS SHOW SIMILAR TAB

“The real reason this president wants this bill to pass is to reduce the number of people voting in the November election,” said Senate Minority Whip Dick Durbin, D-Ill. 

It takes 60 votes to break a filibuster. Republicans only have 53 votes in the Senate. So some Republicans advocate parliamentary ballistics to obliterate the filibuster.

“I would nuke the filibuster to pass the SAVE America Act,” said Sen. Roger Marshall, R-Kan. 

Cold War rhetoric permeates this entire debate. In fact, conservatives implored Thune to launch a pre-emptive first strike to terminate the filibuster before Democrats again win control of the Senate — be it this fall or a decade from now.

“It’s really about the only way I can see preventing them from nuking the filibuster once they gain the majority in the Senate,” said Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Wis.

Other Republicans want to force Democrats to filibuster the old-fashioned way — until they’re exhausted. 

“They should have to go hold the floor like it used to be in the old days. They can go and talk as much as they want. But sooner or later they’re going to run out of time,” said Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo.

If everyone finally fades after days or weeks of debate, then the Senate doesn’t need a test vote to break a filibuster — needing 60 yeas. That means they can pass the bill with a simple majority: 51.

Lots of Republican senators are now invoking the 1930s Frank Capra classic “Mr. Smith Goes to Washington.” That’s where Jimmy Stewart plays an idealistic senator who filibusters until he collapses in the Senate chamber.

“They should have to go out there, hours on end, like a Jimmy Stewart moment,” said Sen. Eric Schmitt, R-Mo.

But most Republicans reject the Jimmy Stewart approach. They’re not so much worried about unlimited debate during a talking filibuster, but the unlimited amendment process.

“The talking filibuster, I think will be a goat rodeo. I mean, it could take two or three weeks. The Democrats will tee up all kinds of problematic votes,” predicted a skeptical Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C. “I haven’t had anybody describe to me the project plan. Here are the number of days. This is how we counter people. We’ve got all of our political flanks covered. And this is how we succeed at the end.”

But there won’t be an unlimited amendment process. While Thune will allow the debate to go on for a while (Fox is told perhaps a week or more, perhaps around the clock), he will maintain “ball control.” Thune won’t immediately tee up a test vote to end debate, needing 60 yeas. But Thune will immediately block all amendments from both sides.

Like everything on Capitol Hill, it’s about the math. And while there will be a lot of talking about the SAVE Act and the talking filibuster, there’s not enough support on the GOP side of the aisle to unspool the Senate’s filibuster rules and precedents. 

“Many of us don’t believe that we should undo the filibuster because it holds the rights of the majority. And one day we’ll be back in the minority,” said Sen. Shelley Moore Capito, R-W.Va. “It’s a real splitter here.”

Capito added that there was a “will” to deal with the SAVE America Act. But the parliamentary machinations it would take to blow up the filibuster to pass the bill do not exist.

“There’s not enough numbers to get it done,” observed Capito.

Trump and other conservatives are starting to dial up pressure on Thune.

THUNE GUARANTEES VOTER ID BILL TO HIT THE SENATE DESPITE SCHUMER, DEM OPPOSITION: ‘WE WILL HAVE A VOTE’

“I think he’s a wonderful person. I do,” the president said of the South Dakota Republican on Fox News Radio. “But it’s not that he doesn’t want to do it. He doesn’t think he can do it. And that’s bad.”

Despite criticism directed at Thune, some Republicans are defending him.

“It’s not John Thune that’s killing it. It’s members of the Republican Party that are not convinced that a talking filibuster can be used to pass this,” said Sen. Cynthia Lummis, R-Wyo. “It will be an infliction of tremendous delays on other matters before the U.S. Senate without the positive results of passage of the SAVE Act.”

It’s significant that the president has not called out Thune over his reluctance to end the filibuster to pass the SAVE America Act. However, Trump routinely demanded that former Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., do just that during his first term. The president often lambasted McConnell’s stewardship of the Senate, despite the Kentucky Republican establishing a new precedent to inhibit filibusters of Supreme Court nominees. McConnell’s maneuver on the filibuster assured the confirmations of Supreme Court Justices Neil Gorsuch, Brett Kavanaugh and Amy Coney Barrett.

But so far, no sharp criticism of Thune.

Still, some Republicans believe Senate magic could salvage the SAVE America Act.

“I’ve seen John Thune pull rabbits out of his hat before,” said Lummis. “And I’m hoping there’s a rabbit in his hat on this one.” 

The Senate takes a test vote just to start debate on the bill Tuesday afternoon. That needs a simple majority. It’s possible that Vice President JD Vance may need to break a tie to launch debate on the bill.

But the Senate doesn’t have the votes to blow up the precedents like McConnell did with the Supreme Court in order to pass the SAVE America Act, nor are there the votes to execute a full-blown “talking filibuster,” bypassing the need for 60 yeas. 

Consider the firestorm that could rain down on Senate Republicans from their base if the GOP fails to pass the SAVE America Act. Trump has held his tongue so far, but it’s possible there could be recriminations from him, too.

FIRST ON FOX: The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) lodged an arrest detainer request for a Mexican illegal migrant who was charged with soliciting sexual content from children under 10 years old. 

Angel David Rubio Marin allegedly used “Robux,” the currency used in the Roblox video game platform, to entice children to send him sexually explicit videos and images of at least three young children under 10 years old. He was arrested in Prince William County, VA.

Rubio Marin was previously charged with two counts of public masturbation, but was released in Virginia prior to the current charges, according to DHS.

“This sicko preyed on innocent children by offering to pay them in a video game currency in exchange for child pornography,” Acting Assistant Secretary Lauren Bis told Fox News Digital in a statement. ”This illegal alien was RELEASED from jail after an arrest for public masturbation. This case is a perfect example of why we need state and local cooperation with ICE.”

SANCTUARY POLICIES LET ALLEGED CHILD PREDATOR ROAM FREE UNTIL DHS MADE PORTLAND, OREGON, AIRPORT ARREST

“We are calling on Virginia sanctuary politicians and Governor Spanberger to commit to not releasing this child predator back into Virginia neighborhoods,” Bis added. “No one wants this pedophile loose on American streets.”

Roblox is an online video game where users interact via chat. Robux is an in-game currency where players can purchase accessories and items for their character. The game is popular among young children.

Roblox made clear that the platform’s filters make it impossible for users to share images or videos through in-game chat.

ICE NABS IRANIAN NATIONAL WITH RAPE, SODOMY CONVICTIONS AFTER VIRGINIA DEMOCRATS MOVE TO CURB COOPERATION

Rubio Martin entered the U.S. illegally at an unknown place and time, according to DHS. 

The department was quick to bash Democratic Virginia Governor Abigail Spanberger, who ended cooperation with state agencies and federal immigration authorities through an executive directive in February shortly after her inauguration.

In a statement issued after signing the directive, she argued that requiring state and local officers to take on federal immigration duties diverts them from their primary responsibilities of enforcing Virginia law and investigating crimes.

According to Spanberger, shifting those duties can damage relationships between police and residents and create an atmosphere of fear and mistrust that ultimately makes it more difficult for officers to effectively do their jobs.

The directive also reverses the 287(g) program adopted under former Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin. That policy allowed certain local law enforcement officers to carry out limited immigration enforcement responsibilities under the supervision of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), including helping ensure criminal illegal migrants were not released back into communities and identifying illegal migrants already being held in local jails.

Fox News Digital reached out to Spanberger’s office but has not yet heard back.

Plans to shutter the Trump Kennedy Center were made official through a board of trustees vote on Monday afternoon, setting up a two-year renovation process that some Democratic lawmakers believe should have required more congressional input.

The board unanimously approved the changes, according to a source familiar with the vote.

The source also said the board had set July 6 as the official closure date, installed Matt Floca, the center’s vice president of facilities operations, as the new president of the Trump Kennedy Center and ended its exclusive affiliation with the Washington Opera.

The overhaul will include fixes to the building’s heating, ventilating, air-conditioning systems and elevators, among other structural renovations, according to plans for the project submitted to Congress.

BOARD VOTES KENNEDY CENTER TO BE RENAMED ‘TRUMP-KENNEDY CENTER,’ LEAVITT SAYS

Allocations for the project, set aside in Trump’s Big Beautiful Bill, are set to cost $257 million.

Last year, Trump installed a hand-picked set of board members, leading Democratic critics to condemn the center’s management and its renovation as direct control from the White House.

Sen. Mark Warner, D-Va., an ex officio member of the board, blasted Monday’s vote, arguing the renovations were made unilaterally.

“Unfortunately, recent actions by the president and certain board members have treated the center like a personal vanity project, including firing career management staff, removing trustees and sidelining ex officio members who are meant to provide congressional oversight,” Warner said on Monday.

GRAMMY WINNER ACCUSED OF CAVING TO ‘WOKE MOB’ AFTER KENNEDY CENTER CANCELLATION

Ex officio members provide lawmakers input on the management of the Kennedy Center.

Ric Grenell, the now-former Kennedy Center president, pushed back on characterizations from Democrats, stating that lawmakers have had multiple opportunities to speak into the process.

EXCLUSIVE: TRUMP-LED KENNEDY CENTER NEARLY DOUBLES FUNDRAISING FROM BIDEN ERA, SMASHING RECORD WITH $23M HAUL

“We gave all that information to Congress. It was in the Big Beautiful Bill. We didn’t just come up with the $257 million number. We actually gave them specifics as to what needed to be fixed,” Grenell said.

“My reaction is — last summer we gave you this information, you could have joined any number of the tours we were giving to members of Congress.”

Earlier this year, President Donald Trump framed the renovations as key restorations.

“Subject to board approval, I have determined that the fastest way to bring The Trump Kennedy Center to the highest level of success, beauty, and grandeur, is to cease entertainment operations for an approximately two-year period of time,” Trump wrote in a Truth Social post in February.

Trump promised the center would return with a “grand reopening” after the renovations are complete.

Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, and Rep. Greg Casar, D-Texas, got into a heated exchange Monday afternoon over Department of Homeland Security (DHS) funding after the progressive lawmaker attempted to interrupt the senator’s news conference.

“Why don’t you tell the Democrats to vote to pay these poor people,” Cornyn told Casar, referring to Transportation Security Administration (TSA) employees who missed their first full paychecks due to the shutdown on Friday.

“Let’s do it,” Casar, chair of the left-wing Congressional Progressive Caucus, responded.

“No, you do it,” Cornyn shot back. “I’ve voted for it time and time again.”

SCHIFF, BOOKER DEFLECT ON SHUTDOWN BLAME AMID TERROR CONCERNS, THOUSANDS OF DHS WORKERS WITHOUT PAY

The shouting match comes as the DHS shutdown entered its fifth week Monday, with negotiations to end the stalemate appearing to stall in recent weeks. Senate Democrats near unanimously blocked a Republican effort Thursday to fully fund the agency, citing opposition to spending measures that do not rein in immigration enforcement.

Cornyn, who is vying against Attorney General Ken Paxton, R-Texas, in a runoff election for a fifth Senate term, held a news conference outside the Austin airport on Monday to protest Democrats’ refusal to fully fund DHS. The airport is currently advising passengers to arrive at least 2.5 hours before departure due to a shortage of TSA workers.

Cornyn also brought lunch to TSA employees who are reporting to work without pay — a gesture that Casar criticized.

“Instead of bringing people burgers, he should bring them their paychecks,” Casar told reporters in response to the Whataburger haul following the altercation.

Casar, however, has repeatedly voted against a full-year DHS appropriations bill that would fund the salaries of TSA employees through the end of September.

The Texas Democrat has instead pushed for a standalone measure to fund TSA while leaving the immigration enforcement-related functions of DHS without funding. Republicans have characterized that proposal as a nonstarter, arguing that every individual employed by DHS — including those working for Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) — should be paid.

House Democrats are expected to force a vote as early as this week on legislation that would fund the non-immigration portions of DHS.

SWALWELL PRESSED ON DEMOCRATS’ RESISTANCE TO FULLY FUNDING DHS AMID IRAN THREAT

Roughly 300 TSA officers have resigned and absences have more than doubled since the shutdown began, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said Sunday. The departures come after many TSA employees — who often live paycheck to paycheck — were also required to work without pay during a 45-day shutdown in fall 2025.

“At some point, when you’re not getting your paycheck, people are going to have to look for ways to support their families, which means they’ll be leaving the TSA for other employment,” Cornyn said Monday. “And that’s unacceptable.”

Lawmakers are guaranteed their pay under the Constitution, though some members of Congress have deferred their salaries in solidarity with federal employees.

Cornyn also excoriated Casar for declining to back a full-year DHS funding bill after a terrorist shooting at an Austin bar left the city reeling. The country has also seen terror-related attacks in New York City, Norfolk, Va., and West Bloomfield, Mich., over the past week.

“How about all the terrorist attacks like we’ve seen down on Sixth Street?” Cornyn told Casar. “You want those to continue? These people are keeping us safe. Tell the Democrats to vote for funding the DHS.”

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

Congressional Democrats are seeking criminal charges against Kristi Noem weeks after President Donald Trump ousted her from leadership of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS).

Rep. Jamie Raskin, D-Md., and Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., the top Democrats on their respective chambers’ Judiciary Committees, sent a letter to the Department of Justice (DOJ) on Monday accusing Noem of lying to Congress during back-to-back hearings earlier this month.

“A number of her statements appear to violate criminal statutes prohibiting perjury and knowingly making false statements to Congress,” the letter said. “After months of evading our Committees’ requests to testify in routine oversight hearings, Secretary Noem made a series of demonstrably false statements in a brazen attempt to undermine critical congressional oversight of the Department of Homeland Security.”

The top Democrats on the Senate and House Judiciary committees charged that there were four categories of statements Noem made during her testimony before the respective panels where the DHS chief could have perjured herself.

DHS DEFENDS MCLAUGHLIN AFTER ALLEGATIONS HUSBAND’S COMPANY PROFITED MILLIONS FROM AD CONTRACTS: ‘BASELESS’

Among those answers the lawmakers scrutinized were whether DHS follows court orders, Corey Lewandowski’s role in DHS contracts, whether immigration enforcement has detained U.S. citizens, and most notably the contracting process for a $220 million ad campaign heavily featuring Noem. 

The ad campaign, in particular, was an explosive moment during Noem’s hearing earlier this month when Sen. John Kennedy, R-La., pressed her on whether there was a competitive bid process for the contracts and the substantial cash flow. 

Noem told the panel that the contract did go through a competitive process, “and career officials at the Department chose who would do those advertising commercials.” When asked if President Donald Trump knew about the ad campaign and its eye-popping sum, Noem said he did.

CAPITOL HILL DEMS HAIL TRUMP’S DHS OUSTER OF NOEM AFTER HEATED SENATE HEARING

Trump contradicted that statement in an interview with Reuters, and Kennedy argued that it was “hard to believe” the president would give it the green light. 

“It’s something we have to defend. I’m on the Appropriations Committee. I mean, my research shows that you did not bid them out,” Kennedy said. 

He alleged that the group that received “most of the money” had direct ties to former DHS spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin and her husband, Benjamin Yoho, who runs the company.

KRISTI NOEM FIRED FROM HOMELAND SECURITY POST AMID RECENT TURMOIL

“Even if Secretary Noem was the one telling the truth about the President’s knowledge, and she may well have been, she flatly misrepresented that the contract had been subject to a competitive bid,” Durbin and Raskin wrote. 

Yoho denied using his wife to secure lucrative contracts from the government, however, writing in a letter to Senate Democrats on Friday, “This statement is factually incorrect, and I respectfully request that you have your colleague correct the official record and issue an apology.”

Making false statements to Congress is classified as a felony, and a guilty verdict carries up to five years in prison and a maximum fine of $250,000.

But the Trump administration is sticking by Noem. A DHS spokesperson told Fox News Digital, “Any claim that Secretary Noem committed perjury is categorically FALSE.”

Still, Democrats suggested that their effort would not end with the Trump administration, writing, “While we have low expectations that you will pursue this matter given your partisan weaponization of the Department of Justice, we note that the statute of limitations for perjury and for knowingly and willfully making false statements to Congress is five years.”

Trump announced earlier this month that Noem would no longer serve as DHS secretary and instead take on a new role as special envoy to the Shield of the Americas, a military coalition formed by the Republican president.

It comes after mounting criticism from both sides of the aisle over Noem’s handling of the department and its enforcement of Trump’s crackdown on illegal immigration.

Trump instead nominated Sen. Markwayne Mullin, R-Okla., to take over the department. His confirmation hearing is expected this week.

Fox News Digital reached out to DHS for comment on Democrats’ letter.

President Donald Trump said Monday that White House doctors helped treat Rep. Neal Dunn after the Florida Republican was given what he described as a “terminal” diagnosis.

Trump and House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., recounted the episode during remarks at the White House, saying Dunn was continuing to work in Congress despite a “pretty grim” outlook.

“He would be dead by June,” Trump told reporters.

Johnson said he informed Trump of Dunn’s health challenges and the president suggested involving White House medical staff.

FLORIDA REPUBLICAN REP NEAL DUNN ANNOUNCES RETIREMENT FROM CONGRESS AFTER FIVE TERMS

The speaker said White House doctors arranged for Dunn to receive treatment at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center, where he underwent emergency surgery.

“The man has a new lease on life. He acts like he’s 30 years younger,” Johnson said.

Trump praised White House doctors as “miracle workers,” saying they moved quickly to help Dunn.

“I said, I have to call them. And I called the two doctors. They’re both great. And they immediately went over to see the congressman, and he was on the operating table like two hours later,” Trump added.

REPUBLICAN LAWMAKERS’ EARLY RETIREMENT RUMORS SEND SHOCKWAVES THROUGH HOUSE GOP

Dunn, a physician and former Army surgeon who represents Florida’s 2nd Congressional District, announced in January that he would not seek re-election after five terms.

In a statement at the time, the congressman said he wanted to “pass the torch to new conservative leaders, return home to Panama City, and spend more precious time with my family and our beloved grandchildren.”

“It has been my greatest honor to fight for lower taxes, our military and veterans, the unborn, healthcare innovation, and policies that empower Americans over bureaucracy and addressing threats from Communist China, Russia and others,” he added.

REPUBLICAN LAWMAKER’S EARLY RETIREMENT RUMORS SEND SHOCKWAVES THROUGH HOUSE GOP

As of mid-March, 60 House members, including 23 Democrats and 37 Republicans, have announced they will not seek re-election in the 2026 election cycle, according to the U.S. House of Representatives Press Gallery “Casualty List.”

Several Republicans are running for other offices, including governor and Senate, while Rep. Dan Crenshaw, R-Texas, lost his primary to Steve Toth.

There’s a new push to give federal reparations to descendants of slaves among congressional Democrats, this time being led by progressive Rep. Shri Thanedar, D-Mich.

Thanedar introduced a bill late last week that would set up a federal commission to “study and distribute land reparations” for the descendants of slaves in the U.S. The legislation has no formal backers and faces steep obstacles to advancing in the Republican-controlled House.

“The history of historical injustices against Black Americans by our federal government is nothing short of shameful,” Thanedar told Fox News Digital in a statement. “Formerly enslaved families were promised land as a means of securing freedom and self-sufficiency, but these promises were broken, and the devastating economic effects of this broken promise is still felt today.”

Thanedar’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment regarding how the legislation would work in practice.

NO CLEAR CHAMPION OF CASH PAYMENT REPARATIONS AMONG DEMOCRATS IN CALIFORNIA GUBERNATORIAL RACE

Reparations refer to financial compensation for Black Americans intended to address economic harms their ancestors experienced during slavery and the Jim Crow era. Republicans oppose the idea over eligibility concerns and their belief that present-day Americans should not be responsible for harms committed generations ago.

The reparations push comes as Thanedar, a two-term lawmaker, is facing a serious challenge from the left ahead of Michigan’s August 2026 primary. State Rep. Donavan McKinney, D-Mich., is vying to unseat Thanedar in the deep-blue district with the backing of Sen. Bernie Sanders I-Vt., and the progressive group, Justice Democrats — despite Thanedar’s own progressive credentials.

But Thanedar’s support for Israel has served to alienate him from the furthest-left flank of his party, including Rep. Rashida Tlaib, D-Mich., a fellow member of his state’s delegation. He left the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA), of which Tlaib is a member, after Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack on Israel in 2023.

Tlaib is also supporting McKinney’s campaign.

Thanedar, an Indian American, has supported slavery reparations since before his congressional tenure.

“Every other community has — Japanese Americans got their [reparations], American Indians got their reparations,” the Michigan Democrat said in 2022 while running for Congress. “This is something that needs to be handled in a fair way.”

ILLINOIS CITY WAS THE FIRST TO PAY BLACKS RESIDENTS 25K IN REPARATIONS, BUT HOW WILL IT FIND MORE FUNDING?

Thanedar is an original cosponsor of H.R. 40, also known as the Commission to Study and Develop Reparation Proposals for African Americans Act, which aims to kickstart the reparations process for descendants of slaves. The Michigan Democrat is also a proud supporter of more expansive legislation that aims to transfer $14 trillion in estimated losses to reparations recipients.

The legislation was originally introduced by Rep. Cori Bush, D-Mo., in 2023, when it was similarly dead on arrival in the GOP-controlled House.

Progressive Democrats have long advocated for the passage of reparations legislation but have encountered resistance from members of the party’s moderate flank who view the idea as politically toxic.

Gov. Wes Moore, D-Md., vetoed legislation in 2025 that would have enacted a reparations commission at the state level. Moore is notably one of the only Black Democratic governors in the country and is rumored to have presidential ambitions.

Thanedar has also introduced articles of impeachment against President Donald Trump and other Trump administration figures, despite opposition from House Democratic leadership.

FIRST ON FOX: An Afghan national let into the country during the Biden administration has been arrested by the Department of Homeland Security following a conviction for indecent exposure to a minor.

Basir Ahmad Safi, who is in his 30s, was arrested by DHS on March 11, according to the agency. Before his conviction for indecent exposure to a minor, Safi was charged with lewd or lascivious exhibition, soliciting a child via computer, unlawful use of a two-way communications device and child abuse.

He was admitted to the country in 2021 under former President Joe Biden’s “Operation Allies Welcome,” according to the agency. Two years later, in September 2023, Safi was arrested in Florida by the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office on those charges.

In an emailed statement to Fox News Digital, DHS Deputy Assistant Secretary Lauren Bis slammed the Biden administration for having allowed “this unvetted Afghan pedophile” in the U.S.

ANGEL MOM WHOSE 13-YEAR-OLD SON WAS EXECUTED BY ILLEGAL GANG MEMBER URGES INCOMING DHS CHIEF TO ACT

“He should NEVER have been allowed into our country or given the opportunity to prey on innocent children,” wrote Bis.

DHS said Safi was arrested as part of a joint investigation by Homeland Security Investigations Jacksonville and U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. By the time of his arrest, Safi’s status had been revoked, and he was unlawfully residing in the U.S., DHS said. Safi is being held in ICE custody pending removal.

This comes after Rahmanullah Lakanwal, another Afghan national allowed into the country under Biden’s Operation Allies Welcome, shot two U.S. National Guard soldiers in Washington, D.C. One of the service members, Spc. Sarah Beckstrom, 20, of the West Virginia National Guard, died from her injuries. The other, Staff Sgt. Andrew Wolfe, 24, was critically wounded but survived.

GOP LAWMAKERS WOULD STRIP CITIZENSHIP FROM TERRORISTS AFTER ATTACKS TIED TO NATURALIZED CITIZENS

According to DHS, the Biden-era Operation Allies Welcome relied on “unvetted referrals” to allow nearly 190,000 Afghan nationals into the country. The agency said those admitted into the U.S. included terrorists, sexual predators, pedophiles, domestic abusers and kidnappers

DHS said that “understanding this massive threat to American national security,” President Donald Trump halted Biden’s Afghan refugee resettlement program almost immediately after returning to the Oval Office. Months later, Trump suspended the entry of all Afghan nationals into the U.S.

ICE BUSTS HUMAN SMUGGLING RING THAT KIDNAPPED FAMILY, SEXUALLY ASSAULTED PREGNANT WOMAN

Bis said that “under President Trump’s leadership, DHS has been focused on identifying, arresting, and removing public safety threats like Basir Ahmad Safi from our country.”

A spokesperson for former President Biden did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.

FIRST ON FOX: A House GOP lawmaker is unveiling new legislation aimed at easing airport chaos that’s hitting travelers across the country during the ongoing partial government shutdown.

Rep. Nick Langworthy, R-N.Y., introduced a bill on Monday to ensure Transportation Security Administration (TSA) workers are paid during shutdowns by creating a Transportation Security Trust Fund to help operations and personnel wherever needed.

It would be funded by the Aviation Passenger Security Fee, also called the 9/11 passenger security fee in the wake of the Sept. 11, 2001, terror attacks. It’s a small cost collected by airlines — $5.60 for a one-way trip and up to $11.20 for a round-trip — for flights that originate in the U.S. and is meant to go toward passenger security.

Langworthy’s proposal comes days after TSA agents missed their first full paychecks of the shutdown, which has now gone on roughly a month with no end in sight.

‘YOU CAN CRY ABOUT IT’: TEMPERS FLARE IN SENATE AS DHS SHUTDOWN DEBATE ERUPTS, STALEMATE DIGS DEEPER

While they are entitled to back pay when the shutdown is over, the lack of a consistent paycheck and uncertainty over its duration have forced scores of TSA agents to call out sick and look for other ways to earn income to pay bills and feed their families.

Travelers in places like Louisiana and Texas have been asked to arrive hours early for flights to accommodate longer wait times for security.

Delays have also been exacerbated by bad weather in parts of the country, including up and down the East Coast.

HOMELAND SECURITY REACTIVATES MAJOR GLOBAL ENTRY PROGRAM FOR TRAVELERS AMID SHUTDOWN

“This is now the third time in just six months that TSA agents have been forced to work without receiving a paycheck,” Langworthy told Fox News Digital. “Morale and recruitment are taking a profound hit, and we’ve already lost more than 300 agents, putting the agency’s mission at grave risk.”

He said his bill “will help ensure that our hardworking agents get paid, and that we retain the vigilant, professional workforce necessary to protect the traveling public.”

“Doing nothing is a national security crisis waiting to happen,” Langworthy warned.

Democrats walked away from bipartisan funding negotiations earlier this year after Congress passed federal budgets for all aspects of the federal government except for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS).

Democratic leaders are protesting the Trump administration’s handling of illegal immigration and withholding support from any spending bill that funds Trump’s crackdown, turning down multiple compromise offers for guardrails from the White House.

DHS oversees a wide variety of federal agencies, including the TSA, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), the U.S. Secret Service, and others.

House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., announced Monday that Democrats would try to force a vote on funding all of DHS except for immigration-related agencies — likely a nonstarter for Republicans.

The standoff has seen new significance as more and more TSA agents are forced to choose between working without pay and finding second jobs to make ends meet. Concerns have also been exacerbated by the U.S. and Israel’s operation in Iran, which has raised the national security threat level within the country.

Senate Democrats say they want to end the government shutdown but have repeatedly blocked GOP attempts to reopen the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) as they push for immigration enforcement reforms.

On Friday, Sen. Elissa Slotkin, D-Mich., said at a news conference following an antisemitic attack on the Temple Israel synagogue in her state that “certainly” Congress must fund DHS. 

However, Slotkin and most Senate Democrats have voted four times to block DHS funding, including several attempts to temporarily reopen the agency while negotiations continue.

Slotkin is just one of several Senate Democrats calling for an end to the shutdown. Republicans argue the votes are part of a broader Democratic strategy to blame them for blocking efforts to reopen DHS.

DEMS VOTE TO KEEP DHS CLOSED DESPITE AIRPORT CHAOS, IRANIAN SLEEPER CELL THREAT

Sen. Roger Marshall, R-Kan., accused Democrats of trying to shift blame for the shutdown. 

“Well, that’s what they do, right? And they’re good at it. They’re really good at it,” he told Fox News Digital. “And the big difference is they have 90% of the legacy media backing them up.”

“So it’s hard, but again, four times this afternoon, the Democrats voted against funding DHS,” he continued.  

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., accused Republicans of using the federal workers of a variety of agencies under DHS, like the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) as “hostages.”

“I remind my Republican colleagues, we’re going to be back here again and again, winning this debate and eventually winning the American people,” Schumer said.

But Slotkin and others are now signaling an openness to funding Customs and Border Protection (CBP), which many Democrats have sought to deny federal funding to, in addition to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).

“We need, in my view, to cut away all the conversation on ICE, which is its own conversation,” Slotkin said at the news conference.

VIRGINIA DEMOCRATS DIG IN ON DHS FUNDING LINE DESPITE ISIS-LINKED SHOOTING AT ODU, ILLEGAL IMMIGRANT MURDER

Republicans have sharply criticized Democrats for denying funding to DHS despite a series of terror-related attacks across the country and a heightened threat environment amid the U.S.-Israeli conflict involving Iran.

An alleged ISIS-inspired bomb plot in New York City and a deadly shooting involving a convicted Islamic State supporter at Old Dominion University in Norfolk, Virginia, rocked the country last week.

Sen. Mark Warner, D-Va., said he supports funding DHS after voting against full-year appropriations for the department Thursday.

“I think we should,” Warner replied when asked if Democrats should break the deadlock by CBS News’ Margaret Brennan on Sunday.

“What we have offered is let’s pay TSA, let’s pay FEMA, let’s pay … the Coast Guard, let’s pay CISA. I’d even say let’s pay Customs and Border Patrol,” Warner said. “If we can’t agree on ICE reforms, let’s pay everybody else.”

KATIE BRITT BLASTS DEMOCRAT FOR PLAYING ‘POLITICAL GAMES’ WITH SHUTDOWN AMID AIRPORT CHAOS

However, it is not clear that enough Democrats would be willing to fund CBP while still negotiating reforms to ICE to end the shutdown. Sen. John Fetterman, D-Pa., has been the lone Democrat so far to cross-party lines and support a full-year DHS appropriations bill.

“Democrats’ position is simple: we want reforms to rein in ICE and Border Patrol,” Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., said on the Senate floor Thursday. “We also want TSA and FEMA funded — but we are not going to be blackmailed into cutting a blank check for ICE to get it done.”

Senate Republicans have rejected Democrats’ attempts to fund every agency under DHS except for those handling immigration enforcement.

Sen. Katie Britt, R-Ala., last week blocked an effort by Murray to fund the non-immigration portions of DHS.

Republicans’ resistance to efforts to partially reopen the agency comes as negotiations between the White House and Democrats have stalled.

“Members need to get in a room, have tough conversations, and figure out a pathway for the American people,” Britt told Fox News Digital. “Their safety and security should matter more than politics in November, and unfortunately, Democrats continue to try to take hostages.”