Category: USA Politics

Graham Platner is taking his name off the ballot, but the trail of debris left from the mounting controversies that brought down his nearly year-long insurgent Senate campaign in Maine is giving Republicans ammunition to use against Democrats in other crucial midterm races.

“Democrats rolled in the mud with Platner, and now they are completely stained by their association with this sick monster,” Republican National Committee Chair Joe Gruters charged in a statement minutes after the Marine Corp veteran announced on Wednesday night that he was suspending his campaign.

Republicans are now linking Platner to Democrats in a handful of House and Senate races that will directly impact the midterm battle for control of Congress.

Platner, a populist Democrat backed last September by leading national progressives like Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., was challenging longtime Republican Sen. Susan Collins in a high-profile, combustible and very expensive race in Maine, which is one of a handful that will determine if the GOP holds onto its slim Senate majority in November’s midterm elections.

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Platner’s exit from the race came two days after an explosive report on Monday afternoon contained an allegation of rape from a woman he previously dated. It was only after that report when a chorus of calls emerged from top Democrats across the country for him to immediately drop out.

But Platner, the combat veteran and oyster farmer whose campaign caught fire and steamrolled the Democratic establishment, had already been forced on defense ahead of the his primary victory last month.

Past inflammatory online comments made on a now-deleted Reddit account came back to haunt him at the same time he was reeling from revelations of a now covered-up tattoo on his chest that resembled a Nazi symbol. Then reports that Platner exchanged sexually explicit messages with several women while married came right before allegations from ex-girlfriends of a history of rape fantasies, heavy drinking and violent episodes were made public.

Platner repeatedly called the allegations of violence untrue and dismissed his tattoo and Reddit posts as actions taken by a younger man who has now changed.

And addressing the latest rape allegation, a visibly irritated Platner charged in his suspension video on Wednesday: “This is all false. The things that have been claimed did not happen. It is not real.”

PLATNER’S GONE: HERE’S WHAT’S NEXT AND WHO’S SCRAMBLING TO REPLACE HIM

But Republicans see an opportunity to use Platner’s toxic baggage as a cudgel against some Democrats on the ballot in key races this year — especially those who once backed the Maine candidate or defended him against previous allegations.

“Every Democrat that endorsed Graham Platner endorsed a rapist, and every Democrat that stayed silent was complicit,” Gruters argued.

The GOP quickly took aim at Matt Dunlap, the Democratic nominee in Maine’s 2nd Congressional District, a Democrat-controlled open seat in a mostly rural district President Donald Trump carried in the past three presidential elections that the National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) is heavily targeting.

Dunlap endorsed Platner and appeared with him at a campaign event days before Maine’s June 9 primary.

“Out of touch freak Matt Dunlap might be okay with Nazi lovers and men who abuse women, but in November, he’ll see for himself that Mainers aren’t. Dunlap’s embrace of this vile human is disqualifying,” NRCC Spokeswoman Maureen O’Toole charged.

On Monday, amid a wave of Democrats calling on Platner to call it quits, Dunlap said in a statement, “The allegations reported today are serious, and they deserve to be treated with the gravity they warrant. As such, I am calling on Graham Platner to withdraw from the race for Senate so we can all come together behind a nominee who can successfully carry the torch in November.”

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In neighboring battleground New Hampshire, the NRCC took aim at Stefany Shaheen, the polling front runner in the September primary in the state’s 1st Congressional District, another crucial swing seat that is among roughly two to three dozen that will determine if the GOP holds its razor-thin House majority in the midterms.

“Granite Staters will hold Shaheen accountable for her appalling judgment,” O’Toole argued.

Shaheen never endorsed Platner, but did not explicitly condemn him until Monday, when she said in a statement that “the allegations of sexual assault are extremely disturbing.”

“Graham Platner needs to drop out of this race. I stand with the women who bravely came forward,” she added.

The Shaheen campaign told Fox News Digital that Republicans are being hypocritical, and pointed to President Donald Trump as an example of the double standard.

“Stefany Shaheen called for Graham Platner to drop out. Republicans hacks are total hypocrites still excusing Donald Trump even after he was forced to pay millions in damages to a woman he sexually abused,” Shaheen campaign manager Emma Greenberg told Fox News Digital.

“They have nothing to say about the twenty-eight women who have accused Trump of sexually abusing them. Stefany is going to keep taking on Donald Trump’s corrupt self-dealing and misogyny along with the hacks who keep enabling it.”

The general election winner in the congressional race will succeed four-term Democratic Rep. Chris Pappas, who is running for the Senate this year.

Former GOP Sen. John E. Sununu, the Republican front-runner in that race, took aim at Pappas over what he charged were the “failures of Chris Pappas when it comes to Graham Platner.”

The statement spotlights a critical piece on Pappas penned by the conservative-leaning New Hampshire Journal.

Pappas, who never endorsed Platner, also took to social media on Monday, saying, “The allegations against Graham Platner are reprehensible, and he must step aside.”

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The Pappas campaign also argued that Sununu, who is backed byTrump, is being hypocritical.

“Donald Trump was found liable for sexual abuse, bragged about sexually harassing women and girls, has publicly defamed and demeaned survivors, and is mentioned in the Epstein files over 38,000 times — and John Sununu accepted Trump’s endorsement anyway,” Chris Pappas for Senate spokesperson Gates MacPherson said. “Chris Pappas called on Platner to step aside immediately. John Sununu still stands with Donald Trump. They are not the same.”

The Senate showdown for the Democrat-controlled seat in New Hampshire is one of roughly a dozen races that will determine if Republicans retain their majority in the chamber.

Democrats question how effective any concerted push by the GOP to use Platner as ammunition may be with voters this autumn.

“Battleground district voters don’t care about Graham Platner, CJ Warnke, communications director at the House Majority PAC, the top super PAC supporting congressional Democrats, told Fox News Digital in a statement.

Warnke, pivoting to affordability, argued that voters “care about how Republicans broke their promise lower costs by passing a toxic agenda of tariffs, new wars, and devastating health care cuts. Meanwhile, Democrats are running on making life more affordable and rooting out corruption, and in November we’re going to win.”

Maryland Democratic Gov. Wes Moore is facing criticism for condemning rising “tribal” politics while continuing to push a redistricting effort that opponents say would eliminate the state’s sole Republican congressional seat.

Moore, a rising Democratic star who is being floated as a possible 2028 presidential candidate, gave an Independence Day speech in which he described American history as “powerful,” “painful” and “complex.”

Speaking in the Maryland State House, where George Washington resigned his military commission in 1783, Moore proclaimed that “too many feel that our politics has become tribal, that our political system once felt like a gift, but the politics of today feel like a grift.”

In response, Haven Shoemaker, the top state attorney for Maryland’s Carroll County, remarked to Fox News Digital that “Gov. Moore is proof positive that hypocrisy knows no bounds.”

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“On the basis of what you would have to characterize as tribalism, he is going to convene a special session of the Maryland General Assembly to redistrict Maryland’s only Republican congressman out of office. Sounds like tribalism to me,” said Shoemaker.

Maryland General Assembly leaders announced they will meet for a special session beginning on Aug. 3 to consider a constitutional amendment on congressional redistricting, affiliate Fox 45 reported. The special session follows months of pressure from Moore and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., on Maryland Democrats to advance a congressional redistricting plan that would likely eliminate the state’s lone Republican-held district.

The earlier effort to pass the redistricting bill had fizzled out largely due to Maryland Senate President Bill Ferguson, a Democrat who called the proposed map “objectively unconstitutional” and expressed his worry that “the downside risk to Democrats is catastrophic.”

Afterward, Moore notably did not endorse Ferguson in his primary race despite the senator being one of the highest-ranking Democrats in the state.

After the special session announcement, Moore said in a statement that “for months, I have said that inaction is not an option and we cannot sit on the sidelines while voting rights, fair representation, and the foundations of our democracy come under attack across the country.”

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“I appreciate the General Assembly’s continued conversations and the agreement to come back to finish the work,” he said, adding, “My administration will work closely with the General Assembly as they consider legislation to ensure our state has the tools necessary to protect voters and defend fair representation.”

Meanwhile, Shoemaker, who previously served nine years in the Maryland House of Delegates, even holding the role of minority whip, accused Moore of being caught up in national politics while Marylanders are “fleeing in droves.”

“His record as governor is abysmal,” he said, adding, “Since he became governor, almost four years ago, all that he’s done is really tried to position himself to run for president.”

Shoemaker also took issue with Moore’s critique of American nationalism during his July 4th address.

Moore remarked that “today there are those who will use patriotism to justify pulling books from schools and rewriting history until it comforts those in power. In reality, that’s not patriotism; that’s nationalism.”

The governor continued that “nationalism is not an extension of patriotism; they are not interchangeable. There’s a difference, and that does matter.”

Shoemaker responded that “patriotism means that you love your country,” while in his view nationalism “means that your country is exceptional.”

“It’s pretty clear to me that neither Gov. Moore nor the ultra-progressives generally think that America is exceptional, and I think that’s incredibly sad,” he said.

Moore’s comment also garnered criticism from Maryland Freedom Caucus Chair Matt Morgan, a Republican, who said, “In Moore’s world, if you’re a parent concerned about explicit material in your child’s school library, you’re a nationalist. If you question the revisionist history framework of the 1619 Project and advocate for accurate, honest history, you’re not a patriot. You’re a nationalist.”

“It’s a neat rhetorical trick: reframe the terms, and suddenly anyone who disagrees with you is the villain,” said Morgan.

In a statement shared with Fox News Digital, the Maryland Freedom Caucus called Moore’s decision to convene lawmakers for a special session for redistricting “a blatant partisan effort to rewrite the Maryland Constitution so Democrats can gerrymander away Rep. Andy Harris’s seat and silence rural and conservative voices.”

“While Maryland families sit around their kitchen tables wrestling with sky-high taxes, crushing energy costs, and a cost-of-living crisis made far worse by Annapolis Democrats, Governor Wes Moore has decided now is the perfect time to call a special session,” said Morgan.

In response to the criticism, Ammar Mousa, a spokesperson for Moore, told Fox News Digital, “Why are Maryland Republicans so against patriotism?”

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Shoemaker told Fox News Digital that his own county has been targeted by state leaders for “wanting to have age-appropriate material in public school libraries.”

In 2025, the Maryland State Board of Education reviewed Carroll County’s removal of 20 books from school libraries after parents argued the removals violated Maryland’s Freedom to Read Act, which was signed by Moore in 2024. The State Board ultimately upheld the county’s decision, allowing the books to remain off library shelves.

“Fighting to keep filth in public schools and public school libraries, or, you know, even revising history to make villains of Founding Fathers who have made our country great by just pointing out their flaws. That seems like moral relativism to me and revisionism at its worst,” said Shoemaker.

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Shoemaker said that it is policies such as these, along with continuously “hiked taxes,” that prompted him to announce he is moving out of the state at the end of his term. He says he is not the only one calling it quits on Maryland under the current leadership.

“I’ve talked to a lot of people; most of them say that they don’t blame me a bit for fleeing Maryland, and a substantial number of those folks say that they’re right behind me,” he said.

Fox News Digital also reached out to the Maryland State Board of Education for comment.

New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani is under fire from an Italian American heritage group after Little Italy was left off a city immigrant-neighborhood map tied to a World Cup tourism campaign — an omission critics called an insult to one of the communities that helped build New York.

“Zohran Mamdani wants to ERASE Italian Americans. First, he denied our permit for Unity Day 2026. Now, he is excluding Little Italy as a recognized location all together on the map,” wrote the Italian American Civil Rights League (IACRL) on X along with a press release.

“Italian Americans BUILT NEW YORK CITY. Not third world Ugandans, We stand AGAINST COMMUNISTS,” the group added.

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The map, titled “New York City Immigrant Enclaves,” was created by New York City Tourism + Conventions as part of its NYC Neighborhood Passport campaign tied to the 2026 FIFA World Cup. The NYC Mayor’s Office of Immigrant Affairs has promoted the neighborhood map at pop-up booths across the city.

It encourages visitors to explore “diverse” communities, including 30 neighborhoods ranging from the popular Chinatown to lesser-known Little Palestine and Little Haiti. The map did not mention any Jewish or Irish neighborhoods. 

Mamdani has touted himself as unapologetically pro-immigrant, backing sanctuary protections for immigrants while advocating for Palestinian rights.

“Mamdani’s City Hall can find room for every fashionable progressive constituency, but somehow it cannot find Little Italy,” IACRL president Mike Crispi said in the press release.

“Our culture is good enough for their photo ops, our food is good enough for their fundraisers, and our neighborhoods are good enough for tourism dollars — but when it comes time to recognize Italian Americans, they erase us,” he added.

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More than 4 million Italians immigrated to the United States between the 1880s and 1924, and roughly one-third settled in New York City, helping make Italians the city’s largest immigrant community in the early 20th century, according to the Library of Congress.

“Little Italy is sacred ground. It is where Italian immigrants came with nothing, worked like hell, opened shops, raised families, built churches, fed the city, and helped make New York what it is,” said Crispi.

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The Italian-American community has previously slammed the socialist mayor, including when Mamdani posted a photo to X in 2020 showing him giving the middle finger to a Christopher Columbus statue in Queens.

Fox News Digital reached out to IACRL and Mamdani for comment.

Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., refused to address her revised financial disclosures that could imply she has a negative net worth after the progressive lawmaker dramatically reduced the reported value of assets tied to her husband’s business ventures.

“Can you tell us if your husband still has the consulting business and the wine business?” Fox News Digital asked Omar.

The congresswoman stayed silent as she was repeatedly questioned, after previously telling Fox News Digital that the original filing — showing Omar’s reported assets reducing by as much as $29.9 million — was inaccurate and “incomplete” information.

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The controversy surrounding Omar’s finances began when a 2024 financial report estimated that Omar and her husband possessed between $6 million and $30 million in assets, all while the Minnesota fraud scandal within the Somali community was beginning to come to fruition.

A more recent 2025 financial disclosure report shows Omar’s revised value of shared assets between her and husband to sit at a maximum of $125,000 — a multimillion-dollar drop from the year prior. The lower estimate of their assets, $20,000, compared to the low and high debt estimates, $30,000 and $100,000, would imply the Minnesota Democrat could have a negative net worth.

Both she and her husband have separate debts, each ranging somewhere between $15,000 and $50,000 — from her own student loans and her husband’s credit card debt, according to the disclosures.

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The biggest change in the documents involved Omar’s husband, Tim Mynett. His reported ownership interests in both his winery and venture capital advisory firm, which were previously valued in the millions of dollars, are listed with no value now.

In Omar’s 2024 financial disclosure records, Mynett’s share in his winery was valued between $1 million and $5 million, and his share at the venture capital advisory firm was valued between $5 million and $25 million. Now, his equity interests are both listed at $0.

Omar’s office previously told Fox News Digital that Mynett has partners in both businesses and said the earlier disclosure mistakenly reflected the businesses’ total equity rather than his ownership interest. The office also said the original filing listed assets without accounting for liabilities.

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House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer, R-Ky., has publicly voiced his interest in the Ethics Committee opening an investigation into Omar’s personal finances after the 2025 financial reports came out showing the possibility of a $29 million drop in her net worth.

Vice President JD Vance also has said the U.S. Department of Justice will be opening a probe into her alleged fraud as part of the administration’s anti-fraud taskforce that he spearheads, though no formal investigations have been shared with the public at this time.

Omar has been reluctant to answer Fox News Digital’s questions about her financial fallout and potential probes to be opened against her.

The Minnesota lawmaker similarly dodged answering any of Fox News Digital’s questions just last month about the revised disclosures.

“There’s also the possibility that it might rain on this sunny day,” Omar replied without responding directly to the content of the question.

Fox News Digital’s Robert Schmad contributed to this report.

EXCLUSIVE: Quick-thinking Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents in Wisconsin who were preparing to conduct an arrest operation dropped everything to rush to the scene of a nearby rollover crash, saving a woman trapped inside her car, Fox News Digital has learned.

ICE agents have been maligned as “fascist” and “inhumane” by critics, while recent incidents have highlighted officers rescuing people in danger, including a case in which an agent leaped into a hotel pool to save a drowning child.

On June 29, agents were in the Milwaukee area preparing to make an arrest when one officer involved heard the sound of a car crash and hurried to investigate.

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A car ran a stoplight at 20th Street and Cleveland Avenue, colliding with another vehicle. The impact caused one of the vehicles to roll over and crash into a light pole, pinning the 31-year-old woman inside.

The agent then contacted the rest of his team and told them to call 911 and come over to help free the woman in the interim.

Working as a team, the agents were able to remove the woman from the mangled car and render first aid until emergency medical technicians arrived.

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“Our best of the best ICE officers put their lives on the line to arrest the worst of the worst,” a DHS spokesperson told Fox News Digital following the incident.

Acting Assistant DHS Secretary Lauren Bis said ICE agents like those involved, who remained anonymous, including in exclusive images, for their safety, exemplify the best in federal law enforcement.

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“Despite smears and hoaxes spread by sanctuary politicians and the media, our officers put their lives on the line to make our communities safer,” Bis said. “They are heroes.”

“If you see an ICE law enforcement officer, thank them for all they do to protect our nation.”

In another case this year, while ICE agents were assisting TSA agents during the Democrats’ DHS shutdown, one ICE agent performed the Heimlich maneuver on a choking child, saving the child’s life.

A popular U.S.-based gaming brand owned by Microsoft is facing fury after mass employee layoffs occurred in the wake of the company being approved for thousands of foreign worker visas.

Microsoft announced that it will lay off 4,800 people total and 1,600 from the corporation’s XBOX division, which makes and sells the dominant video game console.

Meanwhile, Microsoft has been approved this year to hire from foreign countries 2,273 employer-sponsored, non-immigrant workers under what is known as the H-1B visa program, according to data from U.S. Citizen and Immigration Services (USCIS).

Furious online critics claim that American jobs are being unfairly handed to foreigners in an effort to cut labor costs but at the cost of leaving U.S. workers in the lurch.

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“A great way to fix this is to throw anyone doing this in prison,” said one user on X. “Fire Americans to replace with thousands of visa workers? Straight to jail, and assets seized. This story has been told countless times. Fire American staff and hire foreigners. Over and over.”

“It is the fault of our Government [sic] for approving the H-1Bs,” another social media user lamented. “Our Government [sic] has sold us out of jobs at home and those being moved to other countries.”

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Another user described the H-1B program as “industrial scale job theft from Americans.”

Microsoft is the sixth-largest beneficiary of H-1B visas, a program that is overwhelmingly dominated by workers from India. The company has even more H-1B applications pending. Microsoft has employees worldwide, but most are in the United States.

“These decisions are based on business need, not visa status. H-1B employees were also impacted by job eliminations in the U.S.,” a Microsoft spokesperson told Fox News Digital when reached for comment on the lay offs. 

“Every single employer is exploiting the H-1B visa program,” said the Project for Immigration Reform.

A lawmaker even called for a complete end to the non-immigrant visa program.

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“This is INSANE. LEGAL immigration is a major problem. These companies, especially big tech, are abusing these immigration programs to replace American workers with foreign workers,” said Rep. Riley Moore, R-W.Va.

“No more. It’s long past time to end the H-1B scam.”

XBOX CEO Asha Sharma cited the company’s financial health for the layoffs.

“Our business today is not healthy,” said a memo from Sharma, according to The Associated Press. “We are operating at margins that are 3-10x lower than comparable platform and publishing businesses.”

Sharma added that her strategy is to “reset” XBOX.

Some online critics, however, claimed Sharma’s Indian heritage played a role in firing the Americans, given the percentage of H-1B workers from India. Sharma was born in Wisconsin.

Vice President JD Vance announced on Tuesday a large-scale investigation into H-1B visa fraud.

“Today, I’m proud to announce that the federal Department of Labor has started dozens of subpoenas and investigations into foreign fraudsters who are trying to take advantage of the H-1B visa program,” he said during a press conference in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

“American jobs ought to go to American workers and not foreign fraudsters and the Department of Labor is fighting back against it.”

Recently, President Donald Trump tried to limit employers’ use of the H-1B program by imposing a $100,000 fee for companies seeking H-1B applications.

A federal judge struck down that order, reasoning that it amounted to a tax that only Congress has the ability to impose.

FIRST ON FOX: The Trump administration is proposing to slash Biden-era truck emissions regulations in a move officials say would save the trucking industry about $12 billion and ease supply chain costs that make everyday goods more expensive for Americans.

“Collectively, these savings will be passed on to American families through lower costs for food, household goods, and other products trucks deliver, while still maintaining strong environmental protections and ensuring clean air,” read the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) press release first viewed by Fox News Digital.

The EPA has proposed changes to heavy-duty truck emissions rules that would save truckers an estimated $12 billion, including up to $6,000 per new truck, helping lower transportation costs and prices for American families. 

The proposal would eliminate DEF-related engine deratements and speed restrictions for new highway engines and vehicles, as well as new nonroad engines and equipment, including farm machinery, replacing them with warning alerts so operators can keep working until repairs can be made safely.

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Previous policies “make delivering everything more expensive and so that’s going to all be passed on to the consumer as well. By making these trucks cheaper and more reliable, we are making sure that the supply chain stays as cheap as possible for the American people,” EPA air chief Aaron Szabo told Fox News Digital in an interview. 

The proposal would also reduce costly emissions warranty requirements from the 2023 rule while keeping nearly 90% of the planned NOx emissions reductions and giving manufacturers more time and flexibility to meet the updated standards.

Szabo said the proposal addresses a major problem caused by DEF system failures, which can force trucks and farm equipment into “limp mode” by reducing their speed to just five miles per hour.

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He said with more than 200 possible failure codes, the deratements can leave truckers stranded on the side of the road and farmers losing hours—or even days—of productivity during critical work like harvesting.

“We’re both making the products more reliable and decreasing the impact from DEF. And we’re also bringing down the price of the whole supply chain by reducing the cost of these new trucks,” Szabo said.

Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins told Fox News Digital in a statement that the issue has “shown the true cost of government overreach.”

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“Our rural communities rely on diesel powered engines to deliver their food, families, electricity, and so much more to where it needs to go. The billions in savings will directly benefit those who feed, fuel, and clothe our nation,” Rollins said.

The latest proposal follows Trump’s broader pledge to roll back Biden-era green regulations after he returned to office.

“We will terminate the Green New Deal, revoke the electric vehicle mandate, and unleash American energy,” Trump said in his inaugural speech.

Szabo said the Biden administration tried to push Americans into electric trucks with rules it enforced.

“That’s what the Biden administration was doing. They were forcing people to not have choice anymore, taking away their freedom to choose what kind of vehicle and telling them you have to buy an electric vehicle,” he added.

Fox News Digital reached out to the Office of Joe Biden for comment.

President Donald Trump remarked that congressional Democrats would have a hard time replacing former Maine Senate candidate Graham Platner after the embattled candidate suspended his campaign Wednesday.

“It’s very hard for them to do. It’s really a question of whether or not you believe the woman. A lot of people say big falsehoods. It’s… he’s in a bind. He’s in a bind. But, should they be able to do it? Well, I guess he’s going to lose. I imagine he’s going to lose,” Trump said while speaking to reporters on Air Force One before returning to the United States from the NATO summit in Ankara, Turkey.

Platner suspended his campaign Wednesday evening after numerous Democrats and liberals who had previously backed him pulled their support and encouraged him to drop out of the race.

PLATNER DROPS OUT OF CRUCIAL SENATE RACE AFTER BOMBSHELL RAPE ALLEGATION TORPEDOES CAMPAIGN

The calls for his exit came after Politico published a bombshell report detailing rape allegations against Platner. In the story, Platner’s ex-girlfriend Jenny Racicot alleged he forced his way into her home and sexually assaulted her in 2021.

The Politico report followed a New York Times story that described another physical abuse allegation against Platner, this one from Lyndsey Fifield, a digital strategist for Republican political campaigns and organizations.

Trump alluded to Fifield’s allegations, wondering aloud why her allegations weren’t a catalyst for outrage in the same manner that Racicot’s were.

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“It’s very interesting when the Republican woman came out with the same charge, nobody believed her… when this woman came out everybody believed her, right?” Trump asked reporters.

Fifield criticized the New York Times’ handling of her accusations, spotlighting the paper’s focus on her history of working for Republicans.

“I’m out here on my own, I’m the only one photographed and there’s 11 paragraphs of my work history. Like, what is this?” Fifield told Fox News Digital in a Wednesday interview.

Platner maintained that his suspension was not an admission of guilt and denied the allegations.

While Platner suspended his campaign Wednesday, he has not officially dropped out to clear a path for a new candidate. Under Maine state law, he would have to drop out by July 13 to allow the Democratic Party to put a new candidate on the ballot in his stead.

Fox News Digital contacted the Platner campaign for comment.

Fox News Digital’s Brian Flood and Joseph Wulfsohn contributed to this report.

St. Louis Park Mayor Nadia Mohamed, who made history as the first Somali American elected mayor of a U.S. city, fired back at critics who criticized her Fourth of July weekend trip to Somalia during the country’s 250th anniversary weekend.

The controversy began after local news outlet Alpha News reported that Mohamed, who has repeatedly been praised by Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., was in Somalia over the semi-quincentennial Fourth of July weekend, citing a Somali news outlet that reported on her visit she made alongside the country’s President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud. 

Video from the Somali president’s X account highlighted the visit and, according to Alpha News, photos appeared to show the mayor’s arrival with “a large welcoming party waving American and Somali flags.” 

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“Allow me to offer my sincerest apology for daring – for having the audacity – to take vacation time to see family members I have not seen in 10 years,” Mohamed sarcastically said in a video posted to her social media accounts following criticism for not being stateside. 

“Allow me to apologize for utilizing the federal holiday that we have, and the time off that we have to be able to go see my grandmothers – in which I have not seen in 10 years, in which six of those years I have worked diligently to serve the good people of St. Louis Park – I am so sorry. How inconsiderate of me! How treacherous – is it treacherous? Treacherous of me!”

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“If you must know, I also met with the president of Switzerland, the then-president of Switzerland, but nobody asked me about that one,” she continued. 

“I would’ve loved to have told you about that. I would have loved to have had an entire news article written about that. I will do better next time. I will.”

Mohamed remains in Somalia, according to the city, which told Fox News Digital the trip is personal, privately funded and unrelated to city business.

However, the city did not provide a return date when asked, saying only that Council Member Yolanda Farris is currently performing the mayor’s duties as designated mayor pro tem.

Mohamed concluded her “apology” video by calling the complaints about her trip “bullying.”

“Reading the comments on this post,” she said, while trying to contain laughter. Honestly, it’s the way that people do not fall for this s—. It’s the way that people do not fall for this propaganda. It is the way that people do not fall for this bullying – because that’s what this is.”

It’s all about “clicks” off the backs of “hating” Somali people, Mohamed argued. 

“The minute they mention Somali people, their clicks and views go up,” she said before the video cut. 

Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush praised President Donald Trump for his efforts in crippling the Iranian regime, but warned that Cuba is now believed to have hundreds of explosive drones from Tehran.

Bush made the statement at a United Against Nuclear Iran (UANI) event on Wednesday, standing next to an Iranian Shahed-136 drone. The Shahed family of drones are cheap but effective kamikaze weapons that Iran has used extensively in the Middle East, in addition to shipping them to Russia for use against Ukraine.

“We have decimated Iran’s capability to make mischief in the region. There’s no doubt about it,” said Bush, who is UANI’s chairman, adding that he applauds the Trump administration for their work.

“I also want to point out that the press reports are that there are 300 of these in Cuba,” Bush said, gesturing toward the drone.

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“We have very good defense capabilities, so this is not a press conference to scare the bejesus out of people. The United States does have capabilities of defending the homeland, for sure,” Bush qualified before saying the drones nevertheless pose “a threat.”

Bush was joined at the event by Rep. Carlos Gimenez, R-Fla., who warned attendees that while Shahed drones are a “terror weapon,” they are also the future of how wars are going to be fought.

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“This is the face of warfare,” he said of the drone, noting that AI capabilities were drastically advancing the effectiveness of drones. “This is how war is going to be carried out in the future, and it’s being carried out right now.”

Gimenez emphasized the effectiveness of drones in the war in Ukraine, where Kyiv’s forces have manufactured millions of small explosive drones for their defense, and to great effect.

Former U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Mark Wallace, now CEO of UANI, also spoke at the event, calling the Shahed drone “the ubiquitous terror weapon of mass destruction in modern warfare.”

“This drone has struck our allies across the region, killed American troops, our allies across the region … and has been raining terror across the Middle East at our bases and the like,” Wallace said.

Wallace told Fox News Digital that the drones in Cuba were transferred years ago, before the current conflict between the U.S. and Iran.