Parents won’t admit that they have a favorite child.

But they do.

The same is true with lawmakers.

They won’t admit they have a favorite bill.

But they do.

That’s why the SAVE America Act is the favorite bill of Senate Republicans.

Until it isn’t.

TRUMP DEMANDS SAVE AMERICA ACT BE TIED TO DHS FUNDING AMID AIRPORT CHAOS

At some point, lawmakers will forge a deal to fund the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). It could be today. Tomorrow. A week. A month. But it will happen. And until then, the Senate likely squats on the SAVE America Act, which requires proof of citizenship to vote.

The Senate is stalled here, partly because it lacks anything else to do. But mostly because the SAVE America Act is the “favorite child” of Republican senators — for now. It’s good optics for the Senate to look like it’s working on the hallmark of President Trump’s legislative agenda — even if it has no viable path to passage.

And when the Senate eventually secures that DHS agreement, it will likely ditch its favorite child. The DHS bill will quickly matriculate in status to Republican senators.

It’s not that GOP senators loved the SAVE America Act less. But that they loved funding DHS more.

So why wouldn’t the Senate quickly revert to the SAVE America Act as soon as it passes DHS funding? Well, that’s because senators will acquire another favorite child: congressional recess. That’s right. If there’s a DHS deal, lawmakers will abandon Washington for about two weeks to observe Easter and Passover.

Senators will wrestle with the SAVE America Act again down the road. But the measure is likely relegated to the island of misfit toys for legislation. Something called “budget reconciliation.”

More on that in a moment.

Yes. Republicans relish talking about the importance of voter ID and securing elections so persons illegally in the country can’t cast ballots. But if enough Republicans really liked the SAVE America Act, they’d have the votes to pass the measure.

The Senate has incinerated more than a week of debate on the SAVE America Act. Republicans have little to show for their efforts. That is, unless you include the Senate blocking a proposed amendment to bar men from competing in women’s sports. That test vote secured a paltry 49 yeas Saturday afternoon.

Everyone has known where the vote count stands on this for weeks now.

“I’m telling you, the SAVE (America) Act is not going to pass,” said Senate Minority Whip Dick Durbin, D-Ill. “They have to change the rules of the Senate for that to happen.”

THUNE ACCUSES CRITICS OF ‘CREATING FALSE EXPECTATIONS’ AMID BACKLASH OVER STALLED SAVE AMERICA ACT

And, for the record, the Senate lacks the votes to alter the rules, too. 

It’s not that Republicans didn’t embrace the SAVE America Act. It’s just that lines at the airports and the risk of terrorism worry them.

The SAVE America Act has emerged as a messaging exercise for Senate Republicans. They can get Democrats on the record about opposing bans on men in women’s sports and voter ID. The National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC) — the panel charged with electing GOPers to the Senate — is more than happy to document Democrats via a roll call vote how they feel about those subjects. However, the GOP simply lacks the votes to pass the bill.

Moreover, there is finally an opportunity to end the protracted government shutdown. There are only so many exits on the legislative interstate. You have to be able to read a map. Republicans don’t want to miss this exit. The limited interstate exits also apply to opportunities for congressional recesses.

Republicans are about to punt more than Ray Guy.

“We have had this battle now for two weeks,” said Sen. Steve Daines, R-Mont., on Fox. “This is going to continue after we get back. After the Easter break.”

Some advocates of the bill promise they won’t retreat.

“We’re busting our butt to do what the public wants us to do. We’ve got to secure our elections,” said Sen. Rick Scott, R-Fla.

“Then why haven’t we seen a 25-hour speech, [Sen.] Cory Booker [D-N.J.] style, by somebody to keep the Senate in session around the clock?” asked yours truly.

HOUSE CONSERVATIVES ERUPT OVER SENATE GOP, WHITE HOUSE DEAL AMID SAVE ACT FIGHT

“I think we ought to do everything we can,” replied Scott.

Some Republicans say their side raised expectations too high.

“I think anytime you promise something you can’t possibly deliver, you’ve got to be held accountable,” said Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C. “It’s disingenuous to go out to the people and say ‘I’m fighting for you’ when you haven’t even entered the ring.”

So Republicans will try to shoehorn every possible component of the SAVE America Act into a “budget reconciliation” bill later this year. “Try” is the key word. Budget reconciliation is a special process, inoculated from a filibuster and only needs a simple majority to pass. Sounds great, right? But budget reconciliation is an elite Senate process for only money and tax matters. Not policy, like voter ID. And voter ID could be a target of the Senate’s umpire — Parliamentarian Elizabeth MacDonough — if GOPers try to stuff it in that bill.

“Budget reconciliation, as I’ve said before, you have to have a reason to do it,” said Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D. “Obviously the parliamentarian has a role to play in that process. And in the past we have respected it. And I would expect we would do that.”

If they’re being honest, few Republicans think budget reconciliation is feasible to salvage parts of the SAVE America Act.

“I don’t think under reconciliation we’re going to be able to pass voter ID,” said Senate Budget Committee Chairman Lindsey Graham, R-S.C.

“The SAVE America act is not reconcilable,” said House Freedom Caucus Chairman Andy Harris, R-Md. “It will never fly past the parliamentarian because it really is predominantly a policy issue.”

“This is fake,” said Rep. Warren Davidson, R-Ohio, about any wing-and-a-prayer effort to wedge the SAVE America Act into budget reconciliation. “It isn’t going to work.”

“A talking filibuster is the most obvious and the most sure way of getting this thing passed,” said Rep. Brandon Gill, R-Texas. “This reconciliation is not an out for the Senate. They need to do their job and get this bill passed.”

But Senate Republicans haven’t shown a willingness to hold the Senate in session until they wear down their opponents and pass the bill via a lengthy talking filibuster. Staying on the bill for now is a parliamentary convenience. Especially after the weekend vote on men playing women’s sports.

The Senate will eventually move on. And senators will eventually embrace yet another favorite legislative child.

FIRST ON FOX: Idaho and Indiana filed an amicus brief challenging a federal ruling requiring Alaska to provide sex reassignment surgery for prison inmates in a case that could reshape policy nationwide.

Alaska is appealing the decision to the Ninth Circuit, seeking to overturn a ruling that found denying sex reassignment surgery to a transgender inmate violated the Eighth Amendment’s protection against cruel and unusual punishment. Twenty-four states now warn that if upheld, the judge’s ruling could force prisons across the country to provide transgender medical procedures.

Idaho Attorney General Raúl Labrador said that if the lower judge’s ruling is upheld, it could create a dangerous “precedent.”

“A federal court ordered Alaska to refer a prisoner for sex-change surgery consultation, which threatens to set a precedent that forces other states to provide these procedures using taxpayer dollars,” Labrador said. “Idaho supports Alaska in defending state medical decisions against judicial overreach. The Eighth Amendment ensures basic medical care for prisoners, but it doesn’t require states to provide experimental gender transition surgeries.”

IDAHO AG SAYS SUPREME COURT TRANSGENDER SPORTS CASE DEFIES ‘COMMON SENSE’

Magistrate Judge Matthew Scoble had argued that Alaska acted with “deliberate indifference” when prisoner Emalee Wagoner, who was diagnosed with gender dysphoria, was barred from receiving surgery. However, Alaska   Wagoner is currently serving a 40-year prison sentence for sexual abuse of minors.

In a 32-page brief, Labrador, Idaho Solicitor General Michael Zarian, Indiana Attorney General Theodore Rokita and Solicitor General James Barta rejected the magistrate judge’s argument that the Alaska Department of Corrections is in violation of the Eighth Amendment because the requested medical procedure is not a “minimal civilized measure of life’s necessities,” meaning it is unnecessary. This assertion is based on the fact the operation “is not available to free citizens in half of the Nation.”

“The Eighth Amendment stops cruel and unusual punishment. It doesn’t give prisoners the right to demand risky, optional surgeries when doctors and scientists still strongly disagree about whether they’re safe or even helpful,” said Rokita.

“If courts force states to provide these expensive, controversial procedures in one prison, it will open the floodgates everywhere—putting Hoosier taxpayers and families across the country on the hook for hundreds of thousands of dollars per surgery in virtually every state.” 

PLASTIC SURGEON CITES ‘EMOTIONAL BLACKMAIL,’ POOR EVIDENCE IN WARNING AGAINST YOUTH GENDER SURGERIES

In the brief, the state officials also pointed to a lack of consensus among medical professionals over the efficacy of reassignment surgery in treating those with gender dysphoria. They cited a 2016 Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services review of studies on the effectiveness of sex-change surgeries, finding the selected studies “did not demonstrate clinically significant changes or differences in psychometric test results after” surgery.

The amicus brief expressed scrutiny of the World Professional Association for Transgender Health, claiming that the organization “has changed its medical guidance to accommodate external political pressure.”

“Despite WPATH’s insistence on surgeries, nothing in the Eighth Amendment’s text or history allows prisoners to demand whatever medical interventions they desire,” the amicus brief stated. “Nor does anything in its text or history require States to provide risky, controversial medical procedures of uncertain benefit to prisoners.”

Fox News Digital reached out to WPATH and Wagoner’s legal team for comment.

Following Scroble’s ruling in October, Wagoner’s attorney Richard Saenz praised the decision, telling the Alaska Beacon that his client “should not have to continue to wait for the care that the court and her treating doctor and experts have said is medically necessary for her to receive.” 

Saenz told the outlet the ruling will likely affect a relatively small number of transgender people but that it will be significant for them. 

“I think that is so important — that gender dysphoria, which is a medical condition that the department itself recognizes needs treatment, should not be treated in an exceptional way. It should be treated like other medical conditions, and that the treatment that clinical guidelines say are needed, should be followed,” he said.

EXCLUSIVE: A conservative House Republican is seeking to enact sweeping new election transparency measures before November’s midterm elections.

Rep. Ralph Norman, R-S.C., will introduce legislation Thursday requiring a small federal agency, known as the U.S. Election Assistance Commission, to establish a public database that would disclose basic information about private vendors running federal elections. 

Norman’s Election Infrastructure Transparency Act would require the new database to report the names of all private election vendors, details of the vendor contracts and their ownership structures, including the mandatory disclosure of any foreign ties, within 30 days of an election. 

Norman, who is running to be South Carolina’s next governor, argues his transparency-focused legislation is necessary to combat foreign adversaries attempting to interfere with U.S. elections. Russia, China and Iran all sought to influence the outcome of the 2024 presidential election, according to multiple reports.

SEN KENNEDY URGES ‘SMART LAWYERS’ TO REWORK SAVE AMERICA ACT FOR SIMPLE MAJORITY PATH

If a transparency database is not created, proponents of the legislation say lawmakers and election officials could be left in the dark about whether foreign money or potential foreign ties are present among the vendors that make up the country’s election infrastructure.

“The American people deserve to know exactly who is involved in administering their elections,” Norman said in a statement. “Foreign adversaries are not sitting on the sidelines. They are actively looking for ways to exploit weaknesses in our system.”

The legislation would apply to the 2026 elections and every election cycle in the future. The measure would also cut off federal funding to any state that does not comply. 

The Election Assistance Commission is a bipartisan agency tasked with certifying voting hardware and distributing election infrastructure grants to states.

HOUSE CONSERVATIVES ERUPT OVER SENATE GOP, WHITE HOUSE DEAL AMID SAVE ACT FIGHT

Norman’s legislation could face obstacles to being signed into law due to anticipated opposition from Democratic lawmakers, who have repeatedly criticized GOP-authored election integrity measures.

House Republicans, however, have floated multiple election-related proposals that could be included in an anticipated budget reconciliation package. Ideas circulated by the House Administration Committee include granting funding to states for verifying voter registration data and conducting post-election audits. 

The flurry of election integrity and transparency measures comes as congressional Republicans are pushing for the passage of the Trump-backed SAVE America Act. The legislation would require proof of citizenship to vote in federal elections and enact a nationwide voter ID, among other provisions. 

The House-passed measure has stalled in the Senate due to Democratic opposition and is not expected to get the votes to overcome the upper chamber’s 60-vote threshold.

Some Republicans have advocated for passing parts of the SAVE America Act in a GOP-only budget reconciliation bill, but the legislative maneuver’s stringent requirements could derail that plan.

FIRST ON FOX: Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, has received a slate of 19 new endorsements from Texas Republicans in the latest development in the bitter primary runoff between him and challenger state Attorney General Ken Paxton.

Texas Republican congressmen Randy Weber, Nathaniel Moran and Roger Williams, influential GOP state Rep. Matt Shaheen, and former Texas House Speaker Dade Phelan are among the latest lawmakers to back Cornyn over Paxton.

This primary has become increasingly bruising, with the rivals lobbing more personal attacks at each other after neither candidate achieved the 50% threshold needed to secure the GOP nomination in the March primary. Meanwhile, the stakes are high for the Republican Party, as Democrats believe candidate James Talarico, a state representative and rising star, has an opening to flip the seat for the first time in decades. Such an upset would be devastating for the GOP’s chances of retaining a majority in the upper chamber and could impact President Donald Trump’s agenda for the remainder of his term.

Cornyn, a top Senate Republican who has held the seat since 2002, responded to the new endorsements by telling Fox News Digital, “I’m honored to have the endorsement of many longtime friends in Texas politics, whom I have gotten to know during our time in office and with whom I’ve been proud to work.”

DEM PRIMARY TURNS UGLY: MILLS UNLEASHES BRUTAL ATTACK ON SANDERS-BACKED PLATNER IN CRUCIAL SENATE SHOWDOWN

The senator said that he has “always worked hard to earn the trust of our elected officials, so we can roll up our sleeves and work together for the betterment of all Texans.”

He added that he looks forward to “continuing our important work together upon my re-election to the United States Senate.”

In total, 30 prominent Republican legislative leaders from Texas have publicly backed Cornyn, evidencing strong support for the incumbent among party leadership. He has received the support of more than 500 current and former Texas elected officials. Outside Texas, Cornyn has also received the backing of Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., the National Republican Senatorial Committee and the National Border Patrol Council.

In a statement shared with Fox News Digital, Weber said Cornyn “has been a tireless fighter for Texas energy, standing up for our oil and gas industry and working to unleash American energy dominance.”

Weber said he is “proud” to support Cornyn “because he will continue fighting to protect our energy producers and keep Texas leading the way.”

Shaheen emphasized the importance of the GOP not losing the Senate seat in November, writing, “As someone with a Democrat challenger this November, I understand how vital it is that John Cornyn be our U.S. Senate nominee, otherwise election losses for Republicans could be disastrous.”

He emphasized that Cornyn “has never lost an election,” and said that “with him at the top of the ballot, he will defeat James Talarico and lift up Republicans in down-ballot races.” 

TRUMP WARNS HE WON’T ENDORSE LAWMAKERS WHO OPPOSE SAVE AMERICA ACT

Meanwhile, Paxton, who has served as Texas attorney general since 2015, also has strong grassroots support. Last week, Paxton received a slate of 13 new state-level endorsements, including several prominent legislators. This brought his total number of endorsements from Texas Republican leaders to 250, a list that includes congressmen Lance Gooden and Troy Nehls. He has been endorsed by Turning Point USA and the NRA Political Victory Fund.

Fox News Digital reached out to Paxton’s campaign for comment.

After receiving the new endorsements last week, Paxton told Fox News Digital that “the momentum behind our campaign continues to grow stronger every single day.”

He said that “Texans are ready for a change and are ready to be represented by an America First warrior who is going to work tirelessly to help Texas and support President Trump,” adding, “That’s exactly what I’ve done as Attorney General, and it’s what I’ll continue to do as our next United States Senator.”

Noticeably absent from the list of supporters for either candidate is Trump, who, despite saying he likes both, has not officially endorsed. He has hinted that he would endorse “soon.”

He recently suggested that the SAVE America Act, a voting integrity bill being debated in the Senate, will play a role in his endorsement decision.

“A lot has to do with the SAVE America Act,” Trump said, according to NBC News. “A lot is going to determine — Republicans have to get that passed, because that will secure voting in this country.” 

PRITZKER FLEXES POLITICAL MUSCLE IN ILLINOIS SENATE PRIMARY AS 2028 BUZZ BUILDS

Cornyn, who co-sponsored an earlier version of the SAVE America Act, recently authored an opinion piece in The New York Post titled “Why the SAVE Act matters more than the filibuster.” In the piece, he advocated for passing the measure through “whatever changes to Senate rules may prove necessary.” This marks a break from his previous support for the filibuster, which many lawmakers consider a necessary guardrail against majoritarian rule.

Cornyn argued that “the Senate rules will change eventually, whether Republicans like it or not,” and that “this leaves conservatives with two options. We can either unilaterally disarm, or we can stand and fight.”

“We can let the Democrats keep obstructing today and then smash the rules the first chance they get, or we can act now and use the mandate the American people gave this president and this Congress to secure our elections, protect our homeland and bring back common sense,” wrote Cornyn, adding, “The answer is clear: We need to stand, fight and win.”

“Democrats started this fight. Now Republicans should finish it,” said Cornyn. 

Organizers for the America 250 celebration touted a slew of plans to commemorate the country’s historic anniversary on July 4, detailing the programs in the works and hinting that more information would become publicly available in the coming weeks.

Rosie Rios, former U.S. Treasurer and chairwoman of America 250, said the festivities themselves would begin on July 3 and extend into July 4.

“We are doing the first-ever ball drop in the history of Times Square outside of New Year’s Eve. This will happen on July 3,” Rios said.

But Rios also described how America 250’s planning hoped to go farther than a single event, framing their efforts as a cultural moment that would reframe the traditions around Independence Day.

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Among other smaller items, Rios announced organizers would compile “America’s soundtrack,” a combination of the country’s most iconic music put together by Emilio Estefan, a 19-time Grammy Awards winner. It would include a time capsule set to be opened in another 250 years. And it would attempt to foster a sense of generosity around July 4 that would extend to future years.

“Over the past two years, we’ve already launched incredibly national, values-based programs that will extend long after the fireworks fade on July 4,” Rios said.

For the July 4 events themselves, Rios said organizers hoped to pull off a kind of decentralized celebration.

Organizers stressed the cultural and organic nature of their plans, outlining designs they hoped would be remembered for generations — but also a hope that those plans would meld with existing Independence Day celebrations across the country.

America 250 is partnering with local events across the country to create American “block parties,” which will act as nodes for the celebration.

“On July 4 is the launch of America’s Block Party. Think about this, I wouldn’t call them viewing parties because I don’t think that does it justice. These are interactive experiences all across the country,” Rios said.

So far, the organization has announced two key partnerships: Milwaukee Summerfest, a music festival in Wisconsin, and the Fort Campbell Festival, an annual carnival-like event in Kentucky.

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

The organizers said other cities had approached them about potentially being a part of the designs but did not detail what other locations or how many might participate.

“I can’t tell you what it’s going to look like, but I know what it is going to feel like. It’s going to be organic,” Rios said.

Rios explained that while America 250 is cooperating with plans for the event in Washington, D.C., the Trump Administration is spearheading efforts there for the parade and other festivities at the White House.

More broadly, Rios said they hope to introduce a tradition of generosity and charity to the July 4 holiday.

“We wanna make July Fourth the largest day of charitable contributions ever recorded in our country,” Rios said. “The point of this initiative that we’re calling Giving Forth is to make July 4th the new day for giving back.“

“We believe that this is possible.”

And following July 4 itself, she described hopes that July 5 would also take on special meaning.

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“After the fireworks, this is where the rest of the work also begins. We’re calling Sunday, July 5, our Day of Reflection. The Day of Reflection can mean many different things to many different people,” Rios said.

“For some people on that Sunday, July 5, it could be a day of prayer. For some others, for example, there are many states that are actually trying to plan community potlucks. I love that idea.”

President Donald Trump challenged the “strange” Iranian negotiators to “get serious” about a deal to end the fighting Thursday.

“The Iranian negotiators are very different and ‘strange,’” Trump wrote in a Thursday morning Truth Social post. “They are ‘begging’ us to make a deal, which they should be doing since they have been militarily obliterated, with zero chance of a comeback, and yet they publicly state that they are only ‘looking at our proposal.’

“WRONG!!! They better get serious soon, before it is too late, because once that happens, there is NO TURNING BACK, and it won’t be pretty!”

The comments sharpened a threat delivered a day earlier by White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt, who said Trump was prepared to “unleash hell” if Iran refused to accept a deal. Leavitt said Iran had “already been defeated” and warned the regime not to “miscalculate again,” arguing that continued resistance would bring even heavier U.S. retaliation.

TRUMP VOWS TO HIT IRAN ‘VERY HARD’ AFTER OBLITERATING NEARLY ’90 PERCENT’ OF REGIME MISSILES

“President Trump does not bluff, and he is prepared to unleash hell,” Leavitt said at the beginning of Wednesday’s White House press briefing. “Iran should not miscalculate again. Their last miscalculation cost them their senior leadership, their navy, their air force and their air defense system.

“Any violence beyond this point will be because the Iranian regime refused to understand they have already been defeated and refused to come to a deal.”

Trump also lashed out at NATO, accusing alliance members of doing “absolutely nothing” to help confront Iran as the conflict entered its fourth week.

“NATO nations have done absolutely nothing to help with the lunatic nation, now militarily decimated, of Iran,” Trump wrote in a separate Truth Social post. “The U.S.A. needs nothing from NATO, but ‘never forget’ this very important point in time!”

DEFIANT IRAN VOWS TO FIGHT ‘UNTIL COMPLETE VICTORY,’ DESPITE HEAVY MILITARY LOSSES

The back-to-back statements come as Trump’s five-day deadline to reopen the Strait of Hormuz is coming by this weekend – as the administration tries to force Tehran to the table while projecting that U.S. military operations have badly weakened Iran’s leadership, air defenses and naval capacity.

At a Union Station fundraiser for the National Congressional Committee on Wednesday night, Trump joked that he had to stop referring to the “military action” on Iran as a “war,” because the latter requires congressional approval.

“I won’t use the word ‘war’ because they say if you use the word ‘war,’ that’s maybe not a good thing to do,” Trump told the crowd of GOP lawmakers at the fundraiser dinner that raised a record-breaking $36.8 million for the NRCC, which seeks to fund the midterms to help keep the narrow House GOP majority (217-214).

WATCH LEAVITT’S WARNING TO IRAN:

“They don’t like the word ‘war’ because you’re supposed to get approval. So, I’ll use the word ‘military operation’, which is really what it is. It’s a military decimation.”

An embattled lawmaker facing five decades in prison will face the congressional spotlight Thursday during an ethics trial that could result in her expulsion from the House of Representatives.

Rep. Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick, D-Fla., is expected to testify before the House Ethics Committee during a rare public hearing Thursday afternoon. The case is separate from a sprawling federal indictment accusing Cherfilus-McCormick of stealing more than $5 million in disaster relief funds to finance her inaugural congressional run in 2021 and purchase luxury items, including a large diamond ring. The Florida Democrat is also alleged to have participated in a straw donor scheme and conspired to file a false federal tax return.

Cherfilus-McCormick has repeatedly sought to delay the hearing, citing the ongoing federal criminal case and losing her legal representation earlier in March. It is not clear whether the Florida Democrat will be represented by an attorney at the hearing. 

Cherfilus McCormick said in a statement sent to Fox News that she is “deeply disappointed” the bipartisan committee chose to proceed with a trial, alleging a violation of her due process rights.

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“I urge the Committee to follow its own precedents and uphold fairness and not allow this process to be driven by politics or numbers,” Cherfilus-McCormick said. “I welcome the opportunity to set the record straight and challenge these inaccuracies, when I am legally able to do so.”

Cherfilus-McCormick has denied wrongdoing after being indicted in November 2025 and pleaded not guilty in federal court. She has repeatedly defied calls from Republicans to resign — a move that would have avoided the ethics hearing and possible expulsion.

According to the indictment, Trinity Health Care Services, a company owned by Cherfilus-McCormick and her brother, Edwin Cherfilus, received $5 million in Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) overpayment from the state of Florida for a COVID-19 vaccine contract.

Rather than return the money, federal prosecutors allege the duo laundered the money through multiple bank accounts to hide its origin.

The House Ethics Committee unveiled a 27-count “statement of alleged violations” against Cherfilus-McCormick that is expected to be presented during the hearing Thursday. 

The hearing itself is extremely rare. It will be the first time the eight-member panel will hold a public hearing against a lawmaker since 2010.

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Rep. Greg Steube, R-Fla., has said he would move forward with a resolution seeking to expel Cherfilus-McCormick regardless of the trial’s outcome. Under House rules, two-thirds of lawmakers — meaning a swath of Democrats — would need to vote in the affirmative to expel the Florida Democrat. 

“You’re in a situation where you have a sitting member of Congress who’s allegedly stolen over $5 million in taxpayer funds,” Steube told reporters Tuesday. “She should immediately resign instead of going through this process. But she’s going to force us to do this.”

Steube also said a possible recommendation of expulsion from the committee could force Democrats to support his resolution.

“If the committee in a bipartisan manner, it recommends an expulsion that puts the Democratic caucus in a very tough position because you would be undermining your own members on the Ethics Committee.”

But House Democratic leadership, who have largely defended Cherfilus-McCormick, has yet to say whether they would support an expulsion resolution following the hearing’s conclusion. 

Cherfilus-McCormick was among a group of Democrats who stood behind House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., when he gave remarks on the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) shutdown outside the U.S. Capitol last week. He responded, “next question,” when asked by Fox News about the expulsion threat on Tuesday.

“I’m not going to prejudge the outcome that they arrive to,” House Democratic Conference Chairman Pete Aguilar, D-Calif., said Wednesday. “I respect the members of the ethics committee and the work that they have to do.”

Democrats’ refusal so far to condemn Cherfilus-McCormick has prompted sharp criticism from Republicans. 

“So-called ‘Leader’ Hakeem Jeffries talks a big game on corruption, but when it’s one of his own, he suddenly loses his voice,” NRCC spokesman Mike Marinella said in a statement. 

Some Republicans have also complained about a double standard with the chamber’s treatment of Cherfilus-McCormick by making comparisons to former Rep. George Santos, R-N.Y. The scandal-plagued lawmaker was expelled from Congress in 2023 before an ethics hearing or criminal conviction.

“It seems like what happened to George was just like a runaway freight train up here,” Rep. Byron Donalds, R-Fla., said Wednesday. “They didn’t even give George an opportunity to get fully through ethics. And so this one’s been a little bit more deliberate.”

“I think going forward, how this one’s been conducted is how it should go,” Donalds added, referring to the anticipated Cherfilus-McCormick hearing. “It should be deliberate before these kind of judgments just end up on the House floor.”

FIRST ON FOX: Transportation Security Administration (TSA) leadership said airports and the agency will suffer from “longstanding” negative impacts as a result of the current partial government shutdown, even after a spending bill is passed. 

TSA Deputy Administrator Adam Stahl sat down with Fox News Digital to detail how the agency will recover from what has been weeks of forgone pay for TSA officers, leading to what TSA says are the highest security wait times in the history of the agency. 

“I can tell you right now that the reverberations that will be felt from this will be longstanding. They will continue for days after we get a re-appropriation and funding, particularly for the department for TSA,” Stahl told Fox News Digital on Wednesday. “We are already taking proactive measures to make sure that we’re going to get our people paid as quickly as possible.”

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) remains unfunded after more than 40 days, leaving TSA screeners and agents missing a full month’s pay. Call-outs have increased to dramatic levels, and DHS says more than 480 people have outright quit the TSA workforce.

SCHUMER GAMBIT FAILS AS DHS SHUTDOWN HITS 36 DAYS AND AIRPORT LINES GROW

Even after Congress funds the agency, Stahl says it is “going to take time to pay” agents who have been working without pay. 

“There are systems in place, financial systems that are outside of a department that we rely on to again, dispense and disperse funds, salaries to our folks, but it will take some time,” Stahl explained. “But we’re working as quickly as possible with our partners to make sure once we get that money, we’ll hit the ground running and get that into our people’s pockets as quickly as possible.”

TSA’s deputy administrator also expressed concerns about the workforce’s return to airports following a potential funding package, noting the World Cup taking place in the U.S. this year will create an additional strain on air travel security.

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“Last time we saw an increase in 25% of attrition immediately following the first shutdown previously in this fiscal year,” Stahl told Fox News Digital. “We’re concerned, and we have the World Cup coming up as well with an expected six to ten million travelers on top of a busy summer travel season, so we could really be in a difficult position for the long term.”

“It’s going to take time to readjust to get our folks paid,” Stahl added. 

On Wednesday evening, a procedural vote to fund DHS failed, tacking on the previous five times the spending bill had been voted down.

SEE IT: TRAVELERS SOUND OFF AS ICE AGENTS DEPLOYED TO AIRPORTS AS SHUTDOWN DRAGS PAST 40 DAYS

The bill can only pass with a 60-vote threshold required to break the filibuster. Several Senate Democrats have crossed party lines to support funding the department, but votes have still remained shy of 60. 

Senate Democrats have insisted that revisions to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) operations, like the requirement of judicial warrants and the removal of face coverings for agents, be included in the spending bill. 

Senate Republicans have said that if Senate Democrats want reforms, then they must also be willing to fund ICE. Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., said Democrats are “going in circles” while TSA, FEMA and other DHS employees continue to work without pay.

TSA CALLOUTS HIT HOUSTON, ATLANTA, NEW ORLEANS HARDEST, 450 OFFICERS HAVE QUIT NATIONWIDE

“They know better,” Thune told reporters after Wednesday evening’s vote. “They’re asking for things that have already been turned down. So it just seems like they’re going in circles.”

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., took to the Senate Floor on Wednesday to punch back at the GOP’s stance. 

“Over the weekend, Democrats had constructive conversations in person with our Republican colleagues,” Schumer said. “They, the Republican colleagues, conceded that some of the reforms, verbally, that we have been looking for, they said these make sense.”

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As the congressional gridlock continues, Stahl said the agency has suspended escort services for members of Congress given their limited resources without funding. 

“We proactively took the step of suspending all members of Congress escort services as just purely when this started to happen, because we fundamentally feel like we should not be expending resources to provide a security screening, expedite security screening to our members of Congress at this time,” Stahl told Fox News Digital. “Our focus is on serving the masses of American people and that’s what we’re going to continue to focus on every single day.”

Last weekend, President Donald Trump deployed U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents to airports to provide support to the weakened workforce. Agents have been seen at a number of airports across the country since the deployment.  

When asked how long ICE agents would remain at airports following the passage of a spending bill, Stahl said the agents have alleviated tensions and challenges, though their tenure at airports depends on how quickly normal TSA operations can resume.

“Hopefully, we won’t need them much longer,” Stahl explained. “But again, they’ve been incredibly helpful, and we really appreciate the support from the president and from ICE.”

“It really necessitates and underscores the importance for us to get back in normal order, for the Senate Democrats to fund the Department, [to] fund TSA, so we can get back to normal order,” Stahl added. 

The Trump administration’s Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) announced Tuesday that it launched an investigation into a Washington state housing program the agency accused of potentially providing subsidized mortgage assistance to people based on race. 

The Washington State Housing Finance Commission was alerted this week that HUD’s Office for Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity would be investigating its Covenant Homeownership Program. The program was established by the state legislature in 2023, which commissioned a report to investigate alleged housing discrimination in the state and how to remedy it. In particular, the program wanted to address racially restrictive housing covenants embedded in the state’s history, which became unenforceable following a Supreme Court ruling in 1948 and were voided altogether in 1969.

The housing program was launched a year later for first-time homebuyers considered “people of color and other historically marginalized communities.” It offered zero-interest loans of up to $150,000 for down payments and closing costs, and the loans did not need to be repaid until the homeowner sold or refinanced the property, according to Seattle King County REALTORS. 

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“Generations of systemic, racist, and discriminatory policies have formed barriers to homeownership for Black, Indigenous, and people of color and other historically marginalized communities in Washington state,” Washington Democrat Jamila Taylor said of the bill to establish the program that she helped introduce. “Historically, redlining, racially restrictive covenants, mortgage subsidies and incentives, and displacement have been explicitly outlined practices. To date, racially restricted covenants have been identified in more than 40,000 property deeds across the state.”

But, according to HUD, applicants in the program do not need to be from low-income areas, as the income ceiling for the program is 120% of the median income for the area. The agency said in order to qualify, applicants have to have a parent or grandparent of Hispanic, Native American, Pacific Islander, or Indian descent. Meanwhile, HUD highlighted persons of European, Japanese, Arab, or Jewish ancestry did not appear to qualify for the program.

HUD also points out, citing directions from the Washington housing commission on how to apply for the Covenant Homeownership Program, that the only application process for the program is to call a hotline where prospective applicants speak to “a Commission-trained lender” who then determines if people meet the program’s eligibility requirements.

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“DEI is dead at HUD. Those who ignore the law and violate the rights of Americans for political purposes will not continue,” said HUD Secretary Scott Turner. “I will not stand for illegal racial and ethnic preferences that deny Americans their right to equal protection under the law … Under President Trump’s leadership, HUD will vigorously enforce the Fair Housing Act and ensure all Americans have an equal shot at the American Dream.”

A final determination on whether the program violates the Fair Housing Act is still pending, but HUD said in its letter to the Washington State Housing Finance Commission that the public information currently available “strongly suggests” that unlawful discrimination is taking place.

A spokesperson for the Washington State Housing Finance Commission told Fox News Digital that it planned to cooperate with HUD’s requests for information.

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“The Washington State Legislature created the Covenant Homeownership Program with bipartisan support after an extensive stakeholder and community engagement process and it is based on rigorous, independent research by a national firm,” the spokesperson added. “Along with the Covenant Homeownership Program, the Washington State Housing Finance Commission has an array of other programs offering home loans and downpayment assistance for all low- and moderate-income homebuyers, so that everyone can be supported on their homeownership journey.”

Washington is just the latest state to be pressured by HUD over alleged discriminatory housing polices. Earlier this year, the agency opened an investigation into the city of Minneapolis, alleging its housing policies illegally prioritize resources based on race and national origin. Prior to that, HUD also targeted Boston for alleged DEI in its housing programs. 

House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., once said that failing to fully fund the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) was “legislative malpractice” — a position he is now rejecting in the current funding standoff with Republicans.

“We are here today to do a single job, and that should be to fund fully the Department of Homeland Security,” Jeffries said during a 2015 speech on the House floor. 

Jeffries, near the start of his congressional career, urged the Republican-controlled House to pass a “clean” DHS bill that year when the department was on the brink of a partial government shutdown.

“Anything else is an abdication of our responsibility. Anything else is an act of legislative malpractice,” Jeffries said at the time, referring to providing full-year appropriations to the department.

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A decade later, Jeffries has reversed that position, arguing that fully funding DHS would be a failure of Congress. He and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., have withheld their votes on a full-year DHS funding bill as they demand various reforms to rein in immigration enforcement.

“Taxpayer dollars should be used to make life more affordable for the American people, not brutalize or kill them,” Jeffries said in February. “The American people know ICE [Immigration and Customs Enforcement] is out of control.”

The 39-day funding standoff has snarled air travel across the country as passengers face hours-long wait times at airport security checkpoints due to a shortage of TSA workers. Tens of thousands of DHS employees — including TSA agents — are reporting to work without pay during the shutdown, leading some to call off work or quit altogether.

Some TSA personnel are sleeping in cars and selling blood plasma to make ends meet, Acting Deputy TSA Administrator Adam Stahl said Tuesday.

Jeffries is expected to vote against a full-year DHS measure with a majority of House Democrats this week. The minority leader has repeatedly voted against a “clean” DHS spending measure since the funding lapse began on Feb. 14.

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House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., has narrowly steered the legislation through his chamber with largely Republican votes, but the spending measure has stalled in the Senate with nearly all Democrats moving to filibuster it. 

Jeffries, by contrast, is seeking to force a vote on a DHS appropriations bill that would fund the department minus its immigration enforcement functions. 

“We can fund TSA, fund the Coast Guard, fund FEMA, fund our cybersecurity professionals or continue to allow ICE to brutalize and, in some cases, kill American citizens or to violently target law-abiding immigrant families,” Jeffries said during a news conference last week.

It’s a position that he warned could put Americans in danger during the 2015 speech.

“We’re playing political games at a time when the safety and the security of the American people is being threatened,” Jeffries said regarding the prospect of not passing a full-year DHS bill.

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