President Donald Trump on Tuesday announced Iran wants to “make a deal” with the U.S., noting the country’s leadership gave the U.S. a “significant prize” related to the Strait of Hormuz and the flow of oil.

While speaking to reporters in the White House Oval Office, Trump said Iranian leadership sent the gift on Monday, and it arrived on Tuesday.

“They’re going to make a deal. They did something [Monday] that was amazing, actually. They gave us a present,” Trump said. “The present arrived today, and it was a very big present worth a tremendous amount of money.”

IRAN NUCLEAR TALKS ‘DIDN’T PASS THE SMELL TEST’ BEFORE TRUMP LAUNCHED STRIKES, SAYS VANCE

Trump said he could not disclose what the gift was, but said it was “oil and gas-related” and was connected to the Strait of Hormuz.

The Iranian regime was previously charging some tankers millions of dollars to pass through the global shipping choke point, according to a report from Iran International.

WHY TRUMP INVOKED REGIME CHANGE IN ATTACKING IRAN, AND THE MEDIA MUST LEARN FROM PAST MISTAKES

Trump added the unspecified present was “very significant.”

“That meant one thing to me — we’re dealing with the right people,” Trump said. “… It was a very nice thing they did. … They said they were going to do it, and it happened. And they’re the only ones that could have done it.”

When asked about control of the Strait of Hormuz, he said the U.S. will “have control of anything we want.”

“They can’t have certain things,” Trump said. “It starts with no nuclear weapons, and they’ve agreed to that. … They’re not going to have enrichment — any of those things. … We are in about the best bargaining position. We’re way ahead of schedule.”

Negotiations are being headed by Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Vice President JD Vance, according to the president.

This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.

England’s King Charles III will visit Washington next month, his first state visit since taking over the throne in the United Kingdom.

The king will address congress in the last week of April, Fox News has learned. No date and time has been confirmed. 

The visit will be the first time a British monarch will address Congress since 1991, when Charles’ mother, Queen Elizabeth II, became the first British royal to speak before American lawmakers. 

KING CHARLES TO ADDRESS ‘INCREASING PRESSURES OF CONFLICT’ IN SPEECH AS TRUMP CRITICIZES BRITISH PM ON IRAN

President Donald Trump visited London in September in which he attended a state dinner hosted by Charles at Windsor Castle. 

House Speaker Mike Johnson addressed the UK parliament in honor of America’s 250th anniversary where he addressed the special relationship between the U.S. and the U.K.

Charles’ visit will come as the Trump administration pressures British Prime Minister Keir Starmer to provide assistance in the U.S.-Israel war with Iran. 

UK DEPLOYING WARSHIP, HELICOPTERS TO CYPRUS AFTER DRONE STRIKE

Starmer has distanced himself from the conflict, prompting Trump to publicly call him out and mock him by saying the British leader is “no Winston Churchill.”

Meanwhile, Starmer has said he remains focused on securing British interests. 

“I’m the British prime minister and my job is to be absolutely focused on what’s in the British national interest,” he recently said. 

“That has served me well, in recent weeks,” he added. “And that is the principle that I’ll continue to adhere to as we go forward, taking difficult decisions, notwithstanding the pressure that comes from me from a number of different places.”

FIRST ON FOX: As new Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin prepared to be sworn in, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers continued operations, arresting child predators, rapists and domestic abusers across the country.

According to DHS, in just one day of operations, ICE arrested illegal aliens convicted of serious crimes in Utah, Ohio, New York and Texas. The agency said these arrests align with statistics showing that 70% of illegal aliens arrested by ICE have criminal convictions or pending criminal charges in the U.S.

This comes as Mullin, newly confirmed by the Senate, is sworn in as President Donald Trump’s new DHS secretary. Mullin, who until now served as a Republican senator from Oklahoma, replaces former South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem.

Commenting on the arrests, DHS Acting Assistant Secretary Lauren Bis told Fox News Digital that “under President Trump and Secretary Mullin, criminal illegal aliens are not welcome in the United States.”

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

“If you come to our country illegally and break our laws, we will arrest you, deport you, and you will never return,” said Bis.

“Yesterday, the heroic men and women of ICE arrested multiple child predators, rapists, domestic abusers and other heinous criminals,” she added.

Among those arrested by ICE on Monday was Salvadoran illegal Oscar Edgardo Rogel-Gomez, who was convicted of sexual abuse of a child in St. George, Utah.

In Ohio, ICE officers arrested Alcides Ordonez-Cruz, an illegal alien from Honduras, who was convicted of third-degree gross sexual imposition and endangering children in Van Wert County, according to DHS.

IL DEMS DECLINE TO DEFEND ‘NO’ VOTES ON LAKEN RILEY ACT AFTER STUDENT’S KILLING TIED TO REPEAT OFFENDER

Officers also arrested two Salvadoran illegals in Riverhead, New York, on Monday: Jose Gonzalez-Diaz and Jose Vazquez-Cardoza. DHS said that both Gonzalez-Diaz and Vazquez-Cardoza have been convicted of rape.

In Harris County, Texas, home to the state’s largest city, Houston, ICE officers arrested Jose Simaj-Barrera, an illegal from Guatemala. According to DHS, Simaj-Barrera was convicted of assault of a family member.

Mullin was confirmed by the Senate on Monday, following a short but at times explosive confirmation process. He is the ninth secretary to lead DHS and follows a turbulent tenure under Noem, who oversaw the agency during a period of both record deportations and intense controversy.

HOMAN FIRES BACK AT BOOKER AFTER SENATOR VOICES ‘OUTRAGE’ OVER ICE AIRPORT DEPLOYMENTS

This comes as DHS continues to operate under lapsed funding. Democrats in Congress have made renewed funding for the agency contingent on sweeping reforms they say are necessary.

Despite these challenges, Mullin appeared confident during his swearing-in ceremony, telling the president, “I won’t let you down.”

Following his swearing in, Mullin told Fox News Digital in an emailed statement that “as the Secretary of Homeland Security, I look forward to continuing President Trump’s mission to safeguard the American people and defend the homeland.” 

“I want to thank President Trump and my Senate colleagues for trusting me with this crucial role,” said Mullin. 

“My first priority,” he said, “is to get the Department funded so the incredible patriots that support our 22 critical agencies receive a paycheck and can continue their critical work of keeping our nation safe.”

“DHS is bigger than any political party,” he added. “It’s time to end the partisan bickering that threatens our national security and put the American people first.” 

EXCLUSIVE: Despite the ongoing conflict in Iran, President Donald Trump’s “energy czar,” Doug Burgum, is confident the “temporary blip up” in gas and energy prices facing Americans will come back down very soon as the president’s “drill baby drill” agenda takes effect.

In an interview with Fox News Digital, Burgum, who leads the Interior Department and chair of Trump’s National Energy Dominance Council, said: “It’s all about supply.”

“You want prices to go down? Supply has got to go up,” he said. To this end, he said his agency approved a record 6,000-plus drilling permits on U.S. soil, reversing the Biden administration’s trend of increased regulation that he said had stunted the country’s energy independence.

“We have a temporary blip up now because of the conflict in the Middle East, but as you heard the news earlier this morning, energy prices dropped a lot today, and stock markets [are] up and energy prices down; those are all positive things for working Americans to have those two things happening simultaneously,” he said.

TRUMP’S IRAN STRATEGY SHOWCASES ‘DOCTRINE OF UNPREDICTABILITY’ AMID STRIKE THREATS AND SUDDEN PAUSE

Despite criticism of the president’s actions on the global stage, Burgum said these moves, such as the military intervention in Venezuela and negotiations with leadership, are going to help reduce prices for Americans.

“What happened in Venezuela actually helps Americans a lot because now we’ve got Venezuelan oil flowing towards Gulf of America refineries in Louisiana and Texas,” he said.

Another major policy shift Burgum said he expects to make a big difference for Americans is the administration’s actions to “unleash Alaska.”

“The Biden administration had taken over 70 legal actions, executive orders from President Biden to regulatory actions, which were essentially sanctioning Alaska more than we sanctioned Iran during the last administration,” he explained.

Pressed on when Americans can expect to start seeing prices tick back down, Burgum said, “I think we started to see how they were happening and they happened quite effectively over the first year of the Trump administration.” He also pointed out that prices “vary a lot” depending on which state you live in and the extent of regulation and taxes placed on oil and gas production.

“Consumers need to understand that it is not just federal action, but it’s state and local action that’s often driving up the cost of your energy,” he said. “It’s not quite as simple as red state versus blue state. But if you take a look at gas prices before the war, red states were among all the lowest states in the country, blue states were among the highest in terms of that. And it was a reflection of the policies of those state legislatures and those governors that were driving energy prices up.”

US AND IRAN SEND CONFLICTING SIGNALS ON TALKS TO END THE WAR

As an example, he said that just a month ago, gas prices in Iowa were under $2 per gallon, while the price in California was $5.

“California imports 63 percent of its oil from foreign countries,” he explained, adding, “At the time of this breakout with Iran … California, by their own data, provided by the state of California, the number one country they were importing oil from in California was from Iraq.”

“They always brag about, ‘Oh, if we were a country, we’d have one of the world’s largest economies.’ And if they were a county, they would have designed for themselves one of the most energy-dependent and energy-expensive economies,” he said of California.

“They’re not saving the planet by using foreign oil in California when you could have been getting clean, reliable, affordable energy, say from the Permian Basin in Texas or New Mexico,” he continued. “When you think you’re saving the planet by blocking U.S. infrastructure, you artificially raise the prices.”

To push back on this, Burgum said that, authorized by Trump’s energy emergency declaration, Energy Secretary Chris Wright recently ordered California to reopen its Santa Ynez pipeline system to resume pumping domestic offshore oil. The order is being challenged by California in court; however, oil has already begun being pumped.

IRAN CHOKES STRAIT OF HORMUZ WITH REPORTED $2M TANKER TOLL, REGIME THREATENS GLOBAL OIL SUPPLY

He framed the administration’s “energy abundance” agenda as a move back to reality after four years of “climate fantasy” under former President Joe Biden. This move, he said, stands in stark opposition to policies still being pursued in blue states like California.

“We’re focused on energy reality, which is all Americans deserve and need to have reliable, affordable, and secure energy,” he said. “We’re fighting for every citizen in the country, regardless of what state regime they’re under. Because like I said, every American, no matter where you live, deserves to have affordable, reliable, and nationally secure energy.”  

Fox News Digital reached out to spokespeople for Biden and California Gov. Gavin Newsom.

As the Senate weighs the new paths forward to end the 38-day government shutdown Tuesday, the Department of Homeland Security is blasting Democrats for “the safety, dependability, and ease of our air travel at risk.”

The first spring travel weekend airport chaos has subsided in the Transportation Security Administration lines at some of the major hubs of Atlanta, House and New Orleans, but acting Assistant Secretary Lauren Bis told Fox News that more than 3,200 TSA workers called out from their Monday shifts and more than 450 TSA officers have outright quit their jobs.

“Day 38 of the Democrats’ shutdown: American travelers are facing hours-long waits at airports across the country and more than 450 TSA officers quit and thousands have called out sick from work because they are not able to afford gas, childcare, food, or rent,” Bis said in a statement.

Notably, President Donald Trump’s move to deploy Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents at the hardest-hit airports has been given credit to alleviating some of the TSA security delays that reached a reported high of nine hours in Atlanta.

DELTA SUSPENDS VIP SERVICES FOR CONGRESS MEMBERS AMID DHS SHUTDOWN, TSA DELAYS

Fox News reporting on site noted security lines were minimal Tuesday at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International, widely known as the busiest airport in the world. Also, video on social media hailed ICE agents in Houston passing out water to travelers waiting in still-long lines there.

“While the Democrats continue to put the safety, dependability, and ease of our air travel at risk, President Trump is taking action to deploy hundreds of ICE officers, that are currently funded by Congress, to airports being adversely impacted,” Bis’ statement added.

UNPAID DHS WORKERS ‘DISTRACTED’ AS TERROR THREATS RISE, FUELING AIRPORT SECURITY CONCERNS

“This will help bolster TSA efforts to keep our skies safe and minimize air travel disruptions.”

Some critics note Tuesday’s lighter security lines were due to lighter weekday travel versus the first Sunday of spring, famously a busy travel time due to spring break.

Sunday’s TSA officer callout rate peaked Sunday at its highest rate of the shutdown (11.6% nationwide), according to DHS data shared with Fox News.

‘THE VIEW’ HOST SARA HAINES ADMITS ICE AGENTS SHOULD FILL AIRPORT GAPS AS TSA STRUGGLES

But callout rates are not equal nationwide, with Houston, Atlanta and New Orleans topping the DHS charts among the top 10 major airport callout rates.

The DHS funding remains under the pressure of a Democrat-forced government shutdown, the second in this fiscal year. Democrats have made Trump the most shutdown president of all time.

Trump has sent ICE officers to distressed airports, while negotiating a potential deal to fund DHS — even if it leaves out ICE funding as it is currently being weighed on Capitol Hill.

Sen. Markwayne Mullin, R-Okla., was sworn in as the U.S.’ ninth secretary of Homeland Security on Tuesday, with President Donald Trump in attendance.

Mullin, 48, is a former mixed martial arts champion and plumbing business owner who will replace outgoing Secretary Kristi Noem, a South Dakota Republican recently picked to lead the Shield of the Americas security initiative announced by Trump earlier this month.

Mullin will take the reins of DHS at a time of increased turmoil and congressional scrutiny at the agency, where Democrats continue to withhold funding for TSA and other subagencies in hopes of forcing changes to immigration enforcement operations at ICE and CBP.

40+ HOUSE REPUBLICANS RALLY BEHIND MARKWAYNE MULLIN FOR DHS, CALL IT A ‘CRITICAL MOMENT’ FOR BORDER SECURITY

He narrowly made it through the nomination process after clashing with Senate Homeland Security Committee Chairman Rand Paul, R-Ky., as the two continue to feud over Mullin’s response to an incident in which Paul’s neighbor blindsided him in his yard, fracturing his ribs.

Mullin needed a Democratic ally to get his nomination out of committee after Paul’s no vote. Sen. John Fetterman, D-Pa., who formerly exchanged endorsements with socialist Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., as Pennsylvania’s lieutenant governor, has become somewhat of a political maverick and provided the necessary vote to advance the nomination to the full Senate.

There, he garnered support from another Democrat, New Mexico Sen. Martin Heinrich, who said in a statement that he doesn’t believe Mullin will be “bullied” or allow himself to “take orders from Stephen Miller” at the White House.

“This is going to surprise some people, but I consider Markwayne Mullin a friend. We have a very honest and constructive working relationship. We have authored legislation together, such as the Tribal Buffalo Management Act, and we crafted the Legislative Branch Appropriations bill together this year,” Heinrich said.

“We often disagree and when we do, we work to find whatever common ground we share.”

In turn, Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt was tasked with naming Mullin’s replacement, which was subject to a unique Sooner State law that requires the nominee to pledge not to run for a full term in the Senate come November.

WHITE HOUSE SAYS ‘NO ONE’ CHANGING TRUMP ENFORCEMENT AGENDA IN RESPONSE TO ANGEL MOM APPEAL TO MULLIN

Stitt named natgas magnate Alan Armstrong, chief executive of the Williams Companies, whose nomination was criticized by some on the right given the mogul’s past donations to then-Rep. Adam Kinzinger, R-Ill., a vocal Trump critic.

“He’s a strong business leader who understands the power of free markets and limited government. He spent his career fighting for Oklahoma’s energy industry and providing affordable, reliable energy to all of America,” Stitt said of Armstrong on Tuesday.

Mullin succeeds Noem, who herself succeeded controversial Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, whom Trump blamed for the open border crisis.

Other top names who have held the role include its inaugural secretary, former Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Ridge, nominated by President George W. Bush in the wake of 9/11. Ridge has since broken with the mainstream “MAGA” GOP in his support for Trump.

Former Arizona Gov. Janet Napolitano, former Air Force general counsel Jeh Johnson, Gen. John Kelly (Ret.), and former Deputy Trump White House chief of staff Kirstjen Nielsen also prominently served.

Former Defense Secretary Jim Mattis on Monday said the United States would effectively cede control of the Strait of Hormuz if it ended the war with Iran at this point. 

The waterway is vital to global shipping, particularly the energy market, and has been a focal point of Iran and U.S. forces as Tehran has blocked the strait since the United States and Israel launched coordinated strikes against Iranian targets last month. 

“Iran right now, if we declared victory, they would now say they own the strait,” Mattis said on Monday during CERAWeek in Houston. “You’d see a tax for every ship that goes through.”

“We’re in a tough spot, ladies and gentlemen. I can’t identify a lot of options,” he added.

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

The remarks came as President Donald Trump declared a five-day pause on military strikes against Iran’s energy infrastructure. 

In response to attacks, Iran has effectively closed the strait, a narrow passage where 20% of the world’s oil moves through. 

Fox News Digital has reached out to the White House. 

Despite the pause, it remains doubtful that either side will find a compromise, said Mattis. 

“Neither side has the ability right now to move the other side off of where they’re at,” Mattis said. “Never in history has air power alone changed a regime.”

BEFORE-AND-AFTER SATELLITE IMAGERY OFFERS A RARE LOOK AT DAMAGE INSIDE IRAN

The Iranian regime is charging some tankers $2 million to pass through the strait.

“Collecting $2 million as transit fees from some vessels crossing the strait reflects Iran’s strength,” Iranian lawmaker Alaeddin Boroujerdi told state broadcaster Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting (IRIB) on Sunday. 

On Saturday, Trump warned that the U.S. could target Iran’s power infrastructure if the strait is not reopened within 48 hours.

“If Iran doesn’t FULLY OPEN, WITHOUT THREAT, the Strait of Hormuz, within 48 hours from this exact point in time, the United States of America will hit and obliterate their various POWER PLANTS, STARTING WITH THE BIGGEST ONE FIRST!” Trump said in a post shared on Truth Social.

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian made his position clear on X, saying the waterway was open to everyone, except Iran’s adversaries. 

“The Strait of Hormuz is open to all except those who violate our soil,” he wrote. “We firmly confront delirious threats on the battlefield.”

Fox News Digital’s Emma Bussey contributed to this report. 

Senate Republicans have landed on a funding framework for Homeland Security that they hope will end the shutdown.

Now, they just need Senate Democrats to agree.

The framework, which was developed over the weekend and finalized early this week, would reopen and fund most of the agency, except for Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).

It follows the first face-to-face meetings between Republicans and Democrats during the shutdown, as well as a last-minute meeting at the White House on Monday after President Donald Trump demanded that the GOP combine DHS funding with his prized Safeguard American Voter Eligibility (SAVE) America Act.

CORNYN TARGETS LAWMAKERS’ AIRPORT FAST PASS AS TSA LINES GROW DURING DHS SHUTDOWN

Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., said the framework would fund most of DHS, except for roughly $5.5 billion designated for ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO). Senate Democrats previously tried to fund everything except for ICE, but were blocked by Republicans who desired to reopen the entirety of DHS. 

It also includes initial compromises from the original bill, such as millions for body-worn cameras, but not the stricter reforms Senate Democrats had demanded.

“If you’re not going to have funding, I don’t know how all of a sudden you can demand reforms,” Thune said.

“A lot of the reforms are contingent on funding for ICE. And now, since the ERO office is not going to be funded through ICE, Democrats have basically given up on reforms,” he continued. “I never thought that was serious.”

DHS SHUTDOWN TIED FOR SECOND-LONGEST EVER AS DEMS AGAIN BLOCK FUNDING AMID AIRPORT CHAOS, TERRORISM CONCERNS

Still, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., and Senate Democrats must agree to the framework before Republicans can move forward.

Schumer said on the Senate floor that Republicans would “hopefully now come back to the table and get serious about reaching a solution to pay” Transportation Security Administration (TSA) workers quickly, after Trump’s demands nearly derailed progress made over the past several days.

“We await a written proposal that we will review, because right now the situation in our airports is untenable,” Schumer said.

Key Senate Republicans who were at the White House on Monday or have been involved in negotiations huddled in Thune’s office to discuss the framework. They said Republicans had sent the legislative text to Democrats for review.

“We’re ready to go,” Sen. John Hoeven, R-N.D., said. “The Democrats need to join us now. We bent over backwards negotiating with them. We talked to the White House and folks on our side, and they need to stop moving the goalposts.”

It also appears the White House is on board with the framework. A White House official told Fox News Digital, “Conversations are ongoing, but this deal seems to be acceptable.”

MULLIN CONFIRMED AS DHS CHIEF AS LAWMAKERS NEAR SOLUTION ON SHUTDOWN STANDOFF

Another part of the framework would fund immigration enforcement — and include portions of the SAVE America Act — through budget reconciliation. That party-line process nearly divided Republicans last year when they passed Trump’s “big, beautiful bill.”

Not all Republicans support the plan as it stands, meaning Thune will need as many Senate Democrats as possible to reopen the agency.

Sen. Rick Scott, R-Fla., told CNBC’s “Squawk Box” that he was a “no” on the deal, arguing the framework “doesn’t make any sense to me.”

“And this idea that it will get funded through a reconciliation package is a pipe dream. We’re not going to get a reconciliation package done,” Scott said.

“Look at the last one — the only reason it got done is because of the tax cuts. There are no tax cuts in this, there’s no pressure,” he continued.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio is testifying Tuesday in the trial of former Miami congressman and roommate David Rivera, who is accused of trying to lobby members of Congress and the White House on behalf of former Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro. 

Rubio, testifying in a packed federal courtroom in Miami with heightened security, said he and Rivera became “very close” when both overlapped for six years as members of the Florida Legislature in the early 2000s. Rivera, a Republican, was arrested in December 2022 on charges of money laundering and representing a foreign government without registering. 

In July 2017, Rubio said he got a call from Rivera saying he needed to see him urgently to discuss Venezuela. The next morning, Rivera traveled to Washington and, at a meeting at his home, said he was working with Raul Gorrin, a media magnate in Venezuela who was Rivera’s main conduit to the Maduro government, on a plan to persuade Maduro to step aside. 

“I was skeptical,” said Rubio during his testimony, according to The Associated Press, adding that the Maduro government was full of “double dealers” who were constantly pitching plans to betray Maduro. 

VENEZUELA’S DELCY RODRIGUEZ REPLACES SANCTIONED LOYALIST DEFENSE MINISTER WITH MILITARY INTEL HEAD 

“But if there was a 1% chance it was real, and I had a role to play alerting the White House, I was open to doing that,” he added. 

Within days, borrowing talking points provided by Rivera, Rubio wrote and delivered a speech on the Senate floor signaling the U.S. would not retaliate against Venezuelan government insiders who worked to push Maduro from power, the AP reported. 

“He provided me with insight into some of the key phrases that regime insiders would’ve wanted to hear to know this was serious,” Rubio testified. “No vengeance, no retribution.” 

In the indictment against Rivera, there’s no indication that Rubio acted improperly as a senator at the time. 

The allegations come in connection to a $50 million consulting contract Rivera signed with Venezuela’s socialist government. 

The indictment alleges Rivera, at the start of the Trump administration, was part of a conspiracy to lobby on behalf of Venezuela to lower tensions with the U.S., resolve a legal dispute with a U.S. oil company and end U.S. sanctions against the South American nation — all without registering as a foreign agent. 

RUBIO SAYS CUBA NEEDS ‘NEW PEOPLE IN CHARGE’ AS BLACKOUTS, UNREST GRIP ISLAND 

As part of his work, Rivera and his co-defendant are accused of trying to arrange meetings for then-Foreign Minister Delcy Rodríguez — now Venezuela’s acting president — in Dallas, New York, Washington and Caracas, Venezuela, with White House officials, members of Congress and the chief executive officer of Exxon Mobil. 

To cloak their activities, prosecutors said, the co-defendants and others set up a chat group called MIA — for Miami — in which they used Spanish-language code words like “Little Cuban” for Rubio, “The Lady in Red” for Rodríguez and “melons” for millions of dollars. 

“This case is about two things: greed and betrayal,” prosecutor Roger Cruz said in his opening statement Monday. “The evidence will show that for $50 million these two defendants made a pact to secretly lobby for Nicolás Maduro,” as well as for Rodríguez. 

Rivera, 60, counters that his one-man firm, Interamerican Consulting, was hired by an American subsidiary of Venezuela’s state-owned oil company — not the company itself — and therefore did not need to register as a foreign agent. 

His three-month contract, his attorney says, was focused exclusively on luring Exxon back to Venezuela — commercial work that is generally exempt from the Foreign Agents Registration Act. 

Separate and wholly distinct from that consulting work were his efforts with the Venezuelan opposition to pave the way for Maduro’s exit, Rivera’s defense said. 

Fox News’ Gillian Turner, Fox News Digital’s Danielle Wallace and The Associated Press contributed to this report. 

Republican Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt on Tuesday announced Alan Armstrong as his choice to fill Markwayne Mullin’s U.S. Senate seat. 

The Senate on Monday voted 54-45 to confirm President Donald Trump’s nomination of Mullin to serve as secretary of the Department of Homeland Security. Mullin is being sworn in Tuesday.

Stitt, who made the announcement during a press conference on Tuesday, described Armstrong in a post on X as “a proud third-generation Oklahoman, staunch conservative, respected business leader, and a devoted family man with an inspiring American Dream story.”

REPORTER’S NOTEBOOK: GOP EYES DHS DEAL FUNDING ICE PROBES, BUT NOT REMOVALS, AS SHUTDOWN DRAGS

The governor noted during the press conference that Armstrong is stepping down from the board of Williams. 

The company’s website describes Williams as an “energy infrastructure company.”

MULLIN CONFIRMED AS DHS CHIEF AS LAWMAKERS NEAR SOLUTION ON SHUTDOWN STANDOFF

Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., was the only Republican to vote against Mullin’s confirmation, while Sens. John Fetterman of Pennsylvania and Martin Heinrich of New Mexico were the only Democrats to vote for confirmation. 

Mullin cast a vote to green-light his own nomination.

Armstrong will not be able to run in the next election for the Senate seat he’s now filling because Oklahoma state law stipulates that “a person who is a prospective appointee shall submit to the Secretary of State an oath affirming that the person will not file as a candidate for the office when it next appears on the ballot.”

TRUMP-BACKED SENATE HOPEFUL GAINS MOMENTUM WITH TOP GOP ENDORSEMNTS BEFORE MULLIN DHS SHIFT

Mullin is replacing Kristi Noem, who will instead serve as a special envoy for a security initiative pertaining to the Western Hemisphere.