VP JD Vance speaks on ‘fundamental goal’ of Trump administration at CPAC address
Speaking at the opening session of the Conservative Political Action Committee (CPAC) on Thursday morning, Vice President JD Vance touted the Trump administration’s success in its first month of restoring “safety and prosperity” to the American people, which he said is the president’s “fundamental goal.” A week after his fiery speech to European political leaders in Munich, Germany, Vance spoke before a packed house at National Harbor, Maryland, in a conversation-style address with a CPAC organizer. He said Trump recognizes that “we have a historical mandate on a few issues,” which he said were cracking down on illegal immigration, restoring American energy dominance and cutting the rampant waste of taxpayer dollars through the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE). He quipped that in his first 30 days in office, President Donald Trump signed “more executive orders than CNN has viewers.” ACTIVISTS IN MEXICO REPORT FLOW OF MIGRANTS HAS ‘ENORMOUSLY DECREASED’ ONE MONTH INTO TRUMP ADMIN Addressing the migrant crisis, Vance said: “We have to secure the southern border and thanks to [Trump’s] actions, border crossings are down well over 90% and we’re just getting started.” On the heels of the administration designating several migrant criminal groups – including Tren de Aragua and MS-13 – as foreign terrorist organizations, Vance said Trump’s message to migrant criminals is “get the hell out of our country because your free ride is over… you’re not welcome.” Regarding American energy and the economy, Vance said Trump “recognizes that we have to really unlock the engine of American growth.” “We’ve got to get back to having a growing economy that creates good jobs and high wages for the American people and a lot of that goes back to ‘drill, baby, drill,’” he said as the crowd broke into applause. TRUMP EQUAL OPPORTUNITY COMMISSION PUTS EMPLOYERS ‘ON NOTICE’ TO STOP ‘ANTI-AMERICAN BIAS’ The vice president also criticized wasteful government spending under the Biden administration. “Why are we spending money on progressive, modern art projects centered around toilets in Afghanistan? That’s actually something that your tax dollars were funding until very recently,” he said. “And I think all of us are sitting around and asking, ‘What the hell are we doing with the American people’s money for the last four years?’” “It is easy, unfortunately, to burn the house down. It takes a little bit of time to build it back up and that’s what we have to do,” he continued. “Look, the fundamental goal of our immigration policy, of our border policy, of DOGE saving taxpayer money, the fundamental goal is we want your children and grandchildren to be able to raise a family in security and comfort in the country that we all love,” he explained. “That is the whole goal of President Trump’s agenda.” PRESIDENT TRUMP: FOUNDING FATHERS ‘SPINNING IN THEIR GRAVES’ BECAUSE OF BIRTHRIGHT CITIZENSHIP ABUSE Vance received a massive standing ovation after the CPAC organizer mentioned his Munich speech, in which he spoke about the need for Europe to follow Trump’s example of restricting illegal immigration and restoring free speech. “We cannot rebuild Western civilization; we cannot rebuild the United States of America or Europe by letting millions and millions of unvetted illegal migrants come into our country. It has to stop. Thank God it stopped here. But it’s got to stop there,” he said. “The Biden administration did more to destroy free speech, not just in the United States, but also in Europe, than any administration in American history,” he went on. “I’m not even blaming the Europeans. I’m actually saying you followed the lead of Joe Biden into censorship and mass migration. Follow the lead of Donald J. Trump and that’s free speech, borders and sovereignty. That is the future for our shared civilization.”
‘Death of DEI’: GOP senator expected to take victory lap against ‘wokeness’ in CPAC speech
EXCLUSIVE: Indiana Republican Sen. Jim Banks is set to deliver a speech to conservatives on Thursday declaring victory over “wokeness” and making the case that the “Golden Age of America” ushered in by President Trump will mean the “death” of DEI. “Despite how extensively DEI polluted our institutions, President Trump, with the swipe of his pen, dismantled this Marxist ideology from the halls of our government,” Banks, who founded the Anti-Woke Caucus during his time in the House, is expected to tell the audience at the Conservative Political Action Conference in Maryland on Thursday, Fox News Digital has learned. “DEI is the biggest threat to the American Dream, but the Golden Age of America means the death of DEI.” Banks’ speech states that Democrats in the United States have attempted to “sabotage” institutions with “wokeness” as their “primary weapon” meant to “nuke” American culture while eroding society. STATE TAKES ON ‘WOKE’ LANGUAGE, INTRODUCES BILL TO BAN TERMS SUCH AS ‘PREGNANT PERSON’ AND ‘CHESTFEEDING’ “Putting up a fight against this kind of poison requires courageous action,” Banks will say. “That’s exactly what President Trump has done.” Since taking office, Trump has acted to fulfill campaign promise to remove DEI policies from the federal government that critics for several years have argued shift the focus away from meritocracy and, as a result, make the country less safe and less effective. ‘WOKE IS THEIR GOD’: EX-DEM FUNDRAISER SAYS PARTY ‘IN SHAMBLES’ AFTER 2024 ELECTION LOSSES Included in those actions were executive orders in the early days of Trump’s presidency banning “radical gender ideology” and Diversity, Equity and Inclusion initiatives from all branches of the U.S. military. In an executive order dubbed “Restoring America’s Fighting Force,” Trump stated that DEI programs have undermined “leadership, merit and unit cohesion, thereby eroding lethality and force readiness” and have “violated Americans’ consciences by engaging in invidious race and sex discrimination.” “Maybe most importantly, DEI has been uprooted from our military,” Banks will tell the crowd at CPAC. “Under Biden, our armed forces were wasting precious time and taxpayer resources running social experiments. Do you think China’s military is worried about filling diversity quotas and making sure everyone’s pronouns and delusions are respected?” “No. As an Afghanistan veteran, I can tell you that diversity, in and of itself, provides no strategic advantage. In fact, holding up diversity as some sort of moral virtue is a deadly distraction. Under President Trump, we’re rightfully refocusing our military on lethality. Because that’s what keeps us safe.” Additionally, Trump’s partnership with Tesla CEO Elon Musk to slash waste with DOGE has resulted in DEI-related cuts in the federal government, including the Department of Education, which said last week it canceled nearly $350 million in “woke” spending. The agency canceled 10 contracts with Regional Educational Laboratories (REL), totaling $336 million, after a review of the contracts uncovered “wasteful and ideologically driven spending not in the interest of students and taxpayers,” a news release stated. “The Education Department under President Trump has given schools 14 days to end any practice that treats students differently because of their race or lose federal funding,” Banks will say. “A huge blow to DEI and a massive win for our kids.” While Banks believes that Trump has “put his foot on the neck of woke and driven a stake through the heart of those who hate America,” he warns in his speech that Congress still has work to do on the issue and specifically railed against “weak Republicans on our side.” “Congress needs to do its job and reinforce the successes that President Trump and his administration have accomplished,” Banks said. “We need legislation to codify and extend his transformative executive orders.” “We have no time for wimpy Republicans. The New Right merges true conservatism with the interests of the people. President Trump and his administration boldly embody this new party.” Fox News Digital’s Elizabeth Pritchett contributed to this report
Rekha Gupta keeps finance, Parvesh Verma gets PWD, check full list of portfolios
After the first cabinet meeting, Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta on Thursday allocated portfolios to the Ministers in the state government.
Congress leader Sonia Gandhi admitted to Ganga Ram Hospital
Congress leader Sonia Gandhi has been admitted to the Sir Ganga Ram Hospital here, sources said on Thursday.
Top Republican urges new SBA chief take ‘DOGE’ actions against Biden-era electioneering, COVID loan claims
EXCLUSIVE: The top Republican on the House Committee on Small Business is calling for President Donald Trump’s new Small Business Administration (SBA) chief to do what he says the Biden administration wouldn’t – and provide answers on alleged taxpayer-funded electioneering in swing states and the failure to actively recoup fraudulent or misappropriated COVID relief funds. Rep. Roger Williams, R-Texas, chair of the House Committee on Small Business, told Fox News Digital Thursday his committee has sounded the alarm on how the Biden administration “moved the [SBA] far away from its intended mission: serving Main Street America.” Williams recalled how the House Small Business Committee had been “stonewalled” in multiple requests for information on how the SBA was working under a 2021 Biden executive order on “promoting access to voting” when it forged a “memorandum of understanding (MOU)” with Michigan election officials. In the committee’s letter to SBA Administrator Kelly Loeffler being sent later Thursday, the panel will note Trump rescinded the Biden order, but remains “deeply troubled by the lack of transparency from the Biden-Harris SBA and looks forward to working with you to determine what impact this may have had on the 2024 election.” WATCHDOG GROUP SUES FEDS FOR RECORDS ON ITS ELECTIONEERING WORK The letter will also alert Loeffler to several Biden-era rule changes they believe present an “immediate threat” to its small-business-lending portfolio. As for allegations the previous SBA leadership punted on recovering misallocated COVID aid, the letter invokes Trump’s DOGE endeavors and floats a project to investigate fraud and recover the funds, which they characterize as a prime example of how Loeffler can assist that cause. “It is estimated that across the SBA’s COVID-19 lending programs, approximately $200 billion went to potentially fraudulent recipients,” the letter said, while also noting the Biden SBA “unilaterally decided” to suspend delinquent disaster loan and PPP collections for loans under $100,000. “The Committee is interested in determining the Biden-Harris SBA’s rationale for this decision and seeks to understand the impact this had on the ability of law enforcement to track and prosecute fraud,” the committee wrote. HOUSE SMALL BUSINESS PANEL RELEASES REPORT ON BIDEN AGENCY’S ALLEGED ELECTIONEERING Last year, Williams issued a rare committee subpoena for staff travel calendars and more information from the SBA seeking to discern whether or how taxpayer money was potentially being spent to register voters in heavily Democratic areas in Michigan under the MOU. Democrats on the panel, however, have long criticized the GOP majority’s machinations: “Unfortunately, with [these Michigan/MOU] subpoenas, Republicans have rejected these principles to pursue a partisan inquiry,” ranking member Nydia Velazquez, D-N.Y., told Fox News Digital. CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP While the Biden-era SBA maintained they did nothing wrong, Williams persisted in trying to conduct congressional oversight of the alleged electioneering. Similar could be said for the committee’s efforts to probe the SBA’s position on recouping the problematic COVID aid amounts. “The Committee looks forward to working with Administrator Loeffler and the Trump Administration to return credibility and transparency to the SBA,” Williams said Thursday. “Together, we will ensure small businesses have a voice in our government and bring the Golden Age of America to Main Street.”
FBI nominee Kash Patel advances to final Senate confirmation vote
The Senate voted to advance the confirmation of FBI director nominee Kash Patel on Thursday. A vote to invoke cloture and begin up to 30 hours of debate on the nominee passed 51 to 47. Members of the Senate Judiciary Committee voted earlier this month, 12 to 10, to advance Patel to the full floor for a vote. Still, Patel faced a somewhat rockier path to confirmation, even in the Republican-majority chamber, after Democrats on the panel used their political weight to delay Patel’s confirmation vote earlier this month. TRUMP FBI DIRECTOR NOMINEE KASH PATEL PICKS UP SUPPORT FROM KEY GOP SENATOR Top Judiciary Democrat Dick Durbin claimed on the Senate floor that Patel had been behind recent mass firings at the FBI, citing what he described as “highly credible” whistleblower reports indicating Patel had personally directed the ongoing purge of FBI employees prior to his confirmation. But that was sharply refuted by Senate Republicans, who described the allegation as a baseless and politically motivated attempt to delay Patel’s confirmation, and by a Patel aide, who described Durbin’s claim as categorically false. This person told Fox News Digital that Patel flew home to Las Vegas after his confirmation hearing and had “been sitting there waiting for the process to play out.” Patel, a vociferous opponent to the investigations into President Donald Trump and one who served at the forefront of Trump’s 2020 election fraud claims, vowed during his confirmation hearing last month that he would not engage in political retribution against agents who worked on the classified documents case against Trump and other politically sensitive matters. But his confirmation comes at a time when the FBI’s activities, leadership, and personnel decisions are being closely scrutinized for signs of politicization or retaliation. Thousands of FBI agents and their superiors were ordered to fill out a questionnaire detailing their roles in the Jan. 6 investigation, prompting concerns of retaliation or retribution. A group of FBI agents filed an emergency lawsuit this month seeking to block the public identification of any agents who worked on the Jan. 6 investigations, in an attempt to head off what they described as potentially retaliatory efforts against personnel involved. “There will be no politicization at the FBI,” Patel told lawmakers during his confirmation hearing. “There will be no retributive action.” But making good on that promise could prove to be complicated. Trump told reporters this month that he intends to fire “some” of the FBI personnel involved in the Jan. 6, 2021 Capitol riots, characterizing the agents’ actions as “corrupt,” even as he stopped short of providing any additional details as to how he reached that conclusion. “We had some corrupt agents,” Trump told reporters, adding that “those people are gone, or they will be gone— and it will be done quickly, and very surgically.” The White House has not responded to questions over how it reached that conclusion, or how many personnel could be impacted, though a federal judge in D.C. agreed to consider the lawsuit. 4 OF THE BIGGEST CLASHES BETWEEN PATEL, SENATE DEMS AT HIS CONFIRMATION HEARING And in another message meant to assuage senators, Patel said he didn’t find it feasible to require a warrant for intelligence agencies to surveil U.S. citizens suspected to be involved in national security matters, referring to Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA). “Having a warrant requirement to go through that information in real time is just not comported with the requirement to protect American citizens,” Patel said. “It’s almost impossible to make that function and serve the national, no-fail mission.” “Get a warrant” had become a rallying cry of right-wing conservatives worried about the privacy of U.S. citizens, and almost derailed the reauthorization of the surveillance program entirely. Patel said the program has been misused, but he does not support making investigators go to court and plea their case before being able to wiretap any U.S. citizen. Patel held a number of national security roles during Trump’s first administration – chief of staff to acting Defense Secretary Chris Miller, senior advisor to the acting director of national intelligence, and National Security Council official. FORMER TRUMP OFFICIALS REJECT WHISTLEBLOWER CLAIM THAT FBI DIRECTOR NOMINEE KASH PATEL BROKE HOSTAGE PROTOCOL He worked as a senior aide on counterterrorism for former House Intelligence Chairman Devin Nunes, where he fought to declassify records he alleged would show the FBI’s application for a surveillance warrant for 2016 Trump campaign aide Carter Page was illegitimate, and served as a national security prosecutor in the Justice Department. In public comments, Patel has suggested he would refocus the FBI on law enforcement and away from involvement in any prosecutorial decisions. In a recent Wall Street Journal op-ed, he suggested his top two priorities are to “let good cops be cops” and transparency, which he described as “essential.” CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP “If confirmed, I will focus on streamlining operations at headquarters while bolstering the presence of field agents across the nation,” he wrote. “Collaboration with local law enforcement is crucial to fulfilling the FBI’s mission.” Patel went on: “Members of Congress have hundreds of unanswered requests to the FBI. If confirmed, I will be a strong advocate for congressional oversight, ensuring that the FBI operates with the openness necessary to rebuild trust by simply replying to lawmakers.”
Susan Collins vows to oppose Trump FBI director nominee Kash Patel ahead of critical vote
Moderate GOP Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, revealed she won’t back President Donald Trump’s nominee to be director of the FBI, Kash Patel. “The nomination of Kash Patel to serve as Director of the FBI comes to the Senate against the backdrop of recent personnel actions at the Department of Justice, including the resignations of several career federal prosecutors who felt they were being instructed to act in a manner inconsistent with their ethical obligations,” she said in a Thursday statement released just before a key procedural vote. KASH PATEL’S CONFIRMATION AS TRUMP FBI PICK ‘WILL HAUNT YOU,’ SENATE DEMS WARN GOP AHEAD OF VOTE “While I strongly support efforts to ensure all federal employees perform their responsibilities ethically and in accordance with the law, Mr. Patel’s recent political profile undermines his ability to serve in the apolitical role of Director of the FBI,” she added. Trump’s controversial FBI nominee cleared his last procedural hurdle on Thursday morning, despite losing Collins’ support. Key Republican Sens. Bill Cassidy, R-La., and Thom Tillis, R-N.C., are backing Patel for the role. FETTERMAN LOSES TWO TOP STAFFERS AS HE MAKES WAVES BY BUCKING DEMOCRATIC PARTY Tillis, who held out on Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s nomination, was one of the first to get behind Patel, helping to shepherd him through the Senate. Moderate Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, hasn’t said if she will vote to confirm Patel, but she did vote “yes” on the last procedural hurdle, indicating she would do so on the final vote. SCOOP: TOP GOP SEN. COTTON TO MEET WITH EMBATTLED TRUMP DEFENSE NOMINEE AS DOUBTS SWIRL Patel will have a final confirmation vote on Thursday afternoon. Collins also opposed Hegseth, alongside Murkowski and former Republican Senate Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky. Vice President JD Vance was needed to come break the tie in the Senate and confirm Hegseth. BATTLE OF THE CHAMBERS: TRUMP BUDGET TEST VOTE CLEARED IN SENATE AS HOUSE GOP LAGS BEHIND With full attendance, Patel can only afford to lose three Republican votes, assuming that all Democrats will oppose him. Collins is notably up for re-election in 2026 in Maine. She was an exception during her last bid when she won the state alongside Democrat President Joe Biden, as a result of split-ticket voting.
Sen Mitch McConnell announces he will not run for re-election
Sen. Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., will not run for re-election in 2026 and will instead retire, the longtime senator announced Thursday. McConnell has served in the Senate for decades, including as Senate majority leader under President Donald Trump’s first administration. McConnell is the longest-serving Senate party leader in U.S. history, and he announced his retirement on his 83rd birthday. “Seven times, my fellow Kentuckians have sent me to the Senate,” McConnell said in prepared remarks to the Senate floor. “Every day in between, I’ve been humbled by the trust they’ve placed in me to do their business here. Representing our commonwealth has been the honor of a lifetime. I will not seek this honor an eighth time. My current term in the Senate will be my last.” McConnell was first elected in 1984, and he plans to serve out the rest of his term ending in January 2027. SEN. MCCONNELL REPORTEDLY FINE AFTER FALLING DURING GOP LUNCH The announcement comes after a series of health scares for McConnell, who has frozen up during statements to the public on multiple occasions. His office never provided an explanation for the episodes. FORMER NFL PLAYER SCOTT TURNER CONFIRMED TO LEAD HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT Most recently, McConnell fell while exiting the Senate chamber earlier this month. He also fell during a GOP lunch in December. McConnell’s announcement comes roughly a year after he ceded his role as Republican leader in the Senate, ultimately to be replaced by Sen. John Thune, R-S.D. “One of life’s most underappreciated talents is to know when it’s time to move on to life’s next chapter,” he said in floor remarks at the time. “So I stand before you today… to say that this will be my last term as Republican leader of the Senate.” The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Parents could see up to $12,000 child tax refund under new bipartisan House bill
A bipartisan group of lawmakers has introduced a bill that would give parents up to $6,000 per child in expanded tax credits. It’s part of a wider piece of legislation called the Affordable Childcare Act, led by Reps. Brian Fitzpatrick, R-Pa., and Ryan Mackenzie, R-Pa., on the right and Sharice Davids, D-Kan., and Suzanne Bonamici, D-Ore., on the left. Both the Republican and Democratic campaigns had called for an expanded child tax credit during the 2024 presidential race, where both sides attempted to make inroads with families struggling to afford care. SCOOP: KEY CONSERVATIVE CAUCUS DRAWS RED LINE ON HOUSE BUDGET PLAN The current child tax credit levels give parents a refund of up to $2,000 for dependents under age 17. Adults with incomes that exceed $200,000 as a single filer or $400,000 for married couples can still be eligible for a partial credit. The bipartisan bill would raise the maximum threshold to $6,000 for one dependent and $12,000 for two or more. It would also double the tax credit for businesses that facilitate childcare for employees, raising the amount to $300,000 per year for qualifying workplaces. BLACK CAUCUS CHAIR ACCUSES TRUMP OF ‘PURGE’ OF ‘MINORITY’ FEDERAL WORKERS During the most recent White House campaign, now-Vice President JD Vance and then-Vice President Kamala Harris, who was running for the top of the ticket, called for a $5,000 and $6,000 child tax credit, respectively. But it’s not certain Congress will find an appetite to work together on such a bill now, given bitter divisions over the government funding process and President Donald Trump’s crackdown on government spending. Republicans are also working on a larger tax package that they’re aiming to pass with only GOP votes via the budget reconciliation process. Trump’s 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA), which Republicans are hoping to extend with reconciliation, raised the maximum child tax credit from $1,000 at the time to $2,000. If Congress fails to extend Trump’s tax cuts by the end of 2025, the original parameters would be back in place. The maximum was briefly raised to $3,000 for children ages 6 to 16 and $3,600 for children ages 0 to 5 to help families cope with the COVID-19 pandemic, but those rates were not extended.
Noida: Toddler dies after Gurugram lawyer’s celebratory firing during wedding procession, held
A country-made pistol used in the firing was recovered by a team. The accused is the groom’s friend.