SCOOP: Bill preventing activist judges from blocking Trump’s agenda backed by White House
FIRST ON FOX: President Donald Trump has shown interest in a House GOP bill that would block federal judges from issuing nationwide injunctions, two sources familiar with discussions told Fox News Digital. Top White House aides communicated to senior Capitol Hill staff this week that “the president wants this,” the sources said. They said the White House felt that time was of the essence in the matter and that Trump wanted Congress to move swiftly. It comes after various U.S. district court judges issued more than a dozen nationwide orders at least temporarily blocking Trump’s executive orders. The bill by Rep. Darrell Issa, R-Calif., if it passed Congress and was signed into law, would bar such judges in most cases from blocking Trump policies on a national scale. INJUNCTION LIFTED ON TRUMP EXECUTIVE ORDERS SLASHING FEDERAL DEI SUPPORT Issa’s office did not directly confirm whether or not the exchange occurred but told Fox News Digital, “President Trump knows we need a national solution to this major malfunction in the federal judiciary, and we think we have the momentum to get this done.” A White House official told Fox News Digital they would not get ahead of the president on legislative matters. But the idea has appeared to gain traction in the upper levels of the White House. Trump Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller complained on X twice on Thursday about federal district judges having the ability to affect policies for the entire country, though he did not mention Issa’s bill specifically. “It takes 5 Supreme Court justices to issue a ruling that affects the whole nation. Yet lone District Court judges assume the authority to unilaterally dictate the policies of the entire executive branch of government,” Miller posted. TRUMP ASKS SUPREME COURT TO REVIEW BAN ON BIRTHRIGHT CITIZENSHIP He posted again later, “Under what theory of the constitution does a single Marxist judge in San Francisco have the same executive power as the Commander-in-Chief elected by the whole nation to lead the executive branch? No such theory exists. It is merely naked judicial tyranny.” Issa’s legislation reads, “Notwithstanding any other provision of law, no United States district court shall issue any order providing for injunctive relief, except in the case of such an order that is applicable only to limit the actions of a party to the case before such district court with respect to the party seeking injunctive relief from such district court.” The bill advanced through the House Judiciary Committee earlier this month. Chairman Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, told CNN on Wednesday, “We think that’s good. We passed it through the committee. We’ll try to look to pass it on the House floor and move it through the process.” Jordan told Fox News Digital last month he thought Issa’s bill “makes sense” and the committee would “try to move fairly quick on that bill.” Fox News Digital reached out to the House Judiciary Committee for comment on Trump’s backing of Issa’s bill but did not hear back by press time. But it comes amid some disagreements among congressional Republicans about how to heed Trump’s call to deal with “activist” judges. Rep. Brandon Gill, R-Texas, recently introduced a resolution to impeach U.S. District Judge James Boasberg after he ordered a 14-day emergency stop to Trump’s plans to deport suspected Tren De Aragua gang members to El Salvador. Gill argued that Boasberg abused his power in doing so, and told Fox News Digital this week that he hoped the resolution would go through the regular committee process – something Jordan seemed open to. TRUMP SCORES BIG LEGAL WIN AGAINST PULITZER PRIZE BOARD MEMBERS AS LAWSUIT MOVES TO DISCOVERY Jordan told multiple outlets he would potentially hold hearings on Gill’s resolution, which is a traditional step in the impeachment inquiry process. Trump posted on Truth Social earlier this week that he wanted Boasberg impeached as well. But multiple sources told Fox News Digital that House GOP leaders are more wary of the impeachment route, given the virtual guarantee that such a move would not get the necessary Democrats to pass the Senate. “It’s another intense whipping process for something that won’t move at all in the Senate,” one senior House GOP aide said. “I think the White House is trying to find something easier to do.” Speaker Mike Johnson’s office told Fox News Digital that he was looking at all available options when reached for comment on House Republicans’ path forward on Thursday morning. CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP “Activist judges with political agendas pose a significant threat to the rule of law, equal justice, and the separation of powers. The Speaker looks forward to working with the Judiciary Committee as they review all available options under the Constitution to address this urgent matter,” a spokesperson for Johnson, R-La., said. Fox News Digital also reached out to the Senate Judiciary Committee on whether it would take up the legislation. Fox News Digital’s Andrew Mark Miller contributed to this report
‘Lunatic’: Trump’s long history of abusing judges who oppose him
United States President Donald Trump has doubled down on his criticism of a federal judge, calling him “radical left” for blocking the deportation of Venezuelan migrants, as his administration ramps up rhetoric against the courts. Trump on Tuesday called for the impeachment of Judge James Boasberg, accusing him of putting the US at risk. “We don’t want vicious, violent, and demented criminals, many of them deranged murderers, in our country,” Trump posted on Truth Social on Tuesday. Boasberg, who serves in the federal district court in Washington, DC, has come under attack since he issued an order to block deportation flights on Saturday. The Trump administration has been accused of ignoring Boasberg’s orders by sending several planes carrying Venezuelan migrants to El Salvador prisons notorious for rights abuses. Trump has invoked the Alien Enemies Act of 1798, an obscure law meant to target nationals from an enemy nation during wartime. The courts have blocked several of Trump’s executive orders amid little resistance from the Republican-controlled Congress, attracting the wrath of the officials. Advertisement Attorney General Pam Bondi accused the judge of “meddling in our government” while White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt believes judges are acting as “judicial activists”. The US president on his part called Boasberg a “radical left lunatic” “appointed by [former president] Barack Hussein Obama”. Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts has criticised calls to impeach Judge Boasberg, but that has not stopped Trump from attacking the judge. The US president lashed out at Roberts as well, suggesting the Supreme Court itself was compromised by political bias. The latest rhetoric is just one in a series of attacks Trump has launched against judges and courts who challenge his policies or hold him accountable in cases brought against him. Why have Trump and officials from his administration clashed with the judiciary? There’s a troubling pattern of Trump attacking judges and courts in the past. Let’s take a look. A pattern of attacks? Trump’s contempt for the courts predates his presidency but reached new levels during his time in office. Usually, if a ruling went against him, the judge was deemed by Trump biased, incompetent, or part of a left-wing conspiracy. One of the earliest examples came in 2016 when Trump, then a presidential candidate, attacked US District Judge Gonzalo Curiel, who was overseeing fraud lawsuits against his now-defunct Trump University. Trump suggested Curiel was unfit to preside over the case because of his Mexican heritage, calling him a “hater” and implying he could not be fair due to Trump’s hardline stance on immigration. The attack drew widespread condemnation. Advertisement Once in the White House, Trump continued to fight the judiciary. In 2017, when Judge James Robart issued a temporary block on his travel ban targeting Muslim-majority countries, Trump labelled him a “so-called judge” and accused him of endangering national security. In 2018, Trump dubbed Judge of the US Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit Jon Tigar “an Obama judge” after he ruled that an immigrant could claim asylum regardless of where she entered the country. The same year, Trump attacked the judiciary after an appeals court in California blocked his administration from deporting young immigrants shielded under an Obama-era programme. Trump did not hesitate to also target the Supreme Court when it ruled against him. He was incensed when the court rejected his attempts to overturn the 2020 election results. Trump continues to believe that his 2020 presidential election was stolen. In particular, he turned against Chief Justice Roberts, calling him “disgraceful” and “a disappointment”. Did his attacks against the judiciary go up after the end of his first term? As Trump’s legal troubles mounted after his presidency ended in 2020, his attacks on judges became even more personal. Facing multiple indictments ranging from election interference to business fraud, Trump often took to social media to condemn judges overseeing his cases. In his New York civil fraud case, where he was found liable for boosting his net worth, Trump called Judge Arthur Engoron “unhinged” and a “Trump-hating, radical left, Democrat operative”. He mocked his law clerk on social media, saying he was “politically biased and corrupt”, prompting a gag order. Advertisement Despite the restriction, Trump did not hold back. In his federal election interference case, presided over by Judge Tanya Chutkan, Trump labelled her “highly partisan”, “very biased and unfair”, and suggested she was out to get him. His verbal assaults led prosecutors to argue that his rhetoric was endangering the judicial process and potentially inciting threats against judges and court staff. Chutkan had warned Trump against making any “inflammatory statements” before the first hearing. “Your client’s defence is supposed to happen in this courtroom, not on the internet,” Chutkan told Trump’s lawyers, adding that the more anyone made “inflammatory” statements about the case, the greater her urgency would be to quickly move the case to trial. Trump also attacked liberal Supreme Court justices, particularly Sonia Sotomayor and Ruth Bader Ginsburg. In 2020, Trump demanded that both judges “recuse” themselves from cases involving him, accusing them of bias, particularly after Sotomayor criticised the Trump administration’s frequent appeals to the top court to intervene in lower-court decisions. Trump took to Twitter, which later became X, calling remarks by Sotomayor “highly inappropriate”. His animosity towards Justice Ginsburg was even more pronounced. Before her passing in 2020, Ginsburg had publicly criticised Trump during his 2016 campaign, calling him a “faker” and expressing concern over his presidency. Trump fired back, calling her a “disgrace” to the court and demanding she resign. After her death, he faced backlash for quickly nominating a conservative replacement, Amy Coney Barrett. Advertisement In 2020, Trump attacked Judge Amy Berman Jackson over the conviction of his long-term aide Roger Stone in a witness tempering case. He said Stone’s jury was “tainted’ with anti-Trump bias. The case symbolised political meddling in high-profile cases as Trump used social media to question the judiciary’s fairness. Stone was pardoned in December 2020 at the end of Trump’s first term. Trump’s
Meet man, IIT Roorkee alumnus, who cracked UPSC exam to become IAS, served as DM Lucknow, now suspended due to…
Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has taken strict action against corruption. He has made it clear that corruption will not be tolerated in Uttar Pradesh, and any official found involved in corrupt practices will face severe action.
Feds accuse Minnesota state senator of soliciting a minor for sex
Republican Minnesota state Sen. Justin Eichorn has been charged with attempted coercion and enticement of a minor, the U.S. Attorney’s Office, District of Minnesota noted in a press release. An affidavit signed by an FBI special agent details how Eichorn, who had actually been corresponding with law enforcement, allegedly arranged to pay for sex. “Bloomington Police Department detectives communicated with the man who thought he was talking to a 17-year-old female. On March 17, a detective arranged to meet with the male at a location near the 8300 block of Normandale Avenue in Bloomington,” a press release on the bloomingtonmn.gov website states. “The male, identified as Justin David Eichorn, age 40, of Grand Rapids, Minn. was observed arriving in the area by pickup truck. Eichorn was arrested without incident outside of his vehicle by uniformed Bloomington Police Officers.” MINNESOTA REPUBLICANS TO INTRODUCE BILL DEFINING ‘TRUMP DERANGEMENT SYNDROME’ AS MENTAL ILLNESS Fox News Digital reached out to Eichorn’s office on Thursday to request a comment from the state lawmaker, but no comment was provided by publication time. The affidavit notes that “the undercover law enforcement phone number received text messages from XXX-XXX-9711 (hereinafter, the Suspect). These texts included, ‘Hey [fictitious name] I saw your post and [sic] chance you are still available tonight?’ and later, ‘What’s a guy gota [sic]do to get with the hottest girl online tonight.’” The suspect continued communication even after an undercover law enforcement officer posing as the girl said she was 17 years old. The affidavit states that “after again inquiring about the undercover officer’s age, the Suspect wrote, ‘Ok will ya send me a naught pic of you to show me your real?’” SANCTUARY CITY LAWYERS PLOT TO HELP ILLEGAL MIGRANTS EVADE ICE IN EXPOSED GROUP EMAIL Other texts showed the suspect asking about pricing and setting up a meeting. Police found cash and an unopened condom in Eichorn’s truck, the affidavit notes. “As a 40-year-old man, if you come to the Orange Jumpsuit District looking to have sex with someone’s child, you can expect that we are going to lock you up,” Bloomington Police Chief Booker Hodges said, according to the press release. PROPOSED BILL WOULD REQUIRE LAW ENFORCEMENT IN BLUE STATE TO COOPERATE WITH ICE: ‘A LINE OF COMMUNICATION’ CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP “I have always advocated stiffer penalties for these types of offenses. The recent case involving Michael Gillis who was arrested in Bloomington is a prime example of why we need stronger penalties. We need our state legislature to take this case and this type of conduct more seriously.” Senate Republicans planned to move on Thursday morning to expel Eichorn from the state Senate, according to a Senate Republican statement provided to Fox News Digital by the caucus spokesperson. “There is no question that these charges merit expulsion,” Senate Republican Leader Mark Johnson noted. “We owe it to the public to hold our members to the highest standards, and this violation of the public trust is so severe we must act. It is my hope that this quick resolution gives Senator Eichorn time to focus on his family.”
WH may reverse decision to kill Biden-Maduro oil deal, apply tariffs instead to avoid hurting US firms
FIRST ON FOX: President Donald Trump has signaled an openness to holding off on killing an oil deal forged between former President Joe Biden and Venezuelan dictator Nicolás Maduro, after he previously ordered Chevron and other U.S. firms to close up shop in oil-rich Venezuela. Several Cabinet secretaries, including the Department of Energy’s Chris Wright, the Department of the Interior’s Doug Burgum and the Department of Commerce’s Howard Lutnick, were present during a meeting at the White House yesterday, which also featured several oil executives and representatives of energy advocacy groups. A source familiar with the events told Fox News Digital there was a brainstorming session as to how best to deal with Maduro and also help grow U.S. energy dominance and strengthen U.S. oil firms. Trump reportedly explored ways to incentivize oil imports that would align with U.S. foreign policy goals while benefiting American consumers and workers. VENEZUELAN OPPO LEADER JOINS CUBAN-BORN GOP LAWMAKER IN PRAISING TRUMP ON VENEZUELA STANCE Lutnick reportedly floated the idea of increasing pressure on Maduro by tariffing Venezuela instead of revoking leases for what are U.S. oil firms, Fox News Digital has learned. Trump was warm to the idea, as he has long advocated a hardline stance against the Caracas dictatorship, said the source, who declined to be identified. Trump charged in February that the Maduro regime had not lived up to its end of the deal forged by his Delawarean predecessor, particularly in the form of election reform after the dictator “won” the latest disputed contest last year. “We are hereby reversing the concessions that Crooked Joe Biden gave to Nicolás Maduro, of Venezuela, on the oil transaction agreement, dated November 26, 2022,” Trump announced on Truth Social. “Additionally, the regime has not been transporting the violent criminals that they sent into our Country (the Good Ole’ U.S.A.) back to Venezuela at the rapid pace that they had agreed to.” RUBIO: MADURO A ‘HORRIBLE DICTATOR’ Trump called Biden’s agreement “ineffective and unmet” and ordered U.S. oil firms to begin winding down their presence in the country starting March 1. Maduro deputy Delcy Rodriguez called the move “damaging and inexplicable.” The source familiar with the meeting told Fox News Digital that Trump has indicated he wants to balance U.S. foreign policy challenges while seeing that the U.S. benefits from the heavy crude that Venezuela produces – which is tailor-made for the types of refineries that dot the Gulf Coast domestically and create U.S. jobs. Fox News Digital reached out to Lutnick, Wright and the White House for comment. Wright previously told Reuters after the meeting that Trump’s “whole economic agenda is to lower prices in the United States and grow job opportunities in the United States.” Earlier this month in Miami, Fox News Digital was one of a few media outlets on hand when Rep. Carlos Gimenez, R-Fla. – whose family fled the Castro dictatorship in the 1960s – hosted Venezuelan opposition leader Juan Guaidó at an event praising the Trump administration’s hardline stance toward dictatorship. In an exclusive interview, Gimenez said Venezuela, Cuba and Nicaragua are “all pretty much tied together” in the fact they are dictatorial regimes repressing their own people. “I expect this is just the first step in trying to liberate these countries. The people of Cuba, Venezuela, Nicaragua deserve freedom,” he said of Trump’s initial overtures toward Venezuela. During the event, Guaidó also offered remarks in Spanish praising Trump and slamming Central American despots. “[W]e need a strong, prosperous and safe Latin America – and one that will be safe, with democracy and freedom,” he said. CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP “I have no doubt in President Trump, and in the message that he is sending directly to the heart of those who financed the coup d’état perpetrated by the dictatorship on July 28, 2024 (the disputed/corrupt re-election of Maduro)…” he said. “It is accurate, correct and timely to confront that dictatorship and also [send] a message to those who today usurp [power] in Cuba and Nicaragua that they will not have impunity,” Guaidó added. Venezuela had long been a friendly oil-trading partner of the U.S. until the leftist regime took root following the 1998 and 2000 elections under the rule of the late Hugo Chavez and foreign policy challenges arose.
Speaker Johnson says GOP looking at ‘all available options’ to address ‘activist judges’ opposing Trump
House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., and Republicans in the lower chamber are reviewing tools available to take on “activist judges” as President Donald Trump sees resistance from the judiciary in implementing his agenda. “Activist judges with political agendas pose a significant threat to the rule of law, equal justice, and the separation of powers. The Speaker looks forward to working with the Judiciary Committee as they review all available options under the Constitution to address this urgent matter,” a spokesperson for Johnson’s office told Fox News Digital in a statement. WHO IS JAMES BOASBERG, THE US JUDGE AT THE CENTER OF TRUMP’S DEPORTATION EFFORTS? News that the House is considering possible actions to rein in the federal judiciary comes after the latest Trump restriction, wherein U.S. District Judge James Boasberg granted an emergency order to temporarily halt the administration’s deportation flights of illegal immigrants. The judge granted the order to review the 1798 wartime-era Alien Enemies Act being invoked by the administration in order to immediately deport Venezuelan nationals and alleged members of the violent gang Tren de Aragua. FEDERAL JUDGE ORDERS TRUMP ADMINISTRATION TO PAY ‘UNLAWFULLY’ RESTRICTED USAID FUNDS Trump appeared to call for Boasberg’s impeachment after the order. “This judge, like many of the Crooked Judges’ I am forced to appear before, should be IMPEACHED!!! WE DON’T WANT VICIOUS, VIOLENT, AND DEMENTED CRIMINALS, MANY OF THEM DERANGED MURDERERS, IN OUR COUNTRY. MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!!!” he remarked in a post to Truth Social. HERE’S WHY DOZENS OF LAWSUITS SEEKING TO QUASH TRUMP’S EARLY ACTIONS AS PRESIDENT ARE FAILING In a separate post, Trump said, “If a President doesn’t have the right to throw murderers, and other criminals, out of our Country because a Radical Left Lunatic Judge wants to assume the role of President, then our Country is in very big trouble, and destined to fail!” JUDGE BLOCKS TRUMP ADMIN FROM TARGETING DEMOCRATIC LAW FIRM AFTER ATTORNEYS WARN OF FIRM’S DEMISE Republicans have continued to criticize the flow of temporary restraining orders against Trump’s administration from judges across the country. Stephen Miller, White House deputy chief of staff for policy and Homeland Security advisor, wrote on X on Thursday, “Under what theory of the Constitution does a single Marxist judge in San Francisco have the same executive power as the Commander-in-Chief elected by the whole nation to lead the executive branch? No such theory exists. It is merely naked judicial tyranny.” As the House explores options to address the issue, the Senate is also expected to investigate. The Senate Judiciary Committee will hold a hearing on the subject in the coming weeks.
Pentagon to appeal judge’s decision blocking transgender ban, Hegseth says
The Pentagon will appeal a federal judge’s decision to block the Trump administration’s ban on transgender troops, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said Wednesday night. Biden-appointed Washington, D.C., Judge Ana Reyes ruled the ban unconstitutionally discriminates on the basis of sex, saying it was “soaked in animus” and “dripping with pretext.” “We are appealing this decision, and we will win,” Hegseth posted on X. In her opinion, Reyes savaged the policy and issued an order that blocks the Defense Department from removing transgender service members from the military. VA RESCINDS 2018 DIRECTIVE ON TRANSGENDER TREATMENTS, ALIGNING WITH TRUMP ‘TWO SEXES’ EO “Its language is unabashedly demeaning, its policy stigmatizes transgender persons as inherently unfit, and its conclusions bear no relation to fact,” she said. “The cruel irony is that thousands of transgender servicemembers have sacrificed – some risking their lives – to ensure for others the very equal protection rights the Military Ban seeks to deny them.” Reyes’ order gives the Trump administration until Friday to file an appeal. “The ban at bottom invokes derogatory language to target a vulnerable group in violation of the Fifth Amendment,” Reyes said. “The President has the power – indeed the obligation – to ensure military readiness,” she wrote in her 79-page opinion. “At times, however, leaders have used concern for military readiness to deny marginalized persons the privilege of serving.” The Justice Department (DOJ) has filed a complaint against Reyes, accusing her of potential bias and misconduct. FEDERAL JUDGE BLOCKS TRUMP’S TRANSGENDER MILITARY EXECUTIVE ORDER “This is the latest example of an activist judge attempting to seize power at the expense of the American people who overwhelmingly voted to elect President Trump,” a DOJ spokesperson told Fox News Digital. “The Department of Justice has vigorously defended President Trump’s executive actions, including the Defending Women Executive Order, and will continue to do so.” Around 4,200 service members, 0.2%, are transgender, according to DOD. In a January executive order, President Donald Trump argued the Pentagon had been afflicted with “radical gender ideology”and the “adoption of a gender identity inconsistent with an individual’s sex conflicts with a soldier’s commitment to an honorable, truthful and disciplined lifestyle, even in one’s personal life.” “The Armed Forces have been afflicted with radical gender ideology to appease activists unconcerned with the requirements of military service like physical and mental health, selflessness, and unit cohesion,” the executive order read. TRANSGENDER SAILORS, MARINES OFFERED BENEFITS TO VOLUNTARILY LEAVE SERVICE OR FACE BEING KICKED OUT Service members filed suit when the Pentagon in February issued new policy guidance warning that transgender troops would be pushed out of the military. It had not yet forced any troops out, but encouraged them to voluntarily separate. Reyes said plaintiffs “face a violation of their constitutional rights, which constitutes irreparable harm.” White House deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller condemned Reyes’ ruling on X, writing, “District court judges have now decided they are in command of the Armed Forces… is there no end to this madness?” In 2016, a DOD policy permitted transgender people to serve openly in the military, but Trump, during his first term, reversed that order. The Supreme Court allowed that ban to take effect. President Joe Biden reversed the ban. Six service members and two people wanting to enlist in the military sued the government in January over Trump’s executive order. Later, about a dozen others, including nine on active duty, joined the suit. Their attorneys, from the National Center for Lesbian Rights and GLAD Law, said transgender troops “seek nothing more than the opportunity to continue dedicating their lives to defending the Nation.” Fox News’ Danielle Wallace contributed to this report.
Dem senator refuses to address relationship with founder of Soros-funded ‘propaganda’ news network
Democratic Sen. Chris Murphy is refusing to address reports he is romantically involved with a former Democratic political operative running a Soros-funded media network masquerading as independent media. Murphy, who recently announced separation from his wife after nearly two decades together, was recently photographed having a cozy dinner with Tara McGowan, the founder and publisher of Courier Newsroom, a progressive media group that has received millions of dollars in funding from liberal mega-donors such as George Soros. Fox News Digital recently asked Murphy on Capitol Hill about his involvement with McGowan. “I’m not going to talk about that,” Murphy responded. SEVERAL DEMOCRATS TO BOYCOTT TRUMP’S ‘PEP RALLY’ SPEECH TO CONGRESS McGowan has long held ties with the Democratic Party, working on former President Barack Obama’s re-election campaign before serving in top positions at Priorities Action USA, a Democratic super PAC, and ACRONYM, a Democrat-focused digital advocacy group. The Murphy-tied strategist founded Courier Newsroom, a left-leaning media group that has received millions from the Fund for Policy Reform, an advocacy group founded by Soros. In 2021, Gabby Deutch, who the Washington Post described as “the Washington correspondent for NewsGuard, a New York-based nonpartisan organization that reviews news sites to combat misinformation,” penned an op-ed criticizing Courier Newsroom as a “political operation” and argued it is “exploiting the widespread loss of local journalism to create and disseminate something we really don’t need: hyperlocal partisan propaganda.” ‘STUNNING AND BRAVE’: DEM SENATOR MOCKED AFTER HYPING ALL-NIGHTER STUNT IN PROTEST OF TRUMP NOMINEE Fund for Policy Reform provided Courier Newsroom with three grants totaling $5 million in 2021 and 2022 to “support its non-partisan journalism, which aims to further the common good and general welfare of U.S. communities by providing access to information,” its grant database shows, as previously reported by Fox News Digital. McGowan was also in close quarters with former President Joe Biden’s administration, visiting the Biden White House nearly 20 times by April 2024. Murphy and McGowan were spotted getting close at a Washington, D.C., watering hole earlier this month, according to the New York Post, with a source telling the outlet the pair was getting “cutesy.” The outlet reported that Murphy is still married to his wife, Washington, D.C., lawyer Cathy Holahan, and that neither has filed for divorce in Connecticut nor Washington, D.C. The couple did announce they were separating in November, shortly after Murphy won re-election. Murphy has positioned himself as one of the most prominent Democrat critics of President Donald Trump, which has caused many to speculate he is interested in a run for the White House in the future. “Chris Murphy Emerges as a Clear Voice for Democrats Countering Trump,” a recent New York Times headline read with an article that was reposted on Murphy’s website. Fox News Digital reached out to McGowan for comment. Fox News Digital’s Cameron Cawthorne contributed to this post.
1-year-old among victims of Israel’s indiscriminate bombing of Gaza
[unable to retrieve full-text content] Video shows a Palestinian father’s last moments with his child after his pregnant wife and 1-year-old son were killed.
In Yemen’s Sanaa, fear and defiance after US bombs
Sanaa, Yemen – Mukhtar Ahmed was riding his bike in northern Sanaa’s al-Jiraf area when the ground trembled beneath him. Thunderous explosions echoed through the air, followed by the sound of terrified screams. It was Saturday just after sunset, a time when people were home for iftar during the holy month of Ramadan “I got off the bike and darted towards an alley. I thought it would be impossible to survive,” the 26-year-old restaurant delivery courier told Al Jazeera. “The sheer terror of those explosions could kill.” Mukhtar had no idea what had caused the deafening roar heard across Yemen’s densely populated capital. But he later came to realise, the United States was bombing Yemen. A wave of American air strikes had killed more than 50 people. The bombs pounded the vicinity of the political office of the Houthi rebel group (officially known as Ansar Allah), the de facto rulers of Yemen’s populous northwest. It marked the beginning of an ongoing US bombing campaign that may usher in a new phase of war and instability for Yemen. Advertisement Who can stop the US? On March 7, a week before the US strikes began, the Houthis gave Israel a four-day deadline to lift its blockade on the entry of humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip. If it did not, the Yemeni group promised to resume attacking Israel-linked ships in the Red Sea in solidarity with the Palestinians in Gaza. Those attacks had stopped when the now-broken Gaza ceasefire began in January but for the 15 months before that, the Houthis had paralysed shipping in one of the world’s most important waterways and fired projectiles towards Israel. The United Kingdom and the US launched hundreds of air strikes on what were reportedly Houthi targets, including weapons depots, missile launch pads and airports. Israel has also attacked Yemen. The ostensible purpose of these attacks was to “degrade” the military capabilities of the Iran-allied Houthis. But the renewed US air strikes have hit residential areas where senior Houthi members are believed to reside, showing little regard for civilian lives. Second, the Houthis had not carried out any attacks despite their threat. With this shift under US President Donald Trump, fears of war, shortages, and displacement haunt Yemeni civilians, who have endured years of hardship since the beginning of the country’s civil war in 2014 between the Houthis and Yemen’s Saudi-backed, United Nations-recognised government. The conflict on the ground in Yemen has been largely frozen since 2022 with the Houthis and Saudi Arabia involved in negotiations. But those talks have done little to end the humanitarian crisis in the country, where millions of people are hungry. Advertisement Many Yemenis now believe things are going to get worse, a fear strengthened by Trump’s rhetoric. “Hell will rain down upon you like nothing you have ever seen before,” the US president said in a threat to the Houthis. And for Mukhtar, he fears Gaza has set a precedent for how bombing campaigns are conducted in the region. “The US is like Israel, and Hamas is like the Houthis,” Mukhtar said, “so if the US-Houthi war continues, the US will do to Sanaa like what Israel has done to Gaza. Who will stop them?” Fear of chaos In a bustling street in Maeen in western Sanaa, Faisal Mohammed carried a blue bag filled with new clothes for his five children, purchased in preparation for the Eid al-Fitr holiday, which is expected to fall on March 30. But 38-year-old Faisal says Eid will be overshadowed by the US attacks. He is afraid of what is to come. “The Americans aim to kill Houthi officials who run Sanaa and other provinces,” he said. “Killing the [Houthi] leadership will spark chaos, and this will hurt us.” The Houthis took control of Sanaa in September 2014. Since then, the group has firmly embedded itself and proven itself on the battlefield. But as the US intensifies its attacks on Yemen, the Houthis rivals may see the tide turning in their favour – and that worries Faisal. “Pro-government forces could be motivated by the American air strikes and begin pushing towards Houthi-controlled provinces,” Faisal said. “This will mean an all-out civil war and an additional cycle of misery.” Advertisement Faisal has thought about leaving Sanaa and moving to a safer area. “The Houthis will not surrender, and their Yemeni rivals, if supported by America, will not back down,” Faisal said. “It will be disastrous.” Prices and explosions In Bani Hushaish on the northeastern outskirts of Sanaa, Ali Abdullah filled his gas cylinder at a cooking gas station, but he did not plan to use it. He was stocking up in anticipation of a potential price rise. “We fear sudden price hikes. They are an ugly companion of war,” the 48-year-old told Al Jazeera. Even before the renewed US bombing, Washington’s actions have left Yemen – and particularly its Houthi-controlled regions – in a precarious position. In January, Trump redesignated the Houthis as a “foreign terrorist organisation” (FTO) over their attacks on Red Sea shipping and Israel. “The FTO squeezes the larger economy, limiting access to international financing, making it difficult for traders to acquire letters of credit and insurance to import everything from food, fuel to household goods and beyond,” wrote April Longley Alley, a senior expert on the Gulf and Yemen at the US Institute of Peace. Defiant The Houthis, having ridden out a years-long bombing campaign and motivated by belief in their ultimate victory, are unlikely to back down – at least not in the short term. The group’s supporters massed in Sanaa on Monday in defiance of the US, many of them brandishing firearms. Mohammed, a Houthi fighter who only wanted to give his first name, said the US bombing of Yemen was proof the US is “a habitual aggressor”. Advertisement “Americans seek to intimidate and humiliate us. But that won’t happen,” he said, standing with a rifle on his shoulder near a market in central Sanaa. “We were not born to