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SCOOP: Jim Jordan joining Trump at NCAA men’s wrestling championships

SCOOP: Jim Jordan joining Trump at NCAA men’s wrestling championships

FIRST ON FOX: House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, is joining President Donald Trump this weekend at the NCAA men’s wrestling championships, a source familiar with his plans tells Fox News Digital. The White House confirmed Friday that Trump would attend the event with Jordan and Sen. Dave McCormick, R-Pa. McCormick previously confirmed that Trump would be in attendance at the event in the senator’s home state of Pennsylvania. “I’m thrilled to be in Philadelphia this weekend with [Trump] for the [NCAA Wrestling] Championship,” McCormick wrote on X. “I grew up wrestling in small towns across PA and at West Point. It taught me grit, resilience, and hard work.” ‘WOEFULLY INSUFFICIENT’: US JUDGE REAMS TRUMP ADMIN FOR DAYS-LATE DEPORTATION INFO Jordan himself was a noted wrestling champion during his time in high school and later at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, where he won the NCAA Division I men’s wrestling title twice.  INJUNCTION LIFTED ON TRUMP EXECUTIVE ORDERS SLASHING FEDERAL DEI SUPPORT He was later an assistant coach at Ohio State University’s wrestling program from 1987 to 1995. Fox News Digital emailed Jordan’s office for comment but did not immediately hear back.

HHS slashes over $350M in grant funding for gender ideology, DEI research projects

HHS slashes over 0M in grant funding for gender ideology, DEI research projects

FIRST ON FOX: The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has canceled hundreds of National Institutes of Health (NIH) research grants—worth over $350 million—funding projects related to diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) and gender ideology, according to a department official. The cuts included slashing projects studying “multilevel and multidimensional structural racism,” “gender-affirming hormone therapy in mice” and “microaggressions,” among others.  In total, there were more than 500 research grants related to DEI and progressive gender ideology that the administration terminated. TRUMP NIH APPOINTEE DEFENDS PRESIDENT’S RESEARCH FUNDING CUTS, LAYS OUT NEW VISION FOR FUTURE “HHS is taking action to terminate more than $350 million in research funding that is not aligned with NIH and HHS priorities,” HHS spokesperson Andrew Nixon said in a statement. “The terminated research grants are simply wasteful in studying things that do not pertain to American’s health to any significant degree, including DEI and gender ideology. As we begin to Make America Healthy Again, it’s important to prioritize research that directly affects the health of Americans.”  One of the grants cut included nearly $1 million to scientists at the University of Maryland-Baltimore for a research project titled, “Assessing intersectional multilevel and multidimensional structural racism for English- and Spanish-speaking populations in the US.” The project included work to create an “intersectional, multilevel, and multidimensional Structural Racism Measure” in order to “eliminate health disparities and discrimination” for racial minorities. “There is an urgent public health need to collect valid and reliable data on structural racism before effective interventions to reduce structural racism can be designed,” the project’s description stated.  TRUMP ADMIN PAUSES $175M IN FEDERAL FUNDING TO UPENN OVER INCLUSION OF TRANS ATHLETES IN WOMEN’S SPORTS  Multiple projects studying transgender medical treatments in mice were also among those cut. One of those grants provided close to $1 million to Emory University researchers to study how transgender hormone treatments impact the skeletal maturation of mice, titled, “Microbiome mediated effects of gender affirming hormone therapy in mice.” Another project worth roughly $50,000 worked to understand “how chromosomal makeup and cross-sex hormone administration” impacts wound healing in mice. A separate research project that did not use mice got nearly $1 million “to study possible genomic associations with gender identity.”  Grants focused on recruiting scientists based on their race or ethnicity were also slashed by the Trump administration. A grant worth more than $5 million to researchers at Vanderbilt University Medical Center to help “achieve more racial and ethnic diversity among our scientific research faculty,” included a commitment to hire at least 18 tenure-track faculty “from minoritized racial and ethnic groups.” UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA DROPS DIVERSITY STATEMENTS IN HIRING AMID THREATS OF TRUMP CUTTING FUNDING Soon after President Donald Trump was inaugurated, he directed federal agencies, including HHS, to temporarily freeze the issuance of new federal grants. The action was to ensure each agency’s funding was in compliance with Trump’s new policies and requirements, including those around getting rid of DEI and progressive gender ideology in the public sector. A judge subsequently issued an order temporarily blocking the administration’s funding freeze, and shortly thereafter, the Trump administration rescinded its memo directing the funding halt. A short time after that, the NIH resumed important meetings and travel associated with the agency’s grant-review process.   In addition to reviewing NIH’s grant funding to ensure it aligns with the president’s policies, Trump also implemented a 15% cap on facilities and administrative costs included in research grant awards. The administration’s actions targeting NIH research have generated widespread backlash. Earlier this month, Trump’s pick to be the next NIH director, Dr. Jay Bhattacharya, was peppered with questions from Democrats during his confirmation hearing over whether he would step in to prevent the president from slashing what they deemed critically important research projects.  Bhattacharya would not explicitly say he disagreed with the cuts, or that, if confirmed, he would step in to stop them. Rather, he said he would “follow the law,” while also investigating the impact of the cuts and ensuring every NIH researcher doing work that advances the health outcomes of Americans has the resources necessary to do their work.  CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP Bhattacharya also laid out what he called a new, decentralized vision for future research at NIH that he said will be aimed at embracing dissenting ideas and transparency, while focusing on research topics that have the best chance at directly benefiting the health outcomes of Americans. Bhattacharya said that he wants to rid the agency’s research portfolio of other “frivolous” efforts that he says do little to directly benefit health outcomes.

Migrant deaths hit record number in 2024, UN agency says

Migrant deaths hit record number in 2024, UN agency says

Nearly 9,000 fatalities confirmed worldwide, but real toll likely much higher. Nearly 9,000 people died last year trying to cross borders, the United Nations agency for migration says. The death toll set a new grim record for the fifth year in a row. The number of deaths on migratory routes has more than doubled since 2020. The International Organization for Migration (IOM) recorded 8,938 migrant deaths in 2024. The real death toll is likely much higher given that many deaths go unreported or undocumented, the IOM said in a statement on Friday. “The rise of deaths is terrible in and of itself, but the fact that thousands remained unidentified each year is even more tragic,” Julia Black, coordinator of the IOM’s Missing Migrants Project, said in the statement. The IOM’s deputy director general for operations, Ugochi Daniels, said: “The increase in deaths across so many regions in the world shows why we need an international, holistic response that can prevent further tragic loss of life.” “Behind every number is a human being, someone for whom the loss is devastating,” he added. Advertisement Asia was the region with the most reported fatalities with 2,788, followed by the Mediterranean Sea with 2,452 and Africa with 2,242. Final data are not yet in for the Americas, but at least 1,233 deaths (including 341 in the Caribbean) occurred in 2024. At least 233 migrants lost their lives in Europe and 174 in the Darien Gap between Colombia and Panama, a new record. According to the IOM, migrants are all people who leave their place of residence for any reason, for any length of time, whether voluntarily or involuntarily. Some seek asylum because they are fleeing war or violence. News of the record death toll comes days after the agency announced it was suspending many “lifesaving” programmes around the world and firing hundreds of employees due to United States aid cuts, impacting millions of vulnerable migrants and refugees worldwide. The Geneva-based IOM is one of several groups helping displaced people that have been hit by major US aid cuts, forcing it to scale back or shutter programmes, which it said will have a severe impact on migrants. Adblock test (Why?)

Israeli ex-deputy FM confronted over Israel’s renewed assault on Gaza

Israeli ex-deputy FM confronted over Israel’s renewed assault on Gaza

Redi Tlhabi challenges ex-Israeli deputy foreign minister Danny Ayalon on Israel’s ceasefire breach and its war on Gaza. Israel has shattered the ceasefire with Hamas this week through extensive air raids that killed hundreds of civilians, including at least 200 children. Israeli ground troops were also deployed, ending the ceasefire that lasted just less than two months. Then, on Tuesday, Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz threatened the residents of Gaza with “destruction and devastation” if they did not expel Hamas. So, what lies ahead for Gaza and is it in danger of a complete takeover? This week on UpFront, Redi Tlhabi speaks with Israel’s former deputy foreign minister about Israel’s war in Gaza. Adblock test (Why?)

Are Gen Z rejecting city life for farm life?

Are Gen Z rejecting city life for farm life?

Today on The Stream: We examine why so many people of Gen Z age are choosing farm life over city dwellings. Faced with burnout, soaring rents, and a yearning for a slower, more intentional life, Gen Z is leaving cities behind for farms. From homesteading to off-grid communities, young people are redefining success through self-sufficiency and sustainability. But is rural life truly the answer, or does it bring its own set of challenges? With increasing land costs, social isolation, and infrastructure limitations, can this movement endure? We hear from those embracing this shift. Is rural living the key to a healthier, more sustainable society? Presenter: Anelise Borges Guests:Shannon Hayes – CEO, SAP Bush Hollow FarmVictor Gabriel Lara – Creative directorPatrick Vernuccio – Urban gardening content creator and authorMohammed Ali Al Khater – Co-Founder and CEO, Torba Farm Adblock test (Why?)