Education experts say Trump ‘brought down a failed bureaucratic machine’ with order dissolving Ed Department
Education experts applauded President Donald Trump for sending educational issues back to the states with the signing of a long-awaited executive order dismantling the Education Department on Thursday. “It’s past time for a radical rethink of how education is administered in this country, because we cannot keep propping up a failing system,” Nicole Neily, President and Founder of Parents Defending Education (PDE), told Fox News Digital in a statement. Trump signed an executive order on Thursday “returning education, very simply, back to the states where it belongs.” “Today we take an historic action that was 45 years in the making,” Trump said of the decades-long conservative push to disassemble the department that dates back to former President Ronald Reagan’s presidency. TRUMP STILL NEEDS CONGRESS’ HELP WITH PLAN TO ABOLISH EDUCATION DEPARTMENT “The numbers don’t lie – over the past 45 years, per pupil spending has skyrocketed while achievement has plummeted,” Neily said. “The status quo has very clearly failed American children and done little more than line the pockets of bureaucrats and activists.” EDUCATION LEADERS SAY TRUMP DISMANTLING KEY GOVERNMENT AGENCY ‘SAVED EDUCATION’ Tommy Schultz, CEO of the American Federation for Children, said that “with this executive order, President Trump continues taking steps to fulfill his campaign promises on education, and now it is time for Congress to send school choice legislation to his desk so that he can fulfill his other mandate to the voters.” Schultz told Fox News Digital that in signing the order, Trump “brought down a failed bureaucratic machine in DC, and brought school choice to every state.” Moms for Liberty, a pro-parent political advocacy group, called the move an opportunity to “seize this moment to shape the future of learning!” “This is an incredible chance to empower parents and local communities to take charge of education, instead of letting Washington bureaucrats make the decisions!” the group wrote in a post on X. The White House, ahead of the signing ceremony, pointed to the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) scores showing low testing averages among students as an example of the department not working effectively to improve education. “NAEP (National Assessment of Educational Progress) scores reveal a national crisis — our children are falling behind,” Harrison Fields, the White House principal deputy press secretary, told Fox News. “Over the past four years, Democrats have allowed millions of illegal minors into the country, straining school resources and diverting focus from American students.” Margaret Spellings, Bipartisan Policy Center President and CEO, said in a statement that “parents and students are deeply frustrated by the state of our education system” and that “the president’s use of NAEP data in the executive order to highlight the recent trend of declining math and reading scores demonstrates the need to act immediately.” “The executive order is largely what was expected but it also included an important directive to continue funding beneficial programs like Pell grants, Title I, and IDEA ‘uninterrupted.’ That’s a welcomed commitment but taxpayers must also know what they are getting for their money,” Spellings added. “Recent layoffs at the department will make following through on that commitment a challenge.” “The hard work begins now among Congress, the Trump Administration, and families to determine how best to serve students,” she said. While many facets of the department will be gutted, Title I funding, resources for students with disabilities, and Pell Grants will be preserved, according to Trump. Trump’s order kick-started the effort to begin disassembling the department. However, the entire agency cannot be outright abolished unless Congress passes legislation that addresses the laws establishing the department.
‘Educators will be fired’: Republicans cheer Trump order dismantling Education Department as Dems seethe
Republicans were quick to applaud President Trump’s latest executive order to dismantle the Department of Education on Thursday, while Democrats blasted the administration for “betraying our kids.” Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said in a statement, “Attempting to dismantle the Department of Education is one of the most destructive and devastating steps Donald Trump has ever taken. This. Will. Hurt. Kids.” “This horrible decision by Donald Trump will be felt by teachers, parents, school leaders, and in the quality of education our children receive. Across the country property taxes will go up, while the quality of many schools will go down. Presidents cannot make departments, and they cannot eliminate them either. Only Congress can do that.” The sentiment was echoed by House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., who said in a statement, “Enabled by compliant House Republicans, the Trump administration is determined to take a chainsaw to public education in America. Shutting down the Department of Education will harm millions of children in our nation’s public schools, their families and hardworking teachers.” BIDEN’S FORMER SPOKESMAN SLAMS TRUMP AND GOP ‘COLLUDING TO IMPEACH’ JUDGES “Class sizes will soar, educators will be fired, special education programs will be cut and college will get even more expensive, at a time when the cost of living is already too high,” Jeffries said. “Donald Trump and House Republicans are crashing the economy in real time. They believe that giving massive tax breaks to billionaires is more important than supporting our public school children. Congress created the Department of Education and only an act of Congress can eliminate it. We will stop this malignant Republican scheme in the House of Representatives and in the Courts,” he continued. “The courts must act to uphold the rule of law and stop Donald Trump’s tyrannical power grab.” Trump signed the order on Thursday after previewing his plan to do so for months. His choice to lead the department, Linda McMahon, was only confirmed by the Senate a couple of weeks prior and is completely on board with the effort, as signaled by her attendance at the signing event. “Donald Trump is betraying our kids and families,” said House Democratic Whip Katherine Clark, D-Mass. “Republicans promised to make working families’ lives easier and more secure. Now, they’re taking a chainsaw to our local schools — all to fund tax cuts and corrupt contracts for their billionaire donors. Let’s be clear: Trump and the GOP are unilaterally firing teachers, abandoning students, gutting special education, and forcing parents into a panic just as they’re dragging us into a recession.” DEM SENATOR ON SCHUMER FUTURE: ‘IMPORTANT’ TO KNOW ‘WHEN IT’S TIME TO GO’ “I agree with President Trump that the Department of Education has failed its mission,” Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Chairman Bill Cassidy, R-La., told Fox News Digital in a statement. “Since the Department can only be shut down with Congressional approval, I will support the President’s goals by submitting legislation to accomplish this as soon as possible.” “President Trump has my full support in eliminating the Department of Education. Bring the money back to states and with the students,” Sen. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., wrote on X. House Freedom Caucus Chairman Andy Harris, R-Md., wrote on X, “The Department of Education has failed its mission because it is promoting everything EXCEPT reading, writing, and arithmetic. President Trump is returning education back to the states and giving power to parents and students.” Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Va., claimed in a statement, “President Trump’s executive order to gut the U.S. Department of Education underscores how out of touch he is with students, parents, and educators. This order will have negative impacts on every student and harm our economic growth and competitiveness.” SCOOP: BILL PREVENTING ACTIVIST JUDGES FROM BLOCKING TRUMP’S AGENDA BACKED BY WHITE HOUSE House Education and Workforce Committee Chairman Tim Walberg, R-Mich., said in his own statement, “The key to improving education is empowering parents and students and reducing the role of Washington bureaucrats. Over the last four years, the nation has seen the results of empowering the Department of Education. The Biden-Harris administration discouraged the reopening of schools, encouraged the adoption of discriminatory and divisive curriculum, oversaw the collapse of student performance across the country, repeatedly pushed the student loan obligations of the wealthy onto middle class taxpayers, and pushed a radical gender ideology that has been repeatedly slapped down by courts as unconstitutional.” “We now have a secretary of education, Linda McMahon, who understands the importance of getting the federal government out of the way. And I look forward to working alongside her to get the federal government off the backs of students, families, educators, and taxpayers,” he added. SPEAKER JOHNSON SAYS GOP LOOKING AT ‘ALL AVAILABLE OPTIONS’ TO ADDRESS ‘ACTIVIST JUDGES’ OPPOSING TRUMP “Bottom line, the Department of Education has failed to deliver results for America’s students and today’s actions by the Trump administration will help ensure our nation’s youth are put first.” During the signing ceremony on Thursday, Trump explained that “the department’s useful functions such as … Pell grants, title one funding resources for children with disabilities and special needs will be preserved, fully preserved.” “They’re going to be preserved in full and redistributed to various other agencies and departments that will take very good care of them,” he said. “But beyond these core necessities, my administration will take all lawful steps to shut down the Department,” Trump announced. The move to dismantle the education department comes amid the Elon Musk-helmed Department of Government Efficiency’s (DOGE) aggressive overhaul to slash the federal bureaucracy.
SCOOP: House Republican moves to codify Trump order to dismantle Department of Education
FIRST ON FOX: A House Republican is already making moves to get President Donald Trump’s executive order significantly curbing the Department of Education enshrined in federal law. Rep. Michael Rulli, R-Ohio, who was at the White House Thursday for Trump’s announcement, told Fox News Digital minutes after the event he was working on the legislation. “I want to thank President Trump for inviting me to the White House for the signing of this executive order. Government functions best when it is closer to the people it serves, which is why returning control of education to the states is such a critical step,” Rulli said. The Ohio Republican said he “will soon introduce legislation to codify the President’s agenda into law, ensuring that these essential reforms to our children’s education cannot be undone by future administrations.” INJUNCTION LIFTED ON TRUMP EXECUTIVE ORDERS SLASHING FEDERAL DEI SUPPORT Like Trump’s order, Rulli said his bill would allow for “funding for Pell Grants, Title I programs, and resources for children with disabilities and special needs” to continue under other federal departments. “Having served on my local school board for eight years, I’ve seen firsthand how our schools serve as the backbone of our communities,” he said. “This executive order empowers states to better address the unique needs of their communities and amplifies the voices of local school leaders.” Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., previously said there was support among congressional Republicans for Trump and Education Secretary Linda McMahon cutting the Department of Education. EDUCATION LEADERS SAY TRUMP DISMANTLING KEY GOVERNMENT AGENCY ‘SAVED EDUCATION’ “[T]his is a time for change. I think this will serve students, parents, teachers, administrators better to have that down at the local level. And Secretary McMahon is bringing that change about. This is a long time coming. You will have a greater choice for parents and students. You will have a lot better outcomes, I think. This is something we all applaud,” Johnson said during an interview on “Fox & Friends” this week. House Republican leaders will have multiple options on which route to take. In addition to Rulli’s bill, Rep. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., who’s long advocated for dismantling the department, reintroduced his own bill to abolish the department altogether this year. The bill text simply said, “The Department of Education shall terminate on December 31, 2026.” The contours of Rulli’s bill are not immediately clear, but a spokesperson said it would closely mirror Trump’s executive order that specifically calls for returning education to the states. Even if it passed the House, however, such a bill would have an uphill climb in the Senate. Senate Republicans would need at least seven Democrats to cross the aisle and vote to advance the bill to meet its 60-vote threshold, something unlikely to happen given the left’s near-uniform opposition to the push. Nevertheless, Trump’s push to dismantle or eliminate the Department of Education will require an act of Congress to stay permanent and shield it from probable legal challenges.
Trans activist accused of witnessing sexual misconduct of minors leads chaplain prayer in Maine legislature
Maine Democrats, who censured a Republican lawmaker last month over an online comment about a transgender student in sports, reportedly selected transgender activist Quinn Gormley — who was accused of witnessing sexual misconduct with minors in 2023 and now claims to be a seminarian — to lead the state House of Representatives in prayer Thursday morning. “Let us be in the spirit of solemnity,” Gormley said in the opening prayer. “Your great holiness, I pray here today for these leaders in our state may they approach their work with regard for the dignity of all the people they serve. May they understand that diversity is the intent of the design, and may they have the wisdom to know that the path to justice begins with humility and travels through mercy. In the name of all that is sacred and good in this world, I pray, amen.” Maine Wire first reported on the prayer and published the story behind the accusations of sexual misconduct involving minors when Gormley was working with A Maine Transgender Network, Inc., an advocacy organization for transgender people. In that report, Gormley, a former leader in the Maine Transgender Network, was accused of witnessing inappropriate sexual behavior among minors on a Discord server for its youth program. The allegations, made by former member Sampson Spadafore, involved minors crossing sexual boundaries, though it was clarified that no adults were involved in the misconduct. MAINE RESPONDS TO TRUMP ADMIN’S DECLARATION STATE VIOLATED TITLE IX BY ALLOWING TRANSGENDERS IN GIRLS SPORTS Gormley — the clinical chaplain at MaineHealth Medical Center, according to Gormley’s LinkedIn profile — later went on a sabbatical from the organization, according to the report, and was replaced by Bre Kidman, a self-identified “queer feminist mermaid” who ran unsuccessfully in the Senate Democratic primary in 2020. Liberal Gov. Janet Mills and Democratic lawmakers have consulted the transgender network, including Gormley, on several bills in the last several years involving expanding minors’ access to gender transition treatments. The Maine Department of Education also endorses the Maine Transgender Network as a valuable resource for parents and students. TRUMP ADMIN RESPONDS TO MAINE’S RELUCTANCE TO BAN TRANS ATHLETES FROM GIRLS’ SPORTS “I got to do something really cool this morning! I was honored to be the clergy of the day for the Maine House today. So good to see familiar faces! And even though it looked different than I imagined for my first time, it was nice to speak in that chamber,” Gormley, whose bio on LinkedIn says “Transgender Death Educator, Clinical Chaplain, Anti-Violence Advocate, Recovering Lobbyist,” wrote Thursday on the platform. Meanwhile, Maine State Rep. Laurel Libby, who has become a key figure in the state’s ongoing battle over transgender inclusion in girls’ sports, is not allowed to speak or vote on the state’s House of Representatives floor. Libby was censured by the Maine House of Representatives’ Democrat majority and House Speaker Ryan Fecteau for a February social media post in which she pointed out a trans athlete who won a girls’ pole-vaulting event. Fecteau and Maine Democrats censured Libby on the basis that the athlete she identified by name and with a photograph was a minor. But Libby has argued that the athlete had already been identified in other social media posts. TRUMP VOWS TO CUT OFF FEDERAL FUNDING TO MAINE OVER REFUSAL TO COMPLY WITH ‘NO MEN IN WOMEN’S SPORTS’ ORDER “It’s a remarkable double standard as there are public photos of this individual in many places, on social media and even some posted by his school, and so yes, this post went viral, but this was an individual who participated in a public event, who publicly stood on a podium and accepted a championship medal that rightfully belonged to the girls standing on the second-place spot,” Libby previously told Fox News Digital. Libby has since filed a lawsuit against Fecteau, seeking to regain her voting and speaking rights. Maine has become ground zero for what President Donald Trump has touted as gender extremism ever since his spat with the governor last month over her refusal to enforce his executive order barring biological men from competing in women’s sports. This week, Trump escalated his demands that Maine adhere to the ban or face federal prosecution. Trump previously threatened to pull federal funds from the state’s education programs. Fox News Digital has reached out to Maine House Democrats for comment.
EXCLUSIVE: House GOP firebrand drives DOGE committee investigation of government media agency corruption
EXCLUSIVE – DOGE subcommittee Chairwoman Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-GA, is investigating “gross negligence” and “rampant cronyism” at the U.S. Agency for Global Media, a government media agency run by former legacy media executives. Greene told Fox News Digital that abuses at the U.S. Agency for Global Media – USAGM – pose a “direct threat to national security.” USAGM is a government-funded international media agency that oversees several radio, TV and digital media outlets worldwide, including Voice of America (VOA) and Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty. Founded in 1999, the agency has been primarily staffed by journalists from mainstream media outlets, with former CEOs coming from agencies such as MSNBC and NPR. DEMS FORECAST ‘TRUMP RECESSION,’ AS REPUBLICANS SAY IT’S TIME TO DOUBLE DOWN Kari Lake, the Trump administration’s senior advisor overseeing USAGM, has previously bashed the agency as “not salvageable,” saying that “from top-to-bottom, this agency is a giant rot and burden to the American taxpayer—a national security risk for this nation—and irretrievably broken.” Last week, President Donald Trump signed an executive order titled “Continuing the Reduction of the Federal Bureaucracy,” commanding the dismantling of USAGM, as well as six other government offices. Before the agency is entirely shut down, however, Greene is requesting Lake give Congress access to key records from the agency to shed further light on “serious allegations of corruption, financial mismanagement, and national security failures.” In a letter obtained by Fox News Digital addressed to Lake, Greene said that over the past decade, the Office of Personnel Management and the Office of the Director of National Intelligence have uncovered “gross negligence and intentional defiance of national security protocols, resulting in unfettered and unauthorized access of sensitive information by federal employees.” TRUMP TO DISMANTLE THE EDUCATION DEPARTMENT AMID FALLING U.S. TEST SCORES Greene pointed to a further “full-scale investigation” launched in 2020 by independent law firm McGuireWoods that confirmed whistleblower testimonies about severe mismanagement and corruption within the agency. According to Greene, abuses included unlawfully granting J-1 visas and awarding millions of dollars in contracts through the Open Technology Fund to friends and individuals with whom there were conflicts of interest. Greene said that other “egregious abuses” uncovered by the McGuireWoods investigation included senior officials at the agency erasing entire laptop hard drives before turning them in to investigators. Despite the individuals responsible being fired under the first Trump administration, Greene said that “nearly all” of those involved in the wrongdoing were rehired under the Biden administration, “allowing them to resume their previous activities with zero consequences.” TRUMP DOJ DROPS BIDEN-ERA LEGAL CHALLENGE TO TEXAS BORDER SECURITY LAW The congresswoman is demanding access to information regarding all grant agreements awarded through the Open Technology Fund, all settlement agreements for individuals implicated in the McGuireWoods report and any additional communications or information that Lake deems relevant. “For years, USAGM engaged in rampant cronyism, issuing corrupt contracts to friends and family through the Open Technology Fund (OTF), while senior officials bypassed security protocols, mishandled sensitive information, and obstructed investigations,” a statement by Greene’s office said. Greene told Fox News Digital that she considers the Biden administration’s decision to rehire the officials responsible for the abuse not only an “insult to taxpayers” but also a “direct threat to national security.” “We will not allow the former Biden regime to cover up illegal activity and shield bad actors from accountability,” she said. Fox News Digital politics reporter Emma Colton contributed to this report.
Department of Education significantly dismantled in new Trump executive order
President Donald Trump signed an executive order Thursday to scale down the Department of Education — a move that is expected to spur lawsuits challenging the directive and will likely require Congressional approval. Trump frequently has discussed plans to nix the Department of Education dating back to the campaign trail, and said in September 2024 that he wanted to cut down on the federal government’s influence over education to “stop the abuse of your taxpayer dollars to indoctrinate America’s youth.” “Everybody knows it’s right, and we have to get our children educated,” Trump said Thursday. “We’re not doing well with the world of education in this country, and we haven’t for a long time.” As a result, a White House fact sheet on the executive order said, the directive aims to “turn over education to families instead of bureaucracies,” and instructs Education Secretary Linda McMahon to “take all necessary steps to facilitate the closure the Department of Education and return education authority to the States, while continuing to ensure the effective and uninterrupted delivery of services, programs, and benefits on which Americans rely.” TRUMP SET TO SIGN EXECUTIVE ORDER TO ABOLISH THE DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION Still, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters earlier Thursday that the executive order would not entirely shutter the agency, but would only “greatly minimize” it. Additionally, she said that the remaining agency would still oversee Pell Grants and student loans that provide financial aid for undergraduate students. “It’s not going to be shut down,” Leavitt said. “Pell Grants and student loans will still be run out of the department in Washington, D.C., but the great responsibility of educating our nation’s students will return to the states.” The White House did not immediately reply to a request for comment from Fox News Digital to clarify what the remaining Department of Education would do. The Department of Education did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Fox News Digital. Meanwhile, a Gallup Poll released in February shows that Americans’ satisfaction with education has dropped significantly in the past decade. The poll found that only 24% of Americans are satisfied with the quality of education in the U.S. as of January 2025, in comparison to 37% in January 2017. The White House has railed against the state of U.S. education and declining test scores from U.S. students. Critics in the White House have pointed to the “Nation’s Report Card,” the 2024 National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) released every two years, published Jan. 27. The exam tests fourth and eighth-grade students, and found almost stagnant math scores for eighth-graders in comparison to 2022, and reading scores dropped 2 points at both grade levels. The Department of Education, established in 1979, seeks to improve coordination of federal education programs and support state and local school systems, according to its website. It also oversees student loans, and financial aid programs and nondiscrimination policies. The executive branch needs Congress to sign off on eradicating the agency, under Article II of the U.S. Constitution. Additionally, this measure would require 60 votes to pass in the Senate, and there are only 53 Republicans currently. Even so, Rep. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., suggested in a Wednesday X post that the Senate use the budget reconciliation process to pass the measure, which would require only 51 votes. Massie has spearheaded legislative efforts to draw down the agency, and introduced a measure Jan. 31 to nix the Department of Education by December 2026. There is also some support in the Senate for such legislation. “I agree with President Trump that the Department of Education has failed its mission,” Sen. Bill Cassidy, R-La., said in a statement to Fox News Digital. “Since the Department can only be shut down with Congressional approval, I will support the President’s goals by submitting legislation to accomplish this as soon as possible.” Even without fully closing the agency, the Trump administration has moved to significantly cut down its force. On March 11, the Department of Education unveiled plans to cut its staff of just more than 4,000 people in half. TRUMP STILL NEEDS CONGRESS’ HELP WITH PLAN TO ABOLISH EDUCATION DEPARTMENT Should efforts to shutter the agency move ahead, National Education Association President Becky Pringle cautioned that college would become more costly for families and that students with disabilities would suffer. “If successful, Trump’s continued actions will hurt all students by sending class sizes soaring, cutting job training programs, making higher education more expensive and out of reach for middle-class families, taking away special education services for students with disabilities, and gutting student civil rights protections,” Pringle said in a statement Wednesday evening. Likewise, the American Federation of Teachers urged Congress earlier in March to oppose any executive orders to dismantle the agency. The teachers union pointed to an NPR/PBS News/Marist Poll conducted in February that found more than 60% of Americans “strongly oppose” eradicating the agency. EDUCATION DEPT LAUNCHES WIDESPREAD CIVIL RIGHTS PROBE: A LOOK AT WHAT THE AGENCY AS TRUMP EYES SHUTDOWN Following reports Wednesday evening regarding Trump’s intention to sign the directive on Thursday, American Federation of Teachers President Randi Weingarten announced the union would challenge the order. “See you in court,” Weingarten said. Legal actions opposing Trump’s actions already are underway. A group of attorneys general from 21 states filed a complaint in the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts March 13 following the layoffs at the agency. The lawsuit said that efforts to dismantle the agency, including through the layoffs, are “an unlawful violation of the separation of powers, and the Executive’s obligation to take care that the law be faithfully executed.” Fox News’ Patrick Ward and Lawrence Edwards contributed to this report.
African war-torn nation invokes Trump ‘golden age’ for minerals deal in exchange for booting violent rebels
The president of the Democratic Republic of Congo sent a letter to President Donald Trump offering a minerals deal in exchange for a security agreement with the U.S. that would remove violent rebels from the war-torn nation. “Your election has ushered in the golden age for America,” President Félix Tshisekedi wrote in February to Trump, the Wall Street Journal reported Wednesday. “Our partnership would provide the U.S. with a strategic advantage by securing critical minerals such as cobalt, lithium, copper and tantalum from the Democratic Republic of Congo.” The Congo has over $20 trillion worth of minerals available, according to the Congo-based Panzi Foundation, including gold and copper. The African country is also the world’s largest producer of cobalt, which is essential for defense and aerospace applications, and a main component in the batteries of many electric vehicles and cellphones. Tshisekedi seeks to strike a “formal security pact” so Congo’s army can defeat a Rwandan-backed rebel group called M23 in exchange for a minerals deal, the Wall Street Journal reported. The letter did not provide details on what a potential security pact would look like or operate. CONGO’S MINERAL OFFER TO US RAISES QUESTIONS OF OWNERSHIP AMID BLOODY CIVIL WAR, MAJOR CHINA PRESENCE Congo “is interested in partnering with the Trump administration to end the conflict and stop the flow of blood minerals via Rwanda,” a Tshisekedi spokeswoman told the Wall Street Journal. “It is in both our interests that American companies – like Apple and Tesla – buy minerals direct from source in the DRC and unlock the engine of our mineral wealth for the benefit of all the world,” she added. RWANDA-BACKED M23 REBELS BREACH SECOND MAJOR CITY IN CONGO’S MINERAL-RICH EAST Congo and Rwanda are neighboring nations and have been involved in conflict for decades, including the First Congo War from 1996 to 1997, the Second Congo War between 1998 and 2003, and the most recent ongoing conflict that began in 2022. The current conflicts are rooted in gaining access to resources, such as minerals, and claims M23 will protect ethnic minorities from the Congolese government. The rebels seized Goma – the country’s largest city of the North Kivu province – in January as fighting between the Rwanda-backed rebels and government intensified, which included the deaths of 13 U.N. peacekeepers and foreign soldiers. WIDESPREAD KILLING, RAPE, DISEASE AND WAR MAKE DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO HELL ON EARTH Tshisekedi joined Fox News’ Bret Baier Wednesday to discuss the potential minerals deal with the U.S., explaining he wants to build jobs in his nation through the extraction of the minerals, while simultaneously building a partnership with the U.S. to ensure lasting peace in the nation. “We want to extract these minerals but also process them, as this would create a lot of jobs,” Tshisekedi told Baier. “And we want a partnership that will provide lasting peace and stability for our countries, which we need.” China has a large presence in Congo, and it runs the country’s cobalt mine, Fox Digital previously reported. Tshisekedi brushed off concerns that China’s presence could complicate any potential deal with the U.S. during his interview with Baier. 70 CHRISTIANS BEHEADED IN AFRICAN COUNTRY BY ISIS-ALIGNED MILITANTS, GROUPS SAY; WORLD MOSTLY SILENT “Nature abhors a vacuum, as the saying goes,” he told Baier. “It’s not that China is waxing in Africa. It’s more that America is waning in Africa… and we would be very happy to have our American friends here, who used to be more present than China in the ‘70s and ’80s.” Tshisekedi is also in negotiations with Erik Prince, the founder of private military firm formerly known as Blackwater and a Trump ally, to potentially aid the Congo’s government amid the war, the Wall Street Journal reported. Fox News Digital reached out to the White House for comment on the deal offer, but did not immediately receive a reply. The offer comes after the Trump administration worked to strike a minerals deal with Ukraine, which is rich in resources such as lithium and copper, in an effort to recoup the cost of aid sent to Ukraine amid its war with Russia. The deal, however, was put on ice after Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy‘s tense Oval Office meeting with Trump and Vice President JD Vance in February. Fox News Digital’s Paul Tilsley and Diana Stancy contributed to this report.
Ukraine, Russia confirm talks with US officials in Saudi Arabia next week
Talks on a United States proposal for a partial ceasefire in Ukraine are set to resume on Monday in Saudi Arabia, Ukrainian and Russian officials have confirmed. Speaking at a news conference in Oslo on Thursday, Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said the structure of the meetings scheduled for Monday would see US officials meeting with Ukrainian experts and then holding separate talks with Russian representatives. “There will be a meeting of Ukraine and America and then some shuttle diplomacy, as our American colleagues said, America with Russia,” he told reporters after a meeting with Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Store. Yuri Ushakov, a top foreign policy aide to President Vladimir Putin, confirmed that bilateral talks between Russian and US officials would be taking place on Monday in Riyadh, adding they would focus on the safety of shipping in the Black Sea. Russia will be represented by Grigory Karasin, a former diplomat who now chairs the Federation Council Committee on Foreign Affairs, and Sergei Beseda, an adviser to the director of the Federal Security Service (FSB). Advertisement Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said when Putin and US President Donald Trump spoke by telephone on Tuesday, they had discussed the “Black Sea Initiative”. Following the call, the White House had issued a statement saying the leaders agreed to technical negotiations on the implementation of a maritime ceasefire in the Black Sea, a full ceasefire and permanent peace. Limited ceasefire Following separate phone calls with US President Donald Trump this week, the Ukrainian and Russian leaders both agreed in principle to a pause in attacks on energy infrastructure. Zelenskyy said on Thursday that although he originally had sought a broader ceasefire, he was committed to working with the US to stop arms being directed at power production and civilian facilities. The previous day, he had signalled that he intended to include not only energy targets, but also rail and port infrastructure in a list of facilities he would want to see included in the partial ceasefire. On Thursday, he stated he would not discuss potential US ownership of Ukraine’s Russia-occupied Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant with Trump, after US officials said Washington could take over. The plant, caught in the crossfire since Moscow seized it after invading Ukraine in 2022, is a significant asset, producing nearly a quarter of Ukraine’s electricity in the year before the war. Asked about reports that Trump was considering recognising Russian-occupied Crimea as part of Russia, Zelenskyy said the US president had not raised the issue with him during their call. Advertisement The Kremlin has repeatedly said Crimea, where Russia’s Black Sea Fleet is based, is formally part of Russia. The Black Sea peninsula is internationally recognised as Ukrainian territory by most countries. Peacekeeping talks In London, Prime Minister Keir Starmer hosted a meeting of Western military officials on Thursday to flesh out plans for an international peacekeeping force for Ukraine as details of a partial ceasefire are worked out. Starmer and French President Emmanuel Macron, co-leaders of efforts to form the so-called “coalition of the willing”, have said they are willing to deploy peacekeepers in Ukraine following any full ceasefire between Moscow and Kyiv – an idea Russia has vehemently rejected. Macron has also said he would open a discussion on extending France’s nuclear umbrella to the entire European Union. Russia’s Sergei Shoigu, secretary of the Security Council, said on Thursday that such statements “reflect the anti-Russian sentiment that reigns in Europe today”. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov accused Europe of turning into a “war party”. “For the most part, the signals from Brussels and European capitals concern plans to militarise Europe,” he said. Moscow also took aim at Berlin, after chancellor-in-waiting Friedrich Merz proposed a huge spending boost on defence and said Moscow was waging a “war of aggression against Europe”. Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said the comments were a reflection of the “German political elites’ desire for historical revenge”. Advertisement EU summit While in Oslo, the Ukrainian leader addressed a summit of EU leaders in Brussels, which saw all member nations bar Hungary signing a joint statement backing Ukraine. Speaking by videolink, Zelenskyy said it was “simply anti-European when one person blocks decisions that are important for the entire continent”, referring to Hungarian Prime Minister Victor Orban’s repeated opposition to EU support for Ukraine. Zelenskyy also urged EU leaders to approve a package of at least 5 billion euros ($5.4bn) for artillery purchases for Ukraine and called for continued pressure on Russia. Adblock test (Why?)
Will diplomacy end the conflict in eastern DRC?
Congolese and Rwandan leaders called for a ceasefire after holding direct talks in Qatar. The eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) has been in a state of conflict since the late 1990s. The Rwandan-backed armed group M23 has been making gains this year after taking control of major cities in the east. The rebels were due to meet with DRC government officials in Angola on Tuesday. But M23 rebels withdrew – blaming new European Union sanctions for their decision. On Wednesday, DRC’s President Felix Tshisekedi and Rwanda’s President Paul Kagame held talks in Doha. The leaders called for an immediate ceasefire in eastern DRC. So, what does all this mean for the conflict? Presenter: James Bays Guests: Fidel Amakye Owusu – Chief executive officer for DefSEC Analytics Africa Angela Muvumba Sellstrom – Senior researcher at the Nordic Africa Institute Alex Vines – Director of the Africa Programme at Chatham House Adblock test (Why?)
Missiles from Yemen target Israel despite US threats
NewsFeed At least two missiles launched from Yemen triggered warning sirens in Israel and the occupied West Bank on Thursday. The Israeli military says both were intercepted. The Houthis claimed responsibility for at least one of them and have said they will increase attacks in response to US strikes on Sanaa. Published On 20 Mar 202520 Mar 2025 Adblock test (Why?)