Senate to hold final vote on RFK Jr nomination to serve as Trump’s Health secretary
The Senate is expected on Thursday to confirm Robert F. Kennedy Jr. as Health and Human Services (HHS) secretary in President Donald Trump‘s cabinet. The final showdown over Kennedy’s controversial nomination was set in motion after the Republican-controlled Senate on Wednesday – in a 53-47 party-line vote – invoked cloture, which started the clock ticking toward the final confirmation roll call. Kennedy, the well-known vaccine skeptic and environmental crusader who ran for the White House in 2024 before ending his bid and endorsing Trump, needs a simple majority to be confirmed by the Senate. TRUMP HEALTH SECRETARY NOMINEE RFK JR. SURVIVES HEATED HEARINGS Kennedy survived back-to-back combustible Senate confirmation hearings late last month, when Trump’s nominee to lead 18 powerful federal agencies that oversee the nation’s food and health faced plenty of verbal fireworks over past controversial comments, including his repeated claims in recent years linking vaccines to autism, which have been debunked by scientific research. During the hearings, Democrats also spotlighted Kennedy’s service for years as chair or chief legal counsel for Children’s Health Defense, the nonprofit organization he founded that has advocated against vaccines and sued the federal government numerous times, including a challenge over the authorization of the COVID-19 vaccine for children. HEAD HERE FOR LATEST FOX NEWS REPORTING ON PRESIDENT TRUMP’S FIRST 100 DAYS BACK IN THE WHITE HOUSE With Democrats on the Senate Finance Committee voting not to advance Kennedy, the spotlight was on Sen. Bill Cassidy, R-La., a physician and chair of the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP). Cassidy issued a last minute endorsement before the committee level vote, giving Kennedy a party-line 14-13 victory to advance his confirmation to the full Senate. Cassidy had emphasized during Kennedy’s confirmation hearings that “your past of undermining confidence in vaccines with unfounded or misleading arguments concerns me,” which left doubt about his support. However, after speaking again with the nominee, Cassidy rattled off a long list of commitments Kennedy made to him, including quarterly hearings before the HELP Committee; meetings multiple times per month; that HELP Committee can choose representatives on boards or commissions reviewing vaccine safety; and a 30-day notice to the committee, plus a hearing, for any changes in vaccine safety reviews. “These commitments, and my expectation that we can have a great working relationship to make America healthy again, is the basis of my support,” the senator said. Earlier this week, another Republican senator who had reservations regarding Kennedy’s confirmation announced support for the nominee. “After extensive public and private questioning and a thorough examination of his nomination, I will support Robert F. Kennedy Jr.,” GOP Sen. Susan Collins of Maine announced on Tuesday. Another Republican who was on the fence, Sen. Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, also voted to advance Kennedy’s nomination. Murkowski noted that she continues “to have concerns about Mr. Kennedy’s views on vaccines and his selective interpretation of scientific studies,” but that the nominee “has made numerous commitments to me and my colleagues, promising to work with Congress to ensure public access to information and to base vaccine recommendations on data-driven, evidence-based, and medically sound research.” Former longtime Senate GOP leader Sen. Mitch McConnell, a major proponent of vaccines, also voted to advance Kennedy’s nomination. Kennedy, whose outspoken views on Big Pharma and the food industry have also sparked controversy, has said he aims to shift the focus of the agencies he would oversee toward promotion of a healthy lifestyle, including overhauling dietary guidelines, taking aim at ultra-processed foods and getting to the root causes of chronic diseases. The push is part of his “Make America Healthy Again” campaign. “Our country is not going to be destroyed because we get the marginal tax rate wrong. It is going to be destroyed if we get this issue wrong,” Kennedy said as he pointed to chronic diseases. “And I am in a unique position to be able to stop this epidemic.” The 71-year-old scion of the nation’s most storied political dynasty, launched a long-shot campaign for the Democratic presidential nomination against then-President Joe Biden in April 2023. However, six months later, he switched to an independent run for the White House. Trump regularly pilloried Kennedy during his independent presidential bid, accusing him of being a “Radical Left Liberal” and a “Democrat Plant.” Kennedy fired back, claiming in a social media post that Trump’s jabs against him were “a barely coherent barrage of wild and inaccurate claims.” However, Kennedy made major headlines again last August when he dropped his presidential bid and endorsed Trump. While Kennedy had long identified as a Democrat and repeatedly invoked his late father, former Sen. Robert F. Kennedy, and his late uncle, former President John F. Kennedy – who were both assassinated in the 1960s – Kennedy in recent years built relationships with far-right leaders due in part to his high-profile vaccine skepticism. After months of criticizing him, Trump called Kennedy “a man who has been an incredible champion for so many of these values that we all share.” Trump announced soon after the November election that he would nominate Kennedy to his Cabinet to run HHS. The final vote on Kennedy’s nomination comes one day after another controversial pick, director of national intelligence Tulsi Gabbard, was confirmed by the Senate in a 52-48 vote.
Kash Patel’s nomination to lead FBI faces first major Senate hurdle
The Senate Judiciary Committee is set to vote Thursday on whether to advance Kash Patel’s nomination for FBI director to the Senate floor after a fiery confirmation hearing last month. The vote is scheduled for 9 a.m. ET. If Patel passes through committee, his nomination will be up for a full Senate vote. Democrats had successfully delayed Patel’s committee vote last week in an effort to force the Trump nominee to testify a second time. Sen. Charles Grassley, R-Iowa., said attempts by Judiciary ranking member Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., and others to force Patel to testify again were “baseless” as he already sat before the committee for more than five hours and disclosed “thousands of pages” of records to the panel, as well as nearly 150 pages of responses to lawmakers’ written questions. PATEL CAMP DECRIES DURBIN ACCUSATIONS AS ‘POLITICALLY MOTIVATED’ ATTEMPT TO DERAIL FBI CONFIRMATION This week on the Senate floor, Durbin alleged that Patel was behind mass firings at the FBI. Durbin said he’d seen “highly credible” whistleblower reports indicating Patel had been “personally directing the ongoing purge of FBI employees prior to his Senate confirmation for the role.” An aide to Patel denied Durbin’s claim, telling Fox News Digital the nominee flew home to Las Vegas after his confirmation hearing and has “been sitting there waiting for the process to play out.” Patel, a vociferous opponent to the investigations into President Donald Trump and who was at the forefront of his 2020 election fraud claims, vowed during his confirmation hearing that he would not engage in political retribution. However, the conservative firebrand was likely chosen for his desire to upend the agency. In his 2023 book, “Government Gangsters,” he described the FBI as “a tool of surveillance and suppression of American citizens” and “one of the most cunning and powerful arms of the Deep State.” Patel has said intelligence officials are “intent” on undermining the president, but he promised he would not go after agents who worked on the classified documents case against Trump. 4 OF THE BIGGEST CLASHES BETWEEN PATEL, SENATE DEMS AT HIS CONFIRMATION HEARING “There will be no politicization at the FBI,” Patel said. “There will be no retributive action.” Additionally, in another message meant to assuage senators’ concerns, Patel said he did not 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 plead their case before being able to wiretap any U.S. citizen. Patel also seemed to break with Trump during the hearing on the pardons granted to 1,600 persons who had been prosecuted for their involvement in the Jan. 6 Capitol riot, particularly around those who engaged in violence and had their sentences commuted. “I have always rejected any violence against law enforcement,” Patel said. “I do not agree with the commutation of any sentence of any individual that committed violence against law enforcement.” 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. Patel’s public comments suggest 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 were “let good cops be cops” and “transparency is essential.” “If confirmed, I will focus on streamlining operations at headquarters while bolstering the presence of field agents across the nation. Collaboration with local law enforcement is crucial to fulfilling the FBI’s mission,” he said. CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP 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.” Fox News’ Breanne Depisch contributed to this report.
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Congress accuses Manipur Governor of violating Article 174, calls it ‘deliberate contempt of the Constitution’
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Man in US illegally wanted for allegedly groping 7-year-old Texas girl on her way home from school
A man with a lengthy criminal history who was previously on a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) hold is on the run after being accused of groping a 7-year-old Texas girl as she walked home from school. Carlos Jose Ayala Morales, 43, has been charged with felony attempted indecency with a child, the Houston Police Department said. He is accused of grabbing the girl Jan. 27 while she was on her way home from her elementary school, Fox Houston reported. The girl and her mother told the news outlet she was walking behind her older sister and a friend. They said the man ran up, groped her and ran away. The girl didn’t scream because she was in shock and told her older sister when they got home. TOM HOMAN BELIEVES ICE RAID LEAKS ARE ‘COMING FROM INSIDE’ AS AURORA LEAKER CLOSER TO BEING IDENTIFIED “A man came behind me, and he touched my private parts,” the girl told the station. “I hope he’s caught and put away much longer, so he can’t hurt other children,” her mother said. Morales has a lengthy criminal history. In 2017, he was charged with four counts of indecency with a child and evading arrest. At the time, police believed Morales, who they called Ayala, was linked to “at least 10 sexual assault incidents in the northeast Houston and Harris County areas.” Authorities were investigating a string of “sexual assaults of school-aged juvenile females, 7-15 years of age, as they traveled to and from school,” according to the news outlet. FEDERAL COURT BLOCKS TRUMP ADMIN FROM SENDING DETAINED VENEZUELAN IMMIGRANTS TO GUANTÁNAMO BAY “Ayala would come up behind the victims and inappropriately touch them through their clothing,” a police news release states. In one incident, Ayala attempted to abduct one of the victims, a 7 year-old female, as she walked home from school with her 9-year-old brother,” police said. “Reading that made me so scared, because that could have been [my child],” the victim’s mother said. When he was arrested in 2017, ICE filed a detainer request for Morales, a Honduran citizen, which was lifted when he was convicted. The Texas Department of Criminal Justice told FOX 26 Ayala was transferred to prison to serve concurrent seven-year sentences for indecency with a child by exposure, three counts of indecency with a child, evading arrest, detention with a vehicle and burglary. CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP In February 2024, he was released into ICE custody. Fox News Digital has reached out to ICE.
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Chicago mayor’s office gives inside look at ‘gift room’ after watchdog report flagged ethical concerns
The City of Chicago recently shared a video of its “gift room” after a watchdog group accused Mayor Brandon Johnson of improperly accepting valuable gifts. On Wednesday, the city also announced new protocols for receiving gifts, along with a log and video of items currently inside its “gift room.” The transparency attempt comes after the Office of the Inspector General (OIG) accused Johnson of accepting valuable gifts and failing to report them. Alleged unreported gifts included jewelry, alcohol, AirPods, designer handbags and size 14 men’s shoes, prompting ethical concerns. CHICAGO RESIDENTS SLAM THE ‘STUPIDITY’ OF MAYOR BRANDON JOHNSON’S LIBERAL POLICIES DURING CITY COUNCIL MEETING The new protocols, which went into effect on Tuesday, note that officials must report and properly log gifts within 10 days; store gifts in a designated area that can be viewed publicly via video recording quarterly; and donate excess gifts. The first video log was sent out on Wednesday and featured artwork, clothing, hats and shoes. The footage attempts to combat OIG claims that Johnson denied internal investigators access to the room where the items were stored during an unannounced inspection in November. TRUMP SUPPORTERS RIP CHICAGO MAYOR TO HIS FACE JUST DAYS BEFORE CITY COUNCIL REJECTS HIS TAX HIKE A written log contains 18 pages of items, along with their location and the organization that donated the gifts. “These procedures reaffirm the Mayor’s commitment to ethical governance and transparency and ensure prompt disclosure of all gifts received on behalf of the City,” according to a statement from the mayor’s office. Johnson previously accused the inspector general of a “mischaracterization,” while insisting he never personally benefited from any gifts. The OIG report listed Hugo Boss cuff links, a personalized Montblanc pen, a 2023 U.S. National Soccer Team jersey, a Gucci tote bag, a Kate Spade red purse and Carrucci size 14 shoes from Feb. 2, 2022, through March 20, 2024. While spotted in the video log, dated Feb. 11, the online log does not account for the tote bag, purse or shoes, as of Wednesday. Other items like the cuff links and pen, while accounted for in the log, do not list the organization or person who donated the gift. Fox News’ Patrick McGovern, Greg Wehner and Alexis McAdams contributed to this report.