‘Couldn’t clap for a 13-year-old boy’: GOP slam ‘childish’ Dem silence on supporting cancer survivor
President Donald Trump designated 13-year-old brain cancer survivor DJ Daniel an honorary Secret Service member during his joint address to Congress on Tuesday night. Republican lawmakers said it was “childish” that Democrats refused to stand for the boy. “I think the Democrats really embarrassed themselves. I mean, they wouldn’t even stand up for DJ, who survived cancer. I mean, it’s childish,” Sen. Eric Schmitt, R-Mo., said. Republicans told Fox News Digital they were “disappointed” with Democrats on Tuesday night for not standing to honor DJ during his big moment. Fox News Digital reached out to 28 Democratic lawmakers but only received two responses. SOCIAL MEDIA EXPLODES AFTER DEMS DO NOT STAND FOR 13-YEAR-OLD CANCER SURVIVOR: ‘TRULY SICK PEOPLE’ “After the Secret Service gave him his [badge] and he sat back down, but then he reached back up and hugged the Secret Service chief, it made me cry. I had tears. I was wiping a freaking tear,” Rep. Debbie Dingell, D-Mich., told Fox News Digital over the phone. “I clapped and was touched – not rolling my eyes,” she added. When asked to comment on Democrats not standing for Daniel, Sen. Peter Welch, D-Vt., told Fox News Digital: “That was a moving story. What Trump left out, of course, is he’s cutting research for cancer, which is pretty, pretty bad.” Sen. John Fetterman, D-Pa., also broke his silence in a social media post ripping Democrats on Wednesday afternoon. “A sad cavalcade of self owns and unhinged petulance. It only makes Trump look more presidential and restrained. We’re becoming the metaphorical car alarms that nobody pays attention to – and it may not be the winning message,” Fetterman posted on X. DJ DANIEL,13-YEAR-OLD BRAIN CANCER SURVIVOR, THANKS TRUMP FOR SURPRISE HONOR DURING SPEECH TO CONGRESS “I was so disappointed that my Democratic colleagues couldn’t stand and show love for so many of the Americans that were recognized tonight. That was really heartbreaking to me,” Sen. Katie Britt, R-Ala., said. Britt said it was a “huge misstep by so many of my colleagues” to not honor Americans with “heartbreaking” and “challenging stories.” “You have a little 13-year-old boy with brain cancer who has worked diligently to overcome that. And for him, when his dad lifted him up, for him to look out across that room and not to have everyone in there standing and cheering for him was heartbreaking,” Britt added. Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., said it was “extraordinary” that Democrats couldn’t stand for the Americans being recognized Tuesday night. “To see my Democrat colleagues refuse to stand for a young boy who is battling cancer, who has the opportunity tonight to be recognized for that, to refuse to stand for police officers. It’s just really extraordinary,” Hawley said. Rep. Mike Lawler, R-N.Y., said it was “disgusting” and a “total disregard for the American people” that Democrats refused to applaud. “It was disgusting. The behavior was completely out of line with decorum. I think the fact that you had Democrats refusing to applaud for a child with cancer, refusing to applaud for the widow of a slain police officer, refusing to applaud for the mother of a victim of a crime who was murdered by an illegal immigrant – that speaks volumes to not only their depraved inhumanity, but their total disregard for the American people,” Lawler said. More Republicans slammed Democrats’ decorum Tuesday night as “embarrassing” and “disgraceful.” “Honestly, the biggest thing is [it is] super embarrassing for the Democrats. I think they totally disparaged themselves today by just standing there. Couldn’t clap for a 13-year-old boy? Pretty sad,” Sen. Bernie Moreno, R-Ohio, said. “American people [are] seeing how disgraceful they acted tonight, not even standing for a child who has survived brain cancer, not even standing for the families who have lost loved ones because of the border crisis that they created,” Rep. Brandon Gill, R-Texas, said. Sen. Jim Justice, R-W.Va., said Democrats were being disrespectful to the “presidency of the United States” last night with their protest signs and chants. Rep. Al Green, D-Texas, was removed from the House chamber for protesting minutes into Trump’s address. Rep. Rashida Tlaib, D-Mich., used a whiteboard to write real-time reactions to Trump’s speech, including phrases like, “No king!” Republicans said they delivered standing ovations on bipartisan issues during President Joe Biden‘s past State of the Union speeches. “There’s a lot of times they should have stood. We did when Biden was president. Of course, we didn’t stand a whole lot, but when it was a bipartisan issue, we all stood.” Sen. Tommy Tuberville, R-Ala., said. “We suffered through four years of Joe Biden. When the first lady came up, we gave her a standing ovation as Joe Biden went through the people he had in the audience honoring them. We stood up and clapped for them. I mean, why wouldn’t somebody stand up and clap for a little 13-year-old boy who’s been through brain cancer, and they deputize him to the Secret Service?” Sen. Roger Marshall, R-Kan., added. Republican lawmakers told Fox News Digital they had never seen Democrats be “deliberately disruptive” and “kicked out of the House chamber” during a joint address to Congress. “I’ve been here 14 years. I’ve never seen anybody kicked out of the House chamber during a State of the Union address, nor have I ever seen people refuse to stand or even clap in response to pretty innocuous statements, not just innocuous statements, but statements that Americans overwhelmingly agree with,” Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, said. “It didn’t look very good for America,” he added in reference to Green being removed from the chamber. “I don’t think my Democrat colleagues stood for a single portion of that speech,” Hawley said. “There was some heckling at the beginning, to put it mildly. I’ve never seen anything like that in a joint session of Congress, deliberately disruptive to the point of being, I think, dangerous.” While many Democrats did not stand for DJ on Tuesday night, chants of “DJ!”
Trump NIH appointee defends president’s research funding cuts, lays out new vision for future
President Donald Trump’s pick to be the next Director of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), Dr. Jay Bhattacharya, spent much of his confirmation hearing Wednesday defending the president’s decision to put a 15% cap on indirect research costs dispersed by the NIH. Bhattacharya, a physician, Stanford professor of medicine and senior fellow at the university’s Institute for Economic Policy Research, 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. Bhattacharya also laid out 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 health outcomes of Americans. Bhattacharya added that he wants to rid the agency’s research portfolio of other “frivolous” efforts, that he says do little to directly benefit health outcomes. MEASLES PREVENTION AND PROTECTION CRITICAL UNDER HHS SECRETARY RFK JR.: CONTRIBUTOR “There’s a lot of distrust about where the money goes because the trust in the public health establishment has collapsed since the pandemic,” Bhattacharya said. “I think transparency regarding indirect costs is absolutely worthwhile. It’s something that universities can fix by working together to make sure that where that money goes is made clear.” Democratic Sens. Angela Alsobrooks of Maryland and Ed Markey of Massachusetts both pressed Bhattacharya specifically about research that looks into health issues that impact minorities — an area Democrats worry could be undermined at the NIH due to Trump’s campaign against the Left’s views on diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI). “The health needs of minority populations in this country are a vital priority for me … I want to make sure the research that the NIH does addresses those health needs, and I don’t see anything in the president’s orders that contradicts that, in fact, quite to the contrary,” Bhattacharya said. “What I’ve heard from [Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.] and from the president is ‘Let’s make America Healthy,’ meaning all Americans.” MULTIMILLION0DOLLAR BIDEN-ERA COVID-19 VAX PROJECT HALTED BY TRUMP’S HHS When Alsobrooks cited a project Bhattacharya worked on related to Alzheimer’s disease, which included mentoring “diverse” professionals, he said that his understanding of that part of the project meant mentoring researchers with a diverse set of ideas, not a diverse set of skin colors. “I think fundamentally what matters is: Do scientists have an idea that advances the scientific field they’re in?” Bhattacharya replied. “Do they have an idea that ends up addressing the health needs of Americans?” Bhattacharya acknowledged that “identifying” health disparities among minority groups is important, but emphasized the need for research that drives meaningful outcomes. Bhattacharya also challenged the premise of a similar line of questioning from Markey, who argued Trump was utilizing ideological flashpoints to “slow” life-saving research. TRUMP ADMIN LAYS OUT WHO EXACTLY WAS CUT AT HHS IN FACE OF ‘DEMOCRAT HYSTERIA’ “I don’t agree with you, senator, that President Trump is opposed to [speeding up research]. In fact, quite the opposite, he is quite in favor of making America healthy,” Bhattacharya told Markey. “I don’t believe that ideology ought to determine whether one gets research or not.” In addition to addressing numerous questions from Democrats about Trump’s funding cuts, Bhattacharya also outlined his plans to reform the NIH’s research portfolio during his Wednesday confirmation hearing. Trump’s NIH nominee said he hopes to focus on cutting-edge research and other “big ideas” as opposed to continuing to put all the federal government’s money into research that doesn’t involve the same ambitious goals. He also briefly spoke about improving the frequency of “validation research” and increasing the number of NIH applications funded for younger investigators. Concerns from Republicans during the hearing included whether Bhattacharya would continue supporting research investigating the link between vaccines and autism, something Sen. Bill Cassidy, R-La., said has been proven over and over again to have no link, and whether he will permit the continued use of aborted fetal tissue in NIH-funded research. SCIENTISTS EXPECT MAJOR ‘MEDICAL BREAKTHROUGHS’ DESPITE TRUMP’S CAP ON NIH RESEARCH FUNDING Bhattacharya agreed with Cassidy that the linkage between autism and vaccines is clear — there isn’t one. However, he acknowledged that others may disagree with him. In line with his commitment to embracing dissenting ideas and promoting free speech in medical research, he suggested that commissioning studies could help the public gain a clearer understanding that no link exists. On the issue of halting the use of aborted fetal tissue, during Trump’s first term, he banned its use, and Bhattacharya said he would follow the president’s lead on the issue.
SEE IT: Republicans reveal expectations for Elon Musk’s closed-door meeting with lawmakers tonight
House Republicans are hoping to affirm that they are on the same page as Elon Musk and his Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) during a closed-door meeting on Wednesday night. Musk is huddling with Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., and other members of the House GOP Conference around 7 p.m. ET on Capitol Hill, according to an invitation obtained by Fox News Digital. “Specifics, you know, on what DOGE has been doing, and how they’ve accomplished it. And then moving forward, how will that look like?” Rep. Scott Fitzgerald, R-Wis., told Fox News Digital when asked what he hoped to get out of the meeting. “I think the more they can articulate to the members of the House, we can do a better job delivering the message of what DOGE and President Trump are up to on that front.” Fitzgerald added that he anticipated some “tough questions about the specifics” of how much DOGE is saving. EXCLUSIVE: ELON MUSK PAC THANKS TRUMP FOR ‘SAVING THE AMERICAN DREAM’ IN NEW MILLION-DOLLAR AD Musk has descended on Capitol Hill at a time when his work with the federal government is drawing somewhat mixed reviews from Republican lawmakers. The vast majority of Republicans are backing Musk’s DOGE effort, and virtually all have agreed on the need to cut wasteful government spending. “He’s found a lot of waste, fraud, and abuse. He thinks it’ll be upwards of $1 trillion next year,” House GOP Policy Chair Kevin Hern, R-Okla., the No. 5 House GOP leader, told Fox News Digital. “He’s going to talk to all of us as members, and answer any questions, talk about it.” But some GOP lawmakers have been frustrated at feeling like they’ve been left out of the loop on White House and DOGE activities. Meanwhile, several Republicans have had to contend with particularly aggressive anti-DOGE protests in their home districts. HOUSE GOPERS HOPE TRUMP KEEPS DOOR TO MINERAL DEAL OPEN FOR UKRAINE DESPITE OVAL OFFICE DISPUTE Rep. Stephanie Bice, R-Okla., a leading pragmatic Republican, said she wanted to “better understand what his strategy is.” Bice commended Musk’s efforts to enact change but acknowledged concerns about the mass layoffs of federal workers across the country. “What the American people want to see is change. And I think that Elon is taking a hammer to agencies and then building them back in a way that is more efficient and more functional and less bureaucratic,” Bice said. “But I want to know kind of what that looks like moving forward. I know there’s apprehension for people that may be in that probationary one-year period of having a federal job. We’ve already seen some layoffs, but we’re $36 trillion in debt, and we can’t continue doing the same things over.” Freshman Rep. Derek Schmidt, R-Kan., said he hoped for a productive dialogue. “I think that it’s important that Mr. Musk remind folks of why he is doing what he’s doing. It’s part of the president’s agenda that the American people voted for in November, getting a more accountable… more modernized government,” Schmidt told Fox News Digital. “I think it’s also important [that] communication flow the other way, and that any particular concerns that have a solid basis be relayed back so they can decide to make some adjustments.” Musk met with Senate Republicans on Wednesday afternoon just before his huddle with the House GOP.
Trump’s top moments on illegal immigration in address to Congress: ‘What a job’
President Donald Trump repeatedly returned to the subject of illegal immigration during his Tuesday night address to a joint session of Congress, touting his success at the southern border and taking aim at the policies of the Biden administration. Here were the top five moments of the night: DEMOCRATS UNIMPRESSED BY TRUMP’S GESTURE TO FAMILY OF YOUNG GIRL KILLED BY ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS Trump took credit for a sharp drop in encounters at the southern border. In February, there were just 8,326 southern border encounters, down from 189,913 in February 2024. The administration has so far removed more than 55,000 illegal immigrants from the U.S. “Within hours of taking the oath of office, I declared a national emergency on our southern border, and I deployed the U.S. military and border patrol to repel the invasion of our country. And what a job they’ve done. As a result, illegal border crossings last month were by far the lowest ever recorded ever,” he said. “They heard my words, and they chose not to come, much easier that way,” he said. TRUMP HONORS LIVES OF LAKEN RILEY, JOCELYN NUNGARAY WHILE CELEBRATING STRIDES ON SECURING BORDER Trump used the address to announce that a wildlife sanctuary would be renamed in honor of Jocelyn Nungaray, a 12-year-old girl sexually assaulted and murdered at the hands of Venezuelan illegal migrants last year. “One thing I have learned about Jocelyn is that she loved animals so much. She loved nature. Across Galveston Bay, from where Jocelyn lived in Houston, you will find a magnificent National Wildlife Refuge, a pristine, peaceful, 34,000-acre sanctuary for all of God’s creatures on the edge of the Gulf of America,” Trump said. He then showed an executive order renaming the refuge in honor of Jocelyn, whose mother Alexis was in the audience for the address. “Alexis, moments ago, I formally renamed that refuge in loving memory of your beautiful daughter, Jocelyn,” he said. Trump also paid tribute to Georgia nursing student Laken Riley, who was killed by a Venezuelan illegal immigrant last year. Trump noted that the killer “was arrested while trespassing across Biden’s open southern border.” “And then set loose into the United States under the heartless policies of that failed administration. It was indeed a failed administration. He had then been arrested and released in a Democrat-run sanctuary city, a disaster, before ending the life of this beautiful young angel. With us this evening are Laken’s beloved mother, Alison, and her sister Lauren,” he said. Trump declared during his speech that the U.S. “will never, ever forget our beautiful Laken Riley” through legislation he signed into law, the Laken Riley Act. Trump took aim at Democrats who had spent much of 2024 arguing that the solution to the crisis at the southern border was sweeping legislation. He again pointed to the low numbers he is overseeing. “Since taking office, my administration has launched the most sweeping border and immigration crackdown in American history. And we quickly achieved the lowest numbers of illegal border crossing ever recorded. … The media and our friends in the Democrat Party kept saying we needed new legislation. We must have legislation to secure the border,” he said. But it turned out that all we really needed was a new president,” he said. CLICK HERE FOR MORE IMMIGRATION COVERAGE Trump used the address to tout his idea for a “gold card” visa, which would allow foreign nationals to buy a path to U.S. citizenship for $5 million. “We will allow the most successful job-creating people from all over the world to buy a path to U.S. citizenship. It’s like the green card, but better and more sophisticated,” he said. He contrasted it with the deportation push his administration launched. “So while we take out the criminals, killers, traffickers and child predators who are allowed to enter our country under the open border policy of these people, the Democrats, the Biden administration, the open-border, insane policies that you’ve allowed to destroy our country, we will now bring in brilliant, hard-working, job creating people. They’re going to pay a lot of money, and we’re going to reduce our debt with that money,” he said.
Karoline Leavitt explains US efforts to negotiate with Hamas to free American hostages
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt defended the U.S. efforts to negotiate with Hamas to release American hostages during a briefing on Wednesday. There are currently five hostages with U.S. citizenship in Gaza, though most are feared dead. During the news conference, Fox News senior White House correspondent Peter Doocy asked Leavitt how the plans to negotiate fall in line with the longstanding policy not to negotiate with terrorists. “If the U.S. has a longstanding policy that we do not negotiate with terrorists, then why is the US now negotiating directly and for the first time ever with Hamas?” Doocy asked. “Well, when it comes to the negotiations that you’re referring to, first of all, the special envoy who’s engaged in these negotiations does have the authority to talk to anyone,” Leavitt responded. ISRAEL AGREES TO TRUMP ENVOY’S TEMPORARY GAZA CEASEFIRE EXTENSION PROPOSAL AS FIRST PHASE EXPIRES: REPORTS She added that Israel was “consulted on this matter,” and that President Donald Trump believes in putting forth “good faith effort[s] to do what’s right for the American people.” “Is it just about the hostages, or are they also talking about the president’s plan to take over?” Doocy asked. “These are ongoing talks and discussions. I’m not going to detail them here,” Leavitt said. “There are American lives at stake. I would refer you to the Department of State, for further details, but I’m not going to get into those talks here at this point.” HAMAS RELEASES MORE HOSTAGES IN EXCHANGE FOR MORE THAN 600 PALESTINIAN PRISONERS AS PART OF CEASEFIRE DEAL In response to Leavitt’s statement, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office released a statement reading: “In talks with the United States, Israel expressed its view on direct talks with Hamas.” The latest comments come as the next stage of the ceasefire between Israel and Hamas appears uncertain. The White House has signaled support for the Israeli government’s criticism of Hamas officials, including recently backing the decision to block aid to Gaza until Hamas leaders agree to a ceasefire extension. CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP In a statement obtained by Fox News on Sunday, National Security Council spokesman Brian Hughes said that Israel has “negotiated in good faith since the beginning of this administration to ensure the release of hostages held captive by Hamas terrorists.” “We will support their decision on next steps given Hamas has indicated it’s no longer interested in a negotiated ceasefire,” Hughes added. Fox News’ Yonat Friling contributed to this report.
Inside Elon Musk’s huddle with GOP senators: DOGE head touts $4M savings per day
FIRST ON FOX: Elon Musk gathered with dozens of GOP senators for lunch at the Capitol on Wednesday, where he shared updates on the progress of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), which has been aggressively auditing the federal government and slashing waste. Musk told the roughly 40 senators in attendance that DOGE’s efforts were saving about $4 million per day, a source in the room told Fox News Digital. The discussion took place during a weekly lunch hosted by Sen. Rick Scott, R-Fla., chairman of the Republican Senate Steering Committee. EXCLUSIVE: ELON MUSK PAC THANKS TRUMP FOR ‘SAVING THE AMERICAN DREAM’ IN NEW MILLION-DOLLAR AD The Tesla and SpaceX CEO also joked that you don’t need to be a detective, like “Sherlock Holmes,” in order to find waste, fraud or abuse in the government. In fact, he said it’s much easier than some realize, the source added. In response to a question from Sen. Katie Britt, R-Ala., regarding government funding that goes to private universities, Musk remarked, “Kim Jong Un has a lot to learn from elite universities” when it comes to developing propaganda, the source said. The Republicans burst into applause when Musk replied to another question, telling them that they should “frankly delete” the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), according to the source. NEPA has long been opposed by many Republicans because it allows climate advocacy groups to challenge infrastructure and energy projects in court, delaying them. HOUSE GOPERS HOPE TRUMP KEEPS DOOR TO MINERAL DEAL OPEN FOR UKRAINE DESPITE OVAL OFFICE DISPUTE The law already significantly delays projects through extensive environmental research requirements, which can take several years. Scrapping NEPA would be a win for Republicans who want to develop and process energy faster, particularly from sources in the U.S. Musk’s comment on NEPA came in response to a question from Sen. Dan Sullivan, R-Alaska. As DOGE takes heat from Democrats for dramatic federal agency restructuring, Musk spoke kindly of federal workers during the meeting, the source shared. The X owner, who was recently named special government employee in the Trump administration, said many federal workers are assisting him in identifying fraud and waste. GOP REBELS FIRE WARNING SHOT IN SHUTDOWN SHOWDOWN: NO DOGE, NO DEAL According to Musk, the employees actually want to help find waste in the government, now that they have been “given permission to care.” Some of those who were absent from the lunch meeting were Sens. Thom Tillis, R-N.C., Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, and Bill Cassidy, R-La. There are lunches weekly in the Senate, and it’s common for senators to miss them on occasion. Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, was also not in attendance because she joined the Republican Study Committee (RSC) for lunch in the House of Representatives. Representatives for the White House and DOGE did not immediately provide comment to Fox News Digital. SENATE BID TO PREVENT BOYS FROM PLAYING GIRLS’ SPORTS GETS STUCK ON FILIBUSTER Cassidy has been in close contact with Musk, over the phone, text messages, and Zoom meetings, a spokesperson told Fox News Digital. The two connected twice in just the last week and have a solid working relationship, they added. Per the spokesperson, the senator is supportive of Musk and DOGE’s mission, but had a prior commitment on Wednesday afternoon. A spokesperson for Tillis told Fox News Digital, “Sen. Tillis had a previously scheduled meeting that prevented him from attending.” Murkowski was sick and also missed a hearing Wednesday morning in the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP). Her office said she came into the office later in the afternoon for a markup in the Senate Indian Affairs Committee (SCIA), which she chairs. The Musk Senate meeting comes less than a week after members of the chamber’s DOGE caucus traveled to the White House to meet with the billionaire.
‘Sanctuary’ city mayor confronted after gang member allegedly assaults federal officers
Republican Rep. Jim Jordan of Ohio confronted Denver Mayor Mike Johnston for upholding “sanctuary” city policies that allowed an illegal immigrant and suspected Tren de Aragua gang member to walk free and allegedly assault federal officers. During a House Oversight Committee hearing on sanctuary cities Wednesday, Jordan slammed Johnston for ignoring an ICE detainer request and only giving federal agents one-hour notice before the Denver Sheriff’s Department released Abraham Gonzalez, a 23-year-old Venezuelan illegal immigrant charged with assault, menace and theft of a vehicle. After being released by the Denver Sheriff’s Department Feb. 28, Gonzalez assaulted ICE agents attempting to apprehend him, according to a statement by ICE. ICE has said that sanctuary city policies preventing law enforcement from honoring detainers and cooperating with federal authorities pose a significant risk to both agents and to the public. RED STATE LEADER CALLS FOR STATES TO STAND BEHIND TRUMP’S BAN ON FUNDING ILLEGAL IMMIGRATION Despite this, Johnston has doubled down on the city’s sanctuary policies and has vowed to direct law enforcement to resist Trump’s crackdown on illegal immigration. During the hearing, Jordan showed a picture of the notice slip given by the Denver Sheriff’s Department to ICE in which the location of release listed was simply the “streets.” Addressing Johnston, Jordan said, “Three hundred and forty-five days you had him in custody, and ICE said, ‘Hey can you give us 48 hours heads up?’ You gave them one-hour notice.” Johnston asserted that the Denver sanctuary policy does not shield people from law enforcement but rather “provides services.” He said there were six ICE agents present when Gonzalez was released but admitted that the illegal immigrant was allowed to walk freely out into a parking lot. CHICAGO ALDERMAN SAYS MAYOR BRANDON JOHNSON CAN’T DEFEND SANCTUARY CITY POLICIES “Guess what happened in that parking lot … one of the ICE officers got assaulted, didn’t he? They had to tase the guy, didn’t they?” Jordan asked. “An officer got assaulted because your policy, which says, ‘We’re going to release him to — in your words, not mine — to the streets.’ They have to arrest him in the parking lot. They bring six officers when they could have just had one or two just come in your facility, into your jail, and take the guy there. But you won’t do it that way.” CLICK HERE FOR MORE IMMIGRATION COVERAGE Addressing Johnston’s testimony earlier in the hearing, Jordan said, “You used the word safe, safer or safety 13 times. Talking about ‘my job is the safety of the people in Denver, we’re prioritizing making sure everyone is safer.’ That’s a lie. “It was not safer for the ICE agents who are part of your community. No way was it safer,” Jordan added. “The safest thing to do is to say, ‘ICE we got him in custody. Come here. We’ll release him.’ [Instead, it’s], ‘We held him 345 days. We can’t hold him a second longer. We can’t wait for you to come inside the building. We got to let him go so you have to arrest him in the parking lot.’ That is how stupid sanctuary policies are and what they mean to the community that you put at risk and to the ICE officer who was assaulted.” NYC MAYOR ERIC ADAMS, AN EX-COP, HAS ‘UPPER HAND’ OVER OTHER SANCTUARY CITY MAYORS: BLUE LIVES MATTER FOUNDER Johnston said he was open to making “adjustments” to how releases are conducted but insisted this was the first instance of an ICE agent being assaulted during an arrest in his city. “It’s a simple question,” Jordan shot back. “You can release him in the parking lot, give ICE one hour notice and they got to send six officers to arrest this guy, or you can say, ‘Here’s what we’re going to do. We’re going to hold him. You come in and bring two officers in and turn him in.’ Why not do it that way? You know why you don’t do that way? Because you’re a sanctuary city. This is the whole point.”
Democrats refuse to define ‘woman’ when pressed on Capitol Hill: ‘Complicated question’
EXCLUSIVE: Democratic lawmakers would not provide a definition of a woman when pressed on Capitol Hill, as President Donald Trump prioritizes making clear distinctions between biological sexes during his second term. America Rising, a political action committee (PAC), asked lawmakers in Washington, D.C., to provide a definition of a woman ahead of Women’s History Month in March, but received no clear answers. “It is a more complicated question than one might know,” Rep. Herb Conaway, D-N,J,, said when asked to define what a woman is. More than 10 House Democrats entirely avoided answering the question. GOP SENATOR CALLS OUT DEM’S REPORTED PRO-WOMEN ATTIRE AT TRUMP SPEECH AFTER BLOCKING TRANS ATHLETE BILL Those who did not respond included Reps. Jamie Raskin, D-Md., John Mannion, D-N.Y., Eric Sorensen, D-Ill., Delia Ramirez, D-Ill., Don Beyer, D-Va., Jason Crow, D-Colo., Derek Tran, D-Calif., Bobby Scott, D-Va., George Whitesides, D-Calif., Eugene Vindman, D-Va., and Andrea Salinas, D-Ore. “I don’t understand what you mean,” Rep. Kristen McDonald Rivet, D-Mich., responded to the question. WATCH: LAWMAKERS REFUSE TO SAY HOW MANY GENDERS THERE ARE WHEN CONFRONTED ON CAPITOL HILL Rep. Rashida Tlaib, D-Mich., a progressive member of “the Squad,” responded to the interviewee by asking, “Do you get minimum wage at least?” Trump, on his first day in office, signed an executive order declaring that there are only two genders: male and female. The order declared that “women” or “woman” and “girls” or “girl” refer to “adult and juvenile human females, respectively.” The White House also defined “female” as meaning “a person belonging, at conception, to the sex that produces the large reproductive cell.” The president highlighted his recent orders during his first joint address to Congress on Tuesday evening. During the speech, the president introduced Payton McNabb, who suffered a brain injury after competing against a biological male in a volleyball match. McNabb was invited to the speech to represent Trump’s order barring biological males from competing in women’s sports. “If you really want to see numbers, just take a look at what happened in women’s boxing, weightlifting, track and field, swimming or cycling, where a male recently finished a long-distance race five hours and 14 minutes ahead of a woman for a new record by five hours,” Trump told a joint session of Congress. “It’s demeaning for women, and it’s very bad for our country. We’re not going to put up with it any longer.” “What I have just described is only a small fraction of the commonsense revolution that is now, because of us, sweeping the entire world,” Trump said. “Common sense has become a common theme, and we will never go back, never, ever going to let that happen.” See the full video from America Rising.
Trump reading Zelenskyy letter met with support from GOP, independent voters
A letter from Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to President Donald Trump signaling the Eastern European nation’s readiness to sign the proposed minerals deal racked up big support among independent and Republican voters in Fox News Digital’s focus group Tuesday. “Earlier today, I received an important letter from President Zelenskyy of Ukraine,” Trump said during his speech Tuesday. “The letter reads, ‘Ukraine is ready to come to the negotiating table as soon as possible to bring lasting peace closer. Nobody wants peace more than the Ukrainians,’ he said.” Trump, continuing to read aloud the letter, said, “‘My team and I stand ready to work under President Trump’s strong leadership to get a peace that lasts. We do really value how much America has done to help Ukraine maintain its sovereignty and independence. Regarding the agreement on Minerals and Security, Ukraine is ready to sign it at any time that is convenient for you.’” INDEPENDENTS AND REPUBLICANS WENT WILD FOR TRUMP’S DECLARATION THAT ‘AMERICA IS BACK’ The Fox News Digital focus groups were conducted by maslansky + partners. The dial survey revealed that Republican approval surged when Trump mentioned Zelenskyy had sent him a letter, while support among independents grew when Trump read the letter aloud, with Zelenskyy expressing readiness to sign the proposed deal. The Democratic line stayed mostly neutral throughout this portion of Trump’s speech, with minimal uptick when the letter was read aloud. ‘HE’S BACK’: TRUMP’S JOINT ADDRESS TO CONGRESS TO BE BLANKETED WITH 6-FIGURE AD BUY TOUTING TAX PLAN “I appreciate that he sent this letter, just got it a little while ago,” Trump continued. “Simultaneously, we’ve had serious discussions with Russia and have received strong signals that they are ready for peace. Wouldn’t that be beautiful?” “It’s time to stop this madness,” Trump said. “It’s time to halt the killing. It’s time to end this senseless war. If you want to end wars, you have to talk to both sides.” CONSERVATIVES ERUPT WITH PRAISE ON SOCIAL MEDIA AFTER TRUMP’S SPEECH TO CONGRESS: ‘RUN THROUGH A WALL’ The letter comes after Zelenskyy’s heated meeting in the Oval Office last Friday where he questioned the deal’s security assurance for Ukraine, with Trump and Vice President JD Vance calling his behavior “disrespectful.” The meeting abruptly ended with no deal signed and Zelenskyy was kicked out of the White House. The Trump administration last month presented a draft agreement that would grant the U.S. significant access to Ukraine’s rich natural resources, including critical minerals, oil and gas. The initial proposal called for Ukraine to allocate 50% of its revenues from natural resources, infrastructure and other assets to a joint Reconstruction Investment Fund to repay $500 billion in military aid provided by the U.S. during the ongoing conflict with Russia.
Democrats’ behavior at Trump’s Congress address ‘completely disgraceful,’ press secretary says
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt blasted Democrats for acting like “children” at President Donald Trump’s Tuesday address to a joint session of Congress. “The behavior of Democrats last night was completely disgraceful and demonstrated how severely out of touch they are with the American public,” Leavitt told reporters Wednesday at a White House press briefing. “It was the most shameful moment in the history of presidential addresses and that beautiful chamber and what was supposed to be a unifying moment for our country.” Democrats started to boo Trump when he started his speech, prompting Republicans to respond in turn by chanting “USA.” Rep. Al Green, D-Texas, became particularly rowdy during the address, and started to shout and wave his cane at Trump. Green’s disruption prompted Speaker of the House Mike Johnson, R-La., to direct the Sergeant-at-Arms to remove Green from the address. RESOLUTION PUNISHING AL GREEN CIRCULATES HOUSE AFTER DEM IS THROWN OUT OF TRUMP SPEECH Additionally, Leavitt called out Democrats for failing to stand for “everyday Americans” who attended Trump’s address, including DJ Daniel, a 13-year-old boy who survived cancer. Trump honored Daniel on Tuesday and officially swore him in as a member of the Secret Service and received a standing ovation from most in the crowd, although not all Democrats joined in celebrating Daniel. Additionally, Leavitt claimed that Democrats ignored the mothers of Laken Riley and Jocelyn Nungaray, who were both brutally murdered by illegal immigrants. “Last night was a very clarifying moment for our country,” Leavitt said. “The Democrats expose themselves as the party of insanity and hate the party that wants to put America last. They’ve allowed their Trump derangement syndrome to stop them from celebrating America and our people, and we will not allow them to forget that.” Trump told members of Congress Tuesday that his administration would work to take “America’s destiny into our own hands” and promised that “this will be our greatest era” where he would fight to forge the most free civilization. TRUMP PROMISES ‘THIS WILL BE OUR GREATEST ERA’ IN JOINT ADDRESS TO CONGRESS Trump also vowed to cut down inflation costs and would “wage a war” on drug cartels. As a result, he urged lawmakers Tuesday to beef up funding for border security to foot the bill for deportations as his administration has “launched the most sweeping border and immigration crackdown in American history.” Meanwhile, Republicans are working to penalize Democrats for their Tuesday behavior. For example, Rep. Troy Nehls, R-Texas, is spearheading an effort to file a censure resolution against Green for having “willfully disrupted the joint session, remained defiant,” and “brought disrepute to the United States Congress,” according to a draft text viewed by Fox News Digital. However, Green is prepared to face the consequences of his behavior. “I’m willing to suffer whatever punishment is available to me,” Green said Tuesday, according to the White House press pool report. “I didn’t say to anyone, don’t punish me. I’ve said I’ll accept the punishment.” Fox News’ Elizabeth Elkind contributed to this report.