Dem senator mocked online for ditching his Tesla to protest ‘a–hole’ Musk: ‘Stunning and brave’
Sen. Mark Kelly, D-Ariz., was mocked by conservatives on social media Friday after he posted a video on X explaining he was getting rid of his Tesla because of the optics brought by Tesla CEO Elon Musk, who Kelly referred to as an “a–hole.” Kelly, a retired astronaut, said he bought a Tesla because it was “fast like a rocket ship” but now it feels like “a rolling billboard for a man dismantling our government and hurting people.” The Arizona senator and military veteran said it’s been difficult driving around in a Tesla knowing the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) has cut jobs at the Department of Veterans Affairs. Kelly said today would be his last day driving a Tesla. “When I bought this thing, I didn’t think it was going to become a political issue. Every time I get in this car in the last 60 days or so, it reminds me of just how much damage Elon Musk and Donald Trump are doing to our country,” Kelly said in the video, which was viewed over 1.5 million times just two hours after it was posted. ‘CORRUPTION IN BROAD DAYLIGHT’: DEMS OUTRAGED BY TRUMP ‘PLAYING CAR SALESMAN’ FOR TESLA Kelly added in the video that Elon Musk “kind of turned out to be an a–hole” and that he would rather not drive around in a car “built and designed by an a–hole.” Conservatives on X were quick to mock Kelly’s post. “Literally the most stunning and brave thing a politician has ever done. It’s so brave that I have actually been moved to tears,” White House rapid responder Greg Price said in a post. “There are no more ‘moderate’ Democrats,” conservative influencer account Johnny Maga posted on X in response to Kelly’s video. MARK KELLY ACCUSES TRUMP OF ‘TRYING TO WEAKEN’ UKRAINE, FIRES BACK AT ELON MUSK FOR BRANDING HIM A ‘TRAITOR’ House Majority Speaker Mike Johnson’s director of rapid response posted on X that the video shows “Elon Musk lives rent-free” in Kelly’s head. “‘I bought this product because it’s amazing and I’m only getting rid of it because I don’t like the guy who made it’ is an amazing commercial for Tesla,” conservative commentator Kate Hyde posted on X. “This is just embarrassing,” Republican strategist Nathan Sproul posted on X. Conservative podcaster Stephen L. Miller called out the Democrats’ shift from embracing EVs to “getting rid of theirs in like 3 months.” Fox News Digital reached out to Kelly’s office for comment. Protests have erupted at Tesla showrooms across the country and have since escalated to instances of vandalism on Tesla vehicles and charging stations. The demonstrations began as protests against DOGE, which has scrutinized wasteful government spending and reduced the massive federal workforce. President Donald Trump took the driver’s seat of a red Tesla Model S at the White House to support Musk Tuesday, and Tesla’s stock rebounded after facing a steep decline to start the week during the protests. Democrats were quick to criticize Trump on social media for buying a Tesla at the White House. “Earlier today, while hard-working Americans were watching their retirement savings plummet, President Trump was filming a Tesla ad in front of the White House to help Elon Musk’s failing stock. This is a brazen conflict of interest and corruption in broad daylight,” Democrats on the House Committee on Financial Services said. But conservatives called out Democrats for selectively embracing electric vehicles, reminding liberals that former President Joe Biden drove a hybrid Jeep Wrangler 4xe around the White House grounds to promote his EV initiative. Kelly’s post Friday was the latest escalation in an ongoing social media feud with Musk. “Just left Ukraine. What I saw proved to me we can’t give up on the Ukrainian people. Everyone wants this war to end, but any agreement has to protect Ukraine’s security and can’t be a giveaway to Putin,” Kelly posted this week. “You are a traitor,” Musk replied. “Traitor? Elon, if you don’t understand that defending freedom is a basic tenet of what makes America great and keeps us safe, maybe you should leave it to those of us who do,” Kelly fired back. Kelly said in a video posted yesterday he would vote “no” on the continuing resolution bill in the U.S. Senate, calling it a “partisan power grab for Donald Trump and Elon Musk.”
Senate passes HALT Fentanyl Act to permanently classify all fentanyl-related drugs as Schedule I substances
The Senate passed a bipartisan bill Friday that will permanently classify fentanyl-related substances, also known as fentanyl analogs, as Schedule I substances under the Controlled Substances Act. The HALT Fentanyl Act passed with overwhelming support, earning 84 Senate votes while 16 opposed it. The bill aims to close loopholes exploited by drug traffickers who smuggle substances with chemical compositions similar to fentanyl but are different enough to evade legal penalties. “What this bill does — it says, ‘OK, it’s illegal to bring in fentanyl.’ But it recognizes that some of those attempting to bring in fentanyl will try and circumvent the law by changing the fentanyl just enough so that it becomes what is called an analog,” Sen. Bill Cassidy, R-La., the bill’s sponsor and a former physician, told reporters Friday ahead of the bill’s passage. “‘Oh, it’s not fentanyl. You can’t bust me because it’s not actually fentanyl.’ No, it still addicts like fentanyl. It still kills like fentanyl, and it is substantially fentanyl. So, therefore, it shall be treated by law enforcement as if it is fentanyl.” I BLAME BIDEN’S BORDER CRISIS FOR MY TEEN’S FENTANYL DEATH AND THANK TRUMP FOR TRYING TO END THIS SCOURGE Democrats sought to filibuster the bill’s passage, arguing it did not do enough to combat the fentanyl crisis as a whole, would increase mass incarceration and limit the study of these fentanyl analogs by placing them in a more restrictive regulatory category. However, the bill’s Republican sponsors argue it will reduce bureaucratic hurdles in the research of fentanyl analogs, serving to open the door for more scientists to study these novel substances. The arguments it will increase mass incarceration were also questioned by a Stanford University drug policy expert and former White House Office of National Drug Control Policy advisor, Keith Humphreys, who pointed out it’s already illegal to possess or traffic fentanyl analogs. The HALT Fentanyl Act does not create any new mandatory minimum sentencing, but it puts fentanyl-related substances under the same sentencing guidelines used for fentanyl itself. GRIEVING PARENTS SLAM DEMS FOR OPPOSING BIPARTISAN FENTANYL BILL USING CLAIMS PARROTED BY SOROS-BACKED GROUP During a press call Friday with some of the bill’s Republican sponsors ahead of the HALT Act’s passage, Sen. James Lankford, R-Okla., noted how the nature of the U.S. drug crisis is “changing rapidly on the street, and Congress needs to respond.” “This is a major accomplishment, quite frankly, to be able to move this through in the fight against fentanyl,” Lankford added. CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APP Other potential measures to combat the fentanyl crisis, including efforts to bolster law enforcement’s drug interdiction efforts and legislation to go after the veterinary drug xylazine, which is being added to fentanyl to make it more addictive, are among additional efforts being considered on Capitol Hill.
University of North Texas and Rice University under federal investigation for “race-exclusionary practices”
The Texas universities are among dozens accused of violating the law by partnering with a group that had sought to increase diversity in graduate programs.
Trump blasts Biden’s DOJ: They tried to turn US into a ‘corrupt communist’ third world country
President Donald Trump accused former President Joe Biden’s Department of Justice of transforming the agency into the “department of injustice,” as they sought to turn the U.S. into a “corrupt communist” country. “Our predecessors turned this Department of Justice into the Department of Injustice,” Trump said Friday at the Department of Justice. “But I stand before you today to declare that those days are over and they are never going to come back.” Trump routinely has blasted the Justice Department and the FBI since his first term for being corrupt, amid multiple investigations and lawsuits filed against him. The FBI investigated Trump and his 2016 campaign for alleged collusion with Russia, which ultimately found no evidence that the Trump campaign coordinated with Russia to influence the outcome of the election. TRUMP STRIPS SECURITY CLEARANCES FROM LAW FIRM TIED TO JACK SMITH CASES More recently, Trump has come under legal scrutiny after former Attorney General Merrick Garland tapped former special counsel Jack Smith to conduct investigations into alleged efforts from Trump to overturn the election results in 2020, and Trump’s efforts to obtain allegedly classified materials at Mar-a-Lago following his first term as president. “They tried to turn America into a corrupt communist and third world country, but in the end, the thugs failed and the truth won,” Trump said. “Freedom won, justice won, democracy won. And above all, the American people won.” REPUBLICAN AGS PRAISE TEAMWORK WITH FEDS ON CRIME AHEAD OF MEETING WITH TRUMP, BONDI “There could be no more heinous betrayal of American values than to use the law to terrorize the innocent and reward the wicked,” Trump said. “And that’s what they were doing at a level that’s never been seen before. And it’s exactly what you saw with Joe Biden, Merrick Garland and their cronies to do the building over the last four years. They ripped what they’ve ripped down is incalculable.” A spokesperson for Biden did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Fox News Digital. Trump also accused the judicial branch of conspiring with the media, and accused newspapers and TV networks of functioning as a “paid political operative.” “It has to be illegal,” Trump said Thursday. “It’s influencing judges … and it just cannot be legal. I don’t believe it’s legal, and they do it in total coordination with each other.” Trump also accused a “corrupt group of hacks and radicals” within the American government of targeting him and his family over the years, and claimed they sought to prevent him from ever returning to the White House again. Specifically, he said the government employed those like Marc Elias, the former chair of law firm Perkins Coie. In April 2016, Perkins Coie hired opposition research firm Fusion GPS to conduct opposition research into then-presidential candidate Trump on behalf of Trump’s opponent, Hillary Clinton, and the Democratic National Committee. Fusion GPS then hired former British intelligence officer Christopher Steele, who authored the so-called “Steele dossier,” which contained shocking and mostly unverified allegations, including details that Trump engaged in sex acts with Russian prostitutes. The FBI also used the dossier to obtain a surveillance warrant against former Trump campaign advisor Carter Page as part of its investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election. Trump routinely has denied the allegations included in the dossier, and signed an executive order on March 4 cutting off security clearances and federal access for Perkins Coie attorneys. In response, the law firm filed a motion in a federal court in Washington Tuesday requesting a temporary restraining order to block the Trump administration from rescinding its access to federal resources, and U.S. Judge Beryl Howell approved the request Wednesday afternoon. “It is absurd that a billion-dollar law firm is suing to retain its access to government perks and handouts,” White House spokesman Harrison Fields said in a Wednesday evening statement to Fox News Digital. Fox News’ Breanne Deppisch and David Spunt contributed to this report.
Migrant gangs put on notice after string of home burglaries
EXCLUSIVE: A bipartisan group of lawmakers asked the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to nix Chile’s status on the visa waiver program (VWP) amid a major gang burglary risk. Reps. Young Kim, Derek Tran, Dave Min and Mike Levin of California sent a letter to DHS asking that Chile be taken off the list, which allows citizens from certain countries to visit the U.S. for roughly three months without a visa, until steps are taken to ensure that people robbing homes and businesses after they come to the country are stopped. “We are concerned that the VWP continues to be exploited by South American Theft Groups (SATG) — a majority of whom originate from Chile. Known as ‘burglary tourism,’ certain eligible individuals travel to the U.S. through the VWP for the purpose of committing residential and commercial robberies before returning to their country of origin,” states the letter exclusively obtained by Fox News Digital. ‘NEEDS TO RESIGN’: BLUE STATE BLASTED FOR ASKING FOR LOAN AMID SKYROCKETING IMMIGRANT HEALTHCARE COSTS “In addition to having an impact on familial communities, SATGs continue to victimize Orange County companies and entrepreneurs, placing a burden on our local police departments, already beset by a lack of resources and a staffing deficit,” the letter continued. “In 2024, there were 59 residential burglaries suspected of being committed by SATGs in the Orange County Sheriff’s Department Southeast Patrol Area. Given the threat to public safety, we believe immediate action must be taken.” The practice of “burglary tourism” has become a relatively common occurrence in communities throughout the country, including affluent areas such as Orange County, California, and Scottsdale, Arizona. Even top athletes such as Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce and Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow have become theft victims. CHILEAN MIGRANT GANGS TERRORIZE AMERICANS WITH HOME INVASIONS: WHAT TO KNOW A previous letter was sent by Kim, Levin and Rep. Lou Correa, D-Calif., asking the Biden administration to take similar action in June 2023, warning that the SATGs will sometimes “sell stolen goods online and launder money through Chinese crime syndicates.” Orange County District Attorney Todd Spitzer asked Chile to lose its visa waiver program privileges last month on “FOX & Friends.” GANG OF ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS TARGET HIGH-END PHOENIX-AREA HOMES IN BURGLARIES, AUTHORITIES SAY “Every other South American country that has participated in the past has been kicked out of the program for sending their criminals to the United States of America,” Spitzer said at the time. CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP “These Chileans have been coming here for years,” he said. “They’re going to Orlando, Florida, where Disney World is. They’re coming to Orange County, California, where Disneyland is. And they’re not here to visit the happiest place on Earth — they’re here to burglarize,” he added. Southern American gangs, including the Venezuelan group Tren de Aragua, have been under heightened scrutiny under the Trump administration, as many groups like them have now been designated as foreign terrorist organizations. DHS did not respond to a request for comment in time for publication.
Biden White House turned over Trump, Pence government cellphones to FBI as part of anti-Trump agent’s case
EXCLUSIVE: The Biden White House turned over government cellphones belonging to President Donald Trump and former Vice President Mike Pence to the FBI in May 2022 as part of a bureau probe into the aftermath of the 2020 election, tying Trump to that investigation without sufficient predication, Fox News Digital has learned. The FBI did not need a warrant to physically obtain the government phones from the Biden White House, but after acquiring the devices agents began drafting a search warrant to extract the phones’ data, sources familiar with the investigation told Fox News Digital. ANTI-TRUMP FBI AGENT RESPONSIBLE FOR OPENING JACK SMITH ELECTOR CASE AGAINST PRESIDENT: WHISTLEBLOWER “The Biden White House played right along with the FBI’s ‘gotcha’ scheme against Trump,” a source familiar with the investigation told Fox News Digital. “Biden’s Office of White House Counsel, under the leadership of Dana Remus and Jonathan Su, gave its blessing and accommodation for the FBI to physically obtain Trump and Pence’s phones in early May 2022. Weeks later, the FBI began drafting a search warrant to extract the phones’ data.” The phones were obtained and entered as evidence as part of the FBI’s original anti-Trump 2020 election investigation, which eventually was taken over by now-former Special Counsel Jack Smith. That case was known inside the bureau as “Arctic Frost,” and was opened on April 13, 2022, by anti-Trump former FBI agent Timothy Thibault. Thibault, according to whistleblowers, broke protocol and played a critical role in opening and advancing the bureau’s original investigation related to the 2020 election, tying Trump to the probe without sufficient predication. Thibault broke protocol by taking action to open the investigation and involve Trump, despite being unauthorized to open criminal investigations in his role — only special agents have the authority to open criminal investigations. FBI DIRECTOR PATEL WORKING ‘AGGRESSIVELY’ TO COMPLY WITH CONGRESSIONAL RECORD REQUESTS AHEAD OF DEADLINES Thibault vowed to make the investigation “prioritized over all others in the Branch” and, at the time, commented that “it frankly took too long for us to open this (investigation),” according to documents reviewed by Fox News Digital. The FBI, by late April 2022, began scheduling more than a dozen interviews for the investigation in coordination with 13 FBI field offices across the nation, Fox News Digital has learned. The revelations come from legally protected whistleblower disclosures provided to Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, and Senate Subcommittee on Investigations Chairman Ron Johnson, R-Wis. Fox News Digital reviewed the disclosures. EX-FBI OFFICIAL WHO SHUT DOWN HUNTER BIDEN LINES OF INVESTIGATION VIOLATED HATCH ACT WITH ANTI-TRUMP POSTS Grassley and Johnson sent the whistleblower disclosures and records to Attorney General Pam Bondi and FBI Director Kash Patel late Thursday. “The new records we are making public point to an aggressive investigation run by anti-Trump agents and prosecutors intent on using every resource available to pursue Trump and his supporters,” Grassley and Johnson wrote. The first record relating to the Trump and Pence phones was dated April 25, 2022, and noted: “DOJ and FBI were informed that government-issued cellphones that purportedly previously belonged to former Vice President Mike Pence and former President Donald J. Trump were in the possession of individuals at the White House. DOJ is currently conducting analysis regarding the FBI taking possession of and processing the phones.” The records revealed that on May 4, 2022, FBI agents took possession of the two phones belonging to Trump and Pence. The phones were entered into evidence and were not processed until search warrants were obtained, according to the record. On the same date, May 4, 2022, FBI agents interviewed Deputy White House Counsel Jonathan Su. A follow-on letter requesting additional information regarding the phones was then sent from the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Washington D.C., to White House Counsel Dana Remus on May 9, 2022. Remus and Su declined to comment to Fox News Digital. A representative for former President Joe Biden did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment on whether he was aware of the situation. Agents also sought to interview former Trump administration officials, including employees from the Offices of the President and Vice President, DOJ and then-Director of National Intelligence John Ratcliffe. Ratcliffe is currently the CIA director in the second Trump administration. “Sunshine is the best disinfectant,” Grassley and Johnson wrote to Bondi and Patel Thursday. “The American people deserve to know the complete extent of the corruption within the DOJ and FBI that led to the investigation into President Trump.” Grassley and Johnson said that they made the documents public “for purposes of public accountability and to provide specific examples of past behavior at your institutions that must not be repeated.” “Quite simply, the public has a right to know what happened in Arctic Frost and, based on what we’ve exposed to date, the American people deserve better from its law enforcement agencies.” GRASSLEY PRESSES DOJ, FBI FOR TRANSPARENCY ON ‘PARTISAN’ POLITICIZATION OF AGENCIES, HUNTER BIDEN PROBE They added: “It is important that every individual at your agencies maintains the highest level of professionalism and does not allow political bias to motivate or guide their investigative work.” Grassley and Johnson stressed that they “expect the production of all records related to the Arctic Frost investigation, including all internal records of investigative updates.” “In addition, we request data providing a true and complete breakdown of the total dollar amount spent on the Arctic Frost investigation before it was officially transferred to Jack Smith in November 2022,” they wrote. “Please also include information related to travel funds and hours spent on the investigation.” Grassley and Johnson gave Bondi and Patel a deadline of March 27, 2025, to turn over all records. FBI spokesman Ben Williamson told Fox News Digital that the bureau is “in receipt of Chairman Grassley and Senator Johnson’s request.” “As always per Director Patel’s directive, our team will work aggressively to comply with Congressional requests,” Williamson told Fox News Digital. As for Thibault, Fox News Digital exclusively reported in 2024 that he had been
ICE arrests another Columbia University student who participated in anti-Israel protests
Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers arrested a second Columbia University student who participated in anti-Israel protests, after a third student opted to deport themselves from the U.S. Leqaa Kordia, who is from the West Bank, had a visa canceled in 2022 “for lack of attendance” and was detained by the agency for the outdated visa. Kordia was previously arrested in April for an alleged role in the protests. “It is a privilege to be granted a visa to live and study in the United States of America,” Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said in a statement. DEMONSTRATORS PROTEST DETAINMENT OF PRO-PALESTINIAN COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY STUDENT “When you advocate for violence and terrorism, that privilege should be revoked, and you should not be in this country. I am glad to see one of the Columbia University terrorist sympathizers use the CBP Home app to self-deport.” Mahmoud Khalil, who recently graduated from the New York City-based university, is in ICE custody for his role in the protests. However, this led to some backlash from students and faculty and drew the attention of the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU). UNIVERSITY STUDENTS, PROFESSORS FEARFUL DEPORTATION THREATS WILL CHILL SPEECH ON CAMPUS: REPORT “To be clear: The First Amendment does not allow the government to retaliate against anyone for their speech. Ripping someone from their home, stripping them of their immigration status, and detaining them solely based on political viewpoint is a clear attempt by President Trump to silence dissent,” the ACLU’s website states. “And that’s patently unconstitutional. Political speech — however controversial some may find it — may never be the basis for punishment, including deportation.” The Trump White House nixed $400 million in federal funding for Columbia University, which gained nationwide attention for its encampment that proponents said was in support of Gaza. President Donald Trump warned in a Truth Social post that Khalil was “the first arrest of many to come.” DHS AGENTS SEARCH TWO STUDENTS’ ROOMS AT COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY, LEAVING INTERIM PRESIDENT ‘HEARTBROKEN’ “Following my previously signed Executive Orders, ICE proudly apprehended and detained Mahmoud Khalil, a Radical Foreign Pro-Hamas Student on the campus of Columbia University,” Trump stated in the post. Indian citizen Ranjani Srinivasan used the new “CBP Home” app to return to the country March 11 after the federal government took away her student visa March 5, according to a new release from DHS.
Dr. Oz bats back Democratic attempts to paint him as a ‘snake oil’ salesman in Senate hearing
Dr. Mehmet Oz was slammed by his detractors during a Senate confirmation hearing Friday on Capitol Hill for promoting unproven alternative health treatments, and one Democrat called it the “most ludicrous wellness grifting” he’d ever seen. Oz laid out his plans for the agency, including potential reforms he is considering, during a confirmation hearing in front of the Senate Committee on Finance. The committee will soon vote on whether to advance Oz’s nomination to become the next director of the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services to the full Senate. While Oz’s medical expertise was not widely challenged Friday, his motivations were. Dubbed “America’s Doctor” by Oprah Winfrey, Oz used his TV platform at times to promote alternative health remedies, endorsing questionable weight loss solutions like green coffee extract and raspberry ketones. TRUMP’S PICK FOR NIH DIRECTOR CLEARS COMMITTEE, HEADS TO FULL SENATE VOTE Sen. Maggie Hassan, D-N.H., sought to get Oz to admit that his promotion of certain supplements for weight loss, such as green coffee extract, were fraudulent. While Oz admitted green coffee extract is not a miracle weight loss drug, he argued that he never promoted it as such. DR. MARTY MAKARY ADVANCES OUT OF KEY COMMITTEE IN BID FOR FDA CONFIRMATION “There are many things I said on the show. I take great pride in the research we did at the time to identify which of these worked and which ones didn’t. Many of them are still being researched, like the green coffee bean extract you just mentioned,” Oz told Hassan. The senator then inquired how much he was paid to promote these products, and Oz responded that he got nothing. But Oz’s claim he wasn’t getting paid to promote the products didn’t convince Hassan, who pointed out press reports chronicling the “Dr. Oz effect,” a phenomenon whereby sales of products he endorsed would skyrocket after being featured on his show. “That was written about by the press,” Oz told Hassan. Hassan then argued Oz seemed “unwilling to take accountability for [his] promotion of snake oil remedies.” FDA CHIEF COUNSEL WHO DEFENDED ABORTION PILL ACCESS UNDER BIDEN RESIGNS TWO DAYS INTO JOB Oz’s financial ties to a litany of companies spanning many corners of the healthcare sector, including nutrition supplements, has been a point of scrutiny for his detractors. In an ethics filing submitted in advance of the hearing, Oz indicated he would divest his holdings in more than 70 companies and investment funds that could pose potential conflicts of interest. One of those companies is iHerb, an online supplement retailer, which represents one of Oz’s largest financial holdings. According to his ethics filing, Oz’s holdings in iHerb are worth as much as $25 million. As the administrator of CMS, Oz would make decisions related to how the government covers procedures, hospital stays and medication within the federal healthcare programs, as well as the reimbursement rates healthcare providers get paid for their services. Oz, if confirmed, could theoretically take action to get federal healthcare programs, like Medicaid and Medicare, to cover a greater number of supplements not already covered. A committee vote to decide whether to send Oz to the full Senate has not yet been scheduled. He will need to garner at least 50 votes in the full Senate to be confirmed.
Join us April 2 for a conversation about whether Texas is prepared for the next public health crisis
Five years after COVID-19, we’ll examine what state and local leaders can do—and what they need—to address long-standing issues
DOD closes think tank arm marred by ‘inefficiency’ and criticized by GOP for ties to Trump-Russia probe
The Department of Defense has dissolved its Office of Net Acquisition – a think tank-like arm of the Pentagon that Republicans have claimed was involved in the Trump-Russia investigation. Pentagon chief spokesperson Sean Parnell said civilian employees within the office would be “reassigned to mission-critical roles” as the DOD established a plan to rebuild the office “in alignment with the Department’s strategic priorities.” The office is meant to provide long-term strategic analysis within DOD, but it has become a target of Republicans who claim it has engaged in “projects unrelated to its mission.” “Praise the Lord. This wise move saves American taxpayers over 20 million dollars a year,” Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, said in a statement. PENTAGON CALLS MARK MILLEY ‘CORPULENT’ AS IT KICKS OFF REVIEW OF PHYSICAL FITNESS AND GROOMING STANDARDS He called the office “wasteful and ineffective.” The office in recent years has been focused on strategizing a potential war with China. It championed a strategy known as “AirSea Battle,” where a blinding campaign against the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) of stealth bombers and submarines would take out China’s long-range surveillance before a naval assault. But Grassley has for years scrutinized ONA’s contracting practices. ONA has failed to produce classified net assessments for years, with whistleblowing analyst Adam Lovinger once complaining in emails to Director James Baker that the office seemed to attract overpriced academic-style papers instead of classified net assessments. “On the issue of quality, more than once I have heard our contractor studies labeled ‘derivative,’ ’college-level,’ and based heavily on secondary sources,” Lovinger wrote in a September 2016 email. “One of our contractor studies was literally cut and pasted from a World Bank report.” Lovinger had complained about questionable government contracts awarded to Stefan Halper, an FBI informant who spied on the Trump campaign in 2016. A DOD inspector general’s report later found that Halper had failed to properly document the research he did as a contractor on four studies valued at $1 million. The four contracts, spanning from 2012 to 2016, were meant to encompass relations between the U.S., Russia, China and India. SECRETARY HEGSETH SAYS THE DOD DOES NOT DO ‘CLIMATE CHANGE CRAP’ The report found that Halper had not provided proof of any meetings he had or locations he had visited as part of his studies. “ONA personnel could not provide us any evidence that Professor Halper visited any of these locations, established an advisory group, or met with any of the specific people listed in the statement of work.” For a study on what China relations could look like in 2030, Halper had proposed travel to London and Tokyo. “The contract was fixed price based on the acceptance of the deliverables and did not require Professor Halper to submit travel receipts. ONA personnel could not provide documentation that Professor Halper traveled for this contract.” Contracts show that Halper listed a Russian intelligence official as a consultant for an ONA project, the same intelligence official who was listed as a source in the Trump dossier used to spy on Carter Page. He was in contact with Page and former Trump campaign aide George Papadopoulos, “raising questions about whether Halper used U.S. taxpayer dollars to seek connections with Trump campaign officials,” according to Grassley. CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP Halper was also a confidential human source for the FBI’s investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 elections who recorded conversations with officials from the campaign. The senator claims that ONA has stonewalled on his inquiries about Halper’s relations to the Trump-Russia probe. Senator Jack Reed, D-R.I., top Democrat on the Armed Services Committee, called the office’s closing “shortsighted,” adding that it would “undermine our ability to prepare for future conflicts.”