EPA chief wraps national tour as critics slam deregulation agenda
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Lee Zeldin just capped off a nine-and-a-half month 50-state tour around the country talking to various folks impacted by his agency’s policies. Zeldin completed his tour Friday after having made numerous reforms while on the road, including an agreement with Mexico to stop their wastewater from continuing to flow into the United States, a new directive that will help expedite the cleanup of nuclear waste in Missouri, rescission of an emissions rule and new guidance on diesel exhaust fuel aimed at helping farmers and truckers. Meanwhile, Zeldin also visited sites of major environmental disasters, such as East Palestine, Ohio, which is still dealing with the after-effects of a major chemical spill that happened during the Biden administration, and Los Angeles, which has recently seen several devastating wildfires. NEWSOM PUSHES CLIMATE RECORD ABROAD AS CALIFORNIANS SHOULDER AMERICA’S HIGHEST GAS COSTS “From business owners to trade workers, elected officials to residents impacted by environmental challenges, I’ve been soliciting feedback on any and every way the Trump EPA can fix everything,” Zeldin said after the culmination of his tour. One of the accomplishments Zeldin is touting includes a July Memorandum of Understanding to address sewage spillage from the Tijuana River. Raw sewage has been flowing into Southern California from Mexico for decades, which Zeldin’s EPA said has led to beaches being forced to close, harm to the region’s economy and sickness on either side of the border. EPA administrator Zeldin also released an “EPA Region 7 Status Update for West Lake Landfill Superfund Site” located in Bridgeton, Missouri and Coldwater Creek. The update cut two years off the initial start date of the project, according to the EPA. The waste is scheduled to be entirely cleaned up by 2038. Another reform includes rescinding guidance from the “Preparation of Clean Air Act Section (CAA) 179B Demonstrations for Nonattainment Areas Affected by International Transport of Emissions.” Zeldin’s EPA said that the guidance made it “unnecessary difficult” for states to prove that foreign air pollution was harming Americans, not theirs, and seek regulatory relief under the Clean Air Act. Zeldin said this was of major concern for elected officials and business owners in Arizona and Utah. Part of this reform will include a reevaluation of a determination by the federal government of how much international emissions are impacting residents in the Wasatch Waterfront area, in Utah. FLARING CLIMATE PROTESTS BECOMING MORE CONFRONTATIONAL AS FREE SPEECH TESTED GLOBALLY Zeldin also announced in Iowa that new action would be taken to “protect” farmers, truckers and other individuals who need to operate diesel-fueled engines during his trip. In conjunction with the U.S. Small Business Administration, the government is pushing engine and equipment manufacturers to revise emissions control system software in existing vehicles and equipment that has been compelling sudden speed and power losses and costing businesses a lot of money in order to comply with strict regulations. “Together we are empowering the great American comeback,” Zeldin insists in a video his team posted to social media about the conclusion of his tour. However, there are some folks who disagree with Zeldin. “Administrator Zeldin is supposed to safeguard the environment and public health, yet under his watch the Trump EPA is fast-tracking new pesticides — including several containing PFAS ‘forever chemicals’ that build up in our bodies and never break down,” Alex Formuzis, spokesperson for the Environmental Working Group, told Fox News Digital. “At the same time, he is tearing apart core protections on toxic air pollution, contaminated drinking water, hazardous industrial discharges, and even bedrock legal decisions that allow the EPA to regulate greenhouse gas emissions from tailpipes and smokestacks under the Clean Air Act.” Zeldin was “alarmingly right” about enacting one of the “biggest de-regulatory action[s]” in history, Formuzis added, calling it “a wholesale retreat from facts, science and environmental and public health protection.” “Hardly an agenda to make Americans healthy,” he added. Environmental groups have sued Zeldin’s EPA and the Trump administration over many of their regulatory rollbacks. Earthjustice Action and WE ACT for Environmental Justice have recently challenged Zeldin’s bid to scrap federal greenhouse-gas reporting rules in a Nov. 3 filing. “The climate crisis is a public health crisis, and EPA’s proposed repeal of the Greenhouse Gas Reporting Program will exacerbate both,” the groups wrote. “At a time when millions of Americans are losing access to healthcare and millions more are seeing polluting data centers and energy generators built in their backyards, it is imperative that EPA uphold its mission to protect human health and the environment.”
Destiny or Dynasty: Inside the new class of political nepo babies vying for power
A young member of the Kennedy dynasty with a thin résumé is seeking a seat in Congress. And he’s not alone among candidates who hope to keep their family name in politics. There is a slew of political heirs hoping voters see their legacies as leadership rather than nepotism. Hollywood’s “nepo babies” took plenty of heat in 2022, when stars like Hailey Bieber and Zoë Kravitz were accused of finding success through their famous family names. The phenomenon isn’t limited to Hollywood, and political nepotism is nothing new. Just look at former Presidents George H. W. Bush and George W. Bush (and now there’s another Bush on the ballot in 2026). Here’s a look at the next generation of political heirs running for office. CAMELOT OR CRINGE?: MEET JFK’S GRANDSON TURNED CONGRESSIONAL CANDIDATE FOR THE SCROLLING GENERATION As former President John F. Kennedy’s only grandson, Jack Schlossberg is practically political royalty. But to New York City’s chronically online electorate, he is better known as the star of hundreds of satirical, and often absurd, viral videos, amassing close to 850,000 TikTok followers and nearly 770,000 on Instagram. Despite the followers and the Kennedy connections, Schlossberg has a thin résumé. He most recently served as a political correspondent for Vogue during the 2024 presidential election. JOE KENNEDY III BLASTS RFK JR. AFTER FIERY SENATE HEARING, FUELING KENNEDY FAMILY INFIGHTING: ‘HE MUST RESIGN’ “I’m Jack Schlossberg, and my grandfather, President Kennedy, is my hero,” the candidate for New York’s 12th Congressional District said in a campaign text on the day of his launch, leaning into his Kennedy roots. “To make the entire campaign about [being] from this super famous political dynasty with nothing else to offer is a choice,” Democratic commentator Kaivan Shroff, a 2016 Hillary Clinton campaign alum, told Fox News Digital. Schlossberg was a Democratic National Committee delegate in 2024 and worked as a staff assistant at the U.S. Department of State in 2016. He is a graduate of Yale University and Harvard Law and Business Schools. Schlossberg is the son of former U.S. Ambassador Caroline Kennedy. According to his LinkedIn, Schlossberg has worked for the John F. Kennedy Library Foundation for 12 years, first as chair of the New Frontier Award, and now as chair of the Profiles in Courage Award. While the Kennedy heir is making his foray into elected office with a congressional run, House Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi’s daughter, Christine Pelosi, announced a bid for local office this week. The former House Speaker said last week that she will retire from Congress at the end of her term, teeing up a competitive Democratic primary in an already crowded race. As Democratic state Sen. Scott Wiener is running to replace Pelosi’s congressional seat, her daughter is opting to run for Wiener’s open seat in 2028, or in a special election if he wins, rather than seek to fill her mother’s shoes in Congress. While Schlossberg, at 32, jumped right into a congressional race, Shroff told Fox News Digital that “there is something humble” about Pelosi opting to run for local office first, especially when she would have had “huge, huge, huge advantages” given her mother’s campaign infrastructure. Meanwhile, Shroff said the perception of Schlossberg’s congressional campaign reads like it’s “his inheritance to be a member of Congress” as a Kennedy. Christine Pelosi is an author, Democratic campaign strategist, and attorney. She has chaired the California Democratic Party’s Women’s Caucus and is a longtime member of the Democratic National Committee. Last month, Jonathan Bush, nephew of the late George H. W. Bush, launched a gubernatorial campaign in Maine to succeed term-limited Gov. Janet Mills, D-Maine. Earlier this year, Bush founded a podcast and advocacy group called Maine for Keeps, which he describes as a “movement to ensure the American Dream is alive and well right here in Maine.” A health-tech entrepreneur, Bush co-founded athenahealth in 1997 and served as its CEO until 2018, when he resigned following allegations of domestic violence and sexual harassment. On the campaign trail, the Republican has described himself as a “disruptor” and “job creator,” highlighting his business background as evidence he can bring innovation to state government. Bush is a member of one of the country’s most recognizable political dynasties, but this is his first time running for public office. Political inheritance has its perks, but it can also mean family feuds spilling into the public eye. Democratic congressional candidate Stefany Shaheen, who is running in a crowded primary for New Hampshire’s open U.S. House seat, is the daughter of Sen. Jeanne Shaheen. The elder Shaheen, a former governor who is retiring next year rather than seeking re-election, was one of seven Democrats who voted with Republicans to end the government shutdown last week. But the younger Shaheen said she “cannot support” the agreement, which was brokered in part by her mother, exposing the generational divide within the Democratic Party. Shaheen is an entrepreneur and healthcare advocate, and it’s her first time running for public office. Rep. Adelita Grijalva, D-Ariz., was sworn into Congress this week. Earlier this year, she won the special election to replace her late father, longtime Rep. Raúl Grijalva, after he died in March. While Grijalva had her father’s legacy on her side in the competitive special election for Arizona’s 7th Congressional District, she has decades of experience serving on the local level. She was most recently on the Pima County Board of Supervisors and, prior to that, she worked at Pima County Teen Court for more than 25 years, according to her campaign website. In the special election, Grijalva faced a challenge from social media influencer and activist Deja Foxx, who was endorsed by former DNC chair David Hogg’s super PAC, Leaders We Deserve. Since Grijalva was elected in a special election, she will have to run again in the upcoming 2026 midterms to earn a full term in Congress. While Grijalva most likely benefited from her family name, Shroff pointed out that her decades of experience serving Arizona gave her campaign
Trump administration stays silent as massive Ukraine corruption scandal rocks Zelenskyy’s inner circle
The Trump administration has so far remained silent on a widening corruption scandal inside Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s government and inner circle. The White House did not respond to a request for comment on a $100 million corruption probe announced this week that has already prompted the resignations of senior Ukrainian officials. Corruption has long been a friction point in U.S.–Ukraine relations. In 2019, the Trump administration paused roughly $400 million in military aid to Ukraine, citing concerns about government corruption. At the same time, Trump’s associates sought information on then–Democratic rival Joe Biden, who served as vice president under Barack Obama. Meanwhile, Biden’s son Hunter held a $50,000-per-month board seat at the Ukrainian energy firm Burisma. As vice president, Joe Biden had threatened to withhold $1 billion in U.S. loan guarantees unless Ukraine dismissed prosecutor Viktor Shokin, whom Western governments accused of failing to pursue corruption cases. Shokin later claimed he was fired because he was investigating Burisma — a claim U.S. and European officials dispute. RUSSIA’S GAS GAMBLE BACKFIRES AS TRUMP’S ENERGY VISION RESHAPES EUROPE President Donald Trump for months has been working to secure a peace deal between Russia and Ukraine, which the U.S. has provided with around $175 billion in aid since the start of the war in 2022. Ukraine’s anti-corruption agencies — the National Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU) and the Special Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office (SAP) — said they spent 15 months on “Operation Midas,” a probe that included roughly 1,000 hours of wiretaps. Investigators say the inquiry uncovered a kickback scheme in which contractors for the state-owned nuclear company Energoatom paid 10 to 15 percent bribes, totaling about $100 million, to keep government contracts. According to prosecutors, the alleged ringleader was Timur Mindich, a longtime associate of Zelenskyy and co-owner of his former production studio, as well as an advisor to Justice Minister German Galushchenko. Authorities say Galushchenko, who served as energy minister until July, helped facilitate the money laundering operation and acted under Mindich’s influence. Mindich fled Ukraine early Monday, hours before investigators raided his home. Both Galushchenko and his successor, Energy Minister Svitlana Grynchuk, said they would resign at Zelenskyy’s request. Five suspects have been arrested, and seven others placed under official suspicion, prosecutors said. In a statement, NABU alleged that the criminal network transferred funds to “an unnamed former deputy prime minister of Ukraine,” identified internally by the codename Che Guevara. Investigators said about $1.2 million was traced to that individual. “Using their official connections in the ministry and the state-owned company,” the suspects “ensured control over personnel decisions, procurement processes, and financial flows,” Ukraine’s anti-corruption agencies said. TOP UKRAINIAN OFFICIALS IN ZELENSKYY GOVERNMENT SUBMIT RESIGNATIONS AMID $100 MILLION CORRUPTION SCANDAL Zelenskyy has not been directly implicated, but the revelations cast a shadow over a president who built his career on promises to root out graft. He publicly backed the investigation, saying Monday night that “any effective action against corruption is very necessary” and that “the inevitability of punishment is necessary.” Earlier this year, Zelenskyy faced backlash after proposing tighter presidential oversight of Ukraine’s independent anti-corruption agencies — a plan he later withdrew. Before entering politics, the former comedian often joked about his country’s entrenched corruption. “Is it possible to become president and not steal?” he once quipped. “It’s a rhetorical question, as no one has tried so far.” His 2019 election campaign centered on dismantling the oligarch-dominated political system and increasing transparency. Now, nearly seven years later — with no election planned amid wartime conditions — some Ukrainians view him as increasingly reliant on a small inner circle consolidating their own power and wielding it with limited checks. Investigators say some of the laundered money had been earmarked for equipment meant to protect energy facilities from Russian missile attacks. Ukraine continues to face rolling blackouts, with many residents limited to five to eight hours of electricity per day as Russian forces target power infrastructure heading into winter. Last week, the European Commission praised Ukraine’s “significant efforts” to combat corruption but warned that “limited progress” could jeopardize its bid to join the European Union. The commission also cautioned that reports of political pressure on anti-corruption groups “cast doubt on Ukraine’s commitment” and urged Kyiv to “prevent any backsliding on its notable reform achievements.”
Multiple democratic socialists line up to succeed Mamdani
Several members of the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) appear to be lining up to clinch Zohran Mamdani’s New York State Assembly seat after the 34-year-old stunned the political landscape to become the city’s next mayor. Rana Abdelhamid, an Egyptian American and Muslim community organizer, has filed to run for Assembly District 36, the western Queens district that covers the Astoria neighborhood, according to City & State, citing state Board of Elections records. Meanwhile, DSA leaders have already recruited former Queens DSA co-chair Diana Moreno to run for the seat, while local reports indicate that Mary Jobaida, a past candidate for a neighboring district, may also run. Abdelhamid is a member of the New York City chapter of the DSA. The chapter is the largest in the country, with more than 11,200 members, including Mamdani and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y. Tiffany Cabán, the Astoria neighborhood’s city council member, is also a DSA member. ZOHRAN MAMDANI LANDS KEY ENDORSEMENT IN NEW YORK CITY MAYORAL RACE A DSA win in this race would mark another step in the group’s growing influence over New York politics. Abdelhamid previously mounted a 2022 primary challenge against then-Rep. Carolyn Maloney, whose district included both the Upper East Side and western Queens. She dropped out of the race after the district’s boundaries were redrawn to exclude Queens, the outlet reported. Abdelhamid is deeply involved with the Middle Eastern and North African (MENA) community in Astoria and helped lead a successful push for the state to collect more accurate demographic data on MENA communities, per City & State. She also founded a women’s self-defense organization called Malikah and previously told the outlet that she grew up in Astoria, in a part of the neighborhood nicknamed “Little Egypt.” Sources told the outlet that Moreno will likely receive the DSA endorsement. LINDA SARSOUR TELLS FOLLOWERS SHE WILL ‘HOLD ZOHRAN ACCOUNTABLE’ IF MAMDANI WINS NYC MAYORAL RACE Moreno, who also lives in Astoria, was co-chair of NYC-DSA’s Queens branch from 2021 to 2023 and served as the organization’s communications coordinator from 2023 to 2024. She is also the former deputy director of the immigrant advocacy group New Immigrant Community Empowerment. “I’m preparing to run for Zohran’s Assembly seat so our future mayor has an unwavering ally in Albany committed to helping him deliver an affordable NYC!” Moreno posted on Instagram two weeks ago, sharing a story about her candidacy on City & State. “As a Queens mom, an immigrant organizer, and a democratic socialist, I’m ready to fight for the working people of Queens! LET’S WIN THIS.” Moreno said she was initially approached by the DSA to run but declined, citing the demands of traveling to Albany given that she has a young child. She said she changed her mind because of what she described as the Trump administration’s “rising authoritarianism” and a need to deliver for working families in her district. Her top legislative priority is free and universal child care. Moreno’s profile shows her participating in several pro-Palestinian demonstrations in the city.
Anti-Trump network behind mass protests cracks open war chest against Dems who backed reopening government
A left-wing group behind the massive “No Kings” protests targeting President Donald Trump and his administration launched its largest primary undertaking: targeting Senate Democrats who joined Republicans to reopen the government. “This is no longer about them – it’s about us. We’re done waiting for Democrats to find their spine,” Ezra Levin, co-founder and co-executive director of Indivisible, said in a Monday press release. “We can’t afford a weak and cowardly Democratic Party while the authoritarians invade our cities, terrorize our communities, and threaten our democracy. We get the party we demand, and we intend to demand a Democratic Party that fights.” Indivisible is one of the key groups behind the massive “No Kings” protests that were held across the country earlier in 2025, including on June 14, when Trump held a military parade in Washington, D.C., and most recently on Oct. 18, when protesters railed against Trump’s immigration policies and reiterated claims that Trump conducts himself as a monarch as opposed to a president. The protests are supported by dozens of left-wing and liberal groups, with Indivisible, the 50501 movement and the No Kings Organization, itself, identified as the top organizers of the protests. SCHUMER PUSHES SHUTDOWN INTO RECORD BOOKS AFTER REJECTING GOP BILL A 14TH TIME Indivisible launched in 2017, as Trump’s first term kicked off, and describes itself as a network of local grassroots groups that advocates for the elections of left-wing lawmakers, while advocating current lawmakers resist MAGA policies. The group is funded, in part, by left-wing billionaire George Soros’ Open Society Foundations, which delivered Indivisible a two-year grant worth $3 million in 2023 that works to “to support the grantee’s social welfare activities,” Fox News Digital previously reported. “Chuck Schumer and a critical mass of Senate Democrats surrendered,” Levin said. “For nearly six weeks, Republicans held the government hostage while threatening health care, food assistance, and basic services for millions of Americans.” “In these six weeks of the shutdown, Democrats had their best election night in over a decade, polls showed Republicans were losing this shutdown fight, and their base turned out for the largest protest in modern U.S. history with a resounding rejection of Trump and Republicans,” Levin continued in his comments. “Instead of standing with that energy, Senate Democrats surrendered — yet again. That’s why Indivisible is launching our largest primary program yet.” “Our democracy is facing an existential threat. We need leaders with backbone and conviction — not timidity and excuses,” Indivisible’s co-founder and co-executive director Leah Greenberg said of the primary plan. “Democrats can’t defeat authoritarianism by running from the fight. It’s in our hands to make sure those who can’t fight make space for the leaders who can. Indivisible is ready to clean house and build a party that actually has the energy to act like an opposition.” At the heart of the shutdown was a debate on healthcare. Trump and Republican pinned shutdown blame on Democrats for working to include healthcare benefits for illegal immigrants in the package. Democrats denied the claims and argued the government was shut down due to Republicans failing to negotiate healthcare demands. The House voted later Wednesday to reopen the government. The bill then headed to Trump’s desk for his signature to officially end the longest federal shutdown in U.S. history. A handful of left-wing lawmakers and leaders slammed Senate Democrats for joining the GOP earlier this week, such as Independent Sen. Bernie Sanders describing Sunday as a “very bad night.” JOHN FETTERMAN BREAKS WITH DEMOCRATS IN SHUTDOWN VOTE, SAYS IT’S AN ‘EASY CHOICE’ TO PUT AMERICA FIRST “Pathetic. This isn’t a deal. It’s a surrender. Don’t bend the knee!,” Democratic California Gov. Gavin Newsom’s official press office X account posted Sunday evening. Newsom added on his own X account: “America deserves better,” as well as another message that just read, “pathetic.“ “As this vote moves to the House, I stand with Democratic leadership as they refuse to rubber stamp the full-scale Republican assault on Americans’ health care and I am proud of the majority of Senate Democrats who opposed this vote,” DNC Chair Ken Martin posted to X. “I’ve said it since the start of this shutdown — Republicans do not negotiate in good faith, and any deal that fails to protect healthcare is not a deal at all. For Democrats to cave now would be a complete betrayal of the American people,” Illinois Lt. Governor and Senate candidate Juliana Stratton posted to X. Others, including Indivisible and Democratic California Rep. Ro Khanna, have called for Schumer to be replaced over the handling of the shutdown. Indivisible’s primary plan, which is dubbed as the group’s “largest” primary effort to date, includes calling on Schumer to step aside as Senate minority leader, and backing Senate candidates who hold a “clear commitment to abandon the status quo of feckless leadership, and use every tool available to fight MAGA attacks on our communities, our health, and our democracy.” “Ahead of the 2026 primaries, Indivisible will be activating (it’s) (sic) network to support progressive fighters who are challenging feckless, status-quo-loving incumbents. In a recent movement survey, 98.67% of Indivisible’s base said they wanted Senate Democrats to keep fighting,” the group wrote, adding that its plan is coming together with more details, candidate endorsements and campaign efforts expected in the coming weeks. Fox News Digital reached out to Indivisible Wednesday morning for additional comment on the plan but did not immediately receive a response. SENATE RETURNS TO WORK AS GOVERNMENT SHUTDOWN NEARS LONGEST IN US HISTORY OVER OBAMACARE FIGHT When asked about the Democrat in-fighting over the eight lawmakers who joined the GOP, the White House reiterated that Trump has wanted the government to reopen since Oct. 1. “President Trump has wanted the government reopened since the first day Democrats shut it down. The action in the Senate is a positive development and we look forward to seeing it progress,” a White House official told Fox Digital. Trump joined Fox News’ Laura Ingraham Monday evening, arguing the Republican Party “broke”
New prosecutor takes on Trump’s Georgia election case after Fani Willis disqualified
The head of the Georgia Prosecuting Attorneys’ Council revealed on Friday that he appointed himself to take over the election case in Georgia against President Donald Trump and several others, a move that comes after Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis was disqualified from it. The council’s director, Peter Skandalakis, said he would take the case on after he was unable to find another prosecutor to do it. “The filing of this appointment reflects my inability to secure another conflict prosecutor to assume responsibility for this case,” Skandalakis said. “Several prosecutors were contacted and, while all were respectful and professional, each declined the appointment.” TRUMP ISSUES SWEEPING PARDONS FOR 2020 ELECTION ALLIES — WHAT THE MOVE REALLY MEANS Willis charged Trump and 18 co-defendants in August 2023 with racketeering and other violations involving interfering with the 2020 election, but the case was whittled down significantly because of plea deals and dismissed charges. The biggest blow to the prosecution came last year, however, when the Georgia Court of Appeals disqualified Willis, finding that she had an undisclosed romantic relationship with her lead prosecutor, Nathan Wade, and that it presented a conflict of interest. Her disqualification flipped the case into the hands of the state agency to decide what to do with it. Legal experts had long predicted that finding a new prosecutor to step in and take on the sprawling, complex racketeering case against Trump and his allies would be difficult. Skandalakis said he wanted to do it to avoid the court dismissing the charges because of a lack of a prosecutor. “The public has a legitimate interest in the outcome of this case. Accordingly, it is important that someone make an informed and transparent determination about how best to proceed,” Skandalakis said. Court action against Trump while he is a sitting president is unlikely, but some of his co-defendants still facing charges, including former White House chief of staff Mark Meadows and former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani, do not have that same type of protection. ALVIN BRAGG DODGES MENTIONING SIGNATURE TRUMP CASE AS HE CAMPAIGNS FOR DISTRICT ATTORNEY RE-ELECTION Trump this week pardoned Meadows, Giuliani and others facing accusations related to the 2020 election, but the president’s clemency only applies to federal charges. Trump’s defense lawyer Steve Sadow said in a statement he expects the Georgia case will still be tossed out. “This politically charged prosecution has to come to an end,” Sadow said. “We remain confident that a fair and impartial review will lead to a dismissal of the case against President Trump.” Claudia Kelly-Bazan contributed to this report.
Shutdown is over, but Washington’s budget brawl is just getting started
The nation’s longest shutdown on record just ended — but the issues behind it remain far from resolved. Rep. Rosa DeLauro, D-Conn., the top Democrat on the House Appropriations Committee, said she envisions not much will have changed by the time the government has to reevaluate its spending needs on Jan. 30. “My sense is that we would probably be in the same place on Jan. 30 as we are now,” DeLauro said. When asked if that means he sees another government shutdown in the cards, Sen. Raphael Warnock, D-Ga., declined to answer. “I remain laser-focused on healthcare reform,” Warnock said. LONGEST GOVERNMENT SHUTDOWN IN HISTORY NEARS LIKELY END AS HOUSE MOVES ON FUNDING BILL Key Democrat demands that went unfulfilled in the 43-day shutdown standoff — coupled with an uphill climb to fund the government for the rest of 2026 — look poised to keep the possibility of another shutdown alive for now. In the shutdown, Democrats had hoped to secure an extension of COVID-era tax credit subsidies for Obamacare that had facilitated the burden of rising premiums but also dramatically expanded the program’s costs. In 2021, the government expanded federal assistance to help Obamacare policyholders pay their premiums as an emergency response to the global pandemic. With those tax credits set to expire at the end of the year, Democrats fear millions of policyholders could be left paying substantially higher premiums overnight if the subsidies are allowed to sunset. According to findings by the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget, a nonpartisan fiscal policy research group, continuing the expanded credits could cost upwards of $30 billion annually. Now that the government has reopened with no concession on the subsidies, many Democrats remain skeptical Republican lawmakers will address them now or work towards overhauling healthcare costs. “I find it hard to believe that they’re serious about this,” Sen. Wyden, D-Ore., said of Republican plans to address subsidy reform. “You’ve got to play hardball with the insurance companies. You’ve gotta have some teeth in it. So put me down as skeptical, but if they are — we can have a conversation.” SENATE REACHES TEMPORARY TRUCE TO END RECORD SHUTDOWN, BUT JANUARY BATTLE LOOMS Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., also said she doesn’t know what will change between now and January. She does, however, think the political gravity of the situation will look very different if the issue remains unaddressed. “Well, I think what’s going to happen is that by January a lot of people’s health insurance premiums are going to kick in,” she said. “And my biggest concern is that come January there could potentially be millions of people that are now uninsured because they were priced out or cut out of their health insurance.” “And so, to me, it’s a life or death matter for tens of thousands of Americans.” Findings by the Kaiser Family Foundation, a healthcare policy think tank, indicate that over 90% of Obamacare enrollees make use of the enhanced credits in 2025 — the vast majority of the program’s 24 million policyholders. In addition to unresolved tensions over Obamacare’s COVID-era subsidies, Democrats also noted that there’s a long way to go before Congress puts its 2026 spending needs to bed. DeLauro explained that the majority of the country’s funding picture remains unresolved. The bill that ended the shutdown also passed three of the country’s 12 annual spending bills: the legislative branch, agriculture and military construction and Veterans Affairs. That leaves the majority of the work up in the air. “There are nine bills to go,” DeLauro said. “The bills that have come forward have been nothing but unilaterally partisan bills. So those will have to be negotiated. We have two parties here, two sides. In the past, we have had serious negotiation back and forth. And that’s what we need to do. And that is not happening.” ‘THE PANDEMIC’S OVER’: GOP, DEM SENATORS SPAR ON CAMERA OVER COSTLY OBAMACARE SUBSIDIES Although the three bills that passed earlier this week eliminate the possibility of a full shutdown come January, Congress could still trigger a partial shutdown if lawmakers fail to reach a consensus on what to do about the rest of the country’s spending legislation. The House and Senate have adjourned for the weekend. Lawmakers will return to Washington, D.C. next week.
Trump to ask DOJ to investigate Epstein ties to Democrats, banks
President Donald Trump said on Friday that he directed the Justice Department to investigate disgraced late financier Jeffrey Epstein’s ties to several high-profile Democrats and certain banks. “Now that the Democrats are using the Epstein Hoax, involving Democrats, not Republicans, to try and deflect from their disastrous SHUTDOWN, and all of their other failures, I will be asking AG Pam Bondi, and the Department of Justice, together with our great patriots at the FBI, to investigate Jeffrey Epstein’s involvement and relationship with Bill Clinton, Larry Summers, Reid Hoffman, JPMorgan, Chase, and many other people and institutions, to determine what was going on with them, and him,” Trump said on Truth Social. “This is another Russia, Russia, Russia scam, with all arrows pointing to the Democrats,” he added. “Records show that these men, and many others, spent large portions of their life with Epstein, and on his ‘island.’ Stay tuned!!!” Head of Policy & Advocacy Communications at JPMorgan Chase & Co. Trish Wexler told Fox News Digital that “The government had damning information about [Epstein’s] crimes and failed to share it with us and other banks.” “We regret any association we had with the man, but did not help him commit his heinous acts,” she added. “We ended our relationship with him years before his arrest on sex trafficking charges.” In an earlier post on Friday, Trump said that “Epstein was a Democrat,” and therefore is the “Democrat’s [sic] problem,” not the Republicans’ problem. He also accused the Democrats of “doing everything in their withering power to push the Epstein Hoax again, despite the DOJ releasing 50,000 pages of documents.” Trump then said lawmakers should not “waste” time looking into him and instead should focus on the Democrats he later named in the post announcing the probe. On Wednesday, Oversight Committee Democrats released never-before-seen emails related to the Epstein case. The first email is between Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell. Epstein writes, “I want you to realize that the only dog that hasn’t barked is Trump,” adding that the now-president “spent hours at my house” with a victim. In the second email, the disgraced financier told Michael Wolff that Trump “knew about the girls as he asked Ghislaine to stop.” Oversight Committee Ranking Member Rep. Robert Garcia, D-Calif., called on the DOJ to release all of the Epstein files “immediately.” “The more Donald Trump tries to cover up the Epstein files, the more we uncover,” Garcia said in a statement. “These latest emails and correspondence raise glaring questions about what else the White House is hiding and the nature of the relationship between Epstein and the president.” In response, Oversight Committee Republicans slammed Democrats, saying that they “whine about ‘releasing the files,’ but only cherry-pick when they have them to generate clickbait. You deserve the full truth.” Included in the tweet was a link with what the Republicans said was an additional 20,000 pages of documents from the Epstein estate. This is a developing story, please check back for updates. Fox News Digital reached out to representatives for Clinton, Summers and Hoffman for comment.
GOP unity shattered by controversial measure in government shutdown bill
The House is expected to vote next week on repealing a controversial measure in the bill that ended the government shutdown. It caused heartburn for House Republicans in the final days of the shutdown and provided fresh ammo for Democrats hoping to delay their federal funding legislation in its final hours. The provision, tucked into the Legislative Branch appropriations bill and dubbed “Requiring Senate Notification for Senate Data,” would allow senators directly targeted in former special counsel Jack Smith’s Arctic Frost investigation to sue the U.S. government for up to $500,000. House Appropriations Committee Chairman Tom Cole, R-Okla., who was involved in crafting part of the successful funding deal, told Fox News Digital he had even been afraid it could derail the final vote to end the shutdown. PROGRESSIVE DEMOCRATS TURN ON PARTY LEADERSHIP AFTER GOVERNMENT SHUTDOWN ENDS WITHOUT HEALTHCARE GUARANTEES “It had been done without our knowledge. I mean, it had been added in the Senate without our knowledge,” Cole said. “It was a real trust factor … I mean, all of a sudden, this pops up in the bill, and we’re confronted with either leave this in here, or we pull it out, we have to go to conference, and the government doesn’t get reopened.” It was placed into the bill by Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., and given the green light by Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., sources confirmed to Fox News Digital. Thune put the provision into the bill at the request of members of the Senate GOP, a source familiar with the negotiations told Fox News Digital, which included Sens. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., and Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas. It was a big point of contention when the House Rules Committee met to prepare the legislation for a final vote on Tuesday night. Reps. Chip Roy, R-Texas, Austin Scott, R-Ga., and Morgan Griffith, R-Va., all shared House Democrats’ frustration with the measure, but they made clear it would not stand in the way of ending what had become the longest shutdown in history. Those Republicans agreed with the motivations behind their Senate counterparts wanting to sue but bristled over the notion that it would come at the expense of U.S. taxpayers. SENATOR RON JOHNSON WARNS GOP WILL BE IN ‘BIG TROUBLE’ IF PARTY IGNORES DEMOCRATS’ PLAN TO ‘NUKE’ FILIBUSTER Roy told Fox News Digital that he brought his concerns to the Senate GOP himself. “Well, they heard them,” Roy said when asked how those concerns were received. “I mean, you know, the lords don’t like to be told by mere commoners what to do. But we’re going to have to take a pretty strong stand on this one.” The measure’s inclusion was enough for Rep. Greg Steube, R-Fla., to vote against the final bill, telling reporters, “I’m not voting to send Lindsey Graham half a million dollars.” Rep. John Rose, R-Tenn., among the GOP lawmakers outside the Rules Committee who made their concerns public, introduced legislation to repeal the provision. “The American people should not be asked to make compensation to United States senators, the ultimate insiders, if you will — who have been wronged, no doubt in my mind … this provision does not allow other Americans to pursue a remedy. It does not even allow the President of the United States, who was equally wrongfully surveilled and pursued by the Justice Department — they didn’t even include President Trump in this,” Rose told Fox News Digital. “They saved this special treat for themselves. And, you know, frankly, the right answer is that they should all disavow that immediately.” House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., appeared equally, if not more, annoyed when asked by reporters about the measure. He said a vote on repealing it would be fast-tracked next week and hoped his Senate counterparts would do the same. “I was just as surprised by the inclusion of that language as anyone. I had no prior notice of it at all,” Johnson said. “I was frustrated, as my colleagues are over here, and I thought it was untimely and inappropriate. So we’ll be requesting, strongly urging, our Senate colleagues to repeal that.” But there was an appetite among Senate Republicans to respond to Smith’s investigation, where senators were not notified that their records would be requested without notification. And the provision is narrowly tailored to just include senators and would require that they be notified if their information is requested by the Department of Justice (DOJ). The idea is to prevent the abuse of the DOJ to go after sitting senators now and in the future. Graham, when asked if he would be filing a lawsuit, told reporters in South Carolina, “Oh, definitely.” “And if you think I’m going to settle this thing for a million dollars? No. I want to make it so painful no one ever does this again,” he said. When asked for comment on the matter, Cruz’s office pointed Fox News Digital to comments he made in a recent Politico report. “Leader Thune inserted that in the bill to provide real teeth to the prohibition on the Department of Justice targeting senators,” Cruz told Politico. Several senators were unaware of the provision’s inclusion, including Sen. Martin Heinrich, D-N.M., the top Democrat on the Legislative Branch appropriations subcommittee. “I am furious that the Senate Minority and Majority Leaders chose to airdrop this provision into this bill at the eleventh hour — with zero consultation or negotiation with the subcommittee that actually oversees this work,” Heinrich said in a statement to Fox News Digital. “This is precisely what’s wrong with the Senate.” TRUMP SIGNS BILL ENDING LONGEST GOVERNMENT SHUTDOWN IN US HISTORY Most of the eight senators who did have their phone records subpoenaed as part of Smith’s investigation were also unaware of the provision until the legislation was unveiled over the weekend and have no intent to file a lawsuit. Sen. Dan Sullivan, R-Alaska, “first learned about this provision when he and his staff were reading the bill to open
ESPN star in the hot seat as Senate campaign rumors swirl: ‘Trump-hating RINO’
Legendary college football broadcaster Paul Finebaum is taking heat for allegedly being a “Trump-hating” weak Republican amid widespread rumors that he is planning a run for the U.S. Senate in Alabama. The 70-year-old ESPN host, best known as the foremost authority on SEC football, has not yet announced an official run. However, he has revealed he is intrigued by the idea of such a run and admitted in an interview with OutKick to “thinking about it constantly.” For some Republican insiders in Alabama, this has been sufficient to start raising alarms about why they believe Finebaum would be a poor choice for a Senate candidate. Dale Jackson, a prominent Alabama radio politics talk show host, told Fox News Digital that though “Finebaum is a radio legend and a fixture in the South … nobody knows what he believes.” TOMMY TUBERVILLE PRAISES PAUL FINEBAUM AS ANALYST CONSIDERS SENATE RUN AFTER CHARLIE KIRK ASSASSINATION “The guy is a legend,” Jackson continued. “[But] I’ve been doing radio and talk radio for almost 20 years in Alabama, and I couldn’t tell you what Paul Finebaum knows or believes about anything political.” “The minute he starts talking about what he believes. It’s going to be picked apart, and I don’t know if he’s necessarily ready for what that means,” said Jackson. Finebaum’s record on political stances is mixed. In 2016, he stated, “this country is not oppressing Black people,” but then later apologized on ESPN, saying his “eyes are wider open,” according to RealClearPolitics. In 2017, he remarked that President Donald Trump “does behave like a child,” per FanBuzz. In 2020, Finebaum went on the record praising a video in which Nick Saban encouraged COVID-19 social distancing and masking, according to 247Sports. He also spoke favorably of Saban’s decision to lead an athletes’ social justice march in which many players wore Black Lives Matter shirts, according to local outlet Bham Now. Finebaum told the outlet that “Nick Saban leading that march was one of his finer moments” “The video was very powerful. There was a lot of blowback. I had Alabama fans call in and say they’ll never support the team again. We all hear the same arguments about Black Lives Matter,” Finebaum went on. “I say that because he did it without making a political statement. He didn’t overdo it, he did it quietly. He was supporting his players, and to me that’s the most important thing. It’s what a coach is supposed to do, and I think that, to me, speaks very well of him. In a state like Alabama, it’s not the same as if he was doing it in Michigan, but he didn’t let it affect him.” Yet, Finebaum told OutKick that he voted for Trump in 2024 and that it was Charlie Kirk’s murder that is motivating him to seriously consider running for the Senate. “It’s hard to describe, not being involved in politics, how that affected me and affected tens of millions of people all over this country. And it was an awakening,” Finebaum said of Kirk’s assassination. ESPN STAR PAUL FINEBAUM RECALLS LEANING ON TIM TEBOW FOLLOWING CHARLIE KIRK’S ASSASSINATION Finebaum also said in the interview that if Trump told him, “Paul, you’re my guy,” he would find it “impossible to tell him no.” “There’s no way I could. I would tell him yes,” he said. If he enters the race, Finebaum would be running to replace another football star, Sen. Tommy Tuberville, best known for leading Auburn University in an undefeated season crowned by an SEC championship in 2004. Tuberville, who has been an outspoken conservative voice in the Senate since his election in 2021, is seeking the Alabama governorship in 2026. Others already declared in the Alabama Senate race include state Attorney General Steve Marshall and Alabama Republican Rep. Barry Moore. Jackson said that while Tuberville had a prior record of political stances, he sees Finebaum as an “unknown entity.” “Finebaum is basically just like I’m famous. I’m a big-time radio guy, people like me. Why can’t I be senator? And it’s just kind of an odd thing,” said Jackson. When contacted for comment, Finebaum told Fox News Digital, “I will circle back when I have something substantive to say.” For his part, Tuberville has spoken highly of Finebaum. “Paul is smart. He loves the country,” Tuberville said on the “War Room” podcast. “Again, been a friend of mine for a long time. I have not talked with him about it. I did an interview with him, 30 minutes, about two months ago, face to face. It went well.” “I tell you, he’s got 100% name ID in Alabama. He’d have a lot of big people behind him. He would be a force in the race if he decided to get into it. … Paul is a good guy, a good friend.” Some voices, meanwhile, have been much more critical of the possibility of a Finebaum campaign. A national Republican strategist who works on U.S. Senate races told Fox News Digital, “You can’t hate President Trump and Republican voters and win a Republican primary.” ESPN STAR PAUL FINEBAUM SAYS NETWORK AXED POTENTIAL TRUMP INTERVIEW IN 2019 “Paul Finebaum trashed President Trump, promoted tyrannical masking during COVID and proclaimed his support for Black Lives Matter,” said the strategist, adding, “Finebaum’s experience as a sports analyst doesn’t translate into analyzing his own political prospects apparently. This Trump-hating RINO [Republican-in-name-only] has virtually zero chance of winning an Alabama GOP primary.” Former state Rep. Ed Henry, who served as then-candidate Donald Trump’s 2016 campaign co-chair for Alabama, told Fox News Digital that when he heard Finebaum was considering a Senate run, “I chuckled, because I thought, ‘Oh great, we have another person in this race who caves every time pressure is put on him.’” “I think he’s a great guy; he’s said some good things. But when the pressure is on, he breaks, he caves, he buckles, and that’s not what we need,” Henry added. The former representative said that what Alabama needs