Walz’s ‘exit interview’ reflecting on his tenure sparks lawmaker debate about his legacy: ‘Never serious’
Minnesota Democratic Gov. Tim Walz reflected on his legacy in a recent interview and his comments sparked immediate pushback both online and from Republican lawmakers in the state who spoke to Fox News Digital. “Fraud — should have stopped it sooner,” Walz told the Minnesota Star-Tribune in a discussion that is being dubbed an “exit interview” with the headline “Walz accepts blame for fraud but says it shouldn’t define his legacy” as he prepares to leave office in January. “We didn’t stop them. I accept that. I think there does need to be accountability with that. And part of it is that, yep, that’s with me, I’ll step aside.” Walz claimed the state “immediately” took action on the fraud and then went on to suggest the true cost of the fraud, estimated at $9 billion by federal prosecutors, has been overstated and claimed President Donald Trump’s White House ballroom, expected to cost taxpayers around $300 million, was more expensive than the Minnesota fraud. WALZ APPROVAL RATING CRATERS TO LOWEST LEVEL EVER AND TRAILS TRUMP AMID MASSIVE FRAUD SCANDAL: ‘TIRED OF IT’ “I should have been down on those agencies a little more, but I will tell you this, in the scheme of things, all the fraud that’s been prosecuted, by the way, and all the fraud that’s probably out there is less than the ballroom at the White House,” Walz said. “So it puts it into perspective. It doesn’t make it right. Doesn’t make it right.” The outgoing governor then explained his hope that people will remember his other accomplishments when talking about his legacy. “Those are legacy things to address climate. They’re legacy things to address livability,” Walz said. “And I get it, that fraud tainted a lot of that. It doesn’t change the fundamentals underneath it. This is the best state in the country to raise a child, and it will continue to be so because of those investments.” Three Republican lawmakers in Minnesota who spoke to Fox News Digital had a different take. “Governor Walz is correct, he shouldn’t only be remembered for fraud,” Minnesota state Sen. Julia Coleman told Fox News Digital. “We should remember him spending our $18 billion surplus, raising taxes $10 billion, creating an unsustainable budget, letting rioters burn down Minneapolis, hurting our students and businesses with lockdowns and pardoning a child rapist.” ‘WE HAVE NOT SLOWED DOWN’: MINNESOTA NOT OUT OF THE WOODS ON MASSIVE FRAUD SCANDAL, EXPERT WARNS Walz has faced fierce criticism for helping approve a full pardon for Tue Lue Vang, a Laotian national convicted of repeatedly raping a girl beginning when she was 10. Critics argued the decision prioritized Vang’s immigration concerns and family ties over the severity of his crimes, with a DHS official calling it “disgusting.” Minnesota Republican House Speaker Lisa Demuth is running to replace Walz in November as she heads into a matchup with Democratic Sen. Amy Klobuchar to be the state’s next top executive. Demuth told Fox News Digital Walz’s legacy won’t be able to overcome the fraud scandal and pointed to Klobuchar’s tight association with him. “Tim Walz’s legacy will always be defined by the out-of-control fraud crisis that occurred on his watch,” Demuth said. “Yet Amy Klobuchar praised him as ‘an incredible leader who delivers for the people of Minnesota.’ As the senior member of our state’s congressional delegation, Sen. Klobuchar likewise failed to address the fraud crisis and even skipped hearings on the matter in D.C. Minnesotans deserve better than four more years of Walz-style failure.” Republican State Rep. Kristin Robbins chaired the last legislative session’s Fraud Prevention and State Agency Oversight Policy Committee, and she told Fox News Digital that “no matter how hard he tries to spin it, Tim Walz’s legacy will be that he allowed rampant fraud.” “He says he ‘should have stopped it sooner,’ which is obvious, but he could still be doing more NOW,” Robbins said. “He has been silent on fraud for months instead of taking the actions that are STILL under his control.” Robbins said Walz could have taken several steps to combat fraud, including firing senior DHS official Shireen Gandhi to send a message that abuse would not be tolerated, blocking Minnesota from seeking a SNAP waiver that allows applicants to attest to eligibility by phone without recording the call, and asking Attorney General Keith Ellison to prosecute Partners in Nutrition, a nonprofit that administered federally funded meal programs, rather than approve a settlement. “His legacy will be fraud because he continues to enable fraud, despite two years of hearings, investigative journalists, and Office of the Legislative Auditor (OLA) reports,” Robbins said. “He was never serious about stopping it and still isn’t.” Walz’s comments not only drew scrutiny from Republican lawmakers but also sparked backlash on social media. “Walz accepts blame for fraud, but believes his loss of $9 billion in taxpayer dollars ‘shouldn’t define his legacy,’” the X account for Minnesota House Republicans posted on X. “It does, and Minnesotans are paying attention to his blatant disregard of their hard-earned tax dollars.” Fox News Digital reached out to Walz’s office for comment.
Far-left legal ‘cartel’ in the hot seat as Trump admin decides its law school gatekeeper status
The future of the nation’s primary law school accreditor now rests in the hands of the Trump Education Department after a federal panel deadlocked 8-8 on whether to strip the American Bar Association (ABA) of its gatekeeper status following dozens of federal compliance failures. The deadlock hands the decision to Under Secretary of Education Nicholas Kent, who has up to 90 days to decide whether to revoke the ABA’s decades-long accreditation monopoly over roughly 200 law schools nationwide. In a statement to Fox News Digital, a Department of Education spokesperson confirmed that staff had already recommended stripping the ABA’s gatekeeper status after finding the group out of compliance with “more than 26 recognition criteria.” The advisory body — known formally as the National Advisory Committee on Institutional Quality and Integrity (NACIQI) — advises the Education Department on whether higher education accreditors meet federal standards. NACIQI Chairman Jay Greene told Fox News Digital that while the panel split 8-8 on what action to take, committee members across the board shared a core concern over how the ABA is structured. “The primary issue that troubled all members of NACIQI is that the ABA accrediting body is clearly not separate and independent from the ABA as a whole,” Greene said, noting that federal law requires institutional accreditors to operate independently of trade associations. “Everyone on the committee agreed that this was a problem that required changes. The main divide was over whether the ABA was willing and able to take those steps to remedy the problem or not.” WATCH: BRANDON GILL CORNERS LAW SCHOOL GATEKEEPER WITH DEI QUESTION SHE WON’T ANSWER Responding to panel criticisms of chronic noncompliance, Melissa Hart, chair of the ABA Accreditation Council, defended the organization’s historic track record. “The Council has been continuously recognized by the Department of Education since 1952, being found in compliance during every regular recognition cycle for the past 74 years,” Hart said in a statement. “We take accreditation and our recognition as an accreditor very seriously, and we continue to be a reliable authority for accrediting J.D. programs.” However, legal advocacy groups argue the ABA’s structural defects and recent policy shifts render it unfit to serve as an industry gatekeeper. Reed Rubinstein, senior vice president of America First Legal and former general counsel at the Department of Education, told Fox News Digital that the ABA has “disqualified itself and undermined public faith and trust in the legal profession.” EXPLOSIVE REPORT EXPOSES ‘DANGEROUS IMBALANCE’ IN LAW SCHOOL PIPELINE SHAPING HOW ELECTION CASES ARE DECIDED Rubinstein also dismissed the ABA’s recent move to repeal its controversial diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) accreditation standard as a “ruse to retain power,” arguing it does not cure the underlying legal flaws. “The DEI accreditation standard, from the moment it was adopted, conflicted with controlling Supreme Court rulings and the plain text of the Civil Rights Act,” Rubinstein said, urging the Trump administration to permanently strip the ABA of its federal status. “The ABA’s leadership has made it clear, publicly and otherwise, that it will return to its unlawful ideological agenda at its first opportunity.” For more than 70 years, the ABA has operated as the sole federally recognized accreditor for U.S. law schools, granting the organization a near-monopoly over the legal profession. In almost every state, students must graduate from an ABA-accredited law school to be eligible to sit for the bar exam. Furthermore, the federal government uses the ABA’s accreditation as the gatekeeper for Title IV federal student aid, meaning law schools must secure the group’s stamp of approval for their students to receive federal loans. BEAUTY SCHOOL MOMS CAUGHT IN ACCREDITATION CROSSFIRE AS TRUMP ADMINISTRATION WEIGHS CONSEQUENTIAL DECISION If Under Secretary Kent ultimately moves to strip the ABA of its recognition, the decision would effectively break that national monopoly. While law schools affiliated with larger universities could rely on their broader institutional accreditors to maintain access to federal financial aid, roughly a dozen stand-alone law schools would be forced to scramble for alternative accreditation. State supreme courts would also face immediate pressure to rewrite their bar admission rules to allow graduates from non-ABA schools to take the exam. Some states have already begun taking matters into their own hands to bypass the ABA’s grip. Because the legal profession is regulated directly by the judicial branch, state supreme courts hold the ultimate authority to set educational requirements for bar admission. TRUMP ADMIN URGES RETURNING EDUCATION TO STATES, CITING $3 TRILLION OF TAXES SPENT AND POOR PROFICIENCY SCORES In January, Texas became the first state in the nation to eliminate its reliance on the ABA for law school accreditation, with the Texas Supreme Court finalizing a rule to take over the approval process itself. Just nine days later, the Florida Supreme Court followed suit. By cutting ties with the organization, the Texas high court announced it would judge law schools on “simple, objective, and ideologically neutral criteria” rather than the ABA’s mandates deemed by many as politically-driven. Other states are now catching on to the rebellion against the ABA. The Ohio Supreme Court formally proposed amendments in May to establish a state-run accreditation process, while supreme courts in Tennessee, Alabama and Washington have all recently taken steps to bypass the organization’s monopoly. “The ABA’s cartel-like control over law school accreditation drives up costs, limits access, and pushes ridiculous ideological mandates over merit,” Trump’s DOJ said earlier this year. “Ending the Tennessee Supreme Court’s exclusive reliance will expand opportunity AND lower costs.” Rubinstein noted that transferring authority back to the states marks a long-overdue correction for legal education. “State supreme courts are ultimately responsible for certifying and disciplining attorneys—there is arguably no need for a middleman,” Rubinstein told Fox News Digital. “By returning actual authority over legal education directly to the courts themselves… the result should be a better-quality education for attorneys and more accountability and transparency for the public.”
AOC’s Ivy League warmup act leads democratic socialists in notorious anti-Israel chant
An event for Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., saw her far-left hosts at Cornell University lead a packed crowd in singing the anti-Israel slogan “from the river to the sea” on Sunday. The Cornell University Young Democratic Socialists of America hosted the event for AOC, which her campaign labeled as a “Students vs. Billionaires” town hall. The group’s president, Mina Petrova, and co-Chair Zoe Reisman led the crowd of roughly 2,000 people in chanting “from the river to the sea,” after declaring, “long live the student intifada.” “Cornell is fundamentally a capitalist institution that prioritizes billionaires and profit over students and community and is controlled by CEO trustees that are profiting off of genocide and war,” Petrova told the crowd at one point, triggering applause. BACKLASH ERUPTS OVER HASAN PIKER’S UPCOMING SPEAKING ENGAGEMENT AT CORNELL “Here we stand as anti-imperialists and believe that nobody is disposable. We have a responsibility to stand in solidarity with oppressed peoples everywhere,” Reisman said. “Student activism is not dead. Long live student resistance, and long live the student intifada.” YDSA did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Fox News Digital. 30% OF COLLEGE STUDENTS SAY VIOLENCE ACCEPTABLE WAY TO STOP SPEAKERS ON CAMPUSES, SURVEY FINDS AOC made no apologies when she eventually took the stage, joining her young hosts in accusing Cornell of censorship. “Whether it’s the issue about Palestine or many others, whether it’s about people trying to fire those who are forming a union in their workplace, whether it’s people trying to speak up about a number of different issues, we have to respond to that first crackdown,” she said. AOC’S SOCIALIST CREDENTIALS FACE FRESH SCRUTINY AFTER GLARING 7-YEAR GAP SURFACES: ‘VERY CONVENIENT’ “When we come out in numbers, they cannot take us all,” she added. AOC’s campaign says it is aimed at boosting voter turnout in Democrat strongholds, but recent polling shows that most Americans dislike association with Democratic Socialists of America groups. HOUSE REPUBLICAN AIMS TO PUT DEMOCRATS ON THE RECORD OVER DSA WITH RESOLUTION CONDEMNING SOCIALISM According to a recent Fox News Poll, 55% of registered voters hold an unfavorable view of the DSA, while only three in 10 see the DSA in a positive light. The Fox News Poll is the latest national survey to show that while the DSA has gained traction among Democrats, the group and the broader socialist movement in America face significant national skepticism. The figures appear to reinforce a key element in the GOP midterm playbook, which aims to turn what’s normally a referendum on the party in power into a choice election. Fox News’ Paul Steinhauser contributed to this report.
Woke megachurch pastor, Dem nominee called on congregation to repent for driving, eating beef
FIRST ON FOX: In Kansas, cows are king, but a Democrat trying to seize power once told his congregation to repent for eating beef and raising cattle. Adam Hamilton, the Democratic nominee running to unseat Sen. Roger Marshall, R-Kan., in the Sunflower State, for years led the largest United Methodist church in the nation. He would give sermons that Marshall charged were “woke,” and counter to Kansans’ values. One such sermon, reviewed by Fox News Digital, saw Hamilton call on his congregation to repent over their carbon footprints. GOP SENATOR ALLEGES SCHUMER BEHIND ‘HIT JOB’ REPORT ON FORMER PATIENTS “That’s what repentance means — I saw things differently, it changed my heart, and it changed my behavior,” Hamilton said during a January 2020 sermon called, “What would Jesus say about climate change?” “So what I’m calling you to today, and I’m calling myself to it, because I’ve been wasteful, I’ve done things that wasn’t, you know, I didn’t think about it, how it wasn’t really good stewardship of the earth around me,” he continued. “I’m calling us to repentance to say, ‘I realize that this has impact, even if it seems small, it has an impact on the world and future generations. And I feel badly about that, and I’m going to do something different from this time forward.’” Despite Kansas’ 94-year history of being a ruby-red bastion for the GOP in the Senate, the race between Hamilton and Marshall has unexpectedly tightened in recent months as Republicans across the country face a sobering political environment. BIG MONEY PROPELS DEM MEGACHURCH PASTOR TO VICTORY IN LONGSHOT KANSAS SENATE BID Kansas slipped from “Likely R” in Fox News’ Power Rankings to “Lean R,” and Cook Political Report echoed the same shift, too. “In a state with more cattle than people, Hamilton saying that Kansans need repent for eating too much beef and flip flopping on the Farm Bill proves he’d be just like every other liberal Democrat in the Senate,” Marshall told Fox News Digital in a statement. High fuel prices, particularly diesel in an agriculture-centric state like Kansas, spurred by President Donald Trump’s Iran war are giving voters anxiety, and expanding the map of battleground states that Republicans need to defend to maintain their majority in the Senate. Hamilton’s campaign countered to Fox News Digital that Marshall has “repeatedly introduced legislation to reduce emissions from cattle and claimed ‘everyone’s concerned about the methane production in the cattle industry.’” “Marshall even bragged how the decline of the herd ‘eliminated half of the methane gas produced from cattle already,’” Tyson Brody, a spokesperson for Hamilton, said. “As Adam said at the debate, Roger should repent for failing to stand up for Kansas cattle producers on tariffs, foreign imports, and skyrocketing diesel prices, and now he should repent for attacking Adam for something Roger Marshall said himself in the Senate. Kansas producers don’t need lectures from someone who voted to put warning labels on hot dogs and bacon.” Meanwhile, Hamilton’s sermon was part scripture, part PowerPoint presentation on how greenhouse gases occur and their impact on the environment. And during his 44-minute talk, Hamilton suggested that one of Kansas’ staple economic drivers, beef, was a major contributor to the problem. ‘WHY WOULD HE DO THIS TO US?’: ONE CRUCIAL TRUMP DECISION IS HURTING HIS BASE, REPUBLICANS WARN “Some of the things that we grow, because we like to eat them, like cattle, end up producing more carbon dioxide than other crops that we could grow, other forms of food that we could have,” Hamilton said. “And so, in all of these ways, we are creating or adding to the amount of greenhouse gases in our world.” Cattle is a major industry for Kansas, which is the nation’s third-largest producer of beef, according to the Kansas Livestock Association. There are more heads of cattle in the state, just over 5.8 million, than people, with the state’s population sitting at roughly 2.9 million. It provides a major cash influx for the state’s economy, too, with cattle farming and ranching producing tens of billions of dollars and employing over tens of thousands of Kansans. “It is disappointing that a candidate for the U.S. Senate in Kansas, one of the nation’s top beef-producing states, would make a statement like this to his parishioners about beef’s impact on the climate,” Kansas Livestock Association Chief Executive Officer Matt Teagarden told Fox News Digital in a statement. “Beef is an important, nutritious part of the American diet, and cattle play a significant role in maintaining grassland health and conservation, while accounting for only 2% of total U.S. greenhouse gas emissions.” Still, six years ago, Hamilton was calling on his congregation to change their habits to reduce their carbon footprint. “Now, you got to do everything you can to reduce your own usage of fossil fuels, but maybe changing your diet so that the things that you eat are requiring less production that creates methane and carbon dioxide and everything else,” Hamilton said.
Sen Kennedy says no living politicians should have buildings named after them after Trump’s moves
Sen. John Kennedy, R-La., said on Sunday that living public officials should not have buildings named after them and proposed a rule to prohibit such renaming efforts. This comes as President Donald Trump continues to push to rename the Kennedy Center after himself. The president has also sought to rename other prominent federal buildings in Washington, D.C., after himself since returning to the White House last year. Kennedy said public officials, including Trump, should not “spend public money on private ads for themselves.” “The White House sees it differently, but … you can’t spend public money to … promote yourself,” Kennedy told host Margaret Brennan during an appearance on CBS News’ “Face the Nation.” KENNEDY CENTER CEILING PARTIALLY COLLAPSES AS TRUMP-LED BOARD PUSHES FOR 2-YEAR CLOSURE Kennedy’s comments came as a new ad promoting Trump appeared on multiple networks that was funded by the federal government. The senator then suggested public officials should be barred from having a building named after them while they are still alive. “I may end up with a sombrero on my head, but I also think we ought to have a rule that no politician can have a building named after him when he’s alive,” he said, referring to Trump mocking Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., last year by sharing AI videos of the lawmakers wearing sombreros. FEDERAL JUDGE ORDERS TRUMP’S NAME REMOVED FROM KENNEDY CENTER, SAYS ONLY CONGRESS CAN RENAME IT Trump has attempted to rename multiple buildings after himself since returning to the Oval Office, including the Kennedy Center, although federal judges blocked multiple attempts by the center’s board — handpicked by Trump — to add the president’s name to the building. Trump’s name was briefly added to the building’s facade but was ordered removed after courts ruled that only Congress holds the authority to change the center’s name. The State Department also added Trump’s name last year to the U.S. Institute of Peace, but former institute officials removed by the Trump administration filed a court motion earlier this month to block construction crews from putting the president’s name onto the outside of the building. Trump also suggested he wanted New York’s Penn Station and the D.C.-area’s Dulles Airport named after him as a condition for a funding deal earlier this year. The president has additionally floated a project to construct a promenade connecting the back of the Lincoln Memorial to the Potomac River, saying that allies wanted to call it the “Trump Promenade.” “They want to call it the Trump Promenade, but I don’t know if I want to do that, but it’s going to be beautiful,” he said at the time.
Susie Wiles reveals brutal toll of fighting cancer while running Trump’s White House
White House chief of staff Susie Wiles is opening up about the grueling reality of fighting breast cancer while holding one of Washington’s most demanding jobs, revealing that some days simply getting out of bed and going to work took all the strength she had. In an op-ed published Sunday in USA Today, Wiles described what it was like to undergo chemotherapy while continuing to lead the White House staff for President Donald Trump. The disease occupied her thoughts from the moment she woke up and sometimes even while she slept, she wrote. “Fighting cancer is brutal and unrelenting,” Wiles wrote. Questions about treatment, test results and what might come next could overtake even a strong mind. At times, she acknowledged, they overtook hers. CANCER-RELATED BRAIN FOG MAY IMPROVE WITH 2 SIMPLE TREATMENTS, SCIENTISTS SAY Some days, Wiles said, she poured her strength into fighting the disease. On others, getting out of bed, getting dressed and going to work was its own test. “Most days, I carried the full weight of both,” she wrote. Work gave her a purpose beyond appointments, scans and side effects. “Cancer can make your world very small,” Wiles wrote. She said she pushed herself to stay focused on the people who depended on her, even as she knew others might question whether she could still lead effectively. KAI TRUMP REVEALS HOW FAMILY RALLIED AROUND MOM VANESSA AMID BREAST CANCER BATTLE: ‘IT’S A LONG JOURNEY’ The treatment did take a toll on her stamina, mobility and, at times, her focus. Wiles said she could not always be everywhere she wanted to be. Colleagues inside and outside the White House stepped in, while her two daughters, extended family, friends and medical team helped carry her through the illness. Wiles made clear that working through treatment would not be right or possible for everyone. For her, she wrote, the job helped her hold on to a sense of who she was beyond the disease. CANCER SURVIVORS MAY SEE SURPRISING BENEFITS FROM ONE SPECIFIC EXERCISE, STUDY SAYS After successful surgery, pathology showed no residual cancer, Wiles wrote. She said she now faces the work of rebuilding what treatment took from her. “Chemotherapy is, in a word, a b—-,” she wrote. DOLLY PARTON’S PRIVATE CANCER BATTLE HIGHLIGHTS WHY SOME PATIENTS DON’T SHARE THEIR DIAGNOSES In a post on X Sunday, Wiles said she rarely writes about herself but wanted to share what it was like to fight cancer while continuing to do a job she loves. “Cancer tried to make my world smaller. I was determined not to let it,” she wrote, adding that she hoped her account could offer strength to someone still fighting the disease. VANESSA TRUMP REVEALS BREAST CANCER DIAGNOSIS IN EMOTIONAL STATEMENT: ‘I AM STAYING FOCUSED AND HOPEFUL’ Wiles announced Sept. 16 that she was cancer free after receiving clear pathology results following an appointment at the Mayo Clinic. She had disclosed her early-stage breast cancer diagnosis in March. Trump praised Wiles during her treatment, saying in a prerecorded May tribute that she was winning her cancer battle. Wiles thanked him for his kindness and compassion, and credited her family, friends, colleagues and doctors with helping her through the ordeal. For others going through treatment, Wiles offered a message of hope. “Cancer does not have to take away who you are,” she wrote. She said that for her, life beyond the disease includes serving Trump and the country and being a mother, grandmother and friend. One of those daughters, Katie Wiles, responded to her mother’s account on X. “A strong woman isn’t loud in her strength; she’s steady and unshakable,” she wrote. “You are our champion. So incredibly proud of you, Mom.”
John Fetterman accidentally calls himself a ‘lifelong Republican’ at Texas Tribune Festival
Sen. John Fetterman, D-PA, triggered a wave of laughs at a speaking event on Saturday after mistakenly referring to himself as a “lifelong Republican.” Fetterman made the statement while on stage at the Texas Tribune Festival, going on to quickly correct himself and assert that he has no reason to abandon the Democratic Party. The moment came when an attendee at the event asked why Fetterman doesn’t run as an independent. MAVERICK DEMOCRAT SURGES WITH REPUBLICANS AS HIS OWN PARTY TURNS ON HIM, STOKING TALK OF GOP SWITCH “Because I’m a lifelong Republican,” he said, realizing his mistake. “I guarantee you that will break through. That will get clipped.” Fetterman gave a keynote address earlier in the event where he elaborated on his criticisms of both the Republican and Democratic parties. FETTERMAN WINS PRAISE FOR ‘GUTS’ AFTER GOING TOE-TO-TOE WITH JON STEWART OVER ISRAEL SUPPORT “I don’t have a reason to,” Fetterman said of joining Republicans. “But for a big-tent situation, it’s easier to be included in that big tent to say America deserved 9/11 or America is worse than Al-Qaida than being very proud to stand on the side of Israel.” Fetterman admitted he believed he has “no path as a Republican,” but acknowledged that many Democrats are frustrated by his willingness to work with the opposing party. FETTERMAN FACES DEM REVOLT AS BOMBSHELL REPORT FUELS PUSH TO OUST HIM: ‘DISGRACE’ “If the Democratic Party votes me out or expels me, they’re always entitled to do that,” he said. Fetterman has been welcomed with open arms by Republicans to join the party after he floated leaving his own caucus and spurred further speculation that he would jump ship after dropping a video introducing his colleague, Sen. Dave McCormick, R-Pa., at the Republican National Committee’s midterm convention earlier this month. FETTERMAN TEASES WHERE HIS TRUE LOYALTY LIES AFTER SURPRISE APPEARANCE AT GOP CONVENTION But the progressive-turned-centrist has repeatedly affirmed his Democratic ties, even as the knives have come out to cut him loose from the Senate. Fetterman started his career in the Senate after besting Dr. Mehmet Oz in a tight race for power in 2022, where he clinched a historically thin Democratic majority in 2022 running on a progressive platform. But since then, he has become a thorn in Democrats’ side and challenged the direction of the party. Earlier this year, Fetterman warned that if Democrats became more entrenched in anti-Israel policy positions, he would exit the party, and has taken jabs at the party’s direction during this midterm election cycle as far-left progressives, like Abdul El-Sayed in Michigan, have emerged as standard-bearers. Fox News Digital’s Alex Miller contributed to this report.
Texas voters have plenty to say about whether Lone Star State could turn blue
DALLAS — Everything is bigger in Texas, including the political stakes this November. Texas voters head to the polls Nov. 3 in an election that could reshape the state’s political landscape, with major battles for governor, U.S. Senate and seats in Congress and the state legislature. Republican Gov. Greg Abbott faces Democrat Gina Hinojosa, while Republican Ken Paxton squares off against Democrat James Talarico for a U.S. Senate seat. At the State Fair of Texas in Dallas, voters told Fox News Digital that pocketbook pressures are shaping how they view the state’s future, with some predicting the reliably red Lone Star State will stay that way while others see an opening for Democrats this fall. REPUBLICANS JUST GOT A POWERFUL NEW PLAYBOOK FOR THE BATTLE FOR CONGRESS. HERE’S WHAT’S INSIDE “I think we’re going to struggle, but I think it will stay red,” Briana of Garland, told Fox News Digital. Mike and Tracey, a couple from Houston, were more definitive. “Red. It’s going to stay red,” Tracey said. “Red,” Mike added. Chris took that confidence a step further. “Hell will freeze over before Texas flips blue,” Chris told Fox News Digital. Patrick and Jennifer, of Dallas, shared that confidence. “Texas will always be a Republican state,” Jennifer said, while acknowledging that Republican candidates will not win every race. “But we still think it will stay Republican,” Patrick added. Not everyone at the fair was betting on Texas staying firmly in Republican hands. WE ASKED AMERICANS TO GRADE THE ECONOMY. THEN WE ASKED IF IT WOULD CHANGE THEIR VOTE. Mary said she believes the Dallas-Fort Worth area is moving in the opposite direction. “It’s definitely leaning more blue. Texas as a whole, I’m not sure,” she said. “I think if there would be an election that swings blue, it would be this one. So we’ll see if it happens.” Party politics aside, several voters said the economy remains top of mind. Cynthia, who moved to Texas from New York, said she is looking for policies that will grow the economy, support businesses and leave families with enough disposable income to enjoy outings like the State Fair. FOX NEWS POLL: SQUEEZED BY COSTS, FRUSTRATED VOTERS TURN TO THE DEMOCRATS “If you don’t have enough disposable income, then you can’t really enjoy something like this,” she said. “It’s pricey.” Jennifer also pointed to inflation and the prolonged strain of higher prices. “I think people were expecting some sort of inflation,” Jennifer said. “But I don’t think we were prepared for it to last this long.” Meanwhile, Roxanne also expressed frustration with the country’s current direction, saying dissatisfaction with the current administration is influencing her political outlook. “I just don’t agree with the current administration, so I really want to see somebody else come in and do a better job,” she said. From the midway to the ballot box, Texas voters offered competing views of where the Lone Star State is headed, but agreed the economy will be difficult to ignore as they prepare to cast their ballots Nov. 3.
Irish PM rejects antisemitism concerns in Ireland amid dramatic vote over boycotting Israel game
Irish Prime Minister Micheál Martin rejected claims that Ireland’s sharp criticism of Israel has crossed into antisemitism as tensions flared around a politically charged soccer match between the countries Sunday, with Irish players holding a last-minute vote over whether to boycott the game. Martin, in an exclusive interview with Fox News Digital this week in New York, outlined why Ireland has taken such a staunch position against the Israeli government’s conduct of the war in Gaza, calling its military response “absolutely disproportionate” while pressing Israel to “change strategy” and calling for increased humanitarian aid to Gaza. Martin argued that Ireland’s own history — particularly its experience ending decades of conflict in Northern Ireland — gives the country a role to play as a voice for peace on the international stage, a theme he returned to while discussing Ukraine and the ongoing debate over Irish reunification. “I think for the vast majority of people it does not,” Martin said when asked directly whether anti-Israel sentiment in Ireland had crossed the line into antisemitism. “We have no toleration for antisemitism, none,” Martin added. NEW YORK TIMES ISSUES CORRECTION, DELETES LINE QUESTIONING IF ISRAELIS WERE VICTIMS OF OCT 7 TERROR ATTACK The extraordinary player vote came after months of pressure surrounding the UEFA Nations League fixture on Sunday, with more than 160 Irish sports figures calling for a boycott and players themselves publicly questioning whether the match should go ahead. A “significant majority” of players ultimately voted on Saturday to play the game, while one player left the squad after expressing his wish not to take part. In the interview, Martin strongly condemned Hamas’ Oct. 7 terrorist attack and defended Israel’s right to exist in security. “First of all, we condemned, absolutely, the outrageous terrorist attack by Hamas in October,” Martin told Fox News Digital. “We believe in a two-state solution,” Martin said. “We believe that Israel, of course, has a right to exist in security and its people need to be guaranteed of security. But likewise, Palestinians should have a right to live in their homeland in a peaceful way.” “There are many peaceful voices in Palestine that I’ve met who want peaceful coexistence with Israel.” Martin said Ireland’s strongly pro-Palestinian position was rooted partly in its own history. “There’s a very strong pro-Palestinian position in Ireland,” Martin said. “Ireland, the Irish government and the Irish people, probably because of our own history, but also because of a sense of right and justice and fairness.” Thousands have taken to the streets across Ireland since the war began, while national broadcaster RTÉ refused to air this year’s Eurovision Song Contest after Israel’s participation was confirmed. Ireland spent centuries under British rule before most of the island gained independence a little more than a century ago, while Northern Ireland remains part of the United Kingdom. He said Israel’s military response to the Oct. 7 attack had resonated deeply in Ireland and called for increased humanitarian aid into Gaza. “We want humanitarian aid going into Gaza. There’s not enough humanitarian aid going in,” Martin said, pointing to the conditions facing roughly 2 million people there, including shortages of food and shelter and children without access to education. Martin said Ireland wanted Israel to reconsider its conduct of the war, asking whether it would “change strategy” and “change its approach to the whole issue.” “So that’s the background to the Irish position,” he said. “People are angry in terms of what’s going on in the Middle East and that’s the manifestation of it.” ANTISEMITIC VIOLENCE REACHES DEADLIEST LEVEL SINCE 1994, NEW GLOBAL REPORT FINDS Republic of Ireland manager Heimir Hallgrímsson said his players were uncomfortable with the games, declaring: “We’re not playing with genocide, we’re playing against genocide.” The Israeli Football Association accused him of “stupidity, ignorance and hypocrisy,” prompting Martin to call the remarks “unacceptable.” The FAI previously sought Israel’s suspension from international competition. Separately, Irish soccer officials later voted to fulfill the Israel fixtures after being warned a boycott could cost the association at least $6.3 million and trigger UEFA sanctions. Sunday’s game will be played in Hungary, while Ireland’s Oct. 4 home fixture has been moved to Serbia and will be played behind closed doors. Irish supporters will not have access to either game. An organized campaign dubbed #StopTheGame has, meanwhile, spent months pressuring Irish soccer officials and players not to fulfill the Israel fixtures, staging protests and urging the national team to refuse to play. The campaign has also spilled onto the field. During a friendly against Qatar in May, protesters threw tennis balls bearing “Stop The Game” messages onto the pitch in opposition to the Israel fixtures. Martin has resisted calls for Ireland to boycott Israel, arguing that unilateral action could be “self-defeating” and may hurt Irish soccer without having any effect on Israel. The dispute over the games reflects a broader debate over whether Ireland’s criticism of Israel has crossed a line. The American Jewish Committee raised concerns directly with Martin in Washington in March 2025 about antisemitism and what it called the “vilification of Israel in Ireland.” An Anti-Defamation League official also participated in the meeting. The AJC alleged that antisemitism had become “pervasive” in Ireland. Martin pointed to Ireland’s annual Holocaust commemorations and the historic contribution of Jewish communities in Dublin, Cork and elsewhere in rejecting the suggestion that antisemitism was broadly tolerated in Ireland. He also pointed to Ireland’s participation in international efforts against antisemitism and said the country campaigns against it globally. “We cherish that contribution that the Jewish community has made to Ireland,” Martin said. Martin’s defense of Ireland’s position came before he addressed world leaders at the United Nations on Thursday, where he delivered a sharply critical assessment of Israel’s conduct in Gaza and the West Bank, declaring that the international community had “failed Palestine.” “When the full truth of what has happened, what is still happening in Gaza, is finally known, when the evidence is gathered, when the testimonies are heard, when
Trump’s Greenland obsession isn’t random. Here’s what’s at stake
Greenland may be covered in ice, but beneath its surface could be resources critical to the global economy — including rare earth minerals, nickel, copper, palladium, cobalt, oil and natural gas. The Arctic island’s location is just as valuable. Positioned between North America and Europe, Greenland sits along key military and shipping routes. As conflicts in Ukraine and Iran expose vulnerabilities in global energy and supply chains, the island has become increasingly important to the United States and other world powers. WHY TRUMP ZEROED IN ON GREENLAND, THE WORLD’S LARGEST ISLAND, MOSTLY COVERED IN ICE — IN 3 CHARTS Those factors help explain why President Donald Trump has spent years pushing for greater American control and influence in Greenland and why his administration recently reached a new security agreement with Denmark and Greenland. The deal, which Trump signed on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly, will expand the U.S. military presence on the island while keeping Greenland under Danish sovereignty. Here are three reasons Greenland has become one of the world’s most strategically important places. The United States is seeking to reduce its dependence on China and Russia for critical minerals used in electronics, batteries, energy infrastructure and defense technology. “We don’t want to be dependent on China for our rare earth minerals, and we don’t want to be dependent on Russia for them either,” Robert Price, CEO of Greenland Energy Company and president of USFM Corporation, told Fox News Digital. FLOURISH CHART EMBED HERE: 30309299 Price’s USFM is exploring nickel, copper, palladium and cobalt deposits around Disko Island in western Greenland. He said the region could eventually rival Russia’s mineral-rich Norilsk district, though its potential remains unproven as drilling continues. Greenland’s potential riches extend beyond minerals. Price’s Greenland Energy Company is pursuing permits for an exploratory oil well planned for 2027 on the island’s eastern side, where he said the geology resembles the petroleum-producing North Sea. “Our licenses are similar to the same petroleum system as the North Sea,” Price said, adding that the company has sampled oil on and below the surface. TRUMP’S AMBITIOUS ENERGY BET COULD BE A WINNING HAND AS THE WORLD BURNS MORE OIL, GAS THAN EVER The project comes as the Iran war disrupts global energy markets and threatens shipping through the Strait of Hormuz a critical artery for the world’s oil supply. “One of the reasons that we are exploring for oil in Greenland is because of what’s going on in the Strait of Hormuz right now,” Price said. Greenland’s oil and gas potential remains unproven and would require additional permits, exploration and investment. Greenland’s strategic value also comes from its location between North America and Europe, near key air, sea and missile routes connecting the United States, Russia and Europe. The U.S. has maintained a military presence on the island for decades. Pituffik Space Base, formerly known as Thule Air Base, is the northernmost Defense Department installation and supports missile warning, missile defense and space surveillance. Melting Arctic ice is opening new shipping routes and increasing interest from the United States, Russia and China. Trump’s agreement with Denmark and Greenland would expand the U.S. military presence while preserving Danish sovereignty, according to the administration. Price said the deal could also boost investor confidence in long-term oil, gas and mineral projects. “What it does is it shores up long-term investment in Greenland, and that’s what our projects are,” Price said. “They’re long-term investments from oil, gas and minerals.”