Combat vet senator chokes up over fallen friend in fiery floor speech about Iran war: ‘We will finish it’
Sen. Tim Sheehy, R-Mont., choked up on the Senate floor as he pointed to a bracelet honoring a fallen friend he said was “cut in half” by an Iranian bomb, turning a Democratic-led push to rein in President Donald Trump’s war powers into an emotional warning about the cost of failing to confront Tehran. The Montana Republican and combat veteran delivered the fiery remarks in opposition to an Iran War Powers Resolution that would have forced the removal of U.S. forces from hostilities against Iran unless Congress explicitly authorized the mission. The Senate rejected an effort to advance the measure Thursday in a 47-49 vote, but not before Sheehy accused critics of ignoring decades of Iranian-backed attacks on Americans. “We didn’t start this war, we did not. But, we will finish it,” Sheehy said from the Senate floor. “And forever wars are not popular with anybody these days. Both sides of [the aisle] love to attack our forever wars. And I can promise you, being someone overseas wearing the uniform, when you’re fighting for your country, you don’t care what party’s in office.” REPUBLICANS FALL IN LINE WITH TRUMP ON IRAN WAR DESPITE RISING COSTS AND US DEATH TOLL Sheehy argued Democrats were right to call the conflict a “war of choice,” but said the choice was made by Iran’s regime decades ago — not by Trump. “This is a war of choice. The Democrats are correct,” Sheehy said. “It’s a war of choice that was begun by a radical, lunatic band of terrorists that took over a beautiful nation 47 years ago.” The former Navy SEAL then ticked through decades of attacks he tied to Iran and its proxies, invoking the 1983 Marine barracks bombing, the USS Cole, the Achille Lauro and terrorist groups including Hamas, Hezbollah and the Houthis. TRUMP THREATENS ‘MAJOR MILITARY PUNISHMENT’ FOR IRAN OVER FUTURE HOUTHI ATTACKS “This regime that we are fighting does not care about our partisan politics,” Sheehy said. “They don’t care who you voted for, who you pray to, or where you live. They want to kill all of us. And they don’t just say it, they actually do it. And they’ve been doing it for 47 years.” Sheehy also invoked William Buckley, whom he described as “an American military officer” who was abducted and tortured in the 1980s. “William Buckley was abducted in 1985,” Sheehy said. “He was skinned alive on camera by the Iranians.” The senator concluded by describing Iran’s ongoing retaliatory attacks as “the flailing’s of a nation in collapse” not strength, citing what he called “an occasional missile strike” on commercial boats and U.S. military members in the Middle East. Meanwhile he encouraged his congressional colleagues to “think about the people who are deployed right now standing on that wall with a loaded weapon who volunteered to defend our country and our way of life” in what Sheehy described as a “just war.” “Last time I checked, we wiped these bastards out … because they deserve it,” Sheehy said. “We did not start a war with the Iranian Revolutionary Guard (IRGC), they started it with us 47 years ago and their attacks have gone unanswered for half a century. It is time to fix this problem and make sure another generation of Americans does not have to fight this murderous, savage adversary.”
EXCLUSIVE: ICE removes former NFL player Daniel Ogama Adongo after visa overstay, criminal record
FIRST ON FOX: A former NFL player from Kenya with a criminal record has been removed by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents in Chicago, ICE exclusively told Fox News Digital. Daniel Ogama Adongo, 37, was a linebacker for the Indianapolis Colts until 2015 and has been arrested multiple times over the last decade, including a conviction for criminal mischief with damage in 2020. He was sentenced to a year in jail. DHS BLASTS MINNESOTA BOARD FOR UNANIMOUSLY PARDONING ILLEGAL IMMIGRANT CONVICTED OF 3 ASSAULTS ICE said Adongo overstayed his visa in 2016 and under the Laken Riley act, signed by President Donald Trump last year, those in the country illegally are required to be detained without bond if convicted of certain crimes. His other arrests include felony intimidation, battery and disorderly conduct, according to officials. In March, Adongo was ordered to be removed by a Department of Justice immigration judge; the order was carried out on June 20. EXCLUSIVE: DHS SEEKS CUSTODY OF ILLEGAL IMMIGRANT CHARGED WITH MURDER AFTER TRUMP DEPORTATION, BIDEN RELEASE “This dangerous individual was clearly a threat to the community, which is now safer since he’s been removed,” ICE Chicago Assistant Field Office Director Douglas Thompson said in a statement. “Those who violate immigration law are held equally accountable, including former professional athletes.” Adongo came to the U.S. after he was recruited as a rugby player and played two seasons with the Colts from 2013 until 2015. “Since Day One, DHS law enforcement has been delivering on President Trump’s promise to the American people to arrest and deport criminal illegal aliens including murderers, rapists, child sex abusers, gang members, and terrorists,” ICE said. TOM HOMAN WARNS ICE SURGE COMING TO NEW YORK CITY AS MAMDANI BOASTS ABOUT SANCTUARY STATUS It added, “Nearly 70% of ICE arrests are of illegal aliens charged or convicted of a crime in the U.S. More than 3 million illegal aliens are out of the country and counting. Our message is clear: If you come to our country illegally, we will find you, we will arrest you, and we will deport you.” Adongo could not immediately be reached by Fox News Digital for comment.
Trump says Saudi nuclear agreement won’t move forward without Abraham Accords: ‘They have to be a member’
President Donald Trump said Friday that Saudi Arabia will have to join the Abraham Accords before the United States moves forward with a civilian nuclear agreement, saying the requirement had always been understood during negotiations. Asked why he appeared to add a new condition after Energy Secretary Chris Wright announced progress on a Saudi nuclear deal, Trump rejected the suggestion that anyone had gotten ahead of him. “No, nobody got out ahead. I mean, I just say that in order to do it, they have to be a member of the Abraham Accords, which have been very successful. But it’s time now that they do it,” Trump said. TRUMP CALLS ON ARAB NATIONS TO SIGN ABRAHAM ACCORDS Later, when asked whether he had authorized Wright to sign the agreement, Trump maintained the condition was never in doubt. “Well. We didn’t talk about it, but it was always understood. And Chris knew and Saudi Arabia knew that if they joined the Abraham Accords, the deal is not, I’m not going to do the deal,” Trump said. When a reporter followed up by asking why Wright signed the agreement if that condition remained, Trump said any deal would still have to clear Congress and would not move forward unless Saudi Arabia joined the Abraham Accords. TRUMP’S IRAN DEAL SPARKS GOP DEMANDS FOR VOTE AS CONGRESS REMAINS IN THE DARK “Because they understood that, subject to Congress and everything else, in order for that deal to go through, they had to sign into the Abraham Accords,” Trump said. “We think the Abraham Accords bring peace in the Middle East.” Trump argued the regional security landscape had shifted after Iran‘s military capabilities were significantly weakened. “There’s no longer an Iran factor. There’s no longer Iran to worry about because they’ve been reduced in terms of their capability and power by many fold,” Trump said. TRUMP SAYS IRAN’S MISSILES ‘AREN’T THE PROBLEM’ AFTER WHITE HOUSE MADE THEM CENTRAL TO WAR RATIONALE Trump also emphasized that any agreement with Saudi Arabia would be limited to civilian nuclear energy. “They’ll join and they’ll do their civil. It’s really, it’s civil nuclear. But that’s what it is. No enrichment. It’s civil nuclear,” Trump said. The remarks came during an Oval Office event celebrating what the administration described as a milestone for advanced nuclear energy after four privately funded reactor companies met Trump’s goal of bringing new reactor designs online by the Fourth of July. During the event, Trump hailed what he called a “historic milestone for civilian nuclear energy” and a “renaissance of nuclear power in America.” The White House did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for additional comment.
DHS accuses ‘rogue’ Clinton judge of open defiance of Supreme Court
The Trump administration is hammering a federal judge for temporarily blocking its effort to end Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for South Sudan despite a recent Supreme Court decision that significantly narrowed lower courts’ authority to intervene. U.S. District Judge Patti Saris on Thursday granted an administrative stay in African Communities Together v. Mullin , preserving TPS protections for South Sudanese nationals while she considers whether plaintiffs may amend their lawsuit and seek renewed relief on constitutional grounds. The order temporarily freezes the administration’s Nov. 6, 2025, decision ending South Sudan’s TPS designation, keeping it “null, void, and of no legal effect” until jurisdiction returns to the 1st Circuit. Saris stressed that the order is a procedural measure to preserve the status quo while the court considers the plaintiffs’ latest filings and is not a ruling on the merits. “Another rogue district judge just postponed the termination of TPS for South Sudan,” DHS general counsel James Percival wrote on X, slamming the decision. “This is open defiance of the Supreme Court, plain and simple!” SUPREME COURT WEIGHS TRUMP EFFORT TO TERMINATE TEMPORARY PROTECTIONS FOR HAITIAN, SYRIAN MIGRANTS Hans von Spakovsky, a senior legal fellow at Advancing American Freedom, echoed that criticism, arguing Saris lacked authority to issue any relief after the Supreme Court’s recent TPS ruling. “She has no right to ‘maintain the status quo,’” von Spakovsky told Fox News Digital. “No jurisdiction means no jurisdiction and under the applicable law, the only proper course of judicial action is to dismiss the lawsuits, explaining that based on the law and the Supreme Court’s decision, she has no jurisdiction to entertain any claims in her courtroom.” He said the Supreme Court’s June decision in Mullin v. Doe reaffirmed that federal law largely bars courts from reviewing or blocking the government’s decisions to end Temporary Protected Status. Although Mullin involved TPS terminations for Syrian and Haitian nationals, von Spakovsky said the Supreme Court’s interpretation of the TPS statute applies equally to South Sudan. SUPREME COURT’S LATEST IMMIGRATION RULING WILL CAUSE AMERICANS TO ‘DIE AND SUFFER’ ATTORNEY WARNS “These decisions on Sudanese nationals need to be overturned by the Supreme Court in emergency appeals and the judges need to be disciplined for their misconduct in refusing to follow the Supreme Court decision and the federal law that bans them from questioning decisions made by the executive branch on TPS status,” he said. The criticism stems from the Supreme Court’s June 25 decision in Mullin v. Doe, in which a 6-3 majority held that the TPS statute bars courts from reviewing Administrative Procedure Act (APA) challenges to decisions designating or terminating Temporary Protected Status. The ruling allowed constitutional Equal Protection claims to continue but blocked the APA claims that Saris had relied on in February to delay South Sudan’s TPS termination. “The Supreme Court ruled that district courts lack jurisdiction to review terminations of temporary protected status. I’m confused why some district courts have not yet removed any remaining road blocks,” Eric Wessan, Iowa’s solicitor general, told Fox News Digital. Following the Supreme Court’s decision, the Justice Department asked the 1st Circuit to reverse Saris’ February ruling. The plaintiffs did not oppose the request, instead asking the appeals court to return the case to the district court so they could amend their complaint and pursue only the constitutional claims the Supreme Court left intact. They then asked Saris to temporarily preserve South Sudan’s TPS protections while those claims moved forward, a request she granted Thursday. BLUE STATE LEADERS ERUPT AFTER SUPREME COURT’S DECISION ENDING TPS PROTECTIONS FOR HAITIANS, SYRIANS The lawsuit was filed in December 2025 by African Communities Together and four South Sudanese immigrants protected by TPS. They allege the Department of Homeland Security unlawfully ended South Sudan’s TPS designation without following required procedures and that the decision was motivated by unconstitutional discrimination. Before the Supreme Court weighed in, Saris repeatedly ruled in favor of the plaintiffs. She first temporarily blocked the TPS termination in December 2025 before issuing a broader postponement in February, finding the plaintiffs were likely to succeed because DHS allegedly failed to follow required procedures, had already decided to end the designation, and offered what the court described as pretextual reasons for doing so. The Trump administration appealed to the 1st Circuit in March, but Saris declined to stay her own order while the appeal proceeded. The case was later paused pending the Supreme Court’s resolution of related TPS disputes involving Haiti and Syria. SIGN UP TO GET THE POLITICS NEWSLETTER Saris, who was nominated to the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts by President Bill Clinton in 1993, has presided over a number of high-profile immigration disputes involving both the Trump and Biden administrations. The temporary order keeps South Sudan’s TPS protections in place for now, but the 1st Circuit and potentially the Supreme Court could soon weigh in on whether the district court has the power to do so after the justices’ recent TPS decision. Fox News Digital reached out to the White House and to plaintiffs African Communities Together for comment.
Battleground Dem governor torched for ‘drunken sailor’ spending GOP critic says is symbolic of bigger problem
Arizona Democratic Gov. Katie Hobbs’ reelection campaign spent nearly three times what it raised in the second quarter of 2026, burning through more than $7.4 million in three months as a prominent GOP activist in Arizona accused the battleground incumbent of “spending like a drunken sailor” to prop up a struggling campaign. Campaign finance records reviewed by Fox News Digital show Hobbs’ campaign began the Federal Election Commission’s (FEC) Q2 filing period with roughly $7.18 million cash on hand, raised about $2.64 million, spent more than $7.44 million and ended the quarter with about $2.38 million in the bank. The filing shows much of the spending went toward communications, TV, advertising and outside campaign firms, giving Republicans a fresh line of attack as Hobbs seeks reelection in one of the nation’s most closely watched battleground gubernatorial races. “She’s spending like a drunken sailor. And drunken sailors typically don’t spend smart,” Turning Point USA chief operating officer, former Maricopa County GOP chair and 7th generation Arizonan Tyler Bowyer told Fox News Digital. “When you’re spending that much money on consultants and TV and paid messaging, that tells me there isn’t a lot of organic energy behind the campaign.” TOP DEMOCRAT GOVERNORS ARE HOPING TO RIDE THEIR RECORDS TO THE WHITE HOUSE. CAN THEY? Bowyer said the filing reflects a broader challenge for Democrats in Arizona, and nationally, saying Hobbs’ campaign spending more than it raised is “a huge problem” for an incumbent Democrat in a battleground state. Among those problems, Bowyer argued, is a spending strategy focused heavily on paid media and consultants rather than grassroots energy. He pointed to what he described as “a whole lot” of spending on consultants, TV and paid messaging, noting, “these are not real grassrootsy types of moves,” and arguing that campaigns with less organic support often struggle down the stretch. Hobbs, who narrowly won the governor’s office in 2022 against then-Republican challenger Kari Lake, is seeking reelection in a state expected to be one of the most closely watched political battlegrounds of the 2026 cycle. She won her uncontested primary Tuesday and will advance to the general election to take on Trump-backed Republican nominee Rep. Andy Biggs, R-Ariz., who beat out several opponents to win his Tuesday primary. Biggs’ campaign also seized on Hobbs’ spending earlier this month, accusing the incumbent governor of “lighting” $7.4 million “on fire” and highlighting what it described as a 281% Q2 burn rate. TRUMP FLEXES GOP MUSCLE IN ARIZONA PRIMARIES AS DEMS DODGE FAR-LEFT UPSET “While Andy Biggs’ campaign is floundering and stuck defending his decision to side with a pedophile cult over protecting women and children, we’re proud of the strong support we’ve received from grassroots donors in all 15 Arizona counties,” Hobbs campaign manager, Nicole DeMont, told Fox News Digital in response to the criticism about the governor’s spending numbers. The “pedophile cult” reference appeared to point to a recent Hobbs campaign digital ad that accused Biggs of “protecting predators,” citing his opposition to a bill addressing Arizona’s rape-kit backlog and his vote against releasing the Epstein files. “We’re going to continue using those resources to reach Arizonans across the state in both English and Spanish through face-to-face conversations, community organizing, and on their TVs, local radio stations, and digital platforms.” But, aside from whether Hobbs is earning grassroots support, Bowyer also cast Hobbs’ burn rate as part of a broader problem for the Democratic Party, arguing that the party is spending aggressively to keep pace with Republicans heading into the midterms even though Democrats are the party out of power in Washington and would typically expect the president’s party to face tougher headwinds. He added that Hobbs’ cash position matters beyond her own campaign because Arizona does not have a Senate race this cycle to help drive Democratic fundraising and turnout infrastructure. “If the governor doesn’t have money, then a lot of candidates down ballot won’t have a ton of money,” he said, arguing Democrats often rely on federal races as a “crutch” to support campaigns lower on the ticket. Meanwhile, Bowyer said the race should also matter to conservatives outside Arizona because the state is expected to remain central to the 2028 presidential map. He argued that Republicans need to invest now in battleground states like Arizona to build the organization, funding and “boots on the ground” needed for the next White House race. “Right now, we’re in the battle of our lives for what 2030 and beyond will look like,” Bowyer said. “People are totally underestimating what this country will look like if the Democrats win the presidency in 2028 and hijack the census process and redistricting.” “We may look back at 2026 and realize that was the pivot point where we saved America ahead of 2028, or we lost America for good.”
Michigan Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed accused Trump of inciting terrorism over Whitmer kidnapping plot
Abdul El-Sayed, the Democratic candidate for Senate in Michigan, once accused President Donald Trump of inciting terrorism in a 2020 interview, citing a foiled plot to kidnap Gov. Gretchen Whitmer. “These are terrorists; we have to call them that. We have to recognize that that is what the face of terrorism looks like right now. We have to step up against it,” El-Sayed said. “We gotta ask: why are these people getting radicalized? Well, there must be some radical, extremist cleric out there who may be tweeting up a storm about all the things that they think need to be done, like liberating Michigan.” El-Sayed’s comments come as he wages a tight primary race against Rep. Haley Stevens, D-Mich., with the Aug. 4 primary now less than a month away. His remarks also raise questions about his views on political rhetoric and its connection to violence. MICHIGAN SENATE CANDIDATE ABDUL EL-SAYED DODGES QUESTION ON WHETHER HE STILL SUPPORTS DEFUNDING THE POLICE His comments reference a foiled plan to kidnap Whitmer that first surfaced in 2020. A group of men associated with anti-government and militia circles, including the Wolverine Watchmen, allegedly planned to kidnap the governor from her vacation home in northern Michigan in an effort to end her COVID-19 restrictions. The plot was foiled in October by law enforcement before any attempt was ever made. Notably, The New York Times later reported that four of the 12 people charged in the alleged plot had been government agents or informants, prompting accusations of entrapment. Although President Donald Trump did not call for any kind of violence against Whitmer, El-Sayed said he believed the president was at least partially responsible, pointing to a tweet Trump had made six months before the discovered plot. WATCH: SURFACED VIDEOS OF DEM SENATE CANDIDATE BACKING ‘DEFUND THE POLICE’ CONTRADICT RECENT DENIALS “LIBERATE MICHIGAN!” Trump wrote in a post on Twitter, the social media platform now known as X. The post was one of a series calling to “liberate” Virginia and Minnesota from COVID-19 restrictions imposed by Democratic governors. According to FBI comments to local media, the plot originated before Trump’s post. El-Sayed called the posts emblematic of a cultural toxicity that had made violence more likely. SIGN UP TO GET THE POLITICS NEWSLETTER “The idea that people would threaten her safety because she was willing to stand up to keep us all healthy is, to me, the example of what the kind of toxicity that we see out of Donald Trump creates,” El-Sayed said. “And right now, the threat we are seeing is radical, far-right White Supremacy and the terrorists who would undo our society’s basic norms and mores.” DSA MEMBER LEADS DEM PRIMARY IN MIDWEST BATTLEGROUND BUT TRAILS LIKELY GOP NOMINEE: POLL El-Sayed’s campaign did not respond to Fox News Digital’s requests for comment on whether his position on Trump’s rhetoric had changed in light of The New York Times reporting. El-Sayed will face off against Stevens in the state’s Aug. 4 primaries.
WATCH: Scalise serves up Olive Garden reality check for Democrats in voter ID fight
House Majority Leader Steve Scalise, R-La., is comparing the lack of a federal voter ID law to an identification requirement at one of America’s most well-known chain restaurants. “If you want to go buy unlimited pasta at the Olive Garden, they said you have to show your ID,” Scalise told Fox News Digital in an interview earlier this week. He also pointed out that the 2024 Democratic National Convention (DNC) required attendees to show ID in order to enter the venue. SEN MARK WARNER CALLED OUT IN ABC INTERVIEW FOR INACCURATE VOTER ID CLAIMS “Democrats are saying it somehow impedes people’s ability to participate, yet Democrats themselves wouldn’t even let you go to their convention without showing ID,” Scalise said. “I’m not against them having to require ID – but by the way, everybody understands it, and everybody gets it in polling. You know, if you’re Black, if you’re White, if you are Hispanic, if you’re Republican, or Democrat, or Independent, you understand that an ID makes sense because it protects your right to vote.” He also listed boarding a plane and buying “a six-pack of beer” as situations where a photo ID was required as well. “How about the franchise of American democracy? Let’s make sure you are who you say you are and illegals can’t vote in American elections,” Scalise said. TRUMP INTERVENES AS HOUSE GOP REVOLT PUTS SAVE AMERICA ACT AT CENTER OF SPENDING SHOWDOWN Republicans have emphasized polling showing broad support for voter ID requirements as their main argument against Democrats’ opposition to the Safeguarding American Voter Eligibility (SAVE) America Act, which was advanced by the House multiple times but has stalled in the Senate. Democrats have argued the election integrity package is tantamount to voter suppression, claiming it would make it harder for married women who have changed their names to vote and make absentee voting more burdensome. Another provision in SAVE America that’s angering Democrats would allow the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) comprehensive access to states’ voter rolls. But Republicans say that’s not true. The SAVE America Act, among other provisions, would mandate proof of citizenship in the voter registration process and implement a federal photo ID requirement to vote in U.S. elections. WHITE HOUSE DISHES OUT NEW ELECTION SECURITY JAB OVER OLIVE GARDEN’S PASTA PASS ID POLICY And Republicans have seized on a temporary promotion at the Italian-American restaurant chain Olive Garden as the latest example of the commonsense reasoning behind photo ID. Earlier this month, the restaurant chain unveiled a “Never-ending pasta pass,” which would give 10,000 customers unlimited pasta for dine-in visits across 13 weeks, for the price of $100. The Olive Garden website states that “Passholders must present a photo I.D. along with Pass at time of ordering” to ensure one pass is not being shared by multiple people. House Administration Committee Chairman Bryan Steil, R-Wis., referenced the promotion during debate on a separate voter ID measure earlier this week, which Democrats also opposed. “The never ending pasta bowl is back at Olive Garden. I used to work at Olive Garden, so this hit close to home. But to safeguard the integrity of their pasta program, Olive Garden, as you may have seen, implemented photo ID requirements,” Steil said. “However, in jurisdictions across the country from Illinois and California or Minnesota, an individual can go to the polls on Election Day and cast a ballot without providing confirmation, without providing confirmation of their identity.” That measure, which would require photo voter ID even when sending mail-in ballots, passed the House earlier this week with the help of just 13 Democrats.
Mamdani warning to wealthy New Yorkers about ‘fair share’ sparks online firestorm: ‘Full blown communist’
New York City socialist mayor Zohran Mamdani is facing heat on social media after his post celebrating the state’s new pied-à-terre tax on New Yorkers with a second home. “If you have a second home in New York City worth more than $5 million, check your mailbox when you’re back in the five boroughs — because you’ve got mail,” Mamdani posted on X, touting the tax on specific second properties introduced by New York Gov. Kathy Hochul that he supported going into effect soon. “Today, we sent notification letters to property owners, letting them know that our new pied-à-terre tax is coming soon,” Mamdani continued. “The best city in the world deserves the best parks, libraries, and schools in the world. That’s only possible when we all pay our fair share. “ As of Friday morning, Mamdani’s post had been viewed over 10 million times and conservatives on social media blasted the mayor and warned that the exodus of wealthy New Yorkers will only continue under this new plan. HOCHUL CONFRONTED ON STUDY SHOWING MILLIONAIRE EXODUS IN NEW YORK CITY “Never elect a politician who: (1) sees your money as his slush fund, (2) loves Karl Marx, or (3) uses French words like ‘pied-à-terre’ to disguise new, confiscatory taxes he wants to impose to redistribute wealth,” Republican Sen. Mike Lee (R-UT) posted on X. “Socialism – Florida’s best real estate agent,” Republican Sen. Ashley Moody (R-FL) posted on X. “NYC’s pied-à-terre tax hasn’t even started and brokers already say owners are calling to sell,” GOP strategist and attorney Mehek Cooke posted on X. “Empty units don’t tip [doormen] or pay supers. You’re not taxing the rich. You’re firing the working class that depended on them. “ “More incitement,” Judicial Watch President Tom Fitton posted on X. “Communist @NYCMayor celebrates a confiscatory tax targeted at a select few. “ MAMDANI SETS INTERNET ABLAZE WITH VIDEO EXPLAINING CAVE ON PLAN TO ARREST NETANYAHU: ‘WHAT A JOKE’ “What will the excuse be when literally nothing improves after all these tax increases?” New York City Republican Councilwoman Vickie Paladino posted on X. “Will they just demand even more, or will they tell us to ignore our own eyes as they insist they’ve actually fixed everything? Both? “ “The condescension towards the people who already pay a ton of property taxes to NYC,” Washington Free Beacon investigative reporter Chuck Ross posted on X. “He thinks you’re an immoral person and worthy of mockery if you have a second home. ‘when you’re back in the five boroughs.’” “That’s only possible when we all pay our fair share,’ says the man who’s literally lived off of taxpayer dollars for years, produces nothing, and is concentrating the burdens on others—others who’ve contributed exponentially more to the city in both taxes and charitable contributions than he could possibly hope to contribute in 10 lifetimes, I might add,” Manhattan Institute fellow Rafael Mangual posted on X. “You can practically feel the glee emanating from this tweet so it’s hilarious that people will still refuse to admit he’s a full-blown communist,” civil rights attorney David Pivtorak posted on X. In April, New York City Mayor Mamdani and Hochul unveiled the joint legislative proposal targeting luxury second homes worth $5 million or more. Known as a pied-à-terre tax, the annual surcharge is expected to generate an estimated $500 million from affluent out-of-state property owners. Mamdani has previously said revenue from the tax would go toward initiatives such as free childcare, cleaner streets and safer neighborhoods. Critics, including billionaire Ken Griffin whose luxury New York City home was featured in Mamdani’s controversial video announcing the tax, argue the tax will only drive more wealthy New Yorkers out of the state and bring jobs and investments with them. Fox News Digital reached out to Mamdani’s office for comment. Fox Business’s Kristen Altus contributed to this report
Trump-fired US attorney launches unprecedented court fight after just 54 minutes on the job
The Trump administration fired a newly sworn-in U.S. attorney just 54 minutes into his tenure. Now, in what is believed to be the first lawsuit of its kind, he is fighting back. Roger Rogoff was appointed to serve as the U.S. attorney for the Western District of Washington last week after a panel of district court judges, among them Democratic and Republican appointees, unanimously decided that he should fill the vacant role. The Trump administration fired him just 54 minutes after he was sworn in, prompting Rogoff to file a lawsuit alleging that the Trump administration lacked the authority to remove him. TRUMP ADMIN FIRES US ATTORNEY IN SEATTLE MINUTES AFTER HE WAS APPOINTED The legal challenge sets up a novel test of presidential power over court-appointed U.S. attorneys, pitting the Trump administration’s claim of broad removal authority against a federal law Rogoff says allows him to serve until a Senate-confirmed successor takes office. The outcome could determine whether presidents may dismiss judicially selected prosecutors at will — and potentially leave key offices under temporary leadership without seeking Senate approval. Rogoff argues that, while the law allows the Department of Justice to appoint an interim U.S. attorney for 120 days, after that period has expired, the local district court retains the right to appoint a replacement “until the vacancy is filled,” meaning that he can’t be fired until a permanent replacement is approved by the Senate. Allowing the president to immediately remove any court-appointed U.S. attorney he opposed, according to Rogoff, would permit an administration to circumvent the Senate-confirmation process indefinitely. “The district court did not coordinate with DOJ on this selection,” a spokesperson for the agency told Fox News Digital of the firing. “Consistent with other firings of this type, this is wholly within the President’s authority.” TRUMP PICKS JAMES MCDONALD TO LEAD POWERFUL SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF NEW YORK AFTER JAY CLAYTON’S DEPARTURE Rogoff’s firing was the latest in a string of dismissals — such as those in New Jersey, New York and Virginia — where the Trump administration has removed U.S. attorneys very early in their tenure. Rogoff is unique in that he is the first to challenge his removal in court. U.S. attorneys serve as the federal government’s chief prosecutors in their districts, overseeing criminal prosecutions and representing the United States in civil cases. They also direct local U.S. attorney’s offices and coordinate federal law enforcement priorities. “District court judges can appoint a temporary U.S. Attorney, and POTUS can fire them,” acting Attorney General Todd Blanche said on X shortly after the firing. “[Western District of Washington] judges abandoned the time-honored process of consultation with the administration so that the selected U.S. Attorney is qualified to serve in the administration.” TRUMP DOJ FIRES PROSECUTORS TIED TO FACE ACT CASES AFTER REPORT ALLEGES BIAS AND MISCONDUCT Several experienced federal attorneys, including many in U.S. attorneys’ offices, have departed the second Trump administration, often going to work for Democratic-run states and taking north of a decade of legal experience with them. In his complaint, Rogoff points to administration statements indicating that court-appointed U.S. attorneys who lack the president’s support will be removed. Rogoff was appointed a King County Superior Court judge by Gov. Jay Inslee, D-Wash., in 2013 and worked in private practice after leaving the bench. The White House referred Fox News Digital to the DOJ when reached for comment. Rogoff’s attorneys did not respond to a request for comment.
WATCH: Trump DOJ vows to pursue ‘every single’ voting violation after NJ roll shocker
The Justice Department’s top Civil Rights official pledged the Trump administration will pursue every provable case of illegal voting under what she described as a “broken windows” enforcement strategy, marking a sharp shift from prior administrations as the DOJ intensifies scrutiny of voter rolls following revelations that noncitizens were registered to vote in New Jersey. Assistant Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon told Fox News Digital the department’s approach is to investigate every credible lead and prosecute every case supported by the evidence, rejecting what she described as the prior view that only widespread fraud or election-altering misconduct warranted federal action. The pledge follows revelations from Democratic New Jersey Gov. Mikie Sherrill that thousands of noncitizens ended up on the state’s voter rolls through the motor-voter system. “What’s different, first of all, is the people in charge — and ‘people are policy’,” Dhillon said when asked why the DOJ under previous administrations often uncovered alleged election-related wrongdoing but rarely secured convictions. “[Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche] and I and the other fine career and political lawyers at the Department of Justice are dedicated to enforcing our federal civil rights laws. It is correct that in prior years, there has been this attitude that, unless there’s some kind of wholesale fraud, or it changed the outcome of the election, it isn’t going to get prosecuted, but that’s not our attitude.” NONCITIZEN EX-KANSAS MAYOR PLEADS GUILTY TO ILLEGALLY VOTING MULTIPLE TIMES Dhillon said her prosecution philosophy follows a “broken windows” strategy, originally popularized by then-New York City Mayor Rudolph Giuliani and NYPD Commissioner Bill Bratton, which focused on enforcing minor offenses to deter more serious crimes. “We need to go after every single one of these violations … I can’t talk about a lot of what we’re doing publicly, but activists and others are giving us leads. Local officials are giving as leads. And we are carefully running down each of these leads.” Dhillon emphasized prosecutors will bring charges only when supported by evidence that is “100% correct.” CALIFORNIA ACCUSED OF BLOCKING FEDERAL VOTER ROLL AUDIT AS DOJ ESCALATES PROBE OF ELECTION FRAUD CLAIMS “If one does not lead to a conclusion that that person voted illegally, and I’m glad I did my due diligence rather than shooting from the hip.” When noncitizens are found to have voted illegally, Dhillon suggested the DOJ will pursue penalties such as barring them from future naturalization. A former vice chair of the California Republican Party, Dhillon considered whether New Jersey’s figures could be extrapolated to other states, including California. “I think there are more than 400 [illegal votes cast in New Jersey] I’m willing to bet. New Jersey is a small state. I came from California where I lived for the last 25 years. I’m going to predict if I were in prediction market mode that the figures there are orders of magnitude higher,” she said. GOP ERUPTS OVER 6,600 NONCITIZEN VOTERS FOUND IN BLUE STATE AS SCANDAL DEEPENS: ‘WORSE THAN ANYONE EXPECTED’ “And the system is frankly rigged in such a way that officials don’t want know. People check off a box. Nobody checks whether people are citizens or not. And nobody checks duplicates. It’s a sloppy mess in most of the United States, and we Americans deserve better.” When asked about Dhillon’s comments regarding California, an official in Gov. Gavin Newsom’s press office said the Democrat does not administer elections, count or certify results and hopes vote tabulation can be completed faster following June’s marathon primary period. Newsom recently signed the state’s FY-2027 budget, which includes about $40 million for increased county staffing, technology upgrades and voter outreach, and approved a bill cutting the vote-count deadline from 30 days to 13. Fox News Digital reached out to California Secretary of State Shirley Weber for additional comment. Dhillon said the New Jersey situation underscores why other states should partner with the federal government and turn over their electronic voter data. Many Democrat-led states have balked at such requests and are being sued in turn. Dhillon said the national problem lies in automatic registration policies combined with a “flood of illegal aliens.” Dhillon said the DOJ sent “election monitors” to key Arizona counties during Tuesday’s primary and confirmed the agency will deploy federally trained monitors to several jurisdictions nationwide going forward. When asked what happens at the end of the five-day window her letter gives Sherrill and New Jersey Lt. Gov. Dale Caldwell to respond with voter data, Dhillon said her staff has filed an additional pleading in an ongoing suit against Caldwell as to why turning over the rolls is necessary. “With respect to this five-day window, we’re looking for voluntary enforcement and what your viewers need to understand is that through a variety of court doctrines, there’s window. After which you can’t update the voter rolls,” she said, noting most states’ 90-day windows are closing. Meanwhile in Trenton, state Senate Oversight Committee member Joe Pennacchio sent a letter to Blanche asking the DOJ to not only probe voter rolls but the entire motor-voter framework blamed by Sherrill for the problems. The French vendor that provides the technology for the system pushed back on Sherrill on that front, saying the issues do not lie in their systems but in the Department of State. SIGN UP TO GET THE POLITICS NEWSLETTER “The People of New Jersey deserve more than empty assurances from the same government that oversaw this foreseeable failure,” said Pennacchio, R-Boonton. “They deserve an independent investigation that follows the evidence wherever it leads and provides a complete and transparent accounting of the facts so that any vulnerabilities that led us here can be fully and immediately remedied.” Asked about the new demand, Dhillon suggested it simply widens the net of scrutiny, remarking, “we’ll get to the bottom of it for sure.” Fox News Digital’s Hannah Brennan contributed to this report.