‘The People’s Qur’an’: Mamdani announces NYC Quran exhibit with book belonging to revolutionary activist
Socialist Mayor Zohran Mamdani announced Tuesday that one of the Qurans he used to be sworn in as the city’s first Muslim leader will be kept on display at the main branch of the New York Public Library. In an X post, Mamdani wrote the Quran belonged to an 18th-century Black scholar and revolutionary activist named Arturo Schomburg. “When I swore in at midnight at the old City Hall subway station last week, I had the honor of doing so on Arturo Schomburg’s 18th-century Qur’an,” said Mamdani. He said that “this manuscript was copied in Ottoman Syria, and is written in black ink with red highlighting the text’s divisions — no ornate decoration, it belonged to the everyday reader, and it now belongs to all New Yorkers as part of our City’s next chapter.” HOCHUL ORDERS NY LANDMARKS, INCLUDING ONE WORLD TRADE CENTER, LIT GREEN FOR MUSLIM AMERICAN HERITAGE MONTH The new mayor shared a photo of the library display, which features slogans such as “The People’s Qur’an” and “Making history at City Hall.” In addition to the book, the display features an image of Mamdani and his wife, Rama Duwaji, at his private New Year’s midnight oath-of-office ceremony, in which he was sworn in by New York State Attorney General Letitia James. The display also features a close-up of the Quran with Mamdani’s hand on it as well as an image of Schomburg. According to the New York Public Library, the Quran is part of its collection retained by the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture. SOCIALIST MAYOR MAMDANI INAUGURATED ALONGSIDE BERNIE SANDERS AND AOC ON NEW YEAR’S DAY The library wrote that, after the “history-making moment [of Mamdani’s swearing-in] with one of the Schomburg Center’s treasured collection items,” it would be displayed beginning Jan. 6 in the McGraw Rotunda at the Stephen A. Schwarzman Building on 42nd Street. The library identifies Schomburg as a Puerto Rican–born bibliophile, historian and journalist who devoted much of his life to collecting and studying books and manuscripts about Black history and culture. The library also identifies him as the co-founder of Las Dos Antillas, a revolutionary anti-colonialist political organization that advocated for Cuban and Puerto Rican independence. The group’s activities included sending weapons, money and medical supplies to aid the independence struggles of Cuba and Puerto Rico, according to the library. Commenting on Mamdani’s use of the Schomburg Quran at his swearing-in, New York Public Library President Anthony Marx wrote, “This specific Qur’an, which Arturo Schomburg preserved for the knowledge and enjoyment of all New Yorkers, symbolizes a greater story of inclusion, representation, and civic-mindedness.” MAMDANI’S TOP HOUSING PICK ONCE CALLED HOMEOWNERSHIP A ‘WEAPON OF WHITE SUPREMACY’ Hiba Abid, New York Public Library curator of Middle Eastern and Islamic studies, also commented that “the significance of this Qur’an extends far beyond the beauty of its pages. “It is a Qur’an close to the people, not only because of its simple craftsmanship, but also because it is part of the collections of the nation’s largest public library system. Its importance lies not in luxury, but in accessibility, and we hope it inspires more New Yorkers to explore the rich diversity of our Middle Eastern and Islamic collections.”
Trump announces Venezuela is turning over millions of barrels of oil to US government ‘immediately’
President Donald Trump announced Tuesday that the interim authorities in Venezuela will be turning over between 30 million and 50 million barrels of “high-quality,” sanctioned oil to the U.S. The move comes after U.S. forces on Saturday captured Venezuelan dictator Nicolás Maduro and his wife, hauling them to New York City to face criminal drug charges. Trump said the oil will be sold at market price, and he will control the proceeds to ensure it is “used to benefit the people of Venezuela and the United States!” The oil will be transported directly to unloading docks in the U.S. via storage ships, the president said. TRUMP OUSTING OF MADURO DRAWS PARALLELS TO US RAID IN PANAMA, BUT THERE ARE SOME MAJOR CONTRASTS Energy Secretary Chris Wright has been tasked with executing the plan “immediately.” The announcement comes as America’s oil titans are set for high-stakes meetings with Trump at the White House to discuss the future of Venezuela’s oil industry. Companies like Chevron, ConocoPhillips and ExxonMobil are expected to meet with Trump later this week to discuss the possibility of investing billions of dollars to get the country’s operations back up and running. Following strikes on the capital and Maduro’s subsequent capture, Trump said the U.S. will run Caracas, Venezuela, until a safe transition can occur, warning he was “ready to stage a second and much larger attack” on Caracas if needed. In an interview with MS NOW host Joe Scarborough Tuesday, Trump said the difference between the disaster in Iraq and the recent action in Venezuela was that former President George Bush “didn’t keep the oil.” TRUMP EMBRACES US INTERVENTION IN VENEZUELA, OPENS DOOR TO BROADER LATIN AMERICA PUSH “‘We’re going to keep the oil,’” Scarborough said, quoting Trump. “‘We’re going to rebuild their broken-down oil facilities, and this time we’re going to keep the oil.’” Venezuela holds more than 300 billion barrels of proven oil reserves, nearly quadruple those of the U.S. Though the country in the late 1990s was capable of pumping about 3.5 million barrels a day, mismanagement, corruption and the rising cost of extraction caused production to fall to roughly 800,000 barrels a day, according to energy analytics firm Kpler. SWITZERLAND IMPOSES 4-YEAR ASSET FREEZE LINKED TO MADURO, ASSOCIATES FOLLOWING VENEZUELAN LEADER’S CAPTURE Trump said he plans to mobilize major U.S. oil companies to invest billions in fixing Venezuela’s broken oil infrastructure. “We are going to have our very large United States oil companies go in, spend billions of dollars, fix the badly broken oil infrastructure and start making money for the country,” Trump said. American firms have not yet confirmed plans to return to Venezuela. Fox News Digital’s Amanda Macias contributed to this report.
US gains leverage over Canadian oil, weakens China amid US plans to overhaul Venezuelan oil market
The Trump administration’s plans to revitalize the Venezuelan oil market puts the United States at an advantage over Canada and serves to weaken China, according to energy experts. Conservative politicians, including the leader of Canada’s conservative opposition party, are calling on Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney to approve a new Pacific coast pipeline to help aid the country’s oil exports to overseas markets, amid fears that the United States’ involvement in Venezuela’s market will significantly impact the competitiveness of Canadian oil. Canadian lawmakers are concerned that increased oil exports from Venezuela to the United States, which is Canada’s largest oil purchaser, will displace oil from Canada, forcing the country to drop its prices in order to stay competitive. Meanwhile, experts have added that the U.S. involvement in Venezuela’s oil market will also serve to weaken China. “This is going to be bad for all petrostates, and Canada is basically a petrostate,” Energy and Environment Legal Institute’s Steve Milloy, a former fossil fuel industry lobbyist, told Fox News Digital. TRUMP TELLS SCARBOROUGH US WILL KEEP VENEZUELA OIL WHEN PRESSED ON IRAQ COMPARISONS A “petrostate” is a term used to describe a nation whose government and economy heavily rely on revenue from oil and natural gas exports. “Canada, like all petrostates — Iran, all of OPEC, all those people — are going to be at our mercy,” Milloy added. The leader of Canada’s conservative opposition party, Pierre Poilievre, said in a letter to Carney Tuesday, that the country needs to “move millions of barrels a day to overseas markets” in order to reduce Canada’s “dependence” on the United States’ oil market. “Venezuela’s re-entry to American markets means time is running out,” Poilievre told Carney in his letter, arguing “our sovereignty depends” on buffering the Canadian oil markets from the United States’ influence amid its plans to go into Venezuela and overhaul its oil. “Recent events surrounding Venezuelan dictator Nicolás Maduro emphasize the importance that we expedite the development of pipelines to diversify our oil export markets, including a new Indigenous co-owned bitumen pipeline to BC’s northwest coast to reach Asian markets,” Alberta Premier Danielle Smith also said Monday. But, according to Carney, Canadian oil will remain “competitive,” citing its “clearly low risk” and “low cost” due to the country’s stable governance, Reuters reported Tuesday. “That makes Canadian oil competitive for the medium and long term,” Carney said. “We welcome the prospect of greater prosperity in Venezuela, but we also see the competitiveness of Canadian oil.” 3 KEY TAKEAWAYS FROM TRUMP’S PUSH TO PUT US OIL FIRMS BACK IN VENEZUELA However, Milloy argued that if Canada is “forced to sell cheaper oil” it will significantly impact the country’s ability to generate revenue. But, Milloy also noted, it is also slightly “premature to say what’s going to happen just yet” as it will take time for the impact of the United States’ intervention in Venezuela’s oil market to take shape. “There’s a lot yet to be worked out,” Milloy said. In addition to Canada, Milloy suggested that President Donald Trump’s decision to go into Venezuela and take over its oil market also helps the United States’ leverage over China. “Another important factor is that a lot of Venezuelan oil went to China,” he pointed out. “China is basically oil poor, and that’s why China has been trying to electrify everything. They have a lot of nuclear power there, they’re running as much solar and wind as they can because they’re oil poor, they don’t have natural gas and and they need to insulate themselves when they do something stupid like invade Taiwan,” Milloy said. “If they’re dependent on oil and gas, the global market will just shut down. There will be an embargo, and they’ll be screwed. So they’re trying to electrify everything as much as possible — the trucks, the cars, just everything. And this is just another lever on China … They were buying their oil from Venezuela, probably at a cut-price, and that’s going to end. Trump said he would sell oil in China, but it’s not going to be a cut-price.” That sentiment was also echoed by U.S. Oil and Gas Association President Tim Stewart. “Long term, what this does now, is it puts 40% of the entire production in the world under the U.S. security umbrella — that’s from Alberta to Argentina. And it completely resets the global geopolitical world in terms of the U.S.’s ability to project its interests across the world. We can do things internationally without having an immediate price spike in crude,” Stewart told Fox News. “Venezuela is the poster child for the Belt and Road Initiative. The numbers I saw with Venezuela now is about $20 billion to China over just the course of the last few years, and that’s largely backed by crude shipments,” Stewart continued. “What this says to China is ‘I’m sorry, but your failure to plan with good borrowing partners does not constitute our financial obligation.’ It also sends a message to China, ‘Hey get out of our hemisphere.’ … (China) takes about 80% of Venezuela’s crude right now so it’s going to have a big impact on them.”
WATCH: Horse-mounted officers capture previously deported child predator at border
Horse-mounted Texas Department of Public Safety officers captured a previously deported illegal alien child predator close to the border. In a statement Tuesday, the state agency said officers from its Border Mounted Patrol Unit made “multiple” illegal immigrant apprehensions on New Year’s Day as part of an effort called Operation Lone Star. The agency said the operation took place in Maverick County along the U.S. border with Mexico, just south of the town of Del Rio, Texas. Among those arrested by Texas DPS officers was Marcio Steven Izaguirre, a 41-year-old Honduran illegal alien and child predator, according to the agency. DPS shared body camera video of the arrest in which horse-riding troopers discovered Izaguirre hiding in thick desert brush. VIDEO SHOWS 23 ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS FOUND HIDDEN IN TRUCK CAB DURING TENSE TRAFFIC STOP: POLICE The video shows two mounted troopers riding quickly through rocky desert terrain and eventually discovering Izaguirre. The officers shouted commands for Izaguirre to exit the brush and handcuffed him and led him away in front of their horses. The agency said it was alerted to the illegal’s presence by a drawbridge camera set off on a private ranch around 10:30 a.m. New Year’s Day. DPS said, through further investigation, troopers learned that Izaguirre was a previously deported felon with multiple deportations dating back to 2004. The agency said Izaguirre also has a lengthy criminal history, including convictions from 2008 for furnishing alcohol to a minor, contributing to the delinquency of a minor and child molestation out of Cobb County, Georgia. TWO ARRESTED AFTER DOZENS OF GUNS, INCLUDING ‘COP-KILLER’ MODEL, FOUND IN SPARE TIRE AT SOUTHERN BORDER: DPS The agency said it has since referred Izaguirre to U.S. Border Patrol. Lt. Chris Olivarez, a Texas DPS spokesperson, said in an X post Jan. 1 that mounted officers, along with Border Patrol and aided by K-9 “Bona,” apprehended five illegal immigrants on New Year’s Day. Olivarez said the operation prevented gotaways and was a way of “keeping Texas safe.” TEXAS WOMAN TRIES TO FLEE TO MEXICO ACROSS RIO GRANDE WITH INFANT AFTER HUMAN SMUGGLING BUST, AUTHORITIES SAY Texas makes up well over half of the U.S. border with Mexico, around 1,254 miles. It is the only southern border state to explicitly ban sanctuary jurisdictions. Texas also requires state and local law enforcement to cooperate with federal immigration authorities. Texas law also mandates that local sheriffs cooperate with federal immigration enforcement by seeking to enter federal 287(g) agreements under the federal Immigration and Nationality Act.
Trump says he’s backing Cuellar’s GOP rival despite pardoning him after daughters’ ‘heart-wrenching’ plea
President Donald Trump on Tuesday backed Republican challenger Tano Tijerina against Rep. Henry Cuellar, D-Texas, just weeks after pardoning the longtime Democrat in a corruption case Trump said was driven by Biden-era political retaliation. Trump pardoned Cuellar in December after the Department of Justice, under the Biden administration, indicted him and his wife for allegedly taking roughly $600,000 in bribes from an Azerbaijan-owned energy company and a Mexican bank. “Nobody knows Henry Cuellar better than Donald J. Trump,” Trump wrote in a fiery Truth Social post Tuesday afternoon. “I studied his records, learned about his financing, and listened to his two wonderful daughters beg me to help the mother and father that they love.” Trump described Cuellar’s daughters’ letters as “heart-wrenching and beautiful,” noting only he could “solve” their father’s “problems.” HOUSE DEM PARDONED BY TRUMP REVEALS WHETHER HE WILL SWITCH POLITICAL PARTIES “He and his wife were headed to jail for up to 20 years because he was ‘stupid’ in what he did but, above all, because the Biden Administration practiced Political Weaponization on Cuellar and his wife because they didn’t agree with his policies on the Southern Border,” Trump wrote. “He was a weak and incompetent version of me, who wanted the Border closed to criminals, drug dealers, people from mental institutions and, above all, murderers and heavy-handed criminals that were sitting in jails and mental institutions, and should never have been given the right to be released into our Country.” The president added Cuellar’s views were “not strong,” but alleged Democrats retaliated against him in an effort to jail him for life. “Being an expert on Political Weaponization, based on what the Biden Losers had done to me, and without having ever met Henry Cuellar, and in particular because of the magnificence of the letter drawn by his daughters asking me to help ‘Mom and Dad,’ I gave him and Mrs. Cuellar a full and unconditional Pardon,” Trump wrote. “In doing so, I never assumed he would be running for Office again, and certainly not as a Democrat.” WATCH: DEM LAWMAKER THANKS TRUMP FOR PARDON, SAYS IT CAME AS A SURPRISE AMID RE-ELECTION BID Trump said “despite doing [Cuellar] by far the greatest favor of his life, 20 years of FREEDOM,” he will endorse Tijerina for Congress because Cuellar’s views are “not nearly as good or strong.” The Justice Department previously said Cuellar’s alleged bribe payments were laundered through a series of front companies and middlemen into shell companies owned by his wife, Imelda, who performed “little to no legitimate work under the contracts.” In exchange, the DOJ said Cuellar allegedly agreed to use his office to influence U.S. foreign policy in favor of Azerbaijan. Tijerina, who was drafted by the Milwaukee Brewers in 1993, served three terms as Webb County judge after retiring from baseball.
Seven US service members injured in Venezuela raid to capture Maduro, official says
Seven U.S. service members were injured in the Venezuela operation to capture Nicolás Maduro, an administration official told Fox News Digital Tuesday. Five service members already have returned to duty and two are still recovering from the operation. “They are receiving excellent medical care and are well on their way to recovery,” the official said. “The fact that this extremely complex and grueling mission was successfully executed with so few injuries is a testament to the expertise of our joint warriors.” On Saturday, service members landed in Caracas, Venezuela, during a secretive mission to strike Venezuelan territory and capture Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, known as Operation Absolute Resolve. The mission was led by the Army’s elite special operations unit Delta Force. DEFIANT MADURO DECLARES HE IS A ‘PRISONER OF WAR’ IN FIRST US COURT APPEARANCE Officials said Tuesday that 24 Venezuelan security officials were killed during the raid, along with 32 Cuban military and police officers, who were responsible for guarding Maduro. Venezuelan officials have claimed the operation also killed civilians, but those claims have not been independently verified. Gen. Dan Caine, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said Trump ordered the “apprehension mission” Friday night, and it involved 150 planes, including B-1 Lancer bombers and helicopters from 20 bases. MOBS OF MOTORCYCLE-RIDING ARMED MILITIA HUNT VENEZUELAN STREETS FOR TRUMP SUPPORTERS AS CRACKDOWN INTENSIFIES U.S. intelligence officers had reportedly tracked Maduro’s whereabouts for months ahead of the operation. One helicopter was hit during the operation, which began at 2:10 a.m. local time and lasted around two and a half hours, but remained flyable. At the same time, a U.S. cyber attack had rendered much of Caracas, Venezuela, powerless, leaving the city and its communication lines in the dark. Maduro and his wife were flown to New York to face federal charges of drug trafficking and narco-terrorism.
Georgia calls special election in March to fill MTG vacancy after Trump rupture and resignation
Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger on Tuesday called a special election to fill the House seat vacated by Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., after the lawmaker resigned following a very public break with President Donald Trump. Raffensperger’s office said the special election will be held March 10 to fill the vacancy in Georgia’s 14th Congressional District, with a special runoff election scheduled for April 7, if needed. “Notice is hereby given that a Special Election shall be held on March 10, 2026, in Catoosa, Chattooga, Dade, Floyd, Murray, Paulding, Polk, Walker, Whitfield, and portions of Cobb counties for U.S. House of Representatives, District 14, to fill a vacancy due to the resignation of Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene. A Special Runoff Election, if needed, shall be held on April 7, 2026,” the call stated. According to the state’s Secretary of State office, candidate qualifying will be held at the secretary’s elections division in Atlanta on Jan. 12, through Jan. 14. The qualifying fee for interested candidates is $5,220. MARJORIE TAYLOR GREENE RETURNING TO ‘THE VIEW’ JUST DAYS AFTER SHE’LL LEAVE CONGRESS The office also set key voter deadlines. Feb. 9 is the final day to register to vote for those not already registered, and advance in-person absentee voting will begin Feb. 16. Greene’s resignation followed Trump’s decision in November to publicly withdraw his endorsement of the outspoken Georgia Republican. Trump announced in a Truth Social post in November that he was withdrawing his support and endorsement of Greene, calling her a “ranting lunatic,” accusing her of “complaining,” and claiming she told people she was upset he no longer returned her calls. Trump also gave Greene the nickname “Wacky Marjorie” and vowed “Complete and Unyielding Support” to any conservative primary challenger. FORMER HOUSE SPEAKER MCCARTHY WARNS MARJORIE TAYLOR GREENE IS ‘THE CANARY IN THE COAL MINE’ Greene responded at the time on X, writing: “President Trump just attacked me and lied about me.” Greene later announced she would resign, citing what she called the “Political Industrial Complex” and saying Americans are used as “pawns.” “Americans are used by the Political Industrial Complex of both political parties, election cycle after election cycle, in order to elect whichever side can convince Americans to hate the other side more,” Greene wrote in a lengthy statement posted to X. “And the results are always the same — nothing ever gets better for the common American man or woman.” Greene also shared her faith in the statement, writing: “My heart remains filled with joy, my life is filled with happiness, and my true convictions remain unchanged because my self worth is not defined by a man, but instead by God who created everything in existence.” “I will be resigning from office with my last day being January 5, 2026,” Greene wrote. “I’m going back to the people I love.” Trump responded to Greene’s resignation with another Truth Social post, writing that “Marjorie ‘Traitor’ Brown, because of PLUMMETING Poll Numbers, and not wanting to face a Primary Challenger with a strong Trump Endorsement (where she would have no chance of winning!), has decided to call it ‘quits.’” He also claimed Greene “went BAD” after he “refused to return her never ending barrage of phone calls.” Asked later whether he was willing to forgive Greene, Trump told reporters, “Forgive for what? No. We just — I just disagreed with her philosophy. … And once I left her, she resigned because she would never have survived a primary. But I think she’s a nice person.”‘ The Cook Political Report rates Georgia’s 14th Congressional District as “Solid R.” After Greene’s resignation Monday and the death of Rep. Doug LaMalfa, R-Calif., on Tuesday, the House has a narrow Republican majority of 218-213 heading into the 2026 midterms. Fox News Digital’s Liz Elkind and Greg Norman contributed to this reporting.
Trump says first lady ‘hates when I do this’ in public — the moment he can’t help repeating
President Donald Trump said Tuesday in an address before Republican lawmakers that first lady Melania Trump is no fan of when he dances in public, calling it “not presidential.” “My wife hates when I do this,” Trump said Tuesday at the Kennedy Center during an address at the House GOP Member Retreat. “She’s a very classy person, right? She said, ‘It’s so unpresidential.’ I said, ‘but I did become president.’ … She hates when I dance. I said, ‘Everybody wants me to dance.’” ‘”Darling, it’s not presidential,” he continued of what the first lady tells him. Trump dancing became a hallmark of 2024 campaign rallies, with Trump routinely kicking off and ending public events by dancing, frequently while the Village People’s “Y.M.C.A” or Lee Greenwood’s “God Bless the U.S.A.” blasted in the background. The signature dance typically includes Trump making a fist and shimmying his arms back and forth while pointing to people in the crowd. MADURO’S WIFE SUFFERED ‘SIGNIFICANT INJURIES’ IN DRAMATIC CAPTURE, ATTORNEY ALLEGES The president has previously mentioned the first lady did not approve of his rally dancing, recounting to crowds of supporters in 2023 in Iowa that: “She said, ‘Darling, I love you, I love you, but this is not presidential. You don’t dance off the stage. This is not presidential.’” Trump continued Tuesday that the first lady had pressed him that past presidents did not dance solo on political stages, pointing to President Franklin Delano Roosevelt as an example of how presidents should conduct themselves. “She actually said, ‘Could you imagine FDR dancing,’” he continued. “She said that to me.” “And I said, ‘There’s a long history that perhaps she doesn’t know because he was an elegant fellow, even as a Democrat.” TRUMP RALLIES HOUSE GOP AT KENNEDY CENTER DAYS AFTER MADURO CAPTURE “He was quite elegant, but he wouldn’t be doing this. But nor would too many others. But she said, ‘Darling, please, the weightlifting is terrible.’ And I have to say this, the dancing, they really like,” Trump said of supporters who enjoy his rally dance routines. “She said, ‘They don’t like it. They’re just being nice to you,’” Trump recounted. “‘I said, that’s not right,” he continued. Trump’s comments on the first lady’s dislike of his dancing came amid him impersonating weightlifters while discussing biological males competing against biological females. Trump has said in public before that Melania Trump does not approve of him imitating weightlifters, as well as dancing during political events. TRUMP ISSUES DIRECT WARNING TO VENEZUELA’S NEW LEADER DELCY RODRÍGUEZ FOLLOWING MADURO CAPTURE Trump’s address before the group of Republican lawmakers follows a historic and busy weekend, when he confirmed the U.S. military carried out a successful strike in Venezuela and captured the nation’s dictatorial president, Nicolás Maduro, and his wife. The pair, as well as others entrenched in the regime, were charged with narco-terrorism conspiracy charges. The couple pleaded not guilty in a New York City court Monday and are being held in a prison in Brooklyn. Tuesday’s event, however, is more focused on the party’s agenda for the coming year, as lawmakers prepare for the wild midterm season that will pick up steam in the coming months. Trump capped off his address by clapping and dancing to the “Y.M.C.A.” as he walked off stage.
Texas Republicans in 2 counties drop push to hand-count ballots
Texas Republicans in two counties have dropped proposals to hand-count ballots in their upcoming March primary elections, backing away from the effort after determining it would be too costly and difficult to carry out while meeting federal election requirements. NBC News reported that the Dallas County Republican Party backed away from the proposal amid volunteer shortfalls and rising costs, while the Hays County Republican Party cited challenges related to federal voting requirements. The Dallas County Republican Party and Hays County Republican Party did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s requests for comment. Allen West, the GOP chairman of the Dallas County Republican Party, told NBC News that the party aimed to recruit more than 3,000 volunteers to hand-count ballots but ended up with only about 1,300 to 1,500. TRUMP ANNOUNCES HE’LL HELM MOVEMENT TO ELIMINATE MAIL-IN VOTING AND VOTING MACHINES: ‘FIGHT LIKE HELL’ West said the prospect of a long ballot compounded staffing worries and increased the risk of missing the state’s 24-hour deadline for counting votes. “It’s a second-degree misdemeanor if you’re not able to get those ballots counted on time and get them submitted, and we don’t want to put people in that position,” he told the outlet. West said funding the proposal presented another challenge, noting that while roughly $500,000 had already been raised, party leaders believed more money would be needed. TRUMP ADMINISTRATION STRIKES DEAL WITH OHIO TO CLEAN UP STATE VOTER ROLLS USING FEDERAL DATABASE He added that contributors would be offered refunds and the party could consider the hand-counting ballots proposal again in 2028. Hays County Republican officials said the effort was hindered by a lack of accessible voting machines at precincts and by delays in obtaining election data needed to organize and merge polling locations. “Proceeding without these elements would have placed our party and voters at significant legal, financial, and operational risk, and could have undermined the very integrity we have been striving to defend,” county party Chairwoman Michelle Lopez said in a Dec. 22 letter, according to NBC News.
From Congress, to VP nominee to disgraced former governor: A look at the rise and fall of Tim Walz
Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz has dropped his re-election bid this week in the wake of revelations of massive fraud that occurred under his watch — potentially ending the political career of a governor who came into office with consolidated support, accomplished several progressive goals, and shot to the national spotlight as a vice presidential candidate before being undone by scandal. The 61-year-old Walz was raised in rural Nebraska and enlisted in the Army National Guard in 1981, soon after graduating from high school. Walz returned to Nebraska to attend Chadron State College, where he graduated in 1989 with a degree in social science education. He taught English and American History in China for one year through a program at Harvard University before being hired in 1990 as a high school teacher and football and basketball coach in Nebraska. Six years later, he moved to Mankato, Minnesota, to teach geography at Mankato West High. Walz was deployed to Italy to support Operation Enduring Freedom in 2003 before retiring two years later from the National Guard. KLOBUCHAR WEIGHING RUN FOR MINNESOTA GOVERNOR AS WALZ ENDS RE-ELECTION BID AMID FRAUD SCANDAL Walz was elected to Congress in 2006 to represent Minnesota’s 1st Congressional District, defeating a 6-term Republican incumbent, and built a reputation as a centrist-to-moderate Democrat, especially on veterans’ issues, agriculture, and education while serving as a National Guard member in Congress. In March 2017, he announced a run for governor, leaving the Washington gridlock and emphasizing a “One Minnesota” message and took office in January 2019 with consolidated support from the Minnesota Democratic–Farmer–Labor Party. “Tim Walz rose at a moment of maximum political upheaval,” retired Minnesota State Patrol Lt. John Nagel, running for Congress as a Republican to unseat Minnesota Dem. Rep. Ilhan Omar, told Fox News Digital. “After the George Floyd protests, Democrats consolidated power in Minnesota, the media closed ranks, and Walz benefited from a narrative that treated him less as a governor subject to scrutiny and more as a symbol of progressive governance.” HOW FEARS OF BEING LABELED ‘RACIST’ HELPED ‘PROVIDE COVER’ FOR THE EXPLODING MINNESOTA FRAUD SCANDAL On social media in recent days, many have speculated that Walz being elevated to the presidential ticket alongside Kamala Harris brought a level of public scrutiny that ultimately contributed to his waning popularity. In August 2024, roughly two weeks after Harris stepped in to run for president after President Joe Biden withdrew himself from the race, Harris announced Walz as her running mate, touting his resume as a “governor, a coach, a teacher, and a veteran.” “He’s delivered for working families like his,” Harris said. Walz said in an interview earlier this year that Harris chose him, in part, because, “I could code talk to White guys watching football, fixing their truck” and “put them at ease.” He described himself as the “permission structure” for White men from rural America to vote for Democrats. Almost immediately, Walz was enveloped in scrutiny over his record and criticism for several high-profile gaffes, including stolen valor allegations and a claim he was present at the Tiananmen Square massacre that he was forced to walk back with the explanation that he is a “knucklehead at times.” Ultimately, many political pundits viewed Harris’ decision to pick Walz over other potential running mates like Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro as a misstep and Harris herself wrote in her book, “107 Days,” about her disappointment in Walz’s vice presidential debate performance, saying that being the “closer” and debating on such a large scale was “not a comfortable role” for Walz. During his time as governor, Walz notched several progressive victories, including signing a $2.3 billion education budget — the biggest in Minnesota’s history — funding expanded free meals for students, thousands of new pre-K seats, and increased mental health resources in schools. In 2023, Walz signed into law the Protect Reproductive Options Act, making Minnesota one of the most abortion-friendly states in the wake of the Supreme Court’s reversal of Roe v. Wade. Other legislation Walz signed into law included the Minnesota Voting Rights Act, a $2.6 billion bipartisan infrastructure package, and a paid leave law that Democrats had long pushed for. MEDIA ‘COMPLICITY’ BLAMED AS FEDS SAY MINNESOTA FRAUD CRISIS COULD REACH $9B: ‘SHOWN THEIR TRUE COLORS’ Walz launched his bid for a third four-year term as Minnesota governor in September, but in recent weeks has been facing a barrage of incoming political fire from President Donald Trump and Republicans, and some Democrats, over the large-scale theft in a state that has long prided itself on good governance. More than 90 people — most from Minnesota’s large Somali community — have been charged since 2022 in what has been described as the nation’s largest COVID-era scheme. How much money has been stolen through alleged money laundering operations involving fraudulent meal and housing programs, daycare centers, and Medicaid services is still being tabulated. But the U.S. attorney in Minnesota said the scope of the fraud could exceed $1 billion and rise to as high as $9 billion. “The fraud scandals shattered the image,” Nagel told Fox News Digital. “They weren’t just policy failures — they were failures of leadership and oversight. Once federal investigators stepped in and national media paid attention, the contrast between the narrative and the reality became impossible to ignore.” Fraud concerns in Minnesota had been an open secret in Minnesota for years, dating back to when Walz took office, but exploded in recent months to the national forefront, leading to calls from prominent Republicans for him to resign. “As I reflected on this moment with my family and my team over the holidays, I came to the conclusion that I can’t give a political campaign my all,” Walz wrote in a statement. “Every minute I spend defending my own political interests would be a minute I can’t spend defending the people of Minnesota against the criminals who prey on our generosity and the cynics who prey on our differences.” “So I’ve decided to