Following reports of deportations to South Sudan, the Trump administration said Wednesday it has deported eight migrants convicted of crimes in the United States. Deputy director of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Madison Sheahan, flanked by Acting director of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Todd Lyons, speaks during a news conference at ICE Headquarters, in Washington, Wednesday, May 21, 2025. Acting director of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Todd Lyons flanked by Deputy director of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Madison Sheahan, speaks during a news conference at ICE Headquarters, in Washington, Wednesday, May 21, 2025. DHS Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs Tricia McLaughlin, flanked by Deputy director of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Madison Sheahan, left, and Acting director of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Todd Lyons, speaks during a news conference at ICE Headquarters, in Washington, Wednesday, May 21, 2025. WASHINGTON (AP) — The White House violated a court order on deportations to third countries with a flight linked to the chaotic African nation of South Sudan, a federal judge said Wednesday, hours after the Trump administration said it had expelled eight immigrants convicted of violent crimes in the United States but refused to reveal where they would end up. In an emergency hearing he called to address reports that immigrants had been sent to South Sudan, Judge Brian E. Murphy in Boston said the eight migrants aboard the plane were not given a meaningful opportunity to object that the deportation could put them in danger. “The department actions in this case are unquestionably in violation of this court's order,” Murphy said Wednesday, arguing that the deportees didn't have “meaningful opportunity” to object to being sent to South Sudan. The group was flown out of the United States just hours after getting notice, leaving them no chance to contact lawyers who could object in court. The migrants' home countries — Cuba, Laos, Mexico, Myanmar, Vietnam and South Sudan — would not take them back, according to Todd Lyons, the acting director of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, who spoke to reporters in Washington. He later said the migrants either came from countries that often do not take back all their deported citizens or had other situations that meant they could not be sent home. “These represent the true national security threats,” Lyons said at a news conference. Administration officials, who have repeatedly clashed with the courts over their attempts to deport large numbers of immigrants, made their displeasure clear Wednesday. “It is absurd that an activist judge is trying to force the United States to bring back these uniquely barbaric monsters who present a clear and present threat to the safety of the American people,” Tricia McLaughlin, a department spokesperson, said in a statement after the press conference. Homeland Security officials released few specific details about the deportation flight. They said it left Tuesday with eight people on board and said they remained in the department's custody Wednesday. Officials said they could not disclose the migrants' final destination because of “safety and operational security.” There was the mistaken deportation of an immigrant who was living in Maryland to a prison in El Salvador, as well as Trump's push to swiftly deport alleged Venezuelan gang members without a court review. Immigration rights lawyers have said that the deportations violated a court order against sending people to countries other than their homelands without first allowing them to argue the removal could put them in danger. “They are no less deserving of protection than any other human beings on this planet,” she said. Murphy said he would try to find a “narrowly tailored” fix for the violation. And while not directly threatening anyone with charges, he did raise the prospect. “Everyone who was involved in an illegal deportation,” the judge said, “risks criminal contempt.” Attorneys for the migrants told the judge that immigration authorities may have sent as many as a dozen people from several countries to Africa. The apparent removal of one man from the troubled Southeast Asian nation of Myanmar was confirmed in an email from an immigration official in Texas, according to court documents. He was informed only in English, a language he does not speak well, and his lawyers learned of the plan hours before his deportation flight, they said. A woman also reported that her husband from Vietnam and up to 10 other people were flown to Africa on Tuesday morning, attorneys from the National Immigration Litigation Alliance wrote. Murphy, who was nominated by Democratic President Joe Biden, previously found that any plans to deport people to Libya without notice would “clearly” violate his ruling, which also applies to people who have otherwise exhausted their legal appeals. South Sudan's police spokesperson, Maj. Gen. James Monday Enoka, told The Associated Press on Wednesday that no migrants had arrived in the country and that if they do, they would be investigated and “redeported to their correct country” if found not to be South Sudanese. Some countries do not accept deportations from the United States. The U.S. has sent Venezuelans to a notorious prison in El Salvador under an 18th-century wartime law, an action being contested in the courts. South Sudan has endured repeated waves of violence since gaining independence from Sudan in 2011 amid hopes it could use its large oil reserves to bring prosperity to a region long battered by poverty. Just weeks ago, the country's top U.N. official warned that fighting between forces loyal to the president and a vice president threatened to spiral again into full-scale civil war. The State Department's annual report on South Sudan, published in April 2024, says “significant human rights issues” include arbitrary killings, disappearances, torture or inhumane treatment by security forces and extensive violence based on gender and sexual identity. The Homeland Security Department has given Temporary Protected Status to a small number of South Sudanese already living in the United States, shielding them from deportation because conditions were deemed unsafe for return.

• On the stand now: Dawn Hughes, a board-certified clinical and forensic psychologist specializing in trauma, is testifying in Sean “Diddy” Combs' federal sex-trafficking trial. Cassie Ventura — the prosecution's star witness who dated Combs — testified last week that she endured physical and sexual abuse from him and detailed how Combs orchestrated drug-fueled sex performances called “Freak Offs.” If convicted on all counts, he could face up to life in prison. • Editor's Note: If you or someone you know is struggling with intimate partner violence, there are resources available, including the National Domestic Violence Hotline. Defense attorney Jonathan Bach asked psychologist Dawn Hughes to confirm she has not gathered detailed information about the specific facts of this case. Hughes said that's correct and added, “I'm not rendering any opinions about a specific individual.” When asked, Hughes said she's heard there's someone named “Cassie” in this case. Bach confirmed the forensic psychologist didn't hear Cassie's testimony or review records about her or her drug use. Remember: Hughes said earlier today that she's testifying as a “blind expert” to provide the jury with information about domestic violence, rape, sexual assault and traumatic stress. Clinical and forensic psychologist Dawn Hughes is back on the witness stand. When the trial resumes, Dawn Hughes, a board-certified clinical and forensic psychologist specializing in trauma, will continue testifying. Here's a summary of what was said from the witness stand before lunch on the eighth day of Sean “Diddy” Combs' federal racketeering and sex-trafficking trial. Gerard Gannon, the Homeland Security Investigations special agent in charge at the March 2024 search of Combs' Miami Beach home, resumed his testimony from yesterday. Dawn Hughes, a board-certified clinical and forensic psychologist, testified she has not assessed any victims or witnesses in this case nor has she interviewed anyone connected to the case. Cross-examination of psychologist Dawn Hughes will resume after a lunch break. She'll typically administer a comprehensive interview, other psychological tests and evaluate external information to offer a detailed analysis of someone when she's hired for forensic psychology work. Assistant US Attorney Mitzi Steiner is finished with questions. Dawn Hughes said victims tend not to recall each specific time they were abused. Within domestic abuse, there's a “routine” that happens, Hughs said, where a victim can conflate instances of abuse in the same way that mundane routine events that anyone does frequently can run together, she explained. Hughes said a victim may commonly say something like, “I know I got punched a bunch of times but can't tell you when that was.” Psychologist Dawn Hughes testified about the ways trauma impacts memory. She explained that victims will usually remember the “core gist” of a traumatic event and the central, sensory details they perceived as significant. Abuse victims often use minimizing and hedging language when disclosing the abuse, psychologist Dawn Hughes testified under direct examination by the prosecution. “They don't want to label themselves … a victim. “Many victims will wait months, even years, before telling about what happened to them,” she said. Victims will often take drugs or drink before they see their partner, Hughes said, “preventively to ward off other psychical or psychological pain to come.” Psychologist Dawn Hughes discussed both passive and active self-defense during her testimony under questioning by the prosecution. Active self-defense includes throwing objects or hitting back against abuse, she said. Victims use active self-defense “to have some way of standing up for themselves, although in many cases that usually results in more severe injury to themselves,” Hughes said. Clinical and forensic psychologist Dawn Hughes said it often takes multiple attempts for victims to leave abusive relationships. She said victims could want to come back to “the good version of their partner that they still do love.” She said they may also return because the abuse is still continuing outside of the relationship. Abusive relationships often have love and kindness in them in addition to the abuse, clinical and forensic psychologist Dawn Hughes testified. Hughes testified that a “trauma bond” is when somebody is attached to their partner in spite of violence and abuse. Psychologist Dawn Hughes testified that a victim's financial dependence on an abuser plays a very important role in their decision to stay in an abusive situation. She explained that resources are necessary for a victim to leave the relationship, and when an abuser controls their general living expenses, it's hard for the victim to see a way out. The abuser is “sabotaging a victim's ability to have independence.” Sexual abuse is “a very private harm,” which can make it difficult for a victim to seek help to leave an abusive relationship, clinical and forensic psychologist Dawn Hughes testified under direct examination by the prosecution. “They experience a tremendous amount of shame, humiliation, degradation,” Hughes said. “They don't want to talk about it. They don't even want to think about it in their own brain.” Clinical and forensic psychologist Dawn Hughes testified that it's very common for victims to stay in abusive relationships. She explained that perpetrators often use various abusive methods, beyond just physical violence, to make victims feel trapped. Psychologist Dawn Hughes said she's testifying as a “blind expert” and will provide the jury with some information about domestic violence, rape, sexual assault and traumatic stress. She testified that she's being paid $600 an hour for her work and $6,000 for a day of testimony in court. Dawn Hughes, a board-certified clinical and forensic psychologist, is now on the stand. She is an experienced expert witness, having testified in cases including the 2022 defamation trial of Amber Heard and Johnny Depp. She is being questioned by Assistant US Attorney Mitzi Steiner. Judge Arun Subramanian qualified Hughes as an expert witness in clinical and forensic psychology specializing in trauma and traumatic stress. It's routine for an expert witness to answer questions about their credentials and experience before they're qualified at trial. Special agent Gerard Gannon is off the stand. Defense attorney Teny Geragos asked special agent Gerard Gannon to confirm that the two AR-15 rifles recovered from a closet in the master bedroom were dismantled and not loaded when investigators found them. Six people were at Sean “Diddy” Combs' Miami Beach home when when Homeland Security Investigations agents gained to begin the search, special agent Gerard Gannon testified. A music producer, a property manager and other facilities personnel were put in handcuffs for law enforcement to identify and search, Gannon, who was the special agent in charge on the ground during the search, confirmed. The music producer was not identified by name. Dawn Hughes, a clinical and forensic psychologist, is an experienced expert witness, having been involved in high-profile cases, including testifying in the 2022 defamation trial of Amber Heard and Johnny Depp. She also testified as an expert in abusive relationships in the criminal trials of Nxivm founder Keith Raniere and singer R. Kelly. Hughes is board-certified in forensic psychology, is based in New York City and specializes in the “assessment and treatment of interpersonal violence, traumatic stress and the anxiety disorders,” according to her website. Combs' defense previously indicated they would call their own expert, forensic psychiatrist Dr. Alexander Bardey, to counter the government's witness. Prosecutors have finished their questioning of special agent Gerard Gannon. Defense attorney Teny Geragos is beginning cross-examination now. Special agent Gerard Gannon identified the room as a “guard shack.” The images shown in court included photos of boxes filled with bottles of baby oil and personal lubricant that were recovered from a closet in the home. In the master bathroom, argents found a box adorned with a gold plate bearing the inscription “Puffy,” Gannon testified. The powder and residue from the straw tested positive for cocaine and ketamine, according to a stipulation read in court. Various tablets tested positive for MDMA, according to the stipulation. Other tablets tested positive for alprazolam, which is the active ingredient in Xanax. Gerard Gannon, the Homeland Security Investigations special agent in charge at the March 2024 search of Combs' Miami Beach home, has resumed testimony. About 18 pairs of platform high heels were recovered from the home, Gannon said. Three cell phones were found inside a Balenciaga boot in the closet, Gannon testified. Gannon began testifying yesterday about other items he says were found in the closet, including personal lubricant, lingerie and “upper and lower receivers of AR-15s.” Gannon said the search was tied to a human trafficking investigation. Dawn Hughes, a board-certified forensic and clinical psychologist, is expected to testify later today. As an expert witness, she is likely to explain to the jury why victims remain in relationships, how victims cope in such relationships, why they engage in delayed disclosure, and the effect of trauma on memory. Judge Arun Subramanian ruled ahead of the trial that Hughes cannot opine on certain topics, including the concept of coercive control. Hughes will also refrain from sharing any specific opinions about the alleged victims' credibility in this case. Yesterday, prosecutors said they expect to call Scott Mescudi, the recording artist better known by his stage name Kid Cudi, this week. In her testimony last week, Cassie Ventura, Sean “Diddy” Combs' former girlfriend, testified that Combs was “irate” when he learned she was briefly dating Mescudi. Ventura said she broke it off with Mescudi after Combs assaulted her and threatened more violence on her and the rapper. Sean “Diddy” Combs is now in the courtroom, and lawyers for both sides are engaging with Judge Arun Subramanian. Gannon, with Homeland Security Investigations, testified Tuesday about the search of Combs' Miami Beach home in which they found guns, ammunition and baby oil. Prosecutors indicated yesterday that Scott Mescudi, the recording artist better known by his stage name Kid Cudi, could be called to testify as early as today. Special Agent Gerard Gannon is expected to return to the stand this morning, followed by two others, including a former employee for Sean “Diddy” Combs. After court adjourned, prosecutor Maurene Comey said Cudi is also slated to testify, but may not take the stand until Thursday morning. In her testimony last week, Cassie Ventura, Combs' former girlfriend, testified that Combs was “irate” when he learned she was briefly dating Mescudi. Ventura said she broke it off with Mescudi after Combs assaulted her and threatened more violence on her and the rapper. It's the eighth day of Sean “Diddy” Combs' racketeering and sex-trafficking trial. So far, the jury has heard testimony from 10 witnesses. Before the jury was dismissed for lunch yesterday, David James, a Combs former assistant, described witnessing the music mogul use drugs, his role in stocking hotel rooms for Combs, and being subjected to lie detector tests and an intimidating search. Regina Ventura, Cassie Ventura's mother, testified about visits with her daughter becoming less frequent when she started dating Combs, “memorializing” her daughter's alleged abuse by taking photos of her condition in one instance, and taking a home equity loan to pay Combs the $20,000 he requested from her. After Hayes wrapped up after lunch, Gerard Gannon, a special agent with Homeland Security Investigations, gave evidence under direct examination, which is set to resume today at 9 a.m. Here's a look at some of what was said yesterday: Gerard Gannon, a special agent with Homeland Security Investigations

This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Quotes displayed in real-time or delayed by at least 15 minutes. Powered and implemented by FactSet Digital Solutions. Mutual Fund and ETF data provided by Refinitiv Lipper. Fox News Flash top headlines are here. The conservative House Freedom Caucus is demanding House GOP leaders delay plans to vote on President Donald Trump's "one big, beautiful bill" this week. The group of GOP rebels is joining House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., for a meeting at the White House later on Wednesday in an apparent bid to hash out differences on the massive piece of legislation, Fox News was told. "I don't think it can be done today. I mean, the runway is short today," House Freedom Caucus Chairman Andy Harris, R-Md., told reporters in a press conference on Wednesday. House Freedom Caucus Chairman Andy Harris, right, is opposing House Speaker Mike Johnson's plan to hold a vote on Congress' Trump-focused reconciliation bill this week. We as members are at the table. We don't want the deal to be ended," Perry said. A House Freedom Caucus source told Fox News Digital that the speaker was still "digesting" the agreement, though lawmakers at the press conference declined to say what the deal was, but a White House official pushed back in a statement to Fox News Radio. A House GOP leadership aide also told Fox News Digital that the White House only provided the Freedom Caucus with policy options rather than a deal. Johnson had told reporters this week that the bill could see a chamber-wide vote as early as Wednesday. I'm pretty confident it could be done in 10 days. House conservatives have been pushing for the bill to include more aggressive cuts to Medicaid – specifically the expanded population who became eligible under the Affordable Care Act – and a full repeal of former President Joe Biden's Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) and its green energy subsidies. Allies of Johnson and other House GOP leaders have accused the GOP rebels of "moving the goal posts" from their initial demands of needing at least $1.5 trillion in spending cuts to offset the cost of new spending in the bill. However, Harris challenged that notion during the press conference. "We're saying work within the goalposts, rearrange it within the goalposts in accordance with what the president wants – end waste, fraud and abuse in Medicaid, which is wasting dollars that should be spent on the truly vulnerable, and then end as much of the green new scam as possible," Harris said. Earlier this morning, two key critics of the bill told Fox News Digital that negotiations between the House Freedom Caucus and House GOP leaders had regressed. Rep. Chip Roy, R-Texas, said talks went "massively south" but declined to go into detail. Rep. Ralph Norman, R-S.C., similarly said in a text message to Fox News Digital, "THINGS ARE NOT GOING WELL!!" There are several outstanding issues with the bill that have not yet been resolved – blue state Republicans pushing for a raise in state and local tax (SALT) deduction caps, and conservatives demanding stricter work requirement rules for Medicaid as well as a full repeal of green energy subsidies in the IRA. Conservatives have been wary of the New York and California GOP lawmakers' push, however. Rep. Chip Roy, R-Texas, said talks worsened overnight. Critically, Norman and Roy are members of the rules panel – but even if they both voted against it in committee, the numbers are still on Republicans' side to advance it. The House of Representatives, where Republicans can lose just three votes to pass anything along party lines, is another story. Republicans are working to pass Trump's policies on tax, immigration, energy, defense and the national debt all in one massive bill via the budget reconciliation process. House Republicans are hoping to advance Trump's bill through the House and Senate by the Fourth of July. Elizabeth Elkind is a politics reporter for Fox News Digital leading coverage of the House of Representatives. Previous digital bylines seen at Daily Mail and CBS News. Follow on Twitter at @liz_elkind and send tips to elizabeth.elkind@fox.com This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Quotes displayed in real-time or delayed by at least 15 minutes. Powered and implemented by FactSet Digital Solutions. Mutual Fund and ETF data provided by Refinitiv Lipper.

Elon Musk speaks at a town hall March 30, 2025, in Green Bay, Wis. (AP Photo/Jeffrey Phelps, File) ▶ Follow live updates on President Donald Trump and his administration MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Wisconsin could go down as billionaire Elon Musk's last big spend on a political campaign. The announcement came as Musk is stepping back from his role in the Trump administration, saying he will spend more time focused on his businesses, and just seven weeks after the candidate he backed in Wisconsin's Supreme Court race lost by 10 percentage points. “The people have won,” said Wisconsin Democratic Party Chairman Ben Wikler. “The biggest funder in Republican politics is taking his toys and going home.” Brandon Scholz, a retired longtime Republican strategist in the state, said that at least in Wisconsin, “after that court race he deserves to be labeled as toxic.” But that doesn't mean Musk couldn't spend money on races in the state and nationally again, especially if the stakes are high and his money could make a difference, Scholz said. And it came just five months after Musk spent at least $250 million to help President Donald Trump win, reversing losses in Wisconsin and other battleground states four years earlier. Elon Musk jumps on the stage as Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump speaks at a campaign rally at the Butler Farm Show, Oct. 5, 2024, in Butler, Pa. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci, File) It was an extension of Musk's high-profile role in the presidential race, where he campaigned alongside Trump and headlined some of his own rallies. “It's a super big deal,” he told the roughly 2,000-person crowd in the event center, where hundreds of protesters were rallying against his appearance outside. The candidate Musk backed lost Brown County, the home of Green Bay, by 3 percentage points, going on to lose statewide by more than three times that margin. An Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs poll taken two weeks after the Wisconsin court election found that just 33% of adults had a favorable view of the Tesla CEO, down from 41% in December. His Department of Government Efficiency, also known as DOGE, has enacted deep cuts to the workforce and spending, in some cases seeking to shutter entire agencies, but it has fallen far short of its goals for reducing federal spending. Elon Musk holds up a chainsaw he received from Argentina's President Javier Milei, right, as they arrive to speak at the Conservative Political Action Conference, CPAC, at the Gaylord National Resort & Convention Center, Thursday, Feb. 20, 2025, in Oxon Hill, Md. Pocan is skeptical that Musk truly will back away. “This just means they realize how toxic Elon Musk is and the work he did through DOGE.” Kelda Roys, a Democratic state senator, was also tempered in her excitement over Musk saying he plans to do a “lot less” political spending in the future. “There's a ton of other billionaire bros, I'm sure, willing and happy to step up in his place,” Roys said. Musk could also get involved with future races, but in a much more low-profile way, said Scholz, the Republican. Musk spent at least $3 million on the Wisconsin Supreme Court race himself. That was part of more than $100 million spent on both sides. It was a reprise of what the group did last fall across the seven most competitive presidential battleground states, including Wisconsin, which were carried by Trump. In addition to his political contributions, Musk paid three individual voters $1 million each for signing a petition in an effort to goose turnout. Musk himself hosted Schimel on his podcast and cast what was at stake in stark terms. “A seemingly small election could determine the fate of Western civilization,” Musk said in a social media post on the April 1 election day. Democrats made the race a referendum on both Musk and Trump's agenda, successfully electing a judge whose victory ensures the Wisconsin Supreme Court will remain under liberal control until at least 2028. Coincidentally, Musk's announcement about spending less on political races came just hours after a liberal judge announced her candidacy for the 2026 Wisconsin Supreme Court race. Wisconsin Appeals Court Judge Chris Taylor is challenging a conservative incumbent justice who sided with Trump in his unsuccessful lawsuit that attempted to overturn his 2020 loss in Wisconsin. Vanessa Gonzalez joins other protesters carrying signs and chanting slogans outside a Tesla showroom and service center in the North Hollywood section of Los Angeles, March 15, 2025. Associated Press writer Thomas Beaumont in Des Moines, Iowa, contributed to this report.

This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Quotes displayed in real-time or delayed by at least 15 minutes. Powered and implemented by FactSet Digital Solutions. Mutual Fund and ETF data provided by Refinitiv Lipper. The veteran head coach currently views the Philadelphia Eagles' famed play as simply football, but is curious to see how a rule change vote goes on it. A proposal from the Green Bay Packers that would have effectively banned the tush push failed to receive enough votes from NFL owners on Wednesday. Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts, #1, lines up for the tush push play on the goal line against the Kansas City Chiefs during Super Bowl LIX at Ceasars Superdome in New Orleans on Feb. 9, 2025. The proposal added that a penalty would be assessed on any offensive player who violated the rule. The original vote was set to take place in April, but it was tabled to May. Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts, #1, scores touchdown on a tush push during Super Bowl LIX between the Philadelphia Eagles and the Kansas City Chiefs on Feb. 9, 2025 at the Superdome in New Orleans. Proponents of the play and those who oppose it both presented strong arguments, while the league expressed worry about safety. Rich McKay, the NFL Competition Committee chair, said in April the issues go beyond safety, because there was not enough data to say whether it is a dangerous play. Washington Commanders linebacker Frankie Luvu called the play cheap. It appears teams will have to adopt the old adage – if you don't like it, figure out a better way to stop it. Follow Fox News Digital's sports coverage on X, and subscribe to the Fox News Sports Huddle newsletter. Ryan Gaydos is a senior editor for Fox News Digital. Get all the stories you need-to-know from the most powerful name in news delivered first thing every morning to your inbox. By entering your email and clicking the Subscribe button, you agree to the Fox News Privacy Policy and Terms of Use, and agree to receive content and promotional communications from Fox News. You've successfully subscribed to this newsletter! This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Quotes displayed in real-time or delayed by at least 15 minutes. Powered and implemented by FactSet Digital Solutions. Mutual Fund and ETF data provided by Refinitiv Lipper.

Fewer people are buying Team Biden's efforts to play down reports that he was mentally declining as president, believing instead that his aides and the media engaged in a cover-up to hide his failings. In the latest Rasmussen Reports survey shared with Secrets Tuesday morning, more likely voters than not believe that Joe Biden entered the presidency already in a mental decline that got worse over time, eventually leading to his eleventh-hour decision to bail out of his reelection campaign. The pollster said 44% of voters believe that “Joe Biden's mental condition was already going downhill before he ever got elected in 2020.” Some 41% disagreed. And 60% believe he would not have been mentally or physically capable of doing his job had he stayed in the 2024 race and beaten President Donald Trump to win a second term. Good Morning !TODAY – 72% Say Cover-Up of Biden Decline a ‘Serious' ScandalEfforts by White House officials to conceal former President Joe Biden's cognitive impairment constitute a serious scandal, according to a majority of voters who also believe the news media were part… https://t.co/ovUIrc7LBn The results follow a flurry of new reports about efforts among Biden aides and the media to hide the truth about the former president's failings, which were obvious to many. It also comes after Biden said this week that he has prostate cancer. Rasmussen, for example, found that 72% believe the cover-up is a serious scandal. In addition to blaming Biden's staff, his allies in the media are also taking a big hit. The pollster said 63% believe the media “were aware of Joe Biden's declining mental condition, but chose to help cover it up.”

This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Quotes displayed in real-time or delayed by at least 15 minutes. Powered and implemented by FactSet Digital Solutions. Mutual Fund and ETF data provided by Refinitiv Lipper. An Hawaiian Airlines plane was evacuated on Tuesday, May 20, at San Diego International Airport in San Diego. A U.S. Navy technician was identified as the suspect charged with making a false bomb threat on board a Hawaiian Airlines flight preparing to take off from San Diego. The Port of San Diego Harbor Police Department announced that John Stea, 35, was arrested following Tuesday's incident. "The suspect was onboard Hawaiian Airlines flight 15 when he told a flight attendant the passenger next to him had a bomb. A spokesperson for the U.S. Third Fleet Fox News Digital that "The Navy is aware Electronics Technician 2nd Class John Stea, assigned to Maritime Expeditionary Security Group One, was arrested by San Diego Harbor Police on May 20 following an alleged bomb threat. A Hawaiian Airlines airplane sits on the tarmac after an evacuation on Tuesday, May 20, 2025 at the San Diego International Airport in San Diego. We take all threats seriously and are cooperating fully with local and federal authorities," the spokesperson added. The Port of San Diego Harbor Police Department said its "Police Maritime Tactical Team, K-9 Team, and Joint Terrorism Task Force, along with the San Diego Fire Department and multiple federal agencies, responded to the scene to search the aircraft and its contents." A Hawaiian Airlines airplane sits on the tarmac after an evacuation on May 20, 2025 at the San Diego International Airport in San Diego. All 293 people onboard were deplaned and transported by bus to a safe area. K-9s cleared the aircraft including all carry-on and checked luggage," it added. Stea, described by police as a "member of the military," was charged with making a false bomb threat and false report of a security threat. Isai Solorzano, another Navy sailor who was on the flight, told FOX 5 KUSI what he witnessed, explaining that law enforcement officials boarded the plane and asked about the owner of some specific containers. Electronics Technician 1st Class John Stea was arrested by San Diego Harbor Police on May 20 following an alleged bomb threat. "One guy stood up, (and) they immediately told him to turn around and put him in handcuffs," Solorzano said. Fox News Digital's Nick Butler contributed to this report. Greg Norman is a reporter at Fox News Digital. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Quotes displayed in real-time or delayed by at least 15 minutes. Powered and implemented by FactSet Digital Solutions. Mutual Fund and ETF data provided by Refinitiv Lipper.

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Helio Castroneves felt an immediate difference — a subtle but noticeable uptick in speed — the first time he utilized the boost of horsepower offered by IndyCar's novel hybrid engines around the imposing oval of Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Perhaps use it slowly to run down the leader or build a big advantage once out front? “There is so much more that goes into this than I think people realize or recognize,” acknowledged Indy 500 veteran Graham Rahal, whose father Bobby Rahal won the 1986 race. I mean, the hybrid, it's quite powerful here. The genesis of the hybridization began years ago, when IndyCar manufacturers Chevrolet and Honda wanted to better align their racing programs with a shift in consumer demand toward hybrid and electric vehicles. But the project was beset by delays as engineers struggled to fit a bespoke hybrid unit into the IndyCar chassis designed more than a decade ago, and that had to meet certain requirements for weight and safety, among other things. The result was finally unveiled before last year's Indy 500, a design based around ultracapacitors rather than heavy batteries. The system was introduced at Mid-Ohio midway through last year's IndyCar season and has been in use ever since. But it has never been used somewhere like Indianapolis Motor Speedway, where speeds at the end of each straight can hit 240 mph, and the difference between winning and losing can be measured in thousandths of a second. “I've had some really interesting conversations with drivers about how of all places where the hybrid is going to make a huge difference, it's going to be at Indianapolis,” IndyCar president Doug Boles said. “I asked why and they say, ‘Well, you think about Indianapolis, how trimmed out we are — especially in qualifying — any incremental difference in horsepower makes a difference. “We're going to see some exciting racing,” Boles continued, “and the strategies that I have heard from drivers in terms of talking about how to deploy the hybrid vary wildly. It hasn't gone without its share of problems, either, dating to an open test last month and right through practice Monday. For one thing, the hybrid still checks in at about 100 pounds, which is significant on a car that weighs just 1,600. “That's a lot of mass percentage-wise you are adding,” two-time defending Indy 500 winner Josef Newgarden said. “It's almost like adding 200, 250 pounds to a stock car. If you said, ‘Hey, guys, we're going to bolt 250 pounds to these stock cars, see what you think,' I bet they would all go, ‘OK, this drives differently.' Andretti Global driver Kyle Kirkwood is among many who believe the additional weight makes cars harder to drive, and Meyer Shank Racing's Marcus Armstrong said, “I do believe the window is considerably smaller, the balance window.” Armstrong crashed in practice last Saturday and had to squeeze into the field in a backup car on Sunday. Then there's the fact that the hybrid unit — while mostly reliable — is still a machine, and machines can have problems. Rinus Veekay's hybrid didn't work at all during his first qualifying run for the final row of the starting grid, while 2008 winner Scott Dixon had his practice Monday cut short after just six laps when a warning light blinked for an overheating issue. And if it comes down to the final laps, it could be a big part, as the leader tries to hold on and the chasers try to time their boost for a winning pass. “I think it definitely adds some variables,” said Dixon, who will start on the second row. “I think the biggest thing that we've probably all learnt so far, you've got to be ready for change, is probably the biggest thing,” he added.

This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Quotes displayed in real-time or delayed by at least 15 minutes. Mutual Fund and ETF data provided by Refinitiv Lipper. Rep. Suzan DelBene, D-Wash., chair of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, tells Fox News Digital Democrats will ‘hold Republicans accountable' over President Donald Trump's budget bill. EXCLUSIVE – As House GOP leaders advance President Donald Trump's so-called "big, beautiful bill" toward a floor vote this week, Democrats, who are in the minority, are sounding a warning. "We're going to hold Republicans accountable and there will be a price to pay," Rep. Suzan DelBene of Washington State, the chair of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, emphasized as she pointed to next year's midterm elections during a Fox News Digital interview. Republicans are holding onto an extremely razor-thin majority in the chamber right now, and Democrats only need a three-seat pickup to win back the House majority in the 2026 elections. Additionally, they view the sweeping and controversial GOP-crafted measure stocked full of Trump's second-term priorities on tax cuts, immigration, defense, energy and the debt limit – which is currently making its way through numerous votes and hurdles in the House – as political ammunition. President Donald Trump, left, and Speaker of the House Mike Johnson, R-La., talk with reporters after a House Republican Conference meeting on the budget reconciliation bill in the Capitol building on Tuesday, May 20, 2025. "This is a terrible piece of legislation," DelBene argued. Democrats from across the party are shining a spotlight on the Republicans' restructuring of Medicaid, the nearly 60-year-old federal government program that provides health insurance for roughly 71 million adults and children with limited incomes. "Let's be clear, all Republicans are talking about right now is how many people and how fast they're going to take away healthcare. She claimed that House Republicans are "all blindly following the president and going to blindly follow him off the cliff." Rep. Ted Lieu of California, another member of the House Democrat leadership, argued as he took questions from reporters that the bill "has the largest cut to healthcare in U.S. The cuts to Medicaid, being drafted in part as an offset to pay for extending Trump's 2017 tax cut law, which is set to expire later this year, include a slew of new rules and regulatory requirements for those seeking coverage. They're scared about the cuts to healthcare, not only cutting 14 million people off of healthcare but then raising costs beyond that for everyone and things like rural hospitals closing," DelBene argued. "This would have devastating impacts across the country. This is policy that Republicans are fighting for, cutting nutrition health programs so that families don't even have healthy food." They call any talk that they are cutting aid to mothers, children, people with disabilities and the elderly a "flat out lie." DelBene countered, saying, "we're not buying the argument because what we've seen in committee, what they've written down on paper is massive cuts in healthcare and all to pay for tax breaks for the wealthiest in our country. This isn't a bill about helping working families. This bill is devastating for working families." However, her counterparty, Rep. Richard Hudson of North Carolina, the chair of the National Republican Congressional Committee, told Fox News Digital in a statement that "Republicans are ending waste, fraud, and abuse in Medicaid so the most vulnerable get the care they need." Rep. Richard Hudson of North Carolina, chair of the National Republican Congressional Committee, is interviewed by Fox News Digital on April 7, 2025 in Washington, D.C. (Fox News - Paul Steinhauser) Additionally, Hudson argued that "Democrats are lying to protect a broken status quo that lets illegal immigrants siphon off billions meant for American families. We're strengthening Medicaid for future generations by protecting taxpayers and restoring integrity." While there are divisions between Republicans over Medicaid, and a chasm between the two major parties over the longstanding entitlement program, there is one point of agreement – this issue will continue to simmer on the campaign trail in one form or another long after the legislative battles on Capitol Hill are over. Paul Steinhauser is a politics reporter based in the swing state of New Hampshire. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Quotes displayed in real-time or delayed by at least 15 minutes. Mutual Fund and ETF data provided by Refinitiv Lipper.

This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Quotes displayed in real-time or delayed by at least 15 minutes. Powered and implemented by FactSet Digital Solutions. Mutual Fund and ETF data provided by Refinitiv Lipper. Lockheed Martin COO Frank St. John joins 'FOX & Friends First' to explain the company's 'leading role' in developing President Donald Trump's planned defense system for America. China is concerned by President Donald Trump's proposal for a new U.S. missile defense system, called the Golden Dome, which is designed to protect against adversarial attacks on America. Golden Dome has a "strong offensive nature and violates the principle of peaceful use in the Outer Space Treaty," Chinese Foreign Minister Mao Ning said Wednesday. "The project will heighten the risk of turning space into a war zone and creating a space arms race, and shake the international security and arms control system," Mao said. "We urge the U.S. to give up developing and deploying global anti-missile system." Both China and Russia have placed offensive weapons in space, like anti-satellite capabilities that could potentially be used to try to take the U.S. offline, American intelligence officials have warned. "China is gravely concerned about this," she added. "We urge the U.S. to give up developing and deploying the global anti-missile system at an early date and take concrete actions to enhance strategic mutual trust between major countries and safeguard global strategic stability." The current government funding bill working its way through Congress includes an initial $25 billion to kick off the project. Trump also offered an ambitious timeline for the project to be completed before he leaves office. This illustration shows how laser technology will be used for missile defense. Fox News Digital has reached out to the White House for comment on China's reaction. "Now that the legal framework in this area has been destroyed, and the validity period has expired, or deliberately, let's say, a number of documents have ceased to be valid, this base must be recreated both in the interests of our two countries and in the interests of security throughout the planet," said Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov. China's space-based targeting capabilities have "grown most impressively" in recent years, according to Space Force Vice Chief Gen. B. Chance Saltzman, with hundreds of satellites now dedicated to tracking U.S. assets in orbit. He called China's rapid advances "mind-boggling" during a hearing on Capitol Hill last month and said the U.S. was at risk of losing its dominance in orbit. Golden Dome will need space-based radar capabilities, like the digitized version pictured. Weeks before that, Space Force Vice Chief of Operations Gen. Michael Guetlein revealed that China has been practicing satellite "dogfighting," a sign of its growing ability to conduct complex operations in orbit. "That's what we call dogfighting in space," Guetlein said. "They are practicing tactics, techniques and procedures to conduct on-orbit operations from one satellite to another." This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Quotes displayed in real-time or delayed by at least 15 minutes. Powered and implemented by FactSet Digital Solutions. Mutual Fund and ETF data provided by Refinitiv Lipper.

Armed men hijacked a tourist boat in the Amazon rainforest in Peru, robbed all 14 people on board and forced them to empty their bank accounts via mobile apps, according to one of the victims. According to her account, she was part of a 14-person group, including her parents and 6-year-old daughter, that set off on an all-day boat tour from the city of Iquitos, a popular jumping-off point to explore the rainforest. Related article ‘Bizarre' blob-headed fish and amphibious mouse among 27 new species found in Peru Four men armed with pistols and a machine gun boarded the boat and sailed it deep into the forest, said de la Almudena, where they took everyone's belongings and even the vessel's motor. “Through mobile phone applications, they asked us to take the money out of our accounts and transfer it to one of their accounts, otherwise they would not leave,” she added. “I wouldn't wish it upon anyone,” de la Almudena said. The passengers then took pieces of wood from the boat and used them to row down the river, where they came upon a family in another boat that towed them to safety, she said. De la Almudena claimed that the tour company, Canopy Tours Iquitos, had no GPS tracker on the boat, no insurance and no security measures in place, despite the fact that she was later told that this kind of incident has happened in the area before. In response, Canopy Tours Iquitos said the incident, which occurred on May 14, was a chance event outside of its control that “was immediately reported to the authorities.” Related article This 1,000-mile river suffered decades of oil spills. Now it's a legal person, things could change In addition, the company said it would strengthen security measures, including introducing GPS monitoring, closer cooperation with the police and more training for staff. “Petty theft, carjackings, muggings, assaults, and other violent crime often happen even in daylight hours and with many witnesses around.

A staff member walks past a message to students that hangs on the wall at Place Bridge Academy, May 20, 2025, in Denver. Classroom aid Zhour Boutyebi works with students in a second grade math class at Place Bridge Academy, May 20, 2025, in Denver. A second grader uses his hands to do math at Place Bridge Academy, May 20, 2025, in Denver. Students raise their hands to be called on by second grade math teacher Johanna Correa at Place Bridge Academy, May 20, 2025, in Denver. They didn't speak to anyone except their roommates, another family from Venezuela. They consulted WhatsApp messages for warnings of immigration agents in the area before leaving for the rare landscaping job or to buy groceries. But most days at 7:20 a.m., González's wife took their children to school. They arrived two years ago, planning to stay for a decade. But on Feb. 28, González and his family boarded a bus from Denver to El Paso, where they would walk across the border and start the long trip back to Venezuela. Bianca Vázquez Toness, who speaks Spanish and Portuguese, has spent a decade writing about immigration or education. Even as immigrants in the U.S. avoid going out in public, terrified of encountering immigration authorities, families across the country are mostly sending their children to school. In some cases, families are telling their children's schools that they're leaving. President Donald Trump has encouraged more families to leave by stoking fears of imprisonment, ramping up government surveillance, and offering people $1,000 and transportation out of the country. And on Monday, the Supreme Court allowed the Trump administration to strip legal protections from hundreds of thousands of Venezuelan immigrants, potentially exposing them to deportation. Without Temporary Protective Status, even more families will weigh whether to leave the U.S., advocates say. Departures in significant numbers could spell trouble for schools, which receive funding based on how many students they enroll. “The amount of fear and uncertainty that is going through parents' heads, who could blame somebody for making a choice to leave?” said Andrea Rentería, principal of a Denver elementary school serving immigrant students. When Trump was elected in November after promising to deport immigrants and depicting Venezuelans, in particular, as gang members, González knew it was time to go. He was willing to accept the trade-off of earning just $50 weekly in his home country, where public schools operate a few hours a day. “I don't want to be treated like a delinquent,” González said in Spanish. He and his wife didn't tell anyone of their plan except the single mom who shared their apartment, afraid to draw attention to themselves. They sent their children to their Denver school regularly until late February, when González's phone lit up with messages claiming immigration agents were planning raids inside schools. “Honestly, we were really scared for our boy,” González said. In the months following Trump's inauguration, Denver Public School attendance suffered, according to district data. Attendance districtwide fell by 3% in February compared with the same period last year, with even steeper declines of up to 4.7% at schools primarily serving immigrant newcomer students. Some parents told Denver school staff they had no plans to approach their children's campus after the Trump administration ended a policy that had limited immigration enforcement at schools. Data obtained from 15 districts across eight additional states, including Texas, Alabama, Idaho and Massachusetts, showed a similar decline in school attendance after the inauguration for a few weeks. Trump said during the campaign he would begin his mass deportation efforts nearby, in the suburb of Aurora, because of alleged Venezuelan gang activity. Nationwide, schools are still reporting immediate drops in daily attendance during weeks when there is immigration enforcement — or even rumors of ICE raids — in their communities, said Hedy Chang of the nonprofit Attendance Works, which helps schools address absenteeism. Dozens of districts didn't respond to requests for attendance data. Some said they feared drawing the attention of immigration enforcement. In late February, González and his wife withdrew their children from school and told administrators they were returning to Venezuela. He posted a goodbye message on a Facebook group for Denver volunteers he used to find work and other help. Immediately, half a dozen Venezuelan and Colombian women asked him for advice on getting back. In Denver, 3,323 students have withdrawn from school through mid-April – an increase of 686 compared with the same period last year. At the 400-student Denver elementary school Andrea Rentería heads, at least two students have withdrawn since the inauguration because of immigration concerns. One is going back to Colombia and the other didn't say where they were headed. School officials in Massachusetts and Washington state have confirmed some students are withdrawing from school to return to El Salvador, Brazil and Mexico. In Chelsea, Massachusetts, a 6,000-student district where nearly half the students are still learning English, a handful of families have recently withdrawn their children because of immigration concerns. Her 19-year old daughter will stay behind, on her own, to finish school – a sign that these decisions are leading to more family separation. In Bellingham, Washington, two families withdrew their children after an Immigration and Customs Enforcement raid in early April at a local roofing company, where agents arrested fathers of 16 children attending Bellingham schools. Both families returned to Mexico, family engagement specialist Isabel Meaker said. Countries with large populations living in the United States are seeing signs of more people wanting to return home. Birth registrations, the first step to getting a Brazilian passport for a U.S.-born child, were up 76% in April compared to the previous year. Guatemala reports a 5% increase over last year for passports from its nationals living in the United States. Last month, Melvin Josué, his wife and another couple drove four hours from New Jersey to Boston to get Honduran passports for their American-born children. Melvin Josué worries about Trump's immigration policy and what might happen if he or his wife is detained, but lately he's more concerned with the difficulty of finding work. Demand for his drywall crew immediately stopped amid the economic uncertainty caused by tariffs. There's also more reluctance, he said, to hire workers here illegally. (The Associated Press agreed to use only his first and middle name because he's in the country illegally and fears being separated from his family.) A consultant working with districts in Texas on immigrant education said one district there has seen a significant drop in summer school sign-ups for students learning English. “They're really worried about enrollment for the fall,” said Viridiana Carrizales, chief executive officer of ImmSchools, a nonprofit that advises school districts how to meet the needs of immigrant students and their families. Education finance experts predict budget problems for districts with large immigrant populations. “Every student that walks in the door gets a chunk of money with it, not just federal money, but state and local money, too,” said Marguerite Roza, a Georgetown University professor focusing on education finance. González, now back in Venezuela, says he wouldn't have accepted the money, because it would have meant registering with the U.S. government, which he no longer trusts. Associated Press writer Jocelyn Gecker contributed to this report. The Associated Press' education coverage receives financial support from multiple private foundations. Find AP's standards for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas at AP.org.

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, testifies before a Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs hearing to examine President Donald Trump's proposed budget request for fiscal year 2026 for the Department of Homeland Security on Capitol Hill, Tuesday, May 20, 2025, in Washington. ▶ Follow live updates on President Donald Trump and his administration She called habeas corpus “a constitutional right that the president has to be able to remove people from this country and suspend their rights.” Noem, testifying before a congressional committee Tuesday, gave that response when asked by Sen. Maggie Hassan to define the legal concept. “That's incorrect,” the New Hampshire Democrat swiftly interrupted Noem, defining the “legal principle that requires that the government provide a public reason for detaining and imprisoning people.” Hassan, a former attorney who practiced in Boston, went on to call habeas corpus “the foundational right that separates free societies like America from police states like North Korea.” The back and forth follows comments by White House deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller, who said earlier this month that President Donald Trump is looking for ways to expand his administration's legal power to deport migrants who are in the United States illegally. To achieve that, Miller said the administration is “actively looking at” suspending habeas corpus. AP Washington correspondent Sagar Meghani reports on Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem being called out for giving a differing definition of a constitutional principle. Habeas corpus was included in the Constitution as an import from English common law. The United States has suspended habeas corpus under four distinct circumstances during its history. Those usually involved authorization from Congress, something that would be nearly impossible today — even at Trump's urging — given the narrow Republican majorities in the House and Senate. President Abraham Lincoln suspended habeas corpus multiple times during the Civil War, beginning in 1861 to detain suspected spies and Confederate sympathizers. He ignored a ruling from Roger Taney, the Supreme Court ‘s chief justice. Congress then authorized suspending it in 1863, which allowed Lincoln to do so again. Also known as the Ku Klux Klan Act, it was meant to counter violence and intimidation by groups that opposed Reconstruction in the South. “So, I would say that's an option we're actively looking at,” Miller said. Hassan, who responded by saying that even Lincoln had obtained “retroactive approval” from Congress, then asked Noem if she would follow a court order overturning a theoretical suspension of habeas corpus, or if she would follow Trump's decision. Noem said she was “following all court orders ... as is the president,” prompting Hassan to say “that is obviously not true for anybody who reads the news.” Should the administration argue that the constitutional provision should be suspended due to what Trump officials have characterized as an “invasion” by migrants, Blume said he felt such a position would be “very unlikely to fly” with the U.S. Supreme Court. Miller suggested that the U.S. is facing an “invasion” of migrants. That term was used deliberately, though any effort to suspend habeas corpus would spark legal challenges questioning whether the country was in fact facing an invasion, let alone one that presented extraordinary threats to public safety. Federal judges have so far been skeptical of the Trump administration's past efforts to use extraordinary powers to make deportations easier, and that could make suspending habeas corpus even tougher. Trump argued in March that the United States was facing an “invasion” of Venezuelan gang members and evoked the Alien Enemies Act of 1798, a wartime authority he has tried to use to speed up mass deportations. “Congress passed a body of law known as the Immigration Nationality Act which stripped Article III courts, that's the judicial branch, of jurisdiction over immigration cases,” he said earlier this month. Technically not since Pearl Harbor, though habeas corpus has been at the center of some major legal challenges more recently than that. Republican President George W. Bush did not move to suspend habeas corpus after the Sept. 11 attacks, but his administration subsequently sent detainees to Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, drawing lawsuits from advocates who argued the administration was violating it and other legal constitutional protections. In 2008, the Supreme Court ruled that Guantanamo detainees had a constitutional right to habeas corpus, allowing them to challenge their detention before a judge. Associated Press writers Will Weissert and Mark Sherman contributed to this report.

The Trump administration significantly cut funding for flood prevention projects in blue states across the country while creating new water construction opportunities in red states, undoing a Biden-era budget proposal that would have allocated money more evenly, according to a data analysis prepared by Democratic staffers. Collectively, states with Democratic senators lost over $436 million in funding compared to what they would have received under the last proposed budget of President Joe Biden's administration, the data analysis shows. Republican-led states gained more than $257 million, the analysis shows. “President Trump is blatantly playing politics with critical Army Corps construction investments and punishing the American people for the way their states have voted,” House Appropriations Committee ranking member Rosa DeLauro and fellow Democratic Rep. Marcy Kaptur said in a joint statement to CNN. The Trump administration said money was allocated “based on need and urgency,” and the cuts did not universally hit Democrat-controlled states. Iowa and Louisiana, which both have Republican governors and US senators, for example, both saw their overall funding reduced. “The FY25 Civil Works plan will generate billions of dollars in economic activity by building American energy dominance and shipping capacity while investing in important conservation projects,” an Office of Management and Budget spokesperson told CNN. During a House Appropriations subcommittee hearing Wednesday, an Army Corps of Engineers official pledged nonpartisanship but could not give a concrete answer about why the administration cut funding from blue states and gave to red states under questioning from California Democratic Rep. Mike Levin. It was not her decision, Colosimo said, how the cuts were made. In this case it's a dicey situation,” Colosimo said. “I believe they had to make trade-offs that I was not privy to,” Colosimo responded, when pressed further on whether the cuts were partisan. In an earlier statement to CNN, an Army Corps spokesperson said the appropriations bill “allowed the administration to allocate all funds to Civil Works projects, programs and activities in accordance with its priorities.” Typically, Congress takes a presidential budget request and sets funding levels for water construction projects through full-year appropriations bills on a bipartisan basis. But because Congress passed a short-term government funding bill without clear directives for these projects in March, the Trump administration has full discretion to determine how the funding should be allocated. Biden had proposed relatively even funding levels for water construction projects across red and blue states in his budget request last year, with blue states getting about 53% of the funds available for construction projects and red states getting 47%. Both the House and Senate passed bills in 2024 that also would have provided relatively even funding for 2025. “It looks like a war on the West Coast primarily. Four flood prevention projects in California, which were set to gain a combined $126.4 million under the Biden budget proposal, are getting nothing under the Trump administration's plan. “Natural disasters like floods don't discriminate – they can and do hit red and blue states alike,” Democratic California Sen. Adam Schiff said in a statement to CNN. “The Trump administration is politicizing the Army Corps and its critical mission, and it needs to stop playing games with people's lives.” A $500 million dam project that provides flood control and water conservation in Washington also will get nothing under the Trump plan, and other state projects were given significantly less resources. “We are witnessing a historic and serious, politically motivated abuse of our taxpayer dollars by President Trump,” said Washington Sen. Patty Murray, the top Democrat on the Senate Appropriations Committee, adding, “this is some corrupt B-S from the President.” Texas got the biggest investment, with over $206 million awarded for two large waterway projects that were not part of the 2024 budget request. One will deepen the Sabine-Neches Waterway, which is crucial to military and energy transport. The other Republican-led states to gain tens of millions of new waterway construction funding include Oklahoma, South Carolina and Tennessee. Hill Republicans defended allocations of money to their states and districts. “Good for Republican states,” GOP Rep. Tony Gonzales of Texas, who sits on the House Appropriations Committee, told CNN. “There is your incentive to be a Republican state.” “Washington has picked winners and losers for a long time. It's not going to stop picking winners and losers. “I will say this, even when the Democrats were in control and I was here, I did very well in my district because the need for these projects are so great,” Van Drew said. GOP Rep. Randy Weber, whose coastal Texas district is home to several key ports, said the construction awarded to his state was based on the outsized need to maintain safe shipping practices. “We need the channel dug out,” Weber explained. GOP Rep. Dave Joyce of Ohio, who says he has had success getting various dredging projects funded, told CNN lawmakers must make the case to convince the administration to fund these types of projects. This story has been updated with additional developments.

We've become so accustomed to corruption in our politics that it probably sounds hyperbolic to contend that any one scandal is perhaps the biggest in American history. But the cover-up of former President Joe Biden's mental and physical deterioration is up there. If Biden had skipped the presidential debate with Donald Trump, as many Democrats, including Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-CA), urged him to do, White House lackeys and the obliging media would have continued concealing the president's deteriorating condition. They, no doubt, would have done it all the way to Election Day and into his second term, should Biden have won. We have seen no reckoning by reporters or Democrats who participated in the sham. Sure, Jake Tapper and Alex Thompson's new book, Original Sin: President Biden's Decline, Its Cover-Up, and His Disastrous Choice to Run Again, has sparked discussion about the former president's state. The problem is that the book is written by reporters as if they are merely spectators rather than participants. This week, Biden disclosed that he's suffering from aggressive Stage 4 prostate cancer. When House Minority Leader Hakeem Jefferies (D-NY) was asked if the former president should have been more open about his health problems, he responded, “There are Republicans who are peddling conspiracy theories and want us to look backward.” Well, virtually every alleged conspiracy theory regarding Biden over the past five years has turned out to be true. The claim that Biden's mental acuity was seriously impaired is now inarguable. So, it's also wholly reasonable, even necessary at this point, to figure out what happened. Did Biden or his handlers know the president had an aggressive form of cancer? Almost every oncologist interviewed on the topic says Biden's type of prostate cancer would have been around for several years, perhaps a decade. Biden “did not develop it in the last 100, 200 days. He probably had it at the start of his presidency in 2021. Yes, I don't think there's any disagreement about that,” Zeke Emanuel, an oncologist and Democrat who was Biden's White House COVID adviser, told MSNBC's Joe Scarborough, who not long ago was passionately assuring us that Biden was “as sharp as anybody” he'd spoken to in years. William Dahut, chief scientific officer for the American Cancer Society, said, “We definitely would anticipate that he has had prostate cancer for many, many years.” So, doctors examining an octogenarian U.S. president and missing an aggressive cancer for years is about as plausible as White House reporters failing to notice his deteriorating mental state. Biden, of course, never released full medical records, only summaries, despite headlines claiming otherwise (Trump has also only released summaries). Did doctors believe conducting a blood test for cancer wasn't necessary at Biden's age? Or did the president refuse to take one? You can call it a conspiracy theory, but considering what went on in the Biden White House, lying about cancer seems quite plausible. After all, there's a strong possibility that serious decisions regarding foreign and domestic policy were made by unelected officials and handlers rather than the president. Did Biden know what was happening when pushing a giant inflation-sparking reform bill that sank his presidency, or did he simply repeat the inanities written for him by his daft aides? Was it Biden who thought it was wise to use an autopen to issue unprecedented 10-year blanket retroactive pardons to his family and political allies, or was it his family and political allies who came up with the idea? Feel free to grouse all you like about the sycophancy surrounding Trump. Ideally, it is the journalist's job to figure out what happened and who was responsible. Let's just say every one of them participated to some degree. At best, the media disseminated exactly what government officials told them, or, at worst, they helped with the cover-up. There is overwhelming evidence of the latter, from the expediently discovered lifelong stuttering problem to the attacks on then-special counsel Robert Hur, who, unlike White House reporters, needed only a few hours with the president to understand that he was an “elderly man with a poor memory.” And there are a few heroes in Original Sin. Josh Shapiro (D-PA), who, according to Tapper and Thompson, attempted to tell Biden the truth about his presidential prospects after the disastrous first presidential debate. (So not exactly stepping out on a ledge.) First lady Jill Biden, we learn, whisked her husband away from the governor. You may recall Jill Biden sending out pictures of herself “prepping” for the G7 or sitting in a Cabinet meeting. “She's not running the US.” Are we still sure about that? When Woodrow Wilson, one of the worst presidents when he was conscious, had a debilitating stroke in 1919, his wife Edith famously took over the job for 15 months. It was a lot easier to get away with in those days. And though she had never been elected to office, Edith Wilson made a slew of major domestic and foreign policy decisions. It's an important question for the historical record. And it's important because we should know who was involved moving forward. Now, there's a tendency for people to excuse Biden's role in this because of his age and to blame others exclusively. It should not be forgotten, though, that the former president has always been reckless and unscrupulous. Indeed, any patriot, or even a marginally conscientious person, would never have run for the presidency in his condition.

President Donald Trump and top House Republicans are ramping up a sweeping investigation into former President Joe Biden's use of a mechanical signature device known as the autopen, raising questions about the legitimacy of executive actions taken during Biden's presidency — especially a wave of last-minute pardons signed with the device. The investigation, led by House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer (R-KY), gained traction after the Washington Examiner first reported on Friday about Comer's plans for the committee to investigate whether Biden personally authorized all of his clemency orders and executive actions or whether his aides, acting on his behalf, used the autopen without valid authority. A staffer familiar with Martin's plans told the Washington Examiner that Martin “looks forward to being in a position to facilitate congressional inquiries from inside the building and to cooperate with those inquiries, because they're all on the same team.” Comer has made the autopen investigation a new front in the broader Republican effort to investigate Biden's fitness and decision-making while in office. In a statement after his closed-door announcement of the investigation at the annual Republican National Lawyers Association event, Comer said his panel would commence its investigation into “the cover-up of President Biden's mental decline and use of autopen,” even teasing that he believes he knows which former Biden staffer operated the device. Although Comer has named three former aides to Biden, Kyle Brosnan, chief counsel for the Oversight Project, formerly part of the Heritage Foundation, said House Republicans should consider additional names to subpoena, including those who received the blanket pardons from Biden just before he left office. Republicans have pointed to Biden's final-week pardons and clemency grants as a focal point for legal scrutiny. Several of the pardons were signed between Jan. 16 and Jan. 19, just days before Trump's inauguration. According to public filings and internal memoranda obtained by congressional investigators, a significant number of clemency warrants were executed using batch-format autopen signatures, raising questions about whether Biden was directly involved in the process. Also included in the final clemency wave were Hunter Biden, the president's son, and James Biden, his brother, both of whom had been under various federal investigations. What procedures were in place to ensure it wasn't being misused?” Brosnan added that Biden's DOJ had previously argued in Jan. 6 cases that accepting a pardon implies guilt, questioning why the same standard of reasoning should not also apply to the former president's family and political allies. “It's a reasonable question for Congress to ask,” he said. What about James Biden, or the dozens of others granted immunity preemptively?” The Oversight Project has spent months reviewing Biden-era documents and clemency orders. Even more notable: The group found two distinct versions of Biden's signature, which they identified as “Autopen A” and “Autopen B,” Brosnan added. “Traditionally, pardons absolve past crimes — so if Biden's team is issuing pardons as blanket immunity, that's not just a break from history, that's a constitutional problem.” During his visit to Capitol Hill on Tuesday, Trump alleged that aides may have used the autopen to enact more lenient immigration policies without Biden's knowledge. Trump did not cite specific legislation or provide evidence for his suspicions but claimed that the device was operated by “radical Left lunatics” who were frustrated that Biden, not Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT), had won the Democratic nomination. However, many of the controversial actions that occurred behind closed doors, such as clemency grants, will be fair game. Trump himself has acknowledged limited ceremonial use of the autopen. Following his visit to the Capitol, Trump ramped up his interest even further in the retroactive investigation of Biden's autopen use, specifically as it relates to executive orders signed by Biden that he said led to “open borders.” “Biden was not for open borders… They stole the presidency,” Trump posted to Truth Social. Concerns over Biden's physical and mental state were intensified this week ahead of the release of Original Sin: President Biden's Decline, Its Cover-up, and His Disastrous Choice to Run Again, a book by CNN's Jake Tapper and Axios's Alex Thompson, which reports that top aides worked to conceal Biden's deteriorating cognitive abilities from the public. Biden announced Sunday that he has an aggressive form of prostate cancer, which drew bipartisan well wishes for his health but sparked larger questions about how such an advanced disease could have progressed without his world-class doctors detecting it. Martin, a former “Stop the Steal” organizer whose nomination to serve as U.S. attorney for the District of Columbia collapsed earlier this month, has vowed to scrutinize Biden's final actions in office. “I do think the Biden pardons need some scrutiny,” Martin said at a press conference on May 13. With the power to review and document clemency decisions, and now tasked with investigating alleged political weaponization, Martin's dual roles could accelerate GOP efforts to determine whether the autopen was used legally, or as Republicans now claim, as a tool for bypassing presidential accountability.

Scrutiny over former President Joe Biden's decline is already testing 2028 hopefuls, particularly those who were involved in his administration. During the 2024 campaign, Vice President Kamala Harris publicly supported Biden. In response to special counsel Robert Hur's report in February 2024 that described Biden as a “well-meaning, elderly man with a poor memory,” Harris called the characterization “gratuitous, inaccurate, and inappropriate,” defending Biden's capabilities. Even after Biden's difficult debate performance in June 2024, Harris acknowledged that it was “not his finest hour” but emphasized during remarks to a small group of donors in San Francisco that the outcome of the election should not be decided by a single moment. Following Biden's withdrawal from the race and subsequent endorsement of Harris, she continued to face questions about his day-to-day performance. According to new reporting in Original Sin: President Biden's Decline, Its Cover-Up, and His Disastrous Choice to Run Again by Jake Tapper and Alex Thompson, a pivotal moment unfolded during a 9/11 commemoration in Pennsylvania when Biden briefly wore a “Trump 2024” hat after engaging with pro-Trump attendees. This incident raised serious doubts about Biden's judgment for Harris, leading her campaign to distance itself from joint public appearances with the president. Jon Reinish, a Democratic strategist based in New York, said he believes that 2028 hopefuls who served in the Biden administration believe they lacked the usual access to the president due to an unusual, deliberate effort to keep him separated from his Cabinet. “It does seem that there was a concerted effort to keep them separated.” Speaking to reporters in Cedar Rapids, Buttigieg said that whenever he needed support from Biden, “I got it.” He noted that their closest collaboration came in the aftermath of last year's catastrophic collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore. When asked if the Democratic Party might have been better off had Biden chosen not to run for a second term, Buttigieg responded, “Maybe.” The anonymous national Democrat with experience running presidential campaigns believes it would be best to “start from scratch.” “There was a lot of gaslighting that went on during the 2024 cycle, and anyone who was potentially complicit in that is not going to be viewed kindly,” the person said. “It could definitely be a drag on certain candidates who were connected to the administration,” such as Harris and Buttigieg. Reinish argued that in a crowded 2028 field, candidates with less baggage will have an advantage, especially those who can avoid being dragged into questions about what they knew and when regarding Biden's condition. “It's going to be a very crowded field, and I think that the less baggage you have, the better off these candidates will be,” he said. This week alone, Sen. Chris Murphy (D-CT) acknowledged Biden's mental decline. Rep. Ro Khanna (D-CA) argued that Biden never should have sought a second term. Josh Shapiro (D-PA), once a vice presidential prospect for Harris, recently put distance between himself and Biden, maintaining he privately raised concerns with the former president at the moment. “I was very honest with him in a private setting about that.” However, a Democratic strategist with presidential campaign experience dismissed concerns that candidates closely associated with Biden would be harmed by revelations about his health.

The US has been talking with Hamas through an American intermediary in Doha this week in hopes of brokering an Israel-Gaza ceasefire agreement, according to a source familiar with the matter, as US officials say President Donald Trump is growing increasingly frustrated with Israel's handling of the conflict. Bahbah remotely exchanged messages with Hamas earlier this year in what became a critical backchannel to secure Israeli-American hostage Edan Alexander, the source said. Israel also began indirect talks with Hamas in the Qatari capital on Saturday, and working level dialogue continues. But bolstering the line between the Trump administration and Hamas could give US officials a clearer sense of Hamas's position, particularly as Trump's frustrations have mounted. They want their own Hamas channel, not through Qatar or Egypt. But some other regional experts are skeptical that this channel could lead to a breakthrough, given that Bahbah has limited experience and the Hamas decision makers are based in Gaza. But they argue it underscores that Trump is willing to work around Israel. “I am not sure if this is a sign of desperation or confusion,” said Aaron David Miller, a senior fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. “Maybe they see him as a window into Hamas thinking, it is certainly plausible.” And Netanyahu, they fear, is not ready to deal. “It's becoming more clear as talks continue that Bibi isn't quite there.” With Israel launching renewed strikes in Gaza, Vice President JD Vance opted not to visit the country over the weekend following his trip to Italy – a decision sources said was driven in part by logistics, and in part because his presence could have been viewed as a dramatic endorsement of the attacks. “It would be hard to view the US as truly independent if he had gone,” the official added, calling it “an overly generous signal of support for what Israel is doing.” Axios first reported on Trump's frustrations and the reasoning behind Vance's decision to skip a stop in Israel. The sources cautioned that Trump's frustrations do not amount to a change in posture in the United States' support of Israel, a country which the president continues to view as one of America's strongest allies. Nor is Trump privately pressuring Israel to halt its renewed military operation in the Gaza strip, said a source familiar with the matter. National Security Council Spokesman Max Bluestein argued in a statement to CNN that it “is absolutely false” that the administration is frustrated with Israel. “Israel has had no better friend than President Trump. We continue to work closely with our ally Israel to ensure that remaining hostages in Gaza are freed, that Iran never acquires a nuclear weapon, and that every opportunity for regional economic prosperity – especially the expansion of the Abraham Accords – is exploited. Trump has shown a willingness to approach US foreign policy moves without direct adherence to Israel in recent months, including the announcement of a ceasefire with the Houthis – that did not include strikes on Israel and continued Iran deal talks while Israel has pushed for strikes on Iran's nuclear program. “There is a litany of actions lately reflecting that Trump will do what he thinks is in the US interest and Israeli considerations aren't foremost in his mind. Keeping US interests front and center – especially efforts that Trump wants to pursue in the region more broadly – the administration remains focused on trying to secure a Gaza ceasefire. Bahbah has been coordinating his efforts with Steve Witkoff, the president's Middle East envoy who has also been directly in touch with Netanyahu and his aides. Israel “can achieve their objective of defeating Hamas while still allowing aid to enter in sufficient quantities,” Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Tuesday. “You have this acute, immediate challenge of food and aid not reaching people, and you have existing distribution systems that could get them there,” Rubio told the Senate Appropriations Committee. “Ultimately, I think we all see the same images,” he said. Instead of shutting down the channel between Hamas and Bahbah, they elevated it, signing off on in-person talks in Doha. “His release was widely viewed internally as a goodwill gesture,” a White House official told CNN, adding that they saw the move as a key opportunity to draw Israel and Hamas back to the negotiating table. But just days later, Israeli military forces moved into northern and southern Gaza as part of the “Gideon's Chariots” operation, which Israel warned would take place if Hamas did not agree to a deal to release hostages. The meeting, first reported by the Washington Post, has been cited as a key point of Trump's frustration with Waltz, who was later ousted from his position.