Contributing Writers

The partial government shutdown has Department of Homeland Security employees missing their paychecks even as the U.S. has engaged Iran with airstrikes that have brought the nation to the brink of war.On Saturday, the U.S. and Israel commenced targeting Iranian positions, including the palace of dictator Ayatollah Ali Hosseini Khamenei, who was later declared dead by Jerusalem officials. The strikes have prompted concerns of retaliation, possibly inside U.S. borders.

FIRST ON FOX: A major public policy nonprofit co-led by former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush praised President Donald Trump for ordering Saturday’s military strikes against Iran.United Against a Nuclear Iran (UANI) — was formed in 2008 by Ambassador Mark Wallace, who held a United Nations-centered post in Bush’s brother’s administration, and former George H.W. Bush diplomat Dennis Ross — to combat threats posed by the Islamic Republic.

Ben Rhodes, a leading figure within the Obama administration who pushed for the 2015 nuclear deal with Iran, was blasted on social media Saturday after he criticized U.S. military strikes on Iran. In the immediate aftermath of the joint attack by the U.S. and Israel, Rhodes was posting criticism of the administration on social media, saying Trump and Netanyahu “seem to be totally unconcerned about the human beings — on all sides — who will suffer.

Former President Joe Biden on Friday accused President Donald Trump of attempting to “erase the truth” and squandering the United States’ role as the leader of the world.”It’s not just my record Trump’s trying to erase,” Biden told South Carolina Democrats, while talking about the president’s efforts to get rid of the Affordable Care Act.

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) accused Everett, Washington, Mayor Cassie Franklin of escalating tensions with federal authorities after she issued a directive limiting immigration enforcement in the city.Franklin issued a mayoral directive this week establishing citywide protocols for staff, including law enforcement, that restrict federal immigration agents from entering non-public areas of city buildings without a judicial warrant.

President Donald Trump on Friday floated the idea of putting Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, on the Supreme Court, joking he is the only nominee who would receive “100% of the Democrat vote, 100% of the Republican vote” because lawmakers would want to “get him out” of Congress.Trump made the comments after Cruz and other lawmakers traveled with the president to make remarks on energy in Corpus Christi, Texas.

A Democratic Washington state lawmaker has apologized after admitting he showed up to a committee hearing after drinking alcohol and making somewhat slurred remarks during the proceeding.  Democratic state Rep. Joe Fitzgibbon, the state House majority leader, said it was a “serious mistake for many reasons” when he appeared at a House Appropriations Committee meeting Wednesday where he discussed the operating budget.

Secretary of War Pete Hegseth on Friday said he was ordering the “complete and immediate cancellation” of all Department of War attendants at universities like Princeton, Columbia, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), Brown and Yale, starting with the 2026-27 academic year.

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) restricted flights Thursday near Fort Hancock, Texas, after a U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) drone was reportedly shot down by a laser sytem operated by the Pentagon.While government agencies have not identified who the drone belonged to, top Democrats on the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee released a joint statement Thursday evening claiming the drone belonged to CBP.U.S. Reps.

A federal prosecutor acknowledged Thursday that the decision to charge Salvadoran migrant Kilmar Abrego Garcia two years after a routine traffic stop was “extraordinary,” while defending the human smuggling case as legally justified.

State of the Union speeches are all about aspirations. It doesn’t matter if you’re Reagan. Clinton, Obama, the Bush tandem or Trump. Aspirations are the quintessence of State of the Union speeches. What presidents aspire to do. And what a president wants Congress to do.All of this flows toward the ultimate of political aspirations: winning elections. Be it the next presidential election. Or, House and Senate seats during the midterms.

Rep. Janelle Bynum, D-Ore., called a challenge from President Donald Trump’s 2026 State of the Union address “racist” when he asked listeners to stand if they agreed the U.S. should prioritize the safety of its own citizens over illegal aliens.”If you agree with this statement, then stand up and show your support,” Trump said.”The first duty of the American government is to protect American citizens, not illegal aliens.

A Senate Republican warned Thursday that Ayatollah Ali Khamenei’s primary focus is shedding American blood as U.S.-Iran relations continue to simmer. “The ayatollah not only thinks that I’m going to hell because I don’t agree with his religion — he wants to kill me,” Sen. John Kennedy, R-La., said on the Senate floor Thursday.

The Department of Veterans Affairs announced that the backlog of VA disability compensation and pension benefit claims is “consistently” under 100,000 for the first time since 2020.The last time the backlog was this low was in May 2020, during President Donald Trump’s first term in the White House.

The Trump administration has moved to block the Venezuelan government from covering the legal expenses of former Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro as he fights federal drug trafficking and weapons charges in New York, according to a court filing from his attorney.Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, pleaded not guilty in federal court in New York on Jan. 5 to drug trafficking and weapons charges, days after American forces captured them at the presidential palace in Venezuela.

Prominent figures from across the media, business and political landscapes showed up as guests to President Donald Trump’s State of the Union address on Tuesday evening.Notable attendees included Erika Kirk, the widowed wife of conservative activist Charlie Kirk, David Ellison, the media mogul and CEO of Paramount, and Kevin O’Leary, the Shark Tank media personality and businessman.Several of the more notable attendees were highlighted by Trump during his address.

The crackdown on fraud in Minnesota will serve as a blueprint for a new Department of Justice office focused on protecting taxpayer funds from scams, President Donald Trump’s pick to serve as the nation’s “fraud czar” explained in his nomination hearing Wednesday. “The work in Minnesota has been pivotal. The work of the U.S.

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) on Tuesday touted “historic progress” under President Donald Trump and Secretary Kristi Noem, highlighting nearly 3 million illegal immigrants who have left the United States and what officials call “the most secure border in American history.

President Donald Trump used part of his State of the Union address on Tuesday to spotlight American military heroism, awarding U.S. Army Chief Warrant Officer Eric Slover and U.S. Navy Captain E. Royce Williams with the nation’s highest military honor. Recounting what he described as a high-risk January raid targeting Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro, Trump detailed Slover’s role in leading the mission. He said Slover was piloting a Chinook helicopter transporting U.S.

War Secretary Pete Hegseth moved to reignite his high-profile clash with Sen. Mark Kelly, D-Ariz., on Tuesday, appealing a federal court ruling that blocked the Pentagon from punishing the Democratic lawmaker over a video urging U.S. service members to defy “illegal orders.”The Department of Justice (DOJ) filed the appeal in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia on behalf of Hegseth, the Department of War, the U.S. Navy and Navy Secretary John Phelan.

President Donald Trump recounted the heroic rescue of an 11-year-old girl, Milly Cate McClymond, from the vicious floodwaters that tore through Texas in July 2025, reuniting the young girl with the Coast Guard hero who saved her during his primetime address to the nation.

Virginia Gov. Abigail Spanberger slammed President Donald Trump over his mass deportation operations in her official Democratic response to the State of the Union and repeated claims her party favors “affordability” even as the Old Dominion sees scores of new taxes.Spanberger, elected in November to succeed conservative Gov.

California Gov. Gavin Newsom announced the allocation of $35 million in state funding to support illegal immigrants as the Trump administration carries out its massive deportation agenda.Newsom’s office is releasing the money that the legislature set aside in the state budget to help philanthropic partners support immigrant families with food assistance and other resources, according to a press release.

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott announced he is surging state troopers to the border and across the state to enhance public safety operations following a spike in cartel violence after the killing of kingpin “El Mencho” over the weekend.On Monday, Abbott, a Republican, directed the Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS) to “enhance public safety and homeland security operations” across Texas.

Horror author Stephen King is facing backlash online Monday for a post tearing into President Donald Trump’s personal life, including a line claiming that Trump has no children.”Trump: has never had a child. Has been married 3 times. Ran several businesses into the ground. Never ran a home, couldn’t make a bed to save his a–. Calls people he works with dumb, losers, ect. Has never done sweat labor. Has never served on a local committee,” King said in a post to X.

A deadly confrontation at Mar-a-Lago, Florida, Sunday is the latest in a string of high-profile security incidents threatening President Donald Trump, as former Secret Service officials warn that low-tech, lone actors now pose one of the toughest challenges to presidential protection.”It should be quite clear to all of us by now that Trump is the most threatened president in the history of the U.S.