Contributing Writers

Virginia budget negotiators and Gov. Glenn Youngkin have reached a compromise on the next two-year state spending plan that would include 3% raises for state employees and teachers while not raising taxes and risking a potential veto by Youngkin.House Appropriations Chairman Luke Torian confirmed Thursday that the General Assembly’s budget leaders have reached a deal with Youngkin that they hope lawmakers will approve during a special session scheduled to begin on Monday.

Disney heiress, Abigail Disney, evoked the classic Disney movie, Old Yeller, in a recent play to call on voters to oppose the Republican Party after South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem’s recent book detailed her shooting her ranch dog.”My great-uncle Walt Disney knew the magic place animals have in the hearts of families everywhere,” Disney wrote in an email released by the Progressive Change Campaign Committee (PCCC) and obtained exclusively by the Guardian.

U.S. Border Patrol agents came under fire while working on the southern border from gunmen operating inside Mexico.U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) confirmed to Fox News that shots were fired from the Mexican side of the El Paso, Texas sector on Wednesday afternoon.The CBP said that agents were involved in a “use of force incident while responding to reports of shots fired near the border in the Ysleta Station area of responsibility in Texas.

FIRST ON FOX: The University of California, Berkeley canceled a fall debate between two California senate candidates in preparation for continued turmoil from continued campus protests.In email correspondence obtained by Fox News Digital, a debate, tentatively scheduled for early fall on the California campus between Democratic Rep. Adam Schiff and Republican Steve Garvey, was canceled after the school determined that they “did not have the capacity to ensure a safe and civil event.

Maryland Gov. Wes Moore signed two measures into law on Thursday that are aimed at better protecting personal data online from Big Tech, including a bill making Maryland the second state to try to create strong limits on information collected on children.The measure, known as the Maryland Kids Code, seeks to limit data that could be collected from children online and protect them from being flooded with harmful material they were not trying to find.

The Senate passed a five-year reauthorization of the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) on Thursday, putting pressure on the House to also pass the measure before the Friday at midnight deadline. The Securing Growth and Robust Leadership in American Aviation Act passed the upper chamber by a vote of 88 to 4, despite pushback from Virginia and Maryland lawmakers on additional flights added to Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y.

The state of Iowa’s attempts to crack down hard on illegal immigration is being challenged in court.A newly passed law making it a crime for an illegal immigrant to enter or re-enter the Hawkeye State if he or she has previously been deported or denied admission to the U.S., is being disputed as unconstitutional by civil rights and immigration groups.

FreedomWorks, the once influential conservative group that helped spur the tea party movement, is reportedly shutting its doors and blaming the influence of Donald Trump for its demise.FreedomWorks President Adam Brandon told Politico in an exclusive interview published Wednesday that the group has dissolved, “effective immediately.” Wednesday marked the last day for the organization’s roughly two dozen staff members.

Homeless people who camp on public property in Portland, Oregon, and reject offers of shelter could be fined up to $100 or sentenced to up to seven days in jail under new rules approved unanimously by the City Council on Wednesday.When shelter is not available, the same penalties apply for blocking sidewalks, using gas heaters or starting fires, or having belongings more than 2 feet (0.6 meters) outside of tents.

Wisconsin Democrats plan to spend $7 million on television ads in five state Senate races they believe are key to regaining control of the chamber.The State Senate Democratic Committee said Wednesday that the buy will target races in Milwaukee’s northern suburbs, the rural areas north of Madison, the Fox Cities, Green Bay and La Crosse.Republicans currently hold a 22-10 supermajority in the 33-seat Senate, but Democrats hope new district boundaries Gov.

New Mexico’s top prosecutor announced charges Wednesday against three men who are accused of using Meta’s social media platforms to target and solicit sex with underage children.The arrests are the result of a monthslong undercover operation in which the suspects connected with decoy accounts that were set up by the state Department of Justice.

Pete McCloskey — a pro-environment, anti-war California Republican who co-wrote the Endangered Species Act and co-founded Earth Day — has died. He was 96.A fourth-generation Republican “in the mold of Teddy Roosevelt,” he often said, McCloskey represented the 12th Congressional District for 15 years, running for president against the incumbent Richard Nixon in 1972.

Legislation to expand Florida’s “Safe Haven” policy is now awaiting Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis’ signature after passing through the state legislature.The existing “Safe Haven” law made it legal to surrender unwanted infants, as long as they are given up unharmed to certain drop-off locations, including hospitals and fire stations.The expanded bill would give women 30 days to drop off the newborn, up from the current seven-day time limit.

“Squad” member Rep. Rashida Tlaib, D-Mich., called for the arrest of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and other senior officials in Israel for what she called violations of the Genocide Convention under international law.In a press release on Tuesday, Tlaib called out the government of Israel for its ground invasion of Rafah, linking the U.S. to the attack because of funding it provided.

Washington, D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser and police chief Pamela Smith will testify before the House Oversight Committee Wednesday to discuss ongoing anti-Israel protests and an encampment on the campus of George Washington University (GWU).The mayor’s office confirmed to Fox News Digital Tuesday that the mayor and the police chief will testify at the hearing. The confirmation comes after Rep. James Comer, R-Ky.

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott opposed a proposal that could shift members of the Air National Guard to roles in the Space Force without the consent of their respective governors.In a letter to President Biden, Abbott, who has clashed with the commander in chief on a number of matters, said the proposal is an “intolerable threat” to the National Guard.

Gov. Brian Kemp signed legislation Tuesday that makes additional changes to Georgia’s election laws ahead of the 2024 presidential contest in the battleground state, including defining probable causes for removing voters from the rolls when their eligibility is challenged.Republican activists — fueled by debunked theories of a stolen election — have challenged more than 100,000 voters in the state in recent years.

For Louisiana Rep. Delisha Boyd, the uphill battle she faces to exempt pregnancies that are the result of rape and incest from Louisiana’s strict abortion ban is not just morally right — it’s also personal.

Kentucky Republican Secretary of State Michael Adams, who worked to expand early voting in the Bluegrass State and has spoken out against election denialism in his own party, has been chosen to receive the John F. Kennedy Profile in Courage Award this year.In its announcement Monday, the JFK Library Foundation said Adams was recognized “for expanding voting rights and standing up for free and fair elections despite party opposition and death threats from election deniers.

Rep. Jared Moskowitz, D-Fla., found himself in hot water Monday after he was accused of perpetuating a racist stereotype about Asians in a now-deleted post on X.The post had been in response to a CBS Mornings’ interview with South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem, discussing her request to remove an excerpt from her forthcoming book, “No Going Back,” about supposedly meeting North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.

Minnesota lawmakers launched their debate Monday on far-reaching legislation to amend the constitution to protect abortion and LGBTQ rights.The Minnesota Equal Rights Amendment would be among the nation’s most expansive protections of abortion and LGBTQ rights if it is approved by lawmakers this session and then by voters on the 2026 ballot.MINNESOTA LAWMAKERS INITIATE DEBATE ON PHYSICIAN-ASSISTED SUICIDE BILLOver 100 people crammed into the legislative hearing room Monday.

Supporters of a “top two” primary election system in South Dakota that would replace the current partisan process with one open to all voters have submitted thousands more petition signatures than required to bring a vote this fall on their ballot initiative.On Monday, South Dakota Open Primaries sponsors said they submitted petitions with 47,000 signatures to Secretary of State Monae Johnson’s office.

A coalition of anti-Israel agitators seeking to protest outside the Democratic National Convention in August are continuing to put pressure on the City of Chicago, alleging their First Amendment rights are being violated, while some Democrats fear unrest could disrupt the annual convention.

FIRST ON FOX: The conservative, “woke-free” beer company that launched last year hoping to rival Bud Light will host an event Tuesday at a University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill fraternity house to celebrate the actions of the students who defended the American flag from anti-Israel protesters on campus earlier this week.