Trump legal team blasts ‘unconstitutional’ attempts to force property sale as deadline for $464M fine nears


Lawyers for former President Trump are blasting New York Attorney General Letitia James’ “unconstitutional” attempts to block the GOP presumptive nominee’s appeal and force a property sale as the deadline for him to post hundreds of millions of dollars of bond in the case looms. 

Trump and his legal team have appealed and requested a stay on his $464 million civil fraud judgment. On Monday, his lawyers said that “ongoing diligent efforts have proven that a bond in the judgment’s full amount is a ‘practical impossibility,’” amid attempts to approach about 30 surety companies. 

NY AG ASKS COURT TO IGNORE TRUMP CLAIM THAT POSTING $464M BOND IS ‘PRACTICAL IMPOSSIBILITY’

The lawyers said the “enormous magnitude” of the bond requirement, which effectively requires cash reserves approaching $1 billion, is “unprecedented for a private company.” 

James has pushed back, calling Trump’s request for a stay “extraordinary” and “improper.” James has said that Trump should be able to secure the entire value via multiple sureties or offer his real estate holdings as collateral.

But Trump attorney Clifford S. Robert on Thursday sent a letter to the Appellate Division of New York’s Supreme Court, arguing James’ efforts are “unconstitutional.” 

“It would be completely illogical — and the definition of an unconstitutional Excessive Fine and a Taking — to require Defendants to sell properties at all, and especially in a ‘fire sale,’ in order to be able to appeal the lawless Supreme Court judgment, as that would cause harm that cannot be repaired once the Defendants do win, as is overwhelmingly likely, on appeal,” Robert wrote. 

Robert also argued that by James demanding Trump post bond in the full amount in order to appeal, she and the Supreme Court of New York have “sought to impose a patently unreasonable, unjust, and unconstitutional (under both the Federal and New York State Constitutions) bond condition, which would cause irreparable harm and foreclose any review of Supreme Court’s deeply flawed decision in this case.” 

“In short, while attempting to cynically and wrongfully tar the Defendants’ witnesses as ‘unreliable,’ the Attorney General does not actually dispute the truth of a single one of their specific claims,” Robert wrote. “This is unsurprising because these claims are undeniable to those with knowledge of real estate and sureties.” 

Trump plans to ‘exhaust all options’ for bond

TRUMP UNABLE TO GET $464M APPEAL BOND TO STOP COLLECTION, ATTORNEYS SAY: ‘PRACTICAL IMPOSSIBILITY’

Fox News Digital has learned that Trump and his legal team currently have “all options on the table.” 

A source familiar told Fox News Digital that his team plans “to exhaust all options.” 

Donald Trump and Letitia James

New York Attorney General said she is “prepared” to ask the judge to seize former President Donald Trump’s assets if he cannot pay the $354 million judgment handed down in his civil fraud case.  (ABC News/Screenshot/Brendan McDermid-Pool/Getty Images)

“The Trump team is continuing to look at every conceivable option,” the source said, adding that they are “hoping for the best, but preparing for the worst.” 

NEW YORK ATTORNEY GENERAL TAUNTS TRUMP ABOUT INTEREST HE OWES ON CIVIL FRAUD JUDGMENT

If the Trump team’s appeal is granted, the judgment bond could be slashed considerably. It is unclear whether the court will rule on his appeal. 

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Wealthy Nikki Haley donors launch effort to boost Biden over Trump: report


Wealthy donors to former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley’s now-suspended presidential campaign are flocking to support President Biden’s re-election bid.

Businessman and media mogul Harry Sloan — a prominent former backer of Haley’s campaign — said during a recent interview with CNBC that he’d undertaken an effort to convince his wealthy friends and Republican business leaders to get behind Biden.

“People I know who are generally business Republicans, they’re going to hear from me,” Sloan told the outlet, admitting he had already reached out to a number of people, and planned to eventually host a fundraiser for Biden as the campaign progresses.

DEMS FLIP SCRIPT ON GOP CRIME AGENDA, TARGETING RNC CONVENTION PLANS WITH SURPRISING NAME

Media executive Harry Sloan

Harry Sloan, co-founder of Global Eagle Acquisition Corp., appears at the annual Milken Institute Global Conference in Beverly Hills, California, on April 29, 2014.

One source familiar with the effort told the outlet that at least half a dozen former Haley donors had already signed on to lend the Biden campaign a hand.

According to the report, Biden campaign co-chair Jeffrey Katzenberg, along with campaign finance chair Rufus Gifford, initiated the effort as part of a larger goal of attracting former Haley supporters disenchanted with the idea of former President Donald Trump as the Republican nominee for president for a third time.

When asked about the effort, Trump campaign spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt told Fox News Digital, “Americans from all backgrounds, including Republicans, Independents and disillusioned Democrats, are coalescing around President Trump and joining the greatest political movement in history so we can end Joe Biden’s chaos and make America strong, safe, and successful again.”

Fox News Digital has also reached out to Sloan for comment.

STATE’S LARGEST POLICE UNION MAKES MAJOR ENDORSEMENT IN 2024 PRESIDENTIAL RACE

Presidential candidates

From left: President Biden, former President Donald Trump and former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley. (Getty Images)

In a January post on Truth Social one day after his victory over Haley in the New Hampshire primary, Trump issued a stark threat to those continuing to support the former South Carolina governor.

“Anybody that makes a ‘Contribution’ to Birdbrain, from this moment forth, will be permanently barred from the MAGA camp. We don’t want them, and will not accept them, because we Put America First, and ALWAYS WILL!” Trump wrote.

Haley ultimately dropped out of the race following an abysmal Super Tuesday performance, but notably did not endorse the former president.

GOP SENATOR RIPS BIDEN’S ‘GUN-GRABBING’ DOJ FOR TAKING NEARLY 2 YEARS TO ANSWER FOR CONTROVERSIAL POLICY

Former US President and Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump speaks during a Buckeye Values PAC Rally in Vandalia, Ohio, on March 16, 2024.

Former President Donald Trump speaks during a Buckeye Values PAC Rally in Vandalia, Ohio, on Saturday. (Kamil Krzaczynski/AFP via Getty Images)

Although Trump currently trails Biden in campaign cash, he is aiming to even the playing field with the formation of his own joint fundraising committee with the Republican National Committee (RNC), something the president’s campaign has already enjoyed alongside the Democratic National Committee (DNC).

Trump is also looking to get a boost from his own wealthy supporters, including at a fundraising event in Palm Beach, Florida, next month hosted by billionaire investor and hedge fund founder John Paulson.

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According to the latest filings this week with the Federal Election Commission, Biden’s re-election campaign outraised the Trump campaign by a two-to-one margin last month and enjoyed a $71 million to $34 million cash-on-hand advantage as of the end of February.

Meanwhile, the DNC outraised the RNC by nearly $6 million last month. It also reported $26.5 million in its coffers at the end of February, compared to $11.3 million cash-on-hand for the RNC.

Fox News’ Paul Steinhauser contributed to this report.

Get the latest updates from the 2024 campaign trail, exclusive interviews and more at our Fox News Digital election hub.



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Illegal immigrants storm US border in El Paso, knock over guards amid standoff over Texas law


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A large group of illegal immigrants burst through razor wire and surged towards the border wall in El Paso, Texas, on Thursday in a chaotic scene during which guards were knocked over — just as the state’s anti-illegal immigration law is being held up in the courts.

Video taken by the New York Post showed dozens of adult males ripping away razor wire that was set up by the state and charging past Texas National Guardsmen. They then ran towards a section of border wall where they were blocked from entering further. 

A Texas law enforcement source told Fox News the group consisted of over 300 illegal immigrants, and about 100 adult males rushed the soldiers, and one has been arrested so far for assaulting a soldier. The melee began when one family unit was allowed through. The source said that more arrests are likely coming for destruction of property and assault. 

“Get the f— back!” one soldier can be heard in the Post’s video yelling at the illegal immigrants from the other side of the fence.

MIDWEST STATE ON VERGE OF DEFYING BIDEN WITH TEXAS-STYLE BILL TO COMBAT ILLEGAL IMMIGRATION

Republican Texas Gov. Greg Abbott

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott has fought with the Biden administration over border security. (Brandon Bell/Getty Images)

Brandon Judd, president of the National Border Patrol Council, told Fox News Digital that all migrants are now apprehended, and agents were going through video to see who assaulted the soldiers. They will be processed for deportation, but maintain the ability to claim asylum. Texas also has the ability to charge the migrants who assaulted them.

But it marks the latest flashpoint at the border in a three-year crisis that has seen record numbers of migrants hit the border, with 2.4 million in FY 23 alone. Numbers have dropped since the high of 302,000 seen in December, but there are concerns those numbers could again swell as the summer months approach.

Border in El Paso, Texas

In an aerial view, immigrants pass through coils of razor wire while crossing the U.S.-Mexico border in El Paso, Texas, on March 13. (John Moore/Getty Images)

Texas has implemented a number of border security measures to tackle the flow of illegal immigration, most of which have faced opposition from the Biden administration. The razor wire has been cut by federal officials, leading to a lawsuit. Meanwhile, the administration sued over Texas’ deployment of buoys into the Rio Grande.

This week, the Supreme Court briefly allowed Texas’ anti-illegal immigration law, which allows police to arrest illegal immigrants, to go into effect despite a legal challenge from the Biden administration. The law was kicked back down to the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals, which then blocked it again hours later as arguments proceed on the merits.

The Biden administration has claimed that the law encroaches upon federal responsibility over immigration enforcement. 

TEXAS CAN KEEP ARRESTING ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS WHILE BIDEN CHALLENGE PROCEEDS, ABBOTT SAYS

“S.B. 4 will not only make communities in Texas less safe, it will also burden law enforcement, and sow chaos and confusion at our southern border. S.B. 4 is just another example of Republican officials politicizing the border while blocking real solutions, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said in a statement this week.

Texas has argued that it has had to act because the administration is not doing its job to secure the border and deport those in the country illegally.

MEXICO SLAMS TEXAS OVER IMMIGRATION LAW, WON’T ACCEPT REPATRIATIONS FROM STATE AFTER SCOTUS RULING

“Number one, we are facing such dangerous situations. And number two, Joe Biden, through his actions, is violating the laws of the United States of America,” Texas Gov. Greg Abbott said Wednesday.

Texas has said it still has the authority to stop those coming across illegally by using trespass laws. Gov. Abbott’s spokesman, Andrew Mahaleris, told Fox News Digital, “The surge today in El Paso is the direct result of the unsustainable chaos President Biden has unleashed on the border. The Texas Military Department and the Texas Department of Public Safety quickly gained control of the situation and are working to repair the damage. These illegal immigrants committed crimes in Texas, and the Department of Public Safety is under instruction to arrest every illegal immigrant involved for committing criminal trespass and destruction of property.”

Meanwhile, the chaotic scenes at the border will fuel the ongoing debate in Washington, D.C., over how to handle the crisis. The Biden administration has said it needs more funding, resources and reforms to overhaul a “broken” system and has called for passage of a bipartisan Senate package.

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Republicans have said no such legislation is needed and that the administration can restore calm by re-enacting Trump-era policies like “Remain-in-Mexico” and wall construction.

“Just in case people are unsure, this is what an invasion looks like,” Sen. Tim Scott, R-S.C., said Thursday.



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Quoting Dr. Seuss, ‘Just go, Go, GO!’ federal judge dismisses Blagojevich political comeback suit


SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (AP) — Rod Blagojevich, the ex-governor and ex-con who often dusted off ancient and sometimes puzzling quotations to emphasize his positions, found himself at the other end Thursday when a federal judge dismissed his lawsuit attempting to return to public life by quoting Dr. Seuss: “Just go.”

The Chicago Democrat, impeached and removed from office by the General Assembly in 2009, then sentenced to federal prison for political crimes, filed suit in federal court to reverse a ban accompanying his impeachment that prohibits his return to public office.

BLAGO HOLDS COURT: EX-GOV GIVES DRAMATIC ACCOUNT OF LIFE BEHIND BARS, DECLARES HE’S A ‘TRUMP-O-CRAT’

On Thursday, in a colorful, 10-page smackdown dismissing the action from Chicago, U.S. District Court Judge Steven Seeger debunked the former governor’s claims issue by issue, then relied on Dr. Seuss’ 1972 book, “Marvin K. Mooney Will You Please Go Now!” to suggest what Blagojevich should do:

“The time has come. The time has come. The time is now. Just Go. Go. GO! I don’t care how. You can go by foot. You can go by cow. Marvin K. Mooney, will you please go now!”

Mark Vargas, a Blagojevich spokesperson, said the ruling was no surprise.

Rod Blagojevich

Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich speaks with news reporters Tuesday, Oct. 24, 2006, in Springfield, Ill. Blagojevich, the ex-governor and ex-con who often pulled great and sometimes puzzling quotations out of thin air to emphasize his positions, found himself at the other end Thursday, March 212, 2024, when a federal judge dismissed his lawsuit attempting to return to public life by quoting Dr. Seuss: “Just go.” (AP Photo/Seth Perlman)

“The people should be able to decide who they want or don’t want to represent them,” Vargas wrote on X, formerly Twitter, “not federal judges or establishment politicians who are afraid of governors who fight for the people.”

He did not say whether Blagojevich, 67, would take further action.

As Illinois governor from 2003 to 2009, Blagojevich was fond of quoting Greek philosophers, Roman statesmen and the Bible (particularly John 8:32: “The truth will set you free.”)

He was impeached and removed from office in 2009, then convicted of 17 counts of corruption in 2011, including attempting to sell or trade for political gain the U.S. Senate seat vacated by Barack Obama upon his election as president. He served eight years behind bars of a 14-year sentence before his sentence was commuted by then-President Donald Trump in 2020. The Illinois Supreme Court also revoked his law license.

Blagojevich, who routinely joked while governor that he had received a “C” in constitutional law at Pepperdine University Law School, filed the lawsuit in 2021, representing himself. Accompanied by a gaggle of news reporters, cameras and microphones outside the Dirksen Federal Building in Chicago, the always impeccably coifed Blagojevich declared, “I’m back.”

The federal civil rights complaint sought to reverse the state Senate’s impeachment ban on his holding office again, arguing the ban violates the Constitution’s Sixth and Fourteenth Amendments and the First Amendment’s protection of the people’s fundamental right to vote. “And by that,” Seeger explained, “Blagojevich apparently means the fundamental right to vote for him.”

“The complaint is riddled with problems,” Seeger began. “If the problems were fish in a barrel, the complaint contains an entire school of tuna. It is a target-rich environment. The complaint is an Issue-Spotting Wonderland.”

First off, Seeger said that civil rights complaints must be filed against a person, which neither the state of Illinois nor its General Assembly is.

Next, Seeger discussed at length why a federal court cannot intervene in a legislative impeachment proceeding because of the Constitution’s separation-of-powers provision. The judge then pointed out that even if the impeachment ban was reversed, Illinois state law still prevents a convicted felon from holding “an office of honor, trust or profit.”

The Sixth Amendment, Seeger wrote, applies to criminal trials, not civil trials: impeachment “took away his job, not his liberty,” he said.

Further, Blagojevich can’t sue to protect the rights of voters. They need to speak for themselves, Seeger said, and “no voter is here hoping to cast a vote for Blagojevich.”

Finally, the judge said, Blagojevich might not even have a reason to proceed because when he filed the lawsuit, he said he might want to run again, but hadn’t decided. Seeger noted that a legal claim is not “ripe” if it depends on “contingent future events that may not occur.”

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“The case started with a megaphone, but it ends with a whimper,” Seeger concluded. “Sometimes cases in the federal courthouse attract publicity. But the courthouse is no place for a publicity stunt.

“He wants back. But he’s already gone. Case dismissed.”



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NY court orders Trump Organization finances be monitored for three years


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The judge in former President Trump’s New York civil fraud case has ordered the court to monitor the Trump Organization’s finances for three years.

Judge Arthur Engoron, who ruled on the civil fraud case that ultimately slapped Trump with his $464 million judgment, made the order to monitor the Trump Organization on Thursday.

“Based on the Court’s findings in its February 16th Order, the Court ordered the continued monitoring of Defendants’ financial and accounting practices and disclosures, including and enhanced role for the Monitor, for a period of no less than three years, as well as the appointment of an Independent Director of Compliance,” Engoron wrote in the Thursday order.

NY AG ASKS COURT TO IGNORE TRUMP CLAIM THAT POSTING $464M BOND IS ‘PRACTICAL IMPOSSIBILITY’

New York Judge Arthur Engoran

Justice Arthur Engoron presides over the civil fraud trial of the Trump Organization at the New York State Supreme Court in New York City. (Erin Schaff/Pool/AFP via Getty Images)

Retired federal Judge Barbara Jones, who has monitored the Trump Organization’s finances as part of a preliminary injunction in 2022, will continue in her role for the next three years.

NEW YORK ATTORNEY GENERAL TAUNTS TRUMP ABOUT INTEREST HE OWES ON CIVIL FRAUD JUDGMENT

The monitor will allow reviews of the organization’s internal accounting records, recordkeeping, financial reporting policies and more.

The Trump Organization will be required to provide the monitor with monthly bank statements, notify the monitor at least five business days before major cash or asset transfers, and inform the monitor about debt restructuring or payment.

READ THE FILING BELOW. APP USERS: CLICK HERE

Most relevant to the case, the organization must also disclose efforts to obtain surety bonds.

Quarterly reports on these and other financial data points will be prepared for the court.

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Trump court

Former President Trump leaves the courtroom after testifying at his civil fraud trial at New York State Supreme Court in New York City. (Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images)

“Defendants shall not evade the terms of this Monitorship Order by transferring assets, reincorporating existing business entities in other forms or jurisdictions, modifying entity ownership, or any other form of restructuring or change in corporate form,” the order from Engoron states.

Jones will also be able to advise the court on orders to change operations within the Trump Organization.



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Hillary Clinton wades into crucial battleground Senate race that could determine balance of power


Former Secretary of State and two-time failed Democrat presidential candidate Hillary Clinton on Thursday waded into what is expected to be one of the most closely watched Senate races this year that could determine the balance of power in Congress.

In an early morning post on X, Clinton offered her endorsement to Arizona Rep. Ruben Gallego, a Phoenix-area congressman and the likely Democrat nominee in the race, praising him as a “fighter” who would defend abortion “rights.”

Gallego welcomed the endorsement, saying in a statement he was “proud” to have Clinton’s support.

WEALTHY NIKKI HALEY DONORS LAUNCH EFFORT TO BOOST BIDEN OVER TRUMP: REPORT

Clinton, Arizona candidates

Democrat Arizona Rep. Ruben Gallego, former Secretary of State and Democrat presidential candidate Hillary Clinton, and Republican Arizona Senate candidate Kari Lake (Getty Images)

“She’s long been a leading advocate for social justice, an unyielding fighter for women’s rights, and a dedicated public servant who has spent decades working to better our nation. Now more than ever, we need to stand together in the face of the extremism that’s threatening Arizona and work to protect abortion rights, defend our democracy, and build a better future for families in every corner of our state,” Gallego said.

Gallego’s likely opponent, former local news anchor and conservative firebrand Kari Lake, teased the endorsement in her own X post.

“[Hillary Clinton] is all-in on [Ruben Gallego]. I’m not surprised. They have a lot in common. Ruben & Hillary have spent their careers defrauding hard-working Americans & enriching themselves at YOUR expense. I’m running to put you & your family first,” she wrote.

DEMS FLIP SCRIPT ON GOP CRIME AGENDA, TARGETING RNC CONVENTION PLANS WITH SURPRISING NAME

Gallego welcomed a second endorsement on Thursday from progressive veterans group Common Defense, which praised his support for President Biden’s signature Inflation Reduction Act as well as his support for abortion.

Democrats currently hold a narrow 51-49 majority in the Senate, with the backing of independent Sens. Bernie Sanders of Vermont, Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona and Angus King of Maine. Sinema announced this month that she will not seek reelection.

Recent polls of Arizona voters have shown a tight hypothetical matchup between Gallego and Lake, while former President Trump holds a slight advantage over President Biden, a factor that could have a major impact on the Senate race.

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Arizona’s Senate race is one of many that Republicans see as an opportunity to flip in their favor, including West Virginia, Maryland, Montana, Nevada, Michigan, Ohio, Wisconsin and Pennsylvania. A win in just two of those would give Republicans a Senate majority, assuming they hold onto their other seats not considered as competitive.

Get the latest updates from the 2024 campaign trail, exclusive interviews and more at our Fox News Digital election hub.



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No Labels reaches out to a former GOP presidential candidate regarding their pending third-party ticket


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As they vet candidates for a potential third-party presidential ticket, No Labels is reaching out to former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie.

A source in the two-time Republican presidential candidate’s political orbit told Fox News on Thursday that the centrist group has made outreach to Christie in recent days.

Christie, who ended his 2024 GOP nomination campaign in mid-January, appeared to leave the door open to a possible third party run in an interview with former Obama adviser David Axelrod that was released earlier in the day. 

Asked on Axelrod’s popular podcast if he’s considering a third-party presidential bid, Christie said “I think the way I would look at it is, I will do whatever I can to try to make sure that the country doesn’t go through what I think will be the misery of a second Trump term.”

NO LABELS TAKES ANOTHER STEP TOWARDS LAUNCHING A THIRD-PARTY PRESIDENTIAL TICKET

Chris Christie

Former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, a 2024 Republican presidential candidate, headlines a town hall in Londonderry, New Hampshire on Dec. 13, 2023.  (Fox News – Paul Steinhauser)

Christie, a one-time Donald Trump supporter, ally, and adviser, broke with him over the then-president’s attempts to overturn his 2020 election loss to President Biden. Christie became an extremely vocal GOP critic of the former president and made his opposition to Trump a centerpiece of his 2024 White House run.

Christie emphasized that “I wouldn’t preclude anything at this point.”

But he also added, “I would just say that there are a number of hurdles to get over before I would actually consider running as a third-party.”

TRAILING BIDEN IN FUNDRAISING FIGHT, TRUMP AIMS TO LEVEL THE PLAYING FIELD

Asked in an interview last summer soon after he launched his second presidential campaign if he’d consider joining a possible No Labels ticket, Christie shot down the idea, saying, “I think it’s a fool’s errand.”

“I’m not in this for showtime. I’m not in this for making a point. I’m in this to get elected President of the United States, and there are only two people who will get elected President of the United States: the Republican nominee for president and the Democratic nominee for president,” Christie said at the time in an interview with George Stephanopoulos on ABC’s “This Week.” 

But former Democratic Sen. Joe Lieberman of Connecticut, the party’s 2000 vice presidential nominee who later became an independent and was a No Labels founding co-chair, said in a radio interview in January after Christie ended his White House bid that he “could be a very strong candidate” on the group’s proposed unity ticket.”

“I’d like to reach out to him and see if he, Gov. Christie, is at all interested in being on a bipartisan No Labels Unity ticket this year. He could be a very strong candidate,” Lieberman added in a Sirius XM conversation with Michael Smerconish.

Christie suspends 2024 campaign

Republican presidential candidate Chris Christie announces he is dropping out of the race during a town hall campaign event Wednesday, Jan. 10, 2024, in Windham, N.H. (AP Photo/Robert F. Bukaty)

No Labels last week took another step toward forming a bipartisan presidential ticket in November’s general election, as it announced the formation of a committee to vet candidates for the potential bipartisan ticket. The announcement of the committee came a week after roughly 800 No Labels delegates who took part in a virtual meeting voted to give a thumbs up to fielding a presidential ticket.

For over a year, No Labels has mulled a third-party ticket, as it pointed to poll after poll suggesting that many Americans were anything but enthused about a 2024 election rematch between President Biden and former President Donald Trump.

REMATCH: TRUMP, BIDEN, CLINCH GOP AND DEMOCRATIC PRESIDENTIAL NOMINATIONS

And No Labels had long said that it would decide whether to launch a presidential ticket following Super Tuesday, when 16 states from coast to coast held nominating primaries and caucuses.

The latest move by No Labels came right after Biden and Trump clinched the Democratic and Republican presidential nominations, becoming the two major parties’ 2024 presumptive nominees.

No Labels holds a news conference in DC

No Labels leadership and guests from left, Pat McCrory, Co-Executive Director, Margaret White, Dan Webb, National Co-Chair, Dr. Benjamin F. Chavis and former Senator Joe Lieberman, speak about the 2024 election at National Press Club, in Washington, Thursday, Jan. 18, 2024.  (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana)

The moves by No Labels also came after former two-term Republican Gov. Larry Hogan of Maryland, a former leader of the group who was considered a potential contender for the “unity” ticket, recently took his name out of contention as he announced a run this year for an open Senate seat in his home state.

And moderate Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin of West Virginia, another former No Labels leader who is not seeking re-election this year and who flirted with a White House run, has also said he won’t launch a presidential bid.

There was also plenty of speculation that former U.N. ambassador and former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley, who was the final 2024 GOP presidential nomination rival to Trump before she ended her White House run earlier this month, would consider running on a No Labels ticket. No Labels had expressed interest in her earlier this year.

But Haley repeatedly nixed joining a No Labels ticket, most recently in an interview on “FOX and Friends” earlier this month.

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No Labels this month was holding conversations with former Republican Lt. Gov. Geoff Duncan of Georgia, a former health care executive and minor league baseball player who served three terms in the Georgia House of Representatives before winning election as lieutenant governor in 2018.

Duncan, another very vocal anti-Trump Republican, took his name out of contention earlier this week.

No Labels said last week that it is already on the ballot in 16 states and currently working in 17 other states to obtain access. 

There’s been a chorus of calls from Democrats warning that a No Labels ticket would pave a path to victory for Trump in November, but the group dismisses that criticism.

“That’s not our goal here,” Lieberman told Fox News Digital late last year. “We’re not about electing either President Trump or President Biden.”

Get the latest updates from the 2024 campaign trail, exclusive interviews and more at our Fox News Digital election hub.



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Energy agency announces $475M in funding for clean energy projects on mine land sites


FRANKFORT, Ky. (AP) — The Biden administration pumped more money into clean energy projects Thursday, announcing up to $475 million in federal funding for projects in five states — including the political battleground states of Pennsylvania, Arizona and Nevada.

The projects will accelerate clean energy development on current and former mine lands, the U.S. Department of Energy announced. The other states benefiting — Kentucky and West Virginia — are solidly Republican and have been hit hard by the downturn in the coal sector.

BIDEN ADMIN SET TO FINALIZE MAJOR GAS CAR CRACKDOWN OVER WARNINGS FROM AUTOMAKERS, ENERGY INDUSTRY

The funding comes from the $1 trillion bipartisan infrastructure law — one of President Joe Biden’s hallmark legislative victories. The projects in Kentucky, West Virginia and Pennsylvania advance efforts to transition away from coal to solar and hydropower.

The administration said the clean energy projects will strengthen the country’s energy security while helping ensure mining communities continue playing a role in the energy economy.

“Workers and communities that powered our country for the last 100 years deserve the chance to power us for the next 100 and beyond,” Deputy Energy Secretary David Turk said in a press call Wednesday.

Paul Jacob

Rye Development CEO Paul Jacob talks about his company’s plans to build a $1.3 billion coal-to-pumped storage hydropower facility as Gov. Andy Beshear looks on during a news conference, Thursday, March 21, 2024 in Frankfort, Ky. Jacob says the project will create about 1,500 construction jobs and 30 operations jobs once the facility is operational. (Tom Latek/Kentucky Today via AP)

Energy and climate policies have emerged as flash points in this year’s presidential race between Biden and Republican former President Donald Trump. Trump has indicated he’ll try to roll back Biden’s clean energy investments and expand drilling for oil and natural gas if he returns to office.

Biden’s administration said the latest round of funding reinforced his commitment to building an “inclusive and equitable clean energy future that creates healthier, more resilient communities.”

In Kentucky, a $1.3 billion pumped storage hydroelectric facility will be built on a former coal mine site, Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear said. The project has been approved for a federal grant totaling up to $81 million to assist with construction of the plant in Bell County in southeastern Kentucky, Beshear said.

“The mountains in this area provide the perfect landscape for moving water from one elevation to another, creating electricity when we need it,” Turk said.

Coal employment numbers in Kentucky have fallen sharply over the last decade as demand for coal has declined. Kentucky employed about 4,700 mine workers at the end of 2023, including about 2,700 in underground mines, compared to nearly 12,000 total miners in 2013, according to numbers provided by the state.

The Lewis Ridge Pumped Storage Project by Rye Development in Kentucky will create about 1,500 construction jobs to build what officials described as a first-of-its-kind coal-to-pumped storage hydropower facility, Beshear said.

“We believe … this is the largest investment ever in eastern Kentucky,” he said.

Once built, the facility will create 30 operations jobs and generate enough energy to power nearly 67,000 homes, he said.

The federal funding also will support:

—A project in southeast Arizona to deploy direct-use, geothermal, clean heat combined with a battery energy storage system at two active copper mines. It will help decrease the mines’ reliance on thermal backup generators while supporting the annual extraction of 25 million pounds (11.3 million kilograms) of copper. Kathleen Quirk, president of Freeport Minerals Corp., said the copper the project plans to extract from already-mined material was previously considered unrecoverable. The project aims to create 121 construction jobs and 12 permanent operations jobs.

—A project in Nevada’s Elko, Humboldt and Eureka counties to develop a solar facility and accompanying battery energy storage system across three active gold mines. By shifting to clean energy, the project could demonstrate a replicable way for the mining industry to reach net-zero operations while meeting growing demands for minerals, the Energy Department said. Project construction is estimated to create about 300 jobs.

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—A project in Clearfield County, Pennsylvania, to repurpose nearly 2,700 acres (1,090 hectares) of former coal mining land to create a utility-scale solar facility. The project will generate enough clean energy to power more than 70,000 homes. It will increase regional access to clean energy and fill a critical electricity-generation gap following the closure of the Homer City coal plant, the department said. More than 750 construction jobs and six operations jobs are expected to be created by the project. The project owner, Boston-based Swift Current Energy, has said construction could begin as early as summer 2024 and is scheduled to be online by the second half of 2026. In November, it announced that it had a 20-year contract to supply power to New York’s grid.

—A project in Nicholas County, West Virginia, to repurpose two former coal mines with a utility-scale solar system that would power about 39,000 homes. The two inactive mine sites provide land and access to existing energy infrastructure that will transmit the solar energy the project generates to the grid. The project is projected to create about 400 construction jobs and four operations jobs.



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Fox News Politics: Coming after Trump Tower


Welcome to Fox News’ Politics newsletter with the latest political news from Washington D.C. and updates from the 2024 campaign trail. 

What’s happening? 

-White House calls Biden impeachment inquiry ‘embarrassing’

-Republicans hit Biden over $110 billion tax hike

-GOP billionaires rally behind Trump as 2024 looms

Towers Fall

Lawyers for former President Trump are blasting New York Attorney General Letitia James’ “unconstitutional” attempts to block the GOP presumptive nominee’s appeal and force a property sale as the deadline for him to post hundreds of millions of dollars of bond in the case looms. 

Trump and his legal team have appealed and requested a stay on his $464 million civil fraud judgment. On Monday, his lawyers said that “ongoing diligent efforts have proven that a bond in the judgment’s full amount is a ‘practical impossibility,’” amid attempts to approach about 30 surety companies. 

James has pushed back, calling Trump’s request for a stay “extraordinary” and “improper.” James has said that Trump should be able to secure the entire value via multiple sureties or offer his real estate holdings as collateral. 

Trump attorney Clifford S. Robert on Thursday sent a letter to the Appellate Division of New York’s Supreme Court, arguing James’ efforts are “unconstitutional.” But ahead of Monday’s deadline, Trump’s team is looking at all available options.

Donald Trump and Letitia James

New York Attorney General said she is “prepared” to ask the judge to seize former President Donald Trump’s assets if he cannot pay the $354 million judgement handed down in his civil fraud case.  (ABC News/Screenshot/Brendan McDermid-Pool/Getty Images)

White House

‘BIGGEST CHALLENGE’: Psaki warns about third-party threat to Biden’s re-election …Read more

WORST FOOT FORWARD: White House calls GOP Biden impeachment inquiry ’embarrassing’ …Read more

Capitol Hill

ALARMING EARMARKS: Democrat earmarks include funding for late term abortions and groups that push gender transitions for kids …Read more

NEW GREEN NEW DEAL: AOC revives signature concept for public housing bill …Read more

‘EN MASSE’: House government weaponization committee probes IRS’s use of AI …Read more

‘HIGHER PRICES’: Republicans hit Biden over proposed $110B energy tax hike …Read more

‘NOT SACRED’: GOP hardliners furious at Johnson for rushing $1.2T government spending bill …Read more

PEEPING TOMS: Nancy Mace unveils bill aimed at harsher penalties for voyeurism …Read more

AOC during a news conference

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) slammed X owner Elon Musk on his platform after he claims “she’s not that smart.” (Photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images)

Tales from the Campaign Trail

‘CRITICAL JUNCTURE’: State’s largest police union makes major endorsement in 2024 presidential race …Read more

TAKING THE REINS: Progressive money man Alex Soros busy huddling with Dems as 2024 campaign heats up …Read more

BIG BUCKS: GOP billionaires rally behind Trump as he looks to level playing field in fundraising blitz with Biden …Read more

Across America

KEEP IT MOVING: Manhattan DA urges judge not to give Trump more time to review thousands of new documents before trial …Read more

‘ABSOLUTE WEIRDOS’: Dems flip script on GOP crime agenda, targeting RNC convention plans with surprising name …Read more

IN THE RED: California votes to spend $6.4B on homeless crisis despite spiraling debt …Read more

RITTENHOUSE PROTEST: Angry student protesters disrupted Kyle Rittenhouse’s TPUSA event …Read more

‘FAIR GAME’: Ex-NBC exec deletes Barron Trump tweet amid backlash, gives explanation …Read more

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Get the latest updates from the 2024 campaign trail, exclusive interviews and more on FoxNews.com.



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GOP lawmaker asks ‘Where in the world is Hunter Biden,’ after Cap Hill ghosting as AOC calls hearing a ‘joke’


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Hunter Biden’s no-show at a congressional hearing wasn’t shocking to some House Republicans who joked his whereabouts should be made into a game, but several Democrats told Fox News that President Joe Biden’s son has already answered enough questions and the impeachment inquiry should end.

The House Oversight and Judiciary Committees held a joint hearing on Wednesday regarding foreign business dealings and allegations of influence peddling within Biden’s family, but Hunter declined to appear. The Republican-led impeachment inquiry into Biden instead heard from the younger Biden’s former business associates, Tony Bobulinski and Jason Galanis, along with House Democrats’ witness and former Rudy Guiliani associate, Lev Parnas. 

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“It’s [Hunter’s] history, isn’t it?” Pennsylvania Republican Rep. Mike Kelly said. “He’s always MIA.” 

Empty Hunter Biden seat

A seat reserved for Hunter Biden remained empty during a nearly eight-hour proceeding regarding allegations of influence peddling within President Biden’s family on Wednesday.  (Getty Images)

HUNTER BIDEN’S EX-BUSINESS PARTNER TONY BOBULINSKI SLAMS HIM FOR ‘RUNNING AWAY’ FROM HOUSE OVERSIGHT COMMITTEE

But Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez called the inquiry a “joke” ahead of the hearing. 

“I think the fact that Republicans’ core theory here and their main source turned out to be working with Russian spies is kind of the reason to not show up to this joke,” the New York Democrat said. 

Former FBI informant Alexander Smirnov was charged in February with two counts related to “false derogatory information” regarding the Biden family’s business dealings, according to court documents. Prosecutors accused Smirnov of “actively peddling new lies that could impact U.S. elections after meeting with Russian intelligence officials,” the detention memo states.

“Maybe we should have a game. Where in the world is Hunter Biden?” Rep. Carlos Giménez told Fox News. “He probably didn’t show because he didn’t want to testify, didn’t want to probably lie under oath as to what his activities and his family’s activities are.”

BIDEN MET WITH CHAIRMAN OF CHINESE ENERGY FIRM HUNTER DID BUSINESS WITH IN 2017, EX-ASSOCIATE TESTIFIES

Joe and Hunter Biden

House Republicans have conducted a series of depositions as part of an impeachment inquiry into President Biden over his involvement in his family’s business dealings. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik)

“Why are people giving millions and millions and companies and adversary nations giving millions and millions of dollars to the Biden family when there’s no product to sell or to buy except Joe Biden’s influence?” the Florida Republican continued.

Hunter’s lawyer, Abbe Lowell, told House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer last week Hunter would be absent because of a court hearing in California the next day and called Republicans’ request “hasty.” Hunter rejected a November subpoena but unexpectedly showed up to a January congressional committee hearing and testified behind closed doors in February. 

AOC SAYS TRUMP ‘WILLING TO SELL THE COUNTRY FOR A DOLLAR’ AS LAWMAKERS REACT TO POTENTIAL PROPERTY SEIZURES

Congressional lawmakers on Capitol Hill

Congressional lawmakers react to Hunter Biden skipping a House hearing about allegations of influence peddling within President Biden’s family on Wednesday.  (Fox News Digital/Megan Myers)

New York Democrat Rep. Dan Goldman told Fox News ahead of Wednesday’s hearing that the president’s son has already answered Republicans’ questions.

“He debunked all the conspiracy theories … and made a really good point, which is that the witness who should be here on this purported hearing about influence peddling is Jared Kushner, who used his position in the government, unlike Hunter Biden, to solicit and obtain $2 billion from the Saudi Arabians,” Goldman said. 

HUNTER BIDEN’S FEDERAL GUN CHARGES TRIAL SLATED FOR EARLY JUNE

Kushner, former President Trump’s son-in-law and an adviser during his administration, reportedly received the hefty investment from Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund for his private equity firm after he left the White House. Comer said his committee would look into whether Kushner has a “real business” after Democrats urged further investigation during the Wednesday hearing, but noted that Hunter’s businesses appeared illegitimate.

Some House Republicans accused Hunter of continuing to avoid transparency about his business dealings and his father’s involvement. They also pointed to Hunter’s earlier plea for public testimony.

Hunter on Capitol Hill

Hunter Biden, son of President Joe Biden, departs a House Oversight Committee meeting at Capitol Hill on January 10, 2024 in Washington, DC. (Kent Nishimura/Getty Images)

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Hunter “actually said he wanted to testify in public and then, given that opportunity, declined to do so,” California Republican Rep. Tom McClintock said. “What does that say about him?”

Michigan Republican Rep. John Moolenaar said “it would be best if [Hunter] would simply be transparent and open about his business dealings and cooperate in a way that assures the American people.”

Ramiro Vargas contributed to the accompanying video.



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Ukrainian refugees, wounded soldiers hope for US aid as funding’s stalled


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Over $113 billion in U.S. tax dollars have already been sent to help Ukraine fight off the Russian invasion. But an additional $60 billion in aid is stalled in Congress and defense officials warn Ukraine is running out of resources.

In Ukraine, there is a shortage of soldiers, ammunition and confidence that Western aid will come soon. Tens of thousands of soldiers and civilians have died or lost limbs in the war. 

Twenty-five-year-old Oleksandr Bazilevych has only his right arm left. A Russian grenade exploded near him last September as he was helping a wounded friend reach a medic. He wasn’t surprised when he lost his limbs. 

“It could be even worse,” Bazilevych says as he sits in a Minnesota rehabilitation and prosthetic treatment clinic. Other organizations told him it would be impossible to help him. Then he found the Protez Foundation.

PUTIN WARNS THE WEST THAT RUSSIA IS ‘READY’ FOR NUCLEAR WAR: ‘WEAPONS EXIST IN ORDER TO USE THEM’

a doctor helps a man in a wheel chair with his new prosthetic arm

“It’s pretty hard. You cannot see your family. You don’t understand what will happen to you, how it’s going and what will be next,” Oleksandr Bazilevych says about his time in the Ukrainian army.  (Mills Hayes)

Ukrainian American Dr. Yakov Gradinar was living in Minnesota and working as a prosthetist when the war started two years ago. He and his business partner and CEO, Yury Aroshidze, have now opened up three clinics, with another on the way in Kyiv, Ukraine.  

“They get much better quality of prosthetic care,” Gradinar said about the over 160 Ukrainian soldiers, civilians, and children they’ve brought to the U.S. “They get [a] break from sirens from all this pressure from war.”

A man sits over zoom talking with a reporter

The Protez Foundation takes amputee cases that nobody could help with in Ukraine. Dr. Yakov Gradinar says over 40% of the soldiers they fit for prosthetics return to the front line to fight. (Mills Hayes)

The nonprofit says over 60,000 Ukrainians are in need of prosthetics. Their waiting list is over 1,500 people long. 

Bazilevych says joining the military was the right decision at the time, despite only having one limb left.

“We want civilization in our country. We want freedom in our country, not like in Russia,” Bazilevych said. 

U.S. NATIONAL DEBT TRACKER: SEE WHAT AMERICAN TAXPAYERS (YOU) OWE IN REAL TIME

Twenty-seven-year-old Ninel Nosachova fled Ukraine at the start of the war. She and her family were refugees in Germany for months as she finished her education for physical therapy. Nosachova felt like she wasn’t doing enough to help her country. 

“People my age are fighting and protecting my country. I need to join. I need to protect my country, and then I saw this foundation on [the] internet,” Nosachova said. 

For the past eight months, she’s been working as a volunteer physical therapist at the Protez Foundation, helping soldiers who fought for her freedom walk again. But she worries about the future of her country without more U.S. aid.  

“We don’t have a lot of resources for the fighting and if the USA will not help us, we will die,” Nosachova said. 

photo of a ukrainian woman sitting on a workout bench in a rehab center in the US

Ninel Nosachova, who goes by Nellie, said she’s nervous to return to her home country because she says people have changed, grown angrier, and some of her friends have died in the war. (Mills Hayes)

Resources are running out as additional aid is stalled in Congress, with Republican lawmakers insisting new funds be linked to action against illegal border crossings.

Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin emphasized Tuesday at a meeting of Ukraine allies that the U.S. “will not let Ukraine fail.” 

The latest Pew Research Center poll shows that over 30% of Americans say the U.S. is providing too much aid to Ukraine.

The national debt, which measures what the U.S. owes its creditors, increased to $34.54 trillion. The Congressional Budget Office indicates that the national debt will grow to an astonishing $54 trillion in the next decade. Should that debt happen, it could risk America’s economic standing in the world. 

Ukrainian-American Walter Anastazievsky is the refugee services director at the Ukrainian American Community Center in Minneapolis. His parents and grandparents fled Ukraine after WWII and he felt like this was an opportunity to give back. 

“I’ve literally had someone say, ‘Oh I thought the war was over.’ Pay attention, because people are suffering,” Anastazievsky said. 

Anastazievsky estimates the center has helped over 1,000 refugees get access to housing, health care and employment. 

US SENDING UKRAINE $300 MILLION IN WEAPONS DESPITE LACKING FUNDS TO REPLENISH ITS OWN STOCKPILES 

A refugee service director sits in a chair talking to a reporter

Refugee services director Walter Anastazievsky isn’t holding his breath for more funding from Congress. “It’s anyone’s guess what’s going to happen in Washington,” Anastazievsky said. (Mills Hayes)

Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Monday. He promoted former President Trump’s plan for a loan to Ukraine, rather than aid, to continue supporting the country in the war with Russia

“I think Ukraine needs assistance in any form that it can get. Ideally, it would be a continuation of the kind of assistance that the U.S. and other countries have been providing,” Anastazievsky said. “I don’t know that Ukraine is in a position to reject aid regardless of how it’s structured.”

Back in Ukraine, Dr. Gradinar is opening another Protez Foundation clinic in Kyiv. The demand for high-quality, free prosthetics is high. 

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As a Ukrainian American, Gradinar says he understands the need for taxpayers to know how their money is being spent in Ukraine. But he says Russia’s desire to take over the world is “scary for the 21st century.” He says Ukrainians want to be free of corruption and have a democracy like the U.S. 

“Tell me who’s going to be elected in United States as the next president? We don’t know,” Gradinar said. “Tell me who’s going to be elected in Russia president election. Everybody knows.”



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Trump aims to level playing field in fundraising battle with Biden as GOP billionaires come to the rescue


Former President Donald Trump significantly trails President Biden in the crucial dash for campaign cash, but he is hoping to level the playing field with the formation of a joint fundraising committee with the Republican National Committee (RNC).

The committee, titled the Trump National Committee JFC, filed a statement of organization on Wednesday with the Federal Elections Commission.

Trump, who clinched the GOP presidential nomination last week and is now the Republican Party’s 2024 presumptive nominee, has taken control of the RNC and installed allies in the national party committee’s top leadership positions.

The move comes as Trump aims to catch up to Biden in the fundraising race.

FIRST ON FOX: DONALD TRUMP’S FUNRAISING HAUL LAST MONTH

Trump is expected to clinch the GOP presidential nomination on March 12

Republican presidential candidate former President Donald Trump gestures at a campaign rally Saturday, March 9, 2024, in Rome, Georgia. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart) (AP Photo/Mike Stewart)

According to the latest filings this week with the Federal Election Commission, Biden’s re-election campaign outraised the Trump campaign by a two-to-one margin last month and enjoyed a $71 million to $34 million cash-on-hand advantage as of the end of February.

The fundraising reports from both Biden and Trump didn’t include details on the myriad of other joint fundraising committees the two White House titans are also relying on to haul in campaign cash. Filings covering those fundraising ventures will be made public late next month.

THE POWER OF TRUMP’S GOP PRIMARY ENDORSEMENT HAILED AS ‘MOST POWERFUL’

Meanwhile, the Democratic National Committee outraised the Republican National Committee by nearly $6 million last month. The DNC reported $26.5 million in its coffers at the end of February, compared to $11.3 million cash-on-hand for the RNC.

President Biden campaigns in Nevada and Arizona - two crucial western battleground states

President Joe Biden speaks at the Washoe Democratic Party Office in Reno, Nev., Tuesday, March 19, 2024. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin) (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)

Biden’s campaign taunted Trump over the fundraising figures.

“If Donald Trump put up these kinds of numbers on ‘The Apprentice,’ he’d fire himself,” Biden campaign communications director Michael Tyler said in a statement. 

One reason Trump faces such a large deficit to Biden is that the president has been able to raise money in conjunction with the DNC and Democratic state parties across the country.

The new joint fundraising committee set up by the Trump campaign and the RNC will allow them to similarly coordinate among themselves and with state GOP chapters from coast to coast.

“It’s definitely going to help,” Republican Jewish Coalition CEO Matt Brooks told Fox News. “It also gives a tactical advantage. It makes it easier in terms of some of the execution on some of the joint events. So, I think it’s a win, win.”  

Trump is also expected to get a boost early next month from some of the wealthiest Republicans in the country.

That’s when some of the biggest donors in the GOP, some of whom stayed on the sidelines or supported the former president’s rivals during the recently concluded primary season, will host a fundraising event to be held April 6 in Palm Beach, Florida.

Billionaire investor and hedge fund founder John Paulson is hosting the top-dollar fundraiser, Fox News has confirmed.

The “Inaugural Leadership Dinner” will be held at Paulson’s Palm Beach home, which isn’t too far from Trump’s Mar-a-Lago club and resort.

Word of the gathering is a further sign of the coalescing of much of the Republican donor class around Trump, now that he’s clinched the GOP nomination and is the party’s presumptive presidential nominee. A source in the former president’s political orbit called the fundraiser a “come home to Trump” moment.

“We are receiving an overwhelming amount of support from donors.” Paulson said in a statement.

Former US President and Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump speaks during a Buckeye Values PAC Rally in Vandalia, Ohio, on March 16, 2024.

Former US President and Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump speaks during a Buckeye Values PAC Rally in Vandalia, Ohio, on March 16, 2024.  (KAMIL KRZACZYNSKI/AFP via Getty Images)

Among those listed as co-chairs of the fundraiser are hedge fund billionaire Robert Mercer and his daughter Rebekah Mercer. They were major boosters of Trump in 2016 but mostly sat out the former president’s 2020 re-election campaign.

Also on the list of co-chairs are oil magnate Harold Hamm; hotelier and space entrepreneur Robert Bigelow; and casino giant Steve Wynn, and Todd Ricketts, a co-owner of the Chicago Cubs, a member of the TD Ameritrade board of directors and former RNC finance chairman.

Trump has long had strained relations with some in the Republican Party’s donor class, but he has worked hard in recent months to improve relations. He’s hosted some of these major contributors in recent weeks.

“There’s no question that most of the major donors who were with DeSantis or Haley are coming on board and rallying around the president. I think everybody realizes what’s at stake in the 2024 elections,” Brooks, who has close ties to the Republican donor class, told Fox News.

Dan Eberhart, an oil drilling chief executive officer and a prominent Republican donor and bundler who raised big bucks for Trump’s 2020 re-election campaign but who backed DeSantis in the 2024 nomination race, is back supporting Trump and is attending the April 6 fundraiser.

“There’s still hesitation, but many big donors are coming around now that the nomination process is over,” Eberhart told Fox News. 

Meanwhile, two top Trump allies – businessman and New York Jets owner Woody Johnson, who served as the former president’s ambassador to the United Kingdom, and Wilbur Ross, who was Trump’s Secretary of Commerce – are also listed on the fundraising invitation.

Those attending the fundraiser are expected to donate from $250,000 and up to over $800,000.

Three former 2024 GOP presidential primary rivals who’ve all backed Trump since ending their bids – Sen. Tim Scott of South Carolina, North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum, and multi-millionaire biotech entrepreneur and culture wars crusader Vivek Ramaswamy – are listed as “special guests” at the fundraiser.

Tim Scott is a potential Trump running mate

Republican presidential candidate former President Donald Trump listens as Sen. Tim Scott, R-S.C., speaks at a primary election night party at the South Carolina State Fairgrounds in Columbia, S.C., Saturday, February 24, 2024. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik) (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik)

A source in the former president’s political orbit said that South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem, who along with Scott is considered a potential 2024 Trump running mate, may also attend the fundraiser.

The joint fundraising committee filing and the Palm Beach fundraiser come as Trump not only aims to catch up to Biden in the 2024 fundraising race, but as the former president also struggles to pay his mounting legal bills, with just seven and a half months to go until the November election.

Trump’s latest filings with the FEC indicate the strain his multiple criminal and civil cases are putting on his campaign.

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Save America, the Trump-aligned political action committee that he’s been using to pay his legal bills, spent more than it raised last month, with nearly all the expenditures going to cover the former president’s legal costs.

Trump is also scrambling to fork over a $454 million bond to comply with a New York court ruling in a civil fraud case that he and his sons engaged in a decade-long conspiracy to lie about the value of the Trump Organization’s assets.

Eberhart told Fox News that among top-dollar donors, “the big concern is Trump’s legal bills and how their money will be used.” 

“There’s going to be some among the big donors who will choose to give to independent expenditure groups rather than to Trump directly because of the legal expenses issue,” he predicted. 

Get the latest updates from the 2024 campaign trail, exclusive interviews and more at our Fox News Digital election hub.



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House GOP eyes putting Trump-era migrant policy in place on northern border: ‘Remain In Canada’


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FIRST ON FOX: House Republicans are looking to echo a key Trump-era border policy, which kept migrants out of the U.S. for the duration of their immigration hearings, at the northern border with Canada – amid a sharp increase in apprehensions.

The “Remain in Canada Act,” introduced by Rep. Brian Babin, R-Texas, would duplicate the Remain-in-Mexico program – officially called the Migrant Protection Protocols – at the northern border. 

MPP was launched during the Trump administration and expanded across the border in 2019 as migrant encounters rose to what were then historic highs. The program saw court tents set up across the border, and migrants had to wait in Mexico for their asylum hearings rather than being released into the interior.

TEXAS CAN KEEP ARRESTING ILLEGAL MIGRANTS WHILE BIDEN CHALLENGE PROCEEDS, ABBOTT SAYS

migrants seen in wooded border area

Migrants at the northern border. (Customs and Border Protection)

Conservatives have credited the policy with ending the “pull factor” of release into the U.S. which they believe has encouraged migrants to make the journey north. Currently, migrants are frequently released into the interior to wait for their court hearings, which may be up to eight years away.

The Biden administration abolished the program, saying it was ineffective and left migrants in treacherous conditions in Mexico. Instead, it has pushed for initiatives to speed up asylum processing, including funding for immigration judges and a rule to bring the wait time down to a matter of months and allowing asylum officers to make final determinations on claims.

But, while there has been focus on the crisis at the southern border, the northern border has also seen a significant increase in encounters, going from 27,180 in FY 21 to more than 189,000 in FY 23.

BLACKBURN LEADS GOP PUSH TO RE-ESTABLISH TRUMP’S REMAIN IN MEXICO POLICY 

Brian Babin, Texas Republican, in blue coat, orange and gray tie

Rep. Brian Babin has introduced the legislation. (Bill Clark/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)

The head of the Swanton Sector said in November that agents have seen a 550% increase in apprehensions, with migrants arriving from 79 different countries. The top five countries from which migrants originated were Mexico, India, Venezuela, Haiti and Romania.

Babin, who co-chairs the House Border Security Caucus, accused the Biden administration of an “intentional mass-replacement effort” and said something must be done as America’s borders are “overrun.” He said a 2023 agreement between the U.S. and Canada to return migrants back to Canada had failed to lower encounters.

“Under President Trump, we had the most secure borders seen in decades. President Trump’s ‘Remain in Mexico’ policy worked to mitigate unlawful entry, secure the southern border, and hold Mexico accountable,” he said in a statement to Fox News Digital. “My new bill, the Remain in Canada Act, will implement the same policy at the northern border.” 

“Instead of blindly allowing parolees into our nation, my bill will add an important tool to stop illegal immigration: ensuring illegal entrants or asylum seekers coming from Canada are not allowed to freely roam our country and burden American taxpayers,” he said.

The nine co-sponsors on the bill include Reps. Andy Biggs., R-Ariz., Mary Miller, R-Ill., Andy Ogles, R-Tenn., and Keith Self, R-Texas.

black and white image of migrants crossing border

Migrants are seen crossing the northern border. (Customs and Border Protection)

The bill comes as immigration is looking to be a top 2024 issue, as the migrant crisis moves into its third year and the administration battles with Republicans over how to solve it.

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Republicans have called on the administration to re-implement Trump-era policies – including Remain-in-Mexico – while the Biden administration has called for the passage of more funding and reforms, including in a recent bipartisan Senate proposal, to fix what it says is a “broken” immigration system.



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State’s largest police union makes major endorsement in 2024 presidential race


EXCLUSIVE: The largest police union in the state of Florida announced Thursday which presidential candidate it will back in the November general election.

Florida Police Benevolent Association (PBA) President John Kazanjian declared his organization will be supporting former President Trump over President Biden and other third-party candidates, arguing Trump is the right person to handle the many crises facing the nation, according to a letter shared with Fox News Digital.

“It’s no secret that over the past four years, under the current administration, America has regressed. Law enforcement officers are leaving their jobs in record numbers throughout this country, crime is rising in our major cities, and over 8 million migrants have entered this country, putting a heavy and untenable strain on the ability of local municipalities to effectively maintain public safety and provide essential services to the citizens of this country,” Kazanjian wrote.

CONSERVATIVE GROUPS UNLEASH MASSIVE INVESTMENT FOR BATTLEGROUND STATE’S ‘LARGEST EVER’ VOTE-BY-MAIL PROGRAM

“This November, America is once again at a critical juncture. The choice we make in electing the next president of the United States will have a lasting impact on our nation for generations to come. And for us, the choice is crystal clear. On behalf of the 30,000 members of Florida’s largest law enforcement union, the Florida PBA is proud to once again endorse you for president of the United States,” he added.

Kazanjian also praised what he said were the successes of Trump’s administration, and said that another term for the former president would mean police would be defended, and the border crisis would be addressed.

“Moving forward, we will ask all of our 30,000 members, their friends and family, and all Floridians, who love and respect law enforcement, to cast their ballots in support of President Donald J. Trump. Together we’ll make America great again,” he wrote.

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

Biden, Trump

President Biden and former President Donald Trump (Getty Images)

The Florida PBA’s endorsement of Trump comes as murder rates in big cities across the country are on the rise — including in places like Washington, D.C., Memphis and New Orleans — despite FBI statistics showing overall lower crime rates nationwide. Retail theft rates have also been on the rise in some areas, prompting many businesses to shutter stores due to the losses.

The organization decided last summer to back their state’s governor, Ron DeSantis, in the Republican primary before he ultimately dropped out following the Iowa caucuses in January.

Trump became his party’s presumptive nominee following the exit of former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley from the race and victories in the Georgia, Mississippi and Washington primaries on Mar. 12.

Get the latest updates from the 2024 campaign trail, exclusive interviews and more at our Fox News Digital election hub



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Term limits, preventing leader ‘monarchy’ become top concerns in post-McConnell GOP


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Setting limits on a leader’s reign and avoiding unilateral decision-making have emerged as chief concerns among Senate Republicans as they prepare to tap a new head in November following Minority Leader Mitch McConnell’s announcement of his plan to step down after his term ends in 2025. 

“We have operated as a monarchy,” Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, said of leadership during his more than 10 years in Congress. 

Republican senators expressed optimism following a GOP conference meeting on Wednesday regarding their desires for the next era of leadership. Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Wis., claimed, “mission accomplished,” following the gathering. 

GOP SENATOR TO REVEAL FINDINGS AFTER INVESTIGATION INTO TRANSGENDER SPORTS AS BIDEN PUSHES TITLE IX CHANGE

Johnson led a letter to GOP Conference Chairman Sen. John Barrasso, R-Wyo., earlier this month requested the meeting to develop goals for the party as it begins to look for a next leader. In an interview after the announcement by McConnell, R-Ky., with Fox News Digital, Johnson noted his frustration with the conference’s lack of collaboration under the current leadership. 

Mitch McConnell

Senate Republicans are preparing to tap a new head in November after Minority Leader Mitch McConnell announced his plan to step down after his term ends in 2025. (Drew Angerer/Getty Images)

This concern was echoed by various other party members, including Cruz, Sens. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., and Rick Scott, R-Fla. 

“I want someone who is going to talk to members. I want somebody who is going to listen to members and not be bubble wrapped and stay in their office,” Hawley told Fox News Digital on Wednesday. 

Cruz said he hopes to see “a conference that doesn’t just follow the whims of a leader doing whatever he or she wants, but rather that reflects the views of the majority of the conference.”

SCHUMER REFUSES NETANYAHU REQUEST TO SPEAK TO DEMOCRATS

Term limits for Republican leaders were touched on during the conversation after Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, who is running for the head role, threw his support behind “a conference vote to change the rules” to institute them earlier this month. A number of other Republican senators have since expressed support for the idea. 

According to Hawley, McConnell had “a few things to say” during the meeting. Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., noted that the minority leader reiterated to conference members his opinion on term limits for the position. McConnell notably came out against Cornyn’s proposal prior to the discussion, telling reporters, “Well, we have term limits now. They’re called elections.” 

Sen. Josh Hawley

Sen. Josh Hawley speaks during a Senate hearing on Capitol Hill, Feb. 28, 2023. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)

“I had a contest myself during my last election as leader,” he said, in reference to a challenge by Scott in 2022. 

McConnell’s office pointed to those remarks when reached by Fox News Digital but declined to comment further.

While McConnell has served as party leader since being first elected to the post in 2007, elections for it have been held for each new Congress every two years. 

While these concerns were aired at the meeting, the conversation was ultimately cordial and constructive, according to senators who attended. 

SENATE DEMOCRATS COULD SPOIL BIDEN’S MUSLIM JUDICIAL NOMINEE OVER ‘DEEPLY CONCERNING’ TIES

There was no headbutting between conference members, multiple Republicans claimed. Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C., joked it was “a little disappointing, actually.” 

Scott, who has not been shy about his criticisms of McConnell and the leadership apparatus, agreed that the conversation was good. “I think there’s agreement that we need to figure out how to work together,” he said. Scott has expressed his interest in a potential run for leader but hasn’t made anything official. 

Senator Rick Scott

Sen. Rick Scott leaves the Senate Republicans lunch in the U.S. Capitol on Nov. 15, 2022. (Bill Clark/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)

The two candidates already in the running are Cornyn and Sen. John Thune, R-S.D. Both men took backseat roles during the meeting, per senators inside. Thune’s office shared, prior to the meeting, that the conversation was going to be a listening session for him. 

Numerous Republican senators indicated their belief that such meetings would be taking place much more often as they head into a new Congress after November. “I think it was the beginning of what I think is going to be a pretty regular conversation between now and November,” said Rubio.

BIPARTISAN SENATORS SHARE TIKTOK CONCERN FOLLOWING ‘POWERFUL’ NATIONAL SECURITY BRIEFING

Cruz and Sen. Mike Braun, R-Ind., echoed this feeling. “All along you could have done it with just five senators,” the latter told Fox News Digital about requesting the meeting. “I didn’t know that. No one ever told us.”

According to Cruz, these meetings didn’t take place before, “because Republican leadership was not interested in the views of the conference.”

Ted Cruz during Senate hearing

Sen. Ted Cruz attends a Senate Judiciary Committee markup in the Hart Building on May 11, 2023. (Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)

Candidates didn’t share whether they were coming to decisions on who to support for leader, but Hawley revealed he plans to support Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Ark., for conference chair. He said this is due to Cotton’s support as the Missouri senator worked to pass his legislation to compensate victims of radiation. Hawley even suggested Cotton should switch his bid and run for leader instead. “Maybe Tom ought to run for the leader,” he said, adding, “we need people who actually get it and who are going to listen to members.” 

The Republican additionally predicted several more Republicans would join the leader race, without suggesting names.  

When prompted, National Republican Senatorial Committee Chairman Steve Daines, R-Mont., reiterated, “I don’t aspire to be the leader,” despite speculation. 

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“I aspire to get the majority back,” he said. 

In an interesting development, former President Trump, who has demonstrated his wide-ranging influence over the Republican Party both inside and out of Congress, was not mentioned during the meeting, said Hawley. “When I was in there, which was for most of it, I didn’t hear him mentioned one time,” he recalled. 



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RFK Jr racks up $1.4M debt with private security firm as Biden ignores plea for Secret Service protection


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Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s presidential campaign racked up $1.4 million in debt to a private security firm, while the Biden administration has repeatedly denied his requests for Secret Service protection. 

According to their latest filing with the Federal Election Commission on Wednesday, Kennedy’s campaign raised $3.1 million in February but spent $2.8 million that same month. That is not including the $1.4 million the Kennedy campaign also owes to Gavin De Becker and Associates, the private security firm owned by De Becker, a security specialist and longtime friend of Kennedy, according to Politico. 

Not including withstanding debt, the campaign paid just over $200,000 last month for security services and related travel expenses, raising the total paid to Gavin de Becker & Associates to more than $2 million. 

Meanwhile, De Becker has donated millions in what he deemed both contributions and “bridge funding” to the pro-Kennedy super PAC American Values 2024. According to a separate FEC filing by the political action committee on Wednesday, De Becker donated another $4 million last month. That accounts for nearly all the total $4.1 million American Values 2024 reported garnering in February. 

CRUZ DEMANDS ANSWERS FROM MAYORKAS ON DENIAL OF SECRET SERVICE PROTECTION FOR RFK JR

Kennedy hosts fireside chat in New York

Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. hosts a fireside chat with rapper and producer Eric B. at The Gentleman’s Factory on Feb. 18, 2024 in New York City. (John Nacion/Getty Images)

De Becker has become the largest donor to the super PAC, second to Republican mega-donor Tim Mellon, Politico reported. 

Despite having raised nearly $28 million since kicking off his presidential campaign in April 2023, Kennedy has spent heavily. At the end of February, the campaign reported $5 million in cash on hand. Biden’s campaign reported $71 million in cash on hand at the end of February, and former President Trump’s campaign reported $33.5 million in cash on hand, Wednesday’s FEC filings show. 

Kennedy has assailed Biden for having rejected at least three requests for U.S. Secret Service protection while on the 2024 campaign trail. His father, former U.S. senator, U.S. Attorney General and presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy, was assassinated in 1968, and his uncle, former President Kennedy, was assassinated in 1963,

Kennedy campaign fliers

A view of pamphlets while Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. hosts a fireside chat with Eric B. at The Gentleman’s Factory on Feb. 18, 2024, in New York City. ( John Nacion/Getty Images)

RFK JR TRESPASSER INCLUDED IN SECRET SERVICE RISK ASSESSMENT MONTHS BEFORE DHS DENIED PROTECTION: SOURCE

As recently as December, Biden’s Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas deemed that Secret Service protection for Kennedy “is not warranted at this time,” according to a letter obtained by Deseret News. According to Kennedy, that was despite several documented death threats against him. 

In late October, a man was arrested twice for trespassing at Kennedy’s home twice in the same day. 

Kennedy at New York food pantry

Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. visits the First Baptist Church Food Pantry on Feb. 17, 2024 in New York City. His campaign pays for security protection. (John Nacion/Getty Images)

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The suspect, Jonathan Macht, was listed in a Secret Service risk assessment as part of the candidate’s first request for protection in June, sources told Fox News Digital at the time. The assessment deemed Kennedy was at elevated risk, but the Democrat turned independent presidential candidate’s request for protection was still denied by Homeland Security. 

Fox News’ Brooke Singman contributed to this report.



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AOC resurrects ‘Green New Deal’ moniker for public housing bill


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Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., will resurrect her “Green New Deal” terminology with a new housing bill she plans to announce Thursday, according to Politico.

Ocasio-Cortez will announce the “Green New Deal for Housing” alongside Sen. Bernie Sanders I-Vt., who is sponsoring the legislation in the Senate. She says the bill will focus largely on public housing, arguing that private housing is no longer realistic for many Americans.

“For a long time, we could pass a tax incentive here or there and say, ‘Hey, we’ve got a great housing policy,’” Ocasio-Cortez told Politico. “And everyday people … were supportive because there was still that dream and that idea that ‘I’m going to be buying a home soon … that’s within the horizon for me.’ Right now, we have an entire generation — that is ascending into becoming the most powerful electorate, the largest electorate — for which that is decades away.”

The legislation’s central change would be to repeal the Faircloth Amendment, which for decades has prevented the Department of Housing and Urban Development from funding new public housing.

HUNTER BIDEN’S EX-BUSINESS PARTNER TONY BOBULINSKI SLAMS HIM FOR ‘RUNNING AWAY’ FROM HOUSE OVERSIGHT COMMITTEE

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-NY., will resurrect her “Green New Deal” terminology with a new housing bill she plans to announce Thursday, according to Politico.

“No housing conversation is complete without a conversation around public housing,” Ocasio-Cortez added. “We in the United States have lived under the scourge of the Faircloth amendment for decades, and that has helped precipitate — and contributed to — the housing crisis that we are living in today. A major part of our housing problem is a supply problem.”

JOE BIDEN IS ‘THE BIG GUY,’ TONY BOBULINSKI SAID DURING ‘UNSHAKEABLE’ TESTIMONY AMID IMPEACHMENT INQUIRY

The legislation comes several years after Ocasio-Cortez’s first attempt at a “Green New Deal,” which sought to reshape the conversation around clean energy use and emissions in the U.S. That bill was dead on arrival in Congress, as is likely to be the case with her latest effort.

Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee Chairman Bernie Sanders (I-VT)

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez will announce the “Green New Deal for Housing” alongside Sen. Bernie Sanders, pictured here, who is sponsoring the legislation in the Senate. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

President Biden’s administration wished the effort well in a Thursday statement but shied away from endorsing the legislation.

AOC SAYS TRUMP ‘WILLING TO SELL THE COUNTRY FOR A DOLLAR’ AS LAWMAKERS REACT TO POTENTIAL PROPERTY SEIZURES

“As he laid out in his State of the Union address and again this week in Nevada, President Biden is laser focused on lowering housing costs for owners and renters alike,” a White House spokesman told Politico when asked about the bill. “We welcome ideas from members of Congress to build on our strong agenda.”

Joe Biden talking at podium, making a fist

President Biden’s administration wished the effort well in a Thursday statement, but shied away from endorsing the legislation. (SAUL LOEB/AFP via Getty Images)

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Ocasio-Cortez and Sanders are expected to announce the legislation at an event on Capitol Hill later Thursday.



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Biden rakes in $21 million as cash lead over Trump continues to grow


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President Biden raked in another $21 million in donations in February, extending his cash lead over former President Trump and the Republican National Committee.

Combined with the Democratic National Committee, Biden has a war chest of $97.5 million, of which over $70 million belongs to the campaign. Trump and the RNC have less than half that at $44.8 million, according to Politico.

The Biden campaign plans to use its deep pockets to flood Trump with ads in swing states across the country, much as Trump attempted to do to Biden in 2020.

This year’s data is a stark inversion of the last election cycle, where Trump entered March 2020 with an overwhelming financial advantage over the Biden campaign. That year, Trump and the RNC boasted a war chest of $225 million, while Biden and the DNC had a paltry $20 million, according to the New York Times.

LOCKING IT UP: TRUMP CLINCHES 2024 REPUBLICAN PRESIDENTIAL NOMINATION DURING TUESDAY’S PRIMARIES

President Joe Biden

President Biden raked in another $21 billion in donations in February, extending his cash lead over former President Trump and the Republican National Committee. (ANDREW CABALLERO-REYNOLDS/AFP via Getty Images)

Trump nearly matched Biden’s fundraising in February, bringing in just over $20 million.

NEW POLL REVEALS AMERICANS TRUST DONALD TRUMP OVER BIDEN TO LEAD THE US AS PRESIDENT

“Americans know that they were better off with President Trump four years ago than with Crooked Joe Biden and his disastrous policies,” Trump campaign communications director Steven Cheung told Fox News Digital on Wednesday. “We need a return to America First policies that successfully kept our country safe and supercharged the economy for all Americans.”

Trump supporters Mar-a-Lago

Trump nearly matched Biden’s fundraising in February, bringing in just over $20 million. (Eva Marie Uzcategui/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

Trump officially became the presumptive Republican presidential nominee earlier this month after victories in Georgia, Mississippi and Washington state primaries. Biden also secured his party’s nomination earlier this month.

BIDEN VS. TRUMP IS FORCING AMERICANS TO CONFRONT THE AGE ISSUE. BUT NO ONE WILL ANSWER ONE BIG QUESTION

The November contest between Biden and Trump is the first rematch in a White House race since 1956, when Republican President Dwight D. Eisenhower defeated Democratic former Illinois Gov. Adlai Stevenson when they faced off a second time.

(The November contest between Biden and Trump is the first rematch in a White House race since 1956, when Republican President Dwight D. Eisenhower defeated former Democratic Gov. Adlai Stevenson of Illinois when they faced off a second time.)

The latest Fox News Poll from earlier this month had Trump leading Biden in a head-to-head match up.

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Meanwhile, a separate new ABC/Ipsos poll found that more respondents trust Trump – at 36% – over Biden at 33%. About 30% of respondents said they would not trust either candidate.



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GOP senator to unveil findings on female athlete ‘helplessness’ in transgender sports fight


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FIRST ON FOX: A report detailing the “helplessness” felt by female students due to biological males, or transgender women, participating with their female sports teams was to be released Thursday after a congressional investigation into proposed Title IX changes by the Biden administration.

Sen. Bill Cassidy, R-La., the ranking member on the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP), is expected to release the findings of the committee staff’s investigation into the proposed changes and their effect on female sports in a letter to his committee colleagues. The investigation included interviews with dozens of people, including female athletes and coaches, parents, industry experts, doctors and representatives from higher-education institutions, Cassidy said.

NRSC, STEVE DAINES BACK TRUMP IN SCOTUS AMICUS BRIEF, WARN OF ‘SLIPPERY SLOPE’ FOR FUTURE PRESIDENTS

Protest to save womens sports

Demonstrators cheer during the speaking program at the “Our Bodies, Our Sports” rally for the 50th anniversary of Title IX at Freedom Plaza on June 23, 2022 in Washington, DC. The rally, organized by multiple athletic womens groups was held to call on U.S. President Joe Biden to put restrictions on transgender females and “advocate to keep womens sports female.” (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)

Title IX is designed to prevent sex-based discrimination in education and related activities that are recipients of federal money.

Last year, President Biden’s administration proposed a rule that would expand Title IX to include gender identity along with biological sex. The term “gender identity” is used to describe by which gender an individual chooses to identify. 

“They feel helpless,” Cassidy told Fox News Digital in an interview on Wednesday, describing the feelings he heard from female athletes.

“This is kind of a theme that we got: ‘Why am I even trying? I don’t have any hope whatsoever,'” he said.

OBAMA, PELOSI TO RALLY FOR BIDEN ON OBAMACARE ANNIVERSARY

The HELP committee report details the story of a woman at Roanoke College in Salem, Virginia, who described her motivational decline following the addition of a transgender woman, who was biologically male, to her swim team.

“It felt unfair and demotivating … to even want to try [or] to want to swim better,” the unnamed female athlete is quoted as saying.

Sixteen of 17 female swimmers on the team ultimately penned a letter to the athletic director in which they relayed “feeling manipulated and scared.”

CUBA PROTESTERS DEMAND FOOD, ELECTRICITY AS RUBIO SAYS NATION ON ‘VERGE OF COLLAPSE’ FROM MARXIST POLICIES

“Our lives have been consumed by this issue. We cannot think about our classes as we sit in lectures, we cannot enjoy our practices,” the women wrote.

Cassidy during a hearing

Sen. Bill Cassidy, R-La., speaks during a confirmation hearing for Secretary of Veterans Affairs nominee Denis McDonough. (Sarah Silbiger/Pool via AP)

The report summarizes the similar testimony of a female cyclist at Fort Lewis College in Durango, Colorado: “I’ve wondered what’s the point in even racing,” she is quoted as saying.

Two members of the women’s swim team at the University of Pennsylvania, which became a headline-generating subject during transgender swimmer Lia Thomas’s domination in the sport, recalled feeling that their school was prioritizing Thomas over them.

JUDGE ORDERS FBI TO HAND OVER TRANS SCHOOL SHOOTER AUDREY HALE’S MANIFESTO

“Our voices as women were completely silenced,” they said. “If we wanted privacy and safety and equality, then we were bigots. This has roots in misogyny, and allowing this to go on is misogynistic.”

“This is not bigotry,” Cassidy said, noting that those interviewed for the investigation did not have anything against transgender individuals.

Roanoke College swim team

Members of the Roanoke College women’s swim team attend a press conference. (OutKick)

“These people we interviewed stressed they’ve got nothing against transgenders as a group,” he said.

Riley Gaines, a former NCAA champion swimmer at the University of Kentucky, told the committee that female competitors were never warned about having to share their locker room with biological males, with male anatomy, at the 2022 NCAA Championship. When she realized that was the case, Gaines said she “experienced feelings of betrayal.” When she questioned the policy, she said the attitudes of officials were “if women feel uncomfortable with this, they should feel apologetic” and that they are ultimately those who should seek counseling to overcome it.

Since experiencing this, Gaines, an OutKick contributor and host for “Gaines for Girls,” has become an advocate for protecting women’s sports.

Riley Gaines and Lia Thomas

Riley Gaines, right, now a spokesperson for the Independent Women’s Forum, famously tied transgender swimmer Lia Thomas, left, for fifth place in the 200 freestyle finals at the NCAA Swimming and Diving Championships in 2022. (Brett Davis-USA TODAY Sports)

According to Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona, the proposed Title IX rule change was because “Every student should be able to have the full experience of attending school in America, including participating in athletics, free from discrimination.” 

“Being on a sports team is an important part of the school experience for students of all ages,” he said at the time of the rule’s announcement. 

GOP SENATOR RIPS BIDEN’S ‘GUN-GRABBING’ DOJ FOR TAKING NEARLY 2 YEARS TO ANSWER FOR CONTROVERSIAL POLICY

But Cassidy pushed back on this, saying this rule is “the death of Title IX.”

“I find it ironic the Biden administration talks about the mental health of the transgender individuals as a reason why they’re pushing those,” he said.

“They’re totally ignoring the mental health and the feelings of fairness of the women who are competing,” the senator said. 

Cassidy said that, alternatively, “We are trying to actually uphold the original intent of Title IX” by ensuring women are given a fair shot in relation to men.

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On Wednesday, Cassidy and fellow HELP member Sen. Tommy Tuberville, R-Ala., penned letters to the NCAA and Cardona to inquire about the policies on transgender participation and their enforcement as well as official communications on the controversial subject.

Neither the Department of Education nor the NCAA provided comments when contacted by Fox News Digital.



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IL GOP Rep. Bost fends off primary challenge, is nominated for 6th term


U.S. Rep Mike Bost has won the Republican nomination in southern Illinois after a hard-fought primary battle with former state Sen. Darren Bailey.

Bailey, the 2022 GOP nominee for Illinois governor, challenged the five-term incumbent, claiming he was not conservative enough for the district that encompasses virtually the entire bottom one-third of the state. He sought the endorsement of former President Donald Trump, but Trump chose Bost.

ILLINOIS REPUBLICAN CONGRESSIONAL CANDIDATES FIGHT FOR FAVOR OF TRUMP SUPPORTERS

Bost thanked Trump during a speech to supporters late Tuesday where he claimed victory. He emphasized the need for party unity.

UNITED STATES – DECEMBER 6: Rep. Mike Bost, R-Ill., is seen on the House steps of the U.S. Capitol on Tuesday, December 6, 2022.  (Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)

“I don’t compromise my morals, but this nation is built on finding common ground,” he said.

Bailey, 57, attempted to capitalize on the shift to the right in the 12th District after the 2020 Census. A Marine Corps veteran, the 63-year-old Bost is chairman of the House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs and has seats on the Agriculture and Transportation and Infrastructure committees. He made the case that seniority, know-how and relationships he’s developed allow him to provide better constituent service and move legislation helpful to the district more readily than a newcomer who needs “on-the-job training.”

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Bost is widely expected to win in November when he will face Democrat Brian Roberts, a Carbondale attorney.



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