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We’re all missing the socialist takeover that’s happening in plain sight

Fri, 03 Jul 2026 07:00:52 -0400

The Democratic establishment is in denial as a socialist insurgency grows inside its own party. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer calls Democrats "a great united party," even as Democratic Socialists of America-backed challengers defeat incumbents and organize as a disciplined voting bloc. Party leaders dismiss them as a fringe, but the DSA is building a "Freedom Caucus of the left" with the power to withhold votes, pressure leadership and force a socialist agenda.

Socialism is becoming the Democrats’ answer to MAGA because both movements are responding to the anger of Americans who feel forgotten by providing solutions. The median first-time homebuyer is now 40. Young Americans are struggling with the costs of housing, inflation and fewer opportunities. Parents are paying more for housing, groceries, healthcare and childcare while it seems like political leaders are insulated from the policies they pass.

MAGA speaks to the frustration by offering solutions centered on work, family, ownership, secure borders and national belonging. Democratic leaders keep defining their mission around getting President Donald Trump, leaving socialists to fill the economic void with promises of government relief from every economic hardship.

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The DSA does not need to win the nomination to guide the policies of a presidency. It just needs the ability to impact a future Democratic nominee.

The greatest warning of a socialist capture is the recent actions by the darling of the Democrat Party, California Gov. Gavin Newsom. He opposed California’s one-time 5% billionaire wealth tax, warning that it would drive wealth from the state. Then he proposed a federal version. He recognized the economic danger but advanced the policy anyway. That is what a takeover looks like. Extremists gain enough power that politicians embrace policies they once rejected just to keep their support.

The DSA spent years building a political machine to force submission. It trained organizers, supported candidates, developed policies and targeted low-turnout Democratic primaries. Its candidates have won across at least seven states and Washington, D.C., this election cycle, from local races and state legislatures to congressional primaries. Its influence grows as Democrats, under the guise of a "big tent," embrace the DSA agenda to avoid becoming a primary target. Political fear is forcing Democrats to embrace socialism.

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The polling shows why this strategy is working. Half of young Americans say inflation affects them "a lot," while 41% say the same about rising housing costs. Only 29% believe they will be financially better off than their parents. The younger generation is losing faith that hard work will deliver stability, homeownership or upward mobility and is looking for a party to fill the void.The socialist left has swooped in, hiding state control behind the word affordability, and young voters are listening.

The DSA offers voters affordability, which sounds like a win. However, the broader agenda includes public ownership, expanded welfare, defunding ICE, antisemitism, wealth redistribution and greater government control over housing. Socialism sells government control to pay for rent, groceries and medical bills, but the cost for this is less freedom over work, property and the future.

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Gallup finds that 57% of Americans view socialism negatively. This is a massive warning because the DSA does not need to win the presidency to wield power. A DSA congressional bloc can withhold votes and obstruct a president’s agenda until its policy concessions are made. Republicans have already seen how a small House faction can dictate terms to an entire majority and delay key legislation.

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The next Democratic president does not need to wave a socialist flag. A president can reject the label while socialist lawmakers block votes and activists enter the administration demanding policy changes. The movement succeeds as it continues to get policy concessions.

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America’s promise belongs to those born here and those who came legally. It is the freedom to work, build, own property and govern our own lives. The American Dream can be renewed through affordable energy, secure borders, hard work, homeownership, raising a family and the chance to get ahead. Socialism is a dead end because it promises wealth redistribution, punishes ambition and increases government dependency.

Socialists are already using their power to dictate how Democratic leaders govern. Americans demanding the return of common sense should recognize the warning before the American Dream becomes the American nightmare.

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We asked Americans to grade the economy. Then we asked if it would change their vote.

Fri, 03 Jul 2026 07:00:47 -0400

As Americans gather in the nation's capital to celebrate the Fourth of July and kick off the nation's 250th anniversary festivities, Fox News Digital asked attendees at the Great American Fair on the National Mall whether the economy will influence how they vote in November.

While most respondents gave the U.S. economy a passing grade — most commonly a "B" — many said their ballots won't hinge on inflation, jobs or economic growth alone. Instead, they pointed to values, leadership and party affiliation as the factors that will ultimately decide their vote.

The responses offer a snapshot of how some voters are weighing one of the nation's top political issues ahead of the 2026 midterms.

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Although respondents expressed cautious optimism about the economy's direction, several said improving conditions would not be enough to change their political preferences, underscoring the role that broader ideological and cultural issues continue to play in shaping voter decisions.

"I would probably give the economy, compared to what it was, I would give it a B for sure," Jay Miller of Lafayette, Louisiana, told Fox News Digital. "I think we are on the verge of an economic boom like we've never seen in our nation. And I'm glad that I'm living at this point and this time to witness it firsthand."

Miller said he believes lawmakers should work more closely with President Donald Trump to advance the administration's agenda, arguing that doing so would help unlock further economic growth.

Donna Festinger from Greenfield, Massachusetts, also gave the economy above average marks, grading it a "B-plus."

"I think it's on the rise and we're getting more and more jobs, which I think really helps everyone in America," the retired schoolteacher told Fox News Digital. "I think this administration is working hard to help everybody earn more money and to be able to save more money, which will circle back into a better economy."

But not everyone in Washington, D.C. this week was as upbeat.

FOX NEWS POLL: MOST RATE THE ECONOMY NEGATIVELY, INCLUDING HALF OF REPUBLICANS

Bonnie from Hollister, California gave the economy a "C," citing ongoing concerns about prices, but said she's hopeful conditions will continue improving.

"I don't think it's great right now," she said, citing high gas prices in her home state of California. "I would say maybe a C, but I'm hopeful that it's going to turn around and be getting up to a B soon."

Dan Cuda, 72, landed somewhere in the middle, saying the economy still has "a lot of upside potential" despite inflation.

"Groceries are pricey. I'm an Air Force veteran, and I'm still shopping at the military commissaries, and it's noticeably up," Cuda, a Maryland resident, told Fox News Digital.

Military commissaries are grocery stores on military installations that offer discounted prices to eligible service members, veterans and their families.

Despite higher food costs, Cuda still said, "I'd call it a... B economy."

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When the conversation shifted from the economy to politics, several Americans said economic conditions weren't the deciding factor in how they plan to vote.

"It doesn't really factor into my vote," Cuda said, adding "I'm voting R no matter what."

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Miller echoed that sentiment, saying character and values outweigh economic performance when it comes to casting his vote at the ballot box.

"Give me good people," he said. "Give me conservatives. Give me somebody with a little faith, a little family, a little value. And that's got my vote."

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Bonnie also said the economy matters, but won't change her support for her preferred candidate.

"It does matter, but it's not gonna keep me from voting for who I wanna vote for," the Californian said.

What killed Americans in 1776? The answer is dramatically different from today

Fri, 03 Jul 2026 07:00:38 -0400

The leading causes of death have changed dramatically since America's founding 250 years ago, highlighting how far medicine has come.

Diseases that once devastated communities have largely given way to chronic conditions, data shows, reflecting centuries of breakthroughs in public health, prevention and treatment.

"The amount of changes that have happened over the past 250 years are immeasurable when it comes to life expectancy and disease," Kenneth J. Perry, M.D., an emergency physician in Charleston, South Carolina, told Fox News Digital.

5 OF AMERICA'S GREATEST MEDICAL BREAKTHROUGHS REVEALED AS THE NATION MARKS 250 YEARS

"Our life expectancy as a country increased from roughly 30 years at the time of the country’s founding to close to 80 years today."

What killed Americans in 1776?

Although there were no official national mortality records in 1776, historians agree that the following illnesses were responsible for the largest number of deaths.

Smallpox: This viral disease, which causes fever and a blistering rash, had about a 30% fatality rate before the first vaccine became available in 1796. Historians estimate that the North American epidemic killed at least 100,000 to 130,000 people over several years.
Tuberculosis: Also known as consumption, this bacterial infection primarily attacks the lungs. It was one of the leading chronic causes of adult death in the colonies, according to the National Library of Medicine (NLM).
Pneumonia: A lung infection that fills air sacs with fluid or pus, pneumonia was frequently fatal in 1776 because no antibiotics or effective treatments existed, per the National Institutes of Health (NIH).
Dysentery and diarrheal diseases: Intestinal infections, which caused severe diarrhea and dehydration, were common in 1776 because of poor sanitation and contaminated food and water, especially in military camps, per NIH and NLM.
Malaria: This mosquito-borne parasitic disease causes recurrent fever and chills. It was endemic throughout much of the Southern colonies, the CDC states.
Yellow fever: A mosquito-borne viral disease, yellow fever can cause liver failure and bleeding. Periodic epidemics struck colonial port cities in the late 1700s, NLM records show.
Typhoid fever: This is a bacterial infection that spreads through contaminated food and water. Recurring outbreaks were common in places where sanitation was poor, historians confirm.
Childbirth complications: Maternal deaths from hemorrhage, infection or obstructed labor were common in 1776. This was a major cause of death among women of childbearing age, the NLM states.
Wound infections: In colonial times, cuts or injuries often led to bacterial infections. These could prove fatal because antisepsis therapies, germ theory and antibiotics did not yet exist.
Infant mortality: It was extremely common for children to die before age 1, with roughly 10% to 30% of infants not living to their first birthday in many colonial communities, historical records show.

These conditions had much higher fatality rates in 1776 because Americans had no antibiotics, few vaccines, no understanding of germ theory, no sterile surgical techniques and limited access to hospitals, experts note.

There was also a lack of safe drinking water, modern sewage systems and refrigeration, making it more likely for foodborne and waterborne illnesses to spread.

Patients also did not yet have access to blood transfusions, anesthesia and other lifesaving medical advances, according to the CDC, NLM and NIH.

Common causes of death in the 1900s

The first official national mortality statistics were published by the U.S. Census Bureau in 1900.

The data points to the following leading causes of death in the 1900s.

Influenza & pneumonia: Viral flu and bacterial/viral lung infections were responsible for about 40,000 to 65,000 deaths per year during the period between 1900 and 1910, according to the CDC’s National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS).
Tuberculosis: The bacteria lung infection claimed about 35,000 to 40,000 lives per year during that same time frame, per the above source.
Diarrhea/enteritis: Intestinal infections causing severe dehydration led to approximately 25,000 to 35,000 annual deaths between 1900 and 1910.
Heart disease: Diseases affecting the heart and circulatory system killed between 27,000 and 40,000 Americans per year in this time frame, according to NCHS.
Stroke: Strokes, which interrupt the flow of blood to the brain, took between 20,000 and 30,000 lives annually.
Kidney disease: Diseases that impair kidney function (also called nephritis), killed between 17,000 and 25,000 people in the U.S. each year, data shows.
Accidents: Between 15,000 and 22,000 Americans died each year from unintentional injuries at work, home and in transportation, per NCHS.
Cancer: Various types of cancer, in which malignant tumors invade surrounding tissues, contributed to between 13,000 and 20,000 deaths annually in this time frame.
Senility: This was a historical diagnosis for deaths attributed to old age in the early 1900s. It was listed as the cause of death for about 12,000 to 18,000 people per year.
Diphtheria: The bacterial throat infection, which can block the airway, led to 8,000 to 12,000 deaths per year, mortality data highlights.

Nearly one-third of all deaths were caused by pneumonia, tuberculosis and diarrheal diseases, and about 30% of all deaths occurred in children younger than age 5, records show.

Medical breakthroughs that transformed survival

The introduction of vaccines dramatically reduced certain diseases, including smallpox, polio, diphtheria, measles and whooping cough. In 1980, smallpox became the first human disease ever eradicated worldwide.

Improvements in clean water and sanitation also contributed to greater longevity, as cities built sewage systems, water treatment plants and indoor plumbing, according to the CDC. As a result, deaths from cholera, dysentery and typhoid fever fell dramatically.

Germ theory also emerged in the late 1800s, in which scientists discovered that germs caused disease. This led to vast transformations in surgery, childbirth, handwashing, sterilization and infection control, per NIH and the Science History Institute.

Routine screening has enabled earlier detection of breast, cervical and colorectal cancers, while improvements in surgery, radiation therapy, chemotherapy, targeted therapies and immunotherapy have helped many patients live longer.

A recent analysis by the National Cancer Institute found that prevention and screening accounted for about 80% of the cancer deaths averted over the past 45 years for five major cancer types.

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In the 1940s, the widespread use of penicillin allowed for the treatment of diseases that were once fatal, including pneumonia, strep infections, wound infections and sepsis.

Advances in childbirth — including prenatal care, Cesarean sections, blood transfusions, antibiotics and neonatal intensive care — also dramatically improved maternal and infant survival compared with colonial America.

The mid-20th century also ushered in improvements in heart disease treatments. The use of CPR, defibrillators, coronary care units, bypass surgery, stents, statins and blood pressure medications helped to reduce cardiovascular deaths, according to the American Heart Association.

What’s killing Americans today?

In a vast contrast to 1776, chronic diseases now account for most American deaths, because people generally live long enough to develop them.

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Current U.S. health data shows that the following conditions are now the leading causes of death.

Heart disease: Disorders affecting the heart and blood vessels, including coronary artery disease and heart attacks, killed more than 638,000 Americans in 2024, according to NCHS data.
Cancer: Approximately 619,876 people died of cancer in the U.S. in 2024.
Unintentional injuries: Accidental deaths, including drug overdoses, motor vehicle crashes and falls, were the causes of more than 197,440 deaths that same year, records show.
Stroke: Interruption of blood flow to the brain, which causes brain damage, claimed 166,852 American lives in 2024, per NCHS.
Chronic lower respiratory disease: Long-term lung diseases — such as COPD, emphysema and chronic bronchitis — killed 145,643 people in the U.S. that year.
Alzheimer's disease: The most common type of dementia, which destroys memory and cognitive function, was responsible for 116,022 deaths in 2024, NCHS data shows.
Diabetes: The chronic disease, which impairs the body’s ability to properly regulate blood sugar, contributed to 94,445 deaths that year.
Kidney disease: Diseases that damage the kidneys and impair their ability to filter blood were blamed for 55,081 deaths in 2024.
Chronic liver disease/cirrhosis: Progressive liver damage caused by conditions such as hepatitis, alcohol misuse or fatty liver disease were responsible for 52,274 deaths that year, per NCHS.
Suicide: Death caused by intentional self-harm claimed 48,824 lives in 2024. (If you or someone you know is having thoughts of suicide, please contact the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-TALK (8255).)

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"The transformation of deaths in the last 250 years, largely from infectious diseases to currently chronic debilitating diseases, represents both success and new challenges Americans will have to face," Dr. Omer Awan, a physician and professor at the University of Maryland School of Medicine, told Fox News Digital.

The uptick in chronic diseases is driven not only by an increasingly aging population, but by people’s lifestyle behaviors, according to the doctor.

"The chronic disease epidemic has been fueled by lack of exercise, as well as diets rich in fats, salts and ultraprocessed foods," he told Fox News Digital. "This has also led to the rise of obesity, which contributes to many of the chronic medical conditions that are among the top killers for Americans in the modern era."

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Public health advances can change the course of health for millions of Americans, Awan said.

"Just as vaccines and antibiotics prolonged life centuries ago, so can lifestyle changes, exercise and new therapies that target obesity — like GLP-1 drugs and medications that promote better metabolic health."

FIRST ON FOX: James Talarico slammed for calling American flag ‘complicated symbol’ ahead of Independence Day

Fri, 03 Jul 2026 05:30:33 -0400

FIRST ON FOX: Conservative political action committee Lone Star Liberty is bashing Democratic Senate hopeful James Talarico ahead of Independence Day as "an America-laster" for calling the American flag a "complicated symbol."

In an attack ad released Thursday, Lone Star Liberty PAC ripped Talarico, a Democratic state lawmaker running to flip a critical Senate seat. The ad juxtaposes Talarico’s statement with images of Americans waving the flag. The ad concludes, "It’s not complicated. It’s 250 years of freedom."

Further, Lone Star Liberty spokesperson Gregg Keller told Fox News Digital, "It’s clear from James Talarico’s political record he hates America."

"Talarico’s gone out of his way his entire political career to make that clear: whether it’s saying the American flag is a ‘complicated symbol’ or his attacks on the Bible and the American family," Keller said.

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Keller drew a comparison between Talarico and the Republican Senate nominee, current Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton.

"We think it’s important Texans realize this Independence Day what the stakes in this election are: an America-loving Patriot, Ken Paxton, or an America-laster, James Talarico," said Keller.

JT Ennis, a spokesperson for Talarico’s campaign, responded to the critique by telling Fox News Digital that "James believes the American flag means freedom, opportunity, and hope -– and that this broken, corrupt political system is robbing hardworking Texans of the American dream that our flag promises."

He said that "meanwhile, Ken Paxton is vacationing in Iceland for the 4th of July after he became a multimillionaire in office and ripped off Texans by abusing his position of power to benefit himself and his billionaire mega donors."

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Talarico is a former middle school teacher in San Antonio and a Presbyterian seminarian. He was propelled to the national stage earlier this year when he defeated Rep. Jasmine Crockett, D-Texas, for the Democratic Party’s nomination for U.S. Senate. Since entering the national consciousness, he has taken significant criticism over his history of controversial statements, including saying he "hates Christianity," calling God "nonbinary," and asserting that "radicalized white men are the greatest domestic terrorist threat in our country."

In one resurfaced clip, Talarico appears to be giving a sermon in front of a church congregation when he says, "I often think, when reclaiming symbols, I think about the American flag. I think the Confederate flag is a symbol of treason and terrorism. But the American flag is such a complicated symbol for most of us."

Talarico goes on to say, "In many ways, like Jesus, like the cross, it's [the American flag] been co-opted and, in some ways, its true meaning has been betrayed."

WATCH: TALARICO EMBRACES ‘FREAKY’ IDENTITY AS CROWDS CHANT NAME MEANT AS INSULT: ‘SO WEIRD’

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Despite the criticism, Eric Koch, a Democratic strategist familiar with the race, told Fox News Digital that "this attack is going to fall flat for a very simple reason: James is a red-blooded American, an 8th generation Texan who was a teacher, preaches across the state, studies the Bible, and served his community in the legislature."

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Koch said that "over the top attacks that are absurd on their face go in one ear and out the other — especially when you are defending the Most Corrupt Politician in America, Ken Paxton."

Fox News Digital reached out to Paxton’s campaign for comment.

Sports cartoons of the day

Mon, 22 Jun 2026 11:08:52 -0400

Yes, the United States was treated unfairly by the controversial Folarin Balogun red card decision

Fri, 03 Jul 2026 06:11:11 -0400

The USMNT is through to the round of 16 after winning their first knockout stage game at a World Cup since 2002. By any measure, the 2026 tournament has been a resounding success, both for the United States as a host, and for U.S. soccer.

For the first time in, well, maybe forever, the U.S. Men's National Team looks, at times, dominant. They control play and control possession. They're threading through balls at an elite international level. They've outscored their opponents 8-1 with their starting 11 on the field. Malik Tillman's free kick goal to cement the 2-0 win over Bosnia & Herzegovina was world class.

And it all might be taken away by absurd, unfair officiating.

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Folarin Balogun's red card came as the result of a series of ridiculous, unforgivable errors from the officials in this match. And the players, coaches, and fans have noticed and pointed out what the laughable "process" has done to the legitimacy of FIFA's officiating staff.

The biggest mistake? That the decision to go to VAR was made in the first place. Andy Davies, a referee who worked in the Premier League and Championship and was a Select Group referee for over 12 seasons, published a short analysis of the VAR process on this play for ESPN, saying that the review should never have taken place.

"VAR made their recommendation to the referee based on slow-motion and still replays, which is not aligned with VAR protocols, as these should be used for only point-of-contact purposes in a red card tackle situation," Davies wrote.

Davies did explain that based on the letter of the rules, the tackle itself was always likely to receive a red card. But the review should never have happened, because it was only recommended based on slow-motion replays.

Importantly, too, many other similar plays have happened throughout the tournament, with no reviews or red cards given. And the players know it.

"Obviously the ref made a decision that he made, but I think it’s questionable," said USMNT star Weston McKennie after the match. "I think there’s been many other plays like that throughout the tournament on other players that a card wasn’t given at all. It’s disappointing."

The most prominent similar play? One involving Argentinian star Lionel Messi. Messi, in the early stages, went after a loose ball against Algeria, only to catch Aissa Mandi with his studs up. Algeria were awarded a free kick, but no card for Messi, and no review from VAR.

Algeria were so furious about the no call that they filed a complaint to FIFA for the poor officiating.

There have been plenty of other similar plays throughout the World Cup that also received no review. And because FIFA is FIFA, there is no process for appealing Balogun's suspension for the massive Round of 16 matchup against Belgium on Monday.

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The referee on the field, Raphael Claus, has previously been investigated for match fixing in Brazil, though of course, there's no indication that this was a motivating factor in this case. But Claus also did not see anything on the field, at full speed, to warrant a card at all, let alone a red. Only after the VAR official incorrectly used slow-motion to recommend a second look, did he send Balogun off.

Fans of the USMNT are right to be furious with this call. Not only were the rules misapplied, according to an expert referee with years of elite experience, but similar plays during this tournament have been ignored. This isn't just about Messi, but it's impossible not to see the double standard. VAR officials would never, ever, call for a review of a red card on the tournament's most famous player. But they did so against Balogun and the USMNT.

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The USMNT may go on to beat Belgium on Monday, even without their star striker. Or they might get eliminated without him. The former would not excuse the referee's poor decision making and process. The latter would put a permanent stain on the 2026 World Cup and potentially damage the future of the sport in the United States. It's unlikely bordering on impossible that the USMNT win the tournament, with or without Balogun. But a loss, coming after such an absurd, farcical process, and removing the possibility of a gigantic matchup against Spain or Portugal in the quarterfinals in Los Angeles, would be unforgivable.

But for FIFA, unforgivable is just another day at the office.

Ahead of America's 250th birthday, faith group urges families to reconnect through patriotic traditions

Fri, 03 Jul 2026 06:00:58 -0400

As the U.S. prepares to celebrate its 250th birthday, a faith organization is urging parents to make the most of Independence Day by reconnecting with their kids and taking time to teach them about the nation's founding ideals.

Ahead of July 4, Communio, a faith-based organization focused on strengthening families, released its "Great American Family Fun Kit," complete with activity ideas, recipes for patriotic treats, and a prayer for the nation. Some of the activities include trying to use 18th-century slang, making a gratitude jar, creating a family flag and having an Independence Day-themed scavenger hunt.

"When you think about all the holidays we have as a country, the Fourth of July, the Independence Day is — of our non-religious holidays — it's right up there with Thanksgiving as being the most important family celebration that we have as a country," Communio founder and president J.P. De Gance told Fox News Digital.

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Communio is using its partnerships that cover 17,000 churches across the U.S. to reach out to families and encourage them to celebrate Independence Day through neighborhood gatherings, block parties and activities to build their communities.

"The most fundamental building block of a society is not the individual, it's the family," De Gance said.

De Gance told Fox News Digital that Communio's Great American Family Fun Kit reflects the organization's belief that strong families are the foundation of strong communities.

"I think there's a lot of recent polling data that shows love of country, good old-fashioned patriotism, has declined in our nation amongst a lot of folks. And the goal here is to tie people back to the ideals of our founding and do so in a really grassroots, organic way at the local level," De Gance said of Communio's Great American Family Fun Kit.

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While the kit's activities are centered around America's 250th birthday, De Gance said their broader purpose is to encourage families to spend more meaningful time together away from screens. He asserted that even simple activities can create these opportunities for parents and children to connect.

"One of the things that we know about family life is that parents and kids who communicate regularly, those kids report a more warm and good relationship with mom and dad," De Gance told Fox News Digital. He added that children who have good relationships with their parents tend to have better long-term outcomes and are more likely to see faith as an important part of their lives.

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While at first glance, the kit appears to be geared toward families with younger children, it also contains activities aimed at teen engagement too. De Gance suggested that the scavenger hunt activity could be used to get children of different ages to do something together.

De Gance also pointed to rising rates of reported loneliness and sadness among American teenagers, arguing that family time could be key to combatting these issues.

"I think if we were honest with ourselves… there's probably not a high number of those kids who would report having frequent time with their family and siblings and recreation and fun together, right?" he said. "Because when that happens, they're more likely to report having a good relationship with their mom and dad, and they're less likely to report being lonely and being isolated."

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As he looks to America's future, De Gance would like to see a revival of healthy marriages and family life across the nation. He said he is hopeful that young people are becoming more focused on finding purpose in "enduring things," such as faith, marriage and family.

"The pathway to making sure that we celebrate America 300 and America 350 and America 400, really runs through the family," he said.

James Carville breaks with famous ‘It’s the economy, stupid’ slogan because of Trump

Fri, 03 Jul 2026 06:00:44 -0400

James Carville, the architect of President Bill Clinton’s 1992 victory over President George H.W. Bush and industrialist H. Ross Perot, said this week that President Donald Trump has forced him to break with the catchphrase that many believe helped win that election and made him a political household name.

Carville originally coined "It’s the economy, stupid," as an internal reminder to campaign staff at Clinton’s Little Rock headquarters to stay on-message amid Bush’s rising approval ratings connected to his handling of the Gulf War.

But this week, Carville suggested allegations of corruption involving President Donald Trump have supplanted the idea that the economy should remain top of mind during election season.

During a discussion on his "Politicon" podcast network, former Mount Holyoke Dean Joseph Ellis mentioned "It’s the economy, stupid" before the Ragin Cajun cut him off.

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"So, professor, I thought about that recently – about ‘It’s the economy, stupid' – it's a great catchphrase. It's maybe one of the most oft-repeated things in politics," Carville said.

"I now have come to detest the fact I said that."

Without mentioning Trump by name, Carville — who has repeatedly accused the incumbent of corruption in recent months — compared him with the more genteel Bush.

"I'll listen to people who say, ‘people don't care about corruption, they care about the economy — As long as their incomes are up, they don't care what he does’ – and I'm afraid that's right."

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"But I said it in 1992, and say what you want about George H.W. Bush, he was not… a corrupt man at all; decent man too. We have now the breathtaking, staggering — I understand if people say, ‘Yeah, you know, you're right, that's all people care about is the economy, and I won't do it, I don't say anything, I'm nice’," he said, appearing to envision voters preferring to focus on the economy over other personality issues.

"I want to punch him in the f---ing face. OK? Yes. I'm serious… Because the phrase actually haunts me today."

Asked about the invective, White House spokesman Davis Ingle called the Ragin' Cajun a "stone-cold loser."

"[Carville] suffers from a severe and incurable disease known as Trump Derangement Syndrome, and it has rotted his peanut-sized brain," Ingle said.

During an earlier discussion with his co-host, former Wall Street Journal Washington bureau chief Al Hunt, Carville said that "we are drowning; we’re suffocating in corruption" before accusing Trump of increasing his net worth by $2 billion since becoming president.

"I’m just really fearful for the United States," he added.

In February, Carville directed one of his segments at Trump as though the president was watching, telling the president that his inner circle "hates" him and that he is a "fat, sorry, sack of s---."

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Since then, he has continued criticizing the president and recently said he is proud to have the proverbial "Trump Derangement Syndrome."

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Carville has been a mainstay in Democratic politics ever since helping engineer Clinton’s 1992 victory, alongside other notable campaign aides, including ABC News anchor George Stephanopoulos, whom Trump also spars with on occasion.

Clinton’s 1992 campaign produced several enduring touchstones, from Carville’s "It’s the economy, stupid," to Fleetwood Mac’s 1977 hit "Don’t Stop," which became the de facto theme song for his successful bid.

Carville's comments about his old slogan also come as he recently rebuked socialist nominees taking over his party.

Fox News Digital reached out to Carville via his "Politicon" podcast for further comment.

MMA fighter leans on faith in quest to catch suspected child predators

Fri, 03 Jul 2026 06:00:39 -0400

DELRAY BEACH, Fla. – Dustin Lampros strides into a grocery store, scanning the aisles for his target. But it’s not an item on the shelf that he’s pursuing. It’s a suspected child predator.

The mixed martial arts (MMA) fighter has been working to expose alleged child predators since 2022. On social media, where he shares about his quest, he’s known as 561 Predator Catcher, a nod to his hometown area code.

To his friends and in cage fights, he’s Scrappy. He earned the nickname on the fourth-grade football field after taking on two bigger boys who’d picked on him.

His mission to catch adults who prey on children was launched when a friend in cybersecurity told him about the online danger.

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Lampros had just recommitted to his faith, he told Fox News Digital. He’d started praying to know God’s will for his life.

He was stunned when his friend demonstrated the problem.

It took minutes to create a fake profile for a 13-year-old girl, "Amy," on a platform known for facilitating connections.

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It took seconds for men to make contact. "We had multiple grown adults reaching out trying to talk to who they thought was a 13-year-old," Lampros said, fuming at the memory.

That sparked painful memories.

"Two people close to me in my life were victims," he said, including a close childhood friend. "He was raped by our principal from sixth to eighth grade."

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Lampros felt a calling on his life.

"Instantly, I knew that I was meant to do something.

"I could help."

Bait and switch

Now, the 32-year-old professional fighter coordinates with people across the country who work as decoys posing as children. They converse online. They exchange photos.

Once an in-person meeting is arranged, and plans for sexual activity are discussed, Lampros prepares to pounce.

At the agreed-upon time, he waits outside the meet-up location. And when he spots the person who’s been communicating with the child, he places a 911 call to police.

Then, he strolls inside. Coolly and confidently, he walks up and addresses his "target" by name.

Immediately, Lampros pummels them with questions about why they’re there, who they’d planned to meet, and what they’d planned to do. He films the interactions on Meta glasses.

"I've gotten really good at getting these guys to just kind of … admit everything to me," he said. Twice, his targets were women. One was a law enforcement officer. Several have been teachers.

When their answers to his questions don’t match the conversations decoys shared with him in screenshots, he brandishes his phone.

"I have all the messages right here," Lampros reveals.

When police arrive, he turns over the messages and his video of the "catch," as he calls it, as evidence.

He credits his MMA training and his faith for his ability to stay calm.

"Inside I'm fuming, I'm boiling," he said.

"The goal is to get these guys arrested, charged, and convicted, and I know that if I put my hands on them, or if I act out, I know that that can affect the case. So, therefore, I keep myself calm, and keep myself composed."

Fighting to protect children

Lampros trains at the MMA Science Academy in Sunrise, Florida. The other fighters and coaches celebrate his successes, said the gym owner, Roger Krahl.

By sparring with him and helping him hone his skills, they feel they play a role in his mission, he said.

But they’re mystified by how Lampros refrains from flexing his fighting skills when interacting with alleged child predators.

"We tell him all the time," Krahl said. "But he’s got the perfect personality for it. He stays very calm and keeps his cool, which is obviously a big thing in the cage.

"When you get in there and fight, you’ve got to be calm under pressure. You’ve got to be able to think."

Lampros has completed about 100 catches since 2022. About 10 have resulted in convictions, he said. Others still simmer in the legal pipeline.

"The cases take years," he said.

Meanwhile, his technique has evolved, even softened, he admitted.

He used to order catches to do pushups while waiting for police. Now, he coaxes alleged predators to discuss details on video that can be turned over to police.

"He’s very comfortable," Krahl said, adding that he doesn’t worry about the 5-foot-7 fighter’s safety.

"Obviously, he can protect himself. He’s a high-level professional athlete.

"Even though he’s a smaller guy—a bantamweight, 135 pounds—I wouldn’t worry about him versus anybody. Just a trained professional athlete versus an untrained person is not even fair."

Lampros and his decoy helpers don’t coordinate with law enforcement. He reveals the details when he calls police.

"I tell them exactly what's going on, that there's a grown adult coming there to meet what they believe is a 13- or 14-year-old to engage in sexual activity."

When officers don’t arrive quickly, Lampros stalls.

Twice the situation spiraled dangerously, he said. Once, a man he was questioning pulled a gun from his car. Lampros and his helper fled. Another man wielded a boxcutter during their interaction.

‘God’s will’

Lampros isn’t deterred. If he’s ever badly injured or killed during a "catch," he’ll know he was doing God’s will, he said.

"It took years for police departments and state attorneys to actually look at us as legit and to make these cases stick," Lampros said.

Now, about every month, a years-old case yields a conviction, he said.

Some lawyers in Florida advertise that they can help defend accused child predators who interacted with Lampros. They accuse him of being a vigilante. They subpoena him for depositions. Some insist he’s "just in it for the clicks," he said.

But no matter the cost, Lampros said he’s in this fight for the long term.

He won’t stop working to expose child predators, he said. And when his MMA fighting career is over, he hopes to travel the country, educating parents about how to protect children from online dangers.

Before starting 561 Predator Catcher, Lampros said he was where any young, professional fighter would want to be.

He’d moved from Illinois to South Florida, a hub for the sport. He had a 7-0 record in cage fights, with five knockouts.

His sole focus: becoming a fighter for the UFC. The Ultimate Fighting Championship is the world’s largest professional MMA organization.

But, "I felt very empty," he said. "My whole identity had been behind being an MMA fighter, being ‘Scrappy’ the fighter. I knew that having UFC as my idol wasn't gonna fulfill me. That's when I realized there's got to be something more for me."

He started praying, he said, "asking for His will to be done in my life."

It was then that he was introduced to the idea of catching child predators. "When you start focusing on God's plan, the doors kind of open up."

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"Once I figured that out, and I started living for Him instead of living for Scrappy the Fighter, my life has evolved so much more into such a blessing."

He still hopes to be selected as a fighter in the UFC. But, he said, a fight against evil is far more important. "Knowing that God's on my side, whatever happens, I believe it's God's will."

Vulnerable House Dem's bipartisanship push clashes with fantasy to ‘beat the s--- out of’ Hegseth

Fri, 03 Jul 2026 06:00:38 -0400

Rep. Susie Lee, D-Nev., a swing-district Democrat who touts herself as a bipartisan dealmaker, told a liberal audience she wants to "work across the aisle" before saying moments later that watching Pete Hegseth testify made her want to "beat the s--- out of him."

Lee made the remarks during an appearance last month before the Sun City Liberal Club in Las Vegas while discussing rare earth minerals and her work supporting MP Materials, a Las Vegas-based company involved in U.S. critical minerals production. The comments come as she seeks re-election in Nevada’s closely divided 3rd Congressional District.

"I want to be bipartisan. I want to work across the aisle," Lee told the crowd, according to video of the remarks. But moments later, while discussing Hegseth appearing before her committee, she said, "Now listen, it’s so easy. It’s so easy. Like you just wanna beat the s--- out of him."

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"But you got to bite it," Lee said of wanting to "beat the s---" out of Hegseth.

The Hegseth remark is not the first profanity-laced comment to draw scrutiny for Lee. In April, Fox News Digital reported that Lee deleted an expletive-filled late-night social media post targeting Trump after online backlash, then defended her remarks by saying her "nerve was touched" by what she described as attacks on the Constitution.

"Secretary Hegseth has made life less safe and more expensive for Americans. The war of choice that he and President Trump started has placed more burden on working families by increasing the cost of gas and groceries. And despite promising to immediately review Congresswoman Lee’s request to get Nevada Test and Training Range veterans the health care they need, Secretary Hegseth has dragged his feet for nearly two months," a spokesperson for Lee told Fox News Digital. "Clearly, there are many areas in which Congresswoman Lee does not see eye to eye with the Secretary."

Lee's comments about wanting to beat up Hegseth came while she was teeing up a story to the Sun City Liberal Club about pressing the Secretary of War during a hearing on the Pentagon's decision to invest in an Australian company while supposedly leaving a U.S.-based one out to dry. Lee said she appealed to Hegseth by telling him she believed in "made in America" and questioned why the Pentagon had invested more heavily in a different Australian company as opposed to MP Materials, an American one.

"Now listen, it’s so easy. It’s so easy. Like you just wanna beat the s--- out of him. I mean yea, but you just got to bite it. So this is what I did – he came in front of my committee twice," Lee said as she told the story about the rare earth investments.

"You got to lay on their ego, right?" she continued. "Well, three weeks later, they announced a $2 billion investment in MP Materials, okay? I didn’t want to be sweet with Hegseth, okay, I didn’t. But, you know, you got to do what you got to do to get s--- done, right?"

"Congresswoman Lee set aside [her differences with Hegseth] on behalf of her constituents to secure an investment in a Nevada-based employer that will create hundreds of jobs in southern Nevada," Lee's spokesperson told Fox News Digital. "She will continue putting politics aside and working with anyone — regardless of party — to lower costs, create jobs, and make life better for her constituents."

But Republicans took aim at the remarks as evidence that Lee’s bipartisan brand is at odds with how she talks about Trump administration officials behind closed doors.

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"It's unfortunate for our Republic, near our 250th birthday of this great experiment we call America, that town hall comments like this reveal the truth, and Republican voters should be warned that Democrats, if they take over the majority, will simply spend their time going after President Trump and his administration," said Mark Bednar, former head of communications for former Speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy.

Republicans also took issue with Lee’s claim that her exchange with Hegseth helped spur a major Defense Department investment in MP Materials, accusing the Nevada Democrat of overstating her role while using the story to burnish her bipartisan credentials.

"Either Susie Lee believes her words contain the persuasive power of the word of God, or she's making stuff up and being completely unhinged to boot," said Republican National Committee spokesperson Nick Poché. "Nevadans deserve a leader who will work to deliver for them, not posers whose only objective in office is to improve their stock portfolios like Susie Lee."

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MP Materials eventually signed a major agreement with the Defense Department, including a $400 million Pentagon investment that made the federal government the company’s largest shareholder and other commitments aimed at strengthening the U.S. rare earth magnet supply chain.

Trump kicks off Fourth of July weekend with symbolic salute to America’s legacy

Fri, 03 Jul 2026 06:00:25 -0400

President Donald Trump will open America’s 250th Independence Day weekend with a return to Mount Rushmore, reviving one of the most symbolic scenes of his first administration as the White House stages a week of patriotic events across some of the country’s most recognizable landmarks.

Trump last attended a Mount Rushmore fireworks display in 2020, when the landmark hosted its first official fireworks show since 2009.

Trump issued a presidential action in January to honor the history of America, ordering "a grand celebration worthy of the momentous occasion of the 250th anniversary of American Independence on July 4, 2026." On both a federal and state level, the nation has thrown a summer line up of events including the "Great American State Fair" on the National Mall.

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Trump kicked off the fair on June 24 by hosting a rally the night before the beginning of the fair.

He will return Saturday for the "Salute to America" event, where he is expected to take the stage.

Washington, D.C., has been placed under an "Extreme Heat Alert" until Sunday morning with temperatures predicted to feel like 105°F or hotter, according to DC Homeland Security & Emergency Management.

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Trump’s remarks are expected to begin around 9:00 PM ET, prior to a massive fireworks display on the National Mall that has been touted by the administration as the largest in history.

The National Mall has garnered special attention this year after a string of vandalism against the Reflecting Pool and monuments.

The pattern emerged after Trump ordered a restoration and repainting of the reflecting pool, which was then met with "razor-blade cuts" to its lining, according to the White House.

Earlier this week, Trump attended the opening of the Theodore Roosevelt Library in Medora, North Dakota, on Wednesday.

Roosevelt was known for his passion for the outdoors – dramatically expanding federal protection of natural resources and public lands. He established national parks, created national monuments and strengthened the U.S. Forest Service.

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Trump signed the "Great American Outdoors Act Reauthorization," which centers on previous legislation signed by the 45th and 47th president but renews funding in honor of America’s 250th birthday.

Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce's love story in photos as wedding day arrives

Fri, 03 Jul 2026 06:00:19 -0400

Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce's wedding day has arrived.

The couple first sparked romance rumors in 2023, after Kelce spoke about attending an Eras Tour show in Kansas City in the hopes of getting Swift's number during an episode of his podcast "New Heights."

Soon after, Swift was spotted at a Chiefs game, further fueling speculation. Eventually, the two were spotted out together on numerous occasions, confirming they were dating. The two announced their engagement in August 2025, with an Instagram post featuring Kelce on one knee, with the caption, "Your English teacher and your gym teacher are getting married 🧨."

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As their wedding approaches, here is a look back at their relationship over the years, in pictures.

Chiefs game

Swift made headlines when she was photographed sitting next to Kelce's mom, Donna, at a Kansas City Chiefs game in September 2023.

Rumors of their relationship continued to swirl after they were photographed leaving Arrowhead Stadium together after the game. The rumors first began after Kelce gave her a shout-out on his podcast in July 2023.

"We started hanging out right after that. So we actually had a significant amount of time that no one knew, which I’m grateful for, because we got to get to know each other," she told Time in her Person of the Year cover story in December 2024. "By the time I went to that first game, we were a couple. I think some people think that they saw our first date at that game? We would never be psychotic enough to hard launch a first date."

'Saturday Night Live'

In one of their first photos out together as a couple, Swift and Kelce were seen arriving to the "Saturday Night Live" after-party, after they both made appearances in an October 2023 episode.

"She's very self-aware," Kelce said of Swift in a June 2024 episode of the "Bussin' with the Boys" podcast. "And I think that's why I really started to really fall for her, was how genuine she is around friends [and] family. It can get crazy for somebody with that much attention ... and she just keeps it so chill and so cool."

Date night

Swift and Kelce began stepping out into public together more often, as they were photographed holding hands during a date night in New York in October 2023.

"I’ve never dealt with it," he told the WSJ in 2024. "But at the same time, I’m not running away from any of it ... The scrutiny she gets, how much she has a magnifying glass on her, every single day, paparazzi outside her house, outside every restaurant she goes to, after every flight she gets off, and she’s just living, enjoying life. When she acts like that, I better not be the one acting all strange."

Post game

Swift was there to comfort Kelce when his team lost to the Buffalo Bills in December 2023.

"I'm enjoying all aspects of life. Me and Taylor are happy," Kelce said on an episode of The Stephen A. Smith Show, in January 2025. "I couldn't be happier to have that confidence and that comfort off the field and all the support I could ever ask for in the stadium."

AFC Champions

Swift and Kelce were all smiles while posing with their arms around one another as they celebrated Kelce and the Kansas City Chiefs becoming the 2024 AFC Champions.

"I don’t know how they know what suite I’m in," she told Time Magazine. "There’s a camera, like, a half-mile away, and you don’t know where it is, and you have no idea when the camera is putting you in the broadcast, so I don’t know if I’m being shown 17 times or once."

"I’m just there to support Travis," she added. "I have no awareness of if I’m being shown too much and pissing off a few dads, Brads, and Chads."

Super Bowl champions

Swift and Kelce could not help but show some PDA as they celebrated the Kansas City Chiefs winning the Super Bowl in February 2024.

"Thank you for coming, baby. Thank you for the support. Thank you for coming," Kelce said to Swift following the win, according to ABC News. "Thank you for making it all the way across the world. You are the best, baby. The absolute best."

Sweet moments

Kelce and Swift were spotted getting cuddly while watching the men's singles final match during the US Open in September 2024.

"Your most popular pop star, beloved musician, somehow met your most popular beloved athlete, and they actually fell in love, and it's just real," Kelce said in an April 2024 episode of his podcast. "Anyone who hates on it is a bitter loser. But I think a lot of people who maybe would expect to hate on it actually love it, and they acknowledge they love it because there's something so American about it or something. There’s something just classic about it."

Eras Tour

Kelce surprised audiences when he joined Swift on stage as a dancer during her performance of "I Can Do It With a Broken Heart" on the London stop of her Eras Tour in June 2024.

"When you say a relationship is public, that means I’m going to see him do what he loves, we’re showing up for each other, other people are there and we don’t care," she told Time Magazine. "The opposite of that is you have to go to an extreme amount of effort to make sure no one knows that you’re seeing someone. And we’re just proud of each other."

Forever date

Swift and Kelce attended a friend's wedding together in New York in September 2024, and were photographed smiling and holding hands outside.

Night out

Kelce debuted a new look when he was photographed holding hands with Swift while sporting a Hawaiian shirt and a mustache while the pair were out together in New York in October 2024.

Yankees

Kelce and Swift took a break from football and the Eras Tour to enjoy an outing in Game 1 of the ALCS, played between the Yankees and the Guardians, in October 2024.

"Something that I'll always remember is when I would finish a take, and I'd say ‘cut,’ and we'd be done with that take, I would always just hear, like, someone cheering from across the studio where we were shooting it, and that one person was my boyfriend, Travis," she said when accepting her award for Video of the Year at the VMAs in September 2024.

"Everything this man touches turns to happiness and fun and magic. So, I want to thank him for adding that to our shoot because I’ll always remember that."

AFC Champions part two

Swift was there to support Kelce when the Chiefs won the AFC Championship again in January 2025, telling Time Magazine, "Football is awesome, it turns out."

She has apparently picked up parts of the game quite quickly, with Kelce telling the "Rich Eisen Show" in September 2024, she even "creates plays for me."

"She had just been so open to learning the game, she didn’t know much about the rules or anything…I think she was just curious about the profession...I know none of the plays have gotten to Coach Reid yet, but if they ever do I’ll make sure everyone knows it was her creation."

Hockey fans

Following the end of football season and the Eras Tour, Swift and Kelce took time to enjoy some other sports, and were all smiles as they watched Game Four of the 2025 Stanley Cup Final in June.

"I knew that he wasn't crazy the first couple of times that we talked. I was just like, 'He's truly getting to know me in a way that's very natural, very normal," she said on an episode of "New Heights" in August 2025. "The way that he could make me laugh so immediately about normal things."

All smiles

Kelce posted photos of the two of them having fun and posing with matching hats while on a boat in July 2025.

"I hadn't experienced somebody in the same shoes as me, having a partner who understands the scrutiny, understands the ups and downs of being in front of millions," Kelce told GQ in August 2025. "That was very relatable, seeing how exhausted she would get after shows."

He added, "She may not think of herself as an athlete. She will never tell anyone that she is an athlete. But I've seen what she goes through. I've seen the amount of work that she puts on her body, and it's mind-blowing."

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Engagement

The two announced their engagement in August 2025, with an Instagram post featuring Kelce on one knee, with the caption, "Your English teacher and your gym teacher are getting married 🧨."

"He's just my favorite person I've ever met, no offense to everyone else, but the fact that this is the person that I get to hang out with every day forever, that's the whole thing of it," she said on the "Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon" in October 2025. "You look at it and you're like, ‘I'm going to hang out with him forever,' and this represents that."

Lovebirds

Swift and Kelce have attended many industry events together, including the iHeartRadio Music Awards in March 2026.

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Courtside fans

Swift and Kelce were most recently spotted sitting court-side at game three of the Eastern Conference Finals played between the Cleveland Cavaliers and the New York Knicks in May 2026.

"I feel like whenever I'm on a date I'm always having the sense of like, I'm a man in the situation, I'm like protective, yeah for sure," Kelce said on his "New Heights" podcast in October 2023. "You always kind of have that feeling — or that self-awareness, I guess."

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Massachusetts woman steps in after 'shameful' Dem governor boycotts Great American State Fair

Fri, 03 Jul 2026 06:00:17 -0400

A patriotic woman from Massachusetts took matters into her own hands after leaders in her state decided to boycott the Great American State Fair out of anger at President Donald Trump — and she showed no mercy to those who made that decision.

"I came here to represent Massachusetts because I didn't want the public to walk into an empty room. I wanted somebody to be there," said Donna Festinger, who paid her own way from the Bay State to the nation's capital to celebrate 250 years of American independence.

Festinger is manning her state's booth at the Great American State Fair on the National Mall, part of the Trump-aligned Freedom 250 event that began on June 25 and ends on July 10.

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She had a clear message for Massachusetts leadership, along with the leadership of other states who also declined to participate in the celebration.

"I'm very disappointed that Maine, Connecticut, Rhode Island and Massachusetts decided — their governments decided not to support this effort to celebrate our American heritage," she said. "It's actually shameful."

"It makes me feel like they really don't love America or Massachusetts — my governor," she said of Democrat Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey, who has had some very public spats with Trump.

Festinger, a former teacher who paid her own way to the event in Washington, D.C. and arrived at the beginning of the celebration, says she plans to stay through the entire 16-day event.

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She told Fox News Digital that she thinks the state boycotts are actually a point of unity for the American public, "because most people are upset about it and do not understand why a governor would do that."

"And so that's actually uniting people, Democrats, Republicans, independents, and agreeing that every state should be proud of our country," Festinger speculated.

She added: "I think the Trump administration is working hard to bring the country together."

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Meanwhile, Healey, known for her rabid anti-Trump streak, mocked the fair in an interview with Boston Public Radio.

Asked whether she would welcome Trump if he visited the state, she reportedly said the president is "too busy with his Great American State Fair down there that everybody’s bailing on."

She also claimed without evidence that Trump is using the fair to "get money into his own pocket," and falsely claimed that states were being charged to participate in the fair.

Festinger also recently garnered some backup at the Massachusetts booth.

Judith Kalaora, a Boston resident, stood at the state's stand dressed to the nines in a Revolutionary War uniform to honor Deborah Sampson, a Massachusetts woman who disguised herself as a man to fight the British.

"I'm hopeful that my being here will unite folks to realize that Boston and Massachusetts have a great spirit, and that that spirit can unite the United States through our nation's heritage and through our military history," said Kalaora.

"I believe that the United States of American has accomplished in 250 years than many other nations have accomplished in 400 or 500 years,"

Eleven states, all run by Democrats, decided to skip the fair.

Some had explicitly anti-Trump reasons in declining to participate. Like Illinois Democrat Gov. J.B. Pritzker citing what he said is Trump's "politicization of America 250 activities."

Oregon's leadership expressed a similar sentiment, though did not mention Trump by name.

"The State of Oregon will not be participating in the Great American State Fair due to both the cost of participating in the Fair and growing concerns that the event in Washington, D.C. is shaping up to be a more partisan affair than originally presented," Democrat Gov. Tina Kotek's office said in a statement.

Kalaora, however, remains optimistic.

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"Times change, and emotions change, and that's okay, as long as we still remember that we've done great things," she said.

"I'm happy to be here."

America's most-searched ice cream brand may surprise you — and there's a healthy reason why

Fri, 03 Jul 2026 06:00:09 -0400

As Americans celebrate National Ice Cream Month this July, the brand they're searching for most online is one that takes an unconventional approach to making frozen desserts.

Halo Top was the most-searched ice cream brand from April 2025 through April 2026, according to Google search trends from all 50 states and Washington, D.C., analyzed in a study from Innerbody Research.

Halo Top markets its ice cream as a "feel-good treat" with "fewer calories and less sugar than other leading brands, with a good source of protein."

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"From the beginning, Halo Top has taken a different path," the company's website says. "While most ice cream brands hide their calorie counts, we put ours right on the front: big, bold and impossible to miss."

Halo Top was founded in 2011 and named "Food Disruptor of the Year" in 2017 by Food Dive after it reported a 2,500% increase in sales the previous year.

Ice cream manufacturer Wells Enterprises, which also owns Blue Bunny, acquired Halo Top in 2019.

The other ice cream brands with the highest search interest after Halo Top were Cold Stone Creamery, Breyers, Talenti and Häagen Dazs, according to the Innerbody Research report.

Searches don't necessarily translate to sales, however. In 2025, Breyers, Blue Bunny and Turkey Hill were the top-selling brands by dollar sales, Dairy Foods Magazine reported.

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"A most-searched list is often a mirror for our anxieties," food scientist and Johns Hopkins University senior lecturer Kantha Shelke told Fox News Digital.

"Halo Top is winning the search bar because it promises indulgence without the consequences naturally associated with that experience."

The Halo Top curiosity is the GLP-1 era translated into dessert, Shelke said.

"Protein-forward, portion-sized, low-sugar and guilt-free indulgence," she said of Halo Top.

Consumers looking for foods that they can enjoy without the guilt is not a new concept, said Maeve Webster, president of Vermont-based food and beverage consulting firm Menu Matters. It happened before with the frozen yogurt trend.

"What is new, particularly with Halo Top, is the technology for how you create a healthier ice cream without the crystallization or the poor flavor or the poor mouthfeel that we may have seen in some previous iterations of these kinds of efforts," Webster told Fox News Digital.

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"The technology is catching up," Webster added. "And increasingly, we'll be able to create healthier versions of these kinds of products that are closer, if not almost exactly like, the original full-indulgence ice cream experience."

Webster also believes social media and inventive marketing played a role in people becoming more interested in Halo Top recently.

"With the volume of information people get on a daily basis, they're probably seeing a lot of things they've never heard of before, haven't seen in the stores and suddenly they're curious about it because they see some video on social media," she said.

Ice cream is often cited as America's favorite dessert, with 97% of Americans saying they love or like ice cream, according to a 2024 International Dairy Foods Association survey. The average American consumes about 20 pounds — almost 4 gallons — of ice cream each year, the association also reported.

Because consumers eat ice cream so often, they're more likely to make an effort to find a brand that enables them to "enjoy ice cream without that guilt and the feeling that you're doing something wrong or bad for yourself," Webster said.

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Foods marketed as "natural" are not the same as "risk-free," and "high protein" is not the same as healthy, Shelke noted.

"Safety and benefit are designed at the formulation stage, not conferred by a claim on the front of the box," she said.

Consumers should beware of light ice creams that use the sugar alcohol erythritol, which is produced through the fermentation of corn, Shelke said.

She cited a 2023 Cleveland Clinic study, published in Nature Medicine, that linked higher blood erythritol levels with increased rates of heart attack and stroke and found the sweetener appeared to make platelets more likely to form clots.

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"The context matters: that is an association in at-risk cardiac patients, it concerns circulating blood levels rather than any single serving and it has been debated in the literature. The authors notably called for long-term safety studies," Shelke said.

"Not a reason to panic. Just a reason to pay attention."

Fox News Digital's News Quiz: July 3, 2026

Fri, 03 Jul 2026 06:00:06 -0400

Test your news knowledge with this week's Fox News Digital News Quiz, featuring a primary upset in Colorado, while police identify the Empire State Building climbers as foreign daredevils.

Looking for another challenge?

Second lady Usha Vance mocking The New York Times for reading political significance into her Old Navy maternity dress and the New York Knicks celebrating their NBA title were featured in last week's News Quiz.

Test your knowledge of cruise controversies, wedding whispers and more in this week's American Culture Quiz.

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If you're looking to play even more, you can find all of our quizzes by clicking here.

Check back next week for the latest News Quiz from Fox News Digital. Thanks for playing!

Maine man uses truck to rescue moose calf from charging bear: 'I knew what I had to do'

Fri, 03 Jul 2026 05:50:35 -0400

A Maine couple used their pickup truck to save a moose calf from a charging bear during a routine fishing trip Thursday, helping reunite the young animal with its mother.

Todd Malcolm told The Associated Press he believed the bear would catch the calf unless he intervened.

"I knew what I had to do, and I just did it," Malcolm said.

WOMAN STALKED BY CHARGING BEAR ON MORNING DOG WALK CAPTURES TERRIFYING ENCOUNTER ON CAMERA

The encounter began when Todd and Elvia Malcolm spotted a female moose near the edge of the woods in Telos Township, Maine, and pulled over hoping to snap a photo.

"I said to Elvia, I said, ‘Grab your phone because you’re going to get a chance to get a picture of a moose,’" Todd Malcolm said.

After parking their truck, the couple noticed the moose appeared unusually agitated — and, as it turned out, for good reason.

TWO HIKERS CAPTURE TERRIFYING VIDEO OF CHARGING GRIZZLY BEARS AT GLACIER NATIONAL PARK

Moments later, a bear and the moose calf burst from the woods and sprinted directly toward their truck, they told the AP.

Todd Malcolm said he was convinced the bear would catch the vulnerable calf and decided to intervene.

"I put the truck in drive and I just stepped on the gas," he said.

CALIFORNIA COUPLE FIGHTS OFF 70-POUND BLACK BEAR WITH HATCHET AND WATER BOTTLE OUTSIDE THEIR HOME

Malcolm said he didn't want to hurt the bear and only intended to put the truck between the predator and the calf.

His plan worked, and the bear darted to the side of the road before disappearing back into the woods.

"Boom, gone, right in the woods," he said.

The ordeal was just as nerve-racking for Elvia Malcolm.

"My heart was racing because I did not want to witness the bear catching the calf," she told the AP. "As soon as the calf got past the truck, and we were able to get the bear to give up the chase, I looked up the road and saw that they were together, the mom and the calf."

Despite the chaos, Elvia Malcolm said she still managed to capture several photographs of the dramatic encounter.

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"I really thought I probably got like a bug on the windshield when I started to look at them," she said. "I took them through the front windshield of the truck. I wasn’t outside the truck. No way was I getting outside the truck."

The couple later continued their fishing trip after watching the moose calf reunite with its mother.

Louisiana attorney general accused of threatening local officials in criminal indictment

Fri, 03 Jul 2026 05:29:21 -0400

A New Orleans grand jury on Thursday indicted Republican Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill on charges including intimidation and malfeasance, accusing the state's top law enforcement officer of threatening local officials during a high-profile political dispute over the Orleans Parish criminal court clerk's office.

The 16-count indictment accuses Louisiana's first female attorney general of threatening local officials with removal from office if they proceeded with actions she believed violated state law.

Assistant District Attorney Laurie White, who is prosecuting the case, said Thursday she expects it to be "very simple" and "very open and shut."

INDICTED SPLC CHIEF FACES HOUSE GRILLING OVER ALLEGED SECRET PAYMENTS TO KKK MEMBERS

Murrill responded in a post on X, calling the indictment "retaliatory, meritless, and unconstitutional" and saying she would immediately appeal to the Louisiana Supreme Court.

"I will not back down," Murrill wrote. "I will continue enforcing the law, fighting corruption, and doing the job the people of Louisiana elected me to do."

Republican Gov. Jeff Landry also defended Murrill, saying he would pardon her "as fast as the law allows."

NEW MEXICO GOVERNOR DEMANDS FEDERAL REPARATIONS AFTER ACCUSING DEA OF FUELING STATE'S FENTANYL CRISIS

Landry said Murrill "will not have to worry about having her reputation tarnished by this kangaroo grand jury or the Orleans Kangaroo court."

"The criminal justice system is a circus at its finest in Orleans and we will not have any of that!" he added.

In a follow-up post, Landry called for an investigation into the grand jury proceedings.

NEW MEXICO AG LAUNCHES CRIMINAL INVESTIGATION INTO DEA OVER ALLEGATIONS AGENTS LET FENTANYL FLOOD STATE

"Based on the information contained in the motion by @AGLizMurrill, I am ordering the State Police to immediately begin investigating the alleged improprieties of this grand jury and those who ran it!"

The indictment stems from a months-long dispute between state leaders and New Orleans officials over the Orleans Parish criminal court clerk's office.

At Landry's urging, Louisiana lawmakers approved a Republican-backed overhaul that eliminated the elected Orleans Parish criminal court clerk position after Calvin Duncan, a man who spent nearly three decades in prison before his conviction was overturned, won the office. The law transferred the position's duties to the parish's civil court clerk, preventing Duncan from taking office.

After New Orleans officials sought to install Duncan, or create a path for him to assume the office, Murrill warned they could face removal under Louisiana's "usurper" laws, which prohibit support for an unauthorized officeholder. Prosecutors allege those warnings formed the basis of the criminal charges against her.

"We’re very interested in elected officials in New Orleans not being intimidated or threatened by letter or any other way," White told reporters after the indictment was unsealed.

Bond for Murrill was set at $400,000 on Thursday, according to court records.

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Fox News Digital has reached out to Murrill's office for additional comment.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Socialist Surge: Far-left Democrats test national playbook after blue-city primary shocks

Fri, 03 Jul 2026 05:00:53 -0400

The far left is taking its political playbook nationwide, moving from high-profile primary wins in New York City and Colorado to a string of upcoming Democratic contests in Missouri, Michigan, Wisconsin and Florida.

After far-left and socialist-aligned candidates scored ballot-box victories over establishment-backed contenders in congressional primaries in New York City and Colorado the past two weeks, the left is taking aim at the Midwest.

Hours after Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) backed challenger and first-time candidate Melat Kiros toppled 15-term Democratic Rep. Diana DeGette in Tuesday's primary in Denver's deep blue 1st Congressional District, former Rep. Cori Bush of Missouri pledged on social media, "On August 4th, St. Louis will do the same."

Kiros’ victory, coupled with wins a week earlier by three far-left congressional candidates heavily supported by New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani, is emboldening progressives as they try to turn isolated blue-city upsets into a national pressure campaign against the Democratic Party.

VICTORIES BY MAMDANI-BACKED CONGRESSIONAL CANDIDATES SPOTLIGHTS GROWING RIFT IN DEMOCRATIC PARTY

"Only socialism can solve decades of capitalist mismanagement in the US. Our newly elected leaders will fight for the working class — not for crumbs," the DSA proclaimed in a social media post on Wednesday.

In Missouri, the DSA-backed Bush is running to win back her seat in the state's St. Louis-anchored 1st Congressional District.

Bush, a nurse, pastor and Black Lives Matter activist, first ran against Democratic Rep. Lacy Clay in 2018 before ousting him in the 2020 Democratic primary. But two years ago, she lost renomination to St. Louis County prosecuting attorney Wesley Bell, who was backed by millions in outside money, including pro-Israel groups opposed to Bush's position on the war in Gaza.

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Fast-forward to today, and Bush and Clay are locked in an expensive and combative rematch.

The far left is also training its firepower on the crucial Great Lakes' battleground of Michigan, which holds its primary on the same day as Missouri.

Abdul El-Sayed, a former Wayne County health director who unsuccessfully ran for governor eight years ago as an insurgent, is one of three major candidates trying to succeed retiring Democratic Sen. Gary Peters, D-Mich.

Backed last year by far left champion Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont, El-Sayed on Thursday was endorsed by progressive rockstar Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York.

THESE MIDTERM RACES WILL DETERMINE WHETHER REPUBLICANS HOLD THEIR SENATE MAJORITY

"AOC has changed the trajectory of American politics and inspired a generation to believe that government really can work for working people," El-Sayed wrote on social media. "Together, we’re proving that even in the face of unprecedented outside spending, a movement powered by the people can win."

One week later, on Aug. 11, Wisconsin holds primaries.

Wisconsin state Rep. Francesca Hong is on the rise among a crowded field of candidates in the race to succeed retiring Democratic Gov. Tony Evers.

"It’s a great day to be a democratic socialist," the DSA-aligned Hong posted on X last week after the progressive victories in New York City, in which two Democratic congressional incumbents lost renomination. "Wisconsin is next!"

A week later, the spotlight will shine on Florida, where DSA-backed Oliver Larkin is challenging two-term Democratic Rep. Jared Moskowitz, D-Fla., in the state's 25th Congressional District, which includes portions of Miami-Dade, Broward, and Palm Beach counties.

"Tonight, @MelatKirosCO, tomorrow @OliverALarkin. The movement moves from New York to Colorado to FLORIDA!," the DSA wrote on X hours after Kiros' victory.

Kiros, who lost her job as a lawyer in New York after writing an essay critical of Israel, was also backed by Justice Democrats, the nearly decade-old political group known for heavily supporting "Squad" members Ocasio-Cortez, and Reps. Ilhan Omar, Ayanna Pressley and Rashida Tlaib as they toppled entrenched incumbents in their initial elections to Congress.

Hasan Piker, the controversial far-left streamer who attended Kiros’ primary night event in Denver, told Fox News, "I think progressive politics, left populism, a politics that centers the needs of the working class, can work in every district, in every state. That's why I kept saying over and over again, it's coming to a city near you."

Progressives also scored an impressive victory in the neighboring 8th Congressional District, a crucial swing seat which stretches along the I-25 corridor north of Denver.

State Rep. Manny Rutinel tallied a convincing double-digit victory over former state Rep. Shannon Bird, a more moderate candidate. Rutinel will now take on Republican Rep. Gabe Evans, who flipped the seat in the 2024 cycle.

The race is considered one of two or three dozen that will determine if the GOP holds onto its razor-thin House majority in the midterms.

Longtime Democratic strategist Joe Caiazzo, a veteran of progressive champion Sen. Bernie Sanders' 2016 and 2020 presidential campaigns, told Fox News Digital that "it is undeniable that progressives have built a coalition and have a message that can serve to buoy a candidate when they are an acceptable alternative to the status quo."

While plenty of mainstream Democrats have racked up primary victories in recent weeks, it is the far left's wins that are grabbing the media spotlight.

And that is giving Republicans who are facing a rough political climate as they work to hold their slim House and Senate majorities, more ammunition as they portray all Democrats as radicals.

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President Donald Trump has repeatedly warned of a "communist" threat.

Vice President JD Vance argued Tuesday on Fox News’ "The Ingraham Angle" that Democrats have "a view that the United States is an evil country that must be dismantled from the ground and then built back up. That's communism at its core, and you see more and more momentum in that direction from the Democrat Party."

Mamdani's advice for seniors gets brutally mocked after urging New Yorkers to limit AC use

Fri, 03 Jul 2026 05:00:45 -0400

Shortly after urging city residents to scale back their air conditioning use to reduce strain on the power grid, socialist New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani warned older residents to be mindful of prolonged summer heat.

"If you have an older loved one, friend or neighbor, check in with them today. Make sure they’re staying hydrated, spending time in the air-conditioned spaces whenever possible and know where to find the nearest cooling center," Mamdani wrote in a post to X.

It didn’t take long for the reactions online to point out the clashing sets of instructions.

"You just told old people to keep their air at 78. Are you on drugs?" Gina Milan, a conservative media personality, wrote in a post to social media.

"Mamdani: Older adults are at greater risk for heat-related illness, especially during prolonged periods of extreme heat. Also Mamdani: set your AC to 78 degrees," another observer wrote.

MAMDANI CLAIMS DEMOCRATIC SOCIALISTS CAN WIN ‘ANYWHERE’ AS DEMOCRATS FEUD OVER PARTY’S FUTURE

"How does he expect these older adults to stay cool if he wants them to keep their thermostat at 78?" another user wrote.

Social media users continue to monitor Mamdani's online directives and his policies as the self-proclaimed socialist navigates the realities of implementing many of his campaign promises.

In the lead-up to his mayoral victory in November, Mamdani claimed that quality of life could not be separated from reactions to climate change.

"Climate and quality of life are not two separate concerns. They are, in fact, one and the same," Mamdani said in an interview with the Nation last year, proposing new school infrastructure that would serve as shelters during extreme heat waves.

However, Mamdani noted earlier this week that the city’s existing infrastructure was struggling with capacity, asking residents to cap their AC units at 78 degrees.

SOCIALISM VS CAPITALISM: HOUSE DEMS CLASH OVER WHAT NY ELECTION RESULTS MEAN FOR PARTY

"New York: it's hot out there, and the power grid is working overtime to keep us cool," Mamdani posted on X.

The request is a part of a series of other measures the city is deploying to counter the heat, including Cooling Outreach On-Location (COOL) vans, extending pool hours and an additional eight cooling centers through sites such as libraries.

"Set your AC to 78 degrees, turn off lights/electronics you're not using, and unplug what you can. Our City is doing its part too: maintaining the 78 degrees rule in our buildings, dimming/turning off our lights during peak electricity demand, asking private partners to do the same, and powering down non-essential equipment. A stable grid means the AC stays on, and lives are saved. Let's ease demand — and get through the heat — together."

Conservatives expressed skepticism of the plan.

"Show us your thermostat, commie," reality TV star and former Los Angeles mayoral candidate Spencer Pratt posted on X.

FAMOUS LANDMARKS SLASH VISITING HOURS AS DEADLY HEAT WAVE THREATENS TOURISTS

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Notably, one observer on X pointed out that Republican New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani had issued similar instructions in 1999, citing an archived press release.

According to the New York Mayoral Office, the city is predicting a heat wave that could reach up to 112, calling it "historic," in a press release on Wednesday.

We should tell real American adventure stories to teach our boys about heroes

Fri, 03 Jul 2026 05:00:40 -0400

My 13-year-old son’s "social studies" textbooks appear to be written by committees whose chief concern is to dull boys’ minds in order to make them open to indoctrination by politically correct dictum.

Indeed, the very term "social studies" was promulgated by a Progressive Era committee.

"The social studies are understood to be those whose subject matter relate to the organization and development of human society, and to man as a member of social groups," decided the National Education Association’s (NEA) Committee on Social Studies in 1916. They thought it would be better to present history in the context of social narratives to teach politically useful interpretations.

OBAMA TAKES NEW SWIPE AT FOUNDING FATHERS AHEAD OF AMERICA’S 250TH BIRTHDAY: 'DEEP FLAW'

The bad idea soon spread across the land.

And so boys, now for more than a century, have not been told the real story about how George Washington had two horses shot out from under him in the Battle of the Monongahela in 1755, yet still attempted to get the stubborn British general to change tactics as they were being slaughtered, and when this failed, how a then 23-year-old Washington saved what was left of the British army.

Today’s textbooks don’t set the scene to vividly show how Washington rallied a frozen army to cross the Delaware River to take Trenton on Christmas in 1776. They certainly don’t put the boys in the room to show an older Washington wiping his glasses as he made his former officers feel shame for attempting to make him a dictator or king in the Newburgh Conspiracy in 1783.

SECRETS OF REVOLUTIONARY WAR BATTLEFIELDS EMERGE 250 YEARS AFTER AMERICA'S FOUNDING

No, all of those stories have, at best, become dead dates on a page.

The stories of adventure and human achievement are gone. In their place are narratives about social ills and the conflicts between races, men and women, the rich and the poor.

All of those are important themes, but instead of honestly putting today’s students in the footsteps of human action, our boys are drowned in passively written prose, or worse, in preachy diatribes, as if to purposely uninspire them — or perhaps to safely, as committees will, navigate around the real things that teach.

DISCOVERIES THAT RESHAPED WHAT HISTORIANS KNEW ABOUT AMERICA'S FOUNDING FATHERS

We now wonder why our boys are struggling in school. When we do, we talk about how growing boys need to get up from those rows of desks, move around, play sports and experiment. Again, that is all true, but no one is talking about how real tales of adventure have been turned into thin politically correct gruel.

Instead of just telling boys how many patents Thomas Edison had or simply reporting that he gave us a long-lasting incandescent lightbulb, how about telling them how he was tossed out of school for being "addled" when he was a boy? How about teachers explaining about how one of Edison’s experiments set fire to a train when he was 12 years old — a period in which he was busy printing his own newspaper on that train?

As they do, they could explain that just after he was thrown off that train, the stationmaster at Mount Clemens — who owed Edison for saving his son’s life — taught Edison how to be a telegraph operator and so helped to set the course of his life and thereby changed the world. An educator could then set the scene of Edison, much later, as he ran his "Invention Factory," a place that must have inspired the Tony Stark (Iron Man) character.

If a teacher started telling real stories of adventure like these, I guarantee the boys in class would sit still a lot longer and listen a lot more attentively. The real stories stay with us. Indeed, within them are the themes that school administrators, via social-studies classes, want to emphasize; only, instead of dumbed-down narratives designed to indoctrinate, they’d be teaching well-rounded, honest history.

Consider Davy Crockett. We could toss out his years and note that he was caught between the cultural friction then occurring between people of European descent moving west and members of Native American tribes. Or we could talk about his heroic stand against the Indian Removal Act and how, after he lost his seat in Congress the second time because of this moral stand, he said (this is the popular paraphrase of the quote), "You may all go to hell, and I will go to Texas." Then, talk about his last stand at the Alamo and even show a picture of the knife he died fighting with — it is now on display in the San Jacinto Museum in Harris County, Texas.

Boys would go home still talking about that!

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Instead of doing any of that, the committees who write our kids’ textbooks flipped the script in the Progressive Era so they could reduce the great men of history into useful caricatures as they shoved history into politically correct filters.

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Parents need to push back, as the real stories are what excite and teach boys. Real stories about the Founders and other great leaders stay with us. Anyone who has heard about Teddy Roosevelt’s capture of the three outlaws in Dakota Territory in 1886 can picture how he marched them at gunpoint for 36 hours straight and that, after getting them to the town of Dickinson, everyone, including the bad guys, was surprised he had not simply hung them on the spot.

America has some of the coolest heroes, but we don’t do a good job these days of telling their stories. This is, of course, why I wrote "Cool Heroes for Boys—20 True Tales of Adventure" for my son and for America’s boys, but don’t just hand them a book. Rather, talk to them about these heroes and all they faced and what they got right and wrong. As you do, you’ll find that it’s the real stories of adventure that gets boys interested in learning.

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Democrats' socialist surge proves America's 250-year fight for freedom isn't over

Fri, 03 Jul 2026 05:00:39 -0400

Just two years ago, no one would have believed it.

While Donald Trump and Republicans celebrate the 250th anniversary of the birth of America, the freest and most powerful nation on Earth, Democrats and their rising radical tide are embracing communism, the worst and most destructive political system in history.

In June, Marxist radicals calling themselves Democratic Socialists swept the New York City primaries, confirming the trend that’s upended the Democratic establishment and created what one of those candidates dubbed "the Commie Corridor," stretching from New York to other blue states and cities.

DEMOCRATIC SOCIALISM IS SWEEPING THE NATION. VOTERS SHOULD BE ALARMED

Don’t be fooled by the name. Democratic Socialists of America may not call themselves communists, but they work closely with communist fronts like Red Star and Springs of Revolution, and even the Communist Party of China. The DSA has successfully drawn young people and other dupes into the Marxist fold, with their promise of free everything by confiscating the wealth of Elon Musk and other "billionaires and oligarchs." They’ve vowed to replace the "rugged individualism" of American capitalism with what their kingmaker, Zohran Mamdani, calls the "warmth of collectivism" — another name for communism.

Let’s look at the record of that collective warmth. Since the first revolution in Russia in 1917, communist governments have cost, by a very conservative estimate, more than 100 million lives, including 20 million in the Soviet Union, 65 million in China, 3 million in Vietnam and Cambodia, and millions more from Cuba to Africa and North Korea.

MY MOTHER FLED CUBA AND FOUND THE FREEDOM TOO MANY AMERICANS NOW FORGET

Communist-style socialism has brought poverty, mass starvation and subsistence misery to tens of millions worldwide. It has turned countries with once-flourishing societies like Venezuela into economic basket cases; reduced others like Poland and Romania to Third World status — including the former Soviet Union — until Ronald Reagan and the United States won the Cold War and set them free.

Socialists like to say, "Capitalism kills," but socialism and communism kill many, many more.

What’s the United States’ record during those same years? Radicals like to attack the American "military-industrial complex," even though it managed to set free millions with victory in World War II and then in the Cold War. It may be poised to do something similar in Iran.

AMERICA’S NEXT 250 YEARS DEPEND ON PASSING FAITH AND FREEDOM TO OUR CHILDREN

They blame America for supposed "genocide" against Native Americans, just as they blame Israel for genocide today. The truth is, deaths of Native Americans in frontier wars pale by comparison with the actual genocide waged by Spanish settlers in Mexico and across Latin America, or the Russians in conquering Siberia — or the Chinese against their Muslim Uyghur minority today.

They attack Trump for "anti-immigrant" policies when, in fact, it’s been America’s highly successful capitalist economy that’s drawn immigrants, legal and illegal, for 250 years.

By contrast, socialist and communist economies attract no one. Just the opposite: People flee the result as soon as they can, as they did from East Germany, Cuba and North Korea, and just as they’re doing from America’s socialist offshoots in California, Illinois and New York.

That’s because, in the end, socialism and Marxism are a rebellion against human nature, even — with their embrace of transgender extremism — against nature itself. Socialism asks people to abandon their sense of individualism, their personal commitment to family, faith and nation, in order to serve what socialists call the common good — which means what their socialist and communist masters decide is the common good.

That includes handing over whatever you own or have earned for yourself. Socialists like to say private property is theft. In fact, under socialism, government is theft. "What you thought was yours," it tells its citizens, "is actually mine. And I’ll decide how much I’m going to leave you after I take what I want."

Abraham Lincoln once said the principle behind slavery was, "You work and toil and earn bread, and I'll eat it." That’s the principle behind socialism, as a modern version of slavery. It’s one millions in the former Soviet Union endured, and that millions more in Cuba, North Korea and China are enduring still.

Fortunately, our Founding Fathers knew this. They knew enough history to know how, in a free society, demagogues like Zohran Mamdani and Sen. Bernie Sanders could manipulate millions of voters into believing that economics is a zero-sum game and that the only way to make their lives better is by stealing from other citizens.

Therefore, our Founders built into their Declaration of Independence the principle that our rights are God-given, not government-given, including that all-precious "pursuit of happiness," which is left to the individual, not government, to define and discover.

They included the Fifth Amendment in the Bill of Rights, which protects your property under the takings clause.

They also made sure that the power of individuals to create and discover new ideas and technologies would be safe under our Constitution, with the creation, under Article I, Section 8, of the right to intellectual property and patents, which Lincoln, himself a patent holder, predicted would unleash the "fire of genius" that has grown and sustained the freest and richest economy on Earth, from the telegraph and electric light bulb to the automobile, the microchip, and today’s AI and quantum computers. What America as a free society is able to create, communist regimes like China have to steal, as socialism dries up human creativity and imagination, even as it rejects human nature.

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In short, our Founding Fathers made sure America would become a fountainhead of other founders — people with the vision, drive and realization that risk is a signal for opportunity, not danger — who would spawn businesses, industries, institutions and even movements like civil rights under Martin Luther King Jr. and Turning Point USA under the late Charlie Kirk. Founders who would boost their fellow Americans’ pursuit of happiness and freedom, instead of forcing them to submit to the Marxist dream of utopia.

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Americanism or communism; freedom or slavery; an economy built on human creativity and invention, or one built on organized theft. That’s the choice Americans face, not just in the upcoming midterms and then in 2028, but far into the future.

The original Founders trusted us enough to believe we’d continue to make the right choice, as we have over the last 250 years. Let’s hope and pray they were right.

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Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce's wild wedding weekend could include unusually long 'cocktail hour'

Fri, 03 Jul 2026 05:00:30 -0400

As Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce get set to tie the knot at Madison Square Garden in New York City on Friday, July 3, a hot topic of debate is the celebrity couple's plans for a cocktail hour ahead of their ceremony — an event that could far surpass the traditional hour and instead go as long as 2.5 hours, according to multiple reports about the weekend events.

"Yes, cocktail hours traditionally last one hour," said Florida-based etiquette expert Jacqueline Whitmore in response to reports about the unusual length of the pre-wedding event as part of a whirlwind day that could last into the late hours of Friday evening. "This gives the newly married couple time to take pictures, and it gives the guests time to socialize and relax."

But "sometimes," she said, "the cocktail party can last more than an hour if the wedding party is quite large, running late — or if guests and the wedding party have to travel quite a distance to the reception venue."

TAYLOR SWIFT'S UNUSUAL WEDDING GIFTS RULE IGNITES ETIQUETTE DEBATE: 'HONOR THEIR WISHES'

Whitmore also said that, in her view, "it’s perfectly acceptable for the cocktail hour to run longer, as long as enough food and beverages are provided. Otherwise, the guests will most likely get cranky."

As Fox News Digital previously reported, Swift’s wedding to three-time Super Bowl winner Kelce may be a days-long affair involving street closures, hundreds of VIPs, a special police detail and taxpayer-funded security measures, according to a source with knowledge of the event.

Roughly 1,000 guests are expected to attend — with many described as "high profile" and "VIP" by the police department.

The reported schedule is igniting debate, however.

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"Hospitality is measured by comfort, not by the clock," said Lisa Mirza Grotts, a California-based etiquette expert and founder of Golden Rules Gal.

"If guests are well-fed and have plenty to drink, comfortable seating and opportunities to mingle, the celebration simply begins earlier. At larger weddings, an extended cocktail party also allows the couple more time to greet family and friends before the ceremony."

She also said that today's weddings "are less about following a timeline and more about creating an experience. Traditionally, the ceremony came first and the celebration followed. Today, many couples are reimagining that order."

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She noted that a "cocktail party before the ceremony allows guests to relax, connect with one another and settle into the celebration before the vows are exchanged."

When a bride writing on Reddit asked about her own planned two-hour cocktail party, many commenters had strong opinions.

"So cocktails are from 4:30-6:30? That does seem like a long time," one Reddit user said.

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"Don’t do this to your guests. A lot of couples just don’t attend cocktail hour because of photos and that’s totally fine. If you really want to attend cocktail hour, do all your photos beforehand," another said.

"I think two hours is [way] too long. One hour should be the cap for a cocktail hour. You can sneak away for the sunset photos during dinner," a third person chimed in.

A fourth said, "There’s a reason it’s called cocktail HOUR, and not cocktail two-hours! You could push it to 90 minutes if absolutely necessary, but two hours is definitely too long."

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"Seems a little long! I'd be exhausted and people may get very drunk," yet another said.

Whitmore said etiquette rules are in place for a reason.

Still, "wedding traditions have changed, and that’s perfectly fine," said the Florida-based authority. "The one thing that should never go out of style is consideration for your guests."

Michael Ruiz of Fox News Digital contributed reporting.

Navy SEAL who killed bin Laden says America's 250th proves hard work still pays, warns of 'victimhood' culture

Fri, 03 Jul 2026 05:00:29 -0400

Former U.S. Navy SEAL Robert O'Neill, who is credited with killing Usama bin Laden, reflected on America's 250th anniversary, praising opportunities for those willing to work hard while urging Americans to preserve the nation's values amid what he described as a growing hatred of its history.

"As we come up on our 250th anniversary of being the greatest country ever, it's just the opportunity here from my personal experience that reminds me, and I almost get to a point where I'm jealous of younger men that were my age when I joined because they literally have the world at their fingertips," O'Neill told Fox News Digital.

"You can do anything, seriously, in this country."

O'Neill, who served with SEAL Team 6 during Operation Neptune Spear, the 2011 raid that killed the al Qaeda mastermind and chief, encouraged more young people to step outside their comfort zones and contribute to America’s success.

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"I'm able to attribute a lot of my successes in life simply because I left the house," he said. "I went to join the military, and I did. In this country, I just proved you can do anything by not doing one thing. I just didn't stop. I never quit."

Looking back on his service, O'Neill said it was a "great honor" to leave home, rise through the ranks on merit, and earn a place on a team chosen solely on ability, calling his experience an example of "the greatness of the country."

"That team was proof of equal opportunity," he said. "You have an equal opportunity to try out, but you're gonna be tested every day, and if you don't pass, we're just gonna get rid of you. But the team was built because of this country, and the country has the ability to do that over and over again."

As millions prepare to celebrate the anniversary, O'Neill acknowledged that not everyone views the milestone positively, blaming a growing "victimhood" mindset for turning people away from the nation's history.

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"Part of the issue is we stop teaching our kids the past, and we're actually raising a lot of victims," he said. "I don't know why the victimhood is here. Maybe it's because the country is so great, we have to look back on the past and invent problems, and that's what we're doing right now."

A driving force behind this growing disdain is "institutional cowardice," according to O'Neill, who warned that "if we keep importing the enemy and won't call it what it is," the country risks deeper political division and, ultimately, "civil war."

"We're at a place right now of institutional cowardice where we're importing people based on untruths because people in political positions know that they'll vote for them if they keep doing what they're doing," he said.

"Once that base starts growing, they're going to get rid of what was referred to by communists as the 'useful idiots.' It's growing right now. I mean, it's almost ironic that we can look over the ocean at Great Britain on an anniversary from a country where we gained independence, and it's not like looking at another nation. We're looking at a glimpse into our future."

O'Neill said the nation loses its strength despite its ability to "win anything with force," arguing America would need to "import the enemy in order to lose."

"We're seeing right now that we can win anything with force, but we need to import the enemy in order to lose," he said. "What I mean by that is if we get infiltrated, pound for pound, we're never gonna lose a fight. Instead of telling the truth, we just try to appease. That's what we're seeing right now. We win the wars that we're in until we involve too many laws that we make up ourselves."

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But O'Neill said America can continue to succeed if it preserves its founding values, saying the country is "fragile" as "it's still an experiment."

Pointing to the British, Persian, and Ottoman empires as examples of powerful nations that eventually declined, O’Neill said America's 250-year run does not guarantee its future and people "need to reflect on our great nation and how it's very important that we keep it that way."

"We gotta realize that the American project, the experiment that it is, it's still worth continuing, and it's good to see that we made it 250 years, but also keep in mind, that's usually the lifetime of most empires," he said.

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O'Neill said people should not take the country's freedoms and opportunities for granted, saying he has seen "true poverty and real dictators" and that "it's a blessing" to be here.

"We need to realize that we have been padded by two oceans, the Pacific and the Atlantic, and you don't want to do the whole 'don't know what you got until it's gone,' because this country is great," he said.

The lesson we can learn from Bicentennial history is to party like it’s 1976

Fri, 03 Jul 2026 05:00:28 -0400

Can Americans come together over the next week to celebrate the nation’s 250th anniversary? With the country seemingly split into irreconcilable, and increasingly violent, camps, storm clouds darken the summer commemorations. Those worrying that the Semiquincentennial will be a giant bust should look no further than the Bicentennial. Plagued by similar fears, the Bicentennial turned into the biggest party the country had ever seen. Today, Americans should take heart and party like it’s 1976.

America’s two-hundredth anniversary came either at the worst possible moment or just in time. The previous 13 years had been among the most violent and disruptive since the Great Depression, possibly even the Civil War. The upheavals of the Civil Rights Movement had been punctuated by the tragic assassinations of President John F. Kennedy, the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr., and presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy. America’s postwar consensus had spectacularly disintegrated barely two decades after the resounding victory in World War II.

To many, America had fundamentally changed. After the assassinations and riots, and the lies of Vietnam and Watergate, the country had become more cynical and distrusting of government, the elites, and big business. As a Boston Globe columnist wrote, the great issue in the 1976 presidential campaign would be "to restore confidence of the American people in their government and themselves," short of which he feared the country would remain "purposeless, rudderless, powerless."

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In a country at once exhausted and divided, it could well be questioned whether Americans would celebrate or jeer the Bicentennial of the Declaration of Independence. Overwhelmingly, they celebrated.

As the jubilee approached, Bicentennial fever swept the country. A torrent of words on the Declaration and the Revolution poured off the presses, most with praise, many also arguing that America still struggled to live up to the promises of her founding document.

Over 12,566 towns and cities participated in the Bicentennial Communities project, renovating parks and historic buildings or building new community centers. Over seven million Americans visited the Freedom Train, which left Wilmington, Del., on April 1, 1975, and crisscrossed the country before ending its run on Dec. 31, 1976. As many as 10 million tourists toured Independence Hall and saw the Liberty Bell in Philadelphia. Queen Elizabeth II made a triumphal state visit, landing first in Philadelphia.

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Against all expectations, the Bicentennial turned into both the greatest patriotic celebration and the greatest sales event in American history. Decades before e-commerce made buying with a click ubiquitous, Bicentennial hats, shirts, flags, medallions, coins, mini–Liberty Bells, commemorative booklets, posters, pillow covers, bed linens and pewter engravings sold by the millions through mail-order or catalogs.

Not surprisingly, Washington, D.C., was the center of the celebrations. Over 1.2 million people viewed the Declaration and Constitution at the National Archives over the course of 1976, while on July 2, the Archives opened its doors for a marathon seventy-six-hour "vigil," during which over 10,000 visitors stood in lines more than three hours long to gaze up at the priceless parchment.

Two days later, a street party took over Constitution Avenue in front of the National Archives, as 8,000 people gathered for a reading of the Declaration, heard patriotic songs and then joined in the cutting of a six-foot-tall, multilayered birthday cake.

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On the morning of July 4, famed composer Leonard Bernstein read the Declaration before a crowd in Manhattan’s Battery Park. At 2 p.m. Eastern Time, bells rang out across the nation for two minutes, from church steeples, town halls and firehouses. Parades large and small snaked through Main Streets across the nation as people celebrated with barbecues, sports activities and bands. That evening, over a million people packed the National Mall and lined the Potomac to witness a gigantic pyrotechnics display depicting eras in America’s past.

The Bicentennial celebrations did not magically solve all of America’s problems or create eternal fellowship. There were protests and condemnations of the country. However, the vast majority of Americans showed both pride and some badly needed perspective on their history. As an opinion poll taken by the Gallup Organization in June 1976 revealed, 77% of respondents felt that "we had succeeded over these 200 years in achieving the ideals for which this country was founded."

This year, away from the drama in Washington, social media anger and media sensationalism, it’s likely many Americans will feel the same way about their country’s 250th. There is a "Freedom Plane" currently touring the country, and exhibitions at the National Archives, Library of Congress and Smithsonian Institution, as well as at local museums and presidential libraries are drawing thousands of Americans to view artifacts from the country’s past. A new bevy of books on the founding, the Revolutionary War and the Declaration of Independence are all being published, and documentaries are being streamed.

Despite the anger manifested online and in the streets, despite rising incivility and political cage-match rhetoric, and even despite assassination attempts by a handful of deranged individuals, the vast majority of the country goes about its daily life peacefully. Debate and even heated argument about the country’s past are part of our tradition, not signs of imminent civil war.

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Our economic problems are serious, our politicians often incompetent, and our schools failing, among other concerns. Yet we need to remember why millions still come to these shores, why opportunity here is still open for the taking, and why very few Americans would trade life here for political systems in China, Russia or even most of Europe.

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As America reaches 250, we remain a great nation, even as we strive to fix our ills and create a more perfect Union. If that task remains forever unfinished, it does not delegitimize the country’s existence or our achievements, but calls us to recommit to the principles of the Declaration. Most of us, I am willing to bet, would agree deep down with the words of the Memphis Tri-State Defender, a Black newspaper, written in 1976: "This land is the only land that we have to live in, and most importantly, few Black Americans want to leave it for some other place."

So, don’t worry, be happy, and embrace the "Spirit of ’76."

WATCH: Controversial SCOTUS decision strikes a divide among lawmakers

Fri, 03 Jul 2026 04:00:48 -0400

Lawmakers on Capitol Hill had split reactions to the Supreme Court’s ruling to strike down President Donald Trump’s bid to end birthright citizenship, further allowing children born in the United States to be recognized as U.S. citizens.

"It's a terrible decision," Rep. Byron Donalds, R-Fla., told Fox News Digital.

"Regulate folks before they come in — in terms of not coming here just to have a baby and leave," Rep. Ro Khanna, D-Calif., said.

"In terms of the immigration process coming in, there should be regulation. Not that once you're born here that we're going to denaturalize you," he continued.

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The case, which left many Republicans and Democrats divided, challenged Trump’s executive order to detach birthright citizenship from the 14th Amendment. Most Democrats who Fox News Digital spoke to argued that if the ruling had gone the other way, it would have been considered unconstitutional.

"I think they got it right," Rep. Christian Menefee, D-Texas said. "The Supreme Court said that the Constitution says what it says. That if anybody even has a question about what the 14th Amendment says, I think it's a little embarrassing. So I'm glad they got it right."

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"I believe in the Constitution," Rep. James Clyburn, D-S.C., said when asked about the ruling.

"The Constitution is the Constitution. If you don't like the Constitution, you can try to change it," Rep. Seth Magaziner, D-R.I., said. "But honestly, I think we've got much bigger problems as a country than Americans trying to live their lives as birthright citizens."

The 6-3 decision highlights a significant loss for Trump’s immigration agenda as he has criticized birthright citizenship as a "magnet for illegal immigration."

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"I think the president has an obsession with immigrants in this country," Rep. Sarah Elfreth, D-Md., said. "He's hell-bent on making it as uncomfortable as possible. We've seen that time and again with ICE, we've seen this with an attack on the 14th Amendment."

Justice Clarence Thomas, Justice Neil Gorsuch and Justice Samuel Alito were the three to dissent — arguing the 14th Amendment does not guarantee birthright citizenship to all children born to parents who are unlawfully and temporarily in the country. Alito cited that the ruling fails to recognize the rise of "birth tourism," the concept that foreigners come to America just to give birth, potentially opening the door to national security threats.

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Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., and Rep. Maxine Waters, D-Calif., declined to comment on the ruling to Fox News Digital.

"Americans should be happy, because the Constitution means more than one guy’s opinion," Rep. Bennie Thompson, D-Miss., said.