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Judge Judy warns of 'danger' if prosecutors don't retry Lindsay Clancy after murder trial ends in mistrial

Fri, 18 Sep 2026 06:00:43 -0400

Judge Judy Sheindlin weighed in Thursday on the closely watched Lindsay Clancy murder case following its mistrial, warning there could be a "danger" in prosecutors deciding not to retry the Massachusetts mother accused of killing her three young children.

The 83-year-old judge and television personality was asked by TMZ whether Clancy should face another trial after jurors failed to reach a unanimous verdict earlier this month.

"I think there's a danger in that, in not retrying," Sheindlin responded.

Sheindlin, who launched the popular syndicated show "Judge Judy," which aired for 25 seasons, was also asked about her view on the outcome of the trial after the jury's deliberations ended in a reported 11-1 split in favor of finding Clancy not criminally responsible.

PATRICK CLANCY SPEAKS OUT AFTER HUNG JURY IN LINDSAY CLANCY CASE, ADDRESSES PROSPECT OF ANOTHER TRIAL

"I can't give you a two minute answer on that," Sheindlin said.

She was then asked whether she believed Clancy should have been found guilty.

"There's no question, my dear, that she killed her children," Sheindlin said. "The only question is, is there an excuse for it? Make up your own mind on that one."

DR PHIL SAYS LINDSAY CLANCY MISTRIAL A 'TEACHABLE MOMENT' ON POSTPARTUM PSYCHOSIS: 'THERE WAS A FAILURE HERE'

TMZ also asked Sheindlin about Rep. Nancy Mace's public call for Clancy to be publicly executed.

"I think it's ridiculous," Sheindlin responded.

Clancy's defense does not dispute that the 36-year-old former delivery room nurse strangled her three children with exercise bands in January 2023.

Her defense has argued that she was not criminally responsible because of mental illness or defect.

LINDSAY CLANCY JUROR DENIES BIAS ALLEGATIONS, WANTS 'CONVERSATION STARTED' ABOUT WOMEN'S MENTAL HEALTH

Judge William Sullivan declared a mistrial Sept. 4 after seven days of deliberations when jurors said they could not reach a unanimous verdict.

Several jurors later said 11 members of the panel favored finding Clancy not guilty by reason of lack of criminal responsibility, while one favored conviction.

Immediately after the mistrial was declared, Clancy's longtime defense attorney, Kevin Reddington, signaled that he would fight another attempt to put her on trial. The defense has indicated it plans to argue that the circumstances surrounding the mistrial should bar a second trial.

However, in a recent interview with Fox News' Bryan Llenas, Reddington said that if prosecutors reduced the top charge to second-degree murder, he would opt for a bench trial — one without a jury — in the hope that she would receive probation.

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Clancy remains in custody at Tewksbury Hospital and is due back in court Sept. 29.

Fox News Digital's Michael Ruiz and Stepheny Price contributed to this report.

Top DOJ official warns of deadly smuggling route after 42 vanish at sea

Fri, 18 Sep 2026 06:00:39 -0400

A Colombian smuggler’s guilty plea is shedding new light on a deadly route to the United States after a boat carrying 42 people vanished at sea and a top Justice Department official said the danger would not have ended if they reached land.

Luis Enrique Linero Pinto, 41, also known as "El Calvo," pleaded guilty in federal court in El Paso, Texas, after being extradited from Colombia for his role in a smuggling conspiracy that prosecutors said used bribery and maritime routes to move migrants north.

The boat left Colombia’s San Andrés Island for Nicaragua on Oct. 21, 2023, carrying approximately 40 migrants and two captains. It never arrived, and no one aboard has been seen or heard from since.

"This was a particularly sad and disturbing situation," Assistant Attorney General Tysen Duva, who leads the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, told Fox News Digital.

OVERCROWDED MIGRANT VESSEL WITH 240 PEOPLE ON BOARD INTERCEPTED NEAR TURKS AND CAICOS

"These 40 individuals and the two boat captains, once they set out from San Andrés Island to Nicaragua, were never heard from again," Duva said. "These individuals are, of course, missing and presumed dead, and it appears that there were no survivors."

ELEVEN INDICTED IN ALLEGED TEXAS SMUGGLING SCHEME THAT LEFT 7 MIGRANTS DEAD IN SHIPPING CONTAINER

Duva said the disappearance offers a brutal look at the danger posed by transnational smuggling organizations that turn vulnerable migrants into commodities while pursuing routes toward the United States.

"It’s all about money," he said. "Anybody who’s involved with a cartel or transnational smuggling in this regard, it is about money. It’s about preying on people’s misfortune."

MEXICAN NATIONAL SENTENCED IN BORDER CHILD SMUGGLING CASE INVOLVING THC-LACED CANDY

According to the Justice Department, Linero Pinto advised migrants on how to reach San Andrés Island, personally received them upon arrival, arranged their accommodations and transported them to boats bound for Nicaragua.

From there, the migrants intended to travel through Central America and Mexico before illegally entering the United States, prosecutors said.

CBP JOINS FORCES WITH COAST GUARD TO INTERCEPT 3 SMUGGLING BOATS, APPREHEND 60 PEOPLE OFF CALIFORNIA COAST

Linero Pinto also bribed members of the Colombian navy to obtain real-time intelligence about the positions of patrol vessels between San Andrés Island and Nicaragua, allowing smuggling boats to evade authorities, according to court documents.

He admitted helping smuggle the migrants aboard the boat that vanished in October 2023.

INSIDE UNDERGROUND EL PASO STORM DRAIN SYSTEM BORDER PATROL SAYS CARTELS EXPLOIT TO SMUGGLE ILLEGAL MIGRANTS

Duva said the victims had not even completed the opening stretch of the dangerous route when they disappeared.

"That’s the first leg. They didn’t even finish the first leg here and get to Nicaragua and then try to come north by land," he said. "It’s a really long journey, and it’s full of really bad things that can happen."

DOJ SAYS 11 MIGRANTS INDICTED IN MULTI-STATE SEX TRAFFICKING, DRUG, FIREARMS CASE

The danger, he warned, is not confined to the open water.

Duva said migrants can face treacherous terrain while traveling through South and Central America and across the U.S.-Mexico border. Even those who reach the United States may be trapped by mounting debts and pushed into sex trafficking, he warned.

"You pay money to come to the United States, and then when you get here, the co-conspirators or those involved in the criminal enterprise will say, ‘But now you owe more, and you’re going to work this off in the sex trade,’" Duva said.

"Cross-border smuggling cases often times just morph right into human trafficking cases," he continued. "The crime sort of changes along the way. The travelers are the ones victimized, and this comes at a significant cost in terms of public safety."

Linero Pinto was charged in October 2024 and arrested in Colombia that December at the request of the U.S. government. He was later extradited to the United States and made his first appearance in federal court in El Paso in December 2025.

He pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit alien smuggling and placing lives in jeopardy. He faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in federal prison, though a sentencing date has not been set.

‘GHOSTS’ ON FLORIDA HIGHWAYS: ROADSIDE STINGS SNARE 249 ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS, OFFICERS WARN MANY MORE HIDING

A case against alleged co-conspirator Hernando Manuel de la Cruz Rivera Orjuela remains pending, Duva said.

The prosecution is part of Operation Take Back America and was coordinated by Joint Task Force Alpha, the Justice Department-led initiative targeting cartels and other transnational organizations involved in high-impact human smuggling and trafficking.

Duva praised President Donald Trump and his administration for putting a "tremendous focus" on the initiative and providing the Justice Department with additional resources to pursue smugglers, cartels and other transnational criminal organizations.

"We’re super thankful to President Trump," Duva said. "We’re deeply thankful to the White House for that. We’re thankful to Congress for that, and we’re going to keep doing what we’re doing."

Duva said funding approved through Trump’s signature One Big Beautiful Bill allowed the Criminal Division to hire additional prosecutors and place experienced attorneys in sections handling the administration’s priorities.

"People think, ‘Well, what is that? What did it do?’" he said. "We’re feeling the effects of that. We’re able to put skilled prosecutors in these different sections to attack these administration priorities."

Duva said the task force is hunting criminal networks along the southern border, maritime routes near Florida and the northern border with Canada.

"We are focusing on these cases at any border that we have," he said.

His warning to smugglers operating beyond America’s borders was blunt.

"Our reach is substantial," Duva said. "We are going to chase these cases no matter where they originate from or where we find them."

Duva said the department’s expanded international partnerships are critical because the criminals behind the operations often believe distance will protect them from prosecution.

"They just think, ‘Well, they catch other people, but they’re not going to get me,’" he said. "You really try to combat that one case at a time."

Joint Task Force Alpha has produced more than 483 domestic and international arrests, over 436 U.S. convictions and more than 371 significant prison sentences, according to the Justice Department.

FIRST TREN DE ARAGUA GANG MEMBER EXTRADITED TO US ON HISTORIC TERRORISM CHARGES APPEARS BEFORE HOUSTON JUDGE

Duva said the mission should transcend partisan fights because the networks being targeted threaten migrants and American communities alike.

"It shouldn’t be partisan," he said. "It should be obvious that anybody who’s in the White House, anybody who is in Congress, should be lauding these cases and the work that’s being done by Criminal Division entities like Joint Task Force Alpha."

The Justice Department’s ultimate goal, Duva said, is the "total elimination" of cartels and the criminal organizations profiting from human suffering.

"You do it one case at a time," he said. "We are focused on doing the very best cases that we can for the American people. That’s what we get up every day and think about."

For Duva, however, the vanished boat remains a haunting illustration of why that mission matters.

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"I don’t know that I’ve ever heard of anybody who survives that one after several months and a year," Duva said. "It’s super tragic, and hopefully people realize when they hear about this case just how dangerous it is and how important it is that you target these smuggling groups."

‘Voters get to choose — just not the result’: Russia’s parliamentary election reaches occupied Ukraine

Fri, 18 Sep 2026 06:00:34 -0400

Russian State Duma elections began Friday — the first since the invasion of Ukraine in 2022 — including in its occupied areas there, where Russia will look to reinforce the illusion of popular support for its full-scale invasion and annexation of eastern Ukraine.

OSCE election observers are not invited to monitor the outcome of the elections, a telling signal, critics say, that the Kremlin has no intentions of conducting free and fair elections.

"Russia’s refusal to invite an election observation mission seriously breaches its international commitments and shows a worrying disregard for democratic standards. Election observation is not optional — it is something that all OSCE participating States have agreed to, and it is a cornerstone of transparency and accountability," OSCE Parliamentary Assembly President, Pere Joan Pons told Fox News Digital.

Russia enacted strict censorship laws after the invasion, criminalizing any dissent about the operation or the armed forces and spreading misinformation about the war.

CIA DIRECTOR JOHN RATCLIFFE MET WITH RUSSIAN INTELLIGENCE OFFICIALS IN VISIT TO MOSCOW, KREMLIN SAYS

As the Kremlin has tried to keep popular support in favor of its war against Ukraine, a Russian court sentenced Lev Shlosberg, a vocal critic and leader of one of Russia’s only opposition parties to over 11 years in a penal colony for criticizing the war. Prior to Shlosberg’s sentencing, Russia's Supreme Court banned his opposition Yabloko Party from participating in September’s Duma elections.

There are nine parties on the list, all supportive of Putin, including the Kremlin's own United Party in the elections, the Associated Press reported.

Shortly after Russia’s invasion in 2022, Moscow unilaterally annexed portions of occupied Ukrainian territory in Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia. In 2023, Russian President Vladimir Putin signed legislation allowing elections to take place in the occupied territories. Ukraine, and the international community, do not recognize Russian sovereignty over the occupied regions.

Elections in Russia, and by extension in the occupied territory, are seen by his critics as window-dressing opportunities used by Putin to highlight his narrative that the war in Ukraine and the annexation of Ukrainian territory was a legitimate and lawful action.

Keti Korkiya from the Foundation for Defense of Democracies Russia Program told Fox News Digital that, "Russians are ready to support, symbolically, Putin, the Kremlin and the war, but if they have to pay a personal price, or even [an] economic price, they are unwilling to do that. That's why Russia has not done another wave of mobilization."

The upcoming elections, like most elections in Russia, will take place under a climate of pervasive fear and manipulation, not the freedom to exercise a democratic right, according to critics.

"It’s a total regime of terror," Jaroslava Barbieri, Research Fellow at the Ukraine Forum at Chatham House, told Fox News Digital.

The last time Russian elections were held in the occupied territories was in 2024, when Putin secured a sixth term in office, winning nearly 90% of the vote. Residents in occupied Ukraine were forced to acquire Russian passports, which is how authorities are able to compile lists of voters.

FORMER GEORGIAN PRIME MINISTER SAYS NATION'S ELECTION WAS 'RIGGED,' AND 'WRITTEN IN MOSCOW'

"Election officials are escorted by Russian soldiers carrying ballot boxes door-to-door. Ostensibly framed as a security measure against Ukrainian partisan strikes, this is about direct intimidation, and it is a flagrant violation of international law," Barbieri added.

President Vladimir Putin said in August that the State Duma elections will reaffirm Russia's stability on the world stage, noting the election will highlight the "maturity" of Russia’s political system and resilience in the face of foreign aggression, according to Turkey's Anadolu Agency.

Russia’s Central Election Commission (CEC) approved new electoral regulations that will be implemented in occupied Ukraine. The Commission stressed the importance of early and at-home voting to prevent large gatherings which could be exploited by Ukrainian attacks.

Russia's ministry of foreign affairs posted on X that preparations for overseas voting in Russia’s State Duma elections are nearly complete. It said there are 326 polling stations set up at Russian embassies & consulates in 152 countries.

Volodymyr Ariev, a member of the Ukrainian parliament, said people living in temporarily occupied Ukrainian territories should boycott the staged Russian elections.

"Any sort of elections held in the temporarily occupied Ukrainian territories is illegal and a breach of international law. Ukraine will never recognize any person "elected" as a Member of Parliament in the temporarily occupied territories," Ariev told Fox News Digital.

Ariev said people living in the occupied east should leave their homes and spend election day someplace else, to avoid being coerced into voting.

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Ivana Stradner, who focuses on Russian information security and influence operations at the FDD, says as Russia’s battlefield momentum stalls, the costs of war mount, and Ukraine brings the conflict to Russia’s doorstep, Putin is seeking political legitimacy this election.

"The State Duma elections give the Kremlin a chance to manufacture the appearance of public support…not only for United Russia, but for continuing Putin’s aggression in Ukraine. When the battlefield gets harder to sell, the ballot box becomes another way to sell the war," Stradner told Fox News Digital.

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In the 2024 presidential elections, the annexed Donetsk People’s Republic and Luhansk People’s Republic delivered well above the current targeted 70% support, voting well over 90% for President Putin.

"Apparently, in Putin’s version of democracy, the voters get to choose… just not the result," Stradner added. The three days of voting ends on September 20.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Fox News Digital's News Quiz: September 18, 2026

Fri, 18 Sep 2026 06:00:19 -0400

Test your news knowledge with this week's Fox News Digital News Quiz, featuring Macklemore and New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft going back and forth over Israel and Mideast aid, and a romance scam costing one woman nearly $1 million.

Looking for another challenge?

A stark warning about artificial intelligence and Nike's struggles were featured in last week's News Quiz.

Test your knowledge of gridiron grazing, silver-screen secrets 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!

Man loses weight eating nothing but a certain food for 25 days — and paid a price

Fri, 18 Sep 2026 06:00:18 -0400

A New Jersey man ate nothing but certain foods from a fast-casual chain for 25 days — an experiment that left him nine pounds lighter and craving a slice of pizza.

Tim Donahue, a 27-year-old Hoboken resident who works in advertising in New York City, documented his challenge as a modern-day spin on Morgan Spurlock's 2004 documentary "Super Size Me," he told Fox News Digital.

But instead of eating McDonald's for a month, Donahue wanted to see what would happen if he exclusively ate at a chain on the opposite end of the fast-food spectrum.

AMERICA'S FAVORITE FAST-FOOD CHAIN NAMED: MCDONALD'S WINS HEARTS BUT NOT BEST BURGER, SURVEY SAYS

"I think it felt the furthest possible opposite of McDonald's," Donahue said of choosing Sweetgreen.

The idea also came from watching his health-conscious co-workers routinely order Sweetgreen for lunch while he showed up with fast food.

"Everyone inside my office is very healthy, and they were getting Sweetgreen bowls every single day for lunch," Donahue said. "I myself would go pick up a fast-food burger and everyone would razz and make fun of me."

Donahue originally intended to make his experiment last for 30 days, but there was a practical problem.

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"I wanted to do 30, but if you try to look at your calendar and try to fit [it into] any 30-day window, there was always a wedding, a work trip, a reason why I couldn't do 30," he said. "I said, 'You know what, it's either going to get done with 25 days or I'm never going to it done.'"

His primary rule was simple: Whatever he consumed had to be available on Sweetgreen's menu, although he made an exception for black coffee.

And while Sweetgreen offers more than salads, Donahue tried to keep the experiment centered on its bowls.

By the third day, he said, there was little chance of turning back.

9 pounds down as a favorite emerges

Donahue didn't begin the challenge expecting to lose weight, but by the end, the number on his scale had dropped by about 9 pounds.

He also found a clear favorite on the menu.

AMERICA'S LATE-NIGHT FAST-FOOD CULTURE MAY BE MAKING A COMEBACK — HERE'S WHY

"I was rocking with the hot honey chicken bowl," he said. "I was getting that all the time."

Donahue said the variety made eating from the same restaurant for nearly a month easier than one might expect. The bigger challenge, he said, was arranging his life around the experiment.

"The most challenging aspect of the project was not the food, it was the logistics," he said.

Meals had to be planned around the store's operating hours. Going out with friends meant skipping drinks and potentially bringing a salad along. Even dates with his girlfriend took a back seat.

'Not a sustainable thing'

One thing Donahue doesn't recommend about his experiment today is the price tag.

"You can cook at home and make a salad at home and spend a significantly smaller amount of money," he said.

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Donahue said he offset some of the expense by deciding not to spend money on alcohol or other restaurant meals during the challenge. But, he admitted, it was a "very expensive" project.

"Out of pocket, this is not a sustainable thing to do over groceries," he said.

Donahue also emphasized that Sweetgreen didn't pay him to conduct the experiment.

The company subsequently embraced his idea, Donahue said.

"His video inspired us to launch our own 30-day Sweetgreen challenge," Nicolas Jammet, Sweetgreen's co-founder and chief concept officer, told Fox News Digital. "We put out an open call for 30 participants to eat only Sweetgreen for 30 days and document how they feel throughout, and we already received hundreds of applications."

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After 25 days of salad bowls, Donahue headed to his favorite neighborhood pizzeria.

"A cheese pizza after a month of salads was incredibly well-deserved," he said.

There was just one problem.

The sudden return to heavier food didn't sit particularly well.

"It did make me feel quite sick because it's a shock to your system," Donahue said.

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Despite dropping weight and saying he experienced benefits, including more energy, Donahue isn't presenting his experiment as nutritional advice.

He stressed that he isn't a doctor or nutritionist and didn't undertake the challenge to tell others how they should eat.

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"The experiment was largely a fun filmmaking journey for me," he said. "I would never prescribe this to someone."

Prince Harry, Meghan Markle feeding the 'publicity machine' despite privacy demands: expert

Fri, 18 Sep 2026 06:00:16 -0400

Sources close to Prince Harry and Meghan Markle are "pushing back" after King Charles issued new guidance on the Duke and Duchess of Sussex's positions now that they are back in the United Kingdom.

King Charles issued guidance claiming that Harry and Markle are "akin to private citizens" via a letter issued by the Lord Chamberlain on Sept. 7. Sources told People magazine that Harry and Markle are "public figures" and that if Harry and Markle were private citizens, the Lord Chamberlain "would not have needed to issue a letter of formal guidance."

"Members of the public know who they are. The idea that they can live a normal, ‘private’ life is sadly not realistic," the source added.

Kinsey Schofield, host of YouTube’s "Kinsey Schofield Unfiltered," addressed the "not realistic" claim by the source and told Fox News Digital that the "private citizen" guidance just means that they do not represent the king.

KING CHARLES DRAWS ‘LINE IN THE SAND’ WITH PRINCE HARRY, MEGHAN MARKLE AFTER COUPLE CAUGHT OFF GUARD: EXPERT

"I want to push back on this argument coming from People Magazine and sources close to Prince Harry and Meghan Markle that it's somehow unrealistic for the Sussexes to live as private citizens. Being a private citizen does not mean you're anonymous. It simply means you don't represent the king. The jobs you accept and the responsibilities you take, you take them on as yourself, not the crown," Schofield began.

Schofield drew a comparison between Princess Anne's children – Zara Tindall and Peter Phillips. Princess Anne is Queen Elizabeth's only daughter and the sister of King Charles. She chose not to give her two kids royal titles at birth.

"They're recognizable, have commercial interests, attend major royal family events, but they do not represent the monarch, yet they have both successfully built lives outside of the working institution. Harry and Meghan could pursue a quieter life, a life like Zara and Peter. They choose not to. In my opinion, you can't repeatedly feed the publicity machine and then complain about a lack of privacy," she said.

Schofield argued that the king’s clarification was necessary as Harry and Markle’s public profile has become increasingly intertwined with the controversies surrounding them.

MEGHAN MARKLE’S UK RETURN POSES PALACE CONTROL ‘NIGHTMARE,’ EXPERT WARNS

"Prince Harry is classified as a non-working member of the royal family whose position is akin to a private citizen. Of course, Harry and Megan are famous. Nobody's disputing that, but where does their fame end and infamy begin? Fame can inspire people to invest in you emotionally and financially. Infamy means people know your name because controversy follows you," she began.

Schofield continued, "And after years of feuds, lawsuits, and relationships that deteriorate, I think it's fair to ask how much of the Sussex's enormous public profile today is driven by admiration and how much is driven by controversy, which is precisely why the king has every reason to make their status crystal clear."

Ian Pelham Turner, royal broadcaster, disagrees with Charles's stance on labeling his son and his wife as private citizens.

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"Harry is the son of a king. He has prominence in Britain. Thus, whether William likes it or not the King should decide not to weakly disenfranchise his second son," Turner said. "He is a billionaire with vast fortunes. Pay for his son’s full security rather than looking like an Ebenezer Scrooge after."

He continued, "Although some royals still live in Dickens times, we are actually in the 21st century. How would the King feel if a second tragedy happens in his lifetime, first Diana, and potentially Harry and his family?"

Private citizens are not granted security like members of the royal family are.

Richard Fitzwilliams, royal commentator, told Fox News Digital that Charles' letter, declaring Harry and Markle private citizens, is a "total mess."

"The current situation with the King’s letter about their status and the Sussexes response is a total mess. The raising of the security issue which, in the Sussexes view, is a further example of the risks they face, was, in fact, highlighting the incompetence on their part as no proper recce [reconnaissance] has been done during term by their team," Fitzwilliams said.

Fitzwilliams argued that the king's letter was a "slap on the wrist" for Meghan and Harry, proving his lack of trust for the former senior royals.

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"The King’s letter restated the facts without giving them much of a chance to 'clarify' things. It was clearly intended as a slap on the wrist and evidence that the King didn’t trust them. Unfortunately, nothing is going to stop matters becoming a circus, with royal engagements overshadowed by what they get up to," he said.

As for what's to come, the royal experts are stumped.

"It is simply impossible to anticipate the way this may go. It is only clear that, whatever their motives and mistakes, the Sussexes are news whatever they do. That strengthens their hand because it gives them a very high profile. This has nothing to do with the rights and wrongs of any issues involved," Fitzwilliams said.

Schofield explained that Markle and Harry are "unpredictable."

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"Harry and Megan are unpredictable. The palace can't have governments, charities, businesses, even members of the public wondering whether their activities somehow carry the endorsement of the crown. It doesn't. They don't. King Charles is saying, absolutely not," she said.

Schofield continued, "Harry spent years insisting that he wanted independence from the institution. Independence means you don't get to demand the privileges or the authority or the special treatment afforded to people who stayed and did the job. It's the king who determines who represents the crown, not Prince Harry, not Megan Markle, and certainly not anonymous sources briefing People Magazine. Harry wanted his freedom from the system. He got it, but freedom from the system also means accepting that you no longer have a seat at the table."

Fox News Digital has reached out to Archewell and Buckingham Palace for comment.

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Psychosis evidence changes everything in Clancy judge's other killer mom case: retired judge

Fri, 18 Sep 2026 06:00:11 -0400

Judge William Sullivan, who drew national attention earlier this month after declaring a mistrial in the Lindsay Clancy murder case, also presided over another closely watched child-killing trial that a retired Massachusetts judge says would look dramatically different if retried.

The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court last month vacated the murder convictions of Brockton mother Latarsha Sanders, ruling jurors were improperly prevented from seeing psychiatric records central to her insanity defense and ordering a new trial.

"They ordered a new trial which will fundamentally change the way the case is going to be tried," retired Massachusetts Superior Court Judge Jack Lu told Fox News Digital.

LINDSAY CLANCY MISTRIAL DECLARED AFTER JURY DEADLOCKS IN KILLINGS OF HER THREE CHILDREN

Sullivan, who presided over Sanders' 2022 trial and later sentenced her to two concurrent life terms without parole, has returned to the national spotlight following the closely watched Clancy trial, which ended in a mistrial after jurors deadlocked over whether Clancy was criminally responsible for killing her three children. Like Sanders, Clancy admitted killing her children but argued she lacked criminal responsibility because of mental illness.

"There is no doubt the defendant committed these incomprehensible crimes," Justice David Gaziano wrote for the unanimous court in Sanders' case. "The sole issue before a Superior Court jury was whether she lacked criminal responsibility."

LINDSAY CLANCY JUDGE CALLS MISTRIAL, THEN GRANTS DEFENSE ONE HOUR STAY FOR APPEAL

The justices concluded Sanders was entitled to a new trial because jurors never saw medical records documenting diagnoses and treatment of mental illness that were relevant to the only issue disputed at trial: whether she lacked criminal responsibility.

Lu said the ruling does far more than simply order another trial.

"Thousands of pages of mental health records will be admitted ... and the jury's gonna get it all," he said.

Lu cautioned against judging Sullivan's decision with the benefit of hindsight.

"The trial judge did an excellent job ... but now I'm a great Monday morning quarterback just like everybody else," Lu said, explaining that the evidentiary issue was unusually difficult before the SJC clarified the law.

Sanders admitted killing her sons, 8-year-old Edson "Marlon" Brito and 5-year-old La'Son Brito, but argued she was legally insane at the time of the attacks.

Her attorneys contended she was suffering from severe mental illness and psychosis, while prosecutors argued she appreciated the wrongfulness of her actions despite bizarre statements she made before and after the killings.

According to evidence summarized by the Supreme Judicial Court, Sanders had become consumed by conspiracy theories involving the Illuminati and expressed fears about voodoo before the killings.

After the deaths, investigators said she gave police multiple conflicting accounts before eventually telling detectives the stabbings were part of a "ritual" tied to voodoo and the Illuminati.

At trial, Sanders' defense called a clinical neuropsychologist who testified she was "grossly psychotic" at the time of the killings and suffered from a schizophrenia-spectrum disorder.

The expert based that opinion in part on thousands of pages of psychiatric treatment records from prison and a state psychiatric hospital.

Those are the records Lu said a future jury would likely hear if prosecutors pursue another trial.

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The Supreme Judicial Court said that was an error, concluding the excluded records documented repeated observations of paranoia, hallucinations, delusional thinking and schizophrenia-spectrum diagnoses that formed the medical foundation of Sanders' defense.

Read the court's ruling:

"We hold that the exclusion of the MCI-Framingham and WRCH medical records documenting the defendant's post-arrest diagnoses or treatment of mental illness ... impermissibly stripped the sole defense 'of the medical foundation that supported it,'" the court wrote. "The defendant is entitled to a new trial."

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Lu said the opinion should not be interpreted as a determination that Sanders was legally insane or wrongly convicted. Instead, he described it as the resolution of a difficult evidentiary question that changes what evidence jurors would be permitted to consider if the case is retried.

During oral arguments before the Supreme Judicial Court, Sanders' attorney, Robert Shaw, argued the trial judge's exclusion of medical evidence deprived his client of "a meaningful opportunity to present a complete defense," FOX 25 in Boston reported.

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Assistant Plymouth County District Attorney Melissa Johnson countered that Sanders showed no documented psychotic behavior for months after the killings and that the records were properly excluded, the station reported.

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The justices also addressed two issues that would likely shape any future trial.

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First, they said prosecutors could refer to Sanders describing herself as "evil" because the statements were relevant to whether she appreciated the moral wrongfulness of her actions, so long as the argument remained tied to that legal issue rather than serving as a personal attack.

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However, the court found prosecutors improperly suggested Sanders may have borrowed elements of her story from episodes of "Law & Order: SVU," ruling there was no evidence supporting that theory.

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The ruling vacates Sanders' convictions and sends the case back to Plymouth Superior Court for a new trial.

An overturned conviction does not clear Sanders of the charges, Lu said.

"It just means you have to do it all over again," he said.

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Fox News Digital has reached out to Sullivan, Sanders' attorney and the Plymouth County District Attorney's Office for comment.

Trump's EPA reforms are a huge boost to manufacturers, but there's more red tape to cut: expert

Thu, 17 Sep 2026 19:38:27 -0400

The Trump administration's move to eliminate a swath of Biden-era power plant emissions standards will be a game changer for the U.S. economy, National Association of Manufacturers CEO Jay Timmons told Fox News Digital.

Timmons hailed EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin for the move announced this week but noted that even more red tape remains to be cut.

"It really sent a signal to manufacturers that the administration was listening to our concerns," Timmons said of the cuts to power plant emissions standards.

TRUMP'S EPA CHIEF PUSHES BACK ON CLIMATE SKEPTICS BEING LABELED 'SCIENCE DENIERS'

He said NAM and other groups had objected to former President Joe Biden's 2024 standards "very, very clearly" at the time, saying the standards were "simply unworkable."

"The timeline that they had proposed was just, it wasn't feasible. Not that the aspirations for, you know, for cleaner air and a healthier environment aren't good aspirations," Timmons said.

"I think we all share that. I know the current EPA and Administrator Zeldin certainly share those objectives, but how you get there really matters and whether manufacturers are able to meet the challenge.

Timmons noted that the Biden administration had heard its concerns but simply disagreed.

TRUMP-APPROVED ENERGY PROJECTS AT RISK OF SUDDEN DEATH BY NEXT HOSTILE PRESIDENT

The emissions regulations cut this week were removed by executive fiat, but Timmons says more lasting change must come through Congress as manufacturers hope to avoid regulatory whiplash between administrations.

"Uncertainty is the absolute worst enemy for manufacturers because manufacturers are on a very long-term horizon when it comes to planning and strategy, product development, research development. So, when administrations change, there has often been kind of that pendulum swing," Timmons said.

SEN KEVIN CRAMER: CHINA BUILDS FOR WAR WHILE AMERICA WAITS ON PERMITS

One area he said could use further reform is permitting. NAM polling found that 80% of manufacturers say the length and complexity of the permitting process is harmful to increasing investment.

As many as 87% of manufacturers told NAM they would expand business operations, hire more workers or increase wages and benefits if the permitting process was more streamlined.

SENATE MOVES TO UNSHACKLE AMERICA'S DRIVERS FROM CALIFORNIA'S 'CLIMATE ZEALOTS'

Timmons said it is critical for Congress to hear directly from manufacturers when drafting legislation, however.

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"There needs to be more opportunities for business to be at the table. To really explain what the art of the possible is. No one is saying that we should not be working hard to achieve cleaner air, cleaner water, healthier communities. In fact, we're saying exactly that. We should be part of the solution to make that happen," he said.

‘Unprecedented’: Judges reveal behind-the-scenes coordination on Trump immigration cases

Fri, 18 Sep 2026 05:30:47 -0400

Federal judges in Minnesota tasked with deciding a flood of habeas petitions challenging the detention of immigrants swept up during President Donald Trump's Operation Metro Surge weren't working entirely on their own — behind the scenes, they were regularly consulting one another through running email threads and developing tools to quickly handle recurring legal questions.

The behind-the-scenes coordination among Minnesota's federal bench, revealed in a New York Times report Thursday, included regular meetings, running email threads, an informal spreadsheet created by court clerks showing which judges to turn to with particular legal questions and templates some judges developed to quickly issue orders when similar detention disputes repeatedly came before the court.

The disclosures are fueling questions over whether the judges were colluding on separate cases involving the same Trump administration immigration policies, or simply sharing expertise to manage an extraordinary caseload.

FEDERAL JUDGE TIES ICE AGENTS' HANDS WITH RULING ON WARRANTLESS SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA ARRESTS

"The idea of a running email chain involving a variety of cases — it strikes me as very weird and frankly unprecedented," Robert Luther III, a professor at George Mason University's Antonin Scalia Law School whose work includes federal courts and judicial ethics, told Fox News Digital. Federal judges can and routinely do consult colleagues, Luther said, particularly about procedural or evidentiary questions. But each judge is ultimately responsible for independently deciding the cases assigned to them — a distinction Luther said makes the coordination significant.

The disclosures have also drawn criticism from the Trump administration on two fronts. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) General Counsel James Percival accused the former chief judge who led the district during Metro Surge of "essentially conspiring with his judicial colleagues" to thwart federal immigration enforcement. The Justice Department (DOJ), meanwhile, questioned the decision by sitting judges to give extensive on-the-record interviews about their experience with the administration's immigration operation.

Seven of the district's judges spoke to the Times for Thursday's report, including former Chief Judge Patrick Schiltz, who sat for a 90-minute interview about the court's experience during Metro Surge. Schiltz declined to discuss ongoing cases, according to the Times, but described what happened in Minnesota's federal court as having "created a grave threat to the rule of law."

"It is remarkable that sitting federal judges are giving on-the-record interviews attacking this Administration's policies rather than ruling from the bench," a Justice Department spokesperson told Fox News Digital. "If judges followed the law in adjudicating cases, there wouldn't be an 'overwhelming' habeas caseload. Judges who have made public comments on pending or related matters should consider whether recusal is warranted going forward."

OBAMA, BIDEN JUDGES DRAW FRESH FIRE AS TRUMP'S IMMIGRATION COURT CLASHES HEAT UP: ‘ALMOST IMPOSSIBLE’

But Chief Judge Eric Tostrud, who was himself among the Minnesota judges interviewed by the Times, rejected suggestions that the coordination described in the report compromised individual decision-making. He told Fox News Digital that every member of the bench independently decided the merits of each petition assigned to them, while pointing to an extraordinary surge in litigation — from 12 alien-detainee habeas petitions during all of 2024 to 1,427 through August of this year — and noting that many involved similar or identical, often novel, legal questions.

"The bottom line is that each of us made an independent decision with respect to the merits of each and every petition we were assigned," Tostrud told Fox News Digital.

Tostrud stressed that the judges did not uniformly reach the same conclusions, saying that while some reached the same result on certain legal questions, they "reached different outcomes regarding other legal questions." He said the judges' ability to communicate helped them resolve the cases quickly and thoughtfully, regardless of whether individual petitions were granted.

What exactly the judges were sharing behind the scenes, however, remains unclear. Tostrud declined to disclose the contents of the court's internal working materials, saying documents created by judges and court staff "are not public."

TRUMP ADMINISTRATION'S IMMIGRATION PUSH FUELS ICE'S BIGGEST ARREST MONTH IN AGENCY HISTORY

That distinction could be significant, according to Luther, who said administrative templates are commonplace in federal courts, but drew a line between those and templates touching the substance of a case.

"Templates that deal with administrative matters strike me as entirely appropriate and commonplace in federal courts," Luther said. "Templates for substantive matters — that seems like something altogether different."

The coordination unfolded amid a broader clash between Minnesota's federal bench and the Trump administration over Operation Metro Surge. The dispute came as immigration litigation inundated the district. During the first three months of 2026, Minnesota's federal court received 1,116 habeas petitions, compared with just two during the same period the previous year, according to the Times. Court staff worked 16-hour days, seven days a week, to process the incoming cases.

Patrick Schiltz, who served as the district's chief judge during Metro Surge before taking senior status — a form of semi-retirement — this summer, emerged as a prominent judicial critic of the administration's handling of the operation. In a Jan. 28 order, Schiltz accused ICE of violating nearly 100 court orders during that month and warned that "ICE is not a law unto itself."

OBAMA JUDGE'S PECULIAR TRUMP REBUKE IGNITES FURY OVER 'UNPROFESSIONAL' LANGUAGE: 'EMBARRASSMENT'

The cases cited in Schiltz's January list of alleged violations have largely concluded, according to the Times, which reported that the administration ultimately corrected the issues flagged by the court in many of them.

DOJ said its review of the cases found that in the "large majority" of them, detainees were released on time and no violation occurred, while in most of the remaining cases the department said it ultimately did what the court ordered despite missing an additional deadline.

MASSACHUSETTS' HIGHEST COURT PUBLICLY REPRIMANDS JUDGE ACCUSED OF ENABLING IMMIGRANT TO ESCAPE ICE

Federal judicial ethics rules generally prohibit judges from publicly commenting on the merits of pending or impending cases, but permit judges to explain court procedures and engage in broader speaking and teaching about the law, legal system and administration of justice.

The DOJ argued that judges who publicly commented on pending or related matters should consider whether recusal is warranted. The Times reported, however, that Schiltz declined to discuss ongoing cases, while Judge Nancy Brasel, a Trump appointee who also participated in the interviews, defended judges' ability to speak publicly about judicial independence.

"We are allowed to speak out about judicial independence," Brasel told the Times. "And so we should, in order to keep it."

Luther, however, took a different view of the judges' decision to participate in the interviews.

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"Judges should be speaking through their judicial orders, not through their surrogates at The New York Times," he told Fox News Digital.

America runs on data. If we don’t build the infrastructure, China will

Fri, 18 Sep 2026 05:00:30 -0400

Most Americans don't think much about digital infrastructure because, for the most part, it is always there. We carry supercomputers in our pockets and expect instant access to our bank accounts, medical records, airline schedules, businesses, families and virtually any piece of information we need. We have become so accustomed to that availability that it is easy to forget there is an enormous physical infrastructure behind it.

Both of us learned the value of information long before we entered the critical infrastructure industry. Kirk learned it beneath the ocean aboard U.S. Navy nuclear submarines, while Mike experienced it years later on the battlefields of the Global War on Terror with special operations forces. The missions and eras were different, but the lesson was the same: Having the right information at the right time can save lives. Knowing where your people are, understanding what is happening around you and acting on reliable information faster than an adversary can determine the outcome of a mission.

That lesson applies to the challenge America faces today. The race for artificial intelligence isn't simply about who develops the best software or algorithm. It is also about who can build the power generation, transmission, data centers and workforce required to run it. If we fail at that part of the equation, it won't matter how innovative we are.

8 EVERYDAY THINGS THAT WOULD QUIT WORKING WITHOUT DATA CENTERS

America has to build again

For generations, one of America's greatest strengths was our ability to turn innovation into physical capability. We built interstate highways, ports, power plants, factories and telecommunications networks that fueled economic growth while strengthening our national security.

THE MACHINES THAT KEEP AMERICA ALIVE ARE FAILING. WE FORGOT HOW TO REPLACE THEM

We are at another such moment, except we aren't moving fast enough. Permitting delays, grid bottlenecks and supply-chain constraints are slowing new generation and transmission at precisely the moment AI and advanced computing are creating enormous new demand for electricity.

China understands this. It is aggressively expanding power generation, transmission, manufacturing and computing capacity because technological leadership ultimately requires physical capacity. While Washington debates how AI should be governed, our competitors are making sure they have the infrastructure to deploy it.

US ADVERSARY TURNS UP THE HEAT ON AMERICA’S AI LEAD WITH AN UNDERESTIMATED EDGE

That is why the way we talk about data centers also needs to change. They aren't simply large commercial buildings filled with servers. They are part of what we call the Fifth Utility, the interconnected compute, power, fiber and digital infrastructure that supports banking, healthcare, transportation, commerce, emergency communications, national intelligence and defense.

None of that means communities should accept development without asking tough questions. Residents deserve to know how projects will affect power, water, land, electricity rates and local infrastructure. Developers have an obligation to show up early, answer those questions honestly and invest responsibly in the communities where they build.

DATA CENTERS FORGOT THE CONSUMER — AND THAT COULD COST AMERICA THE AI RACE

We can protect communities and ratepayers while still building the infrastructure America needs. In fact, we must do both.

The same is true of our workforce. Data centers and power plants don't build themselves. America needs electricians, line workers, welders, high-voltage technicians, construction professionals and mission-critical operators. Meanwhile, roughly 200,000 men and women leave military service every year with many of the qualities this industry desperately needs: technical discipline, leadership, adaptability and the ability to perform when failure isn't an option.

FROM NEW YORK TO TEXAS, STATES SHOULD RESPECT LOCAL CONTROL ON DATA CENTERS

Creating stronger pathways from military service into critical infrastructure careers should be part of our national strategy, not simply a workforce initiative.

We spent our military careers understanding that information superiority matters only if you have the people, systems and infrastructure to deliver it when it counts. Technology may have changed, but the principle hasn't.

America still has the capital, energy resources, technology and talent to lead the digital age. What we cannot assume is that those advantages will last while we take years to build what our competitors are building now.

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The digital world may feel invisible, but the infrastructure behind it isn't. It requires power, transmission, fiber, steel, concrete and skilled people.

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If America intends to lead the digital age, we need to start building like it.

Kirk Offel is a Navy nuclear attack submarine veteran and the CEO of Overwatch Mission Critical, a Texas-based Service-Disabled Veteran Owned data center company that trains and hires future leaders for high-skill jobs in the data center industry. He is a Top 10 ranked global voice on data centers.

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LEE CARTER: The Fed finally raised rates. The real danger now for the GOP is what happens next

Fri, 18 Sep 2026 05:00:26 -0400

The Federal Reserve raised interest rates Wednesday for the first time since 2023.

There will be much discussion about what this means for the economy. There should be.

But there is another question, less technical and perhaps more important as we approach the midterms.

What does it mean to the people living in the economy?

FOX NEWS POLL: SQUEEZED BY COSTS, FRUSTRATED VOTERS TURN TO THE DEMOCRATS

The Fed sees an economy strong enough to withstand higher rates. Growth is solid. Consumers are still spending. Businesses are investing. The labor market is holding up.

These are good things.

And yet there is something strange about the word economists keep using to describe the American consumer.

Resilient.

Americans have certainly been that.

They have absorbed years of higher prices. They have adjusted household budgets. They have postponed purchases. They have watched mortgage rates make houses they once could afford suddenly unaffordable. They have put more on credit cards and paid more interest for the privilege.

US ECONOMY NOTCHES REMARKABLE NEW RECORD, SPARKING CHEERS: ‘GOOD JOB EVERYONE’

And they have kept going.

But perhaps we’re asking too much of the word "resilient."

A family can be resilient because it is thriving.

It can also be resilient because it has no choice.

A consumer can keep spending while putting more on a credit card.

A small business can keep its doors open while canceling the expansion it hoped to finance.

The spreadsheet calls that resilience.

The voter may call it exhaustion.

FOX NEWS POWER RANKINGS: VOTERS SAY THEY’RE IN ECONOMIC PAIN, BUT WILL DEMOCRATS GAIN?

There comes a point when people don’t want to hear that they’re weathering the storm remarkably well.

They want the storm to end.

That is the part of Wednesday’s decision Washington should be thinking about.

The Federal Reserve raised rates because inflation remains too high. Higher interest rates are meant to slow demand. Borrowing becomes more expensive. People spend less. Businesses invest less. The economy cools and, eventually, inflation should cool with it.

This is sound economic theory.

It is also someone’s life.

A small-business owner who was thinking about expanding now looks again at the cost of the loan.

A young couple thinking about buying their first home runs the mortgage calculation one more time.

A family that hasn’t paid off its credit card watches another month’s interest accumulate.

None of them thinks: Monetary policy is working.

They think:

This is getting harder.

FOX NEWS POLL: VOTERS WANT MAJOR CHANGE AMID ECONOMIC AND POLITICAL DISCONTENT

And there is another complication.

Some of today’s inflation pressure isn’t simply a story of Americans buying too much. Energy prices have surged amid geopolitical turmoil. Tariffs have added pressure to some goods prices. Supply matters, too.

The Fed has a powerful tool for suppressing demand.

It does not have a tool for producing oil.

That distinction becomes important when the cure for higher prices is making money itself more expensive.

Economist Mitch Roschelle put the larger dilemma this way: Monetary policy can suppress demand, but it cannot manufacture supply. The policies Washington says will eventually increase supply may take years to bear fruit. Voters aren’t living years from now. They’re voting this November, after the Federal Reserve has just delivered an unmistakable message: Inflation is still a problem.

That leaves the consumer caught in the middle.

The policies that might increase supply take time.

The interest-rate hike designed to suppress demand does not.

Its effects begin showing up in the cost of money now.

And that may be the essential disconnect of this economy.

FOX NEWS POLL: 'RESILIENT DISCONTENT' DEFINES THE US MOOD AT 250TH ANNIVERSARY

Washington lives in the eventually. Consumers live in the now.

Washington can debate whether today’s inflation began with pandemic spending, the Inflation Reduction Act, tariffs, oil prices, the war in the Middle East, consumer demand or some complicated combination of all of them.

Voters don’t have to settle that argument.

They know what a gallon of gas costs.

THE AMERICAN DREAM NOW COMES WITH A ZIP CODE: HERE'S WHERE STARTER HOMES ARE STILL WITHIN REACH

They know what they spent at the grocery store last Saturday.

They know whether their credit-card balance is bigger than it was a year ago.

They know whether the house they hoped to buy still feels possible.

And they know whether they feel as if they are getting ahead or falling behind.

That is why economic statistics and economic sentiment can tell such different stories.

The statistics measure the economy.

People measure their lives.

There is, inevitably, a political dimension to all of this.

IT’S NOT THE ECONOMY, STUPID. AMERICANS VOTE BASED ON THEIR PERSONAL ECONOMY

President Trump has repeatedly called for lower interest rates. On Wednesday, the independent Federal Reserve looked at the economy and concluded that rates needed to go higher.

Democrats will point to that decision as evidence that inflation remains a problem on Trump’s watch. Republicans will point to energy prices, geopolitical turmoil and other forces beyond the president’s control.

Both arguments will be made loudly.

But voters may hear something simpler.

The president has said prices are coming under control.

The Federal Reserve just said inflation remains elevated and raised interest rates to fight it.

That doesn’t tell us who caused inflation.

It tells us inflation isn’t over.

And politically, that may be the more important distinction.

Because Washington thinks about causation.

People think about experience.

GEN Z IS WORKING HARD, BUT THE ECONOMY IS PUTTING THE AMERICAN DREAM OUT OF REACH FOR MANY

There is an echo here of the 1970s, although history is never as neat as politicians would like it to be. Then, too, oil shocks collided with an inflation problem already underway. Paul Volcker ultimately broke entrenched inflation with extraordinarily aggressive monetary tightening, at enormous economic cost.

We are not living through the 1970s again.

But history sometimes asks familiar questions.

What happens when part of your inflation problem comes from things monetary policy cannot fix?

And what happens when the cure lands on people who already feel they have been taking the medicine for years?

That is why Wednesday’s Fed decision matters beyond the markets.

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Politicians will argue about causation.

Economists will allocate responsibility.

Voters get to ask two considerably simpler questions:

How am I doing?

And:

Who’s in charge?

The Fed thinks the economy can take the medicine.

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The question for November is how Americans feel after swallowing it.

We should use Reagan as a guide in handling our modern arms race with China

Fri, 18 Sep 2026 05:00:12 -0400

I can still remember, as a young Air Force officer, sitting in the cockpit of my B-1 bomber knowing that we could deliver nuclear weapons virtually anywhere in the world.

I also remember watching President Ronald Reagan and Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev meet in Reykjavik, Iceland, in 1986 to negotiate nuclear arms reductions. The whole world was watching. The nuclear arms race was a global threat, and the world’s two most powerful nations had a responsibility to confront it.

Now imagine that, as Reagan sat across the table from Gorbachev, American companies were selling Moscow the technology it needed to make its nuclear arsenal even more powerful.

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The idea would have been absurd.

Yet today, as the United States enters another potentially historic technological arms race, we are entertaining a remarkably similar proposition: selling China the advanced computer chips it needs to build the world’s most powerful artificial intelligence.

CHINA IS BUILDING AN AI WAR MACHINE. WASHINGTON MUST WAKE UP BEFORE IT’S TOO LATE

Advanced AI chips are not nuclear weapons. But in the emerging competition over artificial intelligence, they may be the closest equivalent we have to the strategic materials that powered the last great arms race. In short, they are the fuel.

Without enormous quantities of advanced chips and computing power, China cannot train frontier AI systems at the same scale or speed as the United States. That is precisely why Beijing wants them, and precisely why Washington should think very carefully before selling them.

TRUMP'S AI RACE WITH CHINA COULD BECOME THE BIGGEST MISTAKE OF OUR TIME

When President Donald Trump welcomes Chinese President Xi Jinping to the White House this month, there will be no shortage of issues to discuss. Trade. Security. Technology. The future of the world’s most consequential relationship.

But Trump should make one principle clear: America will not help China build the technology that could erase one of our greatest strategic advantages.

CHINA’S ROUTING OF BIDEN IN CHIP WAR WITH US CREATED A COMMUNIST TECH GIANT

The United States currently possesses enormous leverage. America remains at the center of the world’s most advanced AI ecosystem, and China still depends heavily on access to American-designed chips and the broader technological infrastructure surrounding them. We should not give that leverage away.

Earlier this year, the United States began allowing some advanced AI chips, including Nvidia’s H200, to be sold to China on a case-by-case basis. Those sales come with restrictions and security requirements. But the strategic question is more fundamental: Why should we accelerate China’s ability to compete with us in the first place?

US ADVERSARY TURNS UP THE HEAT ON AMERICA’S AI LEAD WITH AN UNDERESTIMATED EDGE

Supporters of chip sales argue that keeping China dependent on American technology preserves our influence and supports American companies. They also argue it disincentivizes China from developing its own capabilities. But there is great evidence that it has exactly the opposite effect. China is using our chips to accelerate their own capabilities. And national security should never be reduced to an argument over market share.

An advanced AI chip sold to China does not simply power a search engine or make a factory more efficient. At sufficient scale, these chips provide the computing power required to train increasingly capable AI systems with applications in intelligence, cyber operations, military planning, autonomous weapons, scientific research and countless other fields.

RUBIO WARNS AMERICA MUST 'STAY AHEAD OF THE CURVE' AS CHINA WORKS TO SURPASS THE US WITH STOLEN TECH

We would never have looked at Soviet demand for strategic nuclear technology and concluded that the important question was whether an American company could make the sale. We understood that some technologies were too consequential to treat as ordinary commerce, and AI chips increasingly belong in that category.

This does not mean America should retreat from AI development. Quite the opposite. We should build faster, innovate more aggressively and maintain as large a technological advantage over China as possible. But there is a difference between racing ahead and helping your adversary catch up.

Trump should use the Xi meeting to turn America’s chip advantage into negotiating leverage. If China wants greater access to advanced American computing power, then Beijing should have to accept meaningful, verifiable limits on the most dangerous forms of AI development. We should demand transparency around massive compute clusters and clear restrictions on capabilities that could threaten U.S. national security or escape meaningful human control.

And any agreement must be enforceable. China has given us little reason to rely on promises. The standard should be simple: Trust nothing. Verify everything.

This is where Reagan’s example matters. He did not negotiate with the Soviet Union because America was weak. He rebuilt American strength first, then used that strength to secure limits on a dangerous arms race.

He understood something we should remember today: You do not surrender your leverage before negotiations begin. Trump should apply that lesson to the defining technological competition of our time. America should lead in AI. America should win. And America should negotiate from strength to keep this race from carrying both nations somewhere neither can control.

But we cannot negotiate from strength while handing China the fuel it needs to catch us.

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Selling advanced AI chips to Beijing while worrying about China overtaking us makes about as much strategic sense as selling nuclear technology to the Soviets during the Cold War.

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Reagan would have understood that immediately. Our current leadership should too.

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Minnesota woman's mugshot goes viral after social media users spot resemblance to Jennifer Lopez

Fri, 18 Sep 2026 03:31:41 -0400

The mugshot of a Minnesota woman arrested for allegedly stealing batteries is going viral after social media users noticed her resemblance to a famous pop superstar.

Cyrena Anne Quast, 35, was arrested Aug. 30 on a theft charge in Monticello after she allegedly stole two double packs of power tool batteries valued at around $580 from a store, according to a criminal complaint obtained by TMZ.

But it was Quast's booking photo that had the internet doing a collective double take.

JENNIFER LOPEZ'S BOLD WIMBLEDON HAT DIVIDES FANS OVER ROYAL BOX ETIQUETTE

Social media users quickly pointed out that the mugshot appeared to bear a striking resemblance to Jennifer Lopez.

"It really does look like her!" one user exclaimed, while others suggested the two could even pass for twins.

Another referenced Lopez's 2002 hit "Jenny from the Block," declaring Quast, "the real Jenny from the block."

Others had a little more fun with the comparison, with one saying Quast looked like J.Lo if the global superstar "had a really rough week."

JENNIFER LOPEZ SENDS FANS INTO A FRENZY AS SHE SHOWS OFF CHISELED ABS IN GYM SELFIES

Another suggested Quast might have a future as Lopez's stunt double.

Still, not everyone was seeing double, with plenty of social media users pushing back on the supposed "uncanny" resemblance.

"She looks absolutely nothing like her," one user quipped.

Her alleged return visit raised red flags when an employee recognized Quast from a similar theft days earlier and alerted police, according to the complaint.

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Quast was arrested and booked into the Wright County Jail on a gross misdemeanor theft charge.

Bills cruise past Lions to christen new home behind Josh Allen's five-touchdown performance

Fri, 18 Sep 2026 00:26:30 -0400

The wait for regular-season football at the Buffalo Bills' new home ended Thursday night, when Highmark Stadium hosted its first regular-season game.

Right on cue, Buffalo's star quarterback Josh Allen orchestrated a picture-perfect first half as the home team raced to a 27-10 halftime lead over the Detroit Lions. Allen threw three touchdown passes and ran for two scores to power the Bills to a 41-31 victory.

Allen recorded the fourth five-touchdown game of his career Thursday, one week after throwing two touchdown passes and running for two more in a 36-31 season-opening win over the Houston Texans.

BUFFALO BILLS' PLAN TO FEATURE CANADIAN ANTHEM AT STADIUM OPENER MET WITH MIXED REACTIONS

The $2.1 billion stadium that officially opened last month was built across the street from the Bills' former home.

Allen followed the pregame fireworks celebration with more fireworks of his own by overseeing touchdown drives on each of Buffalo’s first four possessions. Bills running back James Cook had 134 yards rushing and put the game away with a 1-yard TD run with just under three minutes remaining.

Allen’s two rushing touchdowns upped his career total to 83, moving him into a tie for 18th on the NFL list with Jim Taylor. He also picked up his 90th regular-season victory, becoming one of just four quarterbacks to reach that milestone in their first nine seasons.

The Lions were undone by an injury-depleted defense, and a banged-up offensive line that had difficulty opening holes for Jahmyr Gibbs and protecting Jared Goff.

After rallying from a 21-0 deficit to cut Buffalo’s lead to 34-24, the Lions' offense stalled midway through the fourth quarter. Backed up at their own 10, the Lions went three-and-out and were forced to punt after Goff had two passes tipped by Deone Walker, and Gibbs was stopped for no gain.

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Goff finished 26 of 38 for 327 yards and four touchdowns, while Amon-Ra St. Brown had nine catches for 142 yards and two scores. Gibbs scored on an 11-yard catch but was limited to 52 rushing yards, and Sam LaPorta added a 1-yard touchdown reception.

Despite being an open-air facility, the Bills' new home was designed to withstand Buffalo’s weather. Underground heating coils keep the natural-grass field from freezing, while roof sensors monitor snowfall and activate the world’s largest stadium snow-melt system.

The new stadium will also shield most fans from the wind with its 360-degree canopy.

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Highmark Stadium seats 60,108 fans, about 10,000 fewer than its predecessor.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Archbishop of Canterbury withdraws award from Muslim cleric after past Osama bin Laden praise surfaces

Thu, 17 Sep 2026 23:59:04 -0400

The Archbishop of Canterbury's office has withdrawn an interfaith award given to a Muslim cleric after past comments surfaced in which he praised Usama bin Laden.

Maulana Hafiz Muhammad Tahir Mehmood Ashrafi received the Hubert Walter Award for Reconciliation and Interfaith Cooperation at Lambeth Palace last Friday, during a ceremony that coincided with the 25th anniversary of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.

Lambeth Palace announced the reversal Thursday after previous comments by Ashrafi had "come to light," causing it to reconsider the award.

"It is a longstanding principle of interfaith dialogue and co-operation that we must engage with one another across deeply-held differences, and that remains the case," Lambeth Palace said in a statement.

BUSH REVIVES ‘ISLAM IS PEACE’ MESSAGE WITH FRESH FOCUS ON POST-9/11 MOSQUE VISIT

"However, previous comments made by Imam Ashrafi have come to light that have led Lambeth Palace to reconsider this award and we can now confirm today that the award has been withdrawn," the statement continued. "We have contacted Imam Ashrafi to make him aware of this decision."

Lambeth Palace added that it continues "to pray for the Christian community in Pakistan, and for all those working for interfaith dialogue and harmony in Pakistan and around the world."

According to Lambeth Palace, the award was given to Ashrafi because of his "longstanding support for religious minorities in Pakistan, particularly the Christian community."

SEAL WHO KILLED BIN LADEN RECALLS 9/11 MOMENT THAT CHANGED HIS LIFE: ‘WELCOME TO MY WORLD’

According to the BBC, Ashrafi said in 2007 that bin Laden — the architect of the 9/11 attacks — had "been fighting for Islam against the Russians, Americans and British."

The BBC also reported that Ashrafi said he would give bin Laden the title "Saifullah," meaning "Sword of God."

Ashrafi told the BBC that his remarks had been "totally taken out of context" and described the backlash against him as an "unfair campaign."

He said he made the remarks about bin Laden in 2007 in response to "the hurt felt by many Muslims" over the British government's decision to knight "The Satanic Verses" author Salman Rushdie.

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During the award presentation last week, the Archbishop's office said Ashrafi was being honored for "his outstanding work as an ambassador of interfaith harmony in Pakistan, known for his commitment to promoting religious tolerance."

Juror who blocked Lindsay Clancy verdict disputes fellow jurors' claims: report

Thu, 17 Sep 2026 21:44:13 -0400

The lone holdout juror whose refusal to find Lindsay Clancy not guilty by reason of insanity led to a mistrial is speaking publicly for the first time, disputing claims from fellow jurors that he expressed doubts about the prosecution's case.

Michael P. Desronvil said in a statement to NewsNation that he never wavered in his belief prosecutors proved Clancy knew what she was doing when she strangled her three young children in January 2023.

"I didn't have any doubts. As I tried to explain different possible theories during deliberation, I kept getting cut off as if I had doubts based on the evidence present," Desronvil said.

LINDSAY CLANCY HOLDOUT JUROR ‘LOOKED AT THE CASE AND HE MADE THE CALL,’ HIS BROTHER SAYS

"Based on all the physical evidence, key witnesses and what the prosecution presents, I thought it was enough proof that she knew exactly what she was doing and planned."

His comments directly contradict accounts from fellow jurors, who said after the mistrial that Desronvil appeared to acknowledge reasonable doubt during deliberations but still refused to join the other 11 jurors in finding Clancy not guilty by reason of insanity.

The jury deadlocked 11-1, with Desronvil standing alone in favor of convicting Clancy rather than accepting her insanity defense, prompting Judge William Sullivan to declare a mistrial.

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The public statement comes as Plymouth County prosecutors weigh whether to retry Clancy, whose attorneys have also floated the possibility of resolving the case without another jury trial. Fox News contributor Jonathan Turley previously told Fox News Digital that prosecutors face the difficult task of deciding whether they can persuade a future jury to unanimously reject Clancy's insanity defense after the first panel failed to reach a verdict.

"The question is whether they could ever get a jury, particularly in Massachusetts, that would unanimously vote against this defendant," Turley said. "For prosecutors, they have to weigh that, but they may find the alternative equally unappealing — to simply walk away and say, 'There are three dead children here, but we just don't think we could ever win this case.'"

Clancy, a former labor and delivery nurse, admitted killing her children — Cora, 5, Dawson, 3, and Callan, 8 months — but argued she was not criminally responsible because she was suffering from severe mental illness at the time of the killings. Prosecutors argued she planned the murders and understood the wrongfulness of her actions.

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Judge Sullivan has ordered jurors' identities and questionnaires sealed, citing safety concerns following the high-profile mistrial.

Clancy is due back in court Sept. 29 as prosecutors determine whether to seek a retrial.

Brutal MLB collision leaves New York Mets first baseman Jared Young motionless on the field

Thu, 17 Sep 2026 21:33:02 -0400

New York Mets first baseman Jared Young was carted off on a stretcher Thursday night following a terrifying collision with teammate Nolan McLean during a game against the Phillies at Citi Field.

The play unfolded in the top of the sixth inning when the Phillies' Justin Crawford grounded a slow roller up the first-base line. Both Young and McLean, the Mets' starting pitcher, converged to field the ball.

As Young dove toward the grounder, McLean attempted to jump over his teammate.

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McLean's knee made contact with what appeared to be the side of Young's head during the play, sending Young face-down into the dirt. He lay there without moving for several moments.

Medical staff from the Mets dugout rushed onto the field to treat the 31-year-old infielder.

Trainers stabilized Young's neck and evaluated him on the field before placing him on a stretcher.

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Young offered a positive sign to the Citi Field crowd as he was driven off the field, raising his thumb to give a thumbs-up as fans responded with a supportive ovation.

Mark Vientos replaced Young at first base when play resumed.

The Mets have not yet released an official medical update regarding Young's status. The team is expected to provide further details following complete hospital evaluations and concussion testing.

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Ms Rachel urges 'every wealthy White celebrity' to match Macklemore's donation to Palestinian causes

Thu, 17 Sep 2026 21:00:15 -0400

Children's YouTube star Ms. Rachel announced Thursday that she plans to match singer Macklemore's $1 million donation to Palestinian causes and urged "every wealthy White celebrity" to do the same.

In an Instagram post Wednesday, Macklemore shared his plans to donate his earnings from the Loop Tour with Ed Sheeran to six organizations, including the Palestine Children's Relief Fund (PCRF), HEAL Palestine, Gaza Soup Kitchen, Medical Aid for Palestinians, UNRWA USA National Committee and American Near East Refugee Aid (ANERA).

The 43-year-old rapper was dropped from Sheeran's tour Monday after he repeatedly called for a "Free Palestine" and performed his anti-Israel song "Hind’s Hall" during his opening performance at MetLife Stadium earlier this month.

MS RACHEL SAYS BACKLASH OVER HER GAZA POSTS 'DOESN'T FAZE' HER AS SHE CALLS OUT CELEBRITY SILENCE

In response, Ms. Rachel, whose real name is Rachel Griffin Accurso, wrote on Instagram that she plans to match Macklemore's donation and called specifically on White celebrities to do the same.

"I will match Macklemore's donation and I invite every wealthy White celebrity to match it and speak out against the genocide in Gaza," Accurso wrote, adding that she will be donating to the PCRF.

"Over 20,000 precious Palestinian children have been killed and children continue to be killed every day. We have a moral obligation to use our privilege and platforms to protect children and human rights."

Fox News Digital reached out to Accurso for comment but did not immediately receive a response.

Macklemore has challenged New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft to match his donation after Kraft refused to host the rapper at Gillette Stadium because of his activism. Kraft responded that he had already committed $2 million to Palestinian aid in the region, referencing his longtime humanitarian work in the Middle East.

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Accurso was also one of several prominent progressives who called out Sheeran after Macklemore's removal as the opening act for Sheeran's tour, suggesting silence to the cause was "racist."

"If more than 20,000 White children were killed in another part of the world, everyone would be shouting about it at their concerts," Accurso said. "Treating some children’s lives as less worthy of outrage is racist. Silence during a genocide is not neutral."

Accurso has been criticized by pro-Israel organizations and groups that say her posts have shared anti-Israel propaganda by repeatedly accusing the Jewish nation of committing "genocide."

BILL MAHER RIPS MACKLEMORE'S GAZA STANCE, SAYS CELEBRITY 'MORAL CONFUSION' IS FUELING ANTISEMITISM

Rabbi Yaakov Menken, the executive vice president of the Coalition for Jewish Values, previously said in a statement to Fox News Digital, "She claims to care about 35.5 million children suffering from acute malnutrition across Africa, the Middle East and Asia but spends an inordinate amount of time speaking about 0.031 million children in Gaza. When 0.09% of starving children receive 90% of her attention, something is wrong.

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"She had nothing to say about Israeli children being held hostage until seven months later, when the backlash became too loud to ignore," he added. "It is clear that her problem is not a deep concern for children, but that she is using her purported deep concern to mask something much darker."

Patriots' TreVeyon Henderson explains siding with family over DCF in custody dispute involving gender identity

Thu, 17 Sep 2026 20:42:23 -0400

New England Patriots running back TreVeyon Henderson stood his ground Thursday when questioned about a social media post defending a Massachusetts family that claims the state took custody of their teenage daughter after the parents refused to affirm her gender transition.

The parents, Joseph and Arlene Kutzko, have been fighting DCF to regain custody of their daughter since charges were filed against them in January 2025, around the time they claim they refused to consent to medical procedures intended to transition her to a male.

In the post, Henderson, a devout Christian, shared a video clip from Fox News, and quoted Scripture. He said, "These parents who want to honor our Lord and lead their daughter into the truth, and away from what she can’t see that will destroy her just as God has entrusted the parents to do. May justice be served."

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Henderson, who is a Christian, stood on Biblical principles on an 80-20 issue. His post so far is resonating. It had 3.5 million views as of Thursday evening.

But when he met with reporters in Foxboro on Thursday, they seemingly asked as many questions about that issue as his status for Sunday's home opener against the Pittsburgh Steelers.

"Yeah, I think the biggest thing, what I saw on my end is I saw the, the state take away someone's child because they didn't want to affirm the daughter as a boy," Henderson said in explaining his reasoning for the post. "And I heard that the school, without the parents' permission, tried to transition a child or do some sort of thing to transition her into a boy.

"And I don't believe that's right. I believe the family, being a Catholic family and having certain morals that they go by and live by, they have the God-given right to raise up their kid, to know the Lord, to honor the Lord.

"...I think what they were doing, trying to raise up their kid the right way from, from what I've read and heard, I think that the family did right by not affirming their daughter as a boy, but choosing to affirm her the way that God created her to be as a girl."

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Reporters pressed Henderson on local reports that the child's father is alleged to have pulled his daughter's hair and even threatened to kill her. The allegations led to no criminal findings and, indeed, all charges are scheduled to be dropped if the father stays away from the girl.

And, again, Henderson held firm.

"It doesn't mean that he was guilty of those charges," Henderson said. "It's just accusations. Just as the same way people make accusations against me, it doesn't mean that those accusations are true. It's just accusations at the end of the day.

"I think you're innocent until you're proven guilty. So if he was guilty, then that's on me, because I didn't know all of that. But if he's not guilty, if these are just accusations that they're making about the father, then I don't think that's right to run away with that and say, the father did this, so we have to take his daughter away.

"I still don't think that's right."

The Boston Herald has reported that Kutzkos’ attorney, Vernadette Broyles, said a restraining order stands against the parents after an unidentified adult assisted the child in obtaining the order against them after being in state custody for nearly a year.

Those details aren't moving Henderson, who believes his advocacy is coming from God.

"I think my perspective of this world has changed," he said. "I just try to look at this world through a Biblical lens now, and, yeah, I feel the calling on my life. I'm not here to just play football. I think I have it in my bio that football is what I do, but a child of God is who I am.

"And so, first and foremost, I'm going to honor God above all else. I know it comes with a cause. But like the Bible says, like, what do I gain if I hold on to my life, but at the end of the day, I lose it? But if I lose my life for His name's sake, then I gain true life, and that's what I gained."

So football is becoming secondary to God for Henderson.

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"With this game or without this game, with money or without money, as long as I have Jesus, I got everything that I need," he said. "And so my heart is fulfilled. And I'll continue to honor the Lord and live for him, no matter what it costs me, because I know at the end of the day, it'll all be worth it."

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University event with Hasan Piker in Texas draws backlash from both sides of the aisle

Thu, 17 Sep 2026 20:41:51 -0400

The University Democrats, a student group at the University of Texas at Austin, unintentionally brought together political heavyweights from both sides of the aisle after announcing earlier this month an event featuring controversial Twitch streamer Hasan Piker.

Piker, who hosts hours-long streams on a daily basis, is known for his incendiary rhetoric, anti-capitalist views and anti-Israel stance. The streamer has recently become a source of an offline debate over how Democrats engage with voters.

According to University Democrats, Piker is expected to address "a variety of topics, ranging from immigration, to genocide, to the future of the Democratic Party."

The group noted that the event, scheduled for Sept. 30 and limited to UT Austin students, staff and faculty, will include a Q&A session.

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On Monday, University Democrats claimed in an X post that UT Austin was violating its own policies by "failing to accommodate" the event and provide a large venue. Fox News Digital was not able to independently verify the club's claim.

It didn't take long for Texas lawmakers from both sides of the aisle, including Gov. Greg Abbott, Sen. Ted Cruz and Rep. Henry Cuellar, to voice their disapproval of the event and condemn Piker.

"Hasan Piker’s scheduled appearance at the University of Texas is deeply concerning," Cuellar wrote on X. "Free speech allows difficult and controversial views, but it does not require anyone to stay silent when someone has a history of hateful comments about Jewish Americans, 9/11, and Hamas terrorism.

"Jewish students at UT should not be made to feel targeted or unsafe on their own campus."

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In a statement provided to Fox News Digital, Cruz said Piker's appearance at an event hosted by University Democrats was a statement about the status of the Democratic Party.

"Hasan Piker is an America-hating Marxist who has said that America deserved 9/11 and celebrates political violence against Republicans," Cruz's statement said. "Americans are entitled to free speech, but it is incumbent upon good people to condemn Piker's incitement. Instead, some Democrats are bringing him to college campuses, while almost all other Democrats are conspicuously silent or worse. It says everything about the state of their party."

Andrew Mahaleris, press secretary for Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, also chimed in, telling Jewish News Syndicate (JNS), "Terrorist sympathizers have no place in Texas."

"Hasan Piker said America deserved 9/11 and praised the brutal terrorist organization Hamas. University Democrats at UT Austin are choosing to amplify that disgusting rhetoric," Mahaleris told JNS.

CONTROVERSIAL STREAMER HASAN PIKER'S LECTURE AXED BY UNIVERSITY OF WASHINGTON AMID FREE SPEECH QUESTIONS

While lawmakers focused their criticism on Piker's past rhetoric, the streamer pushed back, saying the pressure campaign to cancel the event presented a constitutional issue.

"Ted cruz, greg abbott ken paxton and now, henry cuellar have demanded that i have my speech at UT austin get cancelled. it's a public university. this is a direct violation of the 1st amendment. free speech must be protected. dems should push back against this attack!," Piker wrote on X.

The controversy over the event reflects growing tension over Piker's increasing prominence on the political stage. While some argue that he brings in younger voters, critics say his rhetoric goes too far.

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Fox News Digital reached out to University Democrats, UT Austin and Piker for comment but did not immediately receive a response.

ICE deports ex-Liberian fighter accused of torture, recruiting child soldiers

Thu, 17 Sep 2026 20:28:15 -0400

EXCLUSIVE — A former Liberian combatant believed to have ordered and participated in killings, torture and the recruitment of child soldiers was deported after spending nearly two decades in the United States.

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement removed Amos Sheik Massaquoi, 55, to Liberia on Aug. 11, officials told Fox News Digital. He is believed to have served as chief bodyguard to Maj. Gen. Daniel Chea, a former leader in Charles Taylor's National Patriotic Front of Liberia.

ICE said Massaquoi is believed to have ordered and participated in extrajudicial killings, acts of torture, arbitrary arrests and detentions, forced labor and the recruitment of child soldiers during the Liberia's civil wars, from 1989 to 2003.

"If you are a confirmed human rights violator, and you believe you can hide in the United States, you are mistaken," ICE Chicago Field Office Director Frank Padula said.

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"ICE will pursue, arrest and remove any individuals who committed atrocities abroad and ensure our communities are not used as a sanctuary from accountability."

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Massaquoi legally entered the U.S. in August 2006 but was only authorized to remain until Nov. 6 of that year, according to ICE.

He remained in the country until Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) arrested him in Maryland in August 2019 for being illegally present in the U.S. An immigration judge granted him bond less than two months later, and he was released.

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Massaquoi was taken back into custody by ICE Baltimore April 1, 2025, after officials said he failed to comply with the terms of his release. An immigration judge ordered him removed the following month.

ICE said Massaquoi also received specialized military training at an academy in China in 2004, one year after Liberia's second civil war ended.

Liberia's civil wars killed almost 250,000 people, most of them civilians, according to the United Nations.

Taylor, who led the rebel movement before becoming Liberia's president, was later convicted of aiding and abetting crimes committed by rebel forces in neighboring Sierra Leone. He was sentenced to 50 years in prison, according to the Residual Special Court for Sierra Leone.

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"Amos Sheik Massaquoi is believed to have engaged in cruelty and terror, marked by killings, torture, forced labor, unlawful imprisonment and the recruitment of children into armed conflict," HSI Maryland Special Agent in Charge Akil Baldwin said.

"If it is confirmed that an individual has engaged in such bloodshed anywhere in the world, then you have no place in the United States."

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The investigation was supported by ICE's Human Rights Violators and War Crimes Center, which tracks people suspected of atrocities abroad who try to enter or remain in the U.S.

Since 2003, ICE has arrested more than 520 people for human rights-related violations and removed 1,178 known or suspected human rights violators, according to the agency. The center has also stopped more than 415 suspected human rights violators and war crimes suspects from entering the country.

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Anyone with information about a suspected human rights violator in the U.S. can contact the ICE tip line at 866-DHS-2-ICE or submit a tip online.

Hasan Piker insists Middle East would be 'more stable' if Iran had nuclear weapons during Axios interview

Thu, 17 Sep 2026 20:22:12 -0400

Progressive commentator Hasan Piker is not opposed to Iran having nuclear weapons, according to comments he made in an interview with Axios.

"Do you think Iran should be free to build a nuclear weapon?" Axios correspondent Alex Thompson asked in a clip that aired Thursday on CNN.

"I think Iran, much like any other sovereign nation, has a right to defend itself, regardless of its domestic policies," Piker responded.

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The popular Twitch streamer went on to cite political scientist John Mearsheimer in the belief that "mutually assured destruction is the only way for countries to have sovereignty," something he said would bring regional stability.

"Now having said that, do I want Iran to have nuclear arms? No. But I also don't want America, or Russia, or China to have a nuclear arms either," Piker said.

"Do you think the Middle East would be more stable if Iran had a nuclear weapon?" Thompson followed.

"I believe yes. I think that the Middle East would be more stable," Piker responded.

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The far-left personality went on to stress that he's not "advocating" for a nuclear-armed Iran or that it should have weapons-grade enriched uranium, but he insisted that the nuclear conversation is a "distraction."

"Time and time again, they have shown, the Iranian government, regardless of whether you want to trust them or not, you can just look at their actions, have proven that they are utilizing the conversation of enriched uranium as a point of leverage to bring America back to the table to get sanctions relief," Piker said.

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Piker began generating headlines earlier in the day when he claimed the U.S. is responsible for more terrorism than al Qaeda "pound for pound."

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Democratic Michigan Senate nominee Abdul El-Sayed, who campaigned alongside Piker during the primary, has repeatedly been asked about Piker's commentary and has attempted to distance himself from his latest comments.

"I do not agree with this statement [on al Qaeda], nor do I give much weight to the statements made by a social media streamer," El-Sayed said. "I am more concerned with the dangerous policies of Donald Trump and Mike Rogers that are raising the prices of gas, groceries and healthcare for Michiganders."

Alexandra Daddario stuns in gingham bikini months after split from husband Andrew Form

Thu, 17 Sep 2026 20:04:32 -0400

Alexandra Daddario is soaking up some time away after a year of major changes.

The 40-year-old actress shared a series of vacation photos on Instagram Wednesday, including two shots of her relaxing outdoors in a blue and white gingham bikini.

Daddario opened the Instagram carousel reclining on a cushioned lounge chair while looking directly at the camera. She wore the checkered two-piece with her long brunette hair loose and swept across one side of her face.

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The "White Lotus" star appeared to keep the look natural and accessorized simply with a silver ring as she leaned on one arm for the close-up shot.

"Vacation details," Daddario captioned the post.

A second photo captured Daddario from a different angle as she stretched out on the same chair. She rested her head against one arm while peeking toward the camera, offering another look at the pale blue gingham swimsuit.

Fans quickly took notice of the vacation photos.

"If she broke my heart i would apologize…," one person joked.

"We missed the Daddarios," another commented.

"Your not allowed to look so good effortlessly @alexandradaddario," another fan added.

Daddario traded her swimsuit for a more dressed-up look elsewhere in the carousel.

In a mirror selfie, the "Baywatch" actress posed barefoot in a cream-colored matching set covered in a bold floral and bird print. The look featured a sleeveless fitted top and floor-length skirt, with a cutout along one side of her waist.

Daddario held her phone in one hand and stretched her opposite arm above her head against the wall as she captured the full look.

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The vacation glimpse comes seven months after Daddario and film producer Andrew Form announced the end of their marriage.

A representative for Daddario confirmed the split to People in February after more than three years of marriage.

"Alexandra Daddario and Andrew Form have made the decision to end their marriage," her representative told the outlet.

"The decision was made with love and respect," the statement continued. "They will continue to co-parent their child together and appreciate privacy as they navigate this transition."

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Daddario and Form married in New Orleans in June 2022 after making their relationship Instagram official the previous year.

The former couple welcomed their first child together, a son, in October 2024. Form also shares two sons with his ex-wife, actress Jordana Brewster.

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Daddario had previously opened up about her journey to motherhood, revealing in a 2024 interview with Vogue that she experienced a pregnancy loss before welcoming her son.

"It's long and complicated, so I don't want to be too specific," she told the outlet at the time. "Those kinds of losses and trauma are very hard to explain unless you've been through them.

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"I really relate to all the women who have been through those kinds of things in a way that I didn't understand fully before. It's very, very painful."

The actress has remained busy professionally amid the changes in her personal life.

Earlier this month, Daddario stepped out during New York Fashion Week for Montblanc's 100 Years of Leather celebration at the Crane Club in Manhattan.

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Speaking at the event, Daddario reflected on how her outlook has evolved as she's gotten older.

"When I was younger, I never wanted to use them," she told WWD while discussing the luxury items she once saved for special occasions. "I didn't want to use the best skin care product. I didn't want to use my fancy bag.

"And now that I get older, I'm like, 'I'm alive. Things are meant to be used. You use them until they wear out, and that's what's good about them.'"

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Colin Kaepernick accuses NFL of 'colluding' against Macklemore amid 'Free Palestine' controversy

Thu, 17 Sep 2026 20:00:01 -0400

Former NFL quarterback Colin Kaepernick accused New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft and other NFL owners of "openly colluding" to force Macklemore off Ed Sheeran’s U.S. tour following the rapper’s pro-Palestinian remarks.

Kaepernick drew a direct comparison between Macklemore’s removal and his own allegation that NFL owners conspired to keep him out of the league after he began protesting during the national anthem in 2016.

"What Robert Kraft and what they’re saying by denying Macklemore the opportunity to go out and perform with Ed Sheeran is that they are willing to collude," Kaepernick told Ben Meiselas during a MeidasTouch interview. "They are openly colluding."

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Macklemore had been scheduled to open for Sheeran at Gillette Stadium, which is owned by Kraft’s company, as part of the singer’s "Loop Tour." However, Macklemore said Sheeran informed him that Kraft objected to his appearance and contacted other NFL stadium owners after the rapper used his performances at MetLife Stadium to say "Free Palestine," criticize Immigration and Customs Enforcement and perform his Gaza protest song "Hind’s Hall."

Kraft confirmed that Macklemore would not be allowed to perform at Gillette Stadium but disputed the suggestion that the decision was intended to silence advocacy for Palestinians. He instead cited what he characterized as Macklemore’s history of anti-Semitic rhetoric and imagery.

Tour promoter Messina Touring Group subsequently removed Macklemore from the remaining dates, saying multiple venues had indicated they would not host the concerts with him on the bill. Sheeran said the decision belonged to the promoter and maintained that he had attempted to facilitate a conversation between Macklemore and Kraft.

Kaepernick argued that the episode demonstrated the willingness of powerful owners to coordinate when they believe their interests are threatened.

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"They also want people to know that if you take an action that they don’t agree with, they will come for you," Kaepernick said. "They will organize against you, which means that we collectively have to organize to be able to protect our interests as well."

"When we filed the grievance, it was like, 'well, the owners wouldn’t do that. Everybody just wants to win within the NFL,'" he added elsewhere in the interview. "And the realization is, 'no. They want to protect their interests. They want to protect their power. They want to protect their money.'"

Kaepernick opted out of his contract with the San Francisco 49ers in March 2017 and has not appeared in an NFL game since the end of the 2016 season. He filed a grievance later in 2017 accusing NFL owners of colluding to prevent teams from signing him in response to his protests against police brutality and racial injustice.

The league denied that its teams conspired against Kaepernick. The two sides reached a confidential settlement in 2019 without a ruling on the merits of his claim.

Kaepernick also used the MeidasTouch interview to revisit the NFL’s response to the player-led protest movement. He referenced a 2017 meeting at which Buffalo Bills owner Terry Pegula reportedly said the league needed a prominent Black spokesperson to help resolve the controversy surrounding the demonstrations.

Kaepernick claimed the NFL initially attempted to work through the Players Coalition before approaching him about leading its social-justice initiatives. He said he rejected the proposal and accused rapper Jay-Z of eventually stepping "into that role" through his partnership with the league.

Kaepernick characterized Jay-Z as the "Black face" NFL owners sought to help "subvert the protests," arguing that the partnership redirected attention away from police killings, incarceration and resources for Black communities.

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The NFL and Roc Nation announced their partnership in 2019, giving Jay-Z’s company a role in the league’s live-entertainment strategy and social-justice initiative. At the time, Jay-Z said the country had moved beyond kneeling and should focus on actionable change.

Macklemore, meanwhile, pledged to donate the $1 million he said he earned from Sheeran’s tour to six organizations supporting Palestinians and publicly invited Kraft to match the contribution. Kraft later said Sheeran had already privately asked him to contribute $2 million toward humanitarian relief.

The remaining supporting acts on Sheeran’s tour, including Finneas, Lukas Graham, Aaron Rowe and Beoga, withdrew amid the controversy.

Kaepernick said the fallout strengthened the parallel he sees between Macklemore’s experience and his departure from the NFL.

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"They want to protect their interests," Kaepernick said. "They want to protect their power. They want to protect their money."

Finnish foreign ministry official details how Russia's 'hybrid warfare' reshaped border security

Thu, 17 Sep 2026 19:41:44 -0400

Russian tactics designed to disrupt European nations forced neighboring Finland to fundamentally rethink its border security, culminating in the recent completion of a new border fence along its eastern frontier.

Finland constructed roughly 124 miles of fencing along its border with Russia, a secondary security measure intended to stem the flow of unauthorized Russian migrants, Petri Hakkarainen, political director for the Finnish Ministry for Foreign Affairs, told Fox News Digital.

"We have in the past witnessed Russia's attempts … to instrumentalize migrants at the Finnish border," Hakkarainen said. "Basically pushing migrants towards our borders, forcing us then to take them on."

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A sudden influx forces the Finnish government to process large volumes of asylum claims, which could destabilize society if carried out on a massive scale, he explained.

In response, Finland closed its entire land border with Russia in 2023. Moscow swiftly filed a formal complaint, condemning the closure as "Russophobic."

The Kremlin expressed "deep regret" over the move, claiming it replaced decades of "pragmatic, mutually respectful relations" with an anti-Russian political stance.

Finland shares an 833-mile border with Russia, the longest of any European Union or NATO member state. The completed border fence supplements the border closures.

As Russia remains locked in a war of attrition in Ukraine, Western officials have accused Moscow of launching widespread destabilization campaigns, ranging from disinformation to state-sponsored economic coercion intended to erode public trust across Europe.

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"We think it's important to listen to those of us who live next door to Russia," Hakkarainen said. "Listen to our analysis of the situation: We consider Russia to be a long-term threat to transatlantic security — not only to Ukraine, not only to Europeans, but to transatlantic security as a whole."

Finland launched the border fence initiative after Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, a landmark conflict that prompted the historically neutral Nordic nation to join NATO in April 2023.

Moscow has long viewed NATO’s eastward expansion as a direct security threat, using it to justify reinforcing its Western defenses.

When Finland officially joined the alliance, Helsinki saw an immediate reaction. Over 1,300 migrants without visas arrived at its eastern border.

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Finland accused Moscow of weaponizing migration as an act of "hybrid warfare," a charge the Kremlin denied.

Closing the border checkpoints has proven "very effective," Hakkarainen noted. Beyond physical barriers, Finnish lawmakers passed the Border Security Act.

The temporary law allows border authorities to restrict asylum applications and turn back migrants if a foreign actor attempts to destabilize the country by funneling people across the border.

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While the law sparked some initial debate over potential human rights and international law violations, Hakkarainen emphasized that national defense took priority.

"We take these concerns very seriously," he said. "But national security and our own sovereignty ... weighed more heavily in this conversation, though there is broad majority support for the act.

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"We take our security and preparedness very seriously.

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"I would say not despite that, but because of that, we are able to lead very normal lives here — regardless of the neighbor we have."