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    Ted Budd says Trump endorsement was ‘huge’ for North Carolina Senate

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    Rep. Ted Budd, R-N.C., said backing from former President Trump has been a “huge” factor in his bid to become the next senator from North Carolina.

    Budd earned Trump’s endorsement last summer for the open seat and in recent weeks the congressman surged to front-runner status in the contentious primary showdown that also includes former Gov. Pat McCrory and former Rep. Mark Walker.

    VOTERS DECIDE PENNSYLVANIA, NORTH CAROLINA, IDAHO PRIMARIES, IN TEST OF TRUMP’S CLOUT: LIVE UPDATES

    “I think it was huge,” Budd told Fox News Digital Tuesday of Trump’s endorsement. “But it really helps especially when you work hard like we’ve done. We’ve stayed focused. We’ve worked hard. Stay humble and go out and ask people for their prayers, their support and their vote.”

    U.S. President Donald Trump greets Ted Budd, Republican candidate from North Carolina’s 13th district, in Charlotte, North Carolina, U.S., October 26, 2018.  REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque (REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque)

    In an interview Tuesday at a polling location in Belews Creek, N.C., Budd said he visited all 100 North Carolina counties in his bid to succeed the retiring GOP Sen. Richard Burr. 

    He said he’ll follow through on his campaign promises. “Do what you say you’re going to do,” Budd said his grandfather instilled in his family. “So that’s what I’m going to do.”

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    In interviews with five voters at the polling location, three specifically said Trump’s endorsement was a factor in their choice for the Senate race.

    One voter, Joyce from Belews Creek, said the country today is in a “sad situation” and the former president was a “big time” influence her voting.

    “I’m for him,” she said of Trump. “He’s my man.”

    Fox News’ Paul Steinhauser and Matteo Cina contributed to this report. 

    Madison Cawthorn fighting to hold onto House seat amid primary challenge as polls close in North Carolina

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    Rep. Madison Cawthorn, the youngest member of Congress, is trying to fend off credible GOP challengers Tuesday who say the 26-year-old has brought too much negative attention to his North Carolina district.

    Cawthorn’s congressional race has been one to watch during Tuesday’s GOP primary election in North Carolina, as well as the Senate GOP primary. 

    Shortly after the polls closed, the Associated Press called the Republican race for Rep. Ted Budd, R-N.C. It’s another victory for former President Trump, who endorsed Budd last summer for the open seat over former Gov. Pat McCrory and former Rep. Mark Walker.

    Once hailed as a rising star in the party who can counter the progressive Squad with an America First message, Cawthorn ending up facing a difficult re-election, with certain GOP congressional leaders losing faith in him following a string of questionable actions. 

    Cawthorn maintained his support from former President Trump, who urged supporters in a last minute message on his Truth Social site to not give up on the young congressman: “Recently, he made some foolish mistakes, which I don’t believe he’ll make again,” Trump posted this week.  “Let’s give Madison a second chance!”

    FILE – U.S. Rep. Madison Cawthorn, R-N.C., speaks to the crowd before former President Donald Trump takes the stage at a rally, April 9, 2022, in Selma, N.C. (AP Photo/Chris Seward, File) (AP Photo/Chris Seward, File)

    LAWMAKERS BEHAVING BADLY: MADISON CAWTHORN

    Heading into the primary, Cawthorn felt optimistic.

    “The support from Western North Carolina at the polls, in private meetings, and at campaign events has been overwhelming,” Cawthorn said in a statement to Fox News Digital on Tuesday. “This district is my home, and it always will be. I’m confident the people of Western North Carolina will choose me to represent them once again in Congress. I’m ready to unite the NC-11 GOP and help take back the House this November.”

    His most serious challenger is Sen. Chuck Edwards, whose legislative seat falls in the House district. He also faces Michele Woodhouse, the GOP chair of the North Carolina 11th congressional district. 

    Woodhouse said Cawthorn backed her to run in the 11th district as the “America First candidate” when he decided last year to run in a neighboring district that would have given him a bigger profile in the Charlotte media market. But when redistricting lines were redrawn, Cawthorn decided to run in the 11th, but by that point, Woodhouse didn’t want to exit the race.

    VOTERS DECIDE PENNSYLVANIA, NORTH CAROLINA, IDAHO PRIMARIES, IN TEST OF TRUMP’S CLOUT: LIVE UPDATES

    Woodhouse told Fox News Digital she would represent the true constitutional values of the Republican Party and bring “honor to the position … and never bring any salacious headlines to this district that are embarrassing to the voters here.”

    Cawthorn rose to political stardom during his Republican National Convention speech in 2020 where he dramatically stood up out of his wheelchair. Cawthorn was partially paralyzed in a car accident at the age of 18.  He enjoys a strong social media following and talks about creating a “new Republican Party” that inspires young people.

    But during his short political career, problems soon began piling up. 

    He faced sexual misconduct allegations, which he denied. He was twice stopped by airport security for trying to bring a loaded gun on a plane. In March, he was cited by North Carolina troopers for driving with a revoked license. That’s on top of two previous traffic violations for speeding at 87 and 89 mph. 

    In March, Cawthorn drew widespread rebuke from his colleagues, including GOP Leader Kevin McCarthy, for claiming in a podcast interview he had been invited to “an orgy” in Washington, had been sexually solicited, and had seen leaders use cocaine. Cawthorn later said he wasn’t talking specifically about his fellow GOP lawmakers. “He’s lost my trust,” McCarthy said in response to the controversy.

    TRUMP’S GOP CLOUT ON THE LINE IN HIGH-PROFILE REPUBLICAN PRIMARIES IN PENNSYLVANIA, NORTH CAROLINA, IDAHO

    In April, Politico published pictures of Cawthorn partying in lingerie. Then, the Daily Mail posted photos of Cawthorn’s close aide and scheduler grabbing his crotch, along with an ethics complaint that alleged the congressman gave the staffer thousands of dollars in loans and gifts. Cawthorn’s team said the photos were taken before Congress and the aide is his cousin who helps him regularly with his disability. 

    Rep. Madison Cawthorn, R-N.C., arrives as the House Republican Conference meets to elect a new chairman to replace Rep. Liz Cheney, R-Wyo., who was ousted from the GOP leadership for her criticism of former President Donald Trump, at the Capitol in Washington, Friday, May 14, 2021. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik) (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik)

    Then earlier this month, a video of a naked Cawthorn was published making thrusting motions on top of another person in a bed.

    Cawthorn explained the video was from years ago. “I was being crass with a friend, trying to be funny. We were acting foolish, and joking,” he said on Twitter, adding: “Blackmail won’t win. We will.” 

    Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C., is actively trying to oust Cawthorn from Congress, and even accused him of insider trading. He’s backing Edwards, one of the seven Republican challengers.

    “I believe that he may have gotten lost in the political stardom and forgot what his role was back here at home,” Edwards said of Cawthorn. 

    U.S. Sen. Thom Tillis speaks during a campaign event with Vice President Mike Pence at the Piedmont Triad International Airport in Greensboro, N.C., Tuesday, Oct. 27, 2020. Tillis has been working to oust Rep. Madison Cawthorn from Congress. (Khadejeh Nikouyeh/News & Record via AP) (Khadejeh Nikouyeh/News & Record via AP)

    If no candidate gets above 30% of the vote, there will be second primary run-off election on July 26 between the first and second-place finishers. 

    “Despite what the beltway media says, western North Carolina loves Madison Cawthorn,” campaign spokesman Luke Ball told Fox News Digital Tuesday. “Our campaign is confident they will choose him once again to continue fighting for them in Congress.”  

    Former President Donald Trump, right, announces his endorsement of N.C. Rep. Ted Budd, left, for the 2022 North Carolina U.S. Senate seat as he speaks at the North Carolina Republican Convention Saturday, June 5, 2021, in Greenville, N.C. (AP Photo/Chris Seward) (AP )

    In the Senate race, the victory was an impressive turnaround for Budd. For months, Budd was unable to leverage the former president’s endorsement to boost his poll numbers and fundraising figures. 

    WATCH: TED BUDD MAKES HIS CLOSING CASE TO VOTERS IN FOX NEWS INTERVIEW

    “I think it was huge,” Budd told Fox News Digital Tuesday of Trump’s endorsement. “But it really helps especially when you work hard like we’ve done. We’ve stayed focused. We’ve worked hard. Stay humble and go out and ask people for their prayers, their support and their vote.”

    Trump held a rally in North Carolina for Budd in early April, and in recent weeks the congressman surged to front-runner status in the increasingly contentious primary showdown.

    Republican Senate candidate and former Rep. Mark Walker of North Carolina speaks at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC), in Orlando, Florida on Feb. 24, 2022. (Mark Walker Senate campaign)

    Walker defied pressure from Trump to drop out of the Senate primary and instead run for a fourth term in the House with the former president’s backing. McCrory entered the race with the highest visibility, having been governor from 2013 to 2017. 

    In November, Budd will face the Democratic nominee, Cheri Beasley, a former North Carolina Supreme Court chief justice. 

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    In the purple state, the general election should be close as both sides will pump millions into the race that will help decide control of the 50-50 split Senate.

    Fox News’ Paul Steinhauser and Matt Leach contributed to this report. 

    Rep. Banks calls on Garland to prosecute pro-choice activists harassing conservative Supreme Court justices

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    EXCLUSIVE: The chair of the largest conservative caucus in Congress blasted Attorney General Merrick Garland for failing to prosecute pro-choice activists harassing conservative Supreme Court justices at their homes after a leaked opinion suggested they would overturn the landmark Roe v. Wade court ruling that legalized abortion. 

    Rep. Jim Banks, R-Ind., said Garland’s treatment of the Supreme Court protesters stands in sharp contrast to how the Justice Department took “aggressive action” against parents at school board meetings and the “disproportionately harsh treatment” against defendants in the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol. Banks, the leader of the Republican Study Committee, suggested Garland’s prosecution choices are politically motivated.

    Rep. Jim Banks, center, and Rep. Jim Jordan during a news conference at the Capitol, July 21, 2021. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

    “The evidence shows that under your leadership, the Department has one rule for the Biden administration’s friends, and a different, much harsher rule, for its opponents,” Banks said in a letter to Garland obtained first by Fox News Digital. 

    “This is a dangerous path,” Banks said of selective prosecution. 

    GRASSLEY: DOJ NEEDS ‘ROBUST RESPONSE’ TO PROTESTS AT JUSTICES’ HOMES AFTER ACTION ON PARENTS LAST YEAR

    A Justice Department spokesperson confirmed receipt of Banks’ letter and said the department will review it. 

    Republicans contend that the protests at the homes of the six conservative Supreme Court justices – Clarence Thomas, John Roberts, Samuel Alito, Neil Gorsuch, Brett Kavanaugh and Amy Coney Barrett – are illegal. A 1950 law establishes a criminal penalty of up to one year in prison for an individual who “pickets or parades” near a judge’s residence with the intent of influencing that judge or impeding the administration of justice. Threats of violence against justices are also illegal.

    Protesters hold up signs during a pro-choice demonstration, Saturday, May 14, 2022, in New York. (AP Photo/Jeenah Moon)

    In his letter to Garland, Banks condemned the recent destruction and disruptions at Catholic churches, as well as the firebombing of a Wisconsin pro-life group’s office where a message was spray-painted: “If abortions aren’t safe then you aren’t either.” 

    AG MERRICK GARLAND ORDERS US MARSHALS TO BOLSTER SUPREME COURT SECURITY

    “Your supine response to this unprecedented and ongoing attack on the Supreme Court, and the apparently coordinated threats to churches and to Americans who value life stands, in stark contrast to your aggressive action against parents protesting at school board meetings, and your disproportionately harsh treatment of the January 6 defendants for their alleged crimes of trespassing, obstruction, and parading or picketing,” Banks wrote to Garland on Monday.

    Damaged books are strewn across the office of Wisconsin Family Action director Julaine Appling in Madison, May 8, 2022.   (Molly Beck/USA Today Network via Reuters)

    The Justice Department was initially silent about the continued protests by pro-choice activists outside conservative Supreme Court justices’ homes, but on Wednesday spokesman Anthony Coley issued a statement saying Garland was dispatching extra security to the justice’s residences.

    OVER 40 HOUSE REPUBLICANS PUSH RESOLUTION TO CONDEMN SCOTUS OPINION LEAK, PROTESTS IN FRONT OF JUSTICES’ HOMES

    “Attorney General Garland continues to be briefed on security matters related to the Supreme Court and Supreme Court Justices,” Coley said in a statement. “The Attorney General directed the U.S. Marshals Service to help ensure the Justices’ safety by providing additional support to the Marshal of the Supreme Court and Supreme Court Police.”

    Banks, however, says the Justice Department has taken “no obvious steps” to deter, investigate or prosecute the pro-choice activists. He told Fox News Digital that Garland has acted like “Joe Biden’s personal prosecutor.”

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    “The pro-abortion rioters are attacking an entire branch of our government, and AG Garland must step up and start equally enforcing the law,” Banks said. 

    Cassidy leads GOP Senate resolution to combat the violent crime spike

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    EXCLUSIVE: Decrying the nation’s crime spike, surge in illegal immigrants and lax criminal justice policies, Republican senators are calling on the Biden administration to work with them on developing a strategy to “combat the violent crime epidemic within the country.”

    Sen. Bill Cassidy, R-La., is expected to introduce a resolution Monday with his Republican colleagues that outlines the wave of crime in America and links the uptick to an open southern border, progressive prosecutors declining to charge violent offenders, and certain bail reform policies that let “dangerous criminals” back on the streets. 

    Sen. Bill Cassidy (Reuters)

    “Rising violent crime destroys families and should be combated by criminal justice systems that prosecute the offenders as offenders, and not as victims,” the resolution, first obtained by Fox News Digital, reads.

    Murders across the nation spiked by nearly 30% in 2020 compared to the year prior, according to FBI data released in September, marking the largest single-year increase in killings since the agency began tracking the crimes. Among Black Americans, the number of deaths spiked by more than 32% compared to 2019. 

    HOUSE DEMOCRATS PUSH MEASURE TO INVEST IN LOCAL POLICE DEPARTMENTS AMID STALL FROM LEADERSHIP

    In all, more than 21,000 homicides were reported in 2020, 4,901 more than in 2019, the biggest leap since the 1960s. Overall violent crime – which includes homicides, rape, robbery and aggravated assault – increased by 5.6 % and property crimes dropped by nearly 8%, according to FBI data. 

    “If there was ever a time that the American people want to know that the president and Congress are working together to defeat the scourge of crime, the time is now,” Cassidy said in a statement to Fox News Digital. “This resolution is to send the message that combating crime is what we are focused on.”

    Cassidy’s resolution comes in time for National Police Week this May. The GOP senators want to signal Republicans are serious about addressing rising crime and the border crisis.

    The resolution also draws attention to the 59% increase in murders of police officers in 2021, as noted by FBI Director Christopher Wray.

    FBI DATA SHOWS LARGE INCREASE IN MURDERS IN 2020 NATIONWIDE

    “Violence against law enforcement in this country is one of the biggest phenomena that I think doesn’t get enough attention,” Wray told CBS News’ “60 Minutes” in April, adding that officers are being murdered at a rate of nearly “one every five days.”

    Director Christopher A. Wray speaks during a news conference at FBI Headquarters on June 14, 2018, in Washington. (Mark WIlson/Getty Images)

    The White House Friday marked Peace Officers Memorial Day and national Police Week by issuing a proclamation honoring the sacrifices of police officers, touting efforts to crack down on “ghost” guns and encouraging more communities to tap federal resources for policing through the $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan Democrats passed last year. 

    FBI DIRECTOR SAYS VIOLENCE DIRECTED AT POLICE OFFICERS UNLIKE ANYTHING HE’S SEEN BEFORE

    “The solution is not to defund our police,” the White House proclamation said. 

    The White House said more than $10 billion has already been spent or committed for public safety through the American Rescue Plan by more than 300 communities and more than half of the states. 

    “We’ve inherited from the previous administration the largest year-over-year jump in murders in record history in 2020,” outgoing White House press secretary Jen Psaki said Friday of the Trump administration. “Our focus from here has been putting more cops on the beat.”

    The FBI director said the coronavirus pandemic contributed to the crime spike.

    Police secure the area around the Connecticut Avenue and Tilden Street intersection after a reported shooting in Washington, D.C., on April 22, 2022. (Brendan Smialowski/AFP via Getty Images))

    “We’re seeing more and more juveniles committing violent crime, and that’s certainly an issue,” Wray said. “We’re seeing a certain amount of gun trafficking, interstate gun trafficking. That’s part of it. And we’re seeing an alarming frequency of some of the worst of the worst getting back out on the streets.”

    Signing onto the resolution are 28 Republicans. 

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    In addition to Cassidy, the co-sponsors are GOP Sens. Chuck Grassley of Iowa, Mike Braun of Indiana, Ted Cruz of Texas, Cindy Hyde-Smith of Mississippi, Ron Johnson of Wisconsin, James Lankford of Oklahoma, Tim Scott of South Carolina, Dan Sullivan of Alaska, Roger Wicker of Mississippi, Deb Fischer of Nebraska, James Inhofe of Oklahoma, John Barrasso of Wyoming, Marsha Blackburn of Tennessee, Shelley Moore Capito of West Virginia, Kevin Cramer of North Dakota, Mike Crapo of Idaho, Steve Daines of Montana, Bill Hagerty of Tennessee, John Hoeven of North Dakota, Cynthia Lummis of Wyoming, Roger Marshall of Kansas, Rob Portman of Ohio, James Risch of Idaho, Rick Scott of Florida, Thom Tillis of North Carolina, Todd Young of Indiana and Joni Ernst of Iowa. 

    Fox News’ Emma Colton and Anders Hagstrom contributed to this report. 

    Pennsylvania governor’s race: Trump endorses Mastriano over Barletta in GOP primary

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    Former President Trump threw his support behind Republican Doug Mastriano for Pennsylvania governor just three days before the primary election, citing Mastriano’s efforts to go after the 2020 election “theft.”

    Mastriano, a state senator and retired U.S. Army colonel, already was leading the pack of GOP candidates, and Trump’s endorsement is likely to cement his advantage over former GOP Rep. Lou Barletta, former federal prosecutor Bill McSwain and businessman Dave White in Tuesday’s GOP primary.

    KATHY BARNETTE SOARS IN PA ELECTION POLLS, GRABS MAJOR OUTSIDE SUPPORT IN GOP SENATE PRIMARY

    Trump endorsed Barletta for the 2018 Senate race where he lost to Democratic Sen. Bob Casey.

    Pennsylvania state Sen. Doug Mastriano, R-Franklin, a Republican running for governor of Pennsylvania, meets supporters at a campaign stop Tuesday, May 10, 2022, in Portersville, Pa.  (AP Photo/Keith Srakocic)

    “There is no one in Pennsylvania who has done more, or fought harder, for election integrity than state Senator Doug Mastriano,” Trump said in his endorsement statement Saturday. “He has revealed the deceit, corruption, and outright theft of the 2020 presidential election, and will do something about it.”

    Mastriano floated a plan to overturn Trump’s 2020 loss to now President Biden, and was at the U.S. Capitol when it was stormed on Jan. 6, 2021, by right-wing extremists aiming to disrupt congressional certification of Biden’s Electoral College victory. 

    Lou Barletta speaks at a news conference where he accepted the endorsement of a rival in Pennsylvania’s crowded Republican primary for governor, Jake Corman, right, May 12, 2022, in Harrisburg, Pa. (AP Photo/Marc Levy)

    Some GOP leaders in Pennsylvania have fretted that Mastriano is too far right to win in a general election, including his peddling of unsubstantiated claims that widespread fraud marred the 2020 election. Mastriano earlier this week said the Republican establishment “is in a panic mode” over the prospect of him winning the GOP nomination on Tuesday.

    FOX NEWS POLL: THREE-WAY RACE IN PENNSYLVANIA GOP SENATE PRIMARY ELECTION

    Trump also recently endorsed in the volatile Pennsylvania Senate race, backing former TV doctor Mehmet Oz over veteran and political commentator Kathy Barnette and over hedge fund CEO David McCormick, whose wife, Dina Powell, served in Trump’s administration. 

    Pennsylvania Senate candidate Mehmet Oz, left, accompanied by former President Donald Trump speaks at a campaign rally in Greensburg, Pa., Friday, May 6, 2022. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar)

    Barnette has been surging in the final days of campaigning and Oz’s win is far from a sure thing. Trump is worried that Oz could lose, so his endorsement of Mastriano could be a way of hedging his bets on Tuesday, Axios reported. 

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    Fox News polling released Tuesday found that Mastriano was well on his way to victory Tuesday. He broke away from the pack and now leads with 29% support. The next tier includes Barletta at 17%, McSwain at 13% and White at 11%.  

    The GOP winner would face presumptive Democratic nominee, state Attorney General Josh Shapiro in November.

    Fox News’ Paul Steinhauser and Dana Blanton contributed to this report, as well as the Associated Press.

    McConnell makes surprise trip to meet Zelenskyy in Ukraine

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    Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell made a surprise visit to Ukraine where he met with President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in Kyiv.

    Zelenskyy’s administration announced the visit on social media and posted pictures of the meetings.

    RUSSIA WILL MANIPULATE KHERSON ELECTION RESULTS TO SUPPORT LEAVING UKRAINE, UK SAYS

    “The president ended a meeting with influential American Republican senators. And the main thing is true friends of Ukraine,” Andrij Sybiha, a member of Zelenskyy’s administration, posted on Facebook Saturday. 

    Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., meets President Zelenskyy in Ukraine. Pictures were posted to Facebook on May 14, 2022, by Andrij Sybiha, a member of President Zelenskyy’s administration. (Andrij Sybiha/Office of the President of Ukraine)

    The post touted solid bipartisan support from “American friends” in Ukraine’s ongoing fight to defeat the Russian invasion that will soon be approaching three months.

    McConnell was accompanied by fellow GOP senators John Barrasso of Wyoming, Susan Collins of Maine and John Cornyn of Texas. Their offices did not immediately respond to Fox News’ requests for comments. 

    Ukrainian President Volodymy Zelenskyy takes a photo with Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, Sens. John Barrasso, Susan Collins and John Cornyn, left to right, Saturday, May 14, 2022. (Andrij Sybiha/Office of the President of Ukraine)

    The visit comes as the Senate is weighing $40 billion in additional aid to Ukraine to help the country defeat Russia. Both McConnell and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., wanted the package passed immediately, but Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., held up the vote over concerns the money needs oversight. 

    HOUSE PASSES $40 BILLION UKRAINIAN AID PACKAGE

    “My oath of office is to the U.S. Constitution, not to any foreign nation,” Paul tweeted Thursday after he single-handed delayed a unanimous consent request to fast-track the bipartisan aid passage.

    Ukrainian President Volodymy Zelenskyy speaks with Republican Sens. Susan Collins of Maine and John Barrasso of Wyoming, Saturday, May 14, 2022. (Andrij Sybiha/Office of the President of Ukraine)

    House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., last week visited Zelenskyy in Ukraine. The House on Tuesday passed the $40 billion Ukraine legislation with a strong bipartisan vote of 368-57 and sent the bill to the Senate. 

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    Despite the initial delay in the Senate, Zelenskyy’s administration expressed optimism the $40 billion package will be decided next week. 

    “Everything will be Ukraine!” Sybiha posted.

    Fox News’ Chad Pergram and Nana Sajaia contributed to this report. 

    Russia will manipulate Kherson election results to support leaving Ukraine, UK says

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    Moscow is moving forward with its plan to annex the Ukrainian region of Kherson by carrying out a “rigged” election intended to manipulate local support for joining the Russia Federation, according to United Kingdom officials.

    MOSCOW THREATENS TO RESPOND IF NATO MOVES NUKES ANY CLOSER TO ITS BORDERS

    If Russia carries out a referendum election in Kherson, which borders Russian-annexed Crimea, “it will almost certainly manipulate the results to show a clear majority in favour of leaving Ukraine,” the UK Ministry of Defence said in an intelligence update Saturday.

    Russian forces took the southern Ukrainian city of Kherson in early March, but so far have not committed the atrocities against civilians like in other areas of Ukraine, according to the Associated Press. Locals suspected they had been spared because Russia has a special plan to stage a sham referendum to transform the territory into the “People’s Republic of Kherson” like the pro-Russian breakaway territories in eastern Ukraine.

    Ukrainians rally against Russian invasion and shout ‘Kherson is Ukraine’ ( Reuters Marketplace – Newsflare Video)

    President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in April addressed residents of occupied Kherson about Russia’s plan for an orchestrated referendum. He warned them to safeguard their personal data from attempts to falsify votes. “This is a reality. Be careful,” he said.

    DEMOCRATIC MAJORITY LEADER SAYS REPUBLICANS SHOULDN’T CRITICIZE BIDEN WHEN ‘WE’RE AT WAR’

    The Russian-imposed military-civilian administration in Kherson announced they will ask Russia to include Kherson in the Russian Federation, according to the UK Ministry of Defense. 

    “A central part of Russia’s original invasion plan was highly likely to use rigged referendums to place the majority of Ukraine’s regions under long-term pro-Russian authority,” the UK intelligence update states.  

    In this image released by the Ukrainian Presidential Press Office on Sunday, May 1, 2022, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy arrives for his meeting with U.S. Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi in Kyiv, Ukraine, Saturday, April 30, 2022. (Ukrainian Presidential Press Office via AP)

    “The fact that Russia has only succeeded in imposing a pro-Russian local leadership in Kherson highlights the failure of Russia’s invasion to make progress towards its political objectives in Ukraine.”

    Russian troops have occupied City Hall in Kherson, taking down the Ukrainian flag. Russians replaced the mayor with their own appointee last month. 

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    Still, citizens in Kherson are likely to continue to demonstrate their opposition to Russian occupation, according to the UK Ministry of Defense.

    Live-streamed footage shows people carrying a banner in the colours of the Ukrainian flag as they protest amid Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, in Kherson, Ukraine, March 13, 2022 in this still image from a social media video obtained by REUTERS.

    The faux election tactic has been used before. In 2014, a disputed referendum in Crimea amid the Russian annexation was widely believed to be falsified, with results showing nearly 97% of voters supported joining Russia.

    The Associated Press contributed to this report. 

    This is the abortion bill Republicans want if they regain Congress

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    House Republicans are prepared to move on abortion legislation on “Day One” if they retake Congress in the midterm elections, according to a top GOP leader. 

    Rep. Elise Stefanik, the House GOP conference chair, said Republicans are united around the Born-Alive Abortion Survivors Protection Act that requires health care workers to provide hospitalization to babies that survive abortions and sets up criminal penalties for violators. 

    “The House Republicans’ position that unifies all of our members — that all of our members are a co-sponsor of — is the Born Alive Act that provides protections for babies born alive at 15 weeks,” Stefanik told Fox News Digital. “We are a pro-life conference. We are a pro-life Republican Party. That is what we want to move on Day One.”

    Representative Elise Stefanik, a Republican from New York, speaks during a news conference outside the U.S. Capitol in Washington about the shortage of baby formula Thursday, May 12, 2022.  (Ting Shen/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

    The abortion issue is in heightened focus after a draft Supreme Court opinion was leaked and signaled a majority of the justices were prepared to overturn the landmark Roe v. Wade decision that legalized the right to an abortion nationwide. If Roe is overturned, abortion regulation would be left up to each state — unless Congress intervenes and passes a national law.

    ELISE STEFANIK SAYS REPUBLICANS ARE ON TRACK TO WIN ‘A HISTORIC MAJORITY’

    Democrats have sought to pass legislation to guarantee a right to an abortion nationwide, but the effort failed in the Senate this week with all Republicans and one Democrat — Sen. Joe Manchin of West Virginia — voting against advancing the Women’s Health Protection Act. Democrats argue the legislation is needed immediately because Republicans are set on rolling back abortion access.

    Asked by Fox News Digital if the Republican agenda would include banning abortion on the federal level, Stefanik said the one piece of legislation that has widespread support is the Born Alive bill, which would be a priority. 

    The Born Alive legislation was introduced by Rep. Ann Wagner, R-Mo., and has the support of 203 Republicans in Congress.  

    An anti-abortion demonstrator protests in front of the Supreme Court building on the day of arguments in the Mississippi abortion rights case Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health in Washington, Dec. 1, 2021. (REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst)

    Under the legislation, a health care provider could face up to 5 years in prison for failing to provide care to a baby who survived an abortion. A person who kills or attempts to kill a child born alive would be prosecuted for murder. Health care practitioners or others who have knowledge of a failure to comply with care requirements have to report incidents to law enforcement — or face criminal prosecution. 

    “Killing a baby that was born alive is infanticide, there’s no other way to put it,” the office of House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., said in a statement last month backing the legislation and chiding Democrats for wanting abortions “to be performed up until birth.”

    SENATE FAILS TO ADVANCE BILL TO GUARANTEE ABORTION ACCESS NATIONWIDE

    Meanwhile, House Democrats rallied outside the Capitol Friday calling for nationwide legislation to cement Roe into law. They condemned conservatives for wanting to roll back women’s rights that have been in place for nearly 50 years. 

    Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., leads an event on the Capitol steps with House Democrats after the Senate failed to pass the Women’s Health Protection Act to ensure a federally protected right to abortion access Friday, May 13, 2022.  (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

    “Already, Republicans across the nation are mobilizing around a dangerous and extreme agenda to criminalize all forms of reproductive health care, including IVF, contraception and post-miscarriage care. Think of that,” House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., said Friday.

    DEMOCRATIC PARTY HAS GONE TOO EXTREME ON ABORTION: PRO-LIFE DEMOCRATS

    She chided Senate Republicans for voting against the Women’s Health Protection Act and said the GOP wants “a nationwide ban on abortion.”

    “Once Republicans shred longstanding precedent and privacy rights, they intend to wage an all-out assault on more of our rights, including access to contraception and marriage equality,” Pelosi said.

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    “As Republicans seek to control and criminalize women’s reproductive health freedoms, Democrats are fighting to enshrine Roe v. Wade into law.”

    Elise Stefanik says Republicans are on track to win ‘a historic majority’

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    Rep. Elise Stefanik, R-N.Y., marks one year as chair of the House Republican Conference touting the “very strong” position Republicans are in to retake Congress during the midterm elections and highlighting the strides she’s made in electing more GOP women who are “rising stars” in Washington. 

    Stefanik made history in 2014 when she became the youngest woman ever elected to Congress at the age of 30 – though Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., broke that record in 2018 when she was elected at the age of 29. 

    Shocked that in 2019 there were only 13 GOP women in the House, Stefanik set out to fund and support a new crop conservative women and her efforts paid off with 31 Republicans currently in office. 

    ELISE STEFANIK ENDORSES INDIANA VETERAN VYING TO MAKE HISTORY IN CONGRESS

    Now 37, Stefanik is playing an outsized role in the 2022 midterm elections, coordinating GOP messaging against Democrats as conference chair while running her E-PAC leadership political action committee that is already backing 23 women candidates for Congress – with more endorsements and fundraising to come. 

    Rep. Elise Stefanik (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

    “I think we’re in a very strong position to not only take back Congress, but to win a historic majority,” Stefanik told Fox News Digital in an interview.  “We do not measure the drapes. And we don’t take anything for granted. We’re going to work to earn this majority.”

    Eleven out of the 15 seats that flipped red in 2020 were won by Stefanik-endorsed Republican women. She’ll be raising and donating more money to female candidates in 2022 than last cycle, according to E-PAC.

    “I endorsed them because they’re the strongest candidates,” Stefanik said. “And I am so proud to see these women thrive as legislators. They’re some of our most amazing rising stars.”

    A year ago, House Republicans were mired with infighting over the fallout of the Jan. 6 riot at the Capitol and second impeachment of President Trump as Republicans were divided on whether to move on from Trump. 

    STEFANIK SAYS BECOMING A MOTHER MADE HER ‘MORE EFFECTIVE LEADER,’ SAYS MOMS IN CONGRESS ‘ON A MISSION’

    With Trump’s backing, Stefanik successfully challenged Rep. Liz Cheney, R-Wyo., last May for the No. 3 GOP leadership spot in the House. Cheney ran afoul of her colleagues for voting in favor of Trump’s impeachment for inciting the Jan. 6 attack, repeatedly calling out his false claims that the presidential election was stolen and saying she wouldn’t support Trump in 2024.

    Rep. Liz Cheney (Jim Bourg/Pool via AP, File)

    Stefanik told Fox News Digital that Cheney was “attacking” Republican voters, colleagues and Trump himself, while ignoring the issues that Americans care about. 

    “She failed to unite her colleagues and you’re not entitled to these positions in leadership. You have to earn them,” said Stefanik, who is backing Cheney’s primary challenger in Wyoming, Harriet Hageman. 

    Cheney, who now sits on the Jan. 6 select committee investigating the Capitol attack, hasn’t backed down on her efforts to hold Trump and others accountable. 

    “Elise Stefanik abandoned any commitment to the truth a long time ago,” Cheney spokesperson Jeremy Adler told Fox News Digital. 

    Taking the helm as conference chair, Stefanik said she had three priorities: have a “disciplined, unified message” that all Republicans can focus on, “go on offense every single day to prosecute the case against Joe Biden and Nancy Pelosi,” and shine a spotlight on individual members, including the freshman class, with their unique backgrounds. 

    Rep. Elise Stefanik speaks during a news conference about the shortage of baby formula outside the Capitol on Thursday, May 12, 2022. (Ting Shen/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

    In the year since, Stefanik says the Republican Party has united and she credits their messaging against Biden for the tanking of his approval ratings on issues like the economy, immigration and foreign policy. 

    “I believe that’s a result of our hard work [in] unifying the conference and focusing on the issues that actually matter to the American people,” said Stefanik, who this week has ramped up pressure on Biden for the baby formula shortage.

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    In shoring up support from conservatives last year, Stefanik told colleagues on the fence she plans to serve just one term as conference chair. But if Republicans win back the House in November, she has her eye on other leadership positions, including becoming GOP whip – if Whip Steve Scalise, R-La., moves up to House majority leader and Rep. Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., becomes House speaker.

    Stefanik is also weighing becoming chair of a committee, such as the House Education and Labor Committee, where she is a member.

    “There was clearly a need for change in leadership and a lot of encouragement from my colleagues,” Stefanik told Fox News Digital about her ascension a year ago. “So I took on this job to do the very best I can this cycle, but I haven’t made a decision about what’s next.”

    Pelosi suggests COVID death toll would be worse than 1 million without Biden in office

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    As COVID-19 deaths reach 1 million in the United States, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi suggested the situation would be much worse if President Biden wasn’t in office. 

    “God knows how bad it would be if he had not taken the actions that he has taken,” Pelosi said Thursday at her weekly news conference at the Capitol.

    When Biden took office in January 2021, the number of COVID-19 deaths in the United States was about 400,000 under President Trump. Biden campaigned on beating COVID-19 and Pelosi reiterated the goal was to “crush the virus.”

    PRO-CHOICERS PICKET PELOSI’S HOUSE, CLAIM DEMOCRATS ARE ‘COMPLICIT’ IN POTENTIAL OVERHAUL OF ROE V. WADE

    In the 16 months since Democrats have controlled the White House and Congress, an additional 600,000 some people died in the United States from COVID-19. Later Thursday, Pelosi will lead a moment of silence on the steps of the Capitol with House and Senate members to mark the tragic 1 million death toll count.

    Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., meets with reporters at the Capitol in Washington, Wednesday, Aug. 25, 2021. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

    Asked by Fox News Digital Thursday whether Democrats could have done anything else to prevent the death toll, Pelosi said she’s “proud” of how Biden has handled the crisis.

    “I want to salute President Biden for what he has done in the fight against COVID,” Pelosi said. “[He] made a drastic difference from the denial that our country was in before and the lack of attention that was given to it. 

    HOUSE REPUBLICANS CALL FOR BIDEN ADMINISTRATION TO ADDRESS NATIONWIDE BABY FORMULA SHORTAGE

    “[The] president is paying attention to science, science and science and the governance necessary to deal with it. I’m very proud of what he has done.”

    In the early weeks of Biden’s presidency, Democrats swiftly moved to pass the $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan which was designed to fight coronavirus and rebuild the economy. 

    U.S President Joe Biden gives remarks at a Black History Month celebration event in the East Room of the White House on February 28, 2022 in Washington, DC. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)

    Biden instituted vaccine requirements for the federal workforce, military personnel and other employees — though they have been legally challenged — and he launched a nationwide effort to get 70% of adults vaccinated with at least one dose by July 4, 2021. That goal was met about a month behind schedule. Now, about 83% of Americans age 5 and up are at least partially vaccinated.

    Biden and Democrats now want more money to fight coronavirus, as highly contagious variants continue spread. But the funding has been stalled in Congress as Republicans want the package paid for. 

    President Joe Biden receives a COVID-19 booster shot during an event in the South Court Auditorium on the White House campus, Monday, Sept. 27, 2021, in Washington.  (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)

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    Pelosi reiterated Thursday the need to get more coronavirus money passed and said she wants at least $22.5 billion to address the ongoing threat — beyond the $10 billion that Senate Republicans have suggested. 

    “The heartbreak continues,” Pelosi said, in sending condolences to the families of the 1 million lives lost. “All the more reason why we must pass the COVID legislation so we can purchase vaccines, provide testing and treatments.”