Erik De La Garza

Congressional Republicans are again facing scrutiny for what is being described as their increasingly familiar political routine: fiery opposition followed by quiet surrender – especially when President Donald Trump is involved.

In a deep dive Thursday night, Politico spotlighted what it called “the GOP’s big fold.” The latest example was on full display in recent days as the House narrowly passed Trump’s massive spending bill. Just hours before the Republican victory, conservative hardliners blasted the Senate’s changes.

Rep. Keith Self (R-TX) called the bill “morally and fiscally bankrupt” a 6:50 p.m. Wednesday – but voted to advance it anyway by 3:20 a.m. Thursday, Politico reported. Rep. Chip Roy (R-TX) labeled the Senate amendments a “travesty,” yet also backed the bill before dawn.

They weren’t alone. Rep. David Valadao (R-CA) vowed last week to oppose any Medicaid changes. He voted yes, too. Over the last six months, hardline Republicans threatened to tank a series of budget bills and resolutions – before ultimately backing them under Trump's pressure, the outlet noted.

“These reversals may be surprising, but they were not remarkable,” according to the Politico report. “It was par for the course for congressional Republicans who, in recent years, have shown a proclivity for taking bold, theatrical stands before meekly capitulating in the face of political pressure — particularly from President Donald Trump.”

Despite days of political posturing, House Republicans were ready to fall in line – just as they had so many times before, Politico pointed out. Around 3:15 a.m., with the bill on the verge of passing, the conservative holdouts – Self, Roy, and others – gathered in the House chamber’s center aisle for a smiling group photo.

The photographer was none other than House Speaker Mike Johnson, the report said.

“He just pulled out his camera and we took the picture,” Rep. Bob Onder (R-MO) said. “It was awesome.”

As Politico put it: “The Republican holdouts had ended their fight by getting together to strike a pose. It wasn’t difficult. After all, they had been posing all week.”

A national security expert issued a stark warning Thursday night after President Donald Trump’s latest phone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin was followed by a massive Russian missile barrage over Kyiv.

Appearing on CNN’s “The Source with Kaitlan Collins,” Beth Sanner, a former deputy director of national intelligence, didn’t mince words as she analyzed the timing of Russia’s latest assault on Ukraine – just hours after Trump himself publicly confirmed his call with Putin.

“If you look back at every time that he said, ‘Stop, Vladimir’ or made a call, he strikes – Putin strikes again within the next day,” Sanner said. “I get why this administration wants to keep the dialogue open, but Putin responds every time with a finger.”

She then warned: “At some point, I mean, if I were in Ukraine, I'd be like, 'Uh, stop calling President Putin because it rains missiles down on us.'"

The remarks came after CNN’s Jim Sciutto reported that Kyiv was enduring a sustained Russian attack on Thursday, with at least 13 sites struck by missiles and drones – including residential neighborhoods. At least eight people were reported injured as air raid sirens continued to sound.

Trump, while speaking to reporters, described his call with Putin as “pretty long,” and added they discussed Iran and the war in Ukraine – but admitted, “I didn't make any progress with them today at all.”

Sanner’s warning on Thursday comes amid criticism of the Trump administration’s decision to pause U.S. weapons shipments to Ukraine, including critical air defense systems.

Watch the clip below via CNN or at the link here:

Social media exploded Thursday night after President Donald Trump floated a plan to celebrate America’s 250th anniversary with an Ultimate Fight Championship fight on the White House lawn.

Speaking at a rally in Des Moines, Iowa, as he took a victory lap to celebrate the passage of his massive spending bill, Trump told rallygoers he wants to mark the country’s upcoming 250th anniversary with a string of events at national parks and historic sites. He also said he wanted a “full championship fight” on the White House grounds.

“We’re going to have a UFC fight. Think of this – on the grounds of the White House,” Trump said Thursday. “We have a lot of land there. We’re going to build a little – we’re not, Dana’s going to do it,” he added of Dana White, UFC's CEO. We’re going to have a UFC fight, championship fight, full fight – like 20,000, 25,000 people. And we’re going to do that as part of 250.”

Reactions online were immediate – and most were stunned.

“UFC fights on the White House lawn really feels like one of those 2015 Onion stories about a potential Trump Presidency,” Pennsylvania Capital-Star correspondent Nick Field wrote on X.

“Uhhh Trump just said there's gonna be a UFC fight from the White House grounds?” Wired senior writer Jake Lahut posted on Bluesky.

“Just how George Washington drew it up in his head,” Hedge Fund manager Spencer Hakimian wrote on X.

“Would be absolutely wild if he and Dana White pulled this off,” One America News Network’s chief White House correspondent, Daniel Baldwin, told his social media followers.

Still, MAGA fans were all in: “Let's go!” pro-MAGA account @JayTC53America posted Thursday. “America is so back!”

CBS News anchor John Dickerson became the latest network heavyweight to publicly rebuke CBS’s parent company, Paramount Global, after its $16 million settlement with President Donald Trump – a move he called a blow to journalistic integrity and public trust.

In a blistering monologue during CBS Evening News Plus on Wednesday, Dickerson tore into the company’s decision to pay Trump to end his $20 billion lawsuit over a “60 Minutes” interview with former Vice President Kamala Harris.

“We pride ourselves on our B.S. detector, so it ought to work on ourselves, too,” Dickerson warned at the start of the newscast. “When it doesn’t, the stakes are real: a loss of public trust, the spread of misinformation.”

He added: “The Paramount settlement poses a new obstacle: can you hold power to account after paying it millions? Can an audience trust you when it thinks you’ve traded away that trust? The audience will decide that.”

Trump’s lawsuit alleged “60 Minutes” deceptively edited the 2024 interview to make Harris appear more favorable on Israel, the Daily Beast reported. The program later released full transcripts showing that the editing was a routine time-cutting decision.

“Though Paramount refused to apologize or express regret, it handed Trump another victory in his crusade against media outlets he perceives as political enemies,” the Daily Beast report said. “Paramount also denied that the settlement had anything to do with a pending merger with Skydance, which will require approval from the Trump administration.”

Dickerson’s searing remarks follow internal outrage over the settlement. CBS’s Bill Whitaker, who conducted the Harris interview, reportedly appeared “teary-eyed” during a staff meeting after the deal, according to the report. While veteran broadcaster Dan Rather called it an “extortion by the president” and a “kneeling-down and saying, ‘Yes, Sir,’ by billionaire corporate owners.”

Former Rep. Jason Chaffetz (R-UT) delivered a blunt warning to Republican holdouts Wednesday as doubts mounted over President Donald Trump’s sprawling spending bill.

Chaffetz, now a Fox News contributor and host of the “Jason in the House” podcast on Fox News Radio, didn’t mince words as he scolded Republican lawmakers wavering on the president’s so-called “Big, Beautiful Bill.”

“You can either vote with AOC, or you can vote with Donald Trump,” Chaffetz said during an appearance on “Hannity” after the House began a key procedural vote. “So, don’t tell me that you’re a conservative if you’re not with Donald Trump.”

He added: “That’s not gonna fly, you’re never coming back, and shame on you.” Chaffetz went on to accuse some Republicans of opposing the bill for personal attention rather than policy reasons.

“‘Oh, I stood tough, yeah, I’ve got these big Instagram muscles, look how tough I am on Twitter,’” he said in a mocking tone.

“Well, you don’t support the president,” he concluded. “That’s just not gonna fly.”

Fox News’ Sean Hannity also chimed in: “They want clicks, Jason,” the conservative host said. “Everybody’s looking for a click.”

A critical House vote on Trump’s sweeping spending bill, dubbed the “Big, Beautiful Bill,” began Wednesday night after the Senate passed a pricier version of the legislation. That sparked backlash from fiscal conservatives and left the House GOP scrambling to secure enough votes.

Still, House Speaker Mike Johnson insisted late Wednesday that he was "absolutely confident" Republicans would send the bill to Trump's desk.

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House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) declared he is “absolutely confident” Republicans will advance President Donald Trump’s sprawling megabill even as doubts swirled late Wednesday within his party.

“We’re going to land this plane and deliver for the American people,” Johnson insisted on Fox News’ “Hannity," brushing aside concerns about GOP holdouts.

Johnson admitted late Wednesday night that the voting process would likely drag on "a little while," partly because some lawmakers had left Washington for family obligations and others remained in closed-door talks. But the House Speaker showed no signs of doubt that he would ultimately deliver the votes for Trump.

“There’s no huge pressure here,” Johnson said, insisting that negotiations were proceeding smoothly. He also credited Trump and Vice President JD Vance for playing an active role in winning over skeptical Republicans.

“President Trump is the consummate dealmaker, he's the greatest one of all time,” he said, adding that "we're all in it together and it is a one-team approach."

A key procedural House vote on Trump’s sweeping spending bill, dubbed the “Big, Beautiful Bill,” began Wednesday night after the Senate passed a pricier version of the legislation. That sparked a backlash from fiscal conservatives and left the House GOP scrambling to secure enough votes.

"We had reached a very delicate balance on it, so it’s taken a little while to go through the changes, have everybody fully process that and figure out what that means for everybody and their districts.

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A surprise decision by the Pentagon to halt weapons shipments to Ukraine has "blindsided" lawmakers, diplomats, and even key Trump allies, sparking confusion and criticism on both sides of the Atlantic.

That’s according to Politico, which reported Wednesday that the abrupt pause, driven by Pentagon policy chief Elbridge Colby and a small circle of advisers, was not coordinated across the administration. Even senior Republicans say they were left in the dark.

“The surprise move on Monday has fueled concern and frustration, including among top Republicans, that one senior Pentagon official appeared to hold outsized influence over the decision,” Politico said.

“I think it’s all made by the DOD policy director, this Colby guy,” Rep. Michael McCaul (R-TX) told the outlet. “We essentially don’t have a national security adviser. I’m not even sure [Secretary of State Marco] Rubio was consulted on this one … There’s internal division in the White House.”

The move “caused bewilderment and whiplash in Ukraine,” and came as President Donald Trump appeared to warm to renewed support for the war-torn country, according to Politico. The shipment of critical arms, reportedly already staged in Poland, was abruptly held without input from the State Department, U.S. Embassy in Kyiv, or Trump’s Ukraine envoy, Keith Kellogg, the report added.

“One U.S. official said the Pentagon’s decision was uncoordinated and caught the State Department by surprise,” according to the report, while Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick (R-PA) has formally requested an emergency briefing from the White House and Department of Defense.

Even House Appropriations Chair Tom Cole (R-OK) said he only learned about the decision through media reports. However, a White House official insisted that Trump and senior aides were made aware of the review “prior to the story,” but declined to say exactly when they were informed.

Meanwhile, the White House and Ukraine are working to coordinate a call between Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, which, according to Politico, "was set in motion on Tuesday as word began filtering out that the U.S. had slammed the brakes on shipments of the weapons to Ukraine."

A heated clash broke out live on CNN Wednesday when Rep. Pat Ryan (D-NY) publicly scolded Rep. Mike Flood (R-NE) during a segment on Medicaid cuts – snapping at the Republican to “show some respect” after Flood interrupted him.

The fiery exchange unfolded during “The Source with Kaitlan Collins” as the two lawmakers debated GOP-led proposals to scale back Medicaid spending, which Democrats argued could cost tens of thousands of Americans, including children, their health coverage.

Flood insisted Wednesday that the projections of lost coverage were overblown and tried to pivot the conversation to fraud, waste, and “illegals” receiving benefits, as he attacked so-called blue states like New York and California.

“And that should not happen,” the MAGA Republican said Wednesday.

But when Ryan was asked to respond, Flood laughed out loud at the Democrat’s answer and talked over him almost immediately.

“There are so many – so much B.S. in that answer – I don't know where to begin,” Ryan said. “The reality is, you can throw out stats that are made up. You can hold up a chart that who knows where it came from.”

When Flood fired back to say where he obtained the chart he held up moments earlier for viewers, Ryan quickly scolded him.

“I'm happy to speak if you'll show some respect, please, as I've done for you,” Ryan said as he stared directly at Flood. He then went on to cite figures showing that nearly 200,000 people in his district – half of them children – stood to lose coverage under the GOP's proposed Medicaid changes.

“That is an objective fact,” the New York Democrat added. “And the fact that this is being spun as anything else is really just pathetic.”

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President Donald Trump is pulling out all the stops to win over Republicans still on the fence about his massive spending bill – posing for photos, handing out signed swag, and charming holdouts in his party. But the White House still managed to bungle the misspelling of a staunch MAGA lawmaker’s name.

On Wednesday, Rep. Tim Burchett (R-TN) was one of several ultra-conservative House Freedom Caucus members invited to the White House as Trump worked to lock down support ahead of a Friday House vote, according to a report in The New York Times. In a social media video shortly after the meeting, Burchett gushed about the experience, calling the president “wonderful, as always."

But Burchett told the Times that when he sat down for a Cabinet Room meeting, the name card in front of him had a typo – a missing “r” in his last name. “So the president scribbled in the letter, signed both sides of the card and gave it to him as a souvenir,” according to the publication.

“He signed a bunch of stuff,” Burchett said in the video on Wednesday. “It’s cool.”

According to the Times, Trump also loaded up the son of Rep. Chip Roy (R-TX) with souvenirs of his own – part of what the report called a “blunt-force charm offensive waged with precision.”

“This is a man who spent his entire professional life working in hospitality and show business,” the Times noted. “It is background that has served him well in Washington.” One White House official told the publication that Trump's message to holdouts was simple: "Don’t give the Democrats a win. Don’t play into their hands.”

Despite the typo, Trump appeared to make headway with Burchett, who called the MAGA leader “informative, funny."

"He told me he likes seeing me on TV, which was kind of cool," the Tennessee lawmaker added.

MAGA enthusiasts erupted in celebration Tuesday after the University of Pennsylvania agreed to limit the participation of transgender athletes under a new deal with the Trump administration.

The university announced it would bow to pressure from the White House and “adopt biology-based definitions for the words ‘male’ and ‘female’” – a major reversal tied to a civil rights investigation into swimmer Lia Thomas’ participation on Penn’s women’s swim team, according to media reports.

The Trump administration had accused the school of violating Title IX by allowing Thomas to compete and had frozen $175 million in federal research funds during the inquiry, the New York Times reported.

The resolution involving President Donald Trump’s latest tussle with an Ivy League university sent pro-Trump social media into a mix of praise for the announcement – and ridicule for the university.

“Hallelujah … The women of UPenn State will stripe Lia Thomas of his medal and records and give them back to the actual women who deserved them,” the pro-MAGA account @CreasonJana posted on X. “My question now is … Will Lia now go back to being the man he was born as?”

“Penn State is taking away ‘Lea Thomas’ titles and giving them to the runners up and will no longer allow men to compete in women’s sports on their sports teams!” X user Adam Knox told his followers. “This is a massive win all thanks to Riley Gaines and President Trump!”

Civil liberties attorney and conservative activist Laura Powell added: “UPenn will formally apologize for allowing Lia Thomas to compete as a woman. The tide is turning!”

“Thanks President Trump! PROMISES MADE, PROMISES KEPT! We won!” MAGA follower AJ Huber told his followers on X.

“Pride month ended and Lia Thomas was immediately stripped of his titles,” TikTok creator Link Lauren, a former campaign aide to Robert F. Kennedy Jr., told his own X followers.

CNN anchor Kaitlan Collins confronted Rep. Tim Burchett (R-TN) in a tense exchange Tuesday over the Republican-led megabill and its sweeping cuts to Medicaid and SNAP benefits as she delivered multiple pushbacks live on air.

The brutal fact-checks came during CNN’s “The Source,” as Burchett praised the bill’s provisions on border security and defense spending, while dismissing concerns about its impact on low-income Americans.

“No, I'm not [worried], because unless they're doing it illegally – waste, abuse, and fraud – that's all the cuts are,” Burchett insisted when asked about Tennesseans losing Medicaid. “That's a misnomer. That’s what the left is putting out to scare people.”

But Collins quickly interjected: “You’re saying only people who get Medicaid illegally are going to be affected by these cuts? I don't think that's right. The projection is 12 million people. Are you saying 12 million people are getting Medicaid illegally?”

Just moments later, Collins again challenged the MAGA lawmaker after she cited a Senate provision that delays cuts for states with the worst SNAP error rates, which Burchett brushed off. He then launched into an attack on the Congressional Budget Office, accusing it of being “85% Democrat” as he called for it to be disbanded.

“I think it's very disingenuous when you say that it's going to add $3 trillion to the debt in ten years,” he told Collins, who cited its bill analysis.

“I didn't say that, the Congressional Budget Office said that,” the CNN anchor shot back.

“Well, the Congressional Budget Office is not nonpartisan,” Burchett replied. “Eighty-five percent of the people that work in their health care division are Democrats and have contributed to Democrats, their number one economist is a Democrat."

“It’s run by Republicans,” Collins twice reminded him. But Burchett wasn’t budging.

“It needs to be disbanded,” he concluded. “It is a relic.”

Watch the clip below via CNN or at the link here:

Democrats are seizing on Vice President JD Vance’s tie-breaking vote to pass the GOP’s sweeping megabill, as they rush to cast him as the face of a deeply unpopular measure they say could haunt him in a future presidential run, according to a new report in Politico.

The Senate passed the bill after 27 hours of debate Tuesday, with Vance stepping in to break the 50-50 tie. The former Ohio senator – seen as “the presumed heir to the MAGA movement in 2028” – lauded the bill as a problem solver for illegal immigration.

But Democrats quickly came out to slam Vance and the bill, which they say slashes Medicaid, axes food assistance, and delivers tax cuts to the wealthy, Politico added.

“VP Vance has cast the deciding vote in the Senate to cut Medicaid, take away food assistance, blow up the deficit, and add tax breaks for the wealthiest,” former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg wrote in an X post. “This bill is unpopular because it is wrong.”

Rep. Ro Khanna (D-CA) posted: “What happened to you @JDVance — author of Hillbilly Elegy — now shrugging off Medicaid cuts that will close rural hospitals and kick millions off healthcare as ‘minutiae?’”

“Democrats’ rush to tie the bill so closely to the vice president illustrates their belief that it could be toxic for the GOP in the midterms and 2028 — and that it could hurt Vance if he runs for president once Trump leaves the political stage,” Politico noted Tuesday as Rep. Greg Casar (D-TX), Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) and California Gov. Gavin Newsom also came out to rip Vance's tie-breaking vote.

"Bookmark this," Newsom wrote on X. "JD Vance is the ultimate reason why 17 million Americans will lose their healthcare."

A spokesperson for Vance did not respond to a request for comment, but the vice president has pushed hard for the bill’s passage, arguing it protects the country from going “bankrupt” due to illegal immigrants being showered with “generous benefits.”

“Even as Trump still has more than three years left in his final term, politicians on both sides of the aisle are already jockeying in the shadows to replace him,” the Politico report said. “Although polling this early is not a reliable predictor for a presidential field still years away from breaking out into the open, Vance has led significantly in early GOP primary surveys.”

Small Business Administrator Kelly Loeffler lashed out at Sen. Ed Markey (D-MA) on Tuesday after he accused the federal agency of raising a “Christian nationalist, White supremacist" flag at its headquarters earlier this month.

The public back-and-forth began after the agency flew an “Appeal to Heaven” banner – a white flag bearing a green pine tree – alongside a large U.S. flag on June 11 in celebration of Flag Day, Fox News Digital reported Tuesday. The banner dates back to the Revolutionary War, the outlet noted, and Loeffler defended the flag’s “rich history,” which she also praised as “AMERICAN MADE!”

Markey went on record slamming the display in a June 25 letter, calling it "inappropriate at a federal government institution,” and a symbol tied to extremism.

"Our federal institutions must remain above ideological influence,” the Massachusetts lawmaker wrote, adding that the SBA “should not be associated with symbols that are increasingly viewed as partisan or extremist, or that promote hateful rhetoric.”

Loeffler fired back, going after Markey’s “nonchalant observation of Flag Day – which includes a history of leaving your own American Flag lying outside, on the ground, in violation of the U.S. Flag Code," according to Fox News.

She also pointed to Markey’s display of the Massachusetts state flag, which some Native American groups have called a symbol of “slaughter” and “genocide,” and criticized his use of the LGBTQ flag, the report added.

"Clearly, you do not agree with these actions or views, or else I strongly doubt you would continue to showcase the state flag at your offices," Loeffler added in her letter. "Likewise, I do not agree with your characterization of the Appeal to Heaven flag – which has a rich history as an appeal to God to protect our emerging nation’s liberty dating back to its first usage by General George Washington in the Revolutionary War. Its historical connotation – as one of our earliest emblems of freedom and independence – represents principles which the SBA wholeheartedly supports."

Acting ICE Director Todd Lyons tore into CNN on Monday, accusing the network of endangering federal agents by promoting an app that alerts users to nearby immigration enforcement activity.

Appearing on Newsmax’s “Rob Schmitt Tonight,” Lyons launched a forceful condemnation of CNN’s coverage of the app ICEBlock, calling it “disgusting” and warning it could lead to interference in law enforcement operations.

“They're interfering and impeding and putting law enforcement officers at risk,” Lyons insisted in a Monday interview. “This app only puts law enforcement's lives at risk because you're going to have people interfering in an ICE operation where they shouldn't even be there.”

The app, ICEBlock, available on iPhones, allows users to post real-time sightings of ICE activity. It features a map interface with pins, descriptions of the ICE activity, and a five-mile alert radius, according to Newsmax.

“With over 30,000 users, the app is gaining popularity amid President Donald Trump's aggressive immigration enforcement strategy,” the network added Monday.

"Yeah. No, I mean, it's clearly disgusting the fact that CNN will go ahead and promote this,” Lyons said. He told the Newsmax anchor that ICE is now working with the Department of Justice to explore potential legal action.

“We've been very aggressive with the Department of Justice,” he said. “They've been great partners with us as far as prosecuting anyone that has impeded or interfered with ICE arrest. So that's what we're focusing on now with the Department of Justice — to see exactly what we can do."

He concluded that the app – and CNN’s coverage – created a dangerous combination for agents.

“We're up almost 500% of assaults on officers right now,” Lyons said. “And it's because of apps like this. It's because of the crazy rhetoric of some elected officials that are totally putting lives of ICE officers and agents at risk every day."

Top White House aide Stephen Miller erupted on Fox News Monday night, lashing out at critics of Republicans’ sweeping legislative package, and calling it the “most conservative bill” of his lifetime.

Appearing on “Hannity,” the Trump advisor raised his voice as he angrily went after opponents of the so-called “big, beautiful bill” and demanded it be passed by Independence Day.

“I am sick and tired of the lies about this bill that have been perpetrated by opportunists who are trying to make a name for themselves," Miller said, growing more outraged as he rattled off the bill’s provisions. “This is the most conservative bill in my lifetime – tax cuts, defense, border security, homeland security, welfare reform, and the largest spending cut in one bill that has ever been enacted.”

Miller went on to praise the bill’s proposed work requirements for food stamps and Medicaid, calling them more sweeping than GOP welfare reforms in the 1990s. He also touted tax cuts on tips, overtime, and Social Security, and claimed the bill contains “the most far-reaching border security proposal…going back to Eisenhower.”

"Going back to since we’ve had conversations about the border, Sean,” he added. “I take this seriously!”

The remarks came as CNN reported that President Donald Trump is working the phones behind the scenes, urging holdouts on Capitol Hill to fall in line as the July 4 deadline approaches. Meanwhile, the Senate began its marathon voting session on Monday, known as the "vote-a-rama.”

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