Category: Dramas

The “daring” U.S. military rescue of a “seriously wounded” airman is being hailed as an American success story, as President Donald Trump announced “we got him!” and detailed the “AMAZING show of bravery and talent,” turning a potential American setback into a show of might.

Details about the rescue are trickling in, including senior administration officials telling Fox News how the CIA deflected enemy attention with a “deception campaign.”

The CIA spread word in Iran through multiple sources that U.S. forces had already found the second of two airmen who ejected from their F-15e, and were moving him out of Iran in a maritime exfiltration elsewhere, sources told Fox News, but that was designed to buy time to find the stranded weapons system officer.

The CIA picked up a distress signal, passing the intelligence on to the Pentagon and White House, which ordered the immediate rescue mission, according to sources.

MORNING GLORY: PRESIDENT TRUMP IS ON THE CUSP OF A HISTORIC ACHIEVEMENT

There was initial fear the “beacon signal” was an Iranian “trap,” sources said.

“There was a lot at stake here,” the source said.

Once the CIA confirmed Saturday morning that this was not an Iranian trap, the missing airman was located using advanced technical capabilities.

CIA Director John Ratcliffe informed Secretary of War Pete Hegseth, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs Gen. Dan “Raizin'” Caine and, ultimately, Trump.

“Within eight hours, we had planes in motion,” the source said. “Within almost 12 hours we were on the ground in Iran.

TRUMP TELLS ‘STRANGE’ IRANIAN NEGOTIATORS TO ‘GET SERIOUS SOON’ OR ‘IT WON’T BE PRETTY’

“We’ve seen before what they do with prisoners. We were going to expend every effort to make sure we got to him first.”

The U.S. used MQ9 Reaper drones to protect the area around where the airman was hiding and fired on anything that came close to that area and any area where U.S. forces were operating to prevent crowds or any Iranians from approaching, sources confirmed to Fox News.

“We executed multiple large-scale strikes in the surrounding area using every tactical jet in the U.S. inventory and B-1 Bombers to keep him safe,” according to a senior US official.

Trump saluted the complex operation to exfiltrate the “highly respected colonel.”

“We have rescued the seriously wounded, and really brave, F-15 Crew Member/Officer, from deep inside the mountains of Iran,” Trump wrote Sunday morning on Truth Social, announcing an Oval Office news conference set for 1 p.m. ET Monday. “The Iranian Military was looking hard, in big numbers, and getting close.”

MORNING GLORY: WHAT WILL DONALD TRUMP’S LEGACY BE AS A WARTIME PRESIDENT?

“This type of raid is seldom attempted because of the danger to ‘man and equipment.’ It just doesn’t happen!” Trump said. “The second raid came after the first one, where we rescued the pilot in broad daylight, also unusual, spending seven hours over Iran. An AMAZING show of bravery and talent by all!”

One night earlier, Trump hailed “one of the most daring Search and Rescue Operations in U.S. History.”

“My fellow Americans, over the past several hours, the United States Military pulled off one of the most daring Search and Rescue Operations in U.S. History, for one of our incredible Crew Member Officers, who also happens to be a highly respected Colonel, and who I am thrilled to let you know is now SAFE and SOUND!” Trump wrote Saturday night on Truth Social.

“This brave Warrior was behind enemy lines in the treacherous mountains of Iran, being hunted down by our enemies, who were getting closer and closer by the hour, but was never truly alone because his Commander in Chief, Secretary of War, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and fellow Warfighters were monitoring his location 24 hours a day, and diligently planning for his rescue,” he said.

The injured airman was the second of two crew members from the warplane Iran claimed it had brought down with its air defenses on Friday.

Several aircraft were destroyed during the U.S. rescue mission, Iran’s elite Islamic Revolutionary Guards claimed Sunday according to the Tasnim news agency. An Iranian military spokesperson said a C-130 military transport plane and two Black Hawk helicopters were among the downed craft.

TRUMP ORDERS WAR DEPT TO POSTPONE STRIKES ON IRANIAN ENERGY SITES, CITING ‘PRODUCTIVE’ TALKS TO END WAR

Israeli intelligence had assisted the CIA in determining the location of the missing WSO and removing doubt of Iranian “trap,” halting its attacks in the area to facilitate the mission, an Israeli security official told Reuters.

“All Israelis rejoice in the incredible rescue of a brave American pilot by America’s dauntless warriors,” Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu wrote in a statement Sunday morning. “This proves that when free societies muster their courage and their resolve, they can confront seemingly insurmountable odds and overcome the forces of darkness and terror.”

The weekend rescue left Trump resolute in swift and decisive victory amid a 10-day deadline to reopen the Hormuz Strait to oil tankers, issuing a stunning expletive-laced warning Sunday morning.

“Tuesday will be Power Plant Day, and Bridge Day, all wrapped up in one, in Iran,” Trump wrote on Truth Social. “There will be nothing like it!!!

“Open the F–in’ Strait, you crazy bastards, or you’ll be living in Hell – JUST WATCH! Praise be to Allah,” he added.

Fox News’ Jennifer Griffin, Trey Yingst and Reuters contributed to this report.

President Donald Trump directed a profanity-laced message to Iran on Sunday, signaling the U.S. will target the regime’s power plants and bridges on Tuesday if the Strait of Hormuz is not reopened.

“Tuesday will be Power Plant Day, and Bridge Day, all wrapped up in one, in Iran,” Trump’s post read. “There will be nothing like it!!! Open the F—– Strait, you crazy bastards, or you’ll be living in Hell – JUST WATCH! Praise be to Allah.”

Trump’s latest message shows the president is hardening his threats to strike Iran’s critical infrastructure if Tehran doesn’t reopen the Strait of Hormuz by his Monday deadline.

Iran has hampered passage through the narrow waterway, which is crucial for the global oil trade, since the onset of the war to use as one of its bargaining chips. Iranian interference in the strait has significantly impaired the movement of oil tankers through the waterway, causing global oil prices to rise.

TRUMP CALLS ON WORLD TO BUILD ‘DELAYED COURAGE’ SEIZE KEY OIL ROUTE FROM IRAN

Fox News Digital’s Peter Pinedo contributed to this report.

This is a developing news story; check back for updates.

President Donald Trump’s effort to investigate race-based admissions at U.S. colleges was temporarily blocked Friday by a federal judge in Boston.

U.S. District Judge F. Dennis Saylor IV granted a preliminary injunction Friday, temporarily barring the Trump administration from forcing public colleges in 17 Democrat-led states to submit detailed admissions data meant to prove they are not unconstitutional considering race.

Saylor did admit the federal government likely can seek such information in “identifying potential problems” and “patterns of discrimination” but the executive order’s 120-day deadline was “rushed and chaotic” and “epitomizes arbitrary and capricious agency action.”

Trump, while moving to shut down the Department of Education to return its functions to the states last March, sought a four-month deadline for race data on college admissions this past August.

TRUMP ADMIN PROBE ACCUSES HARVARD OF DISCRIMINATING AGAINST JEWISH STUDENTS, THREATENS TO PULL ALL FUNDING

“Within 120 days of the date of this memorandum, and to be initiated this 2025-2026 school year, the Secretary of Education, in coordination with NCES [National Center for Education Statistics], shall expand the scope of required reporting to provide adequate transparency into admissions, as determined by the Secretary of Education, consistent with applicable law,” Trump’s executive order challenged by Democrats read. 

A coalition of 17 Democrat state attorneys general sued, arguing the new reporting regime would invade student privacy, burden universities, and trigger unwarranted federal investigations.

“Plaintiffs have established, based on the record before the Court, that they are likely to succeed on the merits of their claim that the agency action was ‘arbitrary, capricious, an abuse of discretion, and not otherwise in accordance with the law,'” Saylor concluded. “Furthermore, and notwithstanding the contention of the government, plaintiffs have established that immediate irreparable harm will result if the injunction does not issue. And they have likewise established that the balance of equities and the public interest favor preliminary injunctive relief. Accordingly, the motion for a preliminary injunction will be granted.”

GEORGE MASON UNIVERSITY VIOLATED TILE VI WITH ‘UNLAWFUL DEI POLICIES,’ EDUCATION DEPARTMENT SAYS

The administration argued the data collection is needed to ensure colleges are complying with the Supreme Court’s 2023 decision ending affirmative action in admissions, while still allowing applicants to discuss how race affected their lives in essays.

“Race-based admissions practices are not only unfair, but also threaten our national security and well-being,” Trump’s order read. “It is therefore the policy of my Administration to ensure institutions of higher education receiving Federal financial assistance are transparent in their admissions practices.”

TRUMP DOJ PROBES MICHIGAN SCHOOLS OVER GENDER CURRICULUM, JOINS LAWSUIT AGAINST LA RACE-BASED PROGRAM

Under the policy, colleges were told to provide admissions data broken down by race and sex and to report it retroactively for seven years, with possible penalties for schools that failed to comply.

The administration’s policy echoes settlement agreements the government negotiated with Brown University and Columbia University, restoring their federal research money. The universities agreed to give the government data on the race, grade-point average and standardized test scores of applicants, admitted students and enrolled students. The schools also agreed to be audited by the government and to release admissions statistics to the public.

The NECS is to collect the new data, including the race and sex of colleges’ applicants, admitted students and enrolled students. Education Secretary Linda McMahon has said the data, which was originally due by March 18, must be disaggregated by race and sex and retroactively reported for the past seven years.

TRUMP’S DEMAND FOR COLLEGES NATIONWIDE TO FORK OVER RACE DATA FACES LEGAL HURDLE

If colleges fail to submit timely, complete and accurate data, the administration has said McMahon can take action under Title IV of the Higher Education Act of 1965, which outlines requirements for colleges receiving federal financial aid for students.

The Trump administration separately has sued Harvard University over similar data, saying it refused to provide admissions records the Justice Department demanded to ensure the school stopped using affirmative action.

Harvard has said the university has been responding to the government’s requests and is in compliance with the Supreme Court ruling against affirmative action. On Monday, the Education Department’s Office for Civil Rights directed Harvard to comply with the data requests within 20 days or face referral to the U.S. Justice Department.

Saylor’s injunction applies only to public institutions in the 17 Democrat plaintiff states, at least for now.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

In a move sure to spark more 2028 speculation, former Vice President Kamala Harris will appear next week at a major Democratic Party cattle call in this preseason for the next White House race.

Harris will speak on Friday in New York City at the National Action Network’s 35th Anniversary Convention.

The gathering, hosted by the civil rights organization’s founder, the Rev. Al Sharpton, will give the former vice president and other potential Democratic presidential contenders appearing at the confab an opportunity to speak directly to an influential gathering of Black leaders and activists who are key players among the party’s base.

It’s the latest sign that where Harris is going, and what she’s saying and doing, is increasingly generating buzz that the Democratic Party’s 2024 presidential nominee is on a likely glidepath toward another White House bid in 2028.

KAMALA HARRIS: OUT OF OFFICE BUT BACK ONLINE

“Of course we are reading tea leaves,” a veteran strategist in the former vice president’s political orbit told Fox News Digital.

The strategist, who asked to remain anonymous to speak more freely, emphasized that “the only signal that is very clear is that she is going to continue to be an incredibly important fighting force and voice for Democrats and for the country.”

Harris was mostly out of the headlines for a couple of months after the end of former President Joe Biden’s administration early last year. But she started stepping back into the political spotlight last spring and summer, including headlining Democratic National Committee fundraisers.

HARRIS, NEWSOM, STIR 2028 SPECULATION AT MAJOR DEMOCRATIC PARTY MEETING

Her strategic decision last summer to pass on launching a 2026 gubernatorial campaign in her home state of California was seen as a clearing of the runway for a 2028 presidential bid. And her nationwide book tour for her memoir on her abbreviated 2024 campaign, when she succeeded Biden as the Democrats’ standard-bearer, has helped keep her very visible while building up her email lists and boosting donor interest.

With her six-month book tour coming to a close, Harris, who made history as the first female and first Black vice president in the nation’s history, is set to make a swing through the South later this month. Her stops to help state parties fundraise include South Carolina, a key early-voting primary state in the Democrats’ presidential nominating calendar, as well as the key general election battlegrounds of Georgia and North Carolina. Harris narrowly lost both states and the five other key battlegrounds to President Donald Trump in the 2024 election.

“Kamala Harris continues to be an incredibly inspiring force within the Democratic Party, especially among women, among Black voters and voters of color,” the strategist in her political circle emphasized.

Harris has also been getting more involved on the campaign trail, recording ads for the Democratic National Committee and for the Virginia Democrats with early voting underway in the state’s April 21 congressional redistricting referendum.

After endorsing Rep. Jasmine Crockett in last month’s Democratic Senate primary in Texas, Harris reached out to the nomination winner, state Rep. James Talarico. She’s also talked to other winners in last month’s primaries.

HARRIS RIPPED BY THE RIGHT OVER TRUMP IRAN WAR SPEECH PRE-BUTTAL

Harris has also been increasingly critical of President Donald Trump’s military strikes on Iran.

“He brought America into a war that people don’t want, he has put American troops in harm’s way, costs are rising by the day, and, meanwhile, he has done nothing to address the needs of the people of America,” the former vice president argued in a social media video posted ahead of Trump’s primetime address to the nation last week.

Harris’ comments quickly ignited a sharp rebuke from conservatives on social media.

Among those responding was Rep. Tom Emmer of Minnesota, the House Republican majority leader.

“It’s pretty disgraceful for you to claim President Trump has done nothing to meet the needs of the American people,” Emmer posted on X. “Here’s the truth: He’s cleaning up the chaos YOU caused here in the United States and across the globe, and is making America great again.”

The reaction from Republicans is a sign that it’s not only Democrats who see Harris as a potential leading contender for the 2028 nomination.

Looking ahead, the strategist stressed that “no one knows what she is planning to do for 2028, but until she tells us herself, she is going to continue to travel, speak up about the issues she cares about the most, and the tremendous damage that Trump and this administration are doing to this country and how Democrats are going to continue to fight back.”

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) on Saturday pushed back on claims by Sen. Chris Van Hollen, D-Md., that ICE agents struck an “asylum seeker,” saying the man is an illegal immigrant who caused a crash while trying to evade arrest.

DHS told Fox News that the man in question is a Honduran illegal immigrant with a final order of removal dating back to 2018.

According to DHS, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers attempted to arrest the individual, identified as Ever Omar Alvarenga-Rios, on Thursday in Baltimore, but he allegedly tried to evade arrest.

When officers conducted a vehicle stop, Alvarenga allegedly failed to comply with law enforcement and “drove recklessly” through the city, DHS said.

DHS SAYS ILLEGAL IMMIGRANT INJURED HEAD AFTER HITTING CONCRETE WALL WHILE FLEEING ICE, DENIES BEATING CLAIMS

DHS claimed that Alvarenga then “slammed on his brakes,” causing a multi-vehicle crash.

He then attempted to flee on foot and ignored law enforcement commands, DHS said, adding that ICE officers “followed their training and used the minimum amount of force necessary to make the arrest.”

DHS said the two officers involved in the incident were injured and taken to the hospital.

DHS SAYS ICE AGENTS RAMMED BY VEHICLES AMID MINNEAPOLIS ENFORCEMENT SURGE: ‘AGGRESSIVELY ASSAULTED’

“This illegal alien broke our laws, resisted arrest, sent two ICE law enforcement officers to the hospital, and endangered the general public. Thankfully both our officers are expected to make a full recovery,” DHS Acting Assistant Secretary Lauren Bis said in a statement.

“This dangerous attempt to resist arrest comes after sanctuary politicians have encouraged illegal aliens to evade arrest by hosting webinars instructing illegal aliens how to avoid being caught. Sanctuary politicians must stop encouraging this reckless behavior that endangers illegal aliens, our officers, and the public,” she added.

Van Hollen on Saturday posted photos on social media of the man in a hospital bed, describing him as an “asylum seeker” who was rear-ended by an ICE vehicle while driving to work Thursday in Baltimore.

According to Van Hollen, the man suffered “significant injuries to his head, chest, back and hands.”

The Maryland Democrat also said the man was detained and claimed ICE was violating his rights by denying him access to attorneys.

Fox News Digital has reached out to Van Hollen’s office for comment.

Carpe diem. If you’ve wondered why all of Washington buzzed so much this week about “pro forma” sessions in the House and Senate, here’s your chance to find out why.

Come on now. Tempus fugit. There’s no time like the present. Hopefully, when you finish reading this, you can declare veni, vidi, vici when it comes to your understanding of pro forma sessions in the House and Senate.

Let’s start with what pro forma means and why it holds application in Congress.

SEN. MIKE LEE URGES TRUMP TO INVOKE RARE CONSTITUTIONAL POWER TO FORCE CONGRESS BACK FROM SPRING RECESS

In Latin, “pro forma” refers to “a matter of form.” In other words, something appears real, but it’s just perfunctory. For decades, the House and Senate have used the parliamentary artifice of a “pro forma” session to adhere to the Constitutional requirement of meeting every three days.

Article I, Section 5 of the Constitution states that “Neither House, during the Session of Congress, shall, without the Consent of the other, adjourn for more than three days, nor to any other Place than that in which the two Houses shall be sitting.” That means the House and Senate must convene at three-day intervals — unless both bodies approved the same “adjournment resolution” to allow one another to depart Washington for an extended period of time. In other words, the House and Senate must vote and agree to be out at the same time. And if there’s no consensus on an adjournment resolution, the House and Senate technically must “meet” every three days.

The House and Senate often fail to sync up on an adjournment resolution because the party opposite the President wants to block him from using his power to install cabinet officials or other figures via a “recess appointment” — thus circumnavigating the Senate confirmation process. That makes it challenging to approve an adjournment resolution. But that’s another matter.

Back to pro forma sessions.

Sans an adjournment resolution, the House and Senate simply gavel in and gavel out every three days. There is (usually) no legislative business. These are pro forma sessions. The House and Senate meet “in form.” But don’t accomplish anything. There’s often only one lawmaker on hand — the person who presides. House pro forma sessions usually run two or three minutes. Senate sessions are even more abbreviated — usually lasting 25 to 35 seconds.

What constitutes a Congressional meeting? Just those few seconds of session time suffices.

Some years ago, senators actually held an informal competition, racing through pro formas in an attempt to see who could conduct the meeting the fastest. The quickest pro forma session clocked in at a blistering 21 seconds.

Here’s the parliamentary posture of the House and Senate last week:

The Senate adjourned for the day in the wee hours on Friday, March 28. The House followed suit just before midnight the same night. Without an adjournment resolution, both would meet the next Tuesday. Therefore, if the House or Senate wouldn’t have to meet again until Tuesday.

GOP RAILS AGAINST ‘S— SANDWICH’ DEAL AS ALL EYES TURN TO HOUSE TO END DHS SHUTDOWN

There’s nothing written prohibiting the House or Senate from conducting legislative business during a pro forma session. In other words, either body just has to conduct some legislative business to convert a pro forma session into a de facto session. So that’s why it was though that the Senate’s pro forma session on Tuesday was ripe for activity as the DHS shutdown continued.

Some House Republicans demanded that the Senate align with what the House passed Friday night: a bill which funded all of the Department of Homeland Security for two months.

The Senate gaveled to order on Tuesday morning around 10:33 am et (a couple of moments late). Sen. John Hoeven, R-N.D., presided. But after 31 seconds, Hoeven adjourned the Senate without any business. Hoeven himself — or any senator — could have tried to pass the House bill with the skeleton crew on hand. Sen. Chris Coons, D-D.E., was the only other senator in the chamber. Coons or anyone else could have sought recognition to speak. But none of that happened.

And then the Senate adjourned, only to meet again Thursday morning (note the three-day interlude) at 7 a.m. for another pro forma session.

Pro forma sessions are customarily one of the most dull exercises in Congress. A skeleton crew of floor staff are there. Those asked to preside over the sessions are lawmakers who need to be in Washington for some reason over a recess or those who don’t go home often. Depending on which party has the majority, lawmakers from Maryland, Virginia or West Virginia frequently preside — simply because they are nearby. A limited number of reporters surface. They’re all thirsty for a quote or soundbite — simply because so few other lawmakers are available thanks to the recess. The whole enterprise starts and wraps up within minutes and everyone goes back home.

But that was not the case with last Tuesday’s Senate session. Everyone wanted to see if Republicans might try to approve the House-passed DHS bill. Or for that matter, if the House may attempt to align with the Senate and pass its bill. Neither happened. Even though a flood of reporters descended on the Capitol.

BEHIND THE SCENES OF CONGRESS’ ELEVENTH-HOUR RUSH TO FUND THE DHS

But the drama was higher this past Thursday morning. On Wednesday, House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., dramatically reversed himself and consented to the Senate-passed bill to fund all the Department of Homeland Security through Oct. 1 — except the Border Patrol and ICE. Johnson and Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., published a joint statement endorsing the Senate’s strategy. And so around dawn on Thursday, Thune himself showed up to pass the Senate package again.

The presence of the Majority or Minority Leader on the floor during a pro forma session is nearly unprecedented. It’s a magna momemti when it comes to a pro forma meeting.

This was not an ordinary pro forma. And even though nothing happened on Tuesday, neither of those sessions were far from the customary pro formas Congress usually sees during a recess.

It was presumed that the House would align in its pro forma session later Thursday morning. But consternation gripped the House Republican Conference. How was Johnson suddenly endorsing the Senate deal which he just characterized as a “joke” a few days earlier? That’s to say nothing of Johnson twisting himself in multiple knots and aggravating all wings of the GOP Conference.

So the House took no action. Which is why DHS remains shut down since the House and Senate have magnified the scope and potential for all four pro forma sessions held in recent days.

It turns out that all of these high-profile pro forma sessions were just bona fide pro forma sessions.

Nil actum est. Congress didn’t accomplish anything. Again.

FBI Director Kash Patel issued a direct warning to anyone who attacks law enforcement, vowing Saturday that those who “touch a cop” will be tracked down and arrested amid growing concerns over violence against officers.

The comments came while Patel was speaking on SiriusXM Patriot’s “Breitbart News Saturday,” discussing violence against federal officers.

“You have to back the blue,” Patel said. “I say the following to as many officers and Americans that I get in front of: If you touch a cop, we’re going to put you down. And that’s what we’re doing.”

He said the FBI is “going to back our partners,” noting that any criminal who assaults or impedes law enforcement is “going to face the full force of law enforcement.”

CHICAGO’S POLICE CHIEF PUTS CRIMINALS ON NOTICE AFTER FEDERAL AGENTS TARGETED IN WEEKEND CONFRONTATIONS

“We’re not saying that you can’t go out there and peacefully protest,” Patel said. “We are simply saying, … you cannot interfere with [an officer in their] lawful execution of [their] lawful duty.

Since the start of the Trump administration’s immigration enforcement crackdown, the Department of Homeland Security has reported violence against federal agents spiked to a record high.

DHS SHUTDOWN PUTTING AMERICANS AT RISK AS WORLD CUP SECURITY PREP ‘SIGNIFICANTLY BEHIND’: SEN FETTERMAN

The director added police around the country are “so empowered by the fact that we are backing the blue, that they know they have that backing.”

“They also know that if they are physically harmed, they’re just not going to have some perp get away with it,” he said. “We’re going to go find them and we’re going to arrest them.”

Patel’s stance on the issue has remained consistent throughout his time serving in the administration; In June, he posted a similar statement on social media.

“Hit a cop, you’re going to jail… doesn’t matter where you came from, how you got here, or what movement speaks to you,” Patel wrote in a June 7 X post. “If the local police force won’t back our men and women on the thin blue line, we @FBI will.”

The FBI did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.

America’s war with the mullahs of Tehran is into its second month and it has already changed Donald Trump’s presidency in important ways. As the president considers how to navigate these new dynamics, it’s worth considering the experience of some previous presidents who entered office not expecting to be wartime presidents.

Woodrow Wilson ended a four-cycle Republican winning streak by winning the three-way election of 1912. He did so because his two opponents, former president Teddy Roosevelt and incumbent president William Howard Taft, split the Republican vote. As president, Wilson embarked on an aggressive progressive domestic policy agenda. Things changed when World War One broke out in Europe midway through Wilson’s first term. Wilson then ran for reelection in 1916 promising to keep America out of the conflict, even using the slogan “He kept us out of war.” He did not keep that promise, though, as America entered the war in 1917, during the first year of his second term.

Franklin Roosevelt was elected in 1932 to rescue the economy from the Great Depression. In his third term, he gained a new mission: fighting the Axis Powers and presiding over the largest military mobilization in American history. Roosevelt addressed this shift at a 1943 press conference where he explained the transition from “Dr. New Deal” to “Dr. Win-the-War.” FDR’s quip highlighted the way his administration had to reorder itself to face the new challenge.

Lyndon Johnson came to office unexpectedly after the tragic assassination of John F. Kennedy. He took over in peacetime and began pursuing his dream of a Great Society — a sweeping domestic agenda to rival Roosevelt’s New Deal.

WHY TRUMP, IRAN SEEM LIGHT-YEARS APART ON ANY POSSIBLE DEAL TO END THE WAR

As he managed to pass his ambitious — and costly — domestic agenda, he soon found himself and his administration consumed by the conflict in Vietnam. The experience was so draining that by 1968, Johnson, who had spent his whole life pursuing the presidency, shocked the world by refusing to seek re-election.

In 2000, George W. Bush explicitly campaigned on pursuing a humble foreign policy, rejecting the nation-building missions of the Bill Clinton era. His ambition was to be the “Education President.” Then, 19 militant jihadis from Al Qaeda struck America on September 11.  In response, Bush ordered the invasions of terror-supporting countries Afghanistan and then Iraq. As someone who served in that administration, the shift I saw was palpable. Bush had entered office with one kind of vision for his presidency, but history had a different idea entirely.

War reshapes more than just the man sitting behind the Resolute Desk. It changes the teams around the president. We saw this with the resignation of Trump’s counterterrorism director, Joe Kent. As the Kent episode showed, advisors who were in alignment before the shooting starts are not necessarily in alignment once fighting begins.

DESTROY THE REGIME’S POWER WITHOUT OCCUPYING IRAN: A SMARTER WAR PLAN

This sort of thing has also happened in previous presidencies. In the early years of Wilson’s administration, Wilson was reliant on the advice of Texan political operative Colonel Edward House, who was so close to the president that he even lived in the White House. Things changed during the war, however, as internal critics in the State Department and the White House pushed back against House’s broad mandate managing the war.  Wilson and House also clashed over the Versailles Treaty, which led to a permanent end to their once close relationship.

As for Johnson, he was famously intolerant of internal dissent, and he drove away or silenced advisors who questioned his Vietnam strategy. Johnson pushed aside his defense secretary Robert McNamara — initially the face of the Vietnam War—after Johnson noticed and didn’t appreciate McNamara’s increasing skepticism of Johnson’s Vietnam policy. Johnson wanted — and got — an echo chamber, to his administration and to our nation’s detriment.

In the Bush administration, the Iraq war set off a bureaucratic civil war inside Bush’s national security team. This internal struggle led to the Valerie Plame affair, which brought about the indictment of Vice President Cheney’s top aide Scooter Libby after the exposure of the name of a covert CIA operative. Libby, however, had not leaked her name; his bureaucratic nemesis Dick Armitage was the leaker, and Armitage shamefully stayed silent about his role during the investigation. The episode showed the degree to which the higher stakes brought about by war can roil an administration, not to mention innocent lives.

WHY TRUMP FACES AN AGONIZING DECISION ON OBLITERATING IRAN’S OIL SUPPLY IF HE CAN’T GET A DEAL

War also takes a personal toll on presidents. Sometimes it leads to behavioral changes. In 2003, Bush gave up playing golf, one of his few outlets for escaping the pressures of the presidency. He said years later that he was unwilling to be seen on the links while American soldiers were dying in Iraq. As he explained in 2008, “I don’t want some mom whose son may have recently died to see the commander-in-chief playing golf.” It was a quietly devastating admission about the weight a wartime president carries every day.

In other cases, the toll of being president in wartime has been even heavier. Wilson suffered a stroke while in Europe and was incapacitated for much of the rest of the administration; his team kept the American people in the dark as his wife Edith secretly managed things in the White House. Roosevelt died during his fourth term at 63. Those who saw him in his final days found him to be pale and depleted beyond his years. A visibly thinned Johnson, who left office at 60, died less than four years after exiting the White House.

While these examples may seem harrowing, there is one also instructive counterexample.

George H.W. Bush entered the Gulf War with a limited objective, built a broad international coalition for expelling Saddam Hussein from Kuwait, achieved that objective, and got out. Bush’s national security team was extraordinarily disciplined and cohesive. The war did not appear to fundamentally damage Bush’s presidency or his person. Yet even Bush could not escape the political gravity of wartime leadership — he was perceived as so focused on foreign affairs that he lost touch with a domestic economy in recession, leading to what many believed was highly improbable when Bush had a 91% approval rating on the way: His defeat at the hands of Bill Clinton in 1992.  

The lesson here is not that presidents should shrink from the use of force. President Trump has shown courage in taking on one of the most murderous and predatory regimes in the past half century. The decision to go to war is the most difficult decision a president must make. It costs lives and changes the world in unpredictable ways. And even before the end is reached, it changes the president, his staff, and his agenda, testing his character and taxing his body and soul in ways that cannot be fully anticipated.

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Two relatives of slain Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps Maj. Gen. Qasem Soleimani living in Los Angeles were taken into custody by federal agents after Secretary of State Marco Rubio revoked their green cards, officials said.

Hamideh Soleimani Afshar — identified as Soleimani’s niece — and her daughter were arrested and are now being held by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), according to a Saturday announcement from the State Department.

The Trump administration says Afshar has been a supporter of Iran’s “totalitarian, terrorist” regime.

“Afshar is the niece of deceased Iranian Major General Qasem Soleimani,” Rubio wrote on X. “She is also an outspoken supporter of the Iranian regime who celebrated attacks on Americans and referred to our country as the ‘Great Satan.'”

RADICAL US MOSQUES HONOR IRAN’S SUPREME LEADER’S ‘MARTYRDOM’ WITH MEMORIAL SERVICES, EULOGY: ‘OUR LEADER’

“This week, I terminated both Afshar and her daughter’s legal status and they are now in ICE custody, pending removal from the United States,” Rubio wrote Saturday.

In January 2020, a U.S. airstrike in Baghdad killed Soleimani during President Donald Trump’s first term in office.

While living in the U.S., Afshar “promoted Iranian regime propaganda, celebrated attacks against American soldiers and military facilities in the Middle East, praised the new Iranian Supreme Leader, denounced America as the ‘Great Satan,’ and voiced her unflinching support for the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, a designated terrorist organization,” the State Department said.

“[Afshar] pushed this propaganda for Iran’s terrorist regime while enjoying a lavish lifestyle in Los Angeles, as attested to by her frequent posting on her recently deleted Instagram account,” the department said.

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According to the Department of Homeland Security, ICE officers arrested Afshar and her daughter on Friday in Los Angeles.

DHS said Afshar entered the U.S. on a tourist visa in June 2015, was granted asylum in 2019, and became a green card holder in 2021 under the Biden administration.

“In July 2025, she filed a naturalization application where she disclosed, she traveled to Iran at least four times since being issued a green card. Her trips to Iran illustrate her asylum claims were fraudulent,” a DHS spokesperson told Fox News.

Her daughter entered the U.S. on a student visa in July 2015, was granted asylum in 2019, and became a green card holder in 2023, according to DHS.

“It is a privilege to be granted green card to live in the United States of America,” the spokesperson added. “If we have reason to believe a green card holder poses a threat to the U.S., the green card will be revoked.”

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In addition to revoking Afshar and her daughter’s lawful permanent resident status, officials said Afshar’s husband has been barred from entering the U.S.

Earlier this month, the State Department also terminated the legal status of Fatemeh Ardeshir-Larijani — the daughter of a former senior Iranian official — and her husband.

Both are no longer in the U.S. and are barred from reentry.

“The Trump Administration will not allow our country to become a home for foreign nationals who support anti-American terrorist regimes,” the announcement said.

The State Department and ICE did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.

The White House on Friday proposed a sweeping fiscal year 2027 budget that would dramatically increase military spending to roughly $1.5 trillion while cutting billions from domestic programs, marking a sharp shift in federal priorities toward national security and border enforcement.

The proposal outlines roughly $1.5 trillion in total defense resources, a figure the administration says is needed to address growing threats from China, Russia and other adversaries.

The request includes about $1.1 trillion in base discretionary funding for the Department of War, along with an additional $350 billion in mandatory funding to support priorities such as munitions production and expansion of the defense industrial base.

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If enacted, the plan would represent one of the largest increases in U.S. defense spending in decades, though the total includes a mix of discretionary funding and mandatory resources that are not typically combined in standard Pentagon budget comparisons.

The budget places heavy emphasis on rebuilding weapons stockpiles and strengthening domestic manufacturing capacity, areas that defense officials have identified as key vulnerabilities in recent years.

It calls for accelerated procurement of critical munitions and expanded investments in the defense industrial base, alongside increased funding for nuclear modernization.

Shipbuilding is another major focus, with $65.8 billion requested to procure 18 Navy battle force ships and 16 non-battle force vessels as part of a broader effort to expand maritime capacity.

The proposal also continues funding for the “Golden Dome” missile defense system, which aims to develop a layered homeland defense using space-based sensors and interceptors.

Emerging technologies play a central role in the plan. 

The budget highlights investments in artificial intelligence, drones and counter-drone systems, and next-generation aircraft, including continued development of the F-47 — a sixth-generation fighter designed to operate alongside autonomous systems — with the program targeting a first flight as early as 2028.

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The increase in defense spending is paired with a proposed 10% reduction in nondefense discretionary spending.

Budget tables show nondefense funding dropping to about $660 billion, while defense-related funding rises significantly, with base defense funding reaching roughly $1.15 trillion. 

The fiscal year 2026 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) authorized approximately $890 billion to $901 billion in defense spending. 

The administration also is proposing continued reductions in nondefense spending in future years, signaling a longer-term effort to rebalance federal spending toward national security priorities.

Several major agencies would see significant reductions under the plan, including: NASA, cut by about $5.6 billion, or 23%, State Department and international programs, down roughly $15.5 billion, or 30%, Environmental Protection Agency, cut by more than half, Department of Labor, reduced by about $3.5 billion and Department of Housing and Urban Development, down $10.7 billion.

The reductions are likely to face pushback from lawmakers, particularly over cuts to scientific research, housing programs and foreign aid.

“Donald Trump’s budget is rotten to the core, and Democrats will make sure it never passes,” Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said in a statement. “Trump is already spending massive sums on never-ending wars abroad, and now he’s pushing for a record-breaking $1.5 trillion in defense spending while slashing programs that Americans and seniors care about and rely on.”

The budget also increases funding tied to immigration enforcement and domestic security.

The Department of Homeland Security would continue to rely on more than $190 billion in multiyear funding provided through prior legislation to support border wall construction, detention capacity and enforcement operations, including tens of thousands of detention beds.

PENTAGON SEEKS AT LEAST $200B FROM CONGRESS FOR IRAN WAR

At the same time, the Department of Justice would receive $40.8 billion in discretionary funding, a 13% increase, with additional resources aimed at addressing violent crime, drug trafficking and cartel activity.

The proposal also includes continued support for military involvement in border operations, as well as expanded funding for the Coast Guard.

The budget proposes a roughly 30% reduction in funding for the State Department and international programs, including cuts to humanitarian aid, global health initiatives and contributions to international organizations.

At the same time, it creates a new $5 billion fund intended to support strategic partnerships and national security priorities, along with expanded financing for allied nations purchasing U.S. defense equipment.

The changes reflect a broader shift toward prioritizing security-focused spending over traditional foreign assistance programs.

Beyond military spending, the budget links national security more directly to economic and industrial policy.

It includes funding to expand domestic production of critical minerals and support supply chains, alongside investments in advanced computing, including artificial intelligence supercomputers at national laboratories.

Officials say those efforts are intended to reduce reliance on foreign suppliers and improve the United States’ ability to sustain long-term competition with adversaries.

The budget is based on projections that assume steady economic growth of about 3% annually and inflation stabilizing near 2%, estimates that could face scrutiny from outside analysts.

The proposal now moves to Congress, where it is expected to face significant debate over both the scale of defense spending and the extent of domestic cuts.

Lawmakers also will likely scrutinize the administration’s use of mandatory funding and reconciliation to support defense increases, an approach that differs from traditional budget negotiations.

While presidential budgets are rarely enacted as written, the proposal provides a clear outline of the administration’s priorities heading into the next fiscal year, with a focus on military strength, border enforcement and a reduced role for many domestic programs.