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Former Dem senator says Biden's failure on border paved way for President Trump, defends crime crackdown
Former Sen. Joe Manchin, I-W. Va., called out Democratic leadership on Thursday, saying they mismanaged the border to the point Americans re-elected President Donald Trump.
Manchin, a former Democrat, spoke with Terry Moran in a candid interview at the Texas Tribune Festival in Austin, Texas. Manchin criticized leadership of both parties, but said the Biden administration shoulders much of the blame for the nation’s border crisis. When Moran asked what Trump had done well, Manchin offered a blunt, yet nuanced answer.
"The border," Manchin said.
"Even the way he’s doing it?" Moran asked.
JOE MANCHIN TELLS JON STEWART HOW DC DEMS LOST SUPPORT FROM THEIR WORKING-CLASS VOTERS
"Nope," Manchin said. "You said what’s right. Securing the border was the right thing to do."
He went on to slam Democrats’ mismanagement of that issue, saying, "They can't even say we made a mistake. I begged them not to do asylum at the border. We’ve never done that."
The mismanagement of the border, Manchin said, has given Trump "all the cover he needs to do all these outrageous things that are happening."
"The failure of Joe Biden?" Moran asked for clarity.
"The failure of the Democratic Party led by Joe Biden," he confirmed.
Manchin also weighed in on Trump’s "hardcore on crime" stance, saying he would respond differently than governors resisting federal aid and labeling it government overreach.
"When I was governor, if I'd have had a crime-ridden area and I didn't have the resources to take care of it, I'd invite him in," Manchin said, referring to Trump’s use of the National Guard. "Bring the Marines, bring the Air Force, bring everything!"
Moran interjected, "The federal government isn’t supposed to —"
"I know that, but I'm saying if – let me make me sure you understand. If I was in that bad a shape and I was in a state I didn't have the resources, okay, or do it, I wouldn't be fighting if he wanted to bring people in."
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Fox News Digital reached out to former President Biden’s office for comment but did not receive an immediate response.
Fugees rapper Pras Michel sentenced to 14 years for illegal Obama campaign funding scheme
Fugees founding member Prakazrel "Pras" Michel was sentenced Thursday to 14 years in federal prison.
A Washington, D.C., jury determined he illegally funneled millions in foreign money into former President Barack Obama’s 2012 reelection campaign — a sprawling political scandal that prosecutors say involved lies, secret influence and the misuse of more than $100 million.
Michel, 52, declined to address the court before U.S. District Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly sentenced him.
LEONARDO DICAPRIO TESTIFIES IN FEDERAL CASE AGAINST RAPPER ACCUSED OF FUNNELING MILLIONS
His defense attorney, Peter Zeidenberg, pushed back on the ruling, arguing his client’s punishment far exceeds similar cases.
He noted in a statement to Fox News Digital that Michel’s 168-month sentence is "three years more than Senator Menendez, who provided clandestine military assistance to Egypt while he was the chair of the Foreign Relations Committee."
Zeidenberg said the verdict "was unsupported by the evidence" and the sentence "completely disproportional to the facts alleged," especially compared to others involved in the scheme. "Elliott Broidy was pardoned, George Higginbotham got 3 months’ probation, and Nicki Lum Davis received 24 months," he said.
"There simply is no justification for Mr. Michel being singled out like this except for the penalty for opting for trial," Zeidenberg said, adding, "We will appeal."
Michel was convicted in April 2023 on 10 federal counts, including conspiracy and acting as an unregistered foreign agent. The high-profile trial featured testimony from actor Leonardo DiCaprio and former U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions.
Federal prosecutors argued Michel "betrayed his country for money" and "lied unapologetically and unrelentingly to carry out his schemes," telling the court that the recommended penalty under federal guidelines was life in prison.
"His sentence should reflect the breadth and depth of his crimes, his indifference to the risks to his country, and the magnitude of his greed," prosecutors said.
DIDDY PLANNING UNCONVENTIONAL MOVE IN COURT AHEAD OF SENTENCING FOR PROSTITUTION CHARGES
Michel’s defense attorney, Zeidenberg, pushed for a three-year term, calling the 14-year sentence "completely disproportionate to the offense."
His team argued that a life sentence for Michel — a musician with no violent history — would be "absurdly high."
"The Government’s position is one that would cause Inspector Javert to recoil and, if anything, simply illustrates just how easily the Guidelines can be manipulated to produce absurd results, and how poorly equipped they are, at least on this occasion, to determine a fair and just sentence," Michel’s lawyers wrote in a filing.
Michel will appeal both the conviction and the sentence, according to his attorney.
DIDDY RECEIVES PRISON RELEASE DATE WEEKS AFTER 50-MONTH SENTENCING FOR FEDERAL CRIMES
Michel — a Brooklyn native whose parents emigrated from Haiti — rose to global fame as a founding member of the Fugees alongside Lauryn Hill and Wyclef Jean. The group sold tens of millions of albums and won two Grammys.
But prosecutors said Michel accepted more than $120 million from Malaysian billionaire Low Taek Jho, widely known as Jho Low, and routed part of that money through straw donors to access Obama campaign events. Michel also attempted to interfere with a Justice Department investigation into Low, tampered with witnesses and committed perjury, prosecutors said.
Low — tied to financing the Leonardo DiCaprio film "The Wolf of Wall Street" — is a fugitive and is believed to be living in China and has denied wrongdoing.
DiCaprio previously testified that he first met the Malaysian financier at a 2010 birthday party — an introduction that quickly turned into what he described as a friendly, high-profile connection.
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"I understood him to be a huge businessman with many different connections in Abu Dhabi and Malaysia," DiCaprio said during his testimony at the time.
The "Titanic" star also noted that his relationship with Michel dated back even further, explaining that he first crossed paths with the Fugees rapper in the 1990s "while backstage at a Fugees concert."
As DiCaprio and Low grew closer, Low became a frequent donor to the actor’s charitable foundation. DiCaprio told investigators that Low later proposed financing what would become the Oscar-nominated film "The Wolf of Wall Street."
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Before moving forward, DiCaprio said he made sure every aspect of Low’s involvement was thoroughly checked.
He testified that he had Low’s "funding and legitimacy carefully vetted" prior to entering into any business agreement.
Meanwhile, Michel’s attorneys argued Low wasn’t seeking policy influence. "Low’s motivation for giving Mr. Michel money to donate was not so that he could achieve some policy objective," they wrote. "Instead, Low simply wanted to obtain a photograph with himself and then-President Obama."
In August 2024, Judge Kollar-Kotelly denied Michel’s request for a new trial after he claimed his former defense attorney relied on a generative AI program while preparing closing arguments.
The judge ruled that the AI use — along with other alleged defense missteps — did not amount to a miscarriage of justice.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
‘Just say yes’: Trump cuts in as NYC mayor-elect Mamdani dodges on calling him a ‘fascist’ at Oval Office
During an Oval Office media spray on Friday, Fox News’ Jacqui Heinrich pressed New York City mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani on whether he still believes President Donald Trump is a "fascist."
Mamdani began to answer — but before he could finish, Trump cut in from behind the Resolute Desk.
"That’s okay," Trump said, before patting Mamdani’s arm. "You can just say yes. It’s easier than explaining it. I don’t mind."
The full 10-minute exchange capped a wide-ranging availability focused on affordability, housing and public safety, and brimmed with tension between Mamdani’s past rhetoric and the political reality of governing alongside the Trump White House.
TRUMP, MAMDANI SET TO FACE-OFF IN FIRST OVAL OFFICE MEETING — WHAT’S ON THE TABLE
Heinrich had earlier asked Mamdani whether he stood by his previous comments describing Trump’s agenda as "fascist" and "despotic."
Mamdani did not give a direct answer, saying only that he intended to work with the president "where we agree" to help the city’s 8.5 million residents.
Trump jumped in before he finished, adding with a laugh, "I’ve been called much worse than a despot — maybe he’ll change his mind."
TRUMP PREDICTS 'CIVIL' MEETING WITH MAMDANI DESPITE PAST COMMENTS ABOUT EACH OTHER
The moment came after both men publicly emphasized areas of potential cooperation. Trump pointed to falling energy prices and said he wanted utilities, including Con Edison, to lower rates. Mamdani outlined a plan centered on housing, rent, groceries and utilities, saying New Yorkers are facing a "cost-of-living crisis that threatens to push families out of the city."
Heinrich also pressed Trump on Ukraine, asking how his proposed peace plan would work if President Zelenskyy rejected it.
Trump replied that Ukraine would "have to like it, or keep fighting," and repeated his claim that U.S. support would depend on securing an agreement. He also asserted that casualty numbers in the conflict were "far higher" than publicly reported.
DAVID MARCUS: MR. MAMDANI GOES TO WASHINGTON BETWEEN ROCK AND HARD PLACE
The spray also touched on public safety, with Mamdani saying he intends to maintain roughly 35,000 NYPD officers while shifting more non-urgent calls away from police and toward mental-health responders.
Trump said both men shared a goal of removing "very bad people" and making the city safer, adding that "we want New York to thrive again."
The exchange with Heinrich is likely to fuel further scrutiny over how Mamdani balances far-left progressive messaging with the realistic demands of governing. The mayor-elect has proudly identified as a democratic socialist, but said he intends to "meet the moment" in partnership with the Trump administration when possible.
Trump, who joked that the spray attracted "more reporters than usual," said he was open to meeting again. Mamdani added the same, saying his goal was to find points of agreement that could "deliver for New Yorkers right away."
The President posted to Truth Social on Friday night, documenting the visit with several photos of the two men, captioned "It was a Great Honor meeting Zohran Mamdani, the new Mayor of New York City!"
The White House did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital's request for comment.
Fox News kicks off holiday season with sixth annual All-American Christmas Tree lighting ceremony
Fox News Media kicked off the holiday season Friday with its annual All-American Christmas Tree Lighting ceremony from FOX Square in New York City.
"The Five" co-hosts Dana Perino, Greg Gutfeld, Jesse Watters, Jessica Tarlov and "Fox & Friends" co-host Lawrence Jones emceed the ceremony, marking its sixth year.
The All-American Christmas Tree stands 50 feet tall and decorated with more than 300,000 lights, almost 20,000 ornaments and a six-foot dove on top lit with another 4,800 lights. The tree was put together by the holiday lighting and display company American Christmas, based in Mt. Vernon, New York.
FOX NEWS DIGITAL BESTS NY TIMES, CNN IN KEY METRICS DURING NEWS-PACKED OCTOBER
Rev. Franklin Graham and Cardinal Timothy Dolan offered prayers as well as a message from Rabbi Kalman Samuels in Jerusalem.
Fox News' Steve Doocy appeared from the roof and was joined by Grammy-winning Christian music superstar Chris Tomlin and the Christian Culture Center Choir, who performed "Angels We Have Heard on High," "Christmas Day," "Silent Night" and "Joy to the World."
Tomlin, who performed at Charlie Kirk's memorial service in September, reflected on how "powerful" that moment was.
"It was an incredible moment in time," Tomlin told Doocy. "Just standing there and leading people to sing about Jesus, to worship him in the midst of all that was going on, pointing people to that in the midst of this hard moment, in the midst of pain, in the midst of confusion, pointing people to the truth of Jesus — so powerful."
Dozens from the FOX News Media family attended the ceremony, including Martha MacCallum, Bill Hemmer, Ainsley Earhardt, Brian Kilmeade, Harris Faulkner, Kayleigh McEnany, Emily Compagno, Sandra Smith, Rachel Campos-Duffy, Griff Jenkins, Charlie Hurt, Brian Brenberg, Jackie DeAngelis, Carley Shimkus, Todd Pirro, Kat Timpf Jimmy Faila, Eric Shawn, Nate Foy, Adam Klotz, Michael Estime, Gianno Caldwell, Rosanna Scotto, David Webb, Tomi Lahren, Riley Gaines, Josh Holmes, Comfortably Smug, Michael Duncan and John Ashbrook.
Santa Claus also made a special appearance and sat down with several children asking them what they wanted for Christmas.
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Fox News Media has proudly partnered with Samaritan's Purse and the U.S. Marine Corps Reserve's Toys For Tots program.
Fox News employees donated more than 2,000 gifts for underprivileged children this holiday season. Viewers at home can donate to Toys For Tots by clicking this link.
Missouri judge who wore Elvis wigs in courtroom agrees to resign after 'integrity' concerns
A Missouri judge who often wore Elvis Presley wigs in his courtroom and played the late rock star’s music has agreed to step down from the bench.
Judge Matthew Thornhill said he wanted to "add levity at times when I thought it would help relax litigants" but also recognized "that this could affect the integrity and solemnity of the proceedings."
Thornhill, who serves in St. Louis, agreed to take a six-month unpaid leave before returning to the bench for 18 months, then resigning early after reaching a deal with a state board that will help him avoid a disciplinary hearing.
The state’s Commission on Retirement, Removal and Discipline mentioned Thornhill’s predilection to dress like the king of rock ‘n’ roll, including photos of him dressed in a wig and sunglasses with staff in its report.
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The report also mentions Thornhill bringing up politics while on the bench, including mentioning his party affiliation and which candidates he prefers.
It says Thornhill regularly wore the wig around Halloween, sometimes walked into the courtroom while playing Elvis’ music and sometimes offered litigants the option to be sworn in while he played his music on his phone.
He would also allegedly make random references to Elvis during court proceedings at times.
The commission found his Elvis antics violated rules of "order and decorum" while in the courtroom.
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The agreement is pending before the Missouri Supreme Court, which has accepted 35 character references for Thornhill.
Thornhill was elected associate circuit judge in 2006, and he served for 18 years. In 2024, he was elected circuit judge in Division 4 and is the longest serving judge in the county, according to the St. Charles County Circuit Court website.
He’s presided over 25 jury trials and thousands of bench trials during his career.
His biography adds that he "loves Elvis, surfing, gardening, watching soccer, golfing with his children, and running with his dog on the Katy Trail."
Thornhill was also reprimanded and fined $750 in 2008 after he reduced charges for a woman after she offered him a baseball signed by Pro Football Hall of Famer Terry Bradshaw that turned out to be fake, according to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.
He denies taking the ball.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Two Texas men charged in plot to invade Haitian island and make women, children 'sex slaves': prosecutors
Two Texas men have been charged in an alleged plot to invade a Haitian island, kill its male residents and enslave the women and children as their "sex slaves," federal prosecutors announced Thursday.
Gavin Rivers Weisenburg, 21, of Allen, and Tanner Christopher Thomas, 20, of Argyle, were indicted on charges of conspiracy to murder, maim or kidnap in a foreign country and production of child pornography, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Texas.
"Weisenburg and Thomas intended to murder all of the men on the island so that they could then turn all of the women and children into their sex slaves," federal prosecutors allege.
SELF-PROCLAIMED 'APOSTLE' WHO CLAIMS TO BE JESUS' BEST FRIEND ARRESTED IN FORCED LABOR SCHEME
Between August 2024 and July 2025, Weisenburg and Thomas allegedly planned to take over Gonave Island "to carry out their rape fantasies," court documents state.
They intended to buy a sailboat, guns and ammunition and recruit members from Washington, D.C.’s homeless community to "serve as a mercenary force as they invaded Gonave Island and staged a coup d'état," prosecutors said.
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Authorities allege the pair took steps to prepare for the invasion, including learning Haitian Creole, attempting to recruit others and enrolling in schools to gain skills that would help them carry out the invasion.
Thomas even joined the U.S. Air Force to receive relevant military training, according to prosecutors.
In addition to the alleged invasion plan, both men are accused of producing child pornography.
Gonave Island, located in the Gulf of Gonave, has a population of roughly 100,000, according to La Gonave Haiti Partners.
If convicted, Weisenburg and Thomas each face up to life in federal prison for the conspiracy charge. The child pornography charge carries between 15 and 30 years in federal prison.
The U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Texas did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital's request for comment.
Life jackets meant to save lives could expose a killer in Florida teen’s cruise ship mystery
They're supposed to be lifesavers, but, in this case, the best they may do is point investigators toward a killer.
The life jackets found covering 18-year-old Anna Kepner's body on a Carnival Horizon cruise ship when staff discovered her dead two weeks ago may be key, according to a veteran detective who is following the case.
"They're gonna test the life jackets, blankets, whatever else they found in the room, plus Anna's body," said Pat Diaz, a former Miami-Dade County homicide detective and now a private investigator.
And everything could contain important clues.
STEPMOTHER IN CRUISE SHIP DEATH MYSTERY FEARS CHILD COULD BE INCRIMINATED: COURT DOCS
A preliminary investigation found evidence Anna had been asphyxiated in a chokehold, ABC News reported Friday.
Fox News Digital has not independently verified the report. An official cause and manner of death have not yet been determined, according to the medical examiner's office. But a source with knowledge of the case said toxicology and other lab testing had not yet been completed but said bruises had been found on the body.
But if someone worked up a sweat during a murder, that person would have left DNA all over the room, the victim and anything used to cover the body, according to Diaz.
As the FBI continues its investigation into Kepner's mysterious death aboard a cruise ship, forensic experts are likely still analyzing DNA and other evidence for clues that could determine whether foul play was involved, experts say.
Friday marked two weeks since the aspiring Navy sailor was discovered dead in her cabin around 11 a.m. Nov. 7.
Her remains were transferred to the Miami-Dade County Medical Examiner's Office after the vessel returned to port the following day. But the forensic pathologist in her case has not yet revealed a cause and manner of death.
Diaz said, at this point, it's too early for results from toxicology and other lab testing.
"Not only are they doing DNA to try and match the 16-year-old, they're probably also trying to rule out the 14-year-old," he told Fox News Digital. "And nothing's happening fast because they'll show what they get to a grand jury."
Kepner came from a large blended family with eight siblings.
No one has been charged with a crime in Kepner's death, but her 16-year-old stepbrother's parents have both said in court filings that he is being eyed as a "suspect" by the FBI.
CHEERLEADER’S CRUISE SHIP DEATH UNRAVELS AMID BITTER FAMILY STRIFE AND QUESTIONS AT SEA
The FBI declined to comment, citing the active investigation.
But others close to Anna have accused the 16-year-old of inappropriate behavior, ranging from climbing "on top of her" in the middle of the night as she slept to reportedly scaring her with a knife.
Her ex-boyfriend, speaking to reporters outside her memorial service Thursday night, said he was on a 3 a.m. FaceTime call with her when she fell asleep. Then, he claims, he caught her stepbrother slide into the frame.
"I was like, ‘What the hell are you doing in her room?’" he said. "Then he got scared and ran away, and I heard his footsteps running through the house 'cause he got caught."
If investigators are really eying him as a suspect as his parents suggested, they're going to focus on the evidence in the cabin, Diaz said.
The stepsiblings were staying in the room together, Anna's step-grandfather, Chris Donohue, told Fox News Digital previously.
CRUISE SHIP DEATH: CHEERLEADER’S STEPMOM COULD BE FORCED TO TESTIFY AGAINST HER OWN SON
"They're not going to rush this one," said Nicole Parker, a former Miami-based FBI agent who worked in the same office investigating Kepner's death.
And they don't need to, because if the juvenile is indeed the suspect, as his parents have claimed in court filings in a bitter custody battle, minors are less of a flight risk, Parker said.
"[Juveniles] can absolutely be charged, but the federal Bureau of Prisons, they can’t house minors," she said. "So, if I’m gonna charge a juvenile, they have to be put in a special housing system. For that reason, sometimes the feds will give it to the locals."
That's unlikely in a case of this magnitude, however, she said.
"They could charge him federally, and they could potentially charge him as an adult," she said.
Dem House hopeful exposed as far-left activist pushing to abolish police weeks before special election
FIRST ON FOX: The Democratic Party's candidate seeking to win a House seat in Tennessee's upcoming special election has a lengthy record of anti-police rhetoric, which she espoused repeatedly on a now-deleted social media account and in interviews prior to becoming a state legislator in 2023.
Aftyn Behn, who is running against Republican Matt Van Epps in Tennessee's 7th Congressional District special election, also worked as a regional organizing director for the nonprofit activist group Indivisible prior to becoming a state legislator. The radical left-wing entity was also a frequent advocate for stripping funding from police departments, calling it "critical" at the height of the defund movement.
"Where's the proposal that dissolves @MNPDNashville?" Behn asked on an old social media account, which has since been deleted, in response to a separate social media post from a Nashville City Council member indicating local officials had submitted a "substitute budget proposal" aiming to strip Nashville police of $2.6 million in funding.
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"If it's been difficult for all of you to imagine a world without police … we can do it and there is a world," Behn subsequently said during an interview with a local Nashville advocacy group.
Behn posted most of her comments at the height of the "defund the police" movement in 2020 and 2021 after the death of George Floyd at the hands of police in Minneapolis. Amid violent protests that often devolved into dangerous rioting and looting after Floyd's death, Behn also downplayed the violence and ridiculed White people for criticizing the looting, stating it was simply how minority communities were expressing their grief over Floyd's death.
"Looks like Aftyn is getting a visit from the Ghost of Wokeness Past," quipped Republican strategist Matt Gorman. "Democrats over and over have been haunted by their past positions they thought they could hide from. Ask Kamala Harris about her advocacy of taxpayer-funded sex change surgeries for illegal immigrant convicts on how that goes."
Behn did not respond to Fox News Digital's request for comment. However, Democrat strategist Eric Koch argued that attacks on Behn have been surging because "Republicans are getting worried in a district that Trump won by over 20 points," adding that Democrats making this race competitive shows they are in good shape to take back the House in the midterms next year. The special election is scheduled for Dec. 2.
While popular in the immediate aftermath of Floyd's death, the push to "defund the police" has become a political liability for many Democrats running in recent elections. New York City Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani faced criticism in the lead-up to his victory for his past anti-police rhetoric and went on Fox News to apologize. Earlier this month, a progressive candidate for U.S. Senate in Michigan was reported to have quietly deleted old social media posts in support of defunding the police.
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"I’m currently involved in a transformative justice seminar, and so it’s how to imagine a world without police and what that looks like and what community mechanisms look like. How people cannot police themselves," Behn said during an interview with Nashville Musicians For Change in July 2020.
"If it’s been difficult for all of you to imagine a world without police, please tune in to, maybe not this episode, but the next one. Because I’ll talk about things I’m learning and growing as an organizer. Because I think, especially for those of us that are young, and talking to our parents about what police abolition looks like, that we can do it and there is a world."
Behn made her comments as she worked with the left-wing nonprofit Indivisible, which also has a record of pushing to defund the police, calling the effort "critical … to keep everyone safe," in a Facebook post in 2020. The same year, the group called on people to phone their local, state and federal lawmakers to demand policies and budgets that steer money away from police departments and toward "Black communities."
"Good morning, especially to the 54% of Americans that believe burning down a police station is justified," Behn said in another post in response to polling about who saw the destruction of a Minneapolis police precinct as justified. The precinct burned to the ground, and police were forced to abandon the precinct.
Amid the chaos spurred by the death of Floyd that resulted in billions of dollars in damage and multiple lives lost, Behn was also co-hosting a podcast at the time. During one of the episodes, "Black Lives Matter," Behn argued it "is not for us to decide as privileged White people how marginalized communities express their suffering and their pain and their grieving."
She was referring to the looting and rioting taking place, calling it "a trope" for White people to say the looting was bad.
"I would really challenge all of you when you see these stories of looting, and you revert to this law and order type of response, I really challenge you to step back from that and think about what's driving that," Behn added of the rioting. "You should not condemn it because you don’t know the first thing about being where they come from and what their generational trauma that has been inflicted upon them by the police, by institutional racism."
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During the same podcast episode, Behn suggested police don't actually serve to guard and protect Americans.
"You think calling the cops is going to save you?" Behn asked her listeners. "Black men are being killed when White women call cops."
Behn also came under fire this week for other comments on her podcast, during which she said she hated her city of Nashville and all the southern-style elements that come with it, like country music.
In addition to Behn's remarks in interviews and on podcasts, the Democratic House hopeful also repeatedly espoused defund the police rhetoric on a now-deleted X account, which was Twitter at the time.
For example, Behn responded to a post, claiming "the Los Angeles teachers union" was demanding a commitment to "defund the police" before it would commit to returning to in-person learning for students, with a response that called on teachers in her state to do the same. The post Behn was responding to also called for more similar demands across the country.
"Let's go Tennessee teachers! We have your back!!!!," Behn wrote in response to the post.
"Your individual positive experiences with cops do not outweigh the fact that the entire criminal justice system was built on institutionalized racism," another post Behn shared on her now-deleted Twitter account stated.
FBI restricted agents from working with CAIR years before Texas branded group a terrorist organization
The FBI has spent more than a decade limiting official contact with the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) over concerns about the group’s ties to Hamas, according to a Justice Department report reviewed by Fox News Digital.
The 2013 Office of Inspector General (OIG) report shows the FBI put a nationwide restriction in place in 2008 and repeatedly reminded field offices to follow it after evidence in a major terrorism-financing case linked CAIR leaders to Hamas, a U.S.-designated foreign terrorist organization.
Those findings resurfaced after Texas Gov. Greg Abbott designated CAIR and the Muslim Brotherhood terrorist organizations last week and as lawmakers renew calls for federal action against Islamist networks operating throughout America.
According to the OIG, FBI headquarters issued a series of internal memoranda between August and December 2008 ordering all field offices to end non-investigative engagement with CAIR unless cleared through Washington.
The directive, the report notes, stemmed in part from evidence introduced during the Holy Land Foundation trial connecting CAIR leadership to the Hamas support network.
The policy was a "significant deviation" from prior outreach practices, and some offices resisted the shift.
At least one special agent-in-charge pushed back, telling staff his office would set its own CAIR policy unless headquarters provided more detail. Others sought exceptions for long-standing local relationships.
Despite the bureau-wide restrictions, the OIG found several violations between 2010 and 2012. In three of five reviewed incidents, field personnel did not follow the CAIR policy.
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The OIG identified several cases in which field offices violated the bureau-wide CAIR contact ban. In Chicago, the special agent-in-charge attended an event at which a CAIR official spoke, an appearance the group later publicized. I
n New Haven, agents consulted directly with CAIR and even allowed CAIR officials to teach a cultural workshop despite explicit warnings from FBI headquarters that such engagement would violate policy.
And in Philadelphia, a CAIR representative was brought into an outreach session after staff followed guidance from the Office of Public Affairs rather than the bureau directives that barred that type of contact.
The OIG concluded the FBI "did not conduct effective implementation or oversight" of its own CAIR-contact restrictions.
The internal FBI restrictions — still in effect as of 2013 — take on new significance after Abbott’s decision to classify CAIR and the Muslim Brotherhood terrorist organizations under Texas law, preventing them from owning property in the state.
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Abbott said the groups "have long made their goals clear" and accused them of supporting terrorism worldwide.
The OIG findings also align with a sweeping new report from the Institute for the Study of Global Antisemitism and Policy (ISGAP) warning of a coordinated, decades-long effort by Muslim Brotherhood-linked organizations to infiltrate American institutions.
ISGAP is urging federal lawmakers to follow Texas’ lead.
CAIR has repeatedly rejected any claim of wrongdoing, saying earlier this week it "opposes all forms of terrorism" and accuses critics of relying on "guilt by association."
The OIG recommended the FBI improve training and enforcement around the CAIR restrictions and ensure that field offices comply with headquarters’ directives moving forward.
CAIR, in a statement to Fox News Digital, said it "and the FBI have communicated with each other to address matters such as hate crimes against the American Muslim community, threats to our civil rights organization and crime prevention."
The group added that, during President Trump’s first term, "it was our CAIR Georgia chapter that repeatedly warned the FBI about a potential threat to President Trump and other Americans. After the FBI later arrested a troubled individual accused of plotting an attack on the White House, senior FBI agents met with and explicitly thanked CAIR for saving lives."
CAIR said it remains "willing to communicate with the FBI to address public safety matters," but the two organizations "do not engage in photo ops or community events with each other."
The group noted it has "been critical of some of the bureau’s tactics" and "sometimes face[s] off in court," pointing to its "9-0 U.S. Supreme Court ruling against abuses of the FBI’s watchlist."
The FBI and ISGAP did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital's request for comment.
College football team entices students with free beer, ice cream ahead of big game
Rice University is pulling out of all the stops to ensure it has a packed stadium for its game against No. 22-ranked North Texas Saturday night.
Rice is offering free 12-ounce beers for students 21 and older at a stand near their stadium, a free Ben & Jerry’s ice cream voucher, a free T-shirt for the first 500 students and a $15 voucher for two food trucks. All the perks require a student ID.
Rice announced the student perks in a post to X, which has since been deleted, but Fox News Digital confirmed the promotion is still ongoing.
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To further encourage attendance, the residential college with the highest attendance can win a $500 gift card to a local grocery store and a speaker.
The game is a big one. Rice enters the matchup at 5-5 and, with a win, would become eligible for a bowl game. This is the team’s fourth straight home game, and it has gone 1-2 in its previous three.
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The Owls lost to UConn 37-34 in overtime, lost to Memphis 38-14 and beat UAB last week 24-17 to get back to .500. To get an all-important sixth win of the season, they will have to take down a 9-1 North Texas team that has won four in a row.
North Texas’ lone loss of the season came in October to South Florida, when they lost 63-36. Rice will play South Florida on the road next week.
Rice is hoping a boisterous student section will help propel it to victory over North Texas in its final home game of the season.
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