US military says it carried out strike in eastern Pacific, killing two people

2026-06-04 01:02:55 UTC / Reuters

LOS ANGELES, June 3 (Reuters) – The U.S. military on Wednesday said it carried out a strike on a vessel in the eastern Pacific killing two people. The U.S. Southern Command said on X that intelligence had confirmed that the vessel “was engaged in narco-trafficking operations.”

Under the Trump administration, the U.S. military has conducted numerous such attacks.

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Reporting by Jasper Ward, Writing by Christian Martinez; Editing by Muralikumar Anantharaman

Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

澳大利亚总理阿尔巴尼斯星期四说，任何针对澳洲输美产品的关税措施都是“毫无依据的”，澳美双方在贸易问题上存在“意识形态分歧”。 （路透社）

澳大利亚总理阿尔巴尼斯星期四说，任何针对澳洲输美产品的关税措施都是“毫无依据的”，澳美双方在贸易问题上存在“意识形态分歧”。

综合新华社和法新社报道，美国贸易代表办公室星期二（6月2日）发布公告称，美国贸易代表计划以“未禁止进口强迫劳动产品”为由，对包括澳大利亚在内的60个经济体加征10%或12.5%的关税。

阿尔巴尼斯星期四（4日）接受澳大利亚广播公司采访时说，美国政府的关税政策背离了长期以来的共识，即关税不会给征税国带来益处。

他说：“美国政府打破了数十年来双方的共识，即关税对征收国并无益处，这其中存在着意识形态上的分歧。”

澳洲国库部长查默斯当天也说，美方拟议中的关税措施缺乏正当依据，并且与澳美自由贸易协定精神不符。

延伸阅读

美国拟对60经济体征收关税 新加坡税率12.5% 格里尔：美墨加协定不再维持零关税

澳洲贸易与旅游部长兼特别国务部长法雷尔星期三（3日）在巴黎会见了美国贸易代表格里尔，并在会上对美方新提议的税率提出了抗议。

澳大利亚总理阿尔巴尼斯星期四说，任何针对澳洲输美产品的关税措施都是“毫无依据的”，澳美双方在贸易问题上存在“意识形态分歧”。 （路透社）

澳大利亚总理阿尔巴尼斯星期四说，任何针对澳洲输美产品的关税措施都是“毫无依据的”，澳美双方在贸易问题上存在“意识形态分歧”。

综合新华社和法新社报道，美国贸易代表办公室星期二（6月2日）发布公告称，美国贸易代表计划以“未禁止进口强迫劳动产品”为由，对包括澳大利亚在内的60个经济体加征10%或12.5%的关税。

阿尔巴尼斯星期四（4日）接受澳大利亚广播公司采访时说，美国政府的关税政策背离了长期以来的共识，即关税不会给征税国带来益处。

他说：“美国政府打破了数十年来双方的共识，即关税对征收国并无益处，这其中存在着意识形态上的分歧。”

澳洲国库部长查默斯当天也说，美方拟议中的关税措施缺乏正当依据，并且与澳美自由贸易协定精神不符。

澳洲贸易与旅游部长兼特别国务部长法雷尔星期三（3日）在巴黎会见了美国贸易代表格里尔，并在会上对美方新提议的税率提出了抗议。

Reporter’s Notebook: Rebels threaten to upend GOP agenda amid growing frustrations with Trump

June 3, 2026 4:31pm EDT / Fox News

Tight vote margins in both chambers give disgruntled members outsized power to derail ICE funding and FISA renewal

By Chad Pergram Fox News

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You always knew Lady Elaine Fairchilde would sow chaos on “Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood” when she uttered the incantation “boomerang-toomerang-soomerang!”

Lady Elaine was the mischievous puppet on the show who bore a resemblance to Rod Stewart. She often waved around her boomerang if someone in the Neighborhood of Make Believe ticked her off, and she would literally flip the neighborhood upside down with her “boomerang-toomerang-soomerang!”

That’s where we stand with things these days on Capitol Hill.

The vote margins are really tight in both the House and Senate. Republican lawmakers are frustrated with the President over the war and the economy. That’s to say nothing of the now-abandoned $1.8 billion anti-weaponization fund. Then there are lawmakers who the president helped unseat in their primaries: Rep. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., and Sens. John Cornyn, R-Texas, and Bill Cassidy, R-La. And now President Trump is insisting on a primary challenge against Rep. Lauren Boebert, R-Colo., in 2028 over her support of Massie, and he didn’t back Rep. Dan Crenshaw, R-Texas, who ended up losing his primary, too.

HOUSE GOP TENSIONS ERUPT AS REPUBLICANS TURN ON EACH OTHER HEADING INTO YEAR’S END

President Donald Trump suffered a significant rebuke in the House of Representatives on Wednesday after the chamber passed a war powers resolution effectively halting the U.S. military campaign in Iran.(Aaron Schwartz/AFP via Getty Images)

We haven’t even gotten into various skirmishes between the president and retiring Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C., over the January 6th riot, or the investigation into former Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell. And there are pockets of resistance within the party from Sens. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, and Susan Collins, R-Maine — with the latter facing a competitive re-election bid this November.

With all of that, there is a “disaffected caucus” of Republicans now serving on Capitol Hill.

In addition, some Senate Republicans are seething at the White House actively working against Cornyn and Cassidy. Some congressional Republicans on the ballot this fall are now trying to put some real estate between themselves and a president growing unpopular within his own party on Capitol Hill.

Senate Republicans are forging ahead to finally fund ICE and Border Patrol. Threats to attach language to curb the anti-weaponization fund derailed those efforts in late May. Republicans now believe they can keep everyone in line and pass that bill without lawmakers abandoning ship. Republicans may struggle to pass an additional measure focused on reducing the cost of living, cutting taxes, reducing gas prices, paying for the war in Iran or even funding the government this fall. Lawmakers have to approve a renewal of a controversial spy program known as FISA Section 702 before mid-month. But that’s grown more complicated after the president installed Bill Pulte — who has no background in national security — as interim director of national intelligence.

This is why some Republicans believe that the legislative process could be stymied.

These disgruntled Republicans could make things pretty hard for the GOP brass and President Trump for the rest of the year. And like Lady Elaine Fairchilde on Mr. Rogers’ show, any one of them could proclaim “boomerang-toomerang-soomerang” and turn the entire congressional neighborhood upside down.

Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., spoke with acting Attorney General Todd Blanche on Tuesday. The South Dakota Republican says Blanche was “very definitive” about the end of the compensation fund. Thune said he thought that it would help clear the way to pass the ICE/Border Patrol bill.

REPUBLICANS RECOIL AS TRUMP’S BILLION-DOLLAR DOJ ‘SLUSH FUND’ FOR ALLIES THREATENS ICE, BORDER PATROL PLAN

Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., and Republican senators held a news conference at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C., on March 24, 2026.(Stefani Reynolds/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

“I’m not guaranteeing that happens yet. We’re still continuing to have conversations with our members,” said Thune. “Everything comes down to a function of math. It’s ‘Do we have the votes? Do we have 50 votes to execute on getting a bill like that across the floor?’”

House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., met with President Trump on Monday and discussed the weaponization fund which threw Capitol Hill into a tizzy two weeks ago.

“I believe that it is off the table for consideration,” said Johnson about the fund.

The speaker communicated to the president how the fund made passage of an ICE/Border Patrol bill exponentially more challenging.

“I told them that it was a difficult prospect right now given our vote tallies,” said Johnson.

Blanche was declarative when testifying about the DOJ budget request before the House Appropriations Committee.

“We are not moving forward with the fund, period,” said Blanche.

TRICK OR TREAT: CONGRESS FACES ‘CHAMBER OF HORRORS’ AS GOVERNMENT FUNDING DEADLINE LOOMS

Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche testified during a Senate subcommittee at the Dirksen Senate Office Building on May 19, 2026, in Washington, D.C.(Nathan Posner/Anadolu via Getty Images)

But Rep. Grace Meng, D-N.Y., wasn’t convinced.

“Is there any way that you could put this in writing?” she asked Blanche. “I think they would love to be reassured that this fund will not progress.”

“I’m not trying to be flippant with you. I’m just saying. I’m telling you it’s not (moving forward),” replied Blanche.

Meng asked if she could have something on paper.

“There’ll be a transcript of what I say here so that will be in writing,” said Blanche.

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., wasn’t impressed by the announcement, either.

“Trump has not killed this slush fund. He has not revoked the special tax immunity he gave himself and his family. He has not ended the corruption. He hit a temporary roadblock. That’s it. Any toothless promise by Trump is worthless. His promises are worthless. The only way to end this scheme is abolish it by law,” said Schumer.

HOUSE GOP FEARS PRIMARY LOSERS COULD JEOPARDIZE RAZOR-THIN MAJORITY

Senate Minority Leader Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., arrives outside the U.S. Capitol after President Donald Trump selected Sen. Markwayne Mullin, R-Okla., to replace Kristi Noem as Department of Homeland Security secretary on March 5, 2026.(Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)

At his hearing, Blanche reiterated that President Trump’s “settlement agreement” with the IRS over the leak of his tax returns remains intact.

This infuriated Democrats.

“You just gave the president’s family tax immunity to the tune of about $100 million,” said Rep. Rosa DeLauro, D-Conn., the top Democrat on the Appropriations panel.

And that’s where the GOP’s disgruntled caucus may come in.

Congressional Republican resistance to President Trump has grown in recent weeks. For instance, Cassidy cast the pivotal ballot allowing a procedural vote on an Iran war powers measure to forge ahead. This came after Cassidy lost his Senate primary to Rep. Julia Letlow, R-La., and former Rep. John Fleming, R-La.

That said, lots of lawmakers rarely deviate from their customary political convictions – even if they’re on their way out the door. Over the years, I’ve had a number of people suggest to me that various members might be willing to vote for this or that in a lame-duck session after they either lost or are retiring. However, history shows they don’t change. Lawmakers usually remain loyal to their convictions and constituents – even as they exit. They don’t suddenly support something or oppose something – just because they are short-timers and their vote could help the party or their leadership.

By the same token, lawmakers with one foot out the door don’t undergo a magical conversion if they’re angry at losing and vote one way or another for spite.

But rarely have we had a Congress where the votes in both bodies are so marginal. And even if it’s just a lawmaker or two who strays, it wouldn’t take much to pull a Lady Elaine Fairchilde, holler “boomerang-toomerang-soomerang” and turn Capitol Hill upside down.

Chad Pergram currently serves as Chief Congressional Correspondent for FOX News Channel (FNC). He joined the network in September 2007 and is based out of Washington, D.C.

https://www.foxnews.com/video/6397459411112

Rep. Al Green tells Homeland Security Sec. Mullin to ‘shut up’ after calling him a racist at hearing

June 3, 2026 6:29pm EDT / Fox News

Green denied making the comment before again demanding the chairman silence Mullin during the funding meeting

Rep. Green has apparent outburst, calls DHS secretary ‘racist’

Democrat Rep. Al Green had an apparent meltdown during a committee hearing on Wednesday, calling DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin a “racist” before telling him to “shut up.” (C-SPAN)

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Rep. Al Green, D-Texas, was caught on video calling Homeland Security Sec. Markwayne Mullin a “racist” during a House committee meeting Wednesday focused on department funding.

Following the initial outburst, Green proceeded to tell Mullin to “shut up.”

The Homeland Security secretary could be seen cocking his head in apparent surprise, as Green continued the verbal attack, repeating “shut up.”

“Did you just tell me to shut up,” Mullin asked.

FILE – Rep. Al Green, D-Texas, speaks at a press conference after joining “Remove the Regime” protesters marching from Union Station to the Capitol in Washington, D.C., on Nov. 20, 2025.(Heather Diehl/Getty Images)

DEMS THROW HOUSE INTO CHAOS AFTER 10 MODERATES JOIN GOP TO PUNISH AL GREEN

As the sound of the gavel rang out, Green shouted back, “It’s my time.”

“I’m not going to let anybody call me a racist chairman,” Mullen calmly told Rep. Andrew Garbarino, R-New York, who serves as the chairman of the House Committee on Homeland Security.

FILE – Rep. Al Green, a Democrat from Texas, stands in the House Chamber of the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C., prior to the State of the Union address on Feb. 24, 2026.(Kenny Holston/The New York Times/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

Green denied making the comment before again asking Garbarino to “tell him to shut up.”

The chairman called for the encounter to be suspended following Green’s escalation at the House gathering.

FILE – Rep. Al Green, D-Texas, holds a sign during President Donald Trump’s State of the Union address at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C., on Feb. 24, 2026.(Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

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Green has a history of aggressive outbursts, having been ejected from President Donald Trump’s primetime address to a joint session of Congress for a second year in a row in February.

He was recently defeated in the Democratic primary runoff for Texas’ 18th Congressional District by freshman Rep. Christian Menefee.

Alexandra Koch is a Fox News Digital journalist who covers breaking news, with a focus on high-impact events that shape national conversation.

She has covered major national crises, including the L.A. wildfires, Potomac and Hudson River aviation disasters, Boulder terror attack, and Texas Hill Country floods.

https://www.foxnews.com/video/6397470930112

WATCH: Sanders lashes out at GOP ‘morality’ while rallying behind Dem with Nazi-linked tattoo

June 3, 2026 4:40pm EDT / Fox News

Staffers chanted ‘Platner is a creep’ and ‘Delete your Kik’ outside the building where Dems met with the candidate

By Alec Schemmel, Fox News

https://www.foxnews.com/video/6397448032112

Bernie Sanders snaps at towel-clad GOP protesters pressing him on Graham Platner scandals

Towel-clad GOP protesters mocked Graham Platner’s Kik selfie outside DSCC headquarters in DC, leading Bernie Sanders to accuse them and other Republicans of lacking standing to lecture on ‘morality.’ (Credit: Nicholas Ballasy for Fox News Digital)

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Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., lashed out at towel-clad Republican staffers outside the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee’s (DSCC) headquarters this week after they confronted him and other top Dems over their support for scandal-plagued Maine Senate candidate Graham Platner.

Video obtained by Fox News Digital shows the Republican protesters, including staffers from the National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC) and the Republican National Committee (RNC), dressed in towels to mock a sexually suggestive Kik profile photo of Platner that showed the Democratic Senate hopeful shirtless with a towel around his waist.

“Do you support Graham Platner even though he’s on Kik?” one protester asked Sanders outside the DSCC headquarters in Washington, D.C., where Platner and other top Dems were seen entering and exiting to meet with the embattled candidate ahead of his June 9 primary.

Towel-clad GOP protesters hold signs targeting Maine Democratic Senate candidate Graham Platner outside the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee headquarters, where Platner met with top Democrats amid scrutiny over his Kik profile, Nazi-linked tattoo and sexting scandals.(Nicholas Ballasy/Fox News Digital)

Platner’s campaign has been dogged by controversies, including a tattoo recognized as a Nazi symbol that he has since covered up, resurfaced Reddit posts that blamed rape victims, pushed racial stereotypes, mocked a Purple Heart veteran, and encouraged political violence, among other controversial comments on the popular blogging platform.

WATCH: DEM SENATORS EXCUSE PLATNER’S CONDUCT AT CRISIS HUDDLE WITH EMBATTLED MAINE CANDIDATE

Meanwhile, Platner’s issues continued just days ahead of his primary after it was reported Platner had exchanged sexually-explicit text messages with other women during his marriage and had an active Kik profile featuring a shirtless mirror selfie with a towel around his waist, a photo GOP staffers appeared to mock outside the DSCC by showing up in towels. Kik is an anonymous messaging app linked to child exploitation cases, which child-safety groups have criticized as a “predator’s paradise.”

Chants of “Platner is a creep!” and “Delete your Kik!” alongside signs that read “PEDO PLATNER MESSAGED KIDS” could be seen in video of the demonstration caught by Fox News Digital.

Republican staffers, including National Republican Senatorial Committee staffers, protest outside the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee headquarters in Washington, D.C., wearing towels to mock Maine Senate candidate Graham Platner’s reported Kik profile photo.(Nicholas Ballasy/Fox News Digital)

“Are you with the Republican party?” Sanders shot back in response to the protester’s question about Platner’s Kik account.

CORY BOOKER ADMITS GRAHAM PLATNER ‘HAS QUESTIONS TO ANSWER’ FOLLOWING LATEST SCANDAL

“It doesn’t matter,” the protester returned before Sanders lashed out about Republican “morality” amid the heated back-and-forth.

“Are you talking about morality and corruption? With President Trump?” Sanders shouted at the protesters as he pointed back at them. “Have a nice day,” he said before walking off.

Fox News Digital has found no evidence that Platner communicated with minors on Kik. The controversy surrounding the account centers on the app’s child-safety reputation, the sexually suggestive profile photo and its emergence alongside separate reporting about Platner’s sexually explicit messages with women during his marriage.

Sen. Bernie Sanders and Democratic Senate candidate Graham Platner stand together during a “Fighting Oligarchy” tour stop on the University of Maine campus in Orono, Maine, on May 24, 2026.(Joe Raedle/Getty Images)

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Meanwhile, Platner has disputed portions of the reporting surrounding his personal life, while his wife has criticized the disclosure of private details about their marriage. He has also apologized for past online comments and said the tattoo, which he has since covered, was obtained years ago without knowledge of its Nazi associations.

The confrontation outside the DSCC underscored the increasingly public effort by Republicans to turn Platner’s controversies into a liability for national Democrats, including Sanders and other top party figures who have continued to stand by him ahead of Maine’s June 9 Democratic Senate primary.

Trump suffers rare House defeat as bipartisan vote moves to withdraw troops from Iran conflict

June 3, 2026 5:21pm EDT / Fox News

The vote is largely symbolic given an expected presidential veto and the lack of a veto-proof majority

By Adam Pack , Tyler Olson , Chad Pergram, Fox News

Former Deputy National Security Advisor Victoria Coates joins ‘Mornings with Maria’ to discuss Iran’s attack on Kuwait, President Donald Trump’s ongoing nuclear talks and rising tensions across the Middle East.

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President Donald Trump suffered a rare defeat in the House of Representatives on Wednesday after Democrats joined by a handful of Republicans voted to sharply curb his war powers in Iran.

Lawmakers voted 215-208 to withdraw troops from using military force against Iran absent congressional authorization.

All Democrats present voted for the measure to effectively halt the U.S. military campaign against Iran. Reps. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., Warren Davison, R-Ohio, Brian Fitzpatrick, R-Pa., and Tom Barrett, R-Mich., were the lone Republicans to buck the president and support the war powers resolution.

Massie, an ardent foe of the president who lost his primary to a Trump-backed challenger, and Davidson, a libertarian-aligned lawmaker have criticized the war in Iran. Fitzpatrick and Barrett are both facing potentially difficult re-election bids in swing districts.

Thousands gathered at Revolution Square in Tehran on May 30, 2026, to protest attacks by the U.S. and Israel on Iran, carrying Iranian flags and posters of the late Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei.(Fatemeh Bahrami/Anadolu)

SWING-DISTRICT REPUBLICAN BREAKS WITH TRUMP, PUSHES LIMITS ON IRAN WAR

A majority of Republicans, however, sided with the president as Democrats sought to put them on the record.

“It’s just a total BS vote. I think there’s no Democrat, no Republican that can tell you what forces they would want pulled from Iran,” House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Brian Mast, R-Fla., told Fox News. “They just want a stupid political vote, which is what this is.”

The successful war powers vote is largely a symbolic loss for Trump given an expected presidential veto and the lack of a veto-proof majority.

Even if Congress did cobble together a supermajority to force the president’s hand, it’s unclear whether Trump would ultimately withdraw U.S. forces.

Trump administration officials have repeatedly argued the 1973 War Powers Resolution requiring congressional oversight of military action is unconstitutional.

The Senate advanced a similar resolution curbing the president’s war powers in May. But Democrats in both chambers have not yet gotten behind a bicameral measure that could be sent to Trump’s desk.

President Donald Trump suffered a significant rebuke in the House of Representatives on Wednesday after the chamber passed a war powers resolution seeking to halt the U.S. military campaign in Iran.(Aaron Schwartz/AFP via Getty Images)

US ALLY KUWAIT CONDEMNS ‘BRUTAL AND ONGOING IRANIAN ATTACKS’ AFTER AIRPORT WAS HIT

The GOP defections come as a growing number of Republicans have started to sour on the president’s handling of the war. For weeks, Trump has floated a potential deal with Iran to end hostilities, but both sides have continued to trade strikes amid stalled negotiations.

Roughly six in ten voters oppose military action against Iran, according to a Fox News poll published in May. However, 72% of respondents said the U.S. is winning the war.

Some Republicans argued the war powers resolution would undermine efforts to end the conflict, which they said has largely subsided since the first ceasefire was announced in early April.

“It doesn’t seem like it’s much of a war at this point,” Rep. Abe Hamadeh, R-Ariz., told Fox News. “I know there’s some skirmishes back and forth, but we’ve got to give President Trump the latitude to negotiate.”

“So people who are trying to get in his way, I think, are being a little foolish right now,” he added. “The war for all intents and purposes ended back in April.”

House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Brian Mast, R-Fla., sharply criticized the Democratic-sponsored war powers resolution offered by Rep. Gregory Meeks, D-N.Y., as a “BS vote.”(Kent Nishimura/Getty Images)

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Republican leadership initially delayed the vote on the Democratic-led resolution in late May following attendance issues among GOP lawmakers.

“We had a vote because of this president’s war of choice that was going to pass. We had the votes. Without question, and they knew it,” House Foreign Affairs Committee Ranking Member Gregory Meeks, D-N.Y., who led the resolution, told reporters following the scrapped vote.

https://www.foxnews.com/video/6397438461112

Republicans defy Johnson to advance Democrat-backed Ukraine aid

2026-06-03T17:39:26-04:00 / Fox News

The legislation would reaffirm US support for Ukraine and impose new sanctions on Russia if it continues its war

By Adam Pack, Tyler Olson, Fox News

Published June 3, 2026 5:39pm EDT

At least 2 killed, dozens wounded in Russian strike on Kyiv

Fox News correspondent Alex Hogan gives details on a Russian attack on Ukraine, a shooting near the White House and the ongoing conflict in Iran.

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House Democrats scored a rare victory on Wednesday after the chamber voted to advance a security package providing new military aid for Ukraine and imposing steep sanctions on Russia.

The Democrat-sponsored legislation cleared a procedural vote 218-204 with all Democrats present voting in the affirmative. Seven members of the House Republican conference supported the measure in a notable display of defiance against GOP leadership.

The defecting Republicans included Reps. Don Bacon, R-Neb., Brian Fitzpatrick, R-Pa., Mike Lawler, R-N.Y., Michael McCaul, R-Texas, Max Miller, R-Ohio, and Joe Wilson, R-S.C. Additionally, Rep. Kevin Kiley, I-Calif., an independent who caucuses with Republicans, also voted to advance the bill.

The security package would reaffirm U.S. support for Ukraine and NATO, authorize more than $1 billion in new military assistance, support Ukraine’s postwar reconstruction, and impose new sanctions on Russia and entities that support its war effort if Moscow continues the war, among other provisions.

WASHINGTON, DC – JUNE 03: U.S. Speaker of the House Mike Johnson (R-LA) answers questions from reporters during a press conference at the U.S. Capitol on June 03, 2026 in Washington, DC.((Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images))

ANOTHER NATO ALLY SIGNS ONTO EUROPEAN NUCLEAR UMBRELLA AS CONTINENT BOOSTS SELF-DEFENSE

The measure now heads for a vote on final passage, where it is expected to pass as soon as Thursday.

Its fate in the Republican-controlled Senate remains uncertain, where a bipartisan effort to impose sweeping sanctions on Russia has stalled for more than a year despite overwhelming support. Trump is expected to veto the legislation if it reaches his desk.

The vote came after Democrats and a handful of Republicans teamed up to force consideration of the legislation over the objections of House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., who controls the floor.

Fitzpatrick, Bacon and Kiley crossed party lines to sign the Democratic-led discharge petition, a legislative maneuver that allows lawmakers to trigger a vote on legislation with majority support.

“This is our opportunity to provide the leverage that could prove decisive in ending this conflict on acceptable terms in a way that will deter future Russian aggression,” Kiley, an independent lawmaker, told Fox News Digital in an interview.

“It’s just inconceivable that we should not be having additional sanctions against working with Putin,” Rep. Joe Wilson, R-S.C., who supported the underlying bill’s advancement, told Fox News. “Over and over again, we need to be standing with the courageous people of Ukraine.”

“We need to stop what Putin is doing, which is trying to resurrect the Soviet Union,” he added.

Rep. Kevin Kiley, I-Calif., was the 218th signature on the discharge petition forcing a vote on the Ukraine Support Act.(Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc.)

6 HOUSE REPUBLICANS DEFY TRUMP ON KEY AGENDA ITEM IN DEM-PUSHED VOTE

The measure was vigorously opposed by Republican leadership, who argued the pro-Ukraine measure was poorly drafted and undermined the administration’s efforts to end the years-long conflict, which has been estimated to have killed hundreds of thousands.

The bill calls for NATO countries to increase defense spending to 2% of GDP prior to NATO’s Washington Summit — an event that occurred nearly two years ago in July 2024. Trump also secured a newer commitment from allies in 2025 to hike defense spending to 5% of their economic output over the course of a decade.

Additionally, the legislation mandates that Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, a taxpayer-funded outlet, have its funding restored after the Trump administration sought to cut off the outlet’s congressionally approved funding in 2025. Federal courts later ordered the funding restored amid an ongoing legal battle.

The Russia-Ukraine war has continued with no end in sight, despite Trump’s vow to end the conflict upon returning to office.

https://www.foxnews.com/video/6396379020112

Proponents of the Ukraine Support Act argue that the legislative branch should pressure the Trump administration to take a harder line against Russian President Vladimir Putin.

“This is the moment for Congress to assert itself,” Kiley told Fox News Digital. “We’re seeing just further brutality on the part of Russia now, and so I think that if Congress gets involved in a meaningful way, it could provide the decisive leverage to finally bring about a resolution.”

The successful discharge petition is the latest instance in which a majority of lawmakers have worked around Johnson’s opposition to put legislation on the floor.

“Democrats have repeatedly governed in the minority as if we were in the majority, and we’re going to do so again this week,” House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., said Tuesday, arguing his party is displaying support for “the free world, for democracy, for truth and the Ukrainian people” by forcing a vote on the security package.

House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., speaks with reporters as he walks to his office after a press conference at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C., on March 27, 2026.(Samuel Corum/Getty Images)

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The use of discharge petitions, a rarely used tool historically deployed by the minority, has exploded under Johnson’s leadership.

A coalition of Democrats and a handful of Republicans has used the legislative maneuver to force votes on legislation compelling the release of the Epstein files, extending legal protections to Haitian nationals and overturning a regulation targeting federal employees’ collective bargaining rights.

Former primary rival resurfaces to challenge scandal-plagued Graham Platner in Maine Senate race

June 3, 2026 5:42pm EDT / Fox News

Gov. Janet Mills suspended her campaign but says Democrats can still vote for her in the June 9 primary against Susan Collins

By Charles Creitz, Fox News

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Scandal-plagued democratic socialist Graham Platner’s continued controversies have led his former primary rival to speak out and remind Mainers that she remains on the ballot despite having suspended her campaign.

Platner has been hit with one controversy after another, though he remains the heavy favorite heading into next Tuesday’s primary contest, as his only active opponent, David Costello, has failed to gain traction.

But Maine Gov. Janet Mills, who suspended her campaign for Senate earlier this year, dropped a potential bombshell in comments to a Lewiston Sun-Journal columnist by suggesting Democrats could still vote for her in their effort to unseat 30-year incumbent Sen. Susan Collins, New England’s last remaining federal Republican officeholder.

“People have the impression that I withdrew or dropped out,” Mills said, according to columnist Steve Collins.

“I simply suspended active campaigning. I am still on the ballot,” said Mills — an outspoken Trump critic who got publicly reprimanded by the president during a White House lunch earlier this year over the subject of biological men in girls’ sports.

DEM PRIMARY TURNS UGLY: MILLS UNLEASHES BRUTAL ATTACK ON SANDERS-BACKED PLATNER IN CRUCIAL SENATE SHOWDOWN

https://www.foxnews.com/video/6394338571112

While fundraising struggles were cited in Maine media reports as a key reason Mills paused her campaign, Platner has charged ahead through one controversy after another.

His “Totenkopf” chest tattoo — one used by German Nazi concentration camp guards — has been the controversy most frequently cited by Republicans, while his campaign also became embroiled in a separate controversy when a consultant asked Massachusetts-based sports media personality David Portnoy to collaborate on an anti-private-equity campaign against the Boston Red Sox front office.

Portnoy balked at the suggestion, citing his Jewish faith and Platner’s Nazi tattoo.

Platner also defended himself after a Reddit post resurfaced in which he called former Pennsylvania lieutenant gubernatorial candidate Teddy Daniels a “dumb motherf—-er” for being badly wounded in a Taliban siege, blaming “poor marksmanship” by the Afghan terrorists for the Republican’s survival.

Otherwise dormant since April 30, Mills’ campaign X account sprang back to life June 1 with a post commemorating Pride Month.

PLATNER CONTROVERSIES FUEL SPECULATION ABOUT LITTLE-KNOWN MAINE BALLOT REPLACEMENT PROVISION

Senate candidate Graham Platner of Maine and two-term Gov. Janet Mills are competing in the state’s Democratic Senate primary.(Sophie Park/Getty Images; Scott Eisen/Getty Images)

“Everyone deserves the freedom to live authentically and marry who they love without fear. I’m proud to stand with the LGBTQ+ community, today and every day,” Mills said.

Meanwhile, Steve Collins wrote in the column containing Mills’ comments that an increasing number of female independent and Democratic voters in Maine are troubled by Platner’s scandals.

He wrote that their collective umbrage is “more likely to kill [Platner’s] campaign… than greedy millionaires.”

https://www.foxnews.com/video/6396279511112

Susan Collins’ counterpart in the Senate is registered Independent Sen. Angus King Jr., who caucuses with Democrats and reliably votes with them.

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Fox News Digital reached out to the Platner campaign and Mills’ office for comment.

The Pine Tree State’s primary is June 9.

Charles Creitz is a reporter for Fox News Digital.

He joined Fox News in 2013 as a writer and production assistant.

Charles covers media, politics and culture for Fox News Digital.

Charles is a Pennsylvania native and graduated from Temple University with a B.A. in Broadcast Journalism. Story tips can be sent to charles.creitz@fox.com.

Is Bill Pulte Trump’s least-experienced Cabinet pick? He’s got lots of competition

2026-06-03T21:50:28.863Z / CNN

• Bill Pulte’s selection as acting director of national intelligence has drawn criticism from even Republicans over his lack of relevant experience.
• But it’s not necessarily an unusual choice for Trump, who values loyalty over expertise.
• See how Pulte stacks up against some of Trump’s other picks with questionable qualifications.

AI-generated summary was reviewed by a CNN editor.

President Donald Trump appears to have chosen one of his diciest Cabinet picks yet, with the elevation of 38-year-old Federal Housing Finance Agency director Bill Pulte to the job of acting director of national intelligence.

Even many Republicans have questioned or criticized the selection, often pointing to his lack of any discernible intelligence experience.

Sen. John Cornyn of Texas said he had “no evidence” that Pulte was qualified. Sen. Lisa Murkowski of Alaska said she was perplexed by Pulte’s selection. Sen. Bill Cassidy of Louisiana cited Pulte’s “absence of apparent qualifications.” Senate Majority Leader John Thune more subtly cited how, in the role of DNI, “we need professionals there.” And both Thune and Senate Intelligence Committee Chair Tom Cotton on Tuesday declined to vouch for Pulte’s level of experience.

This is somewhat par for the course for Trump, who emphasizes loyalty over expertise and often seems to have little regard for experts. He’s regularly picked people without the traditional types of experience expected in a Cabinet position or other high-profile job.

Still, Pulte’s striking lack of experience stands out, even among Trump picks.

So how does he compare? Here’s a ranking of some of the competition, factoring in both the officials’ level of experience and the level of experience someone in the job has typically had — in descending order.

When Duffy, a former Wisconsin congressman, was tapped for the position in late 2024, Roll Call reported that his “experience does not include much in the way of transportation.”

His legislating on the issue was generally limited to projects that were specific to his home state. After leaving Congress in 2019, he became a host on Fox Business Network.

It’s not unheard of for transportation secretaries to have limited relevant experience. When Joe Biden tapped Pete Buttigieg for that job in 2020, it was noted that Buttigieg’s transportation experience mostly involved overseeing local travel issues as mayor of mid-sized South Bend, Indiana.

(Despite that low profile, Buttigieg had recently won the 2020 Iowa Democratic presidential caucuses and finished second in the New Hampshire primary.)

When Chavez-DeRemer was selected in late 2024, her chief asset for the job seemed to be that she was one of few Republicans in Congress who had supported legislation that certain influential unions liked.

She did deal somewhat with labor policy as a member of the House Education and Workforce Committee. But she lost reelection after serving only one term, and before that she was mayor of an Oregon town of about 25,000 people.

McMahon had government experience from the first Trump administration as head of the Small Business Administration.

But she’s otherwise mostly known as a professional wrestling executive. And she had limited education experience, compared to virtually every other recent education secretary – who often worked as teachers, school administrators or otherwise in the education field.

McMahon served on the board of trustees at Sacred Heart University, and she served a year as an appointee on the Connecticut Board of Education before launching her political career with a 2010 run for US Senate.

While undergoing vetting for the education board position, McMahon falsely claimed she had earned a bachelor’s degree in education, when in fact it was in French, according to a 2010 Hartford Courant report. While the program was designed to prepare teachers, it wasn’t a degree in education. (McMahon has said she wrote to the Connecticut governor at the time to correct the record.)

McMahon’s bio on the Education Department’s website today cites how her “college aspirations to become a schoolteacher reflect her lifelong interest in education.”

Of course, Trump has shown little interest in the business of the Education Department; in fact, he’s aimed to dismantle it.

4. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.

When Kennedy was chosen, plenty noted that he wasn’t a doctor or a scientist. But that’s actually pretty normal for the HHS secretary.

Still, the job usually goes to someone with experience in government or running a large organization.

And Kennedy’s involvement in health and medical issues largely involved heterodox views on nutrition and healthy living — views that have significant appeal with many Americans — and, most notably, many years of debunked claims questioning the safety of vaccines.

The former Florida congressman had many problems when Trump shocked Washington by briefly nominating him for attorney general in late 2024. But one of the big ones was his lack of experience actually practicing law.

Gaetz had never served as a prosecutor, and he spent only a few years in a low-profile job at a small law firm before entering politics three years after passing the bar exam.

When asked if Gaetz had the necessary experience and character, Republican Rep. Mike Simpson of Idaho reportedly responded: “Are you sh***in’ me, that you just asked that question? No! But hell, you’ll print that and now I’m going to be investigated.”

Hegseth is a military veteran who ran a pair of conservative veterans’ groups before becoming a Fox weekend host.

But he had never served in a senior military role, never served in government and never ran anything larger than a small nonprofit.

It was a remarkably thin resume for someone taking on perhaps the second-biggest job in the federal government, overseeing 1.3 million active-duty troops and about 750,000 civilians.

The size of the job became even clearer when Trump launched a war against Iran, which Hegseth now oversees.

Before joining the Trump administration last year, Pulte spent a career in the finance sector and various other pursuits, including an air conditioning company and a nonprofit that cleared abandoned homes.

Some of that experience makes sense for his job at the FHFA, which regulates housing-related government entities like Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

But he has basically none of the experience of past DNIs, who, even if they didn’t serve in the intelligence community, at least served in the military or worked on intelligence issues as a member of Congress.

Pulte’s predecessor, the soon-to-depart Tulsi Gabbard, was a somewhat unorthodox pick for the post. But the former Democratic congresswoman at least had military experience and served on House committees focused on the military and military intelligence.

Pulte’s lack of relevant experience is especially remarkable given the 2004 law establishing the Office of the Director of National Intelligence says that anyone “nominated for appointment as Director of National Intelligence shall have extensive national security expertise.”

He clearly does not have that. But as CNN reported Tuesday, that’s apparently not what Trump is looking for.