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Political insider turns anti-incumbent table on 8-year Dem in key Senate race: ‘Hasn’t delivered’

2026-09-17 10:42:25 EDT / Fox News

Cook Political Report shifts NH Senate race to toss up as Sununu blasts Pappas for 8 years of inaction on infrastructure

By Paul Steinhauser Fox News

Published September 17, 2026 10:42am EDT | Updated September 17, 2026 10:49am EDT

Sununu takes aim at Pappas in crucial Senate battle in key swing state

Former Sen. John E. Sununu, the 2026 Republican Senate nominee in New Hampshire, takes aim at Democratic rival Rep. Chris Pappas in a Fox News Digital interview in Concord, N.H. on Sept. 14, 2026.

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CONCORD, N.H. – A Republican running to flip a blue Senate seat in a crucial battleground state is flipping the script on the Democrats’ anti-incumbent argument.

Former Sen. John E. Sununu, the GOP Senate nominee who’s running to return to Capitol Hill after 18 years away, charges that his Democratic rival, Rep. Chris Pappas, has “been in Washington for 8 years and hasn’t delivered for New Hampshire.”

Sununu and Pappas are facing off in the midterm election in the battle to succeed retiring longtime Democratic Sen. Jeanne Shaheen in a race that’s one of roughly a dozen that will determine if Republicans hold their control of the Senate.

“He has attempted very little in Congress. He’s accomplished even less,” Sununu said in an exclusive Fox News Digital interview this week, as he blasted Pappas, a four-term congressman.

THESE 12 MIDTERM RACES WILL DETERMINE IF REPUBLICANS HOLD THE SENATE

Former Sen. John E. Sununu of New Hampshire celebrates his Republican Senate nomination victory, in Manchester, N.H., on Sept. 8, 2026.(Jessica Sonkin/Fox News)

Sununu was interviewed ahead of a move by the Cook Political Report, a top nonpartisan campaign handicapper, to shift the race in New Hampshire from lean Democrat to toss-up. Earlier this month, another leading nonpartisan handicapper, Inside Elections, also changed their rating to a toss-up.

It was a rare move in favor of the Republicans amid a political cycle where the GOP is facing traditional political headwinds for the party in power in D.C.. Republicans are also confronting an extremely rough political climate fueled by persistent inflation, soaring fuel prices due to the ongoing war with Iran, and President Donald Trump’s underwater approval ratings.

So what’s Sununu’s secret sauce?

Part of it is his last name, which is a political brand in New Hampshire. Sununu’s father, John E. Sununu, served six years as governor before heading to Washington, D.C., as then-President George H.W. Bush’s White House chief of staff. And one of his younger brothers, Chris Sununu, recently served eight years as governor before taking a break from politics.

But also boosting Sununu, his strategy to blast Pappas as a do-nothing member of Congress during another anti-incumbent election cycle, which is a turn of the tables on the Democrats’ playbook.

CHECK OUT THE LATEST FOX NEWS POWER RANKINGS IN THE BATTLE FOR THE SENATE

Democratic Rep. Chris Pappas of New Hampshire, a U.S. Senate candidate, is joined by Sen. Elizabeth Warren of neighboring Massachusetts, at a campaign stop in Dover, N.H. on Sept. 5, 2026.(Jessica Sonkin/Fox News)

“He’s been on the Transportation Committee for eight years, and New Hampshire is dead last in highway funding in New England. That hurts New Hampshire. His ineffectiveness is doing damage to the state because we’re not getting the support we need from Washington,” Sununu claimed.

While it doesn’t rank dead last in every single metric or category, New Hampshire receives some of the lowest total and per-capita levels of federal funding for roads, highways and bridges of any state in the country, according to federal and state figures.

Pappas, earlier this year, introduced the Highway Fair Share Act, a bill to increase federal funding for infrastructure and transportation projects for New Hampshire by requiring that each state receive at least 0.5% of the total federal-aid highway formula funding.

Pappas and the rest of the all-Democratic congressional delegation in June highlighted $9 million in federal funding for New Hampshire projects.

“Chris Pappas has led efforts to expand healthcare benefits for 3.5 million veterans, bring high-speed internet to towns across New Hampshire, put more money back in the pockets of working parents, and secure millions of dollars to improve and repair roads, bridges, and buildings,” Pappas Campaign Manager Rachel Petri told Fox News Digital, as she shared a long list of funding accomplishments by the congressman.

Petri said, “Chris is rated among the most effective and bipartisan lawmakers and his record stands in stark contrast to John Sununu’s record of voting to cut Medicare, leading efforts to privatize Social Security, and backing Donald Trump’s tariffs and war with Iran.”

Sununu’s anti-incumbent argument is a bit ironic, considering he spent six years in the House and a term in the Senate before losing a rematch with then-former Gov. Shaheen in the 2008 election.

Looking back at his years on Capitol Hill, Sununu touted his record “of writing and passing legislation under Democrat presidents, Republican presidents, a Democrat Congress, Republican Congress.”

But he also emphasized, “I’ve been in the private sector for the last 16 years. That’s a good thing, working for tech firms and small businesses, the Waterville Valley ski area [the Sununu family has had a controlling interest in the resort since 2010], teaching college. It’s… a perspective that I think is missing from Washington.”

WHAT THE LATEST FOX NEWS POLLS IN KEY MIDTERM RACES SHOW

Pappas, in a recent Fox News Digital interview, highlighted that New Hampshire is “a state of voters who are pragmatic, who want their lives to be better and want problems to be solved, and I can demonstrate the ways that I’ve been working on those issues.”

“It’s expanding access to health care, building more affordable housing in New Hampshire, and ensuring that we’re standing up to an administration that’s ignoring the day-to-day concerns of Granite Staters,” he added.

But Sununu wasn’t the only one taking aim at Pappas as a do-nothing incumbent. Even his long-shot socialist rival in last week’s primary took a shot.

First-time candidate and scientist Karishma Manzur, in a recent Fox News Digital interview, charged that “all [Pappas] wants to do is just get his little cushy job and go to D.C., go to all these parties and these restaurants and just do whatever the bare minimum is.”

Pappas ended up crushing Manzur in the primary by a two-to-one margin, and Sununu defeated former Sen. Scott Brown in a landslide to capture the GOP nomination.

DEMOCRACY ’26: STAY UP TO DATE WITH THE FOX NEWS ELECTION HUB

Democratic congressional candidate Karishma Manzur speaks to voters at a campaign stop in Dover, New Hampshire, on Sept. 3, 2026.(Paul Steinhauser/Fox News)

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With the general election sprint underway, Republican-aligned outside groups are now pouring millions into the state to target Pappas. And Pappas is using this week’s Cook Political Report race rating to ring an alarm.

“MAGA super PACs are pouring millions of dollars a week into New Hampshire to try to flip this seat. And this race is officially a Toss Up,” he warned on social media.

And Pappas told Fox News Digital recently that Sununu is “backed up by out-of-state special interests and dark money in this campaign. They’re outspending us 3 to 1 on TV.”

Firing back, this week a Democrat-aligned super PAC started running ads charging that, after he left the Senate, Sununu cashed in by working for lobbying firms.

Sununu was endorsed earlier this year by Trump, and since then Democrats have repeatedly tied the president, whose approval ratings are well into negative territory in New Hampshire, to Sununu.

Pappas called Sununu Trump’s “hand-picked candidate.”

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Asked about the full-court press by Pappas and Democrats to anchor him to Trump, Sununu told Fox News Digital, “I’ve never even met the president.”

But contrasting himself with Pappas, Sununu added that “there’s no question I’ll be a much more effective voice with this administration.”

Paul Steinhauser covers the national campaign trail from coast to coast for Fox News

伊朗要求一瑞典外交官48小时内离境

2026年9月17日 21:40 / 联合早报

瑞典政府此前要求一名伊朗驻瑞典大使馆外交官离境，并指控伊朗干涉瑞典安全事务。伊朗外交部称瑞方相关指控“毫无根据”，并于星期四（9月17日）要求一名瑞典外交官在48小时内离境，以此作为回应。 （路透社）

伊朗外交部星期四发声明说，要求一名瑞典外交官在48小时内离境，以回应瑞典方面阻止一名伊朗驻瑞典外交官继续履职。

据伊朗伊斯兰共和国通讯社援引声明说，瑞典政府此前要求一名伊朗驻瑞典大使馆外交官离境，并指控伊朗干涉瑞典安全事务。伊朗外交部称瑞方相关指控“毫无根据”，并谴责瑞方阻止伊朗外交官继续履职的决定。

伊朗外交部当天召见瑞典驻伊朗大使表达伊方抗议，并通知瑞方，一名瑞典驻伊朗大使馆的外交官须在48小时内离开伊朗。

声明称，瑞典方面的有关决定受到以色列影响，其目的在于干扰伊朗驻瑞典大使馆正常运作。伊方还指责瑞典发表针对伊朗的“不当言论”并庇护反伊朗组织。

伊朗外交部说，瑞典政府有关举措违反国际法准则以及维也纳公约规定的相关义务，伊朗将采取包括对等措施在内的必要措施维护自身权利和国家利益。

伊朗要求一瑞典外交官48小时内离境

2026-09-17 21:40 / 联合早报

瑞典政府此前要求一名伊朗驻瑞典大使馆外交官离境，并指控伊朗干涉瑞典安全事务。伊朗外交部称瑞方相关指控“毫无根据”，并于星期四（9月17日）要求一名瑞典外交官在48小时内离境，以此作为回应。 （路透社）

伊朗外交部星期四发声明说，要求一名瑞典外交官在48小时内离境，以回应瑞典方面阻止一名伊朗驻瑞典外交官继续履职。

据伊朗伊斯兰共和国通讯社援引声明说，瑞典政府此前要求一名伊朗驻瑞典大使馆外交官离境，并指控伊朗干涉瑞典安全事务。伊朗外交部称瑞方相关指控“毫无根据”，并谴责瑞方阻止伊朗外交官继续履职的决定。

伊朗外交部当天召见瑞典驻伊朗大使表达伊方抗议，并通知瑞方，一名瑞典驻伊朗大使馆的外交官须在48小时内离开伊朗。

声明称，瑞典方面的有关决定受到以色列影响，其目的在于干扰伊朗驻瑞典大使馆正常运作。伊方还指责瑞典发表针对伊朗的“不当言论”并庇护反伊朗组织。

伊朗外交部说，瑞典政府有关举措违反国际法准则以及维也纳公约规定的相关义务，伊朗将采取包括对等措施在内的必要措施维护自身权利和国家利益。

以色列防长称土耳其可接收加沙哈马斯成员

2026年9月17日 22:15 / 联合早报

以色列国防部长卡茨星期四（9月17日）建议，土耳其可以接收来自加沙的哈马斯成员，并重申将加沙地带约200万人口迁出的计划。 （路透社）

以色列国防部长卡茨星期四建议，土耳其可以接收来自加沙的哈马斯成员，同时再次主张将加沙地带约200万人全部迁出。

法新社报道，卡茨星期四（9月17日）在社媒平台X上发文说，以色列将继续采取行动，实现安全目标，确保2023年10月7日的哈马斯袭击事件不再重演。

卡茨还说，如果土耳其总统埃尔多安帮助加沙的“兄弟”，可以邀请他们迁往土耳其安塔利亚，并讽刺当地因以色列游客减少而腾出许多空间。

安塔利亚是土耳其旅游业中心的一座海滨城市。在以土关系恶化前，这里曾是以色列游客的热门目的地。

土耳其过去曾与以色列保持外交关系，但埃尔多安近年来强烈批评以色列，并允许哈马斯领导人在伊斯坦布尔活动，导致两国关系持续恶化。

卡茨星期三称，加沙已有70%地区的人口被清空，以军准备“完成任务”，实施人口迁移计划。他本月较早时也说，以色列准备通过陆路和海路迁移加沙巴勒斯坦人，正等待美国决定安置地点；他称有关计划是“自愿”的。

以色列防长称土耳其可接收加沙哈马斯成员

2026年9月17日 22:15 / 联合早报

以色列国防部长卡茨星期四（9月17日）建议，土耳其可以接收来自加沙的哈马斯成员，并重申将加沙地带约200万人口迁出的计划。 （路透社）

以色列国防部长卡茨星期四建议，土耳其可以接收来自加沙的哈马斯成员，同时再次主张将加沙地带约200万人全部迁出。

法新社报道，卡茨星期四（9月17日）在社媒平台X上发文说，以色列将继续采取行动，实现安全目标，确保2023年10月7日的哈马斯袭击事件不再重演。

卡茨还说，如果土耳其总统埃尔多安帮助加沙的“兄弟”，可以邀请他们迁往土耳其安塔利亚，并讽刺当地因以色列游客减少而腾出许多空间。

安塔利亚是土耳其旅游业中心的一座海滨城市。在以土关系恶化前，这里曾是以色列游客的热门目的地。

土耳其过去曾与以色列保持外交关系，但埃尔多安近年来强烈批评以色列，并允许哈马斯领导人在伊斯坦布尔活动，导致两国关系持续恶化。

卡茨星期三称，加沙已有70%地区的人口被清空，以军准备“完成任务”，实施人口迁移计划。他本月较早时也说，以色列准备通过陆路和海路迁移加沙巴勒斯坦人，正等待美国决定安置地点；他称有关计划是“自愿”的。

After nitrogen execution blocked, convicted killer of famous Elvis impersonator set to die by lethal injection in Alabama

2026-09-17 08:40 EDT / CBS/AP

The convicted killer of a famous Elvis Presley impersonator is scheduled to die by lethal injection Thursday night in Alabama, three months after his last execution date was canceled by a judge who blocked the state from putting him to death with nitrogen gas.

Jeffery Lee, 49, is scheduled to receive an injection beginning at 6 p.m. at south Alabama’s William C. Holman Correctional Facility for killing two people during a 1998 pawnshop robbery in rural Dallas County.

Alabama originally planned to execute Lee on June 11 using nitrogen gas, a relatively new execution method the state tested for the first time in early 2024. It has been used multiple times since then, within and outside of Alabama, drawing scrutiny and criticism from some who have argued the method is poorly understood and likely causes unnecessary suffering.

This undated photo provided by the Alabama Department of Corrections on June 11, 2026, shows Jeffery Lee. Alabama Department of Corrections via AP, File

Lee’s first execution was blocked by an unprecedented decision by District Judge Emily Marks, who ruled Alabama’s nitrogen gas protocol was unconstitutionally cruel and violated the inmate’s constitutional rights under the Eighth Amendment. It barred Alabama from ever putting Lee to death using that protocol, so the Alabama attorney general’s office quickly filed paperwork seeking a new execution date when he would be executed by lethal injection instead.

Lee and his supporters have made a final bid to spare him, noting the jury in his case had made a recommendation of life imprisonment, which the judge overrode. His attorneys also argued in court that the state should not be legally allowed to switch execution methods.

Twenty-six inmates have been executed around the U.S. to date this year, including a Texas man given a lethal injection for his conviction in a triple murder at his neighbor’s home. Elsewhere, a judge blocked plans Wednesday by the state of Georgia to execute a man who killed two real estate agents.

The double murder occurred on Dec. 12, 1998, at Jimmy’s Pawn Shop in Orrville, a small town west of Selma. Jimmy Ellis, the store’s owner, and Elaine Thompson, a store employee, were shot and killed. Another employee survived by playing dead.

The surviving witness testified that Lee entered the store, asked to see wedding rings and said he would be back after getting money from his grandmother. Lee returned a short time later with a sawed-off shotgun and shot Ellis, Thompson and the other employee. The surviving witness fell to the floor, pretending to be dead, and called 911 once Lee left the store.

Ellis, a singer whose voice resembled Elvis Presley, had gained a national following for a time as an Elvis impersonator. He performed as the masked singer “Orion” and was the subject of a 2015 documentary.

Lee was convicted in 2000 of capital murder and attempted murder.

Lee is one of about two dozen people on Alabama’s death row who were sentenced to death despite jury recommendations they receive life sentences.

The jury that convicted Lee of capital murder voted 7-5 to recommend a sentence of life without parole, but the trial judge overrode them and sentenced him to death.

In 2017, Alabama abolished judicial override and stopped allowing judges to change juries’ sentencing decision in capital cases. But the law was not retroactive, leaving Lee and others on death row.

Supporters of Lee’s clemency bid held a rally Tuesday outside the Alabama Capitol under the banner, “HONOR THE JURY.”

Lee’s attorneys have asked the U.S. Supreme Court to stay the execution to consider if the state may switch to lethal injection.

Lee filed a lawsuit in 2016 challenging the state’s lethal injection protocol. After Alabama authorized nitrogen as an execution method, Lee selected it as his preferred method. He agreed to dismiss the lethal injection lawsuit in 2018 because the state agreed that “if he is to be executed, defendants will carry out that execution by nitrogen hypoxia.”

Lee’s lawyers argued the state is bound by the terms of that agreement to not use lethal injection. They said the state could revise its nitrogen protocol to make it constitutional or use a firing squad.

“The petition asks this Court to determine whether the State may execute Mr. Lee by lethal injection notwithstanding its prior representation that it would execute him by nitrogen hypoxia,” his attorney wrote in a filing with the high court.

The state attorney general’s office asked the high court to let the execution proceed, arguing nothing precludes the switch to lethal injection.

“An unpunished murder is an intrinsic and ongoing harm to those interests and to the rule of law. Nearly twenty-eight years is decades too long,” lawyers with the attorney general’s office wrote.

For decades, lethal injection was the generally preferred U.S. execution method until problems procuring and administering the drugs led states, including Alabama, to consider alternatives.

Lethal injection remains Alabama’s primary execution method. But in 2024, the state began carrying out some executions using nitrogen gas, which involves replacing breathable air with gas through a respirator mask, causing death from lack of oxygen. Nitrogen has now been used in seven executions in Alabama and one in Louisiana.

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日本首相高市新内阁成立 减税财源问题引关注

2026年9月17日 22:23 / 联合早报 符祝慧 东京特派员

日本首相高市早苗（前排中间）星期四（9月17日）在首相官邸，与改组后的新内阁成员等人合影。 （路透社）

日本首相高市早苗第二次内阁成立，强调全体阁员将竭力落实竞选承诺，采取负责任且积极的财政政策，推进日本的潜在增长。由于降低消费税的财源未有说明，这被指极可能成为新内阁启动后的“火种”。

这是高市上台后，首次改组内阁。18名内阁成员中，内阁秘书长木原稔、财长片山皋月、防长小泉进次郎、经济安全保障部长小野田纪美等八人留任。撤换的10人里有七人首次入阁；其中，执政党联盟日本维新会成员中司宏（70岁）出任改革担当部长。

高市在记者会上强调，日本维新党成员首次入阁，象征着联合政府迈入新阶段。谈及新内阁将推动的政策，她说，要大胆进行改革，打造强大的经济，并构建富有韧性的外交与安全体系以应对全球挑战。包括《国家安全战略》在内的三份安全相关文件，计划于年底进行修订。

高市将在10月向国会的特别会议提交与消费税减免相关的法案。为了安抚外界担心的财源问题，她解释：“我要履行对当代人和后代人的责任，继续执行负责任且积极的财政政策，目标是增强日本的综合国力，促进国家的长期繁荣。”

谈及选人标准，高市透露，此次组阁参考了对议员发放的问卷调查，仔细考察每个人的专业知识、问题意识和积极性，旨在确保各项政策能够得到稳定审议与落实。

不过，高市主导的这次内阁改组也招致了外界批评，原因是她起用了自民党2023年涉及黑金丑闻的人物。他们是教育部长关芳弘以及农林水产部长簗和生。

此外，高市也被指将“忠臣”置于核心位置，把不同意见者排除在政府之外。上次曾与高市争夺党总裁位置的防长小泉进次郎、外长茂木敏充和政策调查会长小林鹰之都留任，唯独总务部长林芳正未能入阁。

林芳正是前首相岸田文雄领导的派系成员，曾担任防长、外长等要职。上次总裁选战中，他的首轮国会议员投票位列第二，得票多过高市。

自民党前干事长森山裕在星期四的一个电视台节目中评论道：“林芳正有能力胜任首相一职。”

《朝日新闻》分析指出，林芳正未入阁，实际上为明年9月的自民党总裁选举预留了一匹“黑马”。他极可能在明年的党总裁选战中凝聚“反高市”力量，与她再战一次。

日本首相高市新内阁成立 减税财源问题引关注

2026-09-17 22:23 / 联合早报 符祝慧 东京特派员

日本首相高市早苗（前排中间）星期四（9月17日）在首相官邸，与改组后的新内阁成员等人合影。 （路透社）

日本首相高市早苗第二次内阁成立，强调全体阁员将竭力落实竞选承诺，采取负责任且积极的财政政策，推进日本的潜在增长。由于降低消费税的财源未有说明，这被指极可能成为新内阁启动后的“火种”。

这是高市上台后，首次改组内阁。18名内阁成员中，内阁秘书长木原稔、财长片山皋月、防长小泉进次郎、经济安全保障部长小野田纪美等八人留任。撤换的10人里有七人首次入阁；其中，执政党联盟日本维新会成员中司宏（70岁）出任改革担当部长。

高市在记者会上强调，日本维新党成员首次入阁，象征着联合政府迈入新阶段。谈及新内阁将推动的政策，她说，要大胆进行改革，打造强大的经济，并构建富有韧性的外交与安全体系以应对全球挑战。包括《国家安全战略》在内的三份安全相关文件，计划于年底进行修订。

高市将在10月向国会的特别会议提交与消费税减免相关的法案。为了安抚外界担心的财源问题，她解释：“我要履行对当代人和后代人的责任，继续执行负责任且积极的财政政策，目标是增强日本的综合国力，促进国家的长期繁荣。”

谈及选人标准，高市透露，此次组阁参考了对议员发放的问卷调查，仔细考察每个人的专业知识、问题意识和积极性，旨在确保各项政策能够得到稳定审议与落实。

不过，高市主导的这次内阁改组也招致了外界批评，原因是她起用了自民党2023年涉及黑金丑闻的人物。他们是教育部长关芳弘以及农林水产部长簗和生。

此外，高市也被指将“忠臣”置于核心位置，把不同意见者排除在政府之外。上次曾与高市争夺党总裁位置的防长小泉进次郎、外长茂木敏充和政策调查会长小林鹰之都留任，唯独总务部长林芳正未能入阁。

林芳正是前首相岸田文雄领导的派系成员，曾担任防长、外长等要职。上次总裁选战中，他的首轮国会议员投票位列第二，得票多过高市。

自民党前干事长森山裕在星期四的一个电视台节目中评论道：“林芳正有能力胜任首相一职。”

《朝日新闻》分析指出，林芳正未入阁，实际上为明年9月的自民党总裁选举预留了一匹“黑马”。他极可能在明年的党总裁选战中凝聚“反高市”力量，与她再战一次。

Democrats reluctantly hand Trump major victory on fraud program targeting Tim Walz

September 17, 2026 9:29am EDT / Fox News

The bill passed 352 to 72, with Hakeem Jeffries among Democrats backing Trump’s National Fraud Enforcement Division

By Elizabeth Elkind, Fox News

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President Donald Trump’s crackdown on government fraud is getting unexpected backup from a majority of House Democrats, including Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y.

More than 140 House Democrats voted with all Republicans to make the National Fraud Enforcement Division permanent on Wednesday. The bill passed in an overwhelming 352 to 72 vote, with all of its opponents being Democrats as well.

Trump’s White House first announced the creation of a new division within the Department of Justice (DOJ) to combat fraud in January 2026, primarily targeting “fraud affecting the federal government, federally funded programs, and private citizens,” according to a release by the administration.

It was notably used as a cudgel against Trump’s political enemies earlier this year, when Vice President JD Vance referred Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz and state Attorney General Keith Ellison to the fraud division for a potential criminal investigation.

WHITE HOUSE PUSHES ‘WATERSHED’ FRAUD-FIGHTING REFORM IN CONGRESS AS VANCE CONVENES TASK FORCE

The House of Representatives passed a bill to codify President Donald Trump’s fraud enforcement division in the Department of Justice.(Stefani Reynolds/Bloomberg via Getty Images; Nathan Posner/Anadolu via Getty Images)

Republicans accused Walz and Ellison of helping facilitate what’s become a ballooning fraud scandal affecting Minnesota’s social welfare programs. Both have acknowledged that taxpayer dollars were taken advantage of but accused GOP actors of casting the situation as worse than it actually is as a political attack.

VANCE REFERS TIM WALZ, MINNESOTA ATTORNEY GENERAL TO DOJ FOR CRIMINAL INVESTIGATION OVER STATE’S ALLEGED FRAUD

The Trump administration’s announcement of the fraud division also touted its actions in Minnesota, which it said was experiencing a “fraud epidemic.”

Rep. Jamie Raskin, D-Md., a top House progressive, said he would give “tepid support” to the legislation, while pointing out a fraud division has already existed within the DOJ for decades.

REPUBLICANS DECLARE WAR ON ‘ORGANIZED THEFT’ WITH GOVERNMENT FRAUD CRACKDOWN

“This is hardly some kind of great breakthrough in law enforcement or criminal justice, but it is perhaps the least offensive piece of legislative flotsam and jetsam that has washed ashore in the last 48 hours of Republican chaos and retreat here in the House of Representatives,” Raskin said on the House floor.

Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz testifies during a House Oversight and Government Reform Committee hearing in the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C., on March 4, 2026.(Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)

Rep. Jeff Van Drew, R-N.J., responded, “This conversation is about a piece of legislation. It’s about a piece of legislation that we want to be enacted into law. It’s not a partisan initiative. It’s a permanent, nonpartisan commitment that we do something better because the people who are listening here… the people who are watching, they’re getting tired of it.”

“They’re getting tired of all the money that has been wasted. And to try to pretend that just a few years ago, a couple of years ago, everything was perfect, everything was taken care of and that there was no corruption, we know better,” Van Drew said.

Raskin spent a significant amount of time accusing Trump and his administration allies of corruption at the expense of prosecuting actual fraud cases, something Republicans pushed back against.

“What has come out of Minnesota over the last year, what has been exposed, is absolutely criminal in nature,” said Rep. Harriet Hageman, R-Wyo. “I think what is coming, what is being exposed in blue cities and blue states run by Democrats, demonstrates that it’s probably higher by an order of magnitude.”

Raskin then targeted Van Drew directly in his comments: “My dear friend from New Jersey wants to make it sound like I’m doing something partisan. I’m joining his bill.”

Rep. Jamie Raskin, D-Md., speaks during a House Judiciary Committee hearing on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., Sept. 17, 2025.(Annabelle Gordon/Reuters)

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“It would be very easy for me to say I reject everything you do because you’re on the side of this pro-fraud president, but I’m not doing that. Your bill says, let’s call this the ‘National Fraud Enforcement Unit.’ I say, fine, that makes sense to me,” Raskin said. “Why don’t you cross the aisle and say it’s wrong for them to be pardoning white-collar fraudster after white-collar fraudster, or at least pardoning them from having to pay the fines and the restitution back? It’s an honest question. Do you really think that $1.7 billion should go from what was going to be the pockets of the victims back into the bank account of the perpetrators?”

Van Drew responded, “The gentleman has his numbers. He has his vision, he has his partisan ideas, and that’s up to him. But I’m trying to point out today… we’re trying to make something that is right now just an executive order and make it law to help the people.”

Elizabeth Elkind is a politics reporter for Fox News Digital leading coverage of the House of Representatives. Previous digital bylines seen at Daily Mail and CBS News.

Follow on Twitter at @liz_elkind and send tips to elizabeth.elkind@fox.com

https://www.foxnews.com/video/6401230422112