作者： root

Trump voter ID push faces Senate test as GOP rebels threaten to sink bill

Published March 17, 2026 6:00am EDT | Updated March 17, 2026 6:00am EDT

Senate Republicans are gearing up for a floor fight this week over doomed Trump-backed voter ID legislation.

Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., is expected to launch the GOP’s floor strategy for the Safeguarding American Voter Eligibility (SAVE) America Act on Tuesday afternoon.

It won’t be done through the talking filibuster, despite pressure from President Donald Trump and a fervent ecosystem of conservative influencers to do so. That’s because there is not enough support among Republicans to follow through with the move.

[SENATE GOP EYES BLAME GAME AS TRUMP-BACKED SAVE ACT HEADS FOR DEFEAT]

“It’s about the math,” Thune said. “And I’m, for better or worse, the one who has to be a clear-eyed realist about what we can achieve here. And so we’ll continue to convey that. And I think that we’re going to have the fight on the floor. We’re going to vote on this.”

Republicans’ plan is to put Senate Democrats on record for voting down the bill. And Senate Democrats are primed to oblige.

“Democrats will not let Donald Trump ram this bill through the Senate. Not this week, not ever,” Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said on a call with reporters over the weekend. “And Democrats are going to make sure the American people have their chance to deliver their verdict at the elections this fall.”

Part of the issue among Republicans, outside the staggering amount of floor time it would take up, is that the GOP isn’t unified to block Democratic amendments that could drastically alter the bill if they went the route of the talking filibuster.

Sen. Rick Scott, R-Fla., who is one of the key voices pushing for the SAVE America Act in the Senate, acknowledged that Republicans “don’t have the votes for the talking filibuster right now.”

“We just got to, you know, we got to look at every way we can try to pass it,” Scott said.

[GOP REACHES KEY 50-VOTE THRESHOLD FOR TRUMP-BACKED VOTER ID BILL AS SENATE FIGHT LOOMS]

Still, the first procedural step on Tuesday will take a simple majority but may still need an assist from Vice President JD Vance to break a tie.

And throughout the process, which could stretch over several days, there will be a handful of key lawmakers to watch in both chambers.

Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C.

Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C., declared last week that he wouldn’t support the SAVE America Act and that he planned to “do everything I can to prevent it from even moving forward.”

How that could play out during the lengthy floor battle remains to be seen.

Still, Tillis’ objection to the bill is notable, given Republicans’ thin margin for error in the upper chamber.

He would rather vote on legislation that incentivized states to adopt voter ID and warned that the additional changes to the bill Trump wanted, like barring men in women’s sports or halting mail-in ballots with limited exceptions, “doesn’t sound like we’re letting the people at the tip of the spear — that’s these people running for re-election — define what we should be voting on next week.”

Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska

Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, came out early against the SAVE America Act and contended that “one-size-fits-all mandates from Washington, D.C., seldom work in places like Alaska.”

“Election Day is fast approaching,” Murkowski said in February. “Imposing new federal requirements now, when states are deep into their preparations, would negatively impact election integrity by forcing election officials to scramble to adhere to new policies, likely without the necessary resources.”

Whether she’ll vote to allow Republicans to open debate on the bill and march forward with their slew of amendments is still an open question. Fox News Digital did not immediately hear back from her office for comment.

Sen. John Fetterman, D-Pa.

Sen. John Fetterman, D-Pa., who often bucks his party on key votes in the Senate, likes the idea of voter ID but isn’t on board with some of the changes demanded by Trump.

Fetterman said on “Mornings with Maria” that the SAVE America Act was “needlessly complicated,” particularly Trump’s request to include a sweeping ban on mail-in ballots with limited exceptions.

“I have said it’s not Jim Crow, and it’s not extreme things, but mail-in voting is absolutely secure,” Fetterman said. “Some of the best examples in the country are red states like Florida and Ohio.”

House GOP

Meanwhile, in the House, a rebellion is brewing among Thune’s fellow Republicans.

Several GOP lawmakers there are threatening to vote against any legislation that comes out of the Senate until the SAVE America Act is passed, which, given the circumstances, could lead to a lengthy standoff.

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Many of those threats first bubbled up earlier this month on a House GOP lawmaker-only call, following the U.S. and Israel’s joint strikes on Iran.

Rep. Derrick Van Orden, R-Wis., was among those pushing the House to reject any bills from the Senate until the measure was taken up, telling Speaker Mike Johnson, according to multiple sources on the call, “If we don’t get this done, or at least show that we’ve got some backbone, we’re done. The midterms are over.”

Alex Miller is a writer for Fox News Digital covering the U.S. Senate.

Elizabeth Elkind is a politics editor for Fox News Digital. Story tips can be sent to elizabeth.elkind@fox.com and on Twitter @elizabeth_elkind.

https://www.foxnews.com/video/6390997291112

Trump hosting big White House event around EPA’s biofuels mandates decision

Updated on: March 17, 2026 / 7:44 AM EDT / CBS News

President Trump has invited farmers and biofuels producers to the White House for a big event next week as the industry awaits the government’s announcement on mandates for the fuel additives.

The “celebration of agriculture” event is scheduled for March 27 on the White House South Lawn, sources familiar with the planning told CBS News.

The invitation said: “Later this month, following National Agriculture Week, President Trump plans to host hundreds of farmers and ranchers from around the country on the South Lawn to shine a spotlight on the men and women growing our food, fiber, and fuel.”

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s decision on biofuels is expected around the end of March.

The renewable volume obligations, or RVOs, mandate how much biofuel, such as corn-based ethanol and biodiesel, must be blended into the nation’s fuel supply.

Next week’s meeting could have an impact on the markets amid speculation on the RVO decision coming later this month.

The event comes as the White House and broader Republican Party works to keep key elements of its coalition — the agricultural industry and farming families — on board ahead of the midterm elections, including expensive contests in farming states Georgia, Iowa, Montana, North Carolina, and Texas, where House and Senate races will require strong GOP turnout. But farming communities nationwide have been adversely affected by the president’s tariff policy, as global trading partners scaled back agricultural purchases like soybeans in retaliation for higher levees.

The administration also decided to allow the up to 80,000 metric tons of low-tariff, lower-quality beef from Argentina to be imported to help keep grocery prices down, angering cattle ranchers who argue the decision will hurt domestic production and sales.

White House spokespeople didn’t immediately comment.

中国外交部称中美就特朗普访华时间保持沟通 | 联合早报

发布/2026年3月17日 16:15

中国外交部称中美就特朗普访华时间保持沟通

美国总统特朗普（左）星期一（3月16日）受访时说，为处理中东战事，他已向中国国家主席习近平（右）表明希望推迟访华行程约一个月。图为两人去年10月在韩国釜山元首峰会后继续交谈。 （路透社档案照）

美国总统特朗普接连两天受访时表示，将推迟访华行程。中国外交部对此回应时称，中美就总统特朗普访华事宜保持着沟通。

美国全国广播公司（NBC）记者星期二（3月17日）在中国外交部例行记者会上提问，美国官员在何时首次提出推迟或延后两国元首会晤？此外，是否有其他国家元首曾提出过这类延期请求？鉴于这类高层互访通常涉及大量筹备工作，重新安排这次访问的时间表是怎样的？

中国外交部发言人林剑应询时说，“中美双方就特朗普总统访华时间等问题保持着沟通。目前我没有可以进一步提供的信息。”

NBC记者追问中美就特朗普访华事宜保持沟通，能否透露沟通了哪些日期？林剑称，“我没有可以进一步提供的信息”。

针对此前有报道指，特朗普称如果中国不在霍尔木兹海峡护航问题上提供协助，他将推迟访华，林剑回应询问时说，“我们注意到，美方已就媒体的不实报道公开作出澄清，表示有关报道是完全错误的，强调访问与霍尔木兹海峡通航问题无关。”

特朗普星期天（15日）接受英国《金融时报》访问时首次暗示美中元首峰会可能推迟，他指出最终决定可能取决于中国是否会协助重开霍尔木兹海峡。

美国财政部长贝森特过后说，习特会若真的推迟，不会是因为中方拒绝促使海峡重开。

特朗普星期一（16日）在白宫对记者说，为处理中东战事，他已向中国国家主席习近平要求推迟访华行程约一个月。

在中东战事发生前，特朗普一直表明期待访华。根据美方计划，特朗普将于3月31日至4月2日访问中国。

消息：伊朗最高领袖态度强硬拒和谈 | 联合早报

发布/2026年3月17日 19:26

一名伊朗高级官员星期二（3月17日）称，最高领导人穆杰塔巴在首次外交政策会议上对美国和以色列的报复立场“非常强硬和严肃”，但他并未说明穆杰塔巴是否亲自出席了会议。 （法新社档案照片）

一名伊朗高级官员说，伊朗最高领导人穆杰塔巴拒绝两个中间国家提出缓和紧张局势或与美国停火的提议。

路透社报道，这名官员星期二（3月17日）称，穆杰塔巴在首次外交政策会议上对美国和以色列的报复立场“非常强硬和严肃”，但他并未说明穆杰塔巴是否亲自出席了会议。

另一名高级官员说，穆杰塔巴曾说过，“只有美国和以色列屈服、接受战败并支付赔偿金，才是实现和平的合适时机”。

3月14日，三名消息人士告诉路透社，美国总统特朗普政府拒绝中东盟友提出的旨在结束伊朗战争的外交谈判。

美以对伊战争已进入第三周，造成至少2000人死亡，且看不到缓和迹象。霍尔木兹海峡仍然基本封闭，美国盟友拒绝协助重新开放这条关键水道的请求，导致能源价格上涨，并引发人们对通货膨胀的担忧。

伊朗红新月会：战争爆发以来逾4万民用设施遭到袭击

发布时间：2026年3月17日19:53 / 来源：联合早报

3月16日，伊朗首都德黑兰一栋住宅楼遇袭倒塌，救援人员到场展开救援工作。（路透社）

伊朗红新月会国际事务副主席阿利什万迪说，自2月28日美国和以色列对伊朗发动军事打击以来，已有4万6370处民用设施遭到袭击。

阿利什万迪日前接受新华社采访时说，其中2万9146处是位于伊朗各省的住宅，近1万处位于首都德黑兰。

阿利什万迪说，袭击也涉及医疗和教育机构，而伊朗红新月会的17个中心遭到破坏，该协会的一架救援直升机也遇袭摧毁，另有10名伊朗红新月会工作人员受伤，一人死亡。

另外，美以对教育机构的袭击已造成206人死亡，154人受伤。

阿利什万迪说，伊朗红新月会每天都会记录美国和以色列违反国际人道主义法的证据，“在武装冲突中，不应袭击平民，例如儿童、学生和老人，以及包括住宅和学校在内的目标”。

他说，该协会随时准备接受国际人道主义援助，包括供应不足的药品、医疗用品和设备等。

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Democrats like Markwayne Mullin but that doesn’t mean they’ll vote for him for DHS secretary

Published Mar 17, 2026, 4:00 AM ET | CNN Politics

By [Lauren Fox], [Sarah Ferris], [Priscilla Alvarez]

4 hr ago

Democratic Sen. John Fetterman gestures to Republican Sen. Markwayne Mullin as they stand in an elevator during a vote at the US Capitol on March 12, 2026.

Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images

In his early days in Congress, Markwayne Mullin tried pairing his suit jacket and tie with a pair of jeans on the House floor. Then-House Speaker John Boehner reprimanded the young Republican for breaking the dress code.

He might have come to Washington dressing as an outlier, but the 48-year-old – who still wears his cowboy hat on occasion to preside over the Senate floor – has learned a lot since.

Since coming to Washington in 2013, Mullin has built a brand on Capitol Hill as a straight-talking, former MMA fighter who is the rare partisan warrior who can tout White House talking points on Fox News and then sit down to cut the occasional deals with Democrats. The affable Oklahoman has spent decades building strong connections across both chambers in the US Capitol – which eventually helped catapult him into the president’s inner circle.

Now, Mullin is nominated to serve as President Donald Trump’s secretary of Homeland Security, a post that will require him to execute the president’s signature campaign promise on immigration, which has turned into one of the party’s biggest political liabilities heading into the midterms. He is also about to test just how much he can keep his outsider bona fides while doing Trump’s bidding.

Mullin will sit before the Senate Homeland Security Committee Wednesday, just two weeks after he was suddenly tapped for the post and more than a month into a partisan government shutdown of the very agency that – if confirmed – he would run.

Now on the other side of the dais, Mullin is expected to face a grilling from Senate Democrats – some of whom have years-long friendships with him but are under intense pressure to oppose him amid the fractious immigration politics of this moment.

“There is a long tradition that senators nominated for Cabinet positions get confirmed. This is a highly charged post in an administration that has violated law, tradition, ethics and the Constitution in how they’ve carried out immigration enforcement,” Sen. Chris Coons, a Democrat from Delaware told CNN. “Markwayne, although well-liked, will face a higher bar because of the job and the president, not because of Markwayne.”

House Speaker John Boehner of Ohio performs a mock swearing in for Rep. Markwayne Mullin, on January 3, 2013.

Charles Dharapak/AP/File

Mullin has, in some ways, come to embody Trump’s populist message. He dropped out of college to take over his family’s plumbing business when his dad got sick, later earning his associates degree.

But he’s also proven a shrewd politician. Mullin aligned himself not only with Trump but other key leaders, forging a friendship with then-Speaker Kevin McCarthy and then advocating doggedly for South Dakota Republican Sen. John Thune in his bid for Senate majority leader.

Despite his sometimes-bombastic style, many Democrats argue it’s hard not to get along with Mullin, who now administers the Senate’s famed candy desk where members of both parties can stop by for a sweet treat (Mullin, a fitness enthusiast, is frequently seen hauling giant bags of candy to the chamber floor).

Already, several Democrats have signaled they won’t vote for him. They argue changing leadership at DHS – a department with more than 260,000 employees – will do little to reshape the direction of the agency, especially as many perceive top White House aide Stephen Miller and border czar Tom Homan as driving much of the administration’s enforcement actions across the country.

“Mullin is not the problem,” Sen. Ruben Gallego, a Democrat from Arizona said. “The problem is I am not sure Mullin is going to be in charge.”

Mullin never served on a committee with broad jurisdiction on immigration policy, but the Trump confidant and regular television surrogate has repeatedly echoed the administration’s talking points, saying on Fox News in the aftermath of the fatal shooting of Alex Pretti in Minneapolis that the ICU nurse had been a “deranged individual” who “came in to cause max damage with a loaded pistol.”

Other Democrats are looking for Mullin to break with Trump in a way that would give them a reason to vote for him, something that is inherently unlikely for a lawmaker who has built his brand in the US Capitol as being in lockstep with the president.

Mullin, for example, was among a small group of House members on the floor on January 6, 2021, who blocked the chamber door as pro-Trump rioters entered the building. That night – as many derided Trump’s attempts at challenging the election as having gone too far – Mullin voted to overturn the results of the 2020 election that Joe Biden had won the presidency.

Mullin, colleagues say, is in closer touch with the president than almost any other rank-and-file member. Rep. Dusty Johnson, a Republican from South Dakota who was taken under Mullin’s wing when he was first elected to the House, can personally recall a few dinners where Mullin has left the table to take a call from Trump.

It’s the lawmaker’s self-deprecating humor, practicality and natural instincts as a communicator that have served him well in Trump’s Washington, Johnson said.

“If you are looking for the smooth politician who always says the safe thing, Markwayne is not your guy,” Johnson said. “He is entirely and wholly authentic. He doesn’t put on a lot of airs. He is not hiding behind some screen of what he thinks you want him to be. You can take or leave Markwayne Mullin as he is.”

Sen. Markwayne Mullin arrives to the weekly Senate Republican policy luncheon at the US Capitol on January 28, 2026.

Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images/File

The fighter

New Jersey Democrat Josh Gottheimer had just gotten to Congress in 2017 when his buddy, then-Massachusetts Rep. Joe Kennedy, invited him to join a workout group in the House gym.

He met the mixed-martial arts fighter and former wrestler who was running the group and, as Gottheimer remembers it, “kicking my a**.”

A few days later, Gottheimer was on the House floor when he noticed Mullin a few feet away, wearing a suit and tie. He turned to Kennedy, and it was only then that he realized the hardcore workout leader was a member of Congress.

That famously intense group – with a warmup alone that includes 120 pushups, 30 pull ups and 50 burpees – has continued for more than a decade.

In the halls of Congress, Mullin, colleagues say, is regularly in motion and can be seen bouncing a rubber ball as he goes from one meeting to another.

But it’s that same propensity for action that has sometimes landed Mullin in trouble.

During the State of the Union address last month, it was Mullin who tried deliberately to rip a protest sign from Democratic Rep. Al Green’s hands.

And in a 2023 Senate hearing, Mullin challenged the president of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters to a physical showdown, telling him to “stand your butt up,” before Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders interjected: “You are a United States senator.”

During the waning days of the conflict in Afghanistan in 2021, Mullin twice tried to get into the country in an effort to extract Americans there, a move that both Republican and Democratic leaders were against at the time.

Mullin’s instinct to take things into his own hands, colleagues say, can be abrupt and unusual on Capitol Hill, but may be useful at DHS.

“Markwayne just has a look you in the eye, commit and deliver sort of reputation around here and that is exactly what we need there,” North Carolina Republican Sen. Thom Tillis said. “I mean do you really believe if you know Markwayne, you’ve seen him walk around here, he’s really going to get bullied by any staff to move into positions he doesn’t want to? Absolutely not.”

Like the president, Mullin isn’t a big details guy or policy wonk, his colleagues say, but he does understand the politics of the moment and has become an unofficial liaison of sorts between the two chambers on Capitol Hill.

Last summer, he was instrumental in helping bridge a divide between the Senate GOP, the White House and blue-state Republicans in the House who wanted to raise the state and local tax deduction as part of the president’s signature domestic policy package. (It didn’t hurt that Mullin’s DC roommate is the House tax-writing chair, Missouri Rep. Jason Smith.)

More than one member CNN interviewed for this story remarked they had personally been invited to Mullin’s home for a meeting or a dinner.

“He’s a real dealmaker. He’s somebody who likes to get sh*t done,” Gottheimer said of his colleague who he worked closely with during the Biden administration to pass aid for Ukraine.

Even when faced with controversy, Mullin, whose financial disclosures show he is a multimillionaire, has leaned on his outsider credentials.

When the House Ethics Committee instructed Mullin in 2018 to pay back $40,000 to a family business, he argued it “only proves that you can no longer be a citizen legislator, you have to be a career politician to serve in Washington D.C.”

Ready for a reset at DHS

As the White House prepares Mullin for his hearing, multiple Homeland Security officials have described a shared feeling of cautious optimism with the selection after a tumultuous year under the direction of Secretary Kristi Noem.

While many officials are still getting acquainted with the senator, his positions and his management style, he’s perceived – in part due to his reputation in Congress – as a steadying hand, sources told CNN.

And Trump administration officials expect Noem’s departure will also usher in a new, more synchronized era between DHS and Homan, who rarely spoke with the current secretary.

“It’s an interesting choice, but DHS was in a bit of a rut, so it was probably a necessary change. It seems that he’s approaching it with an open mind, so we’re hopeful that he’ll be open to some new ideas and approaches,” said Chris Chmielenski, president of the Immigration Accountability Project, which advocates for limited immigration.

But despite change at the top, the policies at the core of Trump’s immigration agenda shepherded by Miller are expected to remain the same.

Mullin, after all, has long been a staunch supporter of Trump’s immigration crackdown, an issue expected to become central to Democrats’ calculation on whether to back his nomination.

Sen. Alex Padilla, a Democrat from California whose office is near Mullin’s, told CNN he already planned a meeting with Mullin to discuss what policy changes he might be open to making. But Padilla, who was forcefully removed from a Noem event in Los Angeles last year, had a sober take on how much Mullin would change the fabric of DHS.

“It’s not lost on me how close he is to Trump,” he said.

伊朗红新月会：战争爆发以来逾4万民用设施遭到袭击

2026年3月17日 19:53 / 联合早报

3月16日，伊朗首都德黑兰一栋住宅楼遇袭倒塌，救援人员到场展开救援工作。 （路透社）

伊朗红新月会国际事务副主席阿利什万迪说，自2月28日美国和以色列对伊朗发动军事打击以来，已有4万6370处民用设施遭到袭击。

阿利什万迪日前接受新华社采访时说，其中2万9146处是位于伊朗各省的住宅，近1万处位于首都德黑兰。

阿利什万迪说，袭击也涉及医疗和教育机构，而伊朗红新月会的17个中心遭到破坏，该协会的一架救援直升机也遇袭摧毁，另有10名伊朗红新月会工作人员受伤，一人死亡。

另外，美以对教育机构的袭击已造成206人死亡，154人受伤。

阿利什万迪说，伊朗红新月会每天都会记录美国和以色列违反国际人道主义法的证据，“在武装冲突中，不应袭击平民，例如儿童、学生和老人，以及包括住宅和学校在内的目标”。

他说，该协会随时准备接受国际人道主义援助，包括供应不足的药品、医疗用品和设备等。

GOP senator condemns Susan Rice for what appears to be threat of payback against Trump allies | Fox News

By Leo Briceno | Fox News
Published March 17, 2026 7:50am EDT

A former top official in the Biden and Obama administrations recently caused a stir after she appeared to vow political retribution against companies once Democrats regain control in Congress and the White House.

Sen. John Kennedy, R-La., last week condemned plans for political retribution he believes Democrats, such as Susan Rice, hope to enact when they regain power and argued that both parties should refrain from using government power to pressure their political opposition.

“What Ms. Rice is talking about is payback,” Kennedy said, referring to comments Rice, who served as Biden’s domestic policy council director, had made on a podcast last month.

In a media appearance Rice gave with Vox in February, she warned that companies that had aligned themselves with President Donald Trump’s priorities could face Democratic scorn down the road.

[THUNE WARNS DOJ’S PROBE OF FED CHAIR POWELL ‘BETTER BE REAL’ AND ‘SERIOUS’ AMID POLITICAL BACKLASH]

Sen. John Kennedy, R-La., listens during a Senate hearing in Washington, D.C. on Tuesday, Sept. 13, 2022.(Eric Lee/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

“I’m going to quote [her],” Kennedy said. “‘When it comes to the elites, you know, the corporate interests, the law firms, the universities, the media, it’s not going to end well for them.’”

In that podcast appearance, Rice promised that Democrats would not quickly forget their posture.

“They’re going to be held accountable by those who come in opposition to Trump and win at the ballot box,” Rice said.

“I think whether you’re a law firm, whether you’re a university, whether you’re a media entity, whether you’re a big corporation, whether you’re big tech, you need to play a long game, not this short game that has been so detrimental,” Rice added.

Kennedy said he found Rice’s comments troubling.

“What Ms. Rice seems to be saying is that it’s okay in America today to [use the law to prosecute] and harass your political enemies. I find that astounding coming from a person of her statue,” Kennedy said.

Rice, who in addition to her Biden administration role was former President Barack Obama’s ambassador to the United Nations, could not be reached for comment.

[WILL CHAMBERLAIN: HOW THE FBI TRAMPLED ATTORNEY-CLIENT PRIVILEGE TO HUNT TRUMP ALLIES]

U.S. Domestic Policy Advisor Susan Rice speaks during the daily press briefing at the White House in Washington, DC, on August 24, 2022.(Olivier Douliery/AFP/Getty Images)

Kennedy framed political retaliation as a practice that in recent years started under the Biden administration and, in particular, with then-Attorney General Merrick Garland, who launched probes of Trump while he was campaigning to recapture the presidency.

In 2021, Garland appointed Special Counsel Jack Smith to [investigate whether Trump had interfered] with a transfer of power after the 2020 election and whether Trump had mishandled classified information following his presidency.

Kennedy recalled thinking that Garland and Biden had set a new precedent they would regret.

“And I remember thinking at the time: They have unleashed spirits they cannot control,” Kennedy said.

Although he primarily focused on remarks from Democrats like Rice, Kennedy said he opposes continued political retaliation from across both parties, noting that [Trump has received his fair share] of accusations of weaponizing the government against political opponents.

[TRUMP INSISTS GOPERS ‘LOVE’ DOJ TARGETING JEROME POWELL, SAYS HE ‘CAN’T HELP’ IT IF IT LOOKS LIKE RETRIBUTION]

U.S. President Donald J. Trump sits at a table monitoring military operations during Operation Epic Fury against Iran, with U.S. flags visible behind him, in Washington, United States, on March 02, 2026.(The White House via X Account/Anadolu via Getty Images))

Trump has received criticism for investigations opened by his Department of Justice (DOJ) into figures like former national security advisor and Trump critic John Bolton, New York Attorney General Letitia James, who helped spearhead [prosecutions against Trump in New York,] and Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell, who has resisted policy changes Trump has pushed.

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“And I know some are going to say, well, ‘President Trump is doing the same thing.’ If that’s true, I don’t like that either,” Kennedy said.

“Two wrongs don’t make a right. It was wrong then when President Biden did it; it’s wrong now.”

Leo Briceno is a politics reporter for the congressional team at Fox News Digital. He was previously a reporter with World Magazine.

Blizzards, severe storms, heat wave hit U.S. with array of extreme weather

March 17, 2026 / 7:29 AM EDT / CBS/AP

From a surprising heatwave in California to blizzards burying parts of the Midwest and storms rolling over the East Coast, chaotic weather put more than half the nation’s population in the path of extreme conditions Monday.

Airport delays and cancellations piled up in some of the nation’s largest airports, with almost 13,000 flights canceled or delayed across the U.S., and many schools closed early in the mid-Atlantic states, where high winds were in the forecast.

On Tuesday, tracking service FlightAware said that as of 6 a.m., more than 2,100 flights had been canceled or delayed. In addition, travelers were facing jams at airport security checkpoints as a partial government shutdown continued to strain screener staffing.

Poweroutage.com said more than a half-million homes and businesses were in the dark early Tuesday, mainly in Michigan, Pennsylvania, New York and Massachusetts.

Dangerous weather threats from Hawaii to NYC

The private weather service AccuWeather calculated that more than 200 million people were under threat Monday of some kind of dangerous weather. Threats ranged from extreme heat and wildfire advisories in the West to flood and freeze watches from the National Weather Service.

Blizzard conditions continued in the Upper Midwest and Great Lakes on Monday after the storm walloped parts of Wisconsin and Michigan with several feet of snow. Since Saturday, nearly 3 feet had fallen in the northern Wisconsin town of Mountain.

The storm system that dropped snow by the foot in the Midwest, causing whiteout conditions in some areas, barreled toward the East Coast, dropping heavy rain, threatening high winds and prompting multiple tornado warnings.

Snow falls during a blizzard on March 16, 2026 in Madison, Wisconsin. Joe Timmerman/Wisconsin Watch via Getty Images

In Washington, the House and Senate postponed votes and federal agencies told workers to go home early. But by late afternoon, the expected rough weather had failed to develop and a tornado watch expired.

The biggest threat for severe weather stretched from New Jersey to Virginia.

In New York City, officials warned of the potential for swift wind gusts that could knock down tree limbs. Four people, including a child, died Monday afternoon in New York City after a fire in a three-story apartment building spread during heavy winds.

The National Weather Service confirmed four tornadoes in Missouri on Sunday that caused roof and tree damage. No injuries were reported.

Severe storms, including an FF0 tornado, uprooted trees and caused damage to several homes in Charlotte, North Carolina, on March 16, 2026. Peter Zay/Anadolu via Getty Images

Meanwhile, unrelenting rains triggered landslides, washed away roads and flooded homes and farmland in Hawaii over the weekend. All of Hawaii’s islands had spots with more than 15 inches of rain while parts of Maui were overwhelmed with double that amount, the weather service said.

Maui Mayor Richard Bissen said there were no reports of injuries or deaths and crews were assessing damage, as more heavy rain was expected later this week.

Heat dome to raise temperatures

A heat dome over the Southwest will push temperatures well into the triple digits in Arizona most of the week, much earlier than normal.

California is starting to feel like summer, too. The San Francisco Bay Area and Sacramento will see temperatures pushing toward 90 degrees by midweek.

“This is technically still winter,” L.A. Mayor Karen Bass said Monday. “This is not normal for March, obviously, but it is a sign of how climate change is impacting our city.”

While temperatures are expected to reach 100 degrees, the threat of wildfires around Los Angeles is relatively low because winds will be light.

Phoenix is expected to have five straight days of triple-digit temperatures this week — only once before, in 1988, has the city recorded a 100 degree day in March, DePodwin said.

“This is a heat wave that we have not seen before in recorded history in the Southwest,” said AccuWeather meteorologist Dan DePodwin.

Dry and windy conditions were charging the largest wildfire in Nebraska’s history. Three fires in the state have consumed more than 1,140 square miles of mostly grassland.

“Mother Nature is throwing a doozy at us,” Gov. Jim Pillen said Monday.

Cold weather in storms’ wake

Meanwhile, forecasters said the East Coast storms were expected to leave sharply colder weather in their wake.

A storm stuck around parts of the Northeast until Tuesday morning. Wind chills below freezing were expected to reach the Gulf Coast and the Florida Panhandle with warnings in effect across the Southeast and in parts of Arkansas, Oklahoma, Louisiana, and Texas, forecasters warned.

To the north, rain was expected to change over to snow behind the cold front with heavy snow possible in the central Appalachians of West Virginia.