Sanders pushes ‘death penalty’ for crucial US industry that could give advantage to foreign adversaries

2026-09-06T12:37:21-04:00 / Fox News

The proposed law would create a Cabinet-level agency authorized to physically destroy non-compliant tech systems

By Alec Schemmel Fox News

Published September 6, 2026 12:37pm EDT

Video: China on the AI march: AI giants sound alarm

Bridget Bean, former CISA executive director, warns that China is rapidly closing the A.I. gap, raising concerns about its ‘dystopian’ models and cyber-biological weapon risks. She stresses the importance of U.S. innovation and protecting advanced chip technology to maintain global leadership.

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Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., and Rep. Greg Casar, D-Texas, introduced legislation Thursday seeking to hit American artificial intelligence developers with a “corporate death penalty” and up to 20 years in prison— a move critics warn will hand a crucial edge in the global AI arms race to Beijing and Moscow.

The Ban Artificial Superintelligence Act would temporarily halt advanced AI development and establish a Cabinet-level federal agency authorized to oversee the physical destruction of non-compliant tech systems, likening advanced AI creation to the unlawful development of nuclear weapons. The measure explicitly targets systems capable of matching or exceeding human cognitive performance—specifically outlawing any AI model that exhibits the capacity to subvert shutdown commands, execute unauthorized cyberattacks, or undermine the U.S. government.

But while progressives frame the measure as an urgent check on “AI oligarchs,” experts are warning that imposing sweeping criminal penalties on U.S. firms will severely handicap domestic innovation, while foreign adversaries will be able to continue expanding their capabilities unchecked.

FETTERMAN ALIGNS WITH TRUMP ON AI PUSH, WARNS CHINA BENEFITS FROM US ‘OVERREACTION’

A newly proposed bill from progressive lawmakers seeks to ban the development of artificial superintelligence, threatening U.S. developers with extreme criminal penalties.(Oliver Berg/picture alliance via Getty Images)

“If the United States stops developing advanced AI, China is unlikely to follow. Surrendering the lead in a potentially transformative technology would carry serious economic and national security costs,” Daniel Castro, president of the Information Technology and Innovation Foundation (ITIF), a leading nonpartisan tech-innovation policy think tank, said in response to Sanders’ proposal.

“A permanent, unilateral ban on all research into superhuman AI is too broad,” added Gary Marcus, an AI expert who has testified on the matter before the U.S. Senate. He added that the proposed law was “a guarantee” the U.S. would be left behind when it comes to artificial intelligence advancements, describing it as “not the right approach,” even though he said there were some aspects of the proposed bill that were “defensible.”

REP. TED LIEU: AI IS ALREADY TOO POWERFUL. WE NEED A KILL SWITCH BEFORE DISASTER STRIKES

Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., speaks during a news conference on the impact of artificial intelligence on workers at the Hart Senate Office Building on April 16, 2026, in Washington, D.C.(Heather Diehl/Getty Images)

Under the provisions of the legislation, the proposed criminal and corporate penalties are modeled directly after existing federal statutes governing the unlawful development of nuclear weapons.

Tech companies found attempting to circumvent the federal prohibition would face a “corporate death penalty”—an unprecedented enforcement mechanism that strips a firm’s legal authority to conduct business in the United States. Individual software engineers, researchers or executives found in violation could face up to 20 years in federal prison.

DEM SENATOR PRESSES OPENAI, ANTHROPIC FOR ANSWERS IN AI HACKING PROBE

To enforce the ban, the legislation creates a new Cabinet-level federal AI agency tasked with monitoring frontier systems. The agency would be granted sweeping authority to intervene in tech operations, including physically supervising the removal of dangerous code and overseeing the physical destruction of non-compliant superintelligent hardware and infrastructure.

The bill also establishes criteria for what constitutes a banned system, specifically outlawing any AI model capable of planning or executing the “disempowerment of humanity.” That includes software that exhibits the capacity to overthrow the U.S. government, carry out unauthorized cyberattacks or ignore human shutdown commands.

CRACKDOWN ON CRITICAL TECH COULD OPEN AMERICANS TO A NEW NATIONAL SECURITY THREAT

Rep. Greg Casar, D-Texas, speaks during the news conference inside the U.S. Capitol on July 16, 2025.(Bill Clark/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)

Industry advocates, however, argue that resorting to extreme criminal sanctions ignores the practical realities of tech infrastructure and risk management.

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“Knee-jerk policymaking is never a good thing, and I think that’s exactly what this proposal boils down to,” said Aden Hizkias, associate policy director at Chamber of Progress, a tech industry coalition. “AI is an incredible tool that can improve millions of lives, but as AI skepticism grows, it’s on companies to earn trust and prove they are good neighbors. That means transparent construction agreements, bringing their own power generation, and making sure they’re meeting environmental standards.”

Fox News Digital reached out to Sanders’ office for comment regarding concerns that the legislation would hand an AI edge to foreign adversaries like China and Russia, but did not receive a response in time for publication.

Alec Schemmel is a Politics Reporter for Fox News Digital who is originally from Charlotte, North Carolina but now resides in the Washington D.C.-Baltimore Metro Area.

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Transcript: Energy Secretary Chris Wright on “Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan,” Sept. 6, 2026

2026-09-06T12:32:00-0400 / CBS News

The following is the transcript of the interview with Energy Secretary Chris Wright that aired on “Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan” on Sept. 6, 2026.

*

MARGARET BRENNAN: We begin today with the U.S. Secretary of Energy Chris Wright, who joins us from Denver. Mr. Secretary, it is Labor Day, and Secretary Bessent had predicted we’d see three-dollar gas by September 20th, depending on the Iran talks. Do you think we’re going to be back at three bucks in the next two weeks?

SECRETARY OF ENERGY CHRIS WRIGHT: Well, we’ve passed peak demand time with Labor Day tomorrow, the end of the summer driving season, and the Trump administration a couple weeks ago rolled out a change in regulations that’ll allow American refiners to produce more gasoline and diesel with their existing equipment. So, seeing demand likely go down in the next few weeks and supply going up, I think prices headed downward is- is not an unreasonable expectation.

MARGARET BRENNAN: What about the diesel fuel that trucks and trains rely so heavily on? We saw that record high price of $5.89 a gallon this week. Is for example, an export ban off the table?

SEC. WRIGHT: You want to keep as much energy flowing as possible. The diesel situation has been challenging because Russian refineries have suffered significant damage. Russia used to be a meaningful exporter of diesel. Today, today they don’t export any diesel, and in fact, they’ve become a meaningful importer of gasoline. So its global refining capacity is why gasoline and diesel prices are high, even more than oil prices. And this is- for 17 years, Democrat policies have been attack hydrocarbons, get as many refineries and coal plants closed. You could summarize their energy and climate policies in two words, expensive energy.

MARGARET BRENNAN: Well, you could also say Russia shouldn’t have invaded Ukraine, and then they’d still be able to export. But to the point of what you’re going to do about it, are you looking at an export ban?

SEC. WRIGHT: We consider all options of how you can move prices that are favorable for American consumers, but right now we’re leaning in on maximum production, energy addition. Again, in gasoline, in diesel, in the electricity sector, the way to solve a supply shortage is to grow supply.

MARGARET BRENNAN: Okay, I want to ask you about Iran. You were on another network this morning, and you said the U.S. may not reach a nuclear deal with this current Iranian government and may have to wait for a new regime. If that is the current assessment, should the American people prepare themselves that the new normal will be these, for example, strikes like we saw just two days ago on Iranian oil tankers. Are you shutting down diplomatic outreach?

SEC. WRIGHT: No, we are always open for a deal. That’s President Trump’s goal is always to have a negotiated settlement and not use a military solution unless absolutely necessary, but the biggest role of our military in the region right now is to stop the export of any Iranian crude or crude-related products, natural gas, whatever. We are strangling their economy to try to bring either a change in policy from the existing regime or a new regime, their current strategy is- is slowly failing for them. Our exports of oil through the Strait of Hormuz are at the highest they’ve been since the conflict started, but they’re still causing trouble. But what we can do is add supply in Alaska, in the Gulf, in Venezuela, everywhere we can, and continue to grow the rate of exports from the Middle East as well.

MARGARET BRENNAN: but I mean to that point, Secretary Bessent said something like the Strait of Hormuz will be irrelevant in two years. It takes time to build pipelines to avoid the strait. How do you go from $90 a barrel now back to where we were pre-war, like 50 buck range? How quickly?

SEC. WRIGHT: You know that’s that’s as as soon as we can get barriers out of the way to grow production. Venezuelan production is well ahead of schedule. 50% growth in oil exports in the eight months we’ve been involved-that’s pretty tremendous. Alaska has been sanctioned more than Iran by Democratic politicians. We’ve got to unleash Alaska, and that’s happening. The Gulf of America has enormous oil and gas reserves there; those are growing as well. And of course, we’re in constant dialogue with the Canadians, our neighbors to the north. They’ve got huge room to expand oil production capacity. So we’re trying to center the world on bettering people’s lives and economic growth in the long run. Every month, production is growing. Every month, production is growing.

MARGARET BRENNAN: You you mentioned–

SEC. WRIGHT: Refineries is a bigger challenge.

MARGARET BRENNAN: Yeah, you mentioned Venezuela a few times there, sorry, go ahead.

SEC. WRIGHT: Go ahead, Margaret. Go ahead.

MARGARET BRENNAN: This is the problem with remote. We’d love having you in studio, so we don’t step on each other. I apologize there. You mentioned Venezuela a few times. How is U.S. investment in Venezuelan oil production consistent with American energy dominance and independence?

SEC. WRIGHT: Well, first of all, it’s the Western Hemisphere, it’s Americas, and the great thing about this deal, the United States did no cost, zero cost to American taxpayers, but we’re going- to we’re going to get massive amounts of discounted oil price and ownership interest in some production there. But it’s a win for Venezuela as well because it helps the investment climate to draw more and more foreign capital in, mostly American capital, but from elsewhere around the world, to grow their production, lift the incomes and job opportunities for Venezuelans, and lower energy prices for the United States-a classic win-win business deal.

MARGARET BRENNAN: But is it really sustainable if the deal is with an unelected and arguably illegitimate government that has not committed to holding elections, which the U.S. says are a priority. How can you instill confidence when it’s a deal with Delcy Rodríguez?

SEC. WRIGHT: There will be elections, of course. Those are coming, but this is a win-win deal.

MARGARET BRENNAN–When?–

SEC. WRIGHT: Any government that took power in Venezuela would say, “wow, we’re going to draw more capital, grow our production, increase jobs and tax revenues in Venezuela, and tighten our relationship with the United States.” That’s a pretty big win. I don’t think it’s that dependent upon which government is in power on whether that deal is a win. So there’s also a lot of refining capacity in Venezuela that we will see investment to drive that back up. Under President Biden, we had over a dozen refineries closed in the United States, and Gavin Newsom doubled down and strangled two more refineries in California in the last 12 months. Okay, that’s the way to expensive energy in the long term, not just during a conflict.

MARGARET BRENNAN: But just to button that up, you said there will be elections. Do you have a timeline for that? Does this deal with the current government make it impossible, for example, for María Corina Machado, person who won- party won the last election, to actually return for democracy to return?

SEC. WRIGHT: Oh, there are dialogues going on right now between the former leaders of the parliament, the election that was the last sort of fair election in 2015. The opposition leaders that fled the country are back in the country meeting with the existing powers. You need to get secure voter rolls. You need to have rule of law, we need to release the political prisoners and get the conditions for free and fair elections. But those are coming.

MARGARET BRENNAN: Okay, but no time frame on that. Okay, I’m told by the producer that we are going to have to leave it there. Secretary Wright, thank you, and we do hope to have you in person again so that we’re not stepping on each other. Face the Nation will be back in a minute. Stay with us.

Former Cuban President Raúl Castro appears at military event after hospitalization

September 6, 2026 / 2:39 PM EDT / CBS/AP

Former Cuban President Raúl Castro appeared at a military event on Saturday, marking his first public appearance since he was hospitalized for what was reportedly a serious illness. The military event was held to celebrate the anniversary of an army branch responsible for protecting its top leaders.

Cuban state television aired more than 10 minutes of footage Saturday night that showed Castro, 95, in his traditional olive-green military uniform, alongside his bodyguard and grandson, Raúl Guillermo Rodríguez Castro. The former leader’s previous public appearance was on Aug. 13.

The broadcast also reported that Castro’s grandson had participated earlier this year in talks with the United States, which has imposed an oil and financial blockade on the island since January. The talks have since halted, while sanctions have increased in recent months.

Authorities from both nations have acknowledged that talks took place following the energy blockade, but there is neither an agenda nor any leaked details regarding these conversations.

The former president, who no longer holds any formal position in government or in the island’s Communist Party, rarely appears in public. Rumors regarding his health have recently circulated, even more so since his first absence in decades from a July rally marking the anniversary of the Cuban revolution’s biggest celebration.

Last week, reports that Castro had been hospitalized for a grave illness began to surface, drawing strong reactions from Cuban exiles and others in South Florida, CBS Miami reported. The Cuban government didn’t confirm the illness, which was reported by the Miami-based newspaper Diario Las Américas, citing a source close to Castro in Cuba.

In June, the U.S. Department of Justice filed murder charges against the veteran leader in connection with the 1996 downing of light aircraft that belonged to an anti-Castro organization. The planes had entered Cuban airspace as part of a campaign to tighten various sanctions and apply pressure for change in the island’s political system.

Cuban TV on Saturday showed Castro walking alongside high-ranking military officials and taking a seat in the front row of an indoor venue. He stood up on several occasions to receive a commemorative certificate and greet attendees.

“It is an honor to participate alongside Army General (Raúl Castro) in the ceremony marking the 65th anniversary of the Personal Security Directorate. An agency with origins dating back well before September 6, 1961, to the days of the revolutionary struggle led by the Commander-in-Chief (Fidel Castro),” President Miguel Díaz-Canel wrote on X on Sunday morning.

His post included several photos from the event showing him together with Raúl Castro.

The U.S. energy blockade has exacerbated a five-year crisis and had a significant impact on the Caribbean nation’s population and economy, including blackouts lasting over 30 hours.

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Trump admin’s mail-in ballot fight lands back at Supreme Court

September 6, 2026 2:19pm EDT / Fox News

Solicitor General John Sauer warned that ballots already entering the mail in North Carolina cannot be retrieved

By Stephen Sorace, Fox News

States sue USPS over mail-in voting rules ahead of midterms

Fox News legal editor Kerri Urbahn joins ‘Fox & Friends’ to analyze lawsuits filed by 24 states and Washington, D.C. against the United States Postal Service regarding mail-in voting rules. Urbahn breaks down the Supreme Court decision and details agency rules requiring barcodes on mail-in ballots.

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The Trump administration filed a new appeal with the Supreme Court on Sunday seeking to enforce restrictions on mail ballots, as the ballots begin entering states across the country ahead of the midterm elections.

The filing asks the high court to stay a preliminary injunction issued Friday by U.S. District Court Judge Indira Talwani that prevents the U.S. Postal Service from enforcing several requirements for ballot mail in the November elections.

“Ballots have already begun to be mailed in North Carolina, and more States will begin the mailing process as the injunction remains in place — including Alabama on September 9 and at least five States the week of September 13,” Solicitor General John Sauer wrote.

FEDERAL JUDGE AGAIN BLOCKS TRUMP’S MAIL BALLOT ORDER JUST BEFORE MIDTERMS

Envelopes for mail-in ballots at the Wake County Board of Elections are seen on Thursday, Sept. 3, 2026, in Raleigh, N.C.(AP Photo/Matt Ramey)

“Once those ballot envelopes enter the mailstream, there is no retrieving them,” he added.

Sauer argued that allowing the injunction to remain in place risks “sowing confusion and chaos” as more states begin mailing ballots because preparations to comply with the Postal Service rule remain voluntary rather than mandatory.

The administration maintains the rule is “a lawful and modest exercise of rulemaking authority delegated by Congress to the Postal Service” and “regulates the U.S. Mail, not federal elections.”

Wake County Board of Elections employees prepare absentee ballots to be mailed on Thursday, Sept. 3, 2026, in Raleigh, N.C.(AP Photo/Matt Ramey)

The rule requires federal election ballots sent through the mail to use envelopes that include the official Election Mail logo, meet automation requirements and carry unique barcodes, according to the filing. State election officials would also have to submit envelope designs for review and provide the Postal Service with information about intended ballot recipients.

The administration says the requirements are intended to improve the handling and delivery of ballot mail and protect the mail system from being used to facilitate voter fraud.

MAIL-VOTING CRACKDOWN MOVES AHEAD AS TRUMP COURT WIN OPENS DOOR TO FEDERAL ACTION

The rule would not give the Postal Service authority to determine who is eligible to vote by mail or whether ballots should be counted, responsibilities that would remain with state and local election officials.

Democratic-led states and voting rights groups challenging the restrictions contend the changes are unconstitutional, while election officials have argued there is not enough time to revise their systems to comply before November.

A large box of pre-assembled mail-in ballots at the Wake County Board of Elections on Thursday, Sept. 3, 2026, in Raleigh, N.C.(AP Photo/Matt Ramey)

The administration disputes those arguments, saying Congress gave the Postal Service broad authority to regulate the handling and delivery of mail and that the rule does not dictate ballot content, determine voter eligibility, establish election deadlines or govern how ballots are counted.

The filing marks the third time the administration has asked the Supreme Court to intervene in the dispute. The high court previously allowed the administration’s plan to move forward but has not ruled on whether the restrictions themselves are legal.

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The battle could have major ramifications for the November elections, when control of Congress is at stake. Nearly one-third of U.S. voters cast ballots by mail.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

After ‘Lake America,’ Trump suggests a new name for the state of New Mexico

September 6, 2026 3:44pm EDT / Fox News

The post follows executive orders renaming Lake Ontario as ‘Lake America’ and the Gulf of Mexico as the ‘Gulf of America’

By Amanda Macias Fox News

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The White House on Sunday amplified President Donald Trump’s call to rebrand New Mexico as “New America,” reposting an image from the president’s Truth Social account showing the state’s name crossed out and replaced with “America.”

Trump’s original post featured a map of the Southwestern state with the word “Mexico” crossed out in bright red and replaced with “America,” effectively depicting it as “New America.”

TRUMP RENAMES LAKE ONTARIO ‘LAKE AMERICA’ AMID INTENSIFYING US-CANADA TRADE DISPUTE

The White House later shared the image on its verified X account. Neither post included an explanation or indicated whether it reflected an actual policy proposal.

The post comes just days after Trump signed an executive order renaming Lake Ontario “Lake America” for U.S. federal use. The executive order followed a series of tariff disputes between Washington and Ottawa.

Trump said he directed Interior Secretary Doug Burgum and the department to update the Geographic Names Information System to reflect the name change. Google and Apple later updated their maps for U.S. users to reflect the change.

MAJORITY OF AMERICANS REJECT TRUMP’S RENAMING OF LAKE ONTARIO TO ‘LAKE AMERICA,’ POLL FINDS

President Donald Trump signs an executive order to rename Lake Ontario as “Lake America” during an event in the Oval Office of the White House on Thursday.(Getty Images)

Trump also signed an executive order renaming the Gulf of Mexico the “Gulf of America” early in his second term.

Unlike lakes and other geographic features that can be renamed for federal use through executive action, a president cannot unilaterally rename a U.S. state. Trump and the White House have not announced any formal effort to change New Mexico’s name.

The name “New Mexico” predates the state by centuries. Spanish explorers began using “Nuevo México” in the late 1500s. The territory kept the name after becoming part of the United States in 1848 and later achieved statehood on Jan. 6, 1912.

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President Donald Trump posted a map showing New Mexico relabeled as “New America.” The White House later reposted the image on X.(Al Drago/Getty Images)

The White House and the Office of New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s requests for comment.

Amanda Macias covers the intersection of business, economics and politics, with a focus on how policy decisions shape markets, businesses and American workers.

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Mamdani under fire after symbolic 9/11 pen goes to former al Qaeda defense lawyer

Chief counsel Ramzi Kassem previously represented Guantanamo detainee Ahmed al-Darbi, brother-in-law of a Flight 77 hijacker

September 6, 2026 12:07pm EDT / Fox News

9/11 families are calling for NYC Mayor Mamdani to be banned from the 25th-anniversary ceremony in September. Giovanni Galante, who lost his wife Grace, organized a petition citing Mamdani’s public record and alleged minimization of 9/11 attacks.

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New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani is facing backlash after giving a ceremonial pen from a 9/11 remembrance ceremony to a top aide who once represented a convicted al Qaeda member whose brother-in-law hijacked the plane that struck the Pentagon.

Mamdani signed executive orders Friday ahead of the 25th anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks, designating the date a citywide day of remembrance and service and strengthening efforts to prevent future terrorist threats.

After signing the final order, Mamdani handed the pen to NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch and asked her to pass it to chief counsel Ramzi Kassem. Kassem previously represented Ahmed al-Darbi, who pleaded guilty to war-crime charges tied to al Qaeda plots against commercial ships and was the brother-in-law of Khalid al-Mihdhar, one of the hijackers aboard American Airlines Flight 77, which crashed into the Pentagon, killing 184.

MAMDANI FACES GROWING 9/11 BACKLASH AS OLD POST RESURFACES AHEAD OF GROUND ZERO CEREMONY: ‘IS THIS REAL?’

NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch hands a ceremonial pen to Ramzi Kassem, who once represented a convicted al Qaeda member tied to a 9/11 hijacker.(NYC Office of the Mayor)

The handoff drew criticism on social media, with users arguing on X that Kassem’s role in the ceremony distracted from an event meant to honor those killed in the attacks and the first responders who died trying to save them.

“This is a slap in the face to victims ahead of the 25th anniversary of 9/11,” wrote podcaster Benny Johnson on X.

FLASHBACK: MAMDANI TORCHED FOR RECYCLING 9/11 TRIBUTES AFTER YEARS OF NEAR-IDENTICAL POSTS

Ramzi Kassem, Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s chief counsel, previously represented Guantánamo Bay detainee Ahmed al-Darbi.(Michael M. Santiago/Getty Image)

“I sincerely hope the rest of the country understands just how hard it is to be in New York City with this mayor, and especially as we’re approaching this most serious and solemn day for NYC: 9/11,” wrote former New York state Senate candidate Maria Danzilo.

Another user on X called it a “deliberate gesture by Mamdani that undermines 9 / 11 yet again with impunity.”

ACCUSED 9/11 MASTERMIND KHALID SHEIKH MOHAMMED, 3 CO-DEFENDANTS SET FOR 2028 TRIAL

City Hall told the New York Post that Kassem attended the ceremony because he and his team drafted both executive orders as part of his duties as chief counsel.

That role has drawn scrutiny because Kassem previously represented Ahmed al-Darbi, a Guantánamo Bay detainee who pleaded guilty to war-crime charges tied to al Qaeda plots against commercial ships, including the 2002 bombing of a French oil tanker off Yemen’s coast. Al-Darbi’s sister was married to Khalid al-Mihdhar, one of the hijackers aboard the plane that crashed into the Pentagon on Sept. 11, 2001.

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Ahmed al-Darbi, whom Kassem represented, was held at the U.S. military prison at Guantánamo Bay after being charged in connection with al Qaeda maritime terror plots.(AFP/Getty Images)

Kassem also founded a CUNY legal clinic that provides free representation to Muslims and represented Mahmoud Khalil, a leader of the pro-Palestinian encampment at Columbia University who was detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

Mamdani’s office did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.

Amanda Macias covers the intersection of business, economics and politics, with a focus on how policy decisions shape markets, businesses and American workers.

US-backed effort to disarm Iraq’s Iran-linked militias hits setback, experts say

2026-09-06 2:10pm EDT / Fox News

New Iraqi Prime Minister Al-Zaidi met President Trump earlier this summer at the White House

By Benjamin Weinthal Fox News

Published September 6, 2026 2:10pm EDT

Trump says US no longer needs troops in Iraq

President Donald Trump says Iraq is ready to stand on its own without U.S. troops, while Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi says armed groups outside state control will have “no justification” after the coalition mission ends.

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The Trump administration’s push to compel the new Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi to dismantle pro-Iran terrorist militias is moving forward — even with some setbacks.

As Mideast experts are taking a wait-and-see approach tinged with mild optimism, a senior Iraqi official announced in late August that Baghdad will not treat Sept. 30 as a deadline to disarm the pro-Iran groups known as the Popular Mobilization Units (PMU), also called the Popular Mobilization Forces.

The Iraqi government is seeking to exercise control over the rogue state-affiliated militias with a strategy to integrate them into the state apparatus. The radical Iraqi Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr, who leads Saraya al-Salam armed group, said in May that he favored integration. Some of the more hardline pro-Iranian regime militias, like Kataeb Hezbollah and Harakat Hezbollah al-Nujaba, declared that they will not disarm or integrate into the state.

The official, Qasim al-Araji, security advisor to the prime minister, told Al Iraqiya on Aug. 23, “Sept. 30 is the date for the international coalition to depart, not the deadline to hand over weapons.” The international coalition is the U.S.-led force that defeated the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria during President Trump’s first term. It is unclear why Iraq’s government is walking back the disarmament deadline for the PMU.

IRAN’S WAR ON AMERICANS BEGAN DECADES AGO. THESE FAMILIES STILL CARRY THE SCARS

President Donald Trump gestures toward Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi as they meet in the Oval Office at the White House, July 14, 2026.(Evan Vucci/Reuters)

A spokesman for the Iraqi embassy declined to comment on the mixed messaging from Iraq’s government and on the timetable for dissolving or integrating the PMU.

Just days before al-Araji’s announcement, a representative of the Iraqi government sent Fox News Digital a statement: “Prime Minister Ali Faleh Al-Zaidi: All political forces fully agree on moving forward with restricting weapons to state control, and work is underway on mechanisms for surrendering weapons and bringing this issue to a complete end.”

Al-Zaidi told the Baghdad Dialogue Conference at the same time that “all political forces agree on moving forward to ensure that all arms remain under state authority and on developing mechanisms for the handover of weapons. There are no intentions or prospects of any military confrontation, and we will not allow Iraq’s enemies to exploit any opportunity. The presence of weapons outside state authority creates an environment that discourages investment, which is unacceptable because it does not serve the interests of Iraqis.”

Members of the Islamic Movement of Iraq — a faction of the Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF) paramilitaries — gather during a rally to mark annual Quds (Jerusalem) Day commemorations in Baghdad on April 5, 2024.(Murtaj Lateef/AFP via Getty Images)

In May, the U.S. Treasury Department sanctioned Ali Maarij Al-Bahadly, Iraq’s deputy minister of oil, because he, according to the designation, “abuses his position to facilitate the diversion of oil to be sold for the benefit of the Iranian regime and its proxy militias in Iraq.” Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said at the time, “Like a rogue gang, the Iranian regime is pillaging resources that rightfully belong to the Iraqi people,” adding “Treasury will not stand idly by as Iran’s military exploits Iraqi oil to fund terrorism against the United States and our partners.”

In late August, the UAE’s The National paper reported that “Iraq’s anti-corruption body announced that deputy oil minister, Al-Bahadly, was sentenced to seven years in prison and fined millions of dollars for corruption.

Reacting to reports that Iran approved passage of Iraqi oil tankers via the Strait of Hormuz, Alberto Fernandez, former U.S. ambassador and Mideast analyst, claimed that “the profit from that Iraqi oil goes, in part, to pay for Iran’s own Iraqi militias/death squads on the Iraqi government’s payroll.”

An Iraqi government spokesman dismissed Fernandez’s comments, telling Fox News Digital, “That is not accurate.”

TRUMP’S COUNTERTERRORISM STRATEGY SCORES BIG WINS AGAINST GLOBAL TERROR THREATS

Demonstrators in Basra, Iraq, on Feb. 28, 2026, protest U.S. and Israeli strikes against Iran.(Haidar Mohammed Ali/Anadolu via Getty Images)

A State Department spokesperson told Fox News Digital, “Iraq has embarked on a new direction under the leadership of Prime Minister Al-Zaidi in full partnership with the United States. As President Trump made clear when he hosted Prime Minister Al-Zaidi’s historic July 14 visit, the United States strongly supports his vision to ensure a brighter future for all Iraqis free from terrorism, to prevent attacks in and from Iraqi territory, and to deliver a strong and mutually beneficial U.S.-Iraq partnership.”

Entifadh Qanbar, a former spokesman for the deputy prime minister of Iraq during the George W. Bush administration, told Fox News Digital: “We were all hoping that Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi would take decisive action against the militias, especially after his visit to the White House and the widespread praise he received from President Trump. I was always skeptical, very skeptical, but I believed he deserved a chance.”

Qanbar added, “Initially, some militias such as Asaib Ahl al-Haq and Kataib Imam Ali (sanctioned by the U.S.) merely issued statements claiming they would hand over their weapons. There has been no credible evidence that they have actually disarmed.”

IRAN’S GUTTED RANKS LEAVE LOYALISTS FILLING CRITICAL POSTS — WITH ONE GLARING PROBLEM

Esmail Qaani, commander of the IRGC Quds Force, participates in a religious ceremony in Tehran on June 13.(Anonymous/Middle East Images/AFP via Getty Images)

Qanbar claimed that “any remaining hope was further diminished after IRGC Islamic Republic Guard Corps Quds Force commander Esmail Qaani visited Baghdad. According to multiple reports, he instructed militia leaders to slow down any discussion of disarmament, reject the September 30 deadline, and maintain their weapons as part of Iran’s broader regional deterrence strategy.”

When asked about Iraqi state efforts to dismantle the PMU, Elizabeth Tsurkov, a senior non-resident fellow at the New Lines Institute in Washington, D.C., told Fox News Digital, “The Iraqi government is trying. It genuinely carried out some moves. Unfortunately, because the militias are extremely willing to use force against their own people, including against security forces, the government finds itself in a position of backing down in the face of these militias.”

She noted, “The militias have penetrated most state institutions… and you see repeated situations of the state backing down.” Kata’ib Hezbollah, an Iran-backed group designated by the U.S. as a terrorist organization, kidnapped Tsurkov in 2023 and held her hostage for nearly two years. The Trump administration secured her release in 2025.

The power of the PMU was demonstrated in a recent setback for the Iraqi government.

Masked Iran-backed Shi’ite fighters hold their weapons in Iraq’s Al Hadidiya, south of Tikrit, en route to the Islamic State-controlled al-Alam town, on March 6, 2015.(Reuters/Thaier Al-Sudani)

Both Qanbar and Tsurkov cited the case of the Iraqi Counter Terrorism Service (CTS), which arrested Abbas al-Yaqubi, the head of intelligence for the Popular Mobilization Forces’ Baghdad Belt Operations Command.

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A few days after al-Yaqubi’s arrest, he was transferred to the PMU intelligence branch. Qanbar said: “Al-Yaqubi has long been involved in violence against Iraqi activists, and many viewed his arrest as an important signal that the government was finally willing to confront powerful militia figures. What seemed like a significant step forward turned into a major setback.”

Benjamin Weinthal reports on Israel, Iran, Syria, Turkey and Europe. You can follow Benjamin on Twitter @BenWeinthal, and email him at benjamin.weinthal@fox.com

Trump admin renews Supreme Court ask to let mail ballot rule to take effect ahead of midterms

2026-09-06T16:18:21.530Z / CNN

President Donald Trump’s administration on Sunday again asked the Supreme Court to allow the US Postal Service plan for mail ballots to take effect immediately, a mostly procedural move that nonetheless underscores the president’s desire to restrict mail voting during the critical midterm elections.

In its emergency appeal, the Postal Service noted that mail ballots for the November midterms are already being sent in one state, North Carolina, and that other states will soon follow. The USPS asked the high court to quickly allow it to implement its rule, setting up one of the most significant election cases on the court’s quick-turn docket in years.

The Supreme Court was already considering an emergency appeal filed by the USPS on Sept. 3 that urged the justices to allow the agency to implement the new ballot rule ahead of the November elections that will determine which party controls Congress. In that appeal, the USPS asked the Supreme Court to stay a temporary restraining order from US District Judge Indira Talwani in Massachusetts that barred the agency from moving forward for two weeks.

On Friday, a day after the Justice Department filed that appeal, Talwani ruled again, handing down a preliminary injunction. That subsequent order blocked the USPS plan indefinitely. It is that second, indefinite block on the plan that the administration appealed to the Supreme Court on Sunday. Shortly after filing the second appeal on Sunday, the administration withdrew the first case.

In a letter to the court on Sunday, the Justice Department said it had filed the new appeal out of “an abundance of caution” and that it withdrew the first case “to simplify proceedings.”

For voters and states, the difference between the cases will make little or no difference.

The high court is being asked to rule with an extraordinarily quick timeline on an effort by the administration to give the USPS an unprecedented role in elections. North Carolina has already begun mailing out ballots. Alabama will begin doing so on Sept. 9. At least five additional states will begin mailing ballots on September 13, according to the Justice Department.

“Once those ballot envelopes enter the mailstream, there is no retrieving them,” the Justice Department told the Supreme Court in its filing on Sunday. “And while the injunction allows the Postal Service and the states to continue taking steps to ensure that their envelopes satisfy the rule’s requirements, each day the injunction is in place risks sowing confusion and chaos because the injunction makes those preparatory steps voluntary, rather than mandatory.”

The USPS rule would require state and local election officials to upload lists of their mail voters to a portal. It would also require election officials to use special barcodes on the envelopes to ease tracking of that mail. Many election officials have argued that it’s already too late to implement those requirements.

The administration has argued that the changes are needed to secure the ballots and ensure that only eligible voters receive one. But a coalition of 23 Democratic-led states and voting groups have described the effort as a power grab by a president who has long falsely alleged widespread voter fraud in mail ballot systems, even as he has frequently voted by mail himself.

“With fewer than 60 days to go before the November election, there is not a shred of evidence that states could comply with it without disenfranchising voters who rely on mail ballots,” said Sophia Lin Lakin, director of the Voting Rights Project at the ACLU, part of the legal team challenging the USPS proposal.

In the appeal on Sunday, Solicitor General D. John Sauer argued that, “Contrary to the claims of the district court and respondents that the Postal Service is trying to federalize the rules for mail-in voting, the Postal Service’s final rule imposes only modest envelope-design and addressee-information requirements for federal-election ballots sent via US mail.”

The Constitution empowers states and Congress to set the rules for elections, not the president nor the Postal Service. That was a point that Talwani stressed in her latest decision on Friday.

“The Constitution’s elections clause tasks the States with the role of election administration, subject only to Congress’s superseding legislation, and the executive has no inherent authority in this joint endeavor,” she wrote.

The new appeal is unlikely to change the timeline of the high-profile case very much. Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson, who handles emergency appeals rising from the Boston-based 1st US Circuit Court of Appeals, had required the states to respond to the first appeal on Tuesday. On Sunday, Jackson ordered the states and voting rights groups challenging the USPS to respond to the new appeal on Wednesday, instead.

This story has been updated to include new details.

House GOP conference chair says Rep. Max Miller is “our nominee right now” despite abuse allegations

September 6, 2026 / 3:02 PM EDT / CBS News

By Sophia Vlahakis News Associate

House Republican Conference Chair Lisa McClain said while she hopes abuse allegations against fellow GOP Rep. Max Miller are “not true,” she is supporting his reelection bid for a third term because “I will support anyone with an R behind their name.”

“At the end of the day, he’s our nominee right now,” the Michigan congresswoman said on “Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan.” “I wish the allegations weren’t true. “

McClain also said that “divorces are ugly,” but “at the end of the day, we got to let the process play out.”

“I’m focused on winning the House back, taking the House back, keeping the House because we are the only party that’s actually putting more money in your pocket, making sure that crime is down, securing the border, and rooting out waste, fraud, and abuse,” McClain said. “And Max Miller has been a good advocate for his constituents doing that.”

Despite numerous Republican lawmakers, including Sens. Katie Britt, Jim Banks and John Husted, calling on Miller to drop out, GOP leadership is standing by Miller with the midterms approaching. House Speaker Mike Johnson told reporters on Aug. 31, “He’s been a great member of Congress.”

The abuse allegations against Miller gained attention after his ex-wife, Emily Moreno, asked a court on July 30 to issue a restraining order that would prevent Miller from contacting her lawyers. Moreno, the daughter of GOP Sen. Bernie Moreno of Ohio, alleged Miller verbally and physically abused her and their two-year-old daughter.

She says the Ohio congressman once threw boiling water at her, pointed a gun at her and tossed her against a wall, as well as allegedly caused a clavicle fracture and bruise on their daughter.

Miller has denied the allegations. CBS News reached out to him on Sunday for comment as well.

“My former wife is engaging in a pattern of reporting incredible, serious and destructive allegations with absolutely no evidence,” Miller said in a livestream on Aug. 2. “Every single one of these allegations were already investigated, and I cooperated fully every single time because I had nothing to hide.”

In an effort to discredit the allegations, while also facing accusations from former White House press secretary Stephanie Grisham and a woman from high school, he released a Dropbox folder with documents to defend himself. That folder, however, appeared to include naked photos of his daughter, adding to the hostilities of the divorce and custody battle.

Sen. Moreno in August said his daughter “lives in constant fear of this man,” and he has to pick up his granddaughter at a police station for exchanges because he doesn’t know “what this guy’s capable of.” During one custody exchange, Moreno claimed his former son-in-law would not hand over a blue stuffed bunny and “literally held it hostage” from his daughter.

The senator said Miller “should not serve in the House of Representatives” and “needs serious psychological help.”

To avoid a special election primary in Ohio, Miller needed to withdraw by Aug. 4, and President Trump even called Miller a day before the deadline to raise concerns, a sources CBS News at the time.

Republicans hold a slim majority in the House, and the party in the White House has traditionally faced losses in midterm elections. The combination means Republicans must fight to retain every seat.

https://www.cbsnews.com/video/house-gop-conference-chair-says-max-miller-is-our-nominee-right-now-despite-abuse-allegations/

House GOP conference chair says Max Miller is “our nominee right now” despite abuse allegations

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