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Maverick Democratic Senator John Fetterman to appear by video at Trump’s Republican convention, reports say

2026-09-09T23:08:41.572Z / Reuters

By David Morgan

September 9, 2026 11:08 PM UTC Updated 12 mins ago

U.S. President Donald Trump disembarks Air Force One as he arrives at Dallas Fort Worth International Airport to attend the Republican National Midterm Convention, in Dallas, Texas, U.S., September 9, 2026. REUTERS/Evan Vucci

[1/3]U.S. President Donald Trump disembarks Air Force One as he arrives at Dallas Fort Worth International Airport to attend the Republican National Midterm Convention, in Dallas, Texas, U.S., September 9, 2026. REUTERS/Evan Vucci Purchase Licensing Rights, opens new tab

• Summary

• Democratic senator has broken with party on key issues
• Fetterman rejects speculation he could switch parties
• Republicans say they would welcome him to their party

Sept 9 (Reuters) – Democratic Senator John Fetterman, who has increasingly broken ​with fellow Democrats on issues including Israel, the Iran war and immigration, will make ‌a surprise video appearance at President Donald Trump’s Republican midterm convention in Dallas on Wednesday, Axios and the Wall Street Journal reported.

Fetterman’s office did not immediately respond to a Reuters query seeking comment on the media reports.

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The Journal said he ​would praise a bipartisan effort to bolster the steel industry and distance himself from his ​party’s left wing.

A first-term lawmaker with an unpredictable streak, the 57-year-old Fetterman was ⁠making his video appearance at the two-day event known informally as the “Trumpapalooza,” which Republicans hope will shore ​up their chances of maintaining control of the Senate and House of Representatives in November’s midterms.

Republicans hold ​a 53-47-seat Senate majority and have become increasingly vulnerable to Democratic gains in several swing states, according to independent political analysts.

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Fetterman has denied any plans to leave the party.

“I’m not going to be a Republican, but I’m going to be ​a Democrat that’s going to have a conversation with whoever is playing it straight,” Fetterman said in ​a recent interview with Fox News.

ECHOES OF MANCHIN, SINEMA?

Fetterman’s readiness to buck his party has drawn comparisons with former ‌Senators Joe ⁠Manchin and Kyrsten Sinema, Democratic centrists who became independents before leaving the Senate and repeatedly caused headaches for their party leaders during the first half of Democratic President Joe Biden’s term.

By contrast, Fetterman has not used his position to leverage concessions from party leaders or to shape legislation. Instead, Fetterman maintains that ​he votes for what ​he thinks is true.

Known ⁠for his towering frame and fondness for wearing hoodies and gym shorts on the Senate floor, Fetterman built a working-class image that helped propel him to ​victory in 2022. But that image has given way to open conflict ​with his party’s ⁠left flank.

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In a recent Fox News interview, he described the rise of activism in the Democratic Party as “an orgy of socialism.”

He has faced more intense hostility from party members in recent days, after a Wall Street ⁠Journal report ​in which former staff members and lawmakers claimed he had ​more interest in cultivating relationships with conservative commentators than in doing the job of senator. The Journal reported Fetterman did not ​respond to the paper’s several requests for comment.

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Reporting by David Morgan; Editing by Scott Malone and Howard Goller

Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Beauty school moms caught in accreditation crossfire as Trump administration weighs consequential decision

A federal advisory committee voted 9-3 to deny renewed recognition to NACCAS, putting student aid at risk

September 9, 2026 6:22pm EDT / Fox News

By Jasmine Baehr

Beauty school moms speak out as Trump administration weighs accreditor’s fate

Two Florida women say federal financial aid made cosmetology school possible as the Trump administration considers whether to continue recognizing an accreditor overseeing roughly 1,300 institutions and more than 120,000 students.

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The Trump administration is weighing the future of an accreditor overseeing roughly 1,300 beauty and cosmetology schools and more than 120,000 students, in a decision that could test how the president’s push to overhaul higher education accreditation is applied beyond the diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) battles that have dominated the issue.

President Donald Trump promised during the 2024 campaign to “fire the radical left accreditors” and called accreditation his “secret weapon” against colleges and universities he argued had been captured by the political left.

But the case now before the U.S. Department of Education (DOE) is different.

Rather than allegations involving DEI requirements, it centers on whether the National Accrediting Commission of Career Arts and Sciences, or NACCAS, has complied with federal requirements and what consequences should follow if it has not.

MCMAHON TELLS HOUSE PANEL TRUMP ADMIN MOVING TO DISMANTLE ‘FAILED’ $3T EDUCATION BUREAUCRACY

Many beauty and cosmetology schools may lose their official accreditations under a review underway at the U.S. Department of Education.(iStock)

That distinction matters to students because recognition by a DOE-approved accreditor is generally necessary for schools to participate in federal student aid programs. NACCAS says it accredits approximately 1,300 institutions serving more than 120,000 students in cosmetology, beauty and related career programs.

DOE staff identified deficiencies with NACCAS but recommended continuing its federal recognition with restrictions, additional reporting and monitoring while it works to come into compliance.

The National Advisory Committee on Institutional Quality and Integrity, or NACIQI, took a harder line at its July meeting, voting 9-3 to recommend that the department deny NACCAS renewed recognition.

TRUMP ADMIN TIGHTENS VISE ON STUDENT AID FRAUD IN ‘GHOST STUDENT’ CRACKDOWN

A cosmetology student practices a perm technique on a mannequin head in Reading, Pa.(MediaNews Group via Getty Images, File)

The DOE has not made a final decision.

The Department of Education told Fox News Digital that accreditor recognition is reviewed every five years through a three-step process: DOE staff makes a recommendation; the independent bipartisan NACIQI makes its own recommendation; a senior department official makes the final judgment based on both.

“We will not comment on details as the process is ongoing,” the DOE said.

For some students, the federal process has raised concerns about a source of funding they say they could not have attended beauty school without.

TRUMP ADMIN URGES RETURNING EDUCATION TO STATES, CITING $3 TRILLION OF TAXES SPENT AND POOR PROFICIENCY SCORES

A student watches an instructional video while sitting with mannequin heads used to practice cutting hair at a cosmetology school in Virginia.(AFP via Getty Images, File)

Aliyah Fernandez, a recent Hollywood Institute cosmetology graduate and mother who now works as an assistant in a salon, said federal aid made her education possible.

“I could not have afforded beauty school without federal financial aid,” Fernandez told Fox News Digital. “It was because of that that I could attend at all.”

Fernandez said she chose cosmetology in part because she wanted a career that would allow her to earn a living while remaining present in her daughter’s life.

“I knew that if I worked full-time 9 to 5, I wouldn’t barely have any time to see her grow up,” Fernandez said. “I really just wanted to be there for her.

“I wanted an opportunity to financially support her and be present in her life at the same time,” she added. “I wanted to have both.”

I’M A UNIVERSITY PRESIDENT; TRUMP IS RIGHT TO MAKE COLLEGES DELIVER FOR STUDENTS

A student works with color application on a mannequin head at the American Barber and Beauty Academy in Reading, Pa.(MediaNews Group via Getty Images, File)

Blythe Fields, an expectant mother who is studying cosmetology while working in salons, said she previously paid for esthetician school herself and spent roughly two years saving her tips to continue her education.

“I paid out of pocket for esthetician school, and it made me go broke,” Fields told Fox News Digital.

Fields said she now works during the day and attends school at night, describing her schedule as “literally 12-hour days.”

She said federal financial aid allowed her to continue her education and that the flexibility of cosmetology will become even more important when her baby arrives.

“The first year is so important, and I need to be able to have that flexibility to raise a child,” she said.

Fernandez and Fields both said they helped start a petition asking the DOE not to adopt NACIQI’s recommendation outright. The petition calls instead for a monitored improvement period that would allow NACCAS to address the government’s findings while maintaining recognition.

Fernandez said she understood why federal officials raised concerns about NACCAS but believed denying recognition would go too far.

FOX NEWS POLL: FAITH IN HIGHER EDUCATION IN THE US IS COLLAPSING

Students practice cutting hair on mannequin doll heads at a Paul Mitchell School in Virginia.(AFP via Getty Images, File)

“Having done the research myself, I can completely understand, you know, the side of the board,” Fernandez said. “However, I do not think a full termination of accreditation is reasonable considering how many people rely on this.”

Fields was more pointed when asked what she would tell Trump before his administration makes the final decision.

“I would ask him who cuts and colors his hair and how did they get there?” Fields said.

The disagreement over NACCAS centers on whether the deficiencies identified during its federal review warrant continued oversight or denial of recognition.

Education Department staff recommended that NACCAS be prohibited from accrediting additional institutions until it demonstrates compliance, complete corrective action within 12 months and submits additional reports to the department.

NACIQI instead recommended denial.

Zakiya Smith Ellis, a former Obama administration DOE official who serves on the advisory committee, made the motion to deny NACCAS renewed recognition.

Michael Poliakoff seconded the motion, which passed 9-3.

The Department of Education told Fox News Digital that accreditor recognition is reviewed every five years through a three-step process.(Getty Images for LIM College, File)

Smith Ellis argued during the July meeting that NACCAS had been given opportunities to address compliance problems and questioned whether giving it additional time would be sufficient. She also raised concerns about debt and earnings among students at NACCAS-accredited institutions.

Three committee members voted against denial, including Robert Eitel, who served in the DOE during Trump’s first term.

Eitel argued that NACCAS should be required to correct its deficiencies rather than lose recognition and raised concerns about the potential consequences for the schools and students it oversees.

The proceeding also creates an unusual contrast with the accreditation practices Trump highlighted in his April executive order.

The order directed the DOE to investigate whether accreditors require schools to engage in unlawful discrimination, including through DEI-related standards. The federal findings at issue in the NACCAS proceeding concern compliance and oversight rather than an allegation that NACCAS imposes DEI requirements.

The order directed the DOE to investigate whether accreditors require schools to engage in unlawful discrimination, including through DEI-related standards.(Kevin Carter/Getty Images, File)

Smith Ellis, meanwhile, has publicly defended DEI policies and previously served as a senior DOE official during the Obama administration.

Fox News Digital asked Smith Ellis why she favored denying recognition rather than the corrective measures recommended by DOE staff and what she would say to students concerned about the potential consequences. Smith Ellis did not respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.

Fields told Fox News Digital she believes beauty careers can be overlooked in ways that other skilled trades are not. Asked whether she thought the same fight would be playing out around traditionally male-dominated trades such as plumbing or welding, she said she did not.

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“I think it’s because they’re like male fields, like mainly men are involved in,” Fields said. “They don’t think about that. They just think, ‘Oh, they went to hair school. It’s easy.’”

For Fields, however, the training will give her the career she hopes will allow her to earn a living while raising her child.

The White House, NACCAS, and the Hollywood Institute of Beauty did not respond to Fox News Digital’s requests for comment.

Jasmine Baehr is a breaking news writer for Fox News Digital, where she covers politics, the military, legal debates surrounding life and family policy, as well as faith and culture.

https://www.foxnews.com/video/6404833774112

US says immigrants from El Salvador will for now keep temporary protected status

2026-09-09T22:32:27.797Z / reuters.com

A Federal agent questions a man, who showed his Temporary Protected Status (TPS) and had came to the U.S. 25 years ago from El Salvador, during immigration removal operations in the Long Island town of Hempstead, New York, U.S., January 19, 2026. REUTERS/Shannon Stapleton Purchase Licensing Rights, opens new tab

WASHINGTON, Sept 9 (Reuters) – The Trump administration said tens of thousands of immigrants from El Salvador will for ​now keep their temporary protected status that had been scheduled ​to expire on Wednesday.

Temporary protected status allows people already in the U.S. to remain in the country and work legally if their home countries are ​affected by natural disasters, armed conflict or other extraordinary conditions.

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“An ​announcement on El Salvador’s TPS will be made at ⁠the appropriate time. Until such announcement is made, Salvadoran individuals present ​in the U.S. under TPS retain protection,” the Department of Homeland ​Security said in a statement.

It did not provide information on when such a decision could be announced.

The National TPS Alliance advocacy group

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some 170,000 Salvadoran TPS ​holders live across the United States, with about 152,000 being ​in the U.S. workforce and contributing about $5.4 billion to the U.S. economy.

President Donald Trump’s administration ‌has ⁠moved to end temporary protected status for nationals from various countries as part of his broader immigration crackdown effort.

Trump has pursued an aggressive immigration crackdown and deportation drive that rights advocates condemn as being in ​violation of due ​process and ⁠free speech rights. Human rights advocates also say the crackdown has created an unsafe environment, particularly for ​ethnic minorities who have raised concerns about racial profiling.

Trump says ​his ⁠actions are aimed at improving domestic security.

While Trump campaigned in 2024 on stopping illegal immigration, his administration has also made legal immigration more ⁠difficult – for ​example, by imposing expensive fees for applicants ​of certain visas and by enforcing social media vetting for applicants and immigrants already in ​the country.

Reporting by Kanishka Singh and Kristina Cooke; Editing by Stephen Coates

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Kanishka Singh is a breaking news reporter for Reuters in Washington DC, who primarily covers US politics and national affairs in his current role. His past breaking news coverage has spanned across a range of topics like the Black Lives Matter movement; the US elections; the 2021 Capitol riots and their follow up probes; the Brexit deal; US-China trade tensions; the NATO withdrawal from Afghanistan; the COVID-19 pandemic; and a 2019 Supreme Court verdict on a religious dispute site in his native India.

Kristina Cooke is a Pulitzer Prize-winning investigative reporter at Reuters focused on immigration and criminal justice. She was part of a team awarded the Pulitzer Prize for National Reporting in 2026 for a series on President Donald Trump’s campaign of political retribution. In 2025, she shared the Pulitzer Prize for Investigative Reporting for a series on the fentanyl crisis. Her investigation with colleagues into migrant child labor in the United States was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize for National Reporting in 2023, and a recipient of the Polk and other awards. She speaks English, German and Spanish and is based in San Francisco.

Local GOP leader slams $50K taxpayer ‘slush fund’ for families of detained, deported immigrant breadwinners

The Virginia county will funnel funds through nonprofit Arlington Thrive to cover basic needs for affected families

2026-09-09 17:34 EDT / Fox News

By Louis Casiano Fox News

Published September 9, 2026 5:34pm EDT | Updated September 9, 2026 5:35pm EDT

Arlington County GOP chairman slams $50,000 relief fund for families of detained immigrants

Leaders in a Virginia county recently approved a measure to pay families up to $2,000 if the primary wage earner is detained or removed by immigration authorities.

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A Virginia GOP leader is pushing back against a new county program to provide taxpayer-funded grants to the families of illegal immigrants whose primary wage earner was detained or deported by federal immigration authorities.

Arlington County, which sits across the Potomac River from Washington, D.C., endorsed a plan on Sept. 2 to appropriate $50,000 for the social safety net program.

Under the terms of the project, the funds would be given to the nonprofit Arlington Thrive, which would provide up to $2,000 to the families to cover basic needs.

“This flies in the face of the Trump administration policy, and it is a detriment to taxpayers of Arlington, tens of thousands of whom are conservative and Republican and oppose this policy,” Matthew Hurtt, chairman of the Arlington County GOP, told Fox News Digital.

‘ALIEN HARBORING’ ACCUSATIONS FLY AS DC-AREA COUNTY SPENDS TAXPAYER FUNDS TO BLUNT ICE

Federal immigration authorities make an arrest in Arlington, Va., in February. Arlington County leaders recently voted to set aside $50,000 to give families up to $2,000 if the primary wage earner was detained by immigration authorities.(ICE)

Hurtt described the money as a “slush fund” designed to further oppose the Trump administration’s crackdown on illegal immigration. He noted that since Arlington Thrive is a nonprofit, it is exempt from transparency protocols that normally apply to government agencies.

The County Board praised the program at a special meeting, where it voted 4-0 with one member absent.

FIRST ON FOX: ICE QUIETLY ARRESTS JAW-DROPPING NUMBER OF ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS IN MASSIVE DC AREA OPERATION

Arlington County GOP Chair Matthew Hurtt sounded off on his home county’s “slush fund” for the families of migrants detained or deported by federal authorities.(Arlington County)

“We stand with our immigrant families, and we will not stop doing so,” Board Chair Matt de Ferranti said. “We are valuing the families of those that have been displaced and removed.”

The move follows a recent law enforcement operation in which more than 1,300 illegal immigrants were arrested over a two-week period in the Washington, D.C., and Virginia area.

DHS BOSS REVEALS OVAL OFFICE PLAN TO ‘WITHHOLD FUNDING’ FROM SANCTUARY CITIES AFTER AGGRESSIVE NEW YORK BUST

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In January, as part of the county’s opposition to immigration enforcement, de Ferranti urged residents to report sightings of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers to county authorities.

Arlington County, as well as other counties in Northern Virginia, have for years tried to subvert the Trump administration’s efforts to fight illegal immigration through various sanctuary policies, Hurtt said.

DOJ ACCUSES MARYLAND OF ‘ACTIVE AND DELIBERATE EFFORT’ TO PREVENT DEPORTATIONS OF ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS: LAWSUIT

“Arlington County, Fairfax County, and other Northern Virginia counties are completely run by far-left activists who love this kind of program,” he said.(Universal Images Group/Getty Images)

“Arlington County, Fairfax County and other Northern Virginia counties are completely run by far-left activists who love this kind of program,” he said. “They have, for years, since President Trump’s first administration, sought to be the first line of defense against the orange man.

“So, if something happens in Washington that is supported by Republicans, the county board in Arlington and Fairfax does exactly the opposite.”

Meanwhile, Hurtt said, county leaders have pushed for voters to support bond measures for critical services, which are covered by additional taxes.

Hurtt accused Arlington County of “prioritizing these far-left projects like a slush fund for illegal aliens.”(Courtesy of the Department of Homeland Security)

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“Every single election cycle, the Arlington County board puts hundreds of millions of dollars on the ballot in the form of bond issues for basic services — school improvements, road construction and other projects that they deem necessary,” he said.

“What that tells voters is that they aren’t prioritizing those projects, projects that they bond out and borrow dollar after dollar, but they’re prioritizing these far-left projects like a slush fund for illegal aliens.”

Fox News Digital has reached out to Arlington County Democrats and the County Board for comment.

Louis Casiano is a reporter for Fox News Digital. Story tips can be sent to louis.casiano@fox.com.

Florida sues Netflix, alleges streamer tracked children after promising families privacy

The complaint says Netflix built the advertising business it repeatedly promised consumers it never would

September 9, 2026 4:32pm EDT / Fox News

By Brittany Miller Fox News

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Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier sued Netflix on Wednesday, accusing the streaming giant of misleading subscribers by promising an ad-free, privacy-focused service while secretly collecting years of behavioral data — including from children’s profiles — to build the advertising business it long insisted it would never create.

The 66-page lawsuit alleges Netflix built its brand by assuring consumers that paying a monthly subscription meant they could avoid the surveillance-driven advertising model used by other major technology companies. Instead, Florida alleges Netflix quietly collected extensive user data before launching its ad-supported platform in November 2022.

“Netflix told Florida families they could pay a monthly fee to escape Big Tech surveillance. That was false,” Uthmeier said in a news release announcing the lawsuit. “Netflix collected detailed data on children and families, designed its product to keep kids watching, and then commercialized that information to launch the advertising business it promised never to build. Parents, not corporate executives, direct the upbringing of their children. Netflix should expect to be held accountable.”

The complaint points to repeated public statements from Netflix executives who touted the company as different from advertising-supported competitors. Among them, the lawsuit cites former CEO Reed Hastings, who said during a 2020 earnings call that Netflix was “not integrating everybody’s data,” adding, “We don’t collect anything,” and describing the streaming service as “the safe respite” from companies that exploit users through advertising.

WASHINGTON POST FACES CLASS-ACTION LAWSUIT ALLEGING ‘SURVEILLANCE PRICING’ OF SUBSCRIBERS

The Netflix logo is shown on one of their buildings in the Hollywood neighborhood of Los Angeles on Dec. 2, 2025.(Mike Blake/Reuters)

Florida alleges those assurances were misleading because Netflix built what the lawsuit describes as a massive behavioral-data operation that records how subscribers use the platform. According to the complaint, Netflix tracks billions of user interactions, including what subscribers watch, search for, pause, rewind, skip and abandon, along with information about their devices and locations. The state alleges Netflix uses that information to improve its recommendation systems and support its advertising business.

The lawsuit places particular emphasis on Netflix’s Kids Profiles, which the company markets as dedicated spaces designed for children. Florida alleges Netflix encouraged parents to create children’s profiles by describing them as “Great for kids” and a child’s “own space” while continuing to collect and analyze children’s viewing behavior through the same telemetry systems used for adult accounts.

PARENTS PUSH CONGRESS TO ACT ON KIDS’ ONLINE SAFETY AFTER JURIES FIND META AND YOUTUBE LIABLE FOR HARM

Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier announced a lawsuit accusing Netflix of misleading subscribers about its data collection practices and children’s privacy.(Amy Beth Bennett/South Florida Sun Sentinel)

Florida also accuses Netflix of using so-called “dark patterns” to keep viewers engaged. The complaint alleges autoplay, which is enabled by default on Kids Profiles, is intentionally designed to extend viewing sessions, increase binge watching and generate additional behavioral data, particularly from children.

The state further alleges Netflix expanded into the advertising business it once rejected by allowing advertisers and advertising technology companies to use subscriber data for audience targeting and campaign measurement after launching its ad-supported tier in November 2022.

The lawsuit accuses Netflix of violating the Florida Deceptive and Unfair Trade Practices Act and the Florida Digital Bill of Rights. Among other claims, Florida alleges Netflix unlawfully shared sensitive personal data collected from children without obtaining the consent required under state law.

MARYLAND MOVES TO BAN SURVEILLANCE PRICING IN GROCERY STORES

In this photo illustration, the logos of media service providers, Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, Disney+ and Hulu are displayed on the screen of an Apple MacBook Pro screen.(Chesnot)

Uthmeier is asking the court to permanently block the alleged practices, order Netflix to delete data the state says was deceptively collected from Floridians, stop using historical subscriber data to support its advertising business, purge behavioral data collected through Kids Profiles, prohibit the use of alleged dark-pattern designs and impose civil penalties authorized under Florida law.

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

Brittany Miller is a Fox News Digital breaking news writer and former Independent reporter who graduated from Syracuse University in 2023.

https://www.foxnews.com/video/6395817467112

US spy chief Ratcliffe preparing for bigger role in Russia, Ukraine talks, FT reports

2026-09-09T21:09:49.424Z / Reuters

Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) Director John Ratcliffe attends a U.S. House Intelligence Committee hearing on worldwide threats, on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., U.S., March 19, 2026. REUTERS/Kylie Cooper/File Photo Purchase Licensing Rights

Sept 9 (Reuters) – U.S. CIA Director John Ratcliffe is preparing to take a bigger role in Washington’s negotiations with Russia and Ukraine, U.S. officials told their European counterparts, the Financial Times reported on Wednesday.

CIA spokesperson Liz Lyons denied the report, calling it “false” in a post on X.

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The Financial Times, citing people familiar with the matter, said the White House is considering scaling back the involvement of U.S. envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner in the Ukraine peace effort.

Reporting by Anusha Shah in Bengaluru; Editing by Chris Reese

Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Top Republican names who he says is really leading Democrats — and it’s not Schumer or Jeffries

September 9, 2026 4:47pm EDT / Fox News

Florida senator argued Chuck Schumer and Hakeem Jeffries aren’t calling the shots for Democrats anymore

By Alex Miller Fox News

https://www.foxnews.com/video/6404837557112 Top Republican names who he says is really leading Democrats — and it’s not Schumer or Jeffries

Sen. Rick Scott, R-Fla., warned that it’s not really Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer nor House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries running the show, it’s Hassan Piker, AOC and far-left progressives.

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DALLAS — A top Senate Republican warned that the real leaders of the Democratic Party aren’t the top two Democrats in Congress.

Sen. Rick Scott, R-Fla., told Fox News Digital that Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., weren’t the ones calling the shots for Democrats — it’s the far-left progressives, both inside and out of Congress, that are leading the way.

“Let’s be clear, the leader of the Democrat Party is not Schumer, it’s not Jeffries,” Scott said. “It’s Hasan Piker, it is AOC and Zohran Mamdani.”

REPUBLICANS HEAD TO DALLAS WITH ONE MISSION: DEFY HISTORY AND WIN BIG

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Hasan Piker,(Sarah Rice/Getty Images; Florencia Tan Jun/Web Summit via Sportsfile via Getty Images)

Republicans are congregating in Dallas, Texas, to pitch why they should maintain power in Congress and energize their base during a midterm cycle in which Democrats are fighting to retake control of both chambers.

Scott, who once led the Senate GOP’s campaign arm known as the National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC), argued that Schumer and Senate Democrats could “salivate all they want, but their message is horrible.”

That message is driven by the likes of streamer Hasan Piker, who has come under fire from both Republicans and Democrats, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., and New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani.

CAN THE ‘BEST SHOWMAN IN POLITICS’ DELIVER AGAIN? GOP BETS ON TRUMP AT HISTORIC MIDTERM CONVENTION

https://www.foxnews.com/video/6403281649112 Tim Scott goes scorched earth on El-Sayed: ‘He’s for Hamas, but he’s against America’

“They’re going to say, ‘Gosh, we want men to play in women’s sports, to destroy women’s sport,’” Scott said. “They can talk about socialism, how they want to kill all the capitalists.”

“I tell people, you go vote for a Democrat, which is now a socialist, right? Then you better buy a bunch of guns,” he continued. “Because you can vote socialism in, ask the people in Venezuela, but guess what? You can’t get rid of it without guns.”

Still, Republicans are facing political headwinds as November creeps closer, with the Iran war still raging, prices at the gas pump and checkout line still high, and a fresh trade war with Canada putting GOP incumbents and candidates in a bind.

‘WHY WOULD HE DO THIS TO US?’: ONE CRUCIAL TRUMP DECISION IS HURTING HIS BASE, REPUBLICANS WARN

Sen. Rick Scott in the Senate Subway during a vote at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C., on March 14, 2025.(Allison Robbert/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

And midterm elections are more often than not a referendum against the party in power. Scott, however, believes that Republicans are going to “actually have a good cycle,” and maintain control of the Senate.

“The reason is we have a better message and we have great candidates,” Scott said. “If you look at our Senate candidates, I mean, how would you like to be out and defend Abdul El-Sayed’s record of being antisemitic and hating this country.”

Much of the purpose of the convention, Scott acknowledged, was to remind voters that while his name isn’t explicitly on the ballot, the midterm elections were all about President Donald Trump.

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Trump is set to speak on Wednesday night as the NFL starts again, and as Republicans formulate their final message to their base. And that message is that if Democrats win, Trump’s agenda will stall completely.

“There’s no question the Trump agenda is on the ballot,” Scott said. “If you want the Trump agenda accomplished, we have to control the House, we have to control the Senate.”

“And if the Democrats control the House, they’re gonna impeach him for combing his hair the wrong way,” he continued. “So we’ve gotta control the House and we gotta control the Senate.”

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

The U.S. just had its hottest summer on record, NOAA says

2026-09-09 16:03:00 EDT / CBS News

By Emily Mae Czachor News Editor
Emily Mae Czachor is a reporter and news editor at CBSNews.com. She typically covers breaking news, extreme weather and climate. Emily Mae previously wrote for outlets like the Los Angeles Times, BuzzFeed and Newsweek.

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The United States just experienced its hottest summer on record, officials said, after several months of exceptionally high temperatures and expanding drought across the country.

According to a new report from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, temperatures nationwide averaged 74.4 degrees Fahrenheit between June and August, which is the period known to climate scientists as “meteorological summer.” It was the warmest summer the country has ever seen since temperature and precipitation records began 132 years ago, exceeding the previous record set in 1936 and again in 2021 by 0.4 degrees.

August 2026 alone broke monthly temperature records, the report said. The temperature for the entire month averaged out to 75.6 degrees, although the average daytime high was considerably higher at 88.6 degrees — the warmest recorded average of its kind.

Blistering heat

This summer’s temperatures showed significant changes from the patterns observed over the course of the 20th century, overall and in August specifically, the report said. In 2026, average temperatures between June and August were three and a half degrees hotter than summer averages collected throughout the 1900s. August’s average was three degrees hotter on its own.

Much of the contiguous U.S. endured “above- to much-above average” temperatures last month, according to the report. The only areas where normal conditions were observed were isolated to pockets of the Midwest and northern Plains.

Meanwhile, record warmth was widespread across the West, Southwest, southern Rockies, southwestern Plains and the southern Florida Peninsula, which experienced punishing heat waves, destructive wildfires and declining water reserves as a result.

California, Nevada, New Mexico and Colorado all experienced their warmest August temperatures on record this year, with California and New Mexico seeing average daily highs soar to record heights. Even nighttime lows were, on average, the highest they’ve ever been in August across vast sections of the West, including Arizona, California, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico and Utah.

Several southwestern states endured record-breaking heat for the length of the summer, including Colorado, New Mexico and Utah, while Arizona tied its previous record for the warmest summer.

Precipitation rates fell below average

Although parts of the country faced storms that brought heavy rain, precipitation across the U.S. this summer was still lower than the 20th century average, the report found. Nationwide, the average of 8.11 inches of rain that fell between June and August was 0.21 inches below last century’s average. Substantially above-average precipitation in states like Indiana, Kentucky and Ohio was canceled out by historically sparse totals recorded in places like California, which had its driest summer since 2002 and its fifth-driest ever recorded.

The contrast was particularly stark in August, when Indiana and Ohio saw record-high precipitation for the month while Texas and Oklahoma neared their record lows.

August also brought deepening drought to parts of the country, the report said, citing the U.S. Drought Monitor. Nationwide, drought had expanded to cover 59.1% of the U.S. at the start of September, after increasing by more than 10% since the start of August. While still present across many areas of the West that had already been experiencing it, the drought spread further into the middle of the country. However, it weakened somewhat in certain sections of the Southwest, Southeast and mid-Atlantic regions.

Fight over Republican-drawn congressional map in Missouri returns to US Supreme Court

2026-09-09 21:24:27 UTC / Reuters

By Andrew Chung

September 9, 2026 9:24 PM UTC Updated 1 hour ago

The U.S. Supreme Court in Washington, D.C., U.S., September 1, 2026. REUTERS/Aaron Schwartz Purchase Licensing Rights

• Summary

• Republican-drawn map erased a Democratic-held district
• Missouri Supreme Court blocked new map pending a referendum
• Federal judge then issued conflicting ruling favoring new map

Sept 9 (Reuters) – Challengers to a redrawn congressional map in Missouri aimed at favoring Republicans ​asked the U.S. Supreme Court on Wednesday to suspend a federal judge’s order that allowed only ‌those reconfigured boundaries to be used in November’s midterm elections.

The map’s challengers, including a group opposed to the Republican-drawn map called People Not Politicians, made the request in an emergency filing, moving swiftly after St. Louis, Missouri-based Chief U.S. District Judge Stephen Clark issued his decision ​on Tuesday.

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The request brings the fight over Missouri’s U.S. House of Representatives districts back to the Supreme ​Court just one day after it declined to intervene in a bid by Missouri officials to ⁠reinstate the redrawn map, which the state’s top court had blocked until it is put to a referendum.

Clark’s order ​appeared to conflict with the Missouri Supreme Court’s unanimous September 3 ruling blocking the map, leaving the state’s congressional districts in ​limbo and injecting further confusion into the high-stakes electoral fight.

Missouri Republicans adopted the new map, which dismantled the Kansas City-based seat of longtime Democratic Representative Emanuel Cleaver, in 2025 as part of a broader effort backed by President Donald Trump to redraw congressional districts in ways ​that could benefit Republican candidates.

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Republicans hold a narrow 219-214 majority in the U.S. House, including one independent who caucuses ​with Republicans.

The dispute in Missouri arose when People Not Politicians, which calls itself a coalition of Republicans, Independents, and Democrats opposed to ‌gerrymandering the ⁠state’s electoral map, collected enough signatures to file for a referendum under a provision in the state constitution that authorizes a ballot measure to approve any legislative act.

Hoskins rejected the petition, finding that state constitutional language does not apply to congressional redistricting.

The seven-member Missouri Supreme Court, which includes five Republican-appointed judges, disagreed, ruling that the referendum petition was “legal, ​sufficient, and timely,” and that ​the redrawn map will ⁠not take effect until approved by voters.

Missouri Republican U.S. Representative Bob Onder and other plaintiffs then filed a lawsuit in federal court seeking to reinstate the Republican-drawn map.

In ​his order on Tuesday, Clark barred the use of any map for the November ​elections except for ⁠the redrawn 2025 map because those congressional district boundaries were already used for the August 4 primary elections.

The fight intensified after Republican Secretary of State Denny Hoskins, the state’s top election official, responded to Clark’s order by telling local election officials ⁠to ​proceed with using the 2025 map.

The Missouri Supreme Court then said ​it would consider holding Hoskins in contempt if it determines he violated its September 3 ruling blocking that map. It ordered him to appear in ​person on September 10 for a hearing on the matter.

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Reporting by Andrew Chung; editing by Deepa Babington and David Gregorio

Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Ohio man who was living in squalor with his 16 grandchildren declared mentally incompetent to stand trial

September 9, 2026 / 7:40 PM EDT / CBS/AP

A man whose 16 grandchildren were discovered living in squalid conditions at a rural southern Ohio home in late June was found mentally incompetent to stand trial Wednesday.

A judge in Vinton County accepted the findings of an evaluation report for Gary Siders Sr., and Vinton County Prosecutor William Archer did not object to the findings.

The 73-year-old Siders appeared in court in a wheelchair. His attorney, Dorian Baum, said after the hearing that Siders’ mental health has been declining for years and is “not restorable.”

“It’s not really a surprise to any of us that he’s not been found competent at this point,” Baum said. “He doesn’t fully understand or appreciate what’s going on.”

Siders was charged with 16 counts of child endangerment related to the children, who were rescued June 30 from a home in Hamden about 80 miles south of Columbus.

Siders’ wife, Christina Siders; son Gary Siders Jr., and daughter-in-law, Elizabeth Siders, the children’s mother, have pleaded not guilty.

Authorities found the children on June 30 while carrying out a search warrant in an unrelated investigation. Investigators said the children remained mostly confined to a small room in the house under deplorable conditions. The children weren’t enrolled in school, the family moved around over the past two decades, and neighbors said they’d never spotted the kids.

Police tape surrounds a home where authorities say they removed 16 children and arrested four adults in Hamden, Ohio, July 1, 2026. Carolyn Kaster/AP Photo

At the time they were found, the children ranged in age from 18 months to 18 years, with some described as “feral” and unable to speak. Authorities said their medical conditions varied.

“Most of our livestock was kept in better conditions than the children,” Vinton County Sheriff Ryan Cain said in a July 2 news conference. “It was an extremely high presence, I’m sure, of bacterial and human feces; it was just a disgusting scene.”

“They looked like almost feral animals, it was terrible,” Ohio Attorney General Andy Wilson said at the time, adding that the 18-year-old who was found in the home was unable to spell her own name.

“We’ve got to make sure the kids are safe, we’ve got to make sure they’re placed in good, solid, therapeutic placements, and we have to hold accountable the people that are willing to do this to their own family,” Wilson said.

Wilson also said in the news conference that the suspects “were pretty adept at keeping these kids out of sight and out of investigators’ eyes.”

The eldest was born in May 2008, two months after Gary Siders Jr., then 18, and Elizabeth, then 15, crossed into West Virginia to marry at the Mason County Courthouse with her parents’ consent, according to court records. She has been pregnant most years since then, the records show.