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Mamdani fires back at Netanyahu, calls Israeli leader ‘architect of horrific genocide’ ahead of UN visit

September 23, 2026 2:59am EDT / Fox News

The New York City mayor cited the ICC arrest warrant for alleged war crimes after Netanyahu’s ‘shame on you’ video

By Michael Sinkewicz, Fox News

Mamdani doubles down on Netanyahu feud, calling him ‘architect of a horrific genocide’

New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani responded to criticism by Israeli President Benjamin Netanyahu by saying the world leader is “the subject of an International Criminal Court arrest warrant for alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity.”

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New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani fired back at Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Tuesday after the Israeli leader accused him of supporting Hamas terrorists and inciting unrest against Jewish New Yorkers, escalating their long-running feud days before Netanyahu is expected in the city.

When asked by reporters about Netanyahu’s video, Mamdani rejected the prime minister’s accusations.

“We all know that what the prime minister has said in that video is not true,” Mamdani said. “What we do know to actually be the truth when it comes to the prime minister is that he is the subject of an International Criminal Court arrest warrant for alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity.”

NETANYAHU ACCUSES MAMDANI OF ‘FOMENTING HATE,’ SAYS RHETORIC IS MAKING NEW YORK JEWS AFRAID

A split image shows Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, left, and New York City Democratic Socialist mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani, right, who said on Fox News’ The Story that he would arrest Netanyahu if the Israeli leader visited the city.(Getty Images, Fox News)

The ICC issued the arrest warrant in November 2024 over alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity, but Netanyahu and the Israeli government have rejected the allegations and challenged the court’s actions.

Mamdani went further, leveling additional accusations against the Israeli leader days before he is slated to speak at the United Nations General Assembly in New York.

“And as the prime minister, he is the architect of horrific genocide against Palestinians,” Mamdani asserted. “And just a few days ago, his military killed an 11-year-old boy in what is deemed to be a safe zone in Gaza. So that is what I have to say to his video.”

ISRAELI UN ENVOY BLASTS MAMDANI AS ‘CLOWN’ OVER CALL TO ARREST NETANYAHU: ‘IT’S A STUNT’

A split image shows New York City Democratic Socialist mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani, left, and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, right.(Getty Images)

The mayor was responding to comments Netanyahu made earlier Tuesday in a video pledging to “tell the truth” about Mamdani when he speaks at the U.N.

“Shame on you, Mr. Mamdani. Shame on you for supporting the Hamas terrorist monsters who butchered our people. Shame on you for inciting riots against New York Jews,” Netanyahu said in the video posted to X.

“I’m coming to the U.N. I am going to tell the truth about our heroic soldiers, and I’m going to tell you the truth about you,” he added.

EXCLUSIVE: ISRAELI PRESIDENT HERZOG BLASTS MAMDANI, PRAISES TRUMP, SOUNDS ALARM ON IRAN

New York City mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani speaks during a Wednesday interview on Fox News’ The Story with Martha MacCallum, where he discussed the Gaza ceasefire and said he would uphold an International Criminal Court warrant for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.(Fox News)

The exchange is the latest chapter in an ongoing public feud between the two leaders and comes as Netanyahu prepares to visit the city Mamdani leads.

Earlier this year, Mamdani explored whether New York City could execute the ICC warrant against Netanyahu — an issue he had campaigned on — before acknowledging that the city could not enforce the warrant on its own.

Mamdani has previously called Netanyahu a “war criminal” and an “architect of a horrific genocide against the Palestinian people.” He also said over the summer that Netanyahu was “not welcome” in New York City.

“I want to be equally clear: Benjamin Netanyahu is not welcome in New York City, nor is any other war criminal at large,” Mamdani said at the time.

Mamdani has also defended New Yorkers’ right to protest during Netanyahu’s visit, though he has said he is not encouraging them to demonstrate.

MAMDANI DODGES ON ‘POLITICAL THEATER’ OF EMPTY NETANYAHU ARREST THREAT, CALLS FOR US ACTION AND NYC PROTESTS

President Donald Trump meets with NYC Mayor Zohran Mamdani inside Gracie Mansion on Monday, Sept. 21, 2026.(Mayor Zohran Kwame Mamdani @NYCMayor)

When asked in July what New Yorkers frustrated with Netanyahu should do when the Israeli leader visited the city, Mamdani pointed to protest as an option.

“One of the bedrocks of our city is protest,” Mamdani said. “It is something that has been a part of what makes our city so special, that New Yorkers can express themselves whether they are in support or in opposition no matter on whatever topic.”

More recently, Mamdani clarified that he had no plans to participate in protests surrounding Netanyahu’s visit and said he had not encouraged New Yorkers to demonstrate.

“To New Yorkers, I have never encouraged them to protest,” Mamdani said last week. “What I have always told them is that they have the right to do so in the city.”

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Following Mamdani’s meeting with President Donald Trump on Monday, the mayor was also asked whether he discussed Netanyahu with the president.

Mamdani said their conversation remained focused on New York City and New Yorkers. The mayor’s office said after Monday’s meeting that Mamdani and Trump discussed issues affecting the city, including affordability and economic development.

“And when it comes to the prime minister, though, I’ve made very clear where I stand on that,” Mamdani said.

Fox News Digital’s Greg Norman-Diamond contributed to this report.
Michael Sinkewicz is a writer for Fox News Digital. Story tips can be sent to michael.sinkewicz@fox.com

The calendar says it’s 2026, so why does it suddenly feel like 2028?

2026-09-23T04:01:29.274Z / https://www.cnn.com/2026/09/23/politics/2028-presidential-race-begins-aoc

Summer’s swampy heat released its grip on Washington Tuesday as if someone had flipped a switch.

Fall is not the only new season stirring.

The 2028 presidential race, which has long felt like a distant hypothetical amid the wrenching turmoil of President Donald Trump’s early second term, has suddenly sprung into life.

Possible Democratic and Republican contenders are hitting the midterm trail in states that just happen to hold early presidential contests. They’re wading into top policy issues. A few openly yearn for the White House. Some make cryptic comments to keep a door open. Others wonder whether they have a lane.

The sense that a clock is ticking even drew in Trump, who is loath to admit he’s only leasing power. In a UN General Assembly address Tuesday, he reminded his foes in Tehran: “I’ll be here for two and a half years.”

It’s normal for possible presidential candidates to become more visible around this time. Midterm elections offer them cover to engage base voters. They can test new stump lines, assess the political mood, lay down informal early state infrastructure and bank favors with grateful candidates.

But the 2028 campaign suddenly seems more tangible, perhaps because Trump’s fragile political state is inducing end-of-an-era vibes and Democrats have finally stopped mourning the 2024 presidential election.

That debacle was fresh on minds Tuesday when former Vice President Kamala Harris, the party’s last-minute nominee, showed up in Michigan to try to unite Democrats behind Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed.

She’s not the only possible 2028 Democrat making noise. New York Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez has a progressive juggernaut rolling. Georgia Sen. Jon Ossoff hasn’t even won reelection, but 2028 buzz is building. Govs. JB Pritzker, Andy Beshear and Josh Shapiro are also on maneuvers.

On the GOP side, every word and gesture by Vice President JD Vance takes on extra meaning as he steels himself for the unfathomable task of a possible presidential run under Trump’s nose. And Sen. Ted Cruz, Sen. Rand Paul and other potential GOP candidates are also openly mulling a run. Even 74-year-old Louisiana Sen. John Kennedy told the Washington Post in an article published Tuesday that while he’s planning on running for reelection, he might take a tilt at the top job “if a bunch of goobers” run for president.

It’s that moment in a nascent presidential season when countless politicians look in the mirror and wonder why not them. At a testing time for US democracy, it’s reassuring that presidential spring training is near.

The 2028 election, with two open national party tickets, will mark a new political era.

The eventual Republican nominee will have to decide whether there’s a future for MAGA or if the party’s dormant, traditional conservative roots should be revived.

Democrats need someone to unify progressives and moderates. An anti-Trump platform may work in the midterms. But polls show an electorate still sour on a party that lost their confidence when Joe Biden was president.

The White House rumor mill slipped into higher gear Tuesday with an intriguing New York Times interview with Ocasio-Cortez. The New York Democrat’s midterm travels are positioning her as the inheritor of Bernie Sanders’ progressive movement. She’s adept at creating splashy viral moments that define Trump-era politics, like her August announcement that she was freezing her eggs.

Ocasio-Cortez, soon to turn 37, told the Times she’s wrestling with the intangible question that can define a presidential campaign. “There’s an argument that some make that this is a very unique political window and, oftentimes in politics, you do only get one shot,” she said. But after two of the last three Democratic nominees were women and both lost, Ocasio-Cortez also seemed to question her ceiling. “I happen to be a woman, and I, you know, happen to be Latina. And I think that there’s a lot of conversation about electability,” she said.

Harris epitomizes such questions. She made her fall debut in one of seven swing states that she lost to Trump in 2024. She has not decided whether to run again.

But other Democrats are pre-positioning, including a number of governors. Shapiro, who seems to be cruising to reelection in Pennsylvania, last week addressed a pressing national question — whether to place guardrails on artificial intelligence — and condemned Trump’s claim that concerns about the technology’s destructive potential are a “hoax.”

Beshear on Tuesday published a new book, “Go and Do Likewise: How We Heal a Broken Country” — using a classic tactic of heartland leaders who need to build a national profile. “We need to show up in places that we haven’t been in far too long. We need to show up in coal mining communities, in farming communities, and listen to the needs of people,” the Kentucky governor told CNN’s Kaitlan Collins on Monday. Asked whether he’d run in 2028, he insisted: “I haven’t made any decision on that.”

Pritzker, of Illinois, has shown Democratic voters he can stick it to Trump. But he’s in the news for a more personal reason after revealing he’s shed 80 pounds on GLP-1 medication. He told CBS News he’s concentrating on his reelection bid and has “not made any decisions about what I might do in the future.”

Another Trump foe, Arizona Sen. Mark Kelly, said at last week’s Atlantic Festival of a possible presidential campaign: “The answer is I might, I just haven’t decided.”

Trump has seemed to enjoy jokingly playing off potential heirs like Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio. But the game will be less fun when he’s a lame duck. The veep is widely seen as a Republican front-runner, and there has been no sign from Rubio that he plans to run. Vance Friday traveled to Iowa, a GOP early state that shows the perils of a presidential campaign. Trump’s unpopularity in a reliable red bastion has left Senate and gubernatorial races surprisingly close.

The vice president’s balancing act and thin record of winning elections in his own right — he was in the Senate for only two years before his current job — explain why he’s unlikely to clear the field.

Former GOP presidential candidate Ted Cruz, who won 11 state contests as runner-up to Trump in the 2016 Republican nominating race, seems to be itching to run again. “It’s no secret that I want to be president,” Cruz said on Texas Lt. Gov Dan Patrick’s podcast in August. He’s not yet made a final decision.

Other possible GOP candidates include Texas Gov. Greg Abbott; outgoing Florida governor and defeated 2024 GOP candidate Ron DeSantis; and Florida Sen. Rick Scott.

Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul, who lost to Trump in 2016, is calling for a free market, anti-tariff candidate to balance Trump-style populism. Will it be him? Paul told the Post he’s 50-50 on making the race.

But maybe there’s a lurker candidate no one has thought of. After all, Trump was regarded as a joke before his anti-establishment takeover of the GOP in 2016. And Democrats seem primed for their own populist takeover.

The name of the next president may not currently be the biggest issue — the midterm endgame and the war in Iran matter more right now.

But when America awakes on November 4, after a late night watching John King call congressional races on CNN’s Magic Wall, the next presidential election will truly begin.

And both parties will increasingly look to a future beyond Trump.

Florida AG accuses teacher of labeling student a ‘misogynist’ over ‘conservative views’: ‘She should be fired’

September 23, 2026 12:49am EDT / Fox News

Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier said the teacher should be fired if the allegations are true

By Landon Mion Fox News

Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier alleged that a teacher harassed and attempted to “cancel” an eighth-grade student and labeled him a “misogynist” over what Uthmeier described as the student’s conservative political views.

Uthmeier sent a letter to Sarasota County Schools’ Superintendent Terry Connor and the school board over allegations that a Pine View School history teacher, Liz Ballard, singled out the eighth grade student on multiple occasions over his political views.

Ballard often brings up political topics during class despite the student telling her that his parents “expressly forbid” him from participating in the political discussions, according to the letter.

The parents’ demand was ignored and the teacher continued to hold political discussions, using the student as the “conservative perspective in the classroom,” the attorney general said.

WASHINGTON FATHER SUES SCHOOL DISTRICT FOR DENYING RELIGIOUS OPT-OUT FOR 5TH GRADER FROM LGBTQ INSTRUCTION

A teacher allegedly harassed and attempted to “cancel” an eighth grade student and labeled him a “misogynist” over his conservative political beliefs.(Joe Raedle/Getty Images)

The teacher even labeled the student a “misogynist,” spread that characterization around the school and “openly questioned the suitability and influence of the student’s father,” Uthmeier said in the letter.

Uthmeier’s letter says multiple parents previously initiated HR investigations involving Ballard.

If the bullying and harassment allegations are true, Uthmeier said the teacher would have violated Florida law, School Board policy and basic ethical principles for educators.

“Ms. Ballard singled out this student and, in defiance of his parents’ express instructions, pressured him to defend political positions on demand in front of his classmates,” Uthmeier wrote.

PORTLAND PARENT BANNED FROM SCHOOL EVENTS AFTER OPPOSING GENDER IDENTITY ASSIGNMENT FILES LAWSUIT

Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier said the teacher should be fired and never teach in Florida again if the allegations are true.(Joe Burbank/Orlando Sentinel/Tribune News Service via Getty Images)

“She made disparaging remarks about his father. And by facilitating the spread of a damaging label throughout the school, she engaged in the reputational destruction of a child. Ms. Ballard’s deliberate bullying and harassment of this eighth-grade student violated Florida law, School Board policy, and at least six ethical principles,” he continued.

He said she should be dismissed from her role with the school district and her educator certificate should be revoked if the allegations turn out to be true.

“If true, she should be fired and never teach in Florida again,” he said.

The attorney general gave the superintendent and school board an Oct. 1 deadline to update his office on the actions the district has taken or will take to address the allegations.

Connor said Sarasota County Schools received a letter from Uthmeier about allegations involving teacher.

The attorney general said there have been multiple HR investigations involving the teacher initiated by parents.(iStock via Getty)

“We take the concerns seriously and will respond to the Attorney General’s Office,” Connor said in a statement to FOX 13. “Every student deserves a classroom where they feel safe, respected, and free to learn. No student should face harassment, humiliation, or retaliation because of their beliefs or their family’s views. Respect for students and parents is fundamental to the trust our community places in our schools.”

“The allegations in the letter warrant careful attention. We will examine the relevant facts and records, ensure a fair process for all involved, and take appropriate action based on the findings and requirements. To protect student privacy and the process’s integrity, we will limit public discussion of individual details. This does not reduce our commitment to accountability. Our focus remains on our students’ well-being, the professionalism of our classrooms, and the confidence families place in Sarasota County Schools,” he added.

马达加斯加暴发麻疹和疟疾疫情 已酿37死

2026年9月23日 13:05 / 联合早报

马达加斯加东南部一地区近期有37人因麻疹或疟疾死亡。

新华社报道，马达加斯加公共卫生部星期二（9月22日）召开记者会通报，伊法纳迪亚纳区（Ifanadiana）目前已有37人因麻疹和疟疾，其中75%为儿童，另有七人在医疗机构接受救治。

据通报，此前当局曾对这些人的死因提出初步怀疑，后来确认麻疹和疟疾是相关地区所记录死亡病例的死因。当前相关地区疫情已得到控制，卫生部门在当地开展麻疹疫苗接种行动，并向居民发放防护物资。

马达加斯加公共卫生部星期天（20日）发布公报说，约两个月前，伊法纳迪亚纳区开始出现具有麻疹或疟疾症状的病例。由于部分地区交通闭塞，患病人员较难获得医疗服务，医疗卫生人员开展干预和救治的难度较大。

Trump admin responds to lawsuit from CNN, Politico and MS NOW

12:35 AM EDT, Wed September 23, 2026 / CNN Politics

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Trump admin responds to lawsuit from CNN, Politico and MS NOW

Laura Coates Live

The Department of Justice responds right before midnight to the lawsuit that CNN, POLITICO and MS NOW filed against President Trump’s White House press ban. In the response it’s written, “the President concluded networks have failed to maintain basic minimum ‘standards of professionalism and decorum’ with access to ‘sensitive or classified information.’”

5:37 • Source: CNN

美伊联大期间举行间接会谈 伊朗再提重开海峡条件

2026年9月23日 13:14 / 联合早报

伊朗外交部发言人巴加埃（中）在纽约说，伊方提出的条件包括美国永久停止对伊朗及地区盟友的军事行动，解除对伊朗海上封锁和全部制裁，归还伊朗资产并赔偿损失等。 （路透社）

伊朗外交部发言人说，星期二（9月22日）在美国纽约举行的第81届联合国大会一般性辩论期间，伊朗与美方通过调解方卡塔尔举行会谈，向美方传达关于重开霍尔木兹海峡的条件。

新华社报道，伊朗外交部发言人巴加埃星期三（9月23日）在纽约接受伊朗伊斯兰共和国通讯社采访时说，伊方提出重开霍尔木兹海峡的条件，包括美国应永久停止对伊朗及地区盟友的军事行动，解除对伊朗海上封锁和全部制裁，归还伊朗被冻结资产并赔偿损失等。

另据伊朗媒体消息，此次会谈是“应美方要求”。伊方同意美国总统特使威特科夫的会晤请求，是出于传达伊朗关于重开霍尔木兹海峡条件的需要。

威特科夫22日晚在社交媒体发文说，通过调解方与伊朗代表团进行了“长时间会谈”，希望此轮讨论“富有建设性”并“带来积极进展”。

美国总统特朗普22日证实，美国和伊朗官员当天在纽约进行三小时会谈，并计划很快再谈一次。据悉，威特科夫和特朗普的女婿库什纳参加了此次会谈。

第81届联合国大会一般性辩论22日在纽约联合国总部开幕。特朗普在开幕当天讲话中称可迅速“摧毁”伊朗，但不排除双方在11月美国国会中期选举后达成结束冲突协议的可能性。

高市：在习特会前夕与特朗普举行“适时”讨论

2026年9月23日 13:42 / 联合早报

在纽约参加联合国大会的日本首相高市早苗星期三（9月23日）告诉记者，日本认为，美中关系有助于包括日本在内国际社会在内的稳定，这一点至关重要。 （路透社）

日本首相高市早苗说，在美国总统特朗普与中国国家主席习近平会晤前，她与特朗普就中国问题进行“适时”的讨论。

路透社报道，高市早苗星期三（9月23日）证实，她与特朗普在纽约出席联合国大会期间举行会晤。她告诉记者：“日本认为，美中关系有助于包括日本在内国际社会在内的稳定，这一点至关重要。”

这次会晤正值习近平访美并会见特朗普前夕。高市并未透露与特朗普讨论中国问题的具体细节。

日本副内阁秘书长尾崎正直星期二（22日）说，高市与特朗普进行约半小时的闭门会谈，讨论对华经济及安全关系。

他暗示，双方在合力削弱北京对日美两国的制衡筹码上立场一致。

Missouri’s embattled, Trump-backed congressional map returns to Supreme Court for a third time

2026-09-23T04:03:01.111Z / CNN

A quixotic legal battle over whether Missouri may use a GOP-friendly congressional redistricting plan for November’s election returned to the Supreme Court for the third time late Tuesday night, forcing the justices to once again review an effort the court unanimously rejected less than two weeks ago.

The emergency appeal will — once again — decide if Republicans can flip an additional House seat in the November midterm election. It’s also part of an extraordinary push by Republicans to continue to fight for the seat after the conservative high court has signaled it is uninterested in getting involved in the messy, months-old dispute over the state’s map.

A group opposed to the map filed the emergency case at the Supreme Court late Tuesday a day after a federal appeals court ruled that Missouri must use the Republican-friendly map in November, rather than a map created in 2022, because voters had already selected nominees based on the newer map in the state’s primary election.

“Ballots using the 2022 map have been printed and mailed, and absentee voting, both by mail and in-person, began today,” the group told the Supreme Court in its appeal. “Those ballots cannot be reassigned to new districts now.”

Justice Brett Kavanaugh, who handles appeals arising from Missouri, requested a response in the case by Wednesday afternoon.

Missouri’s new map targeted the 5th Congressional District, held by Democratic Rep. Emanuel Cleaver, by breaking up its Kansas City base and stretching it into rural and Republican-leaning parts of the state. There would be seven conservative-leaning districts and one Democratic-leaning, a change from the current 6-2 split.

The whipsaw case of Missouri’s congressional map may be merely an appetizer for the banquet of election appeals that are likely to reach the justices tied to this year’s midterms.

The justices have already shut down an effort by President Donald Trump to give the US Postal Service more power to screen mail ballots. The court has also already juggled a series of other redistricting disputes this year, including in Texas, California, Louisiana, Alabama and Virginia.

University of Chicago law professor William Baude said Tuesday that it was “a hundred to one” likely that the court would reject the GOP map again. He described the case as a “taste of what’s to come.”

The Missouri Supreme Court ruled earlier this month that the 7-1 Republican map adopted by the legislature at Trump’s behest last year could not be used because of a referendum challenge brought against it under the state constitution. State Republicans challenged that, appealing all the way up to the US Supreme Court. Kavanaugh, a conservative, declined that request, which appeared to settle the matter.

But minutes after that decision, a federal district court stepped in with a ruling in favor of the GOP map. And the case was once again appealed to the US Supreme Court, which once again sided against reviving the GOP map. In that instance, the full court reviewed the case, and no justices noted their dissent. The court also did not explain its reasoning.

The conservative 8th US Circuit Court of Appeals read the boilerplate language from the Supreme Court, and its lack of reasoning, as an invitation to rush through its own ruling. In an unsigned opinion, the court concluded that “the Constitution does not permit Missouri to use a different congressional district map in the November 2026 general election than it used in the August 2026 primary election.” And it ordered a federal trial court to once again require that the state move forward with the 7-1 map.

It is that decision that has prompted the third round of appeals.

Even though the 8th Circuit ruled in favor of the GOP, it ordered the lower court to pause the impact of that decision until Monday to give the appeals a chance to play out. That means the Supreme Court is likely to either settle the dispute before Monday, or issue a short-term extension of that deadline to give the justices more time to decide.

CNN’s Tierney Sneed contributed to this report.

欧盟延长涉乌克兰危机制裁措施至2029年

2026年9月23日 14:59 / 联合早报

根据欧盟记录，自2022年2月俄罗斯入侵乌克兰后，欧盟大幅扩大对俄罗斯制裁范围。截至目前，已对俄采取第21轮制裁。 （路透社）

欧盟理事会宣布，将针对“破坏或威胁乌克兰领土完整、主权和独立”的个人和实体的制裁措施延长36个月，至2029年9月22日。

新华社报道，欧盟理事会星期二（9月22日）发表声明说，目前相关措施累计制裁个人和实体超3000个。措施包括禁止相关个人进入或过境欧盟成员国、冻结相关个人和实体在欧盟境内的资产，以及禁止欧盟个人和机构向被制裁对象提供资金或其他经济资源。

欧盟理事会同时决定，将三名个人、一个实体以及另外三名已故人员移出制裁名单。声明未列出被移除的具体个人和实体。

根据欧盟记录，自2022年2月俄罗斯入侵乌克兰后，欧盟大幅扩大对俄罗斯制裁范围。截至目前，已对俄采取第21轮制裁。欧盟方面说，相关措施旨在削弱俄经济基础和能源收入，限制其获取关键技术和市场，并继续对俄施加压力。

俄罗斯外交部18日发表声明说，为回应欧盟此前批准对俄第21轮制裁措施，俄方大幅扩充禁止入境俄罗斯的欧盟人员名单。其中包括参与决定向乌克兰提供军事援助的人员；从事旨在破坏俄联邦领土完整活动的人员；负责实施反俄制裁、损害俄与第三国关系或阻碍俄海上航行的人员等。

‘Big Sister’ warning resurfaces as Massachusetts expands home visits after Clancy trial

Eagle Forum’s Anne Schlafly says the expansion of the Welcome Family program crosses a line into family privacy

September 22, 2026 9:24pm EDT / Fox News

By Jasmine Baehr

Phyllis Schlafly’s 1999 ‘Big Sister’ warning resurfaces amid Massachusetts newborn home visit debate

Eagle Forum Chairman Anne Schlafly reacts to her mother Phyllis Schlafly’s 1999 warning about government-backed home visits for new mothers as Massachusetts moves to expand its postpartum nurse program statewide.

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Twenty-seven years before Massachusetts proposed to dramatically expand a taxpayer-funded program sending nurses into the homes of families with newborns, legendary conservative firebrand and grassroots women’s leader Phyllis Schlafly posed a question that her daughter says now sounds remarkably familiar.

“Are the American people willing to allow government agents to come into their homes to ‘advise’ them how to care for their babies?” Schlafly wrote in a March 1999 column titled, “Watch out for ‘Big Sister’ as Well as ‘Big Brother.’”

The warning resurfaced as Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey seeks $2 million to expand the state’s Welcome Family program, which offers nurse visits following childbirth. The program serves approximately 3,000 births annually, and the expansion is intended to make visits available following roughly 68,000 births statewide per year.

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Stop ERA national Chairman Phyllis Schlafly leads members opposed to the Equal Rights Amendment in a song about pro-ERA forces planning a national demonstration in the capital city. The song stated, “You better look out, I’m telling you why, they’re planning their trip, your votes to buy. Bella’s bunch is coming to town.”(Bettmann Archive)

The push comes in the aftermath of the Lindsay Clancy case, which put a searing spotlight on maternal mental illness. Clancy does not dispute that she killed her three young children — Cora, 5, Dawson, 3, and Callan, 8 months — inside their Duxbury home in 2023.

Clancy’s defense argued she was suffering from postpartum psychosis and was not criminally responsible, while prosecutors argued she knew her actions were wrong. The jury deadlocked, resulting in a mistrial.

For Anne Schlafly, chairman of Eagle Forum and Phyllis Schlafly’s daughter, her mother’s warning has now taken on new resonance.

“My mother was very prescient about the things that could happen if we let government intrude into our family lives,” Schlafly told Fox News Digital.

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President Ronald Reagan meets with American conservative activist Phyllis Schlafly in the White House Oval Office in Washington, D.C., March 21, 1983.(Universal History Archive/Univer)

“Her point was a government agent or an agent of the government has no business in your home, in your castle, snooping around and determining whether or not you’re raising the children the way the government wants you to raise the children,” she said. “After all, the home is our castle.”

Phyllis Schlafly’s 1999 column focused on Healthy Families America and similar home-visiting initiatives, warning about programs that screened families for risk factors, connected parents with health and social services and offered parenting guidance inside the home.

She also questioned whether programs officially described as “voluntary” would always operate that way in practice.

Massachusetts today describes Welcome Family as voluntary. Nurses assess the health of the “parents and caregivers” and newborn, answer questions about newborn care, screen for postpartum mental health concerns and connect families with additional services.

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Phyllis Schlafly of Alton, Ill., national chairman of STOP ERA, demonstrates in front of the White House Feb. 4, charging that President Carter was “using his wife” to promote the Equal Rights Amendment.(Bettmann Archive)

Notably, Massachusetts lists “ensuring that your home is safe” among the subjects Welcome Family nurses may advise parents about, though the program’s family information page does not specify particular home safety criteria.

The state has called Welcome Family an “entry point into the system of care” for families with newborns. Healthy Families America, the program at the center of Schlafly’s 1999 column, is also among the models Massachusetts lists within its broader Home Visiting Initiative, though it is separate from Welcome Family.

Healey described her vision for the expansion in broader terms during an interview on Boston Public Radio.

“Everybody in the state, when you have a baby, you’re going to have a home visit within days, weeks, and that will be an opportunity for a healthcare provider to make an assessment to see if you need some additional support and resources,” Healey said.

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Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey turns toward supporters after signing legislation strengthening abortion protections and prioritizing access to care at the Massachusetts State House Aug. 10, 2026, in Boston.(Jessica Rinaldi/The Boston Globe via Getty Images)

Anne Schlafly questioned what meaningful consent looks like shortly after childbirth.

“Is it really voluntary if you don’t have true informed consent?” Schlafly said. “If you have just given birth, you’ve been in labor, you’ve been under sedation, can you really recognize what you were signing up for supposedly on a voluntary basis?

“I think mothers need to have the full disclosure that this would be a government agent in the home.”

The scale of the proposed expansion also concerns Schlafly.

“If government is going to expand their reach and hire a whole bunch of more people and use taxpayer money to send out all these agents to the families, I mean, that’s quite an expansion,” she said. “This idea of coming in to inspect and see what’s going on in your home smacks of Big Sister and Big Brother both.”

Massachusetts does not characterize the visits as inspections but as voluntary health and support services.

State officials point to results from the existing program. In 2025, Welcome Family offered 1,620 postpartum depression screenings, with 208 positive screenings. The state says every person who screened positively received a referral for services.

Schlafly said she does not object to families choosing to accept that help.

“If people want to have this help from Governor Healey, then they can avail themselves of it,” she said.

Her dividing line, she said, is whether parents retain the ability to refuse.

“I think any time you make it compulsory, the line has been crossed,” Schlafly said. “I would say the only way that this Massachusetts program could be acceptable is if the parents could opt out at any time.”

Massachusetts’ published materials describe participation as voluntary.

Fox News Digital reached out to Healey’s office for comment and clarification about parents’ ability to decline visits, information collected during visits and whether information may be shared with other state agencies.

Nearly three decades after her mother warned about “Big Sister” entering the family home, Schlafly said she believes she knows what her mother would tell Massachusetts parents today.

“There’s no doubt that Phyllis Schlafly would advise parents to reject busybodies who want to inspect their home,” she said. “The home is a sacred and private area, and Governor Healey has no business in the homes of Massachusetts parents.

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“Let’s leave her to the state house and not the kitchen table.”

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.