Miami Dolphins linebacker Bradley Chubb told reporters that his team was “lying” about a change in culture last season. 

“I’m going to say last year we were lying, honestly, point-blank, period. We felt it,” Chubb said at the team’s minicam Wednesday.

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“We put our toe in the water, but we didn’t dive all the way in. We didn’t get all the way there with each other. We weren’t making the effort to go the extra mile.”

He continued, “I would say this year we’re doing that. I’m not sure how it’s going to turn out for us, but we are putting forth that foot to change it. … If it works out, it’s going to work out. If it doesn’t, we’re going to get back to the drawing board and make sure it works out.” 

AARON RODGERS REVEALS HE HAS BEEN MARRIED FOR ‘A COUPLE MONTHS’

Head coach Mike McDaniel reacted to Chubb’s comments while speaking to reporters.

“It would have been awesome if he would have told me on the front end when they were lying,” McDaniel said.

“Beyond that, 2024, unless I’m using it directly for an analogy, I’m much more concerned with 2025. I think you do a lot more for the organization if you spend your time thinking forward in terms of not this, that or the other or whose fault it was. No, we want it like this, let’s do it like this, and this is who we are. I don’t even – what year did you speak of? I guess I’ll read about that in history books.”

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The lead singer for the pop band OneRepublic voiced support for President Donald Trump’s military parade that commemorated the 250th anniversary of the U.S. Army.

“I have around 20 family members & grandparents that all fought in wars from the revolutionary war (actually) thru to WWII / Korea,” Ryan Tedder wrote in what appeared to be an Instagram story that has since been deleted.

“All politics & parties and righteous indignation aside it’s a super bummer that instead of celebrating the 250th anniversary of the USA ARMY and all those who have fought and died on our behalf… We’re protesting.” 

MILITARY PARADE DRAWS PATRIOTIC AMERICANS FROM NEAR AND FAR: ‘NO BETTER TIME TO COME TO DC’

The parade, which was held on Saturday – also Flag Day and Trump’s 79th birthday – was meant to honor America, according to remarks the president gave in the Oval Office last week.

“We’re going to celebrate our country for a change,” Trump said. 

As a sign of opposition to the parade, many liberals held “No Kings” protests around the country, supported by Walmart heiress Chrissy Walton, to protest Trump and the parade recognizing the 250th anniversary of the U.S. Army.

Tedder said that he doesn’t support any party, but wanted to support the service and sacrifice of those in the military. 

“I haven’t been a card carrying political member of either side in over 20 years & think at this point everything is absurd 99% of the time,” the OneRepublic singer and songwriter wrote. “But I’d like to say THANKYOU to all of the Army service members active and retired and those who have given their lives to protect our freedom…to protest.”

WHITE HOUSE SLAMS ‘UTTER FAILURE’ OF ANTI-TRUMP PROTESTS AS AMERICA CELEBRATES ARMY’S HISTORIC MILESTONE

Other musicians and celebrities spoke out in criticism of the parade. 

Nancy Wilson with the band Heart shared a post on Instagram saying that she was upset that her song “Barracuda” was played during the event.

“Earlier today, during a parade held in support of our nation’s military and organized by President Donald Trump, the song ‘Barracuda’ by Heart was played without permission or authorization from us,” Wilson said in the Instagram post. 

“‘Barracuda,'” written and performed by Ann and I, is a powerful piece of music that was never intended for political use,” she added. “As daughters of a U.S. Marine Corps major, we hold a deep and abiding respect for the men and women who serve in our Armed Forces. On a day meant to honor that service, it’s important that music used in such settings reflects not only the tone of the event but also the wishes of the artists who created it.” 

Singer and songwriter Olivia Rodrigo also took to Instagram to voice her disapproval of Trump and the ICE immigration enforcement raids in Los Angeles.  

“I’ve lived in LA my whole life and I’m deeply upset about these violent deportations of my neighbors under the current administration,” Rodrigo said on her Instagram story. 

“LA simply wouldn’t exist without immigrants,” she added. “Treating hardworking community members with such little respect, empathy, and due process is awful. I stand with the beautiful, diverse community of Los Angeles and with immigrants all across America. I stand for our right to freedom of speech and freedom to protest.”

Billie Joe Armstrong, lead singer of Green Day, called out Trump as well at the Download Festival in Donington Park in the U.K. on Friday.  

“Donald Trump in his administration is a fascist government,” Armstrong said. “And it’s up to us to fight back.”

Fox News Digital reached out to Tedder for comment, but did not immediately receive a response.

Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) says an illegal immigrant with a past robbery conviction, and who was previously arrested on murder and assault charges, was arrested after spitting on an agent last Tuesday.

Omar Pulido Bastida, 41, is facing a federal assault charge for allegedly spitting on an ICE agent while they were trying to arrest him for illegally returning to the United States, as he’s been deported before.

“Despite the Los Angeles riots, ICE law enforcement officers arrested Omar Pulido-Bastida. This criminal illegal alien has been convicted of robbery and has arrests for murder and assault,” Department of Homeland Security Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said in an exclusive statement to Fox News Digital about the Mexican national.

FEDERAL AGENTS CAPTURE ALIEN ACCUSED OF RAPE, ASSAULT WHILE LA POLITICIANS CONDEMN ICE OPERATIONS

“This is the type of criminal illegal alien that rioters are fighting to protect. How much longer will Governor Newsom and Mayor Karen Bass continue to prioritize these criminal illegal aliens over their own citizens? Secretary Noem has a message to the LA rioters: you will not stop us or slow us down. ICE will continue to enforce the law and arrest criminal illegal aliens,” McLaughlin continued.

Pulido Bastida resides in South Central Los Angeles, and he could face eight years behind bars if convicted of assault.

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“This defendant found out the hard way: When you spit, we hit – with a felony charge,” U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli said in a statement last week. “Law enforcement officers risk their lives and safety to uphold the law. To treat them with the disrespect, like this defendant did, mocks our great nation and such behavior will be punished accordingly.”

ICE RAMPS UP ARRESTS OF CONVICTED CRIMINALS AS RIOTS RAGE IN BLUE CITY: ‘YOU WILL NOT STOP US’

The Department of Justice alleges the man first insulted an ICE officer from his balcony before coming down and spitting on an agent through a gate, saying just before that, “No, get out of here. I know my rights. I’m calling my lawyer.” After that, ICE then “forced entry” into his home and arrested the man, who was hiding and said, “OK, you got me,” before his arrest, the news release added.

Fox News Digital reached out to Newsom’s office. Bass’s office pointed Fox News Digital to a quote from her press conference last week.

“These aren’t the criminals the administration is allegedly targeting,” Bass said. “These are mothers and fathers, restaurant workers, seamstresses, home care workers, everyday Angelenos trying to make a living. We’ve heard stories of unmarked federal vans parked near LAUSD school graduations, a U.S. citizen nine months pregnant who was hospitalized after being detained by federal agents, and an apparel business in downtown L.A. raided, where many Korean and Latino workers work long hours to support their families.”

The arrest announcement comes after anti-ICE protests and riots broke out in Los Angeles last week as the agency did sweeps throughout the region. On Sunday night, President Donald Trump posted to Truth Social that he wanted to see arrests ramped up further to “achieve the very important goal of delivering the single largest Mass Deportation Program in History.”

ILLEGAL ALIEN CHARGED WITH ATTEMPTED MURDER FOR THROWING MOLOTOV COCKTAIL AT OFFICERS IN LA RIOTS: DHS

The president specifically mentioned that operations in Los Angeles, Chicago and New York could be increased.

“His plan is clear: Incite violence and chaos in blue states, have an excuse to militarize our cities, demonize his opponents, keep breaking the law and consolidate power. It’s illegal and we will not let it stand,” Newsom posted to X in direct response to Trump’s post.

Former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s camp rejected claims from “Squad” member Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez that he is only seeking the mayorship to improve his chances of being president.

Cuomo – along with struggling incumbent Eric Adams – is viewed as one of the moderates in this year’s crowded ranked-choice race for the nation’s largest city, and he’s currently leading the field.

Ocasio-Cortez, by contrast, is backing upstart socialist candidate Zohran Mamdani – currently a state assemblyman from Astoria – and trying to prevent the New York Democratic scion from returning to politics.

“I have no idea where the far left got this silly new talking point,” Cuomo spokesman Rich Azzopardi told Fox News Digital on Monday.

ANDREW CUOMO THE BIGGEST TARGET AS NEW YORK CITY MAYORAL PRIMARY SHIFTS INTO HIGH GEAR

“But, the governor has said that – death aside – he’ll be finishing his own term.” 

While Cuomo has said he plans to be a national figure if elected mayor, he has not directly expressed intent to succeed President Donald Trump in 2028.

Ocasio-Cortez, meanwhile, said at a recent Mamdani event that Cuomo supposedly did make “clear he wants to run” for president.

SUBWAY MAYHEM SPURS CUOMO TO URGE HALT TO NYC’S NEW DRIVING TAX

She also bemoaned the “gentocracy” – an apparent reference to aging politicians, which, as of late, has been more of a feature of the Democratic Party – and said it is “unconscionable” to send the 67-year-old to Gracie Mansion.

Mamdani, who was born in Uganda, has made waves on the far left with a bold progressive platform. His proposals include “city-owned grocery stores,” establishing a rent freeze, free public transit, and a $30 minimum wage. He’s widely seen as a top-tier candidate alongside Cuomo.

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The typically liberal New York Times editorial board, however, warned against ranking Mamdani on the ballot, saying that while he is running a “joyful campaign” with a “fresh political style which many people are hungry for during the angry era of President Trump,” the socialist’s agenda is “uniquely unsuited to the city’s challenges.”

As of Monday, several Cuomo challengers cross-endorsed each other – as voters select a pecking order of preferred candidates on a ranked-choice ballot – which drew a literal “yawn” from the governor’s camp.

Former New York State Assemb. Michael Blake, D-Bronx, Comptroller Bradford Lander and Mamdani all did so, hoping their voters would select the other two as ranking candidates.

“Blake is at zero percent in the polls, so you can quote me yawning,” Azzopardi said.

The Republican in the race, Guardian Angels founder Curtis Sliwa, is largely unopposed on the right flank of the ranked-choice system.

A man who provided ketamine to Matthew Perry in the month leading up to his death will plead guilty to multiple charges, according to documents obtained by Fox News Digital.

In a plea agreement filed Monday in federal court, Dr. Salvador Plasencia agreed to plead guilty to four counts of distribution of ketamine. 

The plea carries a maximum sentence of 40 years in prison. Plasencia is expected to enter the plea in the coming weeks.

MATTHEW PERRY’S DOCTORS SHOWED ‘DISDAIN’ FOR HIS LIFE: ‘IT’S SICKENING’

The “Friends” star died on Oct. 28, 2023, after an apparent drowning in the hot tub at his Pacific Palisades home, authorities confirmed to Fox News Digital at the time. He was 54.

DOCTOR CHARGED IN MATTHEW PERRY’S KETAMINE OVERDOSE PLEADS GUILTY

Nearly nine months after Perry’s death, authorities announced that five people were arrested and charged with multiple counts in connection to his death.

U.S. Attorney for the Central District of California Martin Estrada said at one point that the defendants distributed approximately “20 vials for approximately $50,000 in cash” to Perry for Kenneth (Kenny) Iwamasa, Perry’s live-in assistant, to distribute the drug to the actor. During another sale, the dealers “took advantage of Mr. Perry” by selling approximately “50 vials of ketamine for approximately $11,000 in cash.”

Plasencia, a ketamine source, was introduced to Perry by his assistant in September 2023. Plasencia, who obtained ketamine from Dr. Mark Chavez, allegedly taught the assistant how to inject Perry with the drug. 

Chavez previously ran a ketamine clinic and allegedly submitted a bogus prescription in the name of a former patient to secure the drug.

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Iwamasa allegedly learned how to inject ketamine from Plasencia, who then left vials of the dissociative anesthetic drug for Iwamasa to inject Perry at his home. 

The vials of ketamine allegedly cost Dr. Chavez approximately $12 each. At one point, Dr. Plasencia wrote to Dr. Chavez, “I wonder how much this moron will pay” and “Let’s find out.”

Chavez agreed to plead guilty to one count of conspiracy to distribute ketamine as part of his plea agreement. The San Diego-based doctor admitted to selling ketamine to Plasencia, including ketamine that he had diverted from his former ketamine clinic.

Iwamasa pleaded guilty on Aug. 7 to one count of conspiracy to distribute ketamine causing death, and, per Estrada, has already filed a plea agreement.

Additional drugs were allegedly secured through “The Ketamine Queen,” aka Jasveen Sangha, her co-conspirator, Dr. Chavez, and middleman, Eric Fleming. 

Fleming pleaded guilty on Aug. 8 to one count of conspiracy to distribute ketamine and one count of distribution of ketamine resulting in death. Fleming admitted in court documents that he distributed the ketamine that killed Perry. He also agreed to a plea deal.

While Plasencia is accused of supplying the bulk of Perry’s ketamine in his final weeks, defendant Sangha, who prosecutors allege was a major ketamine dealer, is alleged to have provided the dose that killed the actor.

In addition to one count of conspiracy to distribute ketamine, Sangha is also charged with one count of maintaining a drug-involved premises, one count of possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine, one count of possession with intent to distribute ketamine and five counts of distribution of ketamine. She is also scheduled to go to trial in August. She has pleaded not guilty — making her the only one of the five people charged in Perry’s death who has not entered a plea agreement.

Ketamine is a dissociative anesthetic drug with “established medical and surgical uses,” the autopsy detailed. Perry reportedly received “ketamine infusion therapy for depression and anxiety.”

Fox News Digital has reached out to a rep for Plasencia for comment.

The Associated Press contributed to this report

New audio from a family court hearing shows Travis Decker pleading with a judge to let him spend more time with his three daughters, who he’s accused of killing.

The bodies of Decker’s three daughters, Paityn, 9, Evelyn, 8, and Olivia, 5, were found in a wooded area approximately 30 miles from Rock Island Campground in Washington, according to the Chelan County Sheriff’s Office in a statement. Federal authorities took over the search on June 8 after local officials said they needed assistance. Decker is a former Army soldier with “extensive” training.

“We had reached a point where we need to rest our local resources,” the statement said. “However, CCSO leadership remains closely involved in search coordination and continues their lead with the criminal investigation.”

According to Fox 13, Decker’s visitation time with the three girls had been reduced in recent years. Whitney, Decker’s ex-wife, and her lawyer cited alleged endangerment of the three children, declining mental health and lack of communication in their request to decrease Travis’ visitation time.

ALLEGED KILLER DAD COULD MAKE ‘ONE MISTAKE’ THAT ENDS MANHUNT, SHERIFF SAYS

During a family court hearing in September 2024, a family court judge allowed Whitney to take near-full custody of the girls, alleging neglect and emotional distress. Travis was allowed to visit the children every other weekend for a set number of hours.

Decker expressed frustration with the parenting plan and told the family court judge he’d like to see his daughters more.

“I already only get a day and a half, two days, with my daughters, and it’s two nights. It’s a Friday night, Saturday night, and because of my current job and the current location, I’m in Idaho working. I am in the U.S. [Carpenter’s Union], so where I go, where the work is, is where I come, and through the new parenting plan, it takes away basically all my opportunities to be around the girls when I’m not at work. If I have the opportunity to be there for my daughters, I feel like I should be able to be there for them and not have to find my way to be around my daughters,” Decker said.

Decker’s children were allegedly heard crying over the phone with their mother during an overnight trip with their father at the Wenatchee armory, according to court records. The incident was cited with others as reasons why Decker shouldn’t be allowed to keep the kids overnight.

“I don’t believe that my weekends should be completely taken away since I have been gone. Every time I’ve had the girls, we have been in campsites, in national forests and paid campsites that have campers. We’ve never done anything that was unsafe or anything I wouldn’t want to put myself in,” Decker told the judge.

SURVIVALIST’S GOOGLE SEARCHES REVEAL POSSIBLE ESCAPE PLAN AMID MANHUNT IN DAUGHTERS’ TRIPLE MURDER: REPORT

After the judge signed off on the parenting plan that reduced the time Decker would spend with his daughters, he continued to ask for a different outcome.

“And then nothing can change that? Nothing, my signature doesn’t matter anyway, right? So if I don’t sign it, then …” Decker said.

When Decker didn’t drop the girls off by the 8 p.m. curfew on May 30, Whitney tried calling him, but he didn’t pick up, according to an affidavit. According to the court document, Decker had never missed a curfew to return the children.

The court documents indicated Decker had mental health issues and borderline personality disorder, adding he is homeless and lives in campgrounds and motels.

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Decker was charged with three counts of aggravated first-degree murder and kidnapping.

Fox News Digital’s Julia Bonavita and Sarah Rumpf-Whitten contributed to this report.

Despite previous media reporting that the Trump administration is open to allowing Iran to continue its uranium enrichment program, potentially allowing the development of Iranian nuclear weapons, President Donald Trump has taken a strong stance on the issue, repeatedly saying he would not allow the country to develop any nuclear weapons.

Axios reported earlier this month that as part of a deal to ease U.S. sanctions offered to Iran by White House envoy Steve Witkoff, “would allow limited low-level uranium enrichment on Iranian soil for a to-be-determined period of time.” This was something the outlet said risked backlash from Trump allies on Capitol Hill and in Israel.

Shortly after the Axios story, Trump posted on Truth Social that “under our potential Agreement — WE WILL NOT ALLOW ANY ENRICHMENT OF URANIUM!”

The AP reported that Trump’s message “appeared to undercut a proposal that was offered” by his administration and that Witkoff and the president “have repeatedly offered inconsistent public messages about whether Iran would be allowed to retain the capacity to enrich uranium to lower levels for civilian purposes.”

TRUMP SAYS ISRAEL AND IRAN ‘HAVE TO FIGHT IT OUT’ BUT BELIEVES DEAL IS POSSIBLE

Trump, however, has consistently said that he would not, under any circumstances, allow Iran to develop a nuclear weapon.

Dating back to 2011, Trump has gone on the record voicing his belief that Iran should not have access to nuclear weapons over three dozen times.

As early as his 2011 book “Time to Get Tough,” Trump said: “America’s primary goal with Iran must be to destroy its nuclear ambitions. Let me put them as plainly as I know how: Iran’s nuclear program must be stopped by any and all means necessary. Period. We cannot allow this radical regime to acquire a nuclear weapon that they will either use or hand off to terrorists.”

He has also made clear his stance that Iran should not even be allowed to further develop nuclear arms, saying in a 2011 tweet that “Iran’s nuclear program must be stopped – by any and all means necessary.”

BREAKING: ISRAEL RESPONDS TO IRAN’S DEADLY CIVILIAN STRIKES

Then, after announcing his 2016 presidential campaign, Trump criticized President Barack Obama for negotiating “a disastrous deal with Iran,” saying, “Iran cannot be allowed to have a nuclear weapon and, under a Trump Administration, will never be allowed to have a nuclear weapon.”

Then again, in 2017, Trump was quoted by NPR saying, “We will deny the regime all paths to a nuclear weapon.”

On the 2024 campaign trail, Trump said repeatedly that nuclear ramping up is “the biggest risk we have.” In an interview with Patrick Bet-David “the real threat isn’t global warming. The real threat is — threat is nuclear warming.”  

Referring to Iran, he said, “they’re very close to having a nuclear weapon,” and “I wanted Iran to be very successful. I just don’t want them to have a nuclear weapon.”

ISRAELI SPECIAL OPS VETERAN: IRAN IS ‘RUNNING OUT OF OPTIONS’ 

He also criticized former President Joe Biden, saying he “should never have allowed them to get this far. They’re way — they’re way advanced now.”

While campaigning, Trump was recorded at least 34 times saying Iran should have no way of developing nuclear weapons, a Fox News Digital review of video shows.

“They can’t have a nuclear weapon. And now, they’re very close to having one, and it’s very dangerous for the world, very dangerous for the world. I mean, the biggest — the biggest problem today, in my opinion, the biggest risk is the nuclear weapons, the weaponry. It’s so powerful today,” he said in a campaign rally in Milwaukee in October.

IDF GIVES NEW UPDATE ON STRIKES WITH IRAN: ‘JUSTICE WILL PREVAIL’

“They’re financing Hamas, and they’re financing Hezbollah … they go around, saying, ‘Death to Israel. Death to America.’ And they chant it openly all over the place. Don’t let Iran have nuclear weapons. That’s my only thing I have to tell you today. Don’t let them have it,” he said at a campaign event in Clive, Iowa.

Iran has repeatedly said it will not agree to a uranium enrichment ban, arguing it has the right to the process, which is also vital for nuclear energy. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi on Monday reiterated this point in a press conference from Egypt, and, according to the Tasnim News Agency, said he plans to respond to the U.S. proposal soon.

A Maccabi Tel Aviv soccer match in Amsterdam against the Dutch team Ajax became a point of global controversy last November. 

Maccabi Tel Aviv FC supporters were reportedly the target of violence in Amsterdam on Thursday before and during the soccer team’s match against Ajax. Dozens were arrested and five people received hospital treatment after a series of violent overnight incidents.

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Over the weekend, the public prosecution service announced it had dropped investigations into several Maccabi supporters because the city’s tram company, GVB, had deleted footage that could have been used as evidence. The company replaced recording equipment at two metro stations in Amsterdam after the attacks and footage from the night was lost.

Still, more than a dozen people have already been charged in connection with the violence and several have already been convicted. 

Two inquiries into the events said in reports Monday that social media posts coupled with a lack of official information fueled the violence that followed the November match. 

The Rotterdam-based Institute for Safety and Crisis Management, tasked by the Amsterdam government to investigate the response to the violence, said the lack of official communication from the city allowed rumors on social media to flourish.

It noted that there was little to no official communication during the early hours of Nov. 8, in part because the situation was so unclear.

ISRAEL SAYS IT HAS AERIAL SUPERIORITY OVER TEHRAN, IRANIAN INTELLIGENCE LEADER KILLED

In a separate report, the inspectorate for the Justice Ministry concluded that the police were prepared for large-scale demonstrations, not the “flash attacks” perpetrated across the city and sparked by social media.

Both reports cautioned that even with improved communication, the authorities still could not have fully controlled the rapidly spreading violence.

“Calls and images spread rapidly, reinforce existing tensions and can lead to group formation and confrontations on the street within a short period of time,” the 57-page report found.

Both reports cautioned that even with improved communication, the authorities still could not have fully controlled the rapidly spreading violence.

The Justice Ministry’s report noted that “incidents, such as the removal of a Palestinian flag by Maccabi supporters, were shared, interpreted and magnified within minutes.”

Ahead of the game, pro-Palestinian demonstrators were banned by local authorities from gathering outside the stadium, and video showed a large crowd of Israeli fans chanting anti-Arab slogans on their way to the game. Afterward, youths on scooters and on foot crisscrossed the city in search of Israeli fans, punching and kicking them and then fleeing quickly to evade police, per the Associated Press. 

Danny Danon, the Israeli ambassador to the United Nations, previously gave an exclusive statement to Fox News Digital on the incident.

“We are seeing a pogrom against Jews and Israelis unfold in Amsterdam,” Danon said. “In 2024. This must stop. ‘Globalize the intifada’ was not just a slogan for these terrorist supporters. I urge the Dutch government to help all Israelis and Jewish people immediately. It’s time to respond with force against these barbaric rioters.”

Danon also elaborated and posted a video on X

“We are receiving very disturbing reports of extreme violence against Israelis and Jews on the streets of Holland,” he wrote. “There is a pogrom currently taking place in Europe in 2024. These are the true faces of the supporters of the radical terrorism we are fighting. The western world needs to wake up now!!”

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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Sen. Josh Hawley again drew a line in the sand on proposed cuts to Medicaid benefits, and warned his colleagues to follow President Donald Trump’s lead and leave the widely used healthcare program largely intact.

Republican-led Senate committees have spent the last few weeks since the House GOP advanced its version of the president’s “big, beautiful bill,” preparing their own tweaks to the colossal bill, but much of the focus has been on the work being carried out by the Senate Finance Committee.

BLUE STATE REPUBLICANS THREATEN REVOLT AGAINST TRUMP’S ‘BIG, BEAUTIFUL BILL’ IF SENATE CHANGES KEY TAX RULE

The panel, which is responsible for health care, tax and other policy provisions, is expected to release its chunk of the budget reconciliation package Tuesday afternoon. House GOP-authored Medicaid provisions, in particular, have been a sticking point for a small group of Senate Republicans.

What those changes on the Senate side of the bill might look like could jump start or stall the momentum of the massive legislative package in the upper chamber.

Hawley, R-Mo, is among that cohort and has long been outspoken in his position that if Senate Republicans produce a version of the president’s “big, beautiful bill” that strips benefits from his constituents, he won’t support the package. But his vision for Medicaid clashes with fiscal hawks who are in search of deeper spending cuts.

‘FULLY JUSTIFIED’: GRAHAM PLOWS AHEAD WITH TRUMP BORDER FUNDING DESPITE PAUL’S OBJECTIONS

One of his main arguments is to listen to what Trump wants to do.

“This is what I continue to tell my colleagues,” he said. “Anybody who asks me and who’s interested is that, why don’t we just listen to the guy who won the election who said that he doesn’t want any Medicaid benefit cuts, he doesn’t want rural hospitals to close. He wants Medicare not to be touched at all.”

The lawmaker’s remarks came during a press call on Friday discussing the inclusion of his Radiation Exposure Compensation Act (RECA), which provides compensation to people who have been exposed to nuclear waste, into the “big, beautiful bill.”

REPUBLICANS CHALLENGE ‘IRRELEVANT’ BUDGET OFFICE AS IT CRITIQUES TRUMP’S ‘BEAUTIFUL BILL’

Hawley said the addition was certainly a sweetener for his support, considering that the measure has been his “leading legislative priority for two years now.” Still, Medicaid is one of his top issues in the broader reconciliation fight.

The lawmaker said that he did not have a problem with some of the marquee changes to Medicaid that his House Republican counterparts wanted, including stricter work requirements, booting illegal immigrants from benefit rolls and rooting out waste, fraud and abuse in the program that serves tens of millions of Americans.

However, he noted that about 1.3 million Missourians rely on Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP), and contended that most were working.

“These are not people who are sitting around, these are people who are working,” he said. “They’re on Medicaid because they cannot afford private health insurance, and they don’t get it on the job.”

“And I just think it’s wrong to go to those people and say, ‘Well, you know, we know you’re doing the best, we know that you’re working hard, but we’re going to take away your healthcare access,’” he continued. 

The weekend shootings of the Minnesota lawmakers profoundly rattled House and Senate Members. 

The reason?

“Minnesota was jarring because (the suspect) went after family,” said one House Member who has faced threats and asked for anonymity. “We’re gone 50 percent of the time. There are no lines any more.”

There is a Senate-wide briefing on Member security today. House Republicans received a virtual briefing late Saturday afternoon. House Democrats will receive a remote briefing tomorrow.

MINNESOTA LAWMAKER SHOOTINGS PROMPT SECURITY DEBATE IN HOUSE AND SENATE

The question is what can Congressional security officials do to keep Members safe?

One idea was to force House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) to let Member offices have even more flexibility to use money – which Congress allocates for the operation of each office – toward additional security measure. Fox is told that could enable individual offices to hire full-time protective details.

“Then they don’t need to give us any more money,” said one House Member.

One Democrat applauded the U.S. Capitol Police. But pointed out that it was physically impossible for the USCP to protect all Members and their families 24/7 – both in Washington and in their home states or districts.

It was also pointed out to Fox that there was zero information on the shooters who carried out two of the most violent episodes involving lawmakers in recent years. That includes the Congressional Baseball Practice shooting in 2017 and the shooting of former Rep. Gabrielle Giffords (D-Ariz.) in 2011.

“We need to be pro-active on our own,” said one lawmaker to Fox. “Not reactive.”

MINNESOTA LAWMAKER SHOOTING SUSPECT HIT WITH FEDERAL MURDER, STALKING CHARGES, FACING LIFE IN PRISON OR DEATH

Fox is told there has also been discussion about scrubbing the personal information of lawmakers from the web or approving anti-doxxing legislation.

Rep. Jared Moskowitz (D-Fla.) is tinkering with forcing the House into a “Secret Session” to debate the appropriate approach for congressional security. Such a resolution to move the House into a Secret Session needs a vote. It is also privileged – which means Moskowitz could force the issue. Or, the House could vote to table it. Staff inside the session must sign an oath of secrecy.

The House has not held a clandestine session since 2008 – and only six such conclaves in the history of the republic. Moskowitz would like to get Members on the record of voting AGAINST a Secret Session for security. If they oppose it, then lawmakers don’t have a right to complain. Otherwise, he believes they can actually figure out a way to keep fellow Members safe and their families. Several lawmakers with whom Fox spoke over the weekend said the problem is that there is no consensus on how or what Members want or if U.S. Capitol Police have the wherewithal – based on what Congress has appropriated for that department – to assure the safety of family Members in 435 far-flung districts.

Moreover, security officials and those on the GOP telephone call Saturday tell Fox there was a lot of criticism by Members about the current security posture – from those who don’t take advantage of current programs which the House and USCP designed to keep Members safe.

“They like to complain a lot,” said one Republican source of those who haven’t utilized the security options afforded them by USCP.