Former WWE CEO shares knockout strategy to empower parents, school choice in states
Secretary of Education Linda McMahon said her agency took the first steps Tuesday to eliminate “bureaucratic bloat” at the federal level and bring more power to the states during an interview Tuesday on “The Ingraham Angle.”
The Department of Education announced it will cut nearly half of its workforce as President Donald Trump moves to eliminate the agency. Impacted department staff will be placed on administrative leave beginning Friday.
McMahon said the decision was part of the president’s mandate. “His directive to me, clearly, is to shut down the Department of Education, which we know we’ll have to work with Congress, you know, to get that accomplished,” she told Fox News host Laura Ingraham.
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Trump vowed on the campaign trail to shutter the federal department and give parents the option of school choice.
“We’re going to end education coming out of Washington, DC. We’re going to close it up – all those buildings all over the place and people that in many cases hate our children. We’re going to send it all back to the states,” he said in a campaign video.
The commander-in-chief is expected to sign an executive order officially instructing McMahon to look for ways to dismantle the Education Department. Trump, however, likely cannot eliminate it entirely without an act of Congress.
The education secretary said the roughly 2,000 remaining staff members will make sure outward-facing programs like grants and appropriations from Congress are being met and handled appropriately.
“None of that’s going to fall through the cracks,” she vowed.
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President of the American Federation of Teachers Randi Weingarten told MSNBC in an interview over the weekend that shutting down the Education Department is a “disaster symbolically as much as a disaster in reality.”
“The federal government does not control education, the states do, local school boards do. This is about opportunity,” she argued. “That is why so many people are so mad about it because they’re just taking opportunity away from kids who don’t have it.”
McMahon pushed back on Weingarten’s claims, saying the Trump administration doesn’t want to take education away.
“The president never said that. He’s taking the bureaucracy out of education so that more money flows to the states. Better education is closest to the kids, with parents, with the local superintendents, with local school boards,” she told Ingraham.
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“I think we’ll see our scores go up with our students when we can educate them with parental input as well.”
Karoline Leavitt shuts down reporter at briefing: ‘You’re trying to test my knowledge’
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt sparred with an Associated Press reporter Tuesday over what she deemed an “insulting” question “trying to test [her] knowledge of economics.”
AP’s Josh Boak asked about President Donald Trump’s address at the Business Roundtable (BRT) quarterly meeting that was set to occur after the White House press briefing. He claimed that despite Trump previously touting tax cuts during his last BRT meeting in 2024, the president is now pushing “tax hikes” through tariffs.
Leavitt objected to this line of questioning, interrupting him, saying, “Not true.”
“I’m curious why he is prioritizing that over tax cuts,” Boak said as Leavitt responded, “He is not doing that.”
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“He is actually not implementing tax hikes,” Leavitt said. “Tariffs are a tax hike on foreign countries that, again, have been ripping us off. Tariffs are a tax cut for the American people, and the president is a staunch advocate of tax cuts.”
“As you know, he campaigned on no taxes on tips, no taxes on overtime, no taxes on Social Security benefits. He has committed to all three of those things, and he expects Congress to pass them later this year,” she added.
“I’m sorry, have you paid a tariff? Because I have,” Boak responded. “They don’t get charged on foreign companies. They get charged on the importers.”
“And ultimately, when we have fair and balanced trade, which the American people have not seen in decades, as I said at the beginning, revenues will stay here, wages will go up, and our country will be made wealthy again,” Leavitt said.
“And I think it’s insulting that you are trying to test my knowledge of economics and the decisions that this president has made. I now regret giving a question to the Associated Press,” she said, moving on to another reporter.
The Trump White House has had a tumultuous relationship with the AP, blocking the news organization from the Oval Office and Air Force One for refusing to use the name “Gulf of America” instead of “Gulf of Mexico.”
AP spokesperson Lauren Easton attacked this decision in a comment to Fox News Digital in February.
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“Freedom of speech is a pillar of American democracy and a core value of the American people. The White House has said it supports these principles,” Easton said at the time.
“The actions taken to restrict AP’s coverage of presidential events because of how we refer to a geographic location chip away at this important right enshrined in the U.S. Constitution for all Americans,” she added.
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‘Person of interest’ named in American college student’s disappearance
The hometown sheriff’s department of a missing American college student has named a person of interest in Sudiksha Konanki’s disappearance in the Dominican Republic.
Loudoun County, Virginia Sheriff’s Office spokesperson Thomas Julia told Fox News Digital that 24-year-old Joshua Riibe is a “person of interest” in the college student’s disappearance during the University of Pittsburgh student’s spring break.
Julia said that Riibe “has been interviewed at length,” but noted its’ “still a missing person case, not a criminal case.” Riibe has not been accused of any crime in the case.
“Sheriff [Michael] Chapman wants to make sure the investigation is comprehensive and includes all possible assets and techniques,” he said. “We are working closely with the FBI on all of this, and they are working with the Dominican National Police.”
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Police said Konanki, who is a resident of Loudon County, Virginia, traveled with five other people from the University of Pittsburgh to the Riu República Hotel in Punta Cana during the school’s spring break, which began March 2 and ended Sunday.
She was last seen on surveillance camera with five other people entering the beach at the five-star resort after 4:15 a.m. Thursday, the Dominican National Police previously said in a statement.
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Footage obtained by Noticias SIN showed Konanki seemingly clinging to a man as the group made their way towards the beach.
It was the last time authorities tracked Konanki before the Virginia resident disappeared.
Konanki’s disappearance has sparked widespread speculation about the events leading up to it, prompting law enforcement in both the Dominican Republic and the U.S. to investigate.
Authorities have not named any suspects amid the ongoing investigation. On Tuesday, the Dominican National Police said it is “re-interviewing targeted individuals who were in the victim’s proximity at the time of her disappearance.”
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“This includes hotel employees where Konanki and her companions were staying, with the goal of gathering information to corroborate her movements, interactions, and any relevant details for the investigation,” they said.
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When asked about a Monday report that Konanki may have drowned, a spokesperson for the Loudoun County Sheriff’s Office told Fox News Digital that authorities “have heard this and have seen no evidence presented at this time.”
A joint investigation into Konanki’s disappearance is being conducted by the U.S. Embassy in the Dominican Republic, the Dominican National Police and the Dominican Prosecutors Office. The FBI is also assisting.
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The FBI declined to provide additional details on the investigation.
Fox News Digital has reached out to Joshua Riibe.
Rosie O’Donnell confirms she’s left the US: ‘Would be the best for myself and my child’
Rosie O’Donnell has been sparring with President Trump since 2006, and now the frequent Trump critic has confirmed she fled the country after his return to the Oval Office.
The comedian said she is living in Ireland and is in the process of applying for Irish citizenship.
“It’s been pretty wonderful, I have to say,” the 62-year-old said in a video on TikTok. “And the people have been so loving, so kind and so welcoming. And I’m very grateful.”
O’Donnell said she left the country Jan. 15, five days before President Trump’s inauguration.
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“Although I was someone who never thought I would move to another country, that’s what I decided would be the best for myself and my 12-year-old child,” she explained.
O’Donnell disagrees with Trump not only politically. The two have also been involved in a feud since 2006 after she criticized him on “The View” about his decision to be lenient toward a Miss USA winner who had been accused of drug use and other bad behavior.
Trump responded to the criticism by calling O’Donnell a “real loser.”
At the time, he said of Miss USA Tara Conner that he is a “believer in second chances. Tara is a good person. Tara has tried hard. Tara is going to be given a second chance.”
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The pair continued to spar back and forth, with O’Donnell telling People magazine in 2014 their feud involved the “most bullying I ever experienced in my life.”
O’Donnell stepped up her Trump critiques during his first presidential run and win, jokingly telling Seth Meyers in 2017 that she spends “about 90% of my working hours tweeting hatred toward this administration.”
The actress even came up in a 2015 Republican primary debate when Trump was asked about having called women disparaging names like “fat pigs” and “slob,” and he answered, “Only Rosie O’Donnell,” to laughter.
“I’m trying to find a home here in this beautiful country, and when it is safe for all citizens to have equal rights there in America, that’s when we will consider coming back.”
Trump also brought up O’Donnell during last year’s election when he told a crowd at the October Al Smith dinner that “The View” had gotten “so bad” that showrunners “really need to bring Rosie O’Donnell back.”
The “Now and Then” star stayed engaged during the election, frequently posting videos on TikTok, including an especially fiery one on Thanksgiving when she warned people, “You can’t forget what he’s capable of. … This is not a sane person. This is a madman. You gotta get ready for what’s coming.
“When democracy falls, fascism takes its place.”
Aside from all of her political reasons for leaving the U.S., O’Donnell says she and her daughter are “happy” in Ireland and enjoy exploring the country.
“I miss my other kids,” she added of her five grown children. “I miss my friends. I miss many things about life there at home. And I’m trying to find a home here in this beautiful country. And when it is safe for all citizens to have equal rights there in America, that’s when we will consider coming back.”
The “A League of Their Own” star added that it’s “heartbreaking to see what’s happening politically and hard for me personally as well. The personal is political, as we all know.”
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She added that she was “sorry” to her fans who were worried about her and missed her.
“I just felt like we needed to take care of ourselves and make some hard decisions and follow through and now, as we’re getting settled, I was ready to post this and tell everybody what’s going on.”
“The Flintstones” star said she encourages everyone to “stand up, to use their voice, to protest, to demand that we follow the Constitution in our country and not a king, not a man and we don’t have cruelty as part of our governing style.
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“Protect your sanity as much as you can and try not to swim in the chaos if possible, but I know it’s nearly impossible when you’re there in the middle of it.”
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The comedian said she thinks about the U.S. every day, and “I am hoping that we can turn things around. I’m counting on you, all of you, to do what’s right. And I think deep down inside we all know what that is.”
Conservatives blast Dem over comments she made about Trump voters on ‘The View’
Democratic Sen. Elissa Slotkin was ripped by conservatives on social media on Tuesday after an interview where she likened President Donald Trump‘s election to the “angry teenage years” of the United States where voter brains are still being formed.
“Representing a state here, people voted for Trump and voted for me, I have a responsibility to represent my entire state,” Slotkin said on ABC’s “The View.” “But I don’t think there’s anyone who feels like what’s going on right now is normal. Even if you voted for Trump, right?”
“I think there is a feeling in the country, and I often say this, you know, we’re about to turn 250 years old, right? We’re still pretty young for a country. These are, like, our angry teenage years. We are going through this push and pull where we’re happy, we’re sad. We want this, we want that, and what do you do when you have a teenager threatening themselves and others? You just try to get them through this period alive so that their brain can fully form and you can come back to kind of what,” Slotkin said before being cut off by Joy Behar.
“Are you talking about Trump?” Behar asked.
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“No, I’m talking about our country,” Slotkin said. “We’re a pendulum swinging. We are a pendulum swinging. I don’t think there is an American that thinks this is normal.”
Slotkin’s comments were widely interpreted by conservatives on social media as a slight to Trump voters.
“Ah yes, we’ve reached the point post-election loss where Democrats just revert to calling Americans stupid for voting against them,” Abigail Jackson, communications director for Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., posted on X. “Not a single ounce of self-awareness to be found.”
“Slotkin says this while literally sounding like a teenager…” Fox News contributor Joe Concha posted on X.
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“This is supposedly their smart, reasonable messenger?” Fox News contributor Guy Benson posted on X.
“Interesting to compare this to their arguments on transitioning teenagers,” Spectator contributing editor Stephen L. Miller posted on X.
“Wow!” Red State writer Bonchie posted on X. “What a fresh, novel take. No one has ever said this before. Elissa Slotkin is truly the future of the Democratic Party.”
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“This is monumentally insulting to the millions of Americans that voted for a change last November,” Rep. Derrick Van Orden, R-Wis., posted on X.
Slotkin, elected as a Democrat to the Senate in Michigan in November despite Trump carrying the state, was selected to give the party’s response to Trump’s recent joint address to Congress.
In a Sunday interview with “Meet the Press,” Slotkin acknowledged that the Democratic Party has been “on their heels” since Trump’s election.
“I don’t think that’s something hidden,” she said of the Democratic Party’s loss of confidence following its defeat to Trump. “I think it’s on us to be clear about not only leadership – and there’s lots of leaders in both parties – but also a strategy. I think that’s something that, as Trump has been successful in flooding the zone and, like every day, 15 things happening, we are still finding our footing, and I think you can’t get better until you admit you have a problem.”
Slotkin’s office pointed to her full remarks when Fox News Digital reached out for comment.
Trump-backed bill to avert government shutdown passes House despite mutiny threats
House Republicans passed a federal funding bill backed by President Donald Trump largely on their own Tuesday.
It also marked one of the rare occasions in recent memory that a majority of House Democrats voted against a bill that would prevent a government shutdown.
The bill passed largely along partisan lines in a 217 to 213 vote. Just one Republican, Rep. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., voted against the bill. One lone Democrat, Rep. Jared Golden, D-Maine, joined the rest of the GOP in advancing it.
Republicans erupted into cheers on the House floor when the bill passed, and now the House will be out of session until March 24.
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The measure, a short-term extension of fiscal year (FY) 2024 funding known as a continuing resolution (CR), will now head to the Senate. It must pass there and get to Trump’s desk before the end of Friday, March 14, to avert a partial shutdown.
In a major victory for Trump and House GOP leaders, however, several House Republicans who professed to never have voted for a CR supported the current bill.
Among them was Rep. Eric Burlison, R-Mo., who fully credited Trump with his decision to “barely” support the bill.
“The ‘barely’ is Donald Trump,” Burlison said. “He is the difference maker. I would never support this language, but I do trust Donald Trump.”
Rep. Greg Steube, R-Fla., was in a similar boat. He told reporters, “I’ll be the first guy to tell you I don’t like CRs. I’ve never voted for one.”
“But the Democrats aren’t going to help us. And the Democrats are just going to put any shutdown on the president, which obviously isn’t good for for the party,” Steube said. “So I think it’s important that we give the party, the president and the conference time to come up with a good budget.”
And despite passing the House, the legislation could still see an uphill climb in the Senate. At least one Republican there, Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., has already rejected the bill.
Republicans will likely need the help of as many as eight Democrats to meet the upper chamber’s 60-vote threshold.
The bill includes an additional $8 billion in defense dollars in an apparent bid to ease national security hawks’ concerns, while non-defense spending that Congress annually appropriates would decrease by about $13 billion.
There’s also an added $6 billion for healthcare for veterans.
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The White House has requested additional spending in areas that were not present in the last government funding extension, known as “anomalies.”
Among the anomalies are some added funding for the Women, Infants and Children (WIC) federal benefits program, and nearly $1 billion to aid with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) deportations.
There is also some added funding for defense in a bid to ease national security hawks’ concerns, and about $13 billion in cuts to non-defense spending.
Rank-and-file Republicans like Rep. Randy Feenstra, R-Iowa, cheered the bill’s passage. He told Fox News Digital, “My vote for this clean, fiscally conservative continuing resolution ensures that we pay our troops and fully fund our border patrol agents while continuing our work to extend the Trump Tax Cuts” in addition to a host of other Trump priorities.
Dave Portnoy says Trump admin offered him a job with one major caveat
Barstool Sports founder Dave Portnoy revealed the United States government reached out to him about a position within its ranks.
Portnoy described the call he got from someone within the government as “weird” in a video posted to his X account.
He said he mentioned the call he got during an appearance with Fox News’ and Fox Business’ Stuart Varney but “nobody paid attention.”
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But while he didn’t have interest in the job, he did find one big requirement to be quite odd.
“I got a call, I don’t know, a couple months ago? I don’t know when I got the call,” Portnoy explained. “It was like, ‘Hey, would you have any interest, Dave, in joining the Department of Commerce – commerce secretary under [Howard] Lutnick, or the guy working under him.’
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“But a caveat of joining the government is somebody would have to run Barstool. You can’t run Barstool and work for the government. I guess Elon [Musk] doesn’t have a specific title, but you kinda want your CEO with the eye on the ball, right?”
Before explaining the call, Portnoy raised a question about Musk’s work as CEO of Tesla while also carrying out his duties with DOGE, Department of Government Efficiency, during the Trump administration.
“The one thing I do wonder with Elon, he’s the CEO of Tesla, obviously, and he’s doing all this DOGE stuff, which I think is good,” Portnoy said. “Get rid of government waste, I’m for that. But how do you run Tesla when you’re working on DOGE 24/7?”
Going back to the call he received, Portnoy said it was nothing more than that.
“By the way, even if I wanted to do that, they never followed up,” he said. “They were like, ‘Let us know if you could find somebody to run Barstool and you’re interested in it. If you are interested, we’ll schedule a call in a week for the next steps.’ That never happened, so it was weird.”
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Portnoy appears to have no interest not being able to run Barstool Sports, which he founded in 2003 and built into a highly successful media brand.
Meanwhile, as of March 3, DOGE has claimed to save $105 billion since Musk & Co. explored lease terminations, contract cancellations and more.
Trans influencer Dylan Mulvaney slams Trump’s passport gender policy
Transgender activist Dylan Mulvaney denounced the Trump administration’s restoration of biological reality to government-issued identification materials, claiming to be a female “no matter what my passport says.”
TikTok star Mulvaney sparked national controversy in 2023 after posting a video revealing Bud Light sent beer cans with the influencer’s face on them as part of a new ad campaign and to celebrate Mulvaney’s full year of transitioning to “girlhood.”
On Monday, “CBS Mornings” spoke to the TikTok star about the aftermath of this controversy and living as a transgender-identifying person amid the new Trump administration and its executive orders dismantling pro-transgender policies.
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Trump famously signed an executive order, “Defending Women from Gender Ideology Extremism and Restoring Biological Truth to the Federal Government,” on his first day in office. The order mandates the federal government to recognize only two sexes — male and female — based on immutable biological characteristics, which must be reflected on official documents, like passports.
The State Department, responsible for passports, is no longer issuing passports with the “X” marker that’s been available since 2021 and is not honoring requests to change gender markers between “M” and “F.” Since then, a group of transgender people represented by the American Civil Liberties Union filed a lawsuit claiming the policy violates privacy and First Amendment rights.
When asked about Trump’s executive order, Mulvaney was defiant.
“It didn’t change any way that I think about myself, because I’m a woman no matter what my passport says,” the influencer said. “We are not hurting anyone. We’re less than one percent of the population, and the way that they speak about us so often is as if we’re, like, taking over cities like Godzilla. We’re just being our authentic selves.”
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“CBS Mornings” also noted Trump’s order to restrict sex-change procedures for young people 19 and under.
“What do you say to those who do question gender-affirming care, believing that it could be irreversible and lead to problems later in life, even cause regrets?” CBS News correspondent Natalie Morales asked.
“I don’t have the lived experience of a trans child that was able to seek out that care, but I ultimately do believe that parents know their child better than a government does,” Mulvaney responded. “We should let those families figure out what is best for them.”