Hakeem Jeffries dodges question on whether Mamdani is future of Democratic Party
Following Zohran Mamdani’s decisive mayoral victory in New York City on Tuesday, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., dodged a question on whether the self-proclaimed Democratic socialist is the future of the Democratic Party.
“You had record turnout in New York City for this election. Would you say that Mamdani is the future of the Democratic Party?” a reporter asked Jeffries during Wednesday’s press conference on Capitol Hill.
“Well, what Democrats have done all across the country is lean into the issue of affordability because of the fact that America’s too expensive costs are too high, and Donald Trump and Republicans, not only have they not done anything about it, they’ve made it worse as a result of the Trump tariffs as a result of them detonating the clean energy economy,” Jeffries responded.
“That’s why electricity bills are skyrocketing. And now, of course, they’re forcing these dramatically increased health care premiums to be visited upon the American people,” he added.
SOCIALIST SHOCKWAVE: ZOHRAN MAMDANI STUNS NYC AS VOTERS HAND POWER TO DEMOCRATS’ FAR-LEFT FLANK
Jeffries was also asked whether he is personally comfortable having the city he represents, the most populous city in America, be run by a socialist.
In response, Jeffries simply answered that Mamdani “is the mayor-elect of the City of New York,” saying, “It’s incumbent upon everyone to make sure that he’s successful.”
Although Mamdani was quickly endorsed by some of the country’s most progressive leaders, such as Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., the Democratic Party’s top leadership was slower to give their blessing. Jeffries himself did not answer whether he would be endorsing Mamdani until just before early voting began on Oct. 24. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., never issued an endorsement of Mamdani. However, he called his electoral victory “historic.”
Mamdani, who is a 34-year-old immigrant from Uganda, is the first Muslim mayor of New York City.
WILL ELECTION DAY 2025 BE REMEMBERED AS THE RISE OF THE SOCIALISTS?
Despite dodging these questions, Jeffries received an identical question earlier in the week about whether Mamdani is the future of the Democratic Party, prompting him to say, “I think the future of the Democratic Party is going to fall, as far as we‘re concerned, relative to the House Democratic Caucus and members who are doing a great work all across the country as it relates to our need to both take back control of the House.”
Jeffries called Tuesday night’s election a “big night for the American people” and a “big night for the Democratic Party.”
Besides New York City, Democrats also notched major victories in California, Virginia and New Jersey. He called the election results “a decisive repudiation of Donald Trump and failed Republican policies.”
This comes as the government shutdown over expiring Obamacare subsidies and healthcare benefits enters day 36, becoming the longest closure in U.S. history.
Senate Democrats have voted 14 times to reject a House-passed continuing resolution budget bill that would reopen the government.
Despite this, Jeffries indicated that he believes the Tuesday election showed the country is blaming President Donald Trump and Republicans for the shutdown and that more Democratic victories are in store in 2026.
VANCE DELIVERS POST-ELECTION REALITY CHECK, CONTENDS GOP MUST MAKE LIFE AFFORDABLE OR GET WALLOPED IN 2026
“We’re going to take back control of the United States House of Representatives. So, let’s be very clear about that,” he said. “Based on the environment that we know exists, which, as Democrats, we’ve been telling you for the last several months, is the reality, but now it’s been confirmed by the American people.”
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He also praised the passage of a California redistricting proposition, which was backed by Gov. Gavin Newsom, saying it will further help Democrats retake the House.
“Stay tuned because more is coming,” he said. “Republicans are going to be unable to gerrymander their way into rigging the midterm elections. That scheme is over. Buried dead in the ground. And so, we’re going to take back control of the House and fight for every inch of territory.”
Mamdani taps party insiders to steer transition despite vowing to ‘turn the page’
Zohran Mamdani vowed Tuesday night during his victory address to “turn the page” on old-guard New York City Democrats, but within less than 24-hours the mayor-elect of New York City announced a transition team comprised of folks with ties to the administrations of Bill de Blasio, Eric Adams, Michael Bloomberg and Joe Biden.
“Let tonight be the final time I utter [Andrew Cuomo’s] name, as we turn the page on a politics that abandons the many and answers only to the few,” Mamdani said Tuesday evening as he touted a new political order for New York City at his victory address at the Brooklyn Paramount theater. Meanwhile, the next morning, Mamdani named an all-female transition team comprised of four co-chairs and an executive director.
The co-chairs are Maria Torres-Springer, a former top aide under former mayors de Blasio and Michael Bloomberg, and soon-to-be former mayor Adams; Lina Khan, the Biden administration’s Federal Trade Commission chair; Melanie Hartzog, a former New York City budget director who served as the Deputy Mayor for Health and Human Services under de Blasio; and Grace Bonilla, a former Bloomberg and de Blasio aide appointed to lead the former’s Task Force on racial equity and Inclusion. Elana Leopold, a former senior aide for de Blasio, was tapped to be the transition team’s executive director.
WILL ELECTION DAY 2025 BE REMEMBERED AS THE RISE OF THE SOCIALISTS?
Fox News Digital reached out to Mamdani for comment but did not get a response in time for publication.
“The polls have barely closed and already the incoming mayor is breaking one of his core promises to shake up the status quo and usher in a new day. New York City started a downward spiral under the de Blasio Administration, and now some of its main players are returning to the halls of power,” said Republican strategist Colin Reed. “And former FTC Chair Lina Khan became synonymous with her hostility toward businesses large and small during the Biden Administration and one of the ringleaders of Bidenomics.”
Khan, in particular, has been accused of sidelining career staff in favor of fresh blood from a cadre of dark money nonprofits, which coincided with a forceful antitrust strategy that mirrored the organizations’ goals. The FTC, under Khan’s leadership, credited individuals brought up from these nonprofits for help in crafting policy and messaging in posts on its website, and in a report to Congress in 2022.
FLASHBACK: WILDEST MOMENTS MAMDANI OVERCAME ON THE CAMPAIGN TRAIL TO BECOME NYC’S NEXT MAYOR
Mamdani, a New York state assemblymember who ran as the Democratic candidate for New York City mayor, defeated former Empire State Gov. Andrew Cuomo and Republican candidate Curtis Sliwa in the Big Apple’s mayoral contest.
During Mamdani’s victory speech Tuesday night, the mayor-elect also slammed corporate interests, telling his supporters that New Yorkers have been betrayed by those elected officials who care more about their own enrichment. “We refuse to let them dictate the rules of the game anymore. They can play by the same rules as the rest of us.”
Meanwhile, Mamdani’s election victory was being cheered on by Alex Soros, the son of billionaire philanthropist George Soros, who has helped fund left-wing campaigns stretching from district attorneys to federal elections. In 2022, the younger Soros succeeded his father as chair of the board of directors of the massive $25 billion Open Society Foundations he runs his activism through.
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Alex Soros’ support of Mamdani is not a surprise, with the Open Society Foundations reportedly donating $37 million across the last decade to left-wing groups that ultimately promoted Mamdani’s nomination this year, such as the Working Families Party, the New York Post reported in July.
Radio host tells CNN’s Jones to ‘shut the F up forever’ over mayor-elect criticism
Radio host Charlamagne tha God told CNN host Van Jones to shut up Wednesday after he criticized New York City Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani’s fiery victory speech.
Jones accused Mamdani of a “character switch” during an impassioned election-night address on Tuesday, arguing that he had missed an opportunity to bring more New Yorkers into his camp after a contentious election.
“I think he missed a chance tonight to open up and bring more people into the tent,” Jones told the election night panel on CNN. “I think his tone was sharp. I think he was using the microphone in a way that he was almost yelling. And that’s not the Mamdani that we’ve seen on TikTok and the great interviews and stuff like that, so I felt like there was a little bit of a character switch here where the warm, open, embracing guy that’s close to working people was not on stage tonight, and there was some other voice on stage.”
Charlamagne blasted Jones for his comments the following morning, nominating him in his signature “Donkey of the Day” segment.
MAMDANI VICTORY SPEECH DRAWS CONCERN AS NYC MAYOR-ELECT VOWS ‘NO PROBLEM TOO LARGE FOR GOVERNMENT TO SOLVE’
“Man, shut the F up forever, Okay? Damn. There was no opportunity missed. The man just won. Alright? He just won. After you won, yes, you’re going to celebrate. Yes, you’re going to talk loud,” Charlamagne responded to Jones’ comments. “What do you mean he wasn’t warm enough? He took a victory lap, and he deserved to take a victory lap because he won. I just don’t understand how in the era of Trump, we’re still telling people how to talk. The language of politics is dead, and Donald Trump killed it. And you know when you can really talk that talk? After you win.”
Charlamagne struggled to discern which part of the speech Jones possibly could have objected to, saying his best guess was Mamdani’s rhetoric where he condemned landlords and the wealthy in the city by comparing them to President Donald Trump.
“If anyone can show a nation betrayed by Donald Trump how to defeat him, it is the city that gave rise to him,” Mamdani said in his victory speech.
Charlemagne argued that there was nothing divisive in Mamdani’s speech.
“The reason a lot of things don’t change in this country is because you don’t have enough politicians that are willing to challenge capitalism, and Zohran is doing that. So, how can Van Jones be mad that someone is challenging capitalism and authoritarian strategy?,” he said.
BILL MAHER WARNS FELLOW DEMOCRATS OF MAMDANI’S IMPACT, SAYS THE ‘WHOLE’ PARTY IS ON THE BALLOT
He then turned to his guest, former MSNBC host Mehdi Hasan, asking him to explain why Jones might have found the speech divisive.
Hasan answered that it would be hard to get inside Jones’ mindset, but offered the context that Jones had once praised Trump’s first speech before a Joint Session of Congress in 2017, and declared Trump “became President of the United States in that moment.”
“So Van Jones thinks that Donald Trump gives unifying speeches that make him president, but thinks Zohran Mamdani, who’s united a multi-racial, multicultural, multi-income coalition, is divisive? That tells you more about Van Jones than it does tell you about Zohran Mamdani,” Hasan argued.
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House Democrat’s shocking announcement leaves prime opportunity for GOP
A House Democrat representing a district that President Donald Trump won in 2024 is not seeking re-election next year.
Rep. Jared Golden, D-Maine, announced his plans in an op-ed for the Bangor Daily News on Wednesday, a day after Democrats’ sweeping electoral victories in Virginia, New Jersey, California and New York City.
“I have never loved politics. But I find purpose and meaning in service, and the Marine in me has been able to slog along through the many aspects of politics I dislike by focusing on the good work that Congress is capable of producing with patience and determination,” Golden wrote.
“But after 11 years as a legislator, I have grown tired of the increasing incivility and plain nastiness that are now common from some elements of our American community — behavior that, too often, our political leaders exhibit themselves.”
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Golden has represented Maine’s 2nd Congressional District since 2019. He’s managed to hold on to the seat through his constituents voting for President Donald Trump in both 2020 and 2024.
The moderate Democrat — also a Marine Corps veteran — has been known to frequently break from his own party, including on the recent government shutdown vote in September.
He shared more of his concerns with the left in his retirement announcement, criticizing both Republicans and Democrats for the current state of politics in the country.
“We have seen mainstream Republicans stand by as their party was hijacked first by Tea Party obstructionists and then by the MAGA movement and its willingness to hand much of Congress’ authority to the president,’ Golden wrote.
“I fear Democrats are going down the same path. We’re allowing the most extreme, pugilistic elements of our party to call the shots. Just look again at the shutdown. For as long as I can remember, we have opposed shutting down the government over policy disputes. We criticized Republicans for taking hostages this way. But this year, reeling from the losses of the last election, too many Democrats have given into demands that we use the same no-holds-barred, obstructionary tactics as the GOP.”
And despite his seat being a prime target for Republicans every two years, Golden said that did not factor into his decision.
“I don’t fear losing. What has become apparent to me is that I now dread the prospect of winning. Simply put, what I could accomplish in this increasingly unproductive Congress pales in comparison to what I could do in that time as a husband, a father and a son,” he wrote.
“I have long supported term limits and while current law allows me to run again, I like the idea of ending my service in Congress after eight years — the length of term limits in the Maine Legislature.”
SOCIALIST SHOCKWAVE: ZOHRAN MAMDANI STUNS NYC AS VOTERS HAND POWER TO DEMOCRATS’ FAR-LEFT FLANK
Golden’s seat had been ranked a “toss-up” by the nonpartisan Cook Political Report, which also rated his district slightly in favor of the GOP at R+4.
House Republicans’ campaign arm wasted no time in seizing on Golden’s announcement, releasing its own statement shortly after his op-ed was published.
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“Serial flip-flopper Jared Golden’s exit from Congress says it all: He’s turned his back on Mainers for years and now his chickens are coming home to roost. He, nor any other Democrat, has a path to victory in ME-02 and Republicans will flip this seat red in 2026,” National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) spokeswoman Maureen O’Toole said in a release to reporters.
Beyond his frustration with partisan politics, however, Golden also revealed that the heightened political environment also pushed him to re-consider his congressional career.
Golden said earlier this year that he and his family had to spend Thanksgiving in a hotel room after receiving a bomb threat at their home.
House Democrats’ campaign arm thanked Golden for his service in its own statement upon his retirement.
“I sincerely commend Jared for all the work he has done for Mainers, from lowering costs to protecting lobstermen’s jobs and fighting for veterans,” Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC) Chair Suzan DelBene, D-Wash., said. “He has devoted his life so far to service, first as a Marine, then in the Maine legislature, and in Congress since 2019. He embodies Maine’s independent spirit and I wish him and his family all the best in their next chapter.”
Supreme Court skeptical as Trump’s team defends presidential tariff authority
Justice Amy Coney Barrett had pointed questions Wednesday about the law Donald Trump invoked to impose global tariffs, joining several other justices on the right and left in voicing skepticism about the president’s ability to use a tool he has deemed critical to carrying out his economic agenda.
Solicitor General John Sauer repeatedly argued during the lengthy 2½-hour oral arguments that the emergency law Trump used to enact the tariffs for nearly every U.S. trading partner contained language about regulating imports, which Sauer said included using tariffs. The relevant statute permits the president to “regulate … nullify [and] void … importation,” but it does not use the word “tariff.” Barrett pressed Sauer on this point.
“Can you point to any other place in the code or any other time in history where that phrase together, ‘regulate importation,’ has been used to confer tariff-imposing authority?” Barrett, a Trump appointee, asked.
SUPREME COURT PREPARES TO CONFRONT MONUMENTAL CASE OVER TRUMP EXECUTIVE POWER AND TARIFF AUTHORITY
Sauer noted one other trade law that had served as a precursor to the emergency law in question, but Barrett appeared unconvinced, repeating her question as Sauer failed to offer direct responses.
Justice Sonia Sotomayor, an Obama appointee, interjected, asking Sauer to “just answer the justice’s question.”
Sotomayor at one point noted that no president has ever used the emergency law, known as the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, to impose tariffs, though Sauer argued that President Richard Nixon’s tariffs were used that way even if the IEEPA did not exist at that stage.
“It’s a congressional power, not a presidential power to tax,” Sotomayor said. “And you want to say tariffs are not taxes. But that’s exactly what they are. They’re generating money from American citizens, revenue.”
The liberal justice noted that Congress has always used the phrase “regulate and tax” together, suggesting that the absence of any mention of tariffs or taxes in a law’s language was deliberate and that Congress purposely did not grant that power to the president.
“Are you telling us that, with respect to its use of ‘regulate’ in other statutes, the taxing reference is superfluous? They didn’t need to do that?” Sotomayor asked.
TRUMP ASKS SUPREME COURT FOR URGENT RULING ON TARIFF POWERS AS ‘STAKES COULD NOT BE HIGHER’
Both Barrett and Sotomayor also drilled down on other verbs in the statute, underscoring the absence of tariff powers.
“To me, things like ‘nullify’ and ‘void’ have definite meanings. I agree with you that ‘regulate’ is a broader term, but those words, I think, are powerful,” Barrett said.
Sotomayor was more blunt: “The verbs that accompany ‘regulate’ have nothing to do with raising revenues in the form of taxes.”
The case has become one of the most closely watched of the term and has presented a novel question to the high court that Trump framed this week as “life or death.”
“Our Stock Market is consistently hitting Record Highs, and our Country has never been more respected than it is right now,” Trump wrote on Truth Social. “A big part of this is the Economic Security created by Tariffs, and the Deals that we have negotiated because of them.”
Sauer told the justices that Trump views the trade deficit and opioid epidemic as “country killing and not sustainable” and that he has chosen to address them by using the IEEPA to impose tariffs. Sauer highlighted the success of the trade agreements Trump has made with top foreign competitors, like China, because of the president’s tariff choices.
“Unwinding those agreements, [Trump] warns, would expose us to ruthless trade retaliation by far more aggressive countries and drive America from strength to failure with ruinous economic and national security consequences,” Sauer said.
Sauer argued the emergency law gives the president the power to regulate importation and that “the power to tariff is a core application of that,” even if not explicitly stated in the law.
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In addition to the liberal justices and Barrett, other Republican-appointed justices conveyed skepticism, including Chief Justice John Roberts, who questioned how far presidential emergency powers go under the law.
“The exercise of the power is to impose tariffs, and the statute doesn’t use the word tariffs,” Roberts said.
The cheapest property tax bills in the country are found in these 10 states
Property taxes are rising across much of America, but where you live makes all the difference.
The median U.S. property tax bill in 2024 rose to $3,500, up 2.8% from the previous year, largely driven by surging home values and shifting local tax rates.
However, some homeowners are paying a significantly different amount due to the states they live in, according to Realtor.com.
“Tax growth varies widely state to state, including some states where tax burdens are outpacing home price growth and others where property taxes are falling even as homes appreciate in value,” Joel Berner, senior economist at Realtor.com, said in a statement.
BESSENT SAYS US HOUSING MARKET IN ‘RECESSION’ DUE TO FEDERAL RESERVE INTEREST RATE POLICIES
West Virginia homeowners pay a median of just $728 per year, the lowest in the nation. Meanwhile, New Jersey residents face the highest median property tax bill, averaging $9,413 annually, according to Realtor.com.
The states with the lowest property taxes include:
West Virginia — $728
Alabama — $804
Arkansas — $871
Mississippi — $1,034
South Carolina — $1,328
Tennessee — $1,333
Louisiana — $1,415
Oklahoma —$1,481
Kentucky — $1,551
Michigan — $1,670
‘MILLION DOLLAR LISTING’ STAR MAKES BOLD MOVE TO SAFEGUARD FIRST-TIME BUYERS FROM MARKET DROPS
NEARLY 1 IN 5 AMERICAN HOMES SLASH PRICES AS BUYERS GAIN UPPER HAND IN SHIFTING MARKET
Property taxes generally loosely mirror the market value of a home, according to Berner.
States with the greatest property tax burdens are typically located in the Northeast, where household incomes and home prices are higher. By contrast, the states with the lowest property tax bills all have median home prices below the national median of $425,000 for September 2025, according to Realtor.com.
Although low property taxes can ease the financial burden for homeowners, they often mean fewer local services, according to Realtor.com.
“Property taxes support important municipal services, police, firefighters, schools, courts, libraries, parks and recreation, emergency response, the pound, roads, and maybe many more services people might not realize are funded, like senior services, municipal airports, public health, possibly water, sewer, and trash collection,” Bruce Ailion, an agent with Re/Max Town and County in Atlanta, told Realtor.com.
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As property taxes climb, lawmakers in Florida, Illinois, Kansas, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Texas are exploring ways to reduce the burden on homeowners.
Montana has already implemented property tax relief measures, FOX 10 reported.
Jelly Roll confronts high-end retailer over treatment during Australia visit
Jelly Roll claims he was treated like a “criminal” while shopping at a Louis Vuitton store in Sydney.
On Wednesday, the Grammy-nominated star took to social media to share his experience, saying the employees looked at him as if he were about to “rob” the store.
“Hey man, the Louis Vuitton in Sydney, legitimately just treated us like we were finna [sic] come in and rob that place,” the musician, who was wearing a backward ball cap, said.
“I have never been looked at more like a crim… Listen, the last time I was looked at like a criminal this bad… I was an actual criminal this bad.”
JELLY ROLL CALLS OUT CHRISTIAN SINGER OVER CONTROVERSIAL AWARDS SHOW BOYCOTT STANCE
A representative for Louis Vuitton did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.
The “Save Me” singer has been open about his past legal troubles and battle with addiction.
During a 2023 interview with Billboard, Jelly Roll, whose full name is Jason Bradley DeFord, said he was arrested when he was 16 and charged as an adult with aggravated robbery and possession with intent to sell.
He served over a year in prison and seven years of probation.
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“I never want to overlook the fact that it was a heinous crime,” Jelly Roll told Billboard.
He continued, “This is a grown man looking back at a 16-year-old kid that made the worst decision that he could have made in life and people could have got hurt and, by the grace of God, thankfully, nobody did.”
In October 2024, Jelly Roll opened up about how the birth of his daughter was the catalyst for wanting to change his life.
The country music star decided to make a change “as soon as she was born” after he found himself “sitting in a jail cell, having $17 of honeybuns and potato chips to [his] name.”
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“I own one outfit, the one that was in the jail, and here I am responsible for a child,” Jelly Roll said during an appearance on “Sunday TODAY with Willie Geist.” “I mean, I was the lowest common denominator in life, you know? I mean, I was scum of the Earth. I was a crack dealer. I was a horrible, horrible human. And I was like, ‘I’ve got to figure this out.'”
During an interview with Fox News Digital last year, he shared that his troubled past and his ability to overcome it had a lasting impact on him.
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“I wouldn’t be the man I am today if it wasn’t for what I went through. I think it empowered me. I think it gave me my voice,” he said at the 2023 CMAs. “It taught me a lot about overcoming. It taught me a lot about changing and the ability to change.”
He continued, “I was a horrible human for decades, and to just be able to turn that around and give a message in the music and help people… and just try to give back as much as I can in every way I can is very indicative of where I came from and how important it is to me to always reach back.”