Jeffries unveils last-minute ploy to extend Obamacare subsidies through Trump’s term
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., announced a long-shot plan to force the House of Representatives to vote on a three-year extension of expiring Obamacare subsidies.
During a closed-door meeting on Wednesday, Jeffries said Democrats would submit a discharge petition that, if successful, would bring the subsidies to a vote in the chamber over the objection of GOP leadership, giving Democrats a way to continue pursuing their shutdown demands.
“The House Democratic position is going to be the House Democratic position,” Jeffries said shortly after leaving the meeting. “We believe that the American people — given the Republican refusal to act and find a bipartisan path forward — should be given the same level of certainty that Republicans have continued to give the wealthy, the well-off and the well-connected.”
JEFFRIES REVEALS LAST-MINUTE MOVE TO EXTEND COVID-ERA SUBSIDIES AS HOUSE SHUTDOWN VOTE LOOMS
The three-year window for the proposed extension coincides with the duration of President Donald Trump’s second term, which ends in 2028.
In response to the plan, House Majority Leader Steve Scalise, R-La., said the discharge effort was an ill-conceived attempt to give a new lease on life to a program that was always supposed to be temporary.
“There’s a reason Democrats set these inefficient subsidies to expire. COVID ended — it’s time these insurance company credits do, too. Republicans have real solutions to lower premiums for hardworking families, and they don’t include bailing out insurance companies that are increasing prices,” Scalise said.
The whip also slammed the high health insurance costs that the Obamacare tax credits subsidize.
“Democrats created the healthcare mess with Obamacare that has resulted in 80% increases in premiums. Now their only solution to those skyrocketing premium increases is to bail out insurance companies with billions in taxpayer subsidies. These COVID subsidies are rife with waste, fraud and abuse,” Scalise said.
MODERATE DEM UNDERCUTS JEFFRIES ON OBAMACARE COMPROMISE AS GOVERNMENT SHUTDOWN WEARS ON
The petition, which Jeffries said Democrats would likely submit later on Wednesday, would require 218 votes to succeed. Democrats hold 213 seats — soon to be 214 seats with the addition of Rep.-elect Adelita Grijalva.
Even so, Democrats would need the assistance of at least four Republicans to force consideration of the subsidies.
Democrats have sought the extension to the credits since the government plunged into a government shutdown on Oct. 1. Democrats, led by Jeffries and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., refused to consider spending legislation without first extending the subsidies in some way. Congress first passed them as an emergency response to COVID-19 in 2021.
Democrats fear that the expiration of those subsidies at the end of the year could leave millions of Obamacare policyholders with significantly higher premiums overnight.
Now that Congress looks poised to escape the shutdown — without any action on the subsidies — Democrats have pulled out all the stops to put the extension on the floor. Earlier this week, they attempted to pass it as a unanimous consent agreement. On Tuesday, Democrats submitted an extension as an amendment to legislation to reopen the government.
Rep. Rosa DeLauro, D-Conn., the ranking member on the House Appropriations Committee, said she supported the most recent attempt.
“I support a three-year extension. I was supportive — I thought it was a very reasonable thing that the Senate did, which was a one-year extension,” DeLauro said, referring to a plan floated by Schumer in the Senate.
OBAMACARE SUBSIDIES AT CENTER OF DEM SHUTDOWN FIGHT ‘FUEL’ HEALTHCARE COST INFLATION, CONSERVATIVES SAY
Republicans rejected the one-year extension proposal.
Rep. Melanie Stansburry, D-N.M., said Democrats had upped their demands when it became clear Republicans wouldn’t agree to a shorter timeline.
“What I can say is that the original negotiating position of Democrats in the House and Senate had been a two-year extension that was obviously rejected,” Stansbury said. “I certainly support it and will be signing it.”
In the event the discharge petition collects the needed 218 votes, it’s unclear when it will reach the floor for consideration.
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The House of Representatives will entertain funding legislation on Wednesday night that would end the ongoing, 43-day shutdown.
House GOP releases Epstein emails showing media contacts and advice on repairing image
Hours after the White House accused congressional Democrats of selectively leaking Jeffrey Epstein emails Wednesday, Republicans on the House Oversight Committee made public tens of thousands of additional pages of documents, including emails between the late sex trafficker and prominent reporters.
Many of the emails included exchanges between Epstein and the magazine writer turned biographer Michael Wolff.
Wolff had reached out to Epstein repeatedly, in some cases discussing Epstein’s public image and apparently encouraging him to bash Trump as a way to repair it.
“NYT called me about you and Trump,” Wolff wrote to Epstein in February 2016, according to the documents. “Also, Hillary campaign digging deeply. Again, you should consider preempting.”
HOUSE OVERSIGHT COMMITTEE RELEASES THOUSANDS OF EPSTEIN DOCUMENTS
A month later, they discussed strategy ahead of the release of James Patterson’s “Filthy Rich,” a true-crime book about Epstein, who was the author’s neighbor in Palm Beach. He suggested to Epstein that “becoming an anti-Trump voice gives you a certain political cover which you decidedly don’t have now.”
Wolff, who has a history of publicly disparaging Trump, also took a swipe at the bestselling crime novelist.
Read some of the emails between Epstein and Wolff:
“Patterson can be counted on to produce a bestseller, and while he isn’t regarded as a serious writer, he’ll surely be unloading a lot of tabloid copy,” the emails continue. “Because this will be tied to the election, the Trump-Clinton angle will amp up the attention 10-fold, in fact, possibly, a hundred fold. Possibly more than anything you’ve encountered before.”
EPSTEIN DOCUMENTS RELEASED BY HOUSE DEMOCRATS NAME ELON MUSK, STEVE BANNON AND PETER THIEL
When asked by Epstein what he should say about his relationship with Trump, Wolff appeared to tell him to “let him hang himself.”
“If he says he hasn’t been on the plane or to the house, then that gives you a valuable PR and political currency,” another email reads. “You can hang him in a way that potentially generates a positive benefit for you, or, if it really looks like he could win, you could save him, generating a debt. Of course, it is possible that, when asked, he’ll say Jeffrey is a great guy and has gotten a raw deal and is a victim of political correctness, which is to be outlawed in a Trump regime.”
At another point, Wolff asked for introductions to two people, Tom Barrack, a business leader and chair of Trump’s first inaugural committee, and Kathy Ruemmler, a former federal prosecutor, while researching his book about Trump’s first 100 days in office. He said he needed an “off-the-record perspective on White House procedures.”
He also asked whether former President Bill Clinton would confirm he had never been to Epstein’s private island in the U.S. Virgin Islands, Little St. John.
Clinton has publicly denied ever going there, and Epstein’s longtime companion and accomplice Ghislaine Maxwell has also denied seeing him there.
The two planned to meet as recently as May 2019, months before Epstein died in a federal jail cell while awaiting trial.
Fox News Digital has reached out to Wolff’s team for comment.
Some of the new documents included a short video of a dog and what appeared to be chew toys modeled after Trump and 2016 presidential rival Hillary Clinton. Others appear to be slides from an advisor who was looking to generate positive search engine results about Epstein after his child trafficking conviction.
BILL CLINTON LETTER IN EPSTEIN ‘BIRTHDAY BOOK’ AMONG NEW FILES RELEASED BY HOUSE OVERSIGHT COMMITTEE
House Democrats‘ earlier release included a short but cryptic email from Epstein to Maxwell, who is in prison for helping him groom and traffic girls. The disgraced financier mentioned Trump by name.
“I want you to realize that that dog that hasn’t barked is Trump,” Epstein wrote in a message dated April 2, 2011. “[VICTIM] spent hours at my house with him…he has never once been mentioned. Police chief. etc. I’m 75% there.”
The released document had a name redacted and replaced by the word “VICTIM” in all capital letters. Officials later revealed the victim to be prominent Epstein accuser Virginia Giuffre, who died of suicide earlier this year.
‘SEPARATED FROM REALITY’: SENATE REPUBLICANS FUME AS DEMS USE EPSTEIN SAGA TO BLOCK TRUMP’S AGENDA
Giuffre was Epstein’s most outspoken victim but had not accused Trump of wrongdoing. She had previously worked at Mar-a-Lago, where Epstein allegedly poached her before he and Maxwell trafficked her for years.
“The ‘unnamed victim’ referenced in these emails is the late Virginia Giuffre, who repeatedly said President Trump was not involved in any wrongdoing whatsoever and ‘couldn’t have been friendlier’ to her in their limited interactions,” White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters Wednesday. “The fact remains that President Trump kicked Jeffrey Epstein out of his club decades ago for being a creep to his female employees, including Giuffre.”
Trump weighed in on Truth Social, accusing the Democrats of trying to draw attention away from their role in the standoff over a government shutdown.
WHITE HOUSE SLAMS DEMS’ ‘BAD-FAITH’ EPSTEIN DOC RELEASE AS DEMAND FOR FILES INTENSIFIES
“The Democrats cost our Country $1.5 Trillion Dollars with their recent antics of viciously closing our Country, while at the same time putting many at risk — and they should pay a fair price,” he wrote. “There should be no deflections to Epstein or anything else, and any Republicans involved should be focused only on opening up our Country, and fixing the massive damage caused by the Democrats!”
Epstein got a sweetheart deal in 2008 for child sex crimes but was arrested again in 2019 on more serious trafficking charges. He died before the case went to trial. Maxwell was convicted of grooming and procuring girls and young women for him but is appealing and continues to claim her innocence.
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China moves into Venezuela as Maduro regime gets Beijing lifeline amid US tensions
As President Donald Trump warns of “zero tolerance” for narco-states in America’s backyard, China is tightening its grip on Venezuela — a high-risk economic and political bet that could soon collide with U.S. power.
U.S. defense officials confirmed to Reuters last month that a U.S. aircraft carrier strike group had entered the Southern Command region, which covers the Caribbean and the northern coast of South America, to monitor narcotrafficking routes linked to Venezuela’s military leadership.
The Pentagon said the arrival of USS Gerald R. Ford, carrying more than 4,000 sailors and dozens of tactical aircraft, would “bolster US capacity to detect, monitor, and disrupt illicit actors and activities.” It added that the mission aims to “degrade and dismantle transnational criminal organizations.”
CHINA CONDEMNS US MILITARY BUILDUP OFF VENEZUELA COAST AS FOREIGN INTERFERENCE IN REGIONAL AFFAIRS
Within weeks, Venezuelan officers were reportedly training for guerrilla-style defense against a possible U.S. strike — an acknowledgment, according to Reuters, of “rising anxiety inside Caracas.”
Into this standoff, Beijing unveiled a “zero-tariff” trade agreement with Caracas at the Shanghai Expo 2025, announced by Deputy Minister for Foreign Trade Coromoto Godoy. Venezuelan officials said the accord covers roughly 400 tariff categories, removing duties on Chinese and Venezuelan goods.
While final implementation details remain pending verification, the goal is clear: Beijing is moving fast into a sanctioned economy that Washington has sought to isolate.
“This really looks like China is going to completely take over the Venezuelan economy,” said Gordon Chang, an expert on China’s global trade strategy. “It’s going to decimate Venezuela’s local industry.”
“Venezuela basically sells petroleum to China and very little else,” he said. “China, of course, is a manufacturer of many, many items. Venezuelan manufacturing is not going to experience a renaissance anytime soon — it’s going the opposite direction.”
VENEZUELA MOBILIZES TROOPS, WEAPONS IN RESPONSE TO US WARSHIP BUILDUP IN CARIBBEAN
Chang added that Maduro’s sudden embrace of Beijing stems from fear of Trump’s next move.
“Maduro probably doesn’t have a choice,” he said. “He realizes he’s got a problem in the form of Donald J. Trump. There’s a U.S. aircraft carrier not far from his shores, and a lot of military assets bearing down on him. He needs a friend, and he’s desperate.”
“For Maduro, the zero-tariff pact may offer temporary relief — but it only deepens dependence,” Chang added. “I don’t see this trade deal as strengthening Venezuela. I see it strengthening China’s stranglehold over Venezuela.”
US MILITARY BUILDUP IN CARIBBEAN SEES BOMBERS, MARINES AND WARSHIPS CONVERGE NEAR VENEZUELA
From Beijing’s perspective, the tariff-free pact opens a commercial and strategic doorway into the Western Hemisphere just as Washington doubles down on sanctions.
The Council on Foreign Relations estimates that China has extended around $60 billion in loans to Venezuela over the past two decades, much of it repaid through oil shipments — a figure still cited by both Chinese and Venezuelan officials in 2025.
“China has leveraged multibillion-dollar loans and the establishment of satellite positioning and surveillance facilities to secure strategic control over Venezuela’s natural resources and critical infrastructure,” said Isaias Medina III, an Edward Mason Fellow at Harvard University and a former Venezuelan diplomat to the U.N. Security Council.
Medina was referring to the El Sombrero satellite ground station in Venezuela’s Guárico province — a joint China-Venezuela project that Western analysts, including a recent Associated Press report, describe as part of a wider space cooperation network giving Beijing an intelligence foothold in Latin America.
US BOLSTERS MILITARY PRESENCE IN CARIBBEAN NEAR VENEZUELA AMID TRUMP’S EFFORTS TO HALT DRUG TRAFFICKING
Medina said the new pact must be understood as one layer in a wider anti-Western alignment.
“Under the banner of so-called ‘21st Century Socialism,’ initiated by Hugo Chávez and expanded by Nicolás Maduro, the nation has evolved into a forward operating base for regimes openly hostile to the United States and its allies,” he said.
“Iran, Russia, China, and Cuba have entrenched themselves across Venezuelan territory, using the country as a platform for asymmetric warfare, intelligence operations, and ideological expansion throughout Latin America.”
He noted that “Russia’s military footprint includes more than $12 billion in arms sales and ongoing defense cooperation and Wagner Group presence in military exercises,” while Cuban military advisers remain embedded inside Venezuelan security institutions.
“Iran has exploited this environment to embed terrorist proxies such as Hezbollah and Hamas, using Venezuela as both a financial hub and a logistical corridor. These activities extend to former training camps in Syria, where Venezuelan operatives and mercenaries have been indoctrinated in hybrid warfare tactics,” he added. “Iranian interest includes potential drone manufacturing and uranium mining.”
“The Maduro government, shielded by the absence of the rule of law or legitimate governance, has replaced statecraft with criminal enterprise,” Medina said. “Grand corruption is not the exception; it is the system.”
“The humanitarian toll is catastrophic,” he added. “Over 30% of Venezuela’s population has been forcibly displaced. Starvation has been weaponized as a tool of social control, amounting to a war crime under international law. Despite the enormity of these crimes, many United Nations member states continue to recognize and engage with this illegitimate regime, thereby perpetuating its impunity. The failure to confront this crisis decisively enables a coalition of adversaries, state and non-state actors alike, to project power dangerously close to U.S. territory.”
For now, Washington’s sanctions campaign still constrains Venezuela’s oil lifelines. In March 2025, Reuters reported that U.S. threats to impose tariffs on nations buying Venezuelan crude caused a temporary disruption in shipments to China. Beijing dismissed the measures as “illegal extraterritorial actions” and vowed to continue cooperation — but has not disclosed how it will enforce the new tariff-free pact.
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Chang said the underlying reality hasn’t changed: China can’t protect Caracas from U.S. hard power.
“It can certainly launch a propaganda blitz,” he said, “but it can’t project military force in the region. It’s really up to what President Trump does. China does not have the military strength to oppose American intervention if that’s what Trump decides.”
Medina agreed that the stakes reach beyond economics. “Just three hours from U.S. shores, this narco-terrorist regime has become the operational convergence of organized crime, drug trafficking, money laundering, and human rights atrocities,” he said, urging a Western response combining “diplomatic isolation, targeted sanctions, and, when necessary, defensive deployments.”
Christian university blocks students’ third attempt to form TPUSA chapter
A third attempt by students at Point Loma Nazarene University in San Diego to establish a school-supported Turning Point USA (TPUSA) chapter was denied by the university’s Associated Student Body (ASB) Board of Directors.
The decision was announced in an email sent to students by university President Kerry Fulcher Nov. 5.
“I felt silenced when I got that email,” said Luke Cole, the elected secretary of the chapter and a third-year student at the university. “I felt like I couldn’t speak anymore.”
The email, obtained by Fox News Digital, said the motion was brought to a vote by the ASB Board of Directors and failed to pass after a review process. The email expressed concerns over the organization’s Professor Watchlist. According to TPUSA’s website, the Professor Watchlist aims to “expose and document” professors who discriminate against conservative students.
CONSERVATIVE STUDENT EXPOSES MIDWESTERN COLLEGE FOR PREVENTING TURNING POINT USA CHAPTER
“While the applicants indicated they would not participate in the watchlist, their application included phrasing that mirrors language used on TPUSA’s website in connection with it,” Fulcher wrote in the email. “That practice is not aligned with ASB’s purpose of fostering constructive communication and interaction between students, faculty, and administration.”
The email also cited the club’s intent to affiliate with TPUSA Faith, an initiative that aims to “unite the Church” and “eliminate wokeism,” according to its website. Fulcher said that was a violation of the university’s church and parachurch policies.
“This policy is in place to ensure that outside churches or ministry organizations, however well-intentioned, do not duplicate efforts already being led by our campus ministry team and use university resources to advance their own programming,” Fulcher wrote in the email.
Fulcher said the authority to approve or deny student-initiated clubs rests solely with the ASB Board of Directors. According to PLNU’s website, the school hosts a “B.R.E.A.K.” club which “emphasizes the importance of gender equality on a school campus.” Hosts discuss issues such as “privilege” and “gender justice.”
The school also hosts a “Center for Justice and Reconciliation” group that focuses on “immigration and racial justice” and allows students to “process injustices in their communities,” according to the website.
UC BERKELEY CHAOS OUTSIDE TURNING POINT GATHERING ENDS IN MULTIPLE ARRESTS AS CONSERVATIVE EVENT RUNS SMOOTHLY
The decision has left students crestfallen. Ginger Friess, a first-year student at the university, told Fox News Digital that, after Charlie Kirk’s death, she felt called to serve her campus through founding a TPUSA chapter.
“For me, it was about finding truth and making space for that on this campus,” said Friess. “I watched students and faculty, who identified as Christian, celebrate human death on campus … and I was deeply troubled by that.
“[Kirk] invited all people, all students on campus to an open mic. We want to open up the conversation.”
Brooklyn Stratton, a third-year student at PLNU and elected vice president of TPUSA Point Loma, said she and other young conservatives felt targeted on college campuses after Kirk’s death.
“I just wanted to make a community for other students who [were] also feeling this way to get together,” said Stratton. “College is our formative years. … I feel like not giving people the opportunity to explore which side of politics they’re on doesn’t align with free speech at all.”
LOUISIANA GOP THROWS WEIGHT BEHIND TURNING POINT USA CHAPTER REJECTED BY NEW ORLEANS UNIVERSITY: ‘INJUSTICE’
The formation of a TPUSA chapter was also rejected twice in 2021, according to the campus’ student newspaper.
Associate Vice President for Communications and Public Affairs Lora Flemming shared in a statement with Fox News Digital that the university is a place where “students from a variety of backgrounds are welcomed into a community shaped by faith.”
“The outcome of this club application should not be misunderstood as a departure from our Christian mission or a rejection of conservative perspectives,” Flemming said in the statement. “Calling into question the university’s Christian identity or discrediting our ASB leaders because of disagreement over this club decision is not reflective of how Christians are called to engage with one another in truth and grace.”
Friess shared that her grandfather was one of Turning Point USA’s first donors in 2012, motivating her to begin a chapter herself.
“Ultimately, I hope to create loving people. People that are willing to have the boldness to advocate for the eternal goodness for others,” said Friess. “And also to equip conservative students with a heart for Christ.”
Despite the students’ efforts being denied, they made clear this was not the end for TPUSA in Point Loma. The students shared that they were looking into the appeal process and meeting off campus.
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“My school is really trying hard to stay neutral, but the way they’re staying neutral really isn’t neutral at all,” said Stratton. “I guess the question I’m wondering is, ‘Is my administration at Point Loma Nazarene University giving a space for not only diversity of being but diversity of thought?’”
Fox News Digital contacted PLNU ASB’s President Kenzie Lopez and Director of Student Relations Nathan Blanco. Blanco declined to comment and Lopez did not respond before the time of publication.
VP calls experts ‘wrong’ while defending Trump’s health approach at Kennedy event
Vice President JD Vance praised President Donald Trump’s “bulldozer” approach to public health, calling it a necessary force that “just had to happen,” during remarks at Wednesday’s Make America Healthy Again (MAHA) summit.
The summit, held at the Waldorf Astoria in Washington, D.C., was centered on Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.‘s MAHA movement — aimed at improving nutrition, eliminating toxins, preserving natural habitats and fighting the chronic disease epidemic in the U.S.
“That is a good summary of Donald J. Trump is that he takes a bulldozer to Overton windows every single day,” Vance told the HHS secretary during the event. “It just had to happen… One of the criticisms that Bobby will always get, and I always think it’s such b——-, excuse my language… [is that] sometimes there’s this attack where people say that conclusion is not supported by the science, or this or that conclusion is a conspiracy theory.”
“Science, as practiced in its best form, is that if you disagree with it, then you ought to criticize it, and you ought to argue against it. You can’t shut down the debate,” Vance continued. “If you look at all the big public health debates that we’ve had in this country over the last 20 or 30 years… they tried to silence the people who were saying things that were outside the Overton window. As we found out the hard way over the last few years, it was very often that people who were outside the Overton window were actually right, and all the experts were wrong.”
TRUMP WILL MAKE AMERICA HEALTHY AGAIN WITH AN UNLIKELY COALITION
Vance went on to say the country could not advance unless Americans become comfortable with people who are “willing to challenge orthodoxy.”
He also vowed to keep Appalachia in the forefront of the conversation, noting residents have higher premature mortality rates due to a long history of being failed by the public health system.
“You know what really p—– people off — when they realize that their loved ones are dying much sooner than everybody else,” said Vance, whose autobiography, “Hillbilly Elegy,” details his own upbringing in Appalachia. “That is a big part of the story of what’s going on in Appalachia, and why I think so many people in Appalachia feel left behind.”
VP’S OFFICE RESPONDS TO PA GOV WHO SAID VANCE BETRAYED APPALACHIAN ROOTS WITH ‘BULL—- POLITICS’ OVER SNAP
He described himself as “the golden boy” of Appalachia, admitting he feels guilt about the many people who grew up in families like his and have not had an easy life or the same amount of economic opportunity.
“That gives me a sense of purpose because I want those people to have the same opportunities that I’ve had,” Vance said. “But it also gives me a great sense of anger, because we never should have gotten to the point that we are today. The reason that we have, is because of failed leadership over generations.”
When discussing the people of Appalachia, he said they are people who, “though they don’t have much, would take the shirt off their back and give it to a complete stranger, because that’s what you do.”
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“If you go back to America’s biggest wars — World War I, World War II, Vietnam — which were the counties that filled their draft quotas with volunteers instead of with draftees?” Vance posed. “It’s very often the parts in deep Appalachia where you’ve got grinding poverty, but you’ve also got this incredible love of country.”
“So if any place in this country deserves not to be left behind, it’s Appalachia… These are people who deserve to live better, healthier lives, but they really have been left behind by this country’s leadership,” Vance added.
Sharon Osbourne breaks down over Trump’s ‘really kind’ gesture following Ozzy’s death
A tearful Sharon Osbourne shared a rare moment of gratitude and grief following the death of her husband, rock icon Ozzy Osbourne.
In an emotional new episode of “The Osbournes Podcast,” Sharon, Kelly and Jack Osbourne came together for a conversation about loss, love and the unexpected kindness they’ve received — including from President Donald Trump himself.
At one point during the podcast, the family played a voicemail that Trump left Sharon after Ozzy’s death.
OZZY OSBOURNE DEAD AT 76
“Hi Sharon, it’s Donald Trump and I just wanted to wish you the best and the family … Ozzy was amazing, he was an amazing guy,” Trump said in the voicemail. “I met him a few times and I want to tell you he was unique in every way and talented. So, I just wanted to wish you the best and it’s a tough thing. I know how close you were and whatever I can do. Take care of yourself. Say hello to the family. Thanks, bye.”
Holding back tears, Sharon emotionally said, “He didn’t have to call. That was really kind of him.”
Reflecting on her experience working with Trump and first lady Melania Trump, Sharon said that politics aside, she has always found them genuine and respectful.
“Listen, when it comes to politics, we know nobody comes out a winner,” she said. “Whoever you like, half of people are gonna [be unhappy], and now it’s more so than ever in history… You can’t come out a winner. All I know is a man that I know, I worked with for a month — I spent one month with him and his wife, who was always gracious, elegant, just a delight to talk to.”
OZZY OSBOURNE NEVER GOT OVER BLACK SABBATH FIRING PRIOR TO HIS DEATH, DAUGHTER SAYS
She added, “He was always, ‘How are the children? How’s Kelly? I’m so proud of Kelly and Jack for what they’ve done. Their manners are great.’ And he was just a great guy to talk to, and he has always treated me with respect.”
Sharon made it clear that her praise wasn’t political — it was personal.
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“Listen, I’m not American. I can’t vote. I don’t want to vote. I don’t vote for anyone. I vote for no one. Never have, never will,” she said. “But this thing is, all I know is he’s treated me with respect, your father with respect. He wanted nothing from us — nothing. [His wife] Melania, the same. Nothing. And they have been great.”
OZZY OSBOURNE KNEW THE END WAS NEAR DURING FINAL PERFORMANCE, FRIEND SAYS
She continued, “For him to take his time to do that for us … he doesn’t live in a bubble. He knows what’s going on in the streets. He knows what is going on. And I can’t say that for our prime minister [in the United Kingdom]. Again, for President Trump and Melania, thank you. Thank you, thank you, thank you.”
The Osbournes also revealed they received a “lovely letter” from King Charles after Ozzy’s death — another gesture that deeply moved the family.
“Our King. Now we’re talking,” Sharon said, smiling through tears. “He’s an amazing person. Not just because he wrote to us when Ozzy passed, but if he did it for us, you know he does it for many, many people.”
She praised King Charles for his compassion over the years, sharing that he had reached out during Ozzy’s previous health struggles.
“He didn’t have to do certain things that he’s done for Ozzy. In the past — Ozzy’s birthday, when Ozzy was sick in hospital with the motorbike accident, he reached out,” she said.
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“He’s a good, caring man with a good heart. And Ozzy’s, as me, we are royalists… we respect him, we respect his family.”
The heartfelt note, Sharon said, was hand-delivered.
“He took the time out of his day to write us… a note from the King for Ozzy’s passing with his condolences,” she said. “And that says so much.”
The legendary frontman of Black Sabbath died on July 22 at the age of 76.
“It is with more sadness than mere words can convey that we have to report that our beloved Ozzy Osbourne has passed away this morning,” the family said in a statement provided to Fox News Digital at the time. “He was with his family and surrounded by love. We ask everyone to respect our family privacy at this time.”
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The rock icon — known for defining heavy metal with hits like “Paranoid” and “Crazy Train” — had battled multiple health issues in recent years, including Parkinson’s disease and complications from a 2003 ATV accident.
His cause of death was later revealed to be cardiac arrest, acute myocardial infarction, coronary artery disease and Parkinson’s disease, according to the death certificate obtained by Fox News Digital.
As shutdown stalls Washington, watchdog reveals surging federal workforce pay
FIRST ON FOX: A new report from a government watchdog group begs the question of why – with nearly 800,000 federal bureaucrats drawing six-figure salaries and the average payroll of the federal workforce far outpacing its size – is Washington still unable to fund the basics of government?
Open The Books, a project of American Transparency – a 501(c)3 nonprofit, nonpartisan charitable organization, closely tracks government spending and released an expansive report Wednesday ahead of a looming agreement between Republicans and Democrats to reopen the government, showing the swamp has gotten bigger, richer and more secretive since 2020.
The report, which analyzed all publicly disclosed federal salaries for Fiscal Year 2024, found a total of 2.9 million civil service employees with a total payroll of $270 billion plus an additional 30% for benefits. While the total number of employees rose by 5% since 2020, payroll grew nearly five times as much.
DEPT OF ED SPENDING SOARED 749% DESPITE DOWNSIZING, NEW DOGE-INSPIRED INITIATIVE REVEALS
Currently, the federal workforce is costing American taxpayers $673,000 per minute, $40.4 million per hour and just under $1 billion per day, according to Open The Books. This includes almost 1,000 workers who are out-earning the president’s $400,000 per year salary, 31,452 non-War Department federal employees who out-earned every governor of all 50 states, and 793,537 people making $100,000 or more. Those making $300,000 or more have seen an 84% increase since 2020, while there has similarly been an 82% increase in those earning $200,000 or more, the report points out.
Meanwhile, during Open The Book’s investigation, the fiscal watchdog group also found that the names of 383,000 federal workers across 56 different agencies were redacted, amounting to a total of $38.3 billion in pay. According to Open The Books CEO John Hart, “You can’t have accountability without visibility.”
“The Trump administration has a historic opportunity to bring much-needed transparency to the administrative state. While federal employees don’t add as much to the debt as safety net programs, defense, and overall agency spending, they are an indicator of government’s growth,” Hart said in a statement to Fox News Digital. “Our investigators found far too many redactions and blind spots that DOGE should have already fixed. You can’t have accountability without visibility. Taxpayers need a much clearer picture of the federal workforce than they have today.”
U.S. Sen. Joni Ernst, R-Iowa, has been working with Open The Books to fight for greater transparency. In a letter sent in September to Scott Kupor, the director of the U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM), Ernst said she had identified “numerous examples” of full-time federal employees earning two salaries while moonlighting for other agencies or government contractors – something that is typically prohibited under the law. Ernst pointed out that this was being done without the approval or knowledge of these workers’ managers.
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“From 2021 to 2024, a Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) employee held multiple other full-time government contractor jobs, frequently billing taxpayers for more than 24 hours of work in a single day,” Ernst chronicled in her letter. “In addition to HUD, she was paid by AmeriCorps and the National Institutes of Health. Since she teleworked in all three positions, she was able to hide her overlapping jobs and get away with billing taxpayers $225,866 for hours she never worked. She claimed she worked 26 hours on 13 of the 21 workdays in a single month.”
Ernst also described a second example of a human resources official at the Peace Corps who was caught falsifying timecards submitted to different agencies, which led to the employee double-billing taxpayers for tens-of-thousands of dollars. She laid out several other examples in the letter as well.
“Until recently, outside of death and taxes, the expanding Washington bureaucracy was one of the few certainties in life,” said Ernst. “I am proud to have partnered with the Trump administration and DOGE to successfully downsize the bloated bureaucracy, but there is much more work to be done to make Washington more efficient.”
One can “look no further” than the “failed Schumer shutdown” Ernst said, pointing out that taxpayers will be on the hook for more than $12 billion in back pay for 750,000 non-essential federal employees who did not work for a month-and-a-half.
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In October, Ernst introduced the Non-Essential Workers Transparency Act, aimed at providing the public with an exact accounting of how much back pay the government will be required to fork over in the case of a shutdown.
The bill would require executive agencies to submit detailed reports to Congress within 30 days of a lapse in appropriations that must include the total number of employees and contractors employed by the agency at the time of the shutdown, the total salaries paid by the agency during the prior fiscal year, the number of furloughed during the lapse and their annual pay, the number of employees not furloughed and the sum of their pay, and a requirement that all this information be posted publicly on the agencies’ websites.
Eagles star calls his situation a ‘s—show’ as coach tries to shut down controversy
Another A.J. Brown moment of frustration prompted Philadelphia Eagles reporters to ask head coach Nick Sirianni about his star receiver.
And Sirianni is sick of hearing about it.
“Guys, I’m close to being done answering these questions about this,” he said when further questioned about Brown’s latest comments, which came during a “Madden” stream with YouTube personality Janky Rondo.
“He’s working hard, and he is a big part of the game plan and will be going forward. He’s working like crazy when he’s here, and we’re excited to have him.”
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During the “Madden” stream, Brown was asked by Janky Rondo how everything was going, both professionally and personally.
Brown replied, “No,” with a laugh and started to explain himself.
“Where have you been?” he told Rondo while chuckling. “Like, family good, yeah. Everything else? No. … It’s a s—show. … You on, ‘How you been?’ I’m struggling, brother.”
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The reigning Super Bowl champions are well on their way back to the playoffs, owning a 7-2 record through their first nine games of the season. However, Brown’s frustrations with not getting targets through most of those games have been a major storyline since the beginning of the season.
On “Monday Night Football,” the Eagles grounded out a 10-7 win over the Green Bay Packers on the road. Brown had two catches on the opening drive, but he didn’t see another target until the Eagles’ final offensive play of the game, an underthrown Jalen Hurts shot to the end zone that went incomplete.
Sirianni was asked first if Brown was becoming a distraction with his off-the-field comments about his individual performances.
“No, I don’t think so,” he replied. “You can only go off your interactions and how they go about their work on a daily basis, which you guys aren’t able to see. No, it’s business as usual.”
But the 28-year-old star receiver is clearly not happy with his role in the Eagles’ offense despite what the win-loss record says. There were even rumors that Brown might request a trade before this year’s deadline passed, but he will remain with the team for the remainder of the season.
This is a receiver who has produced three straight 1,000-yard seasons, his latest coming even with Saquon Barkley busting out a 2,000-plus-yard rushing campaign in his first year in Philadelphia. Brown has also had at least seven touchdowns in each of those three seasons.
In 2025, Brown has totaled 408 yards and three touchdowns on 31 catches through eight games. He is on pace to have the lowest single-season production of his career, which was 869 yards in his final year with the Tennessee Titans, when he only played 13 games.
During the “Madden” game, he joked that he had to “show him some love,” referring to his own player on the Eagles as he threw a long completion for a touchdown.
“Good things happen when you get touches,” he added.
Brown later showed his son his “Madden” stats for the game, in which his own player had nine receptions for 168 yards and two touchdowns. Janky Rondo said it must be cool to be able to show his son that he is in a video game.
“I’m telling you, bro,” Brown replied. “That’s the only highlight of the damn football I’ve been living right now.”
And for those fantasy managers who have been frustrated with having Brown throughout the season, he also gave some advice during the stream.
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“If you got me on fantasy, man, get rid of me,” he said.
While this continues to be a storyline, the Eagles are preparing for a major “Sunday Night Football” matchup against the Detroit Lions in Week 11. They will play host to a fellow NFC contender at Lincoln Financial Field for the primetime game.
Actress reveals uncomfortable truth about filming intimate Hollywood scenes
Florence Pugh has no problem baring it all — at least when it comes to honesty.
The “Thunderbolts” star, 29, opened up on “The Louis Theroux Podcast” about her mixed experiences on set, praising some coordinators while calling out others for making things “weird” and “awkward.”
“I’m having fantastic experiences with intimacy coordinators,” Pugh said. “However, I’ve also had a s— example.”
Without naming names or projects, the British actress described one particularly uncomfortable situation.
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“[They] just made it so weird and so awkward and really wasn’t helpful and kind of was just like wanting to be a part of the set in a way that wasn’t helpful,” she recalled. “I think it’s a job that’s still figuring itself out.”
Pugh — who’s filmed everything from indie dramas to blockbuster love scenes opposite Harry Styles in “Don’t Worry Darling” and Cillian Murphy in “Oppenheimer” — said her experiences span both before and after the rise of intimacy coordinators.
“I’m quite confident, I’m quite happy in my skin, I’ve always been able to make sure that I’m heard,” she said. “That being said, even though I know that I believe that, and even though I know that I felt that at the time, there are plenty of things that I remember where it was just completely inappropriate to have asked me to do that, to have directed me in that way.”
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The “Lady Macbeth” star admitted that only in recent years has she come to understand how much a good coordinator can enhance a scene — and protect actors.
“I’ve been able to understand better meaning now through working with great ones in sex scenes,” she said.
Pugh explained that the goal is “finding the story of what it is — what kind of sex is it, how do you touch each other, how long have you been having sex for.”
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The actress said that when intimacy is handled correctly, it feels like part of the storytelling — not just something to get through.
“[Everyone on set is] working away to chip away at the scene,” she said. “And I think when I worked with a fantastic coordinator, I was like, ‘Oh, this is what I’ve been missing — understanding the dance of intimacy as opposed to just shooting a sex scene.’”
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Pugh added, “There are good ones and bad ones, and it’s through the good ones that I have learned how effective it can really be.”
Fox News Digital has reached out to Pugh for comment.
Her comments come after fellow actor Andrew Garfield admitted that he and Pugh took their sex scene in the film, “We Live In Time,” “further” than needed.
Last year, Garfield explained that he and Pugh did not hear the directors yell “cut” while filming the intimate scene.
“We were getting into it, as it were, and we go a little bit further than we meant,” Garfield told Josh Horowitz in a fan-captured video uploaded to X at the time.
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“Just because we never heard ‘cut,’ and it was feeling safe,” he explained.