Rep Jim Himes demands answers after CIA confirms ties to alleged DC shooter
Rep. Jim Himes, D-Conn., said he is asking for additional information from the CIA after the agency’s director confirmed the alleged gunman in the shooting of two National Guard members in Washington, D.C., worked with U.S. government agencies, including the CIA, in Afghanistan.
“I am horrified by yesterday’s tragic shooting of two national guardsmen in Washington, DC,” Himes said in a statement to Fox News Digital. “My thoughts are with the victims, their families, and their fellow service members in the wake of this horrendous attack. There is still much to be learned about the perpetrator and his motives. I have requested more information from the CIA following Director Ratcliffe’s announcement this morning, and I expect to briefed when Congress returns next week.”
Rahmanullah Lakanwal, 29, entered the U.S. legally in 2021 under humanitarian parole as part of the Biden administration’s Operation Allies Welcome, following the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan.
Lakanwal was vetted by the CIA in Afghanistan for his work with the agency and again for his asylum application in the U.S. A senior U.S. official told Fox News he was “clean on all checks” in his background check.
He had his asylum application approved by the Trump administration earlier this year.
New York Gov. Kathy Hochul said she was offering her “deepest condolences” to slain National Guard member Sarah Beckstrom’s loved ones and fellow service members after Beckstrom and another guardsman were shot in the nation’s capital.
“I just learned of the passing of Sarah Beckstrom, a dedicated member of the National Guard who was killed in yesterday’s tragic shooting in Washington,” Hochul wrote on X.
“On behalf of all New Yorkers, I extend my deepest condolences to her family, her loved ones, and her fellow service members,” the governor continued.
The second service member wounded in the attack, Andrew Wolfe, 24, is still fighting for his life.
FBI Deputy Director Dan Bongino said fallen National Guard member Sarah Beckstrom was a patriot and that her sacrifice “will never be forgotten” after she and another guardsman were shot in Washington, D.C., on Wednesday.
“Lord, grant Sarah’s family strength, healing and comfort,” Bongino wrote on X.
“She led a life of patriotism, service and sacrifice, and we will not rest until we bring the hand of justice to her attacker,” he continued. “Her sacrifice will never be forgotten.”
Bongino added: “God bless America, and all of those patriots and heroes who defend Her.”
Beckstrom died from her wounds on Thursday, while the second service member wounded in the attack, Andrew Wolfe, 24, continues to fight for his life.
President Donald Trump announced his administration will permanently pause migration from “all Third World Countries” and remove anyone who is “not a net asset to the United States, or is incapable of loving our Country.”
The president’s Thanksgiving post comes after two National Guard members were shot in Washington, D.C., on Wednesday. Rahmanullah Lakanwal, a 29-year-old Afghan national who entered the U.S. legally, is accused of carrying out the shooting.
“A very Happy Thanksgiving salutation to all of our Great American Citizens and Patriots who have been so nice in allowing our Country to be divided, disrupted, carved up, murdered, beaten, mugged, and laughed at, along with certain other foolish countries throughout the World, for being ‘Politically Correct,’ and just plain STUPID, when it comes to Immigration,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.
Trump went on to say that he will impose several new restrictions to immigration, including permanently pausing migration from “all Third World Countries,” terminating millions of “illegal” admissions allowed under the Biden administration and removing anyone “who is not a net asset to the United States, or is incapable of loving our Country.”
“Even as we have progressed technologically, Immigration Policy has eroded those gains and living conditions for many,” Trump wrote. “I will permanently pause migration from all Third World Countries to allow the U.S. system to fully recover, terminate all of the millions of Biden illegal admissions, including those signed by Sleepy Joe Biden’s Autopen, and remove anyone who is not a net asset to the United States, or is incapable of loving our Country, end all Federal benefits and subsidies to noncitizens of our Country, denaturalize migrants who undermine domestic tranquility, and deport any Foreign National who is a public charge, security risk, or non-compatible with Western Civilization.”
“These goals will be pursued with the aim of achieving a major reduction in illegal and disruptive populations, including those admitted through an unauthorized and illegal Autopen approval process,” he added. “Only REVERSE MIGRATION can fully cure this situation. Other than that, HAPPY THANKSGIVING TO ALL, except those that hate, steal, murder, and destroy everything that America stands for — You won’t be here for long!”
Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., said it was “absolutely devastating” to learn National Guard member Sarah Beckstrom died after she and another guardsman were shot in Washington, D.C., on Wednesday.
The second service member wounded in the attack, Andrew Wolfe, 24, is still fighting for his life.
“Absolutely devastating news,” Ocasio-Cortez wrote on X.
“My heart is broken for her family. Let us keep her loved ones in our thoughts and continue to pray for Staff Sgt. Wolfe,” the congresswoman continued.
President Donald Trump said hundreds of thousands of people “poured into our Country totally unvetted and unchecked” after an Afghan national was accused of shooting two National Guard members on Wednesday.
“This is part of the horrendous airlift from Afghanistan,” Trump said on Truth Social, along with a picture of Afghans crowded together.
“Hundreds of thousands of people poured into our Country totally unvetted and unchecked,” he added. “We will fix it, but will never forget what Crooked Joe Biden and his Thugs did to our Country!”
Rahmanullah Lakanwal, 29, entered the U.S. legally in 2021 under humanitarian parole as part of the Biden administration’s Operation Allies Welcome, following the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan.
Lakanwal was vetted by the CIA in Afghanistan for his work with the agency and again for his asylum application in the U.S. A senior U.S. official told Fox News he was “clean on all checks” in his background check. He had his asylum application approved by the Trump administration earlier this year.
The West Virginia National Guard
said it is “devastated” by the death of National Guard member Sarah Beckstrom, 20, who was shot in Washington, D.C., on Wednesday.
“We are devastated to confirm the death of our own, Spc. Sarah Beckstrom, who was shot in the line of duty near the Farragut Square Metro Station Wednesday. Spc. Beckstrom was pronounced dead at MedStar Washington Hospital on Nov. 27, by wounds incurred during the shooting,” the West Virginia National Guard said on X.
“On behalf of Gov. Morrisey & WVNG, I extend my condolences to Spc. Beckstrom’s family, friends, and fellow Guardsmen. We grieve alongside them and honor her memory by carrying forward her commitment to service and excellence,” Maj. Gen. James Seward added.
National Guardsman Sarah Beckstrom’s, father, Gary Beckstrom, confirmed her passing in a Facebook post, writing:
“My baby girl has passed to glory. If I don’t talk to you don’t be offend this has been a horrible tragedy.”
Beckstrom was shot in Washington, D.C., on Wednesday, and died after suffering what her father previously described as a “mortal wound.”
Before her death, Gary Beckstrom told the New York Times
from the hospital that he was at his daughter’s side.
“I’m holding her hand right now,” he said in the phone interview. “She has a mortal wound. It’s not going to be a recovery.”
Beckstrom was one of two National Guard members who were shot at the nation’s capital.
The fate of the second victim, Andrew Wolfe, remains unclear, though he was reported to be in critical condition.
New York City Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani said he was “devastated” when he learned National Guard member Sarah Beckstrom, 20, died after she and another guardsman were shot in Washington, D.C., on Wednesday.
“I’m devastated to learn of the passing of Specialist Sarah Beckstrom, a member of the West Virginia National Guard. She was only twenty years old,” Mamdani wrote on X.
“As families across the nation come together today to celebrate Thanksgiving, let us take a moment to think of those in West Virginia who have been plunged into unimaginable grief,” he continued.
The second service member wounded in the attack, Andrew Wolfe, 24, is still fighting for his life.
Secret Service Director Sean M. Curran said he is “forever thankful” for West Virginia National Guard Spc. Sarah Beckstrom’s service, following her death Thursday from wounds suffered during an ambush attack Wednesday in Washington, D.C.
“On behalf of the United States Secret Service, I want to extend my sincerest condolences to the Beckstrom family on the loss of their daughter Sarah,” Curran wrote in a statement. “We are forever grateful for Sarah’s service and may she rest in peace.”
“Our hearts go out to all the members of the West Virginia National Guard who are working with heavy hearts this Thanksgiving,” he added. “Please continue to pray for Andrew Wolfe who is still fighting for his life.”
U.S. Air Force Staff Sgt. Andrew Wolfe, 24, another Guardsman wounded in the attack, remains in critical condition, according to authorities.
Berkeley County Schools in Martinsburg, West Virginia confirmed on Thursday U.S. Air Force Staff Sgt. Andrew Wolfe, one of the two National Guard members wounded in Wednesday’s Washington, D.C. ambush, attended Musselman High School and graduated in 2019.
Musselman High School principal Alicia Riggleman said during his time at the school, Wolfe was an “active, engaged, and high-achieving student who embodied the Applemen spirit, contributing positively to our school community both academically and athletically.”
He remains in critical condition at a local D.C. hospital, according to authorities.
“Our thoughts are with Sergeant Wolfe, his family, and others who recover from their recent injuries sustained in the line of duty,” Riggleman wrote in a statement. “The Musselman High School community stands proud of their commitment to service and wishes them strength and healing.”
President Donald Trump
on Thursday slammed a reporter for questioning him about criticizing former President Joe Biden following a violent shootout Wednesday in Washington, D.C. that left one West Virginia National Guard member dead and another critically injured.
“Because they let them in. Are you stupid?” Trump said. “Are you a stupid person? Because they came in on a plane, along with thousands of other people that shouldn’t be here, and you’re just asking questions because you’re a stupid person. There’s a law passed, that [makes] it almost impossible not to let them in, and you can’t get them out once they come in.”
“They came in and they were unvetted. They were unchecked,” he continued. “There were many of them, and they came in on big planes and it was disgraceful. If you look, you’ll see there was a law passed that makes it almost impossible not to let them in, not to certify them, so to speak. … Frankly, the whole thing was a mess. The whole Afghanistan situation was a mess. … When you let people come in by the thousands and thousands and thousands, they made a terrible mistake. They were incompetent.”
The White House
on Thursday confirmed President Donald Trump spoke with Army Spc. Sarah Beckstrom’s parents hours after her death.
Beckstrom, 20, of Summersville, West Virginia, died Thursday after being shot a day prior near the Farragut Square Metro in Washington, D.C.
Authorities allege the suspected gunman specifically targeted her and fellow National Guard member U.S. Air Force Staff Sgt. Andrew Wolfe, 24, who was also wounded in the shooting.
Wolfe remains in critical condition, as of Thursday night.
The Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) on Thursday said it is mourning the loss of West Virginia National Guard Spc. Sarah Beckstrom, 20, who died after being shot Wednesday in a Washington, D.C. ambush.
“We send our deepest condolences to Spec. Beckstrom’s loved ones and fellow guardsmen,” MPD wrote in a social media post. “Our detectives and our partners continue to investigate Wednesday’s horrific shooting.”
The department also reposted a new photo of Beckstrom, seen smiling in her military uniform, which was originally shared by the District of Columbia National Guard.
Authorities said Beckstrom and U.S. Air Force Staff Sgt. Andrew Wolfe, 24, who was critically wounded in the gunfight, were sworn in less than 24 hours before the attack.
President Donald Trump said he is considering attending the funeral of 20-year-old West Virginia National Guard Spc. Sarah Beckstrom, who died Thursday afternoon after being critically wounded in a targeted shooting a day prior in Washington, D.C.
Minutes after announcing Beckstrom’s death from his Mar-a-Lago club in Florida, he said he had not thought about it yet, but noted “it certainly is something I could conceive of.”
“[I will] have a call in a little while, actually, right after this, [with the families of the two National Guard members who were shot],” Trump said. “We’ll be speaking [to Beckstrom’s family] tonight or tomorrow. You have to give them a little [time]. They just found out about their daughter. You know, you can’t just call two seconds later.”
He added he “love[s] West Virginia” and “won West Virginia by one of the biggest margins of any president anywhere.”
President Donald Trump
on Thursday addressed concerns about the suspect in the fatal National Guard shooting on Wednesday, saying although he was vetted before entering the U.S., “he went cuckoo.”
Rahmanullah Lakanwal, 29, an Afghan national, is accused of fatally shooting Sarah Beckstrom, 20, and critically wounding Andrew Wolfe, 24, in a violent, targeted attack blocks from the White House in Washington, D.C.
Lakanwal was vetted by the CIA in Afghanistan and was granted final asylum approval under the Trump administration, multiple sources told Fox News Digital.
When asked how an attack like Wednesday’s could take place after vetting, Trump said Lakanwal “went cuckoo.”
“I mean, he went nuts, and that happens. It happens too often with these people,” Trump said. “There was no vetting or anything. … We have a lot of others in this country, and we’re going to get them out, but they go cuckoo. Something happens to them.”
Trump noted “when it comes to asylum, when they’re flown in, it’s very hard to get them out. No matter how you want to do it, it’s very hard to get them out. But we’re going to be getting them all out now.”
Hours earlier, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) Director Joseph B. Edlow announced that at Trump’s direction, there would be a “full scale, rigorous reexamination” of every green card issued to immigrants from “every country of concern.”
The 19 countries deemed “high-risk” by the USCIS include: Afghanistan, Burma, Chad, the Republic of the Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Yemen, Burundi, Cuba, Laos, Sierra Leone, Togo, Turkmenistan and Venezuela.
West Virginia Gov. Patrick Morrisey reacted to the death of Spc. Sarah Beckstrom, 20, one of the two West Virginia National Guard members wounded in a Washington, D.C. shooting Wednesday, remembering her for her unwavering sense of duty to the nation.
“A few moments ago, Specialist Sarah Beckstrom passed away from the injuries sustained during yesterday’s horrific shooting,” Morrisey wrote in a statement on X. “This is not the result we hoped for, but it is the result we all feared. Sarah served with courage, extraordinary resolve, and an unwavering sense of duty to her state and to her nation. She answered the call to serve, stepped forward willingly, and carried out her mission with the strength and character that define the very best of the West Virginia National Guard.”
“Today, we honor her bravery and her sacrifice as we mourn the loss of a young woman who gave everything she had in defense of others,” he added. “We will forever hold her family, her friends, and her fellow Guardsmen in our prayers as they grieve what no family should ever have to bear.”
The Trump administration is mourning the loss of 20-year-old National Guard Spc. Sarah Beckstrom, who died Thursday after being shot a day prior while patrolling in Washington, D.C.
President Donald Trump announced the death, noting Beckstrom was “highly respected” and “outstanding in every way.”
FBI Director Kash Patel reacted to the news on X, saying she was “a young soldier and patriot with her entire life ahead of her. Please join me in praying for Sarah’s family, friends, and fellow soldiers left behind.”
War Secretary Pete Hegseth called Beckstrom “an American hero.”
“An American hero, at home with the LORD,” Hegseth wrote in a post. “RIP, Specialist Sarah Beckstrom. May our nation kneel in prayer for her family.”
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt added, “May God Bless Sarah’s family during this unimaginably difficult time.”
Attorney General Pam Bondi said in an X post she was “devastated,” pledging America will “never forget her courage.”
“Devastated. Please pray for Sarah. Pray for her family. America will never forget her courage,” Bondi wrote. “There WILL BE JUSTICE for Sarah. Continue to pray for Andrew.”
Andrew Wolfe, 24, another Guardsmen wounded in the attack, is still fighting for his life, according to the president.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio said his heart was heavy.
“My heart is heavy as we learn of the tragic passing of West Virginia National Guardsman Sarah Beckstrom,” Rubio wrote on X. “May the Lord receive her into His eternal embrace and grant her family peace and comfort. Continuing to pray for Guardsman Andrew Wolfe.”
U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia Jeanine Pirro previously said charges against suspect Rahmanullah Lakanwal would be raised to first degree murder if either of the victims died, opening up the possibility for capital punishment.
In her post, Bondi added that thanks to Trump, “the death penalty is back.”
West Virginia
National Guard member Sarah Beckstrom, 20, of West Virginia, has died after being shot Wednesday in a Washington, D.C. ambush just blocks from the White House.
President Donald Trump confirmed the news Thursday night, noting he was told just seconds before speaking to members of the military at Mar-a-Lago.
“I heard that Sarah Beckstrom, of West Virginia, … highly respected, young, magnificent person, started service in June of 2023, outstanding in every way, she’s just passed away,” Trump said. “She’s no longer with us. She’s looking down at us right now. Her parents are with her. It’s just happened. She was savagely attacked. She’s dead now.”
The president added the second service member wounded in the attack, Andrew Wolfe, 24, is still “fighting for his life.”
“He’s in very bad shape,” Trump said. “He’s fighting for his life and hopefully we’ll get better news with respect to him.”
He noted the suspect, Rahmanullah Lakanwal, who Trump called a “monster,” is also in serious condition.
“We won’t even talk about him,” the president said.
In the wake of the shooting of two National Guard members in Washington, D.C., Wednesday, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) issued new guidance, effective immediately, allowing for “negative, country-specific factors” to be considered while vetting immigrants from more than a dozen countries.
Rahmanullah Lakanwal, 29, an Afghan national who legally entered the U.S. in 2021 under humanitarian parole, is accused of critically wounding service members Sarah Beckstrom, 20, and Andrew Wolfe, 24, in an attack blocks from the White House.
Lakanwal was vetted by the CIA in Afghanistan and was granted final asylum approval under President Donald Trump’s administration, multiple sources told Fox News Digital.
USCIS officials said the revised guidance comes after the Trump administration halted refugee resettlement from Afghanistan and the entry of Afghan nationals in its first year of office.
Authorities said it will allow USCIS officers to more meaningfully assess whether an immigrant is a threat to public safety and national security.
“My primary responsibility is to ensure that every alien is vetted and screened to the maximum degree possible,” USCIS Director Joseph Edlow wrote in a statement. “This includes an assessment of where they are coming from and why. Yesterday’s horrific events make it abundantly clear the Biden administration spent the last four years dismantling basic vetting and screening standards, prioritizing the rapid resettlement of aliens from high-risk countries over the safety of American citizens.”
“The Trump administration takes the opposite approach,” he continued. “Effective immediately, I am issuing new policy guidance that authorizes USCIS officers to consider country-specific factors as significant negative factors when reviewing immigration requests. American lives come first.”
The 19 countries deemed “high-risk” include: Afghanistan, Burma, Chad, the Republic of the Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Yemen, Burundi, Cuba, Laos, Sierra Leone, Togo, Turkmenistan and Venezuela.
Neighbors said the suspect in a ruthless attack on members of the
West Virginia National Guard on Wednesday reportedly lives with his wife and five children in a scanty Bellingham, Washington apartment without any beds.
Rahmanullah Lakanwal, 29, an Afghan national, is accused of critically wounding service members Sarah Beckstrom, 20, and Andrew Wolfe, 24, in a violent shooting blocks from the White House in Washington, D.C.
Neighbors told the New York Post the family lived a quiet life, though they recalled seeing Lakanwal playing Call of Duty, a military-themed first-person shooter video game.
They also noted the apartment did not have any beds, leaving the family to sleep on stray couch cushions.
Strangely, the Post reported neighbors did not see federal agents arrive at Lakanwal’s apartment for about 16 hours after the capital attack, leading them to question whether Lakanwal was the correct suspect.
“I heard loud banging on the door and guys yelling ‘FBI,'” a neighbor told the outlet. “They took everybody out of the apartment but I don’t think the kids were there. It’s pretty shocking.”
“Every sign in the world is pointing [to Lakanwal being the shooter], but there are some things that just aren’t adding up,” they continued. “One thing that stuck out to us was that law enforcement didn’t show up until 16, 17 hours after it happened. It’s hard to [know why he did it] because you don’t know his mindset. You know, if he just snapped.”
The FBI did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.
The chief of police in Bellingham, Wash., where the D.C. National Guard attack suspect lived, told Fox News Digital that as soon as she learned about the “possible connection” to Bellingham, she called the FBI to offer assistance.
Bellingham Police Department Chief Rebecca Mertzig said on Thursday she is closely monitoring the situation for any updates.
“Our hearts are heavy for the two West Virginia National Guard members who were shot while on active duty yesterday in Washington, D.C.,” Mertzig wrote in a statement. “We stand with them, their loved ones, and all the National Guard members across the nation. Violence like this is horrific and unacceptable.”
“People who serve and protect our communities, like the two wounded West Virginia National Guard members, represent the best of what we strive for, and we honor their service, sacrifice, and courage,” she added.
A report released by the U.S. Department of Justice Office of the Inspector General (OIG) in June found there were “no systemic failures” in Afghan refugee vetting or subsequent immigration pathways, contrasting recent criticism from politicians in the aftermath of Wednesday’s Washington, D.C. attack.
The shooting suspect, Rahmanullah Lakanwal, was identified as an Afghan national who entered the U.S. legally in 2021 under humanitarian parole as part of the Biden administration’s Operation Allies Welcome.
A fact sheet published by #AfghanEvac, an umbrella group of nonprofits that helped settle Afghan refugees after the withdrawal, noted the independent federal review confirmed vetting worked as designed.
The OIG’s comprehensive report reviewed the vetting, screening, and admission processes used during and after the Afghanistan evacuation, finding U.S. agencies followed required procedures, including FBI, Department of Homeland Security, Department of Defense, State Department and intelligence community components.
“Biometric and biographic screening worked as intended, including fingerprints, iris scans, facial recognition, and watchlist checks,” according to the report. “Information-sharing was effective, and where data gaps existed, agencies used all available tools consistent with U.S. law and policy.”
#AfghanEvac added post-arrival continuous vetting has remained in place, ensuring ongoing monitoring of national security information.
“In plain terms, the FBI’s own watchdog concluded that the U.S. government did what it was supposed to do and that the vetting systems in place were functioning properly,” according to #AfghanEvac.
Fox News’ Jennifer Griffin contributed to this post.
Local and federal law enforcement spent what should have been a joyous and peaceful Thanksgiving holiday with their families, in frigid Washington, D.C. temperatures, at the scene of the brutal attack Wednesday against National Guardsmen blocks away from the White House.
Photos captured authorities at the Farragut West Metro station mopping up blood belonging to the two service members gunned down a day prior in broad daylight.
The two wounded members of the West Virginia National Guard, identified as Sarah Beckstrom, 20, and Andrew Wolfe, 24, remain in the hospital in critical condition, according to officials.
Authorities said the pair were sworn in less than 24 hours before the attack.
“Please pray for our fallen warriors – and for the countless law enforcement, military, first responders and more spending their Thanksgiving standing guard and protecting Americans across the country,” FBI Director Kash Patel wrote in a statement Thursday on X.
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services
(USCIS) Director Joseph B. Edlow announced Thursday at the direction of President Donald Trump, he directed a “full scale, rigorous reexamination” of every green card issued to immigrants from “every country of concern.”
“The protection of this country and of the American people remains paramount, and the American people will not bear the cost of the prior administration’s reckless resettlement policies,” Edlow wrote in a statement on X. “American safety is non negotiable.”
The specific list of “countr[ies] of concern” has not yet been released.
Hours after the attack Wednesday, USCIS announced processing of all immigration requests relating to Afghan nationals was stopped indefinitely pending further review of security and vetting protocols.
The Mayor of Bellingham, Wash., where suspected D.C. attacker Rahmanullah Lakanwal was living, said local police and city officials are working closely with federal authorities in the ongoing investigation.
Bellingham Mayor Kim Lund said in a statement she is directing local resources to be ready to assist the FBI.
“We share the resolve to see justice and accountability for this violent attack,” Lund wrote. “It takes courage to say yes to the job of protecting fellow community members and protecting our country. We honor the courage of the two National Guard members who were wounded in service yesterday.”
“There is no excuse for the heinous, violent attack they suffered,” she continued. “We are holding them and their loved ones in our hearts today, wishing them a full return to health.”
Lakanwal entered the U.S. legally in 2021 under the Biden administration’s Operation Allies Welcome after the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan.
FBI Director Kash Patel previously confirmed authorities searched the suspect’s home and were conducting interviews with Bellingham residents.
“The terrible actions committed in Washington, D.C. yesterday are the actions of one person, not a community,” Lund wrote. “They don’t represent Bellingham’s values. They don’t reflect the values of either Washington. They don’t represent what makes our communities great.”
Sarah Beckstrom, one of the National Guard members shot in the nation’s capital on Wednesday, suffered a mortal wound and is not likely to recover, her father told The New York Times on Thursday.
“I’m holding her hand right now,” Gary Beckstrom told the outlet in a phone interview. “She has a mortal wound. It’s not going to be a recovery.”
The status of Andrew Wolfe, the other guard member shot on Wednesday, remains unclear, though he is also in critical condition.
U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia Jeanine Pirro says charges against suspect Rahmanullah Lakanwal will be raised to first degree murder if either of the victims die.
The suspect in Wednesday’s shooting of National Guard troops in the nation’s capital was “clean on all checks” in a 2021 background check before he came to the U.S., a senior U.S. official told Fox News.
29-year-old Afghan national Rahmanullah Lakanwal entered the U.S. through former President Joe Biden’s Operation Allies Welcome in 2021 during the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan. During that transition, officials say Lakanwal would have undergone a vetting check by the National Counterterrorism Center (NCTC).
“In terms of vetting, nothing came up,” the official said. “He was clean on all checks.”
Prior to his arrival in the U.S., Lakanwal worked with the CIA in Afghanistan, beginning that work as early as 2011. Officials say was not uncommon for Afghans to falsify their age given the poor recordkeeping by the Afghan government.
The official said the U.S. continued an annual vetting process for Afghan evacuees even after they arrived in the U.S., an effort that was redoubled after a foiled terror plot in Oklahoma last year that was linked to another Afghan national.
Former DOJ prosecutor Jim Trusty joined “Fox News Live” to weigh in on the investigation into the D.C. shooting of two National Guardsmen, describing an FBI-led, multi-state investigation that could move into the federal court.
Trusty said investigators will be interviewing the suspect’s friends, loved ones and current and past employers. The suspect, 29-year-old Afghan national Rahmanullah Lakanwal, is currently in police custody.
Lakanwal entered the the country from Afghanistan in 2021 following the U.S. military withdrawal.
New Yorker writer Jane Mayer was called out for her reaction to two members of the National Guard being shot in Washington, D.C., on Wednesday, as she suggested the tragedy’s blame lay at the feet of the Trump administration.
“This is so tragic, so unnecessary, these poor guardsmen should never have been deployed. I live in DC and watched as they had virtually nothing to do but pick up trash. It was for political show and at what a cost,” Mayer said in a post for X.
Rahmanullah Lakanwal, a 29-year-old Afghan national, has been identified as the gunman accused of shooting the two National Guard members just blocks from the White House on the day before Thanksgiving, law enforcement sources told Fox News Digital.
Trump White House Communications Director Steven Cheung responded to Mayer’s post and said, “Jane, respectfully, shut the f— up for trying to politicize this tragedy. They were protecting DC and trying to make the nation’s capital safer. People like you who engage in ghoulish behavior lose all credibility. Not like you had any to begin with.”
The administration’s Rapid Response account on X criticized Mayer, calling the journalist a “disgusting ghoul.”
Ben Williamson, the assistant director for public affairs at the FBI, also condemned Mayer’s response.
“If you sat down and tried to come up with a disgraceful response it would be damn near impossible to hit this level. Two guardsmen shot in broad daylight and you not only blame their deployment but then lie to trash and downplay their successful service. Delete your account,” he wrote.
Mayer also responded to a post that pointed to the number of homicides in D.C. this year, compared to the number from last year, and accused the person of “mansplaining.”
“I’ve covered crime in Washington since 1981- let’s skip the mansplaining. You can play with the stats but homicides were dropping before the troops got here,” Mayer wrote.
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) under former President Joe Biden promised to “swiftly and safely” resettle Afghan allies into the United States, but multiple sources have confirmed the D.C. National Guard shooter came in under that same Biden-era program in 2021.
Biden responded to the “targeted” attack in D.C. just before news broke of how the alleged shooter, 29-year-old Afghan national Rahmanullah Lakanwal, entered the United States under humanitarian parole via Operation Allies Welcome, per DHS and FBI sources, giving him permission to be in the country legally.
In 2021, amid the Afghan withdrawal debacle, Biden’s Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas promised to “swiftly and safely” resettle thousands of Afghan allies into the United States and confirmed that DHS had denied evacuees from entering the U.S. due to “derogatory” information obtained during the vetting process.
After the disastrous withdrawal from Afghanistan that was followed by a Taliban takeover of the country, the Biden administration launched a large operation to support and resettle vulnerable Afghans, including those that had helped U.S. troops in the past.
Due to the rushed nature of the evacuation, plus broader concerns over immigration and parole-release policies, fears arose over whom the country may have been letting in.
Mayorkas said during a September 2021 press conference that 120,000 people had been evacuated from Afghanistan since the beginning of the U.S. withdrawal, just months earlier. The Air Force Installation and Mission Support Center found that nearly 800 aircraft evacuated thousands of people over just a 17-day period in August 2021.
At the time, Mayorkas touted the robust biometric screening and vetting process in place — in both the U.S. and transit countries — in order to make sure every individual entering the country was properly screened.
In response to a question at the time from Fox News’ Jake Gibson, Mayorkas confirmed that there already had been individuals flagged with “derogatory information” during the vetting process, but did not specify the number of people flagged.
Mayorkas assured that 400 U.S. Customs and Border Patrol employees and the Transportation Security Administration would be brought up to assist. Part of the effort included moving refugees from military bases designated by the Pentagon to house and vet refugees before they entered the United States.
The suspect in Wednesday’s shooting of National Guard members in Washington, D.C., was vetted by the CIA in Afghanistan and was granted final asylum approval under President Donald Trump’s administration, multiple sources told Fox News Digital.
CIA Director John Ratcliffe confirmed earlier Wednesday that the alleged shooter, Rahmanullah Lakanwal, worked for the CIA in Afghanistan out of a base in Kandahar. Multiple sources tell Fox that prior to that work, Lakanwal was vetted by the National Counterterrorism Center.
During the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan in 2021, the CIA and U.S. military airlifted many so-called Afghan allies out of the country. Priority was given to those who had badges and a history of working with the CIA, such as Lakanwal.
While further vetting took place for most Afghans who were airlifted out, sources say having a CIA badge would have placed Lakanwal in the “vetted” category. Sources said there was nothing in Lakanwal’s history to suggest he had links to terrorism prior to his entry to the U.S. in September 2021.
Lakanwal applied for asylum in 2024 and reportedly received approval in April, under President Donald Trump’s administration.
Fox News’ Jennifer Griffin contributed to this report.
FBI Director Kash Patel and U.S. Attorney for D.C. Jeanine Pirro had harsh words for the Biden-era program that allowed the suspect in the National Guard shooting to enter the U.S.
Patel and Pirro delivered an update on the case in a Thursday morning press conference. The suspect, Rahmanullah Lakanwal, entered the country following the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan under former President Joe Biden’s “Operation Allies Welcome.”
“This individual is in this country for one reason and one reason alone, because of the disastrous withdrawal from the Biden administration and the failure to vet in any way, in any way, shape or form this individual and countless others, and this administration has taken the rightful step to stop any further allowance of people with this similar background into the country,” Patel said.
“You miss all the signs when you do absolutely zero vetting. And that’s exactly what happened in this case when you in the prior administration, made the decision to allow thousands of people into this country without doing a single piece of background checking or vetting, that’s how you miss every single sign,” he continued.
Pirro likewise called the Biden-era program “ridiculous.”
The two young National Guard members who were shot in Washington, D.C.,
on Wednesday were sworn into service less than 24 hours before the attack.
U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia Jeanine Pirro made the announcement during a press conference Thursday morning. She identified the two servicemembers as Sarah Beckstrom, 20, and Andrew Wolfe, 24.
“Okay, I also want to say that both Sarah and Andrew, I believe, were sworn in less than 24 hours before they were shot on the street in Washington,” Pirro said Thursday.
Both Beckstrom and Wolfe are out of surgery and remain in critical condition.
Pirro and FBI Director Kash Patel say the charges against the suspect will hang on whether Beckstrom and Wolfe survive their injuries.
U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia Jeanine Pirro identified the two National Guard members who were shot in the nation’s capital on Thursday.
Pirro says the two West Virginia guard members are Sarah Beckstrom, 20, and Andrew Wolfe, 24. Both servicemembers have received surgery but remain in critical condition, she said.
“Sarah and Andrew volunteered. They came here to protect the district,” Pirro said. “Our nation’s capital should not and must not be a place where evil comes to commit violence regardless of what their motives may be.”
Beckstrom and Wolfe had been sworn in as a National Guard member less than 24 hours before the attack.
She went on to echo Attorney General Pam Bondi in saying the charges against the suspect depend on the condition of Backstrom and Wolfe, and she called on Americans to pray for their recovery.
Pirro also condemned the Biden-era immigration program that allowed the suspected shooter, Rahmanullah Lakanwal, to enter the U.S.
Lakanwal is an Afghan national who was granted entrance to the U.S. following the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan under former President Joe Biden’s “Operation Allies Welcome.”
FBI Director Kash Patel says authorities have executed a search warrant at Lakanwal’s residence in Washington state, and interviews with residents there are ongoing.
Attorney General Pam Bondi
says the Justice Department will do “everything in our power” to seek the death penalty for the Afghan national alleged to have shot two National Guard members in Washington, D.C.
Bondi made the comments during a Thursday morning appearance on “Fox & Friends,” saying that the two victims are out of surgery but their prognosis remains unclear. The alleged attacker, Rahmanullah Lakanwal, remains in custody.
“We will base our charges based on their prognosis, you know, they both came through surgery. I’m not going to talk about their conditions right now,” Bondi said.
“But if something happens, I will tell you right now. I will tell you early. We will do everything in our power to seek the death penalty against that monster who should not have been in our country,” she added.
Bondi confirmed that the two West Virginia servicemembers are a man and a woman, but their identities are remaining private for the sake of their families. Bondi said the woman had volunteered to work in the nation’s capital over Thanksgiving.
Rahmanullah Lakanwal, a 29-year-old Afghan national, has been identified as the gunman accused of shooting two National Guard members just blocks from the White House on the day before Thanksgiving, law enforcement sources told Fox News Digital.
Lakanwal was taken into custody Wednesday, while authorities said both Guard members were in critical condition. Officials said the shooting is being investigated as a possible act of international terrorism.
More details about Lakanwal have slowly come to light in the hours after the shooting.
Pathway to the US
Lakanwal entered the U.S. legally in 2021 under humanitarian parole as part of the Biden administration’s Operation Allies Welcome, following the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan and the Taliban takeover of the country. The operation aimed to support and resettle vulnerable Afghans, including those that had helped U.S. troops in the past.
The suspect reportedly had his asylum application approved during the Trump administration.
Intelligence sources told Fox News Digital that Lakanwal had a prior relationship with various entities in the U.S. government, including the CIA, due to his work as a member of a partner force in Kandahar.
“In the wake of the disastrous Biden withdrawal from Afghanistan, the Biden administration justified bringing the alleged shooter to the United States in September 2021 due to his prior work with the U.S. government, including CIA, as a member of a partner force in Kandahar, which ended shortly following the chaotic evacuation,” CIA Director John Ratcliffe told Fox News Digital.
LIFE IN THE US
Lakanwal had been living in Washington state, two law enforcement officials and a person familiar with the matter told The Associated Press.
His former landlord, Kristina Widman, told the outlet that Lakamal arrived in Bellingham, Wash., about four years ago with his wife and five children.
How he traveled the roughly 2,500 miles to Washington, D.C., ahead of Wednesday’s shooting remains unclear.
This is an excerpt from an article by Fox News’ Stephen Sorace.
Rep. James Walkinshaw, D-Va., accused the Trump administration of taking “its eye off the ball” on public safety following the Washington, D.C., shooting on Wednesday.
While appearing on CNN’s “The Lead with Jake Tapper,” Walkinshaw was asked about whether the recent shooting changed his thoughts about the safety of National Guard officers deployed in the city.
“Well, look, obviously, as I said, most of us certainly on the Democratic side in Congress don‘t think we should have National Guardsmen and women in our cities,” Walkinshaw said. “But if that‘s going to happen and when that‘s going to happen, I think it‘s incumbent upon the administration to lay out a clear plan to ensure their protection. And one of my concerns that I intend to raise as a new member of the Homeland Security Committee is the way in which the Trump administration has taken its eye off the ball in a lot of critical public safety areas and shifted resources to their mass deportation efforts.”
He continued, “So they‘re shifting resources away from illegal gun trafficking, from transnational crime, from anti-terrorism, both domestic and foreign. And they need to get their eyes back on the ball and focus on keeping all of us here in the United States of America safe.”
Walkinshaw reiterated that he still does not believe National Guard members are needed in the city and urged the Trump administration to redirect those resources elsewhere.
“There are a lot of things that the federal government could do to help keep Washington, D.C., safe, and other cities across the country safe,” Walkinshaw said. “I mentioned some of those things. They could do more, much more to crack down on illegal gun trafficking. They could do much more to prevent human trafficking and child sex trafficking. They‘re taking their eyes off of that ball. I think that‘s a better use of the federal resources than National Guardsmen and women in American cities, including the District of Columbia.”
Fox News Digital reached out to the White House for comment.
This is an excerpt from an article by Fox News’ Lindsay Kornick
President Donald Trump expressed gratitude to the U.S. military following an attack on service members in Washington, D.C., that left two National Guard members in critical condition.
“They have taken a selfless oath to defend our nation against all enemies, foreign and domestic,” Trump said Wednesday night. “And that is exactly what they were doing when they were gunned down in a savage attack.”
“I want to express my extraordinary gratitude to every member of the United States military who is deployed tonight at home and abroad,” he continued.
“Fox News @ Night” host Kevin Corke said he thought Trump struck “the right tone” with his message.
U.S. Air Force Brigadier General (ret.) John Teichert called Wednesday’s attack a “crime against our nation and against humanity.”
Sen. Jim Justice, R-W.V., said the federal government needs to immediately review every special visa applicant who was allowed to enter the country during the Biden administration, after an Afghan national was accused of shooting two National Guard members on Wednesday.
“Absolutely sickening,” Justice wrote on X. “If these new reports are true, this ‘Afghan national’ ambushed West Virginia service members in broad daylight—the very ones defending my home state, DC, and beyond.”
“We need to immediately review each and every special visa applicant who was allowed in under the former administration. This can’t happen again,” he added.
The alleged gunman entered the U.S. legally in 2021 under humanitarian parole as part of the Biden administration’s Operation Allies Welcome, following the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan. The suspect reportedly had his asylum application approved during the Trump administration.
Fox News’ Landon Mion contributed to this report.
Trump pledges to restrict migration and deport foreign nationals deemed security risks
President Donald Trump used a late-night Thanksgiving post on Truth Social to outline what he called a “reverse migration” plan, pledging a permanent halt to immigration from what he described as “Third World Countries” and a sweeping rollback of Biden-era admissions.
Trump said his administration would pause all migration from nations he labels “Third World,” revoke what he claimed were “millions” of Biden-era admissions — “including those signed by Sleepy Joe Biden’s Autopen” — and remove foreign nationals he deems public charges, security risks, or “non-compatible with Western Civilization.”
He argued that the U.S. immigration system has been overwhelmed and said his approach would allow it to “fully recover.” Trump also vowed to end federal benefits for noncitizens, denaturalize migrants accused of undermining “domestic tranquility,” and expand deportations.
LAW ENFORCEMENT RESPONDING AFTER 2 NATIONAL GUARD MEMBERS SHOT NEAR WHITE HOUSE
Trump’s comments come after two National Guard members were shot just blocks from the White House in what officials called a “targeted” attack. One of the guardsman, Sarah Beckstrom, 20, of West Virginia, has died, Trump announced earlier on Thursday.
NATIONAL GUARD MEMBER SARAG BECKSTROM DEAD AFTER DC SHOOTING: ‘HIGHLY RESPECTED’
The president said the second service member wounded in the attack, Andrew Wolfe, 24, is still “fighting for his life.”
The suspected gunman, Rahmanullah Lakanwal, 29, is also in serious condition.
Lakanwal entered the U.S. legally in 2021 under humanitarian parole as part of the Biden administration’s Operation Allies Welcome in the aftermath of the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan.
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Trump ended his social media post with a stern warning: “Other than that, HAPPY THANKSGIVING TO ALL, except those that hate, steal, murder, and destroy everything that America stands for — You won’t be here for long!”
Grieving parents praise Trump as ‘greatest president’ in Thanksgiving video
The American Border Story (TABS) has released a powerful new video featuring Angel Families — those who have lost loved ones to crimes tied to the border crisis — expressing gratitude to President Trump for his tough stance on immigration enforcement.
The 11-minute video, released on Nov. 22 in honor of Thanksgiving and featuring country music artist Alexis Wilkins, includes more than a dozen messages from Angel Families thanking Trump and his administration.
Joe Abraham, whose daughter Katie was killed in a drunken-driving accident caused by an illegal immigrant, thanked the president for prioritizing border security and “keeping our community safe.”
“We hope you continue the dedication towards that,” Joe Abraham said. “… We really don’t want any other families to have to suffer the pain and despair that we’re going through right now. So keep it up, and we appreciate you. Happy Thanksgiving.”
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Anne Fundner, who lost her 15-year-old son Weston to fentanyl poisoning, thanked President Trump and called him “the greatest president America has ever had.”
“You spoke his name with honor and reminded me that Weston is looking down so proud,” Fundner said. “President Trump, you work tirelessly, nonstop to protect Americans and keep our country safe. I am so honored and grateful to call you my president. I thank God for you every single day.”
Agnes Gibboney, whose son Ronald Da Silva was murdered by an illegal immigrant in California in 2002, thanked Trump for his “courage, strength, determination, and love for our country.”
ANGEL PARENTS CALL FOR TRUMP TO RECEIVE NOBEL PEACE PRIZE FOR BORDER SECURITY EFFORTS
“Thank you and your administration for securing our borders and deporting criminal illegal aliens and for keeping Americans safe,” Gibboney said. “Happy Thanksgiving to you and your family.”
Debbie Santini, who lost her son Jesse Byrd to fentanyl poisoning in 2022, thanked the president for “everything you’ve done and continue to do for families like mine.”
Other messages of gratitude came from Kim Novak, Jacqueline Long, Greg Crews, Lupe Morfin, Angie Morfin, Jane Gray, Laura Wilkerson, Chris Odette, April Babcock, Kathy Hall, Jody Jones, Donald DeQuardo, Wanda DeQuardo, Marie Vega, Javier Vega, Rebecca Elmaksoud, Anatoly Varfolomeev, Uloma Anyanwu, Mary Ann Mendoza and Tena Pruitt.
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In closing the video, Wilkins thanked the Trump administration for “the leaps and bounds made in infrastructure, in legislation, and in justice for these families and everything that they have been through.”
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“On behalf of everyone at The American Border Story, thank you, Mr. President. Happy Thanksgiving,” Wilkins said.
Cook County in Illinois approves permanent guaranteed income program
The second-largest county in the United States has established a permanent guaranteed basic income program after the success of a previous pilot version.
The Cook County Board of Commissioners unanimously approved $7.5 million for a permanent guaranteed basic income program last week. Chicago, the largest city in the Midwest and third-largest in the country, is the county seat for Cook County.
Cook County made headlines as it established the guaranteed basic income program after many local governments across the country launched pilot versions.
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Guaranteed basic income programs have become a trend across the U.S. in recent years with more than 100 pilots launched since 2018. Mayors for Guaranteed Income grew into a coalition of 150 mayors pushing pilot programs, offering low-income participants up to $1,000 a month with no strings attached. The group has pushed pilot programs that have been adopted by municipalities across the country.
The Cook County program was launched in 2022 with the aid of federal COVID-19 relief funds.
Once the largest publicly funded program in the nation receiving $42 million in federal funding from the American Rescue Plan Act, the Cook County Promise Guaranteed Income Pilot provided monthly payments of $500 to 3,250 households for two years, with no strings attached.
Economic Security Illinois Director Sarah Saheb described Cook County’s guaranteed basic income pilot as a “historic success” and said that when the federal government was “stepping back from its responsibilities to working families, Cook County is leading the way to ensure people can afford basic necessities.”
The commissioners told Fox News Digital that the decision to extend the program into permanence was based on findings from a survey on the county’s pilot program.
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The findings released by the commission in April showed that three-quarters of participants reported feeling more financially secure and 94% of participants used the funds to address financial emergencies during challenging times. Majorities also reported the program improved their mental health and lowered their stress levels.
The commission learned from the survey that participants mainly used the funds for essential needs such as food, rent, utilities, and transportation.
Illinois Policy Institute (IPI), a think tank that tracks public policy decisions in the state, told Fox News Digital that “Cook County is making its guaranteed income pilot permanent and committing millions to a failed strategy already shown to leave people with less work experience and lower earnings.”
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“That should alarm anyone who wants real, long-term progress for low-income residents. A recent pilot program in northern Illinois, including Cook County, decreased workforce participation and lower individual income (before transfers),” said Josh Bandoch, head of policy for the IPI.
In response to IPI, the commission told Fox News Digital that “outcomes and impacts vary depending heavily on program design: amount of cash, frequency/duration of payments, eligibility criteria (income-based, place-based, etc.), and local cost of living.”
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“Cook County is partnering closely with the Inclusive Economy Lab at the University of Chicago to conduct a comprehensive evaluation of the Promise Pilot. We will then design our next program in a thoughtful way that considers short- and long-term outcomes,” the commission said.
PGA Tour announces death of Masters champion who battled Norman in epic playoff
Two-time major champion Fuzzy Zoeller died at the age of 74, the PGA Tour announced on Thursday.
“Fuzzy was a true original whose talent and charisma left an indelible mark on the game of golf,” PGA Tour Commissioner Jay Monahan said in a statement. “Fuzzy combined competitive excellence with a sense of humor that endeared him to fans and fellow players alike. We celebrate his remarkable legacy and extend our deepest condolences to his family.”
Zoeller was a 10-time winner on tour, including the aforementioned majors. His first major, and second PGA win, was the 1979 Masters, which was his first time ever playing at Augusta National.
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He then won the U.S. Open five years later at Winged Foot Golf Club in epic fashion, going up against Greg Norman in an 18-hole playoff. Zoeller shot a three-under 67 while Norman was eight strokes behind. Zoeller and Norman were the only players to shoot under par in the four regulation rounds, going 4-under. Curtis Strange’s third-place finish came at 1-over.
He finished second at the 1981 PGA Championship and third in the 1994 Open Championship at Turnberry, which is now owned by President Donald Trump.
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Zoeller owned a share of the lead heading into the final round in Scotland, but Nick Price shot 4-under in the final round, while Zoeller shot an even 70 to lose by three strokes.
Zoeller also won the Senior PGA Championship in 2002, and had one other top-10 finish at the Masters.
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Zoeller represented the United States in the 1979, 1983 and 1985 Ryder Cups, winning his first two before losing his final. The 1985 Ryder Cup was the first time the United States had lost the Ryder Cup since 1957, as the Great Britain team expanded to all of Europe. That brought in golf legends like Seve Ballesteros, Bernhard Langer and Sandy Lyle.
‘I do not stand behind what my stepson has done,’ says dad of slain cruise cheerleader
The father of an 18-year-old cheerleader who was found dead aboard a Carnival cruise ship says his stepson should be punished if investigators determine he played a role in her death.
Christopher Kepner said his 16-year-old stepson had always seemed like “a normal kid” and that he remains in shock over his daughter’s killing.
Anna, 18, was found dead aboard the Carnival Horizon on Nov. 7 during a family vacation with her father, stepmother, grandparents and several siblings. She was discovered wrapped in a blanket and covered in life jackets in a room she shared with her stepbrother.
“I want him to face the consequences … I will be fighting to make sure that does happen,” Kepner told People.
CHEERLEADER’S CRUISE SHIP DEATH HAS FAMILY POINTING FINGERS
“I do not stand behind what my stepson has done,” he said. Kepner did not directly say his stepson was responsible for Anna’s death.
“I cannot say that he is responsible, but I can’t decline,” he added.
Anna’s death has reportedly been ruled a homicide by “mechanical asphyxiation,” but authorities have not announced any suspects or arrests. She was found in the cabin she shared with her stepbrother, relatives have said.
Mechanical asphyxia means an external force obstructs breathing, Dr. Priya Banerjee, a board-certified forensic pathologist, previously told Fox News Digital.
Dr. Michael Baden, the former chief medical examiner of New York City, said mechanical asphyxiation is not always a homicide, though it can be, and it is up to prosecutors to determine any charges.
LIFE JACKETS MEANT TO SAVE LIVES COULD EXPOSE A KILLER IN FLORIDA TEEN’S CRUISE SHIP MYSTERY
The FBI is leading the investigation and has not publicly named any suspects.
Anna’s stepbrother was identified as a potential “suspect” by his own parents in court filings amid an unrelated custody dispute. No charges have been filed.
“He was the only one that was in the room, and the FBI has an ongoing investigation in which they will have to provide the evidence to say that he did do it or did not do this,” Kepner told the outlet. “And I would’ve never thought that any of this would’ve happened.”
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“Right now, my best course of action is to let the FBI do what they’re doing. They have the evidence that they need. When they make the arrest, then we’ll start seeing the justice side of things,” he said.
Kepner was a high school varsity cheerleader who planned to join the Navy after graduation and ultimately wanted to become a K-9 police officer.
Star celebrates ‘gift’ of clean results after testing negative for cancer markers
“Baywatch” star Nicole Eggert is treating every day like a gift after years of battling breast cancer.
Eggert spoke to Fox News Digital on Skid Row in Los Angeles about her current health status as she gave back, side-by-side with the Los Angeles Mission and Hope the Mission, during Thanksgiving week.
The star said that she is grateful to be able to celebrate the holiday by volunteering and the joy of having both of her daughters under the same roof for the holiday.
“I get to be here. That I get a holiday. Every day is like a gift now, and… my other daughter will come in from New York. So we will all be together, and there’s nothing like having both your kids under your same roof at the same time. It’s magical,” Eggert said.
ERIN ANDREWS HAD ‘NO SYMPTOMS’ BEFORE CANCER DIAGNOSIS, PUSHES FOR EARLY SCREENINGS
Eggert has two daughters, Dilyn and Keegan. Eggert told Fox News Digital having her daughter, Dilyn, with her while she gave back wasn’t just important to her – it was necessary.
“I get to be here. That I get a holiday. Every day is like a gift now.”
“Well, giving back is always important. It’s just necessary. So, I like her to be able to participate, and she enjoys it. She’s a good kid, and you know, we can get caught up in our privileged life and so I think it’s always important to look around you and take care of your city,” Eggert said.
WATCH: Nicole Eggert shares update on her health
For the first time, Los Angeles Mission and Hope the Mission will serve side by side on Skid Row: a historic collaboration bringing together two leading Missions to pursue a common purpose with greater reach and commitment.
KAT TIMPF REVEALS BREAST CANCER DIAGNOSIS WHILE ANNOUNCING THE BIRTH OF HER SON
In 2023, Eggert was diagnosed with stage 2 cribriform carcinoma breast cancer. In August, she revealed that she underwent surgery to battle her breast cancer.
“Had a mastectomy with reconstruction on Thursday. How was ur weekend?” Eggert posted to Instagram. In the caption of her post, she added the hashtags #breastcancer #breastcancerawarness #feelyourselfup and tagged the Instagram page for Dr. Kyle Song of South Coast Plastic Surgery.
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Eggert told Fox News Digital that she is currently in good health.
REALITY STAR SHARES DEADLY MELANOMA UPDATE AS DOCTORS DISCUSS PROGNOSIS
“I’m good right now. I’m testing negative for any disease. So, that’s fabulous. It’s a month-to-month thing. So it’s like, I get a clear bill of health, and then I enjoy the rest of the month, and then we do it all over again. So you know, it never kind of ends. It’s always this journey. But I am not complaining. So far, everything is still looking good and markers are clear,” Eggert said.
WATCH: Nicole Eggert shares the importance of giving back this holiday season
Eggert first revealed her diagnosis during a January 2024 interview with People magazine. The “Charles in Charge” star said she initially felt pain in her left breast and gained 25 pounds within three months.
Believing them to be symptoms of menopause, she was surprised to locate a lump during a self-exam in October. Eggert’s doctors diagnosed her with stage 2 cribriform carcinoma breast cancer in early December 2023.
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According to the Cleveland Clinic, most cribriform carcinoma breast cancer cases are estrogen receptor-positive, occurring when “high levels of estrogen in breast cancer cells help cancer grow and spread.”
After receiving her diagnosis, Eggert underwent her first mastectomy and lymph node removal. The actress completed chemotherapy in July 2024 and received radiation therapy.
During a December 2024 interview with Fox News Digital, Eggert explained that she would undergo a second mastectomy and breast reconstruction as the next steps in her treatment plan.
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Following those surgeries, Eggert said she will either undergo a hysterectomy or begin hormone therapy, which would require a monthly estrogen-blocker injection for the next ten years, in addition to the two oral medications she will need to take for the next five years.
WATCH: Nicole Eggert shares what she is grateful for this season
“There’s a lot that goes into this,” she explained. “The mastectomy is strange. I kind of went into it thinking they were just going to remove the breast tissue, and you recover from stitches and scars and, like, that’s it. But there’s so much more to it because they cut through so many nerves. So, that sensation and getting used to that is very bizarre.
“And then also the lymph node removal is much more painful than the mastectomy,” she continued. “Much more complicated and affects the body much more. So, I wasn’t really prepared for that because they didn’t mention that they removed lymph nodes.
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“It’s something I had to figure out on my own,” Eggert added. “You know, from my bed going, ‘What is wrong with me?’ And it’s the discovery of all of this and then figuring out solutions that work for my body and trying everything nonstop until something works.”
Before Thanksgiving, George Washington began this holiday that was bigger than July 4
When President Abraham Lincoln first proclaimed Thanksgiving a national holiday, little did he know he was spelling the beginning of the end to the prominence of the original patriotic celebration held during the last week of November: Evacuation Day.
In November 1863, Lincoln issued an order thanking God for harvest blessings, and by the 1940s, Congress had declared the 11th month of the calendar year’s fourth Thursday to be Thanksgiving Day.
That commemoration, though, combined with the gradual move toward détente with what is now the U.S.’ strongest ally – Great Britain – displaced the day Americans celebrated the last of the Redcoats fleeing their land.
Following the Declaration of Independence in Philadelphia in 1776, New York City — just 99 miles to the northeast — remained a British stronghold until the end of the Revolutionary War.
Captured Continentals were held aboard prison ships in New York Harbor and British political activity in the West was anchored in the Big Apple, according to the Department of Veterans Affairs.
GEORGE WASHINGTON’S SACRED TRADITION
However, that all came crashing down on the crown after the Treaty of Paris was signed, and new “Americans” eagerly saw the British out of their hard-won home on Nov. 25, 1783.
In their haste to flee the U.S., the British took time to grease flagpoles that still flew the Union Jack. One prominent post was at Bennett Park – on present-day West 183 Street near the northern tip of Manhattan.
Undeterred, Sgt. John van Arsdale, a Revolution veteran, cobbled together cleats that allowed him to climb the slick pole and tear down the then-enemy flag. Van Arsdale replaced it with the Stars and Stripes – and without today’s skyscrapers in the way, the change of colors at the island’s highest point could be seen farther downtown.
In the harbor, a final blast from a British warship aimed for Staten Island, but missed a crowd that had assembled to watch the 6,000-man military begin its journey back across the Atlantic to King George III.
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Later that day, future President George Washington and New York Gov. George Clinton – who had negotiated “evacuation” with England’s Canadian Gov. Sir Guy Carleton – led a military march down Broadway through throngs of revelers to what would today be the Wall Street financial district at the other end of Manhattan.
Clinton hosted Washington for dinner and a “Farewell Toast” at nearby Fraunces’ Tavern, which houses a museum dedicated to the original U.S. holiday. Samuel Fraunces, who owned the watering hole, provided food and reportedly intelligence to the Continental Army.
Washington convened at Fraunces’ just over a week later to announce his leave from the Army, surrounded by Clinton and other top Revolutionary figures like German-born Gen. Friedrich von Steuben – whom New York’s Oktoberfest-styled parade officially honors, but who is often supplanted by beer themes elsewhere.
AMERICA’S OLDEST INDEPENDENCE DAY PARADE MARKS 240 YEARS OF PATRIOTIC TRADITION
“With a heart full of love and gratitude, I now take leave of you. I most devoutly wish that your latter days may be as prosperous and happy, as your former ones have been glorious and honorable,” Washington said.
Before Lincoln – and later Congress – normalized Thanksgiving as the mass family affair it has become, Evacuation Day was more prominent than both its successor and Independence Day, according to several sources, including Untapped New York.
November 25 was a school holiday in the 19th century and people re-created van Arsdale’s climb up the Bennett Park flagpole. Formal dinners were held at the Plaza Hotel and other upscale institutions for many years, according to the outlet.
The New York Public Library reportedly holds a Delmonico’s Steakhouse menu from the Evacuation Day centennial celebration in 1783; with celebrants dining on fish, pheasant and turkey, according to Eurasia Review.
An official parade reminiscent of today’s Macy’s Thanksgiving Parade was held every year in New York until the 1910s.
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As diplomatic relations with the United Kingdom warmed heading into the 20th century and the U.S. alliance with London during the World Wars proved crucial, celebrating Evacuation Day became less and less prominent.
Into the 2010s, however, commemorative flag-raisings have been sporadically held at Bowling Green, the southern endpoint of Broadway.
For the 242nd anniversary of Evacuation Day in 2025, the Lower Manhattan Historical Association reportedly held a procession on Saturday from Fraunces’ to Evacuation Day Plaza – where in present-day, the Wall Street “bull” is found.
A flag-raising then took place across the street at Bowling Green, according to DowntownNY. The historic greenspace is the oldest public park in the city and was a regular gathering place in British-Colonial New York.
On the original Evacuation Day, Washington’s dinner at Fraunces Tavern was preceded by the new U.S. Army marching down the iconic avenue to formally take back New York.
Thirteen toasts – marking the number of United States – were raised at Fraunces, each one spelling out the new government’s hope for the new nation or giving thanks to those who helped it come to be.
An aide to Washington wrote them down for posterity, and the Sons of the American Revolution recite them at an annual dinner, according to the tavern’s museum site.
“To the United States of America,” the first toast went. The second honored King Louis XVI, whose French Army was crucial in America’s victory.
“To the vindicators of the rights of mankind in every quarter of the globe,” read another. “May a close union of the states guard the temple they have erected to liberty.”
The 13th toast offered a warning to any other country that might ever seek to invade the new U.S.:
“May the remembrance of this day be a lesson to princes.”
Campbell’s fires executive over alleged secret tape of ‘vulgar’ insults
The Campbell’s Co. has fired an executive who was allegedly caught on a secret recording insulting the company’s products, customers and employees – including calling its food “s— for f—ing poor people.”
Martin Bally, then a vice president in Campbell’s information security department, can allegedly be heard in the year-old audio making “vulgar, offensive and false” comments, a company spokesperson told FOX Business.
After reviewing the tape, Campbell’s said it believes the voice is Bally’s and he is no longer employed as of Tuesday.
“We apologize for the hurt they have caused,” the spokesperson said. “This behavior does not reflect our values and the culture of our company, and we will not tolerate that kind of language under any circumstances.”
CAMPBELL’S SOUP EXECUTIVE ALLEGEDLY CALLS COMPANY PRODUCTS ‘S— FOR POOR PEOPLE’ IN SECRET RECORDING
Bally had previously been placed on temporary leave during an internal investigation, the company told The New York Post.
The recording was recently released by former employee Robert Garza, a former Campbell Soup cybersecurity analyst, as part of a lawsuit filed in Michigan’s Wayne County Circuit Court.
Garza said he captured the audio during a November 2024 meeting at a restaurant, Local 4 News Detroit reported.
He said he initially kept the recording private but later reported it to his supervisor. Garza was fired about 20 days later and is now accusing Campbell’s of retaliation and maintaining a racially hostile work environment, according to the complaint.
Garza is seeking damages for wrongful termination and retaliation.
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In the audio, Bally can allegedly be heard criticizing Campbell’s products, mocking consumers, making derogatory remarks about Indian coworkers and admitting to coming to work under the influence of marijuana.
“We have s— for f—ing poor people. Who buys our s—? I don’t buy Campbell’s products barely anymore,” Bally allegedly says in the recording.
“Bioengineered meat – I don’t wanna eat a piece of chicken that came from a 3-D printer,” the voice adds.
“F—ing Indians don’t know a f—ing thing,” he allegedly continues. “They couldn’t think for their f—ing selves.”
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Campbell’s said it first learned about the lawsuit and heard portions of the recording on Nov. 20, claiming that neither Garza nor his attorney had previously notified the company about it.
Campbell’s also defended its products and its employees, calling the comments made on the recording “inaccurate” and “patently absurd.”
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“We’re thankful for the millions of people who buy and enjoy our products and we’re honored by the trust they put in us,” Campbell’s said. “We are proud of the food we make, the people who make it and the high-quality ingredients we use to provide consumers with good food at a good value.”