Public media giant votes to shut down after Congress pulls plug on NPR, PBS funding
The Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB) announced its board voted to dissolve itself after 58 years as an organization after Congress voted last year to pull federal funding allocated to NPR and PBS.
“For more than half a century, CPB existed to ensure that all Americans—regardless of geography, income, or background—had access to trusted news, educational programming, and local storytelling,” CPB president and CEO Patricia Harrison said in a statement Monday. “When the Administration and Congress rescinded federal funding, our Board faced a profound responsibility: CPB’s final act would be to protect the integrity of the public media system and the democratic values by dissolving, rather than allowing the organization to remain defunded and vulnerable to additional attacks.”
“What has happened to public media is devastating,” CPB’s Board of Directors chair Ruby Calvert said. “After nearly six decades of innovative, educational public television and radio service, Congress eliminated all funding for CPB, leaving the Board with no way to continue the organization or support the public media system that depends on it. Yet, even in this moment, I am convinced that public media will survive, and that a new Congress will address public media’s role in our country because it is critical to our children’s education, our history, culture and democracy to do so.”
RURAL NPR STATIONS ‘DISAPPOINTED,’ DETERMINED TO SURVIVE AFTER RESCISSION PACKAGE ELIMINATES FEDERAL FUNDING
CPB said it will distribute its remaining funds leading up to its official closure. In August, the CPB announced it would shut down operations as a result of the defunding.
For decades, Republicans campaigned on ending federal funding for public media, which had been allocated from the CPB to NPR and PBS.
Last summer, President Donald Trump and GOP lawmakers successfully rescinded public media funding from its spending bill.
NPR CEO WAS ASKED TO RESIGN AHEAD OF TRUMP GOVERNMENT SPENDING CUTS: REPORT
In recent years, NPR and PBS have been in the crosshairs of Trump and GOP lawmakers over allegations of political bias, which NPR and PBS leadership have vehemently denied.
NPR CEO Katherine Maher and PBS CEO Paula Kerger staunchly defended their media organizations while testifying on Capitol Hill in March. Both faced tough questions from Republicans over past allegations of bias and promoting far-left ideologies.
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Days after viral new year video, Eric Adams breaks with party on Maduro arrest
Just two days after posting a social media video signaling his freedom from government office, former New York Mayor Eric Adams slammed fellow Democrats over their response to President Donald Trump’s operation to capture Venezuelan dictator Nicolás Maduro.
Adams previously posted a video of himself with a cigar and what appeared to be bourbon, smiling as he lambasted the government as “slow as s—” filled with people trying to throw “sand in the gears” and predicting an “unforgettable, bada–, no bull—- 2026” – before issuing a starkly different message on Maduro than his mayoral successor.
By the weekend, Adams followed through, openly weighing in by thanking Trump for “hit[ting] the cartels where it hurts” through Maduro’s detention and sharply criticizing former Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Joe Biden’s approach to the Venezuelan strongman.
“I have seen firsthand how Nicolás Maduro destroyed Venezuela and turned it into a narco-state. Millions fled. Thousands landed in New York City,” he said.
GREGG JARRETT: NO, TRUMP’S ORDER TO SNATCH MADURO WAS NOT ILLEGAL OR UNCONSTITUTIONAL
“Now in U.S. custody, the man who helped flood our streets with fentanyl is finally being held accountable. American lives were destroyed because of him.”
Turning to those in his party, Adams said that days before Biden and Harris left office, they increased the bounty on Maduro to $25 million from an Obama-era $10 million.
Harris had said Trump’s detaining of Maduro “do[es] not make America safer” and that the despot being an “illegitimate dictator does not change the fact that this action was both unlawful and unwise … The American people do not want this, and they are tired of being lied to.”
LAWMAKERS RIP BIDEN AFTER TRUMP-MADURO TAUNT RESURFACES – CALL IT BASELESS AND POLITICALLY CHARGED
“Public safety is not a political game,” Adams replied to Harris.
“You do not label someone a narco-dictator one year and then pretend he is no longer a threat the next simply because a different president is in office – that is cynical and irresponsible,” Adams said, citing Harris’ lengthier critique of the overnight operation.
Adams went on to cite real-life cases of fentanyl deaths in New York as proof of Maduro’s dangerous reach, including a 2-year-old Bronx boy named Nicholas Feliz-Dominici whom he said was poisoned while in daycare.
UN AMBASSADOR WALTZ DEFENDS US CAPTURE OF MADURO AHEAD OF SECURITY COUNCIL MEETING
“America is safer today because Maduro is no longer in power,” the former NYPD officer turned mayor said.
“Welcome to New York, Nicolás.”
Adams’ comments also directly contradicted the position of his successor, socialist Zohran Mamdani, who told reporters he personally telephoned Trump to “register my opposition.”
“I was briefed this morning on the U.S. military capture of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and his wife, as well as their planned imprisonment in federal custody here in New York City,” Mamdani said in a statement.
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“Unilaterally attacking a sovereign nation is an act of war and a violation of federal and international law. This blatant pursuit of regime change doesn’t just affect those abroad, it directly impacts New Yorkers, including tens of thousands of Venezuelans who call this city home.”
“My focus is their safety and the safety of every New Yorker, and my administration will continue to monitor the situation and issue relevant guidance,” the former Queens state assemblyman said.
Biden in line for massive, ‘historically unusual’ taxpayer-funded pension
Former President Joe Biden could be pulling in a hefty, taxpayer-funded pension — stemming from his expansive career as a federal employee, according to a new report.
The National Taxpayer Union Foundation estimates that Biden could be collecting up to a $417,000 pension — more than he was making a year as president, and more than previous presidents — as a result of collecting pensions from several retirement programs he qualifies for after starting his career in Washington in the 1970s.
HOUSE OVERSIGHT PROBES WHETHER AMERICAN RETIREES’ PENSION FUNDS ARE BEING WEAPONIZED: ‘PROGRESSIVE PLAYBOOK’
“It’s pretty unusual, historically unusual, to have such a large pension amount,” National Taxpayer Union Foundation President Demian Brady told the New York Post.
The estimate comes from Biden’s long-term career in politics, meaning he has the capability to receive benefits under the Former President’s Act of 1958, and retirement benefits from the Civil Service Retirement System for his time as a senator and vice president.
TRUMP SUGGESTS DOJ OWES HIM MONEY FOR PAST CASES
The Former President’s Act of 1958 stipulates that presidential pensions are equal to the salaries Cabinet secretaries receive, which is currently set at $250,600. Additionally, Biden could be eligible for up to $166,374 for his time as a senator and vice president under the Civil Service Retirement System, Brady told the Post.
Still, it’s unclear if Biden will actually cash in on all of those benefits. A spokesperson for Biden did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Fox News Digital.
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Biden launched his career as a U.S. senator in 1972, and served as former President Barack Obama’s vice president for eight years starting in 2009. He earned $400,000 a year annually while president.
The National Taxpayer Union Foundation did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Fox News Digital.
Meanwhile, efforts are underway in Congress to curb how much former presidents can rake in once they leave office. For example, Sen. Joni Ernst, R-Iowa, reintroduced the Presidential Allowance Modernization Act in 2025, which would cap presidential pensions at $200,000. The legislation was referred to the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee.
Past initiatives to rein in presidential pensions have failed. Obama ultimately vetoed a similar piece of legislation that Congress backed in 2016 just before he was set to leave the White House.
Walz steps aside, Trump goes on offense: Dems’ favorite line becomes his latest cudgel
President Donald Trump flipped the script on Democrats’ “no one is above the law” mantra after years of hearing it aimed at him, invoking the phrase after news broke Minnesota Democratic Gov. Tim Walz would not seek re-election as a sweeping fraud scandal rocks his state.
“Governor Walz has destroyed the State of Minnesota, but others, like Governor Gavin Newscum, JB Pritzker, and Kathy Hochul, have done, in my opinion, an even more dishonest and incompetent job. NO ONE IS ABOVE THE LAW!” Trump posted to Truth Social Monday afternoon.
The message followed Walz announcing Monday that he was withdrawing his re-election effort to continue serving as governor. Walz was first elected the state’s top leader in 2018 in a political career that also included him campaigning coast-to-coast in 2024 as former Vice President Kamala Harris’ running mate.
“As I reflected on this moment with my family and my team over the holidays, I came to the conclusion that I can’t give a political campaign my all,” Walz wrote in a statement. “Every minute I spend defending my own political interests would be a minute I can’t spend defending the people of Minnesota against the criminals who prey on our generosity and the cynics who prey on our differences.”
KEVIN MCCARTHY SAYS MINNESOTA’S ‘ENTIRE DEMOCRAT ADMINISTRATION’ WILL HAVE TO RESIGN OVER FRAUD SCANDAL
Minnesota has come under fierce scrutiny in recent weeks as a sprawling fraud scandal that has led to dozens of arrests, mostly from the state’s large Somali community, since 2022 comes to light. Minnesota was allegedly home to a massive COVID-era scheme that allegedly involved money laundering operations related to fraudulent meal and housing programs, daycare centers and Medicaid services, according to investigators.
The Minnesota fraud is still being tabulated, with local officials speculating it could exceed $1 billion and rise to as high as $9 billion.
NICK SHIRLEY GLOATS HE ‘ENDED TIM WALZ’ AFTER MINNESOTA GOVERNOR SCRAPS RE-ELECTION BID AMID FRAUD SCANDAL
Trump’s use of the phrase “no one is above the law” follows years of Democrats employing the same rhetoric against him as he faced a barrage of charges and court cases in between his first and second administrations.
“No one is above the law,” President Joe Biden said after Trump was found guilty on 34 counts of falsified business records in a Manhattan court in May 2024.
Trump faced four criminal indictments, which resulted in accusations of “lawfare” on the national stage as Trump maintained his innocence and slammed the cases as efforts by the Democratic Party to hurt his political chances for re-election in 2024.
DAVID MARCUS: TIM WALZ’S WHITE GUILT FINALLY ENDS HIS CAREER AS MINNESOTA’S FRAUD EXPLODES
“As I’ve said before, no one is above the law, including Donald Trump,” then-Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said in 2023 after the Biden administration’s Department of Justice announced Trump had been indicted on 37 counts related to his alleged mishandling of classified documents.
Even during Trump’s first administration, Democrats championed the phrase as they combated MAGA Republicans and Trump policies.
“Everybody wants the president to be held accountable in the most serious way,” House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said of Trump in 2019 amid a discussion at the Commonwealth Club in San Francisco, underscoring that Democrats believe “no one is above the law.” “And everybody believes, now I’m talking on the Democratic side, that no one is above the law, especially the president of the United States.”
“We must be clear: no one, not even the president, is above the law,” Rep. Jerrold Nadler, D-N.Y., said in a statement in 2019 when introducing articles of impeachment against Trump.
COMER WARNS WALZ ABSENCE AT MINNESOTA FRAUD HEARING WOULD BE ‘ADMISSION TO GUILT’ BY GOVERNOR
Upon his victory over the Harris–Walz presidential ticket in 2024, Trump has taken a victory lap for allegedly snuffing out the weaponization of government.
“We have ended weaponized government, where, as an example, a sitting president is allowed to viciously prosecute his political opponent, like me. How did that work out?” he said during his joint address to Congress in 2025. “Not too good. Not too good.”
Trump added in his Monday Truth Social post that “Minnesota’s Corrupt Governor will possibly leave office before his Term is up,” and that he’s confident the fraud investigations “will reveal a seriously unscrupulous, and rich, group of ‘SLIMEBALLS.'”
White House spokeswoman Abigail Jackson added in comment to Fox Digital on Monday afternoon when asked about the Truth Social post: “It shouldn’t take an education from the Quality Learing Center for Democrats to understand this: Tim Walz and his Somali friends have been caught ripping off hardworking Minnesota taxpayers and now they will face the consequences. President Trump is right, no one is above the law.”
Walz has taken ownership of correcting the fraud. He said his administration had been taking action to stop some suspected fraudulent payments over the summer and that his office referred some for prosecution. The governor, however, has said that multibillion figures were “sensationalized” by Republicans.
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“This is on my watch, I am accountable for this and, more importantly, I am the one that will fix it,” Walz told reporters in December.
Fox Digital reached out to Walz’s office for a response to Trump’s Truth Social but did not immediately receive a reply.
Federal agents arrest over 1,000 Minnesota fraud crackdown operation
Federal authorities have arrested more than 1,000 in Minnesota, including alleged murderers, rapists, pedophiles and gang members, after sending a surge of agents to the state in its “massive” response to the rampant fraud still being uncovered.
Assistant Homeland Security Secretary Tricia McLaughlin told Fox News Digital that since the agency “surged law enforcement” to Minnesota last week, it “has already made more than 1,000 arrests of murderers, rapists, pedophiles, and gang members.”
DHS said that among those arrested was a Somali criminal illegal alien named Liban Ali Osman, 43, who the agency said was convicted of robbery in Columbus, Ohio. Osman was sentenced to three years in prison and has had a final order of removal since May 17, 2011.
Another, Vannaleut Keomany, a 59-year-old criminal illegal alien from Laos, arrested in the crackdown, was convicted of two counts of rape, also in Columbus. DHS said Keomany was sentenced to seven years in prison and has had a final order of removal since Dec. 17, 2009.
FRAUD FALLOUT FORCES DEMOCRATIC GOV. TIM WALZ TO ABANDON MINNESOTA RE-ELECTION BID
Federal agents also arrested another Laotian, Por Moua, 50, during the operation. Moua has convictions for first-degree great bodily harm, sexual intercourse with a child in California, and false imprisonment.
A third Laotian, Sing Radsmikham, 52, was arrested in the operation and has been convicted of fourth-degree criminal sexual conduct using force or coercion in Roseau County, Minnesota. He has had a final order of removal since 2004.
Tou Vang, a 42-year-old from Laos, was arrested and has been convicted of first-degree criminal sexual conduct with a child under 13. Vang has had a final order of removal since 2006.
Somvang Phrachansiry, a 63-year-old from Laos, was arrested. He has been convicted of third-degree criminal sexual conduct and second-degree assault with a dangerous weapon and has had a final order of removal since 2001.
Javier Bulmaro Turrubiartes, a 49-year-old criminal alien from Mexico, was arrested in Minnesota. Turrubiartes has previously been arrested for soliciting children through electronic communication to engage in sexual conduct and convicted of hiring or agreeing to hire a child under 16 for prostitution.
ICE BLASTS HILTON AFTER EMAILS ALLEGEDLY SHOW HOTEL REFUSING ROOMS TO IMMIGRATION AGENTS
Another illegal from Mexico, Joel Cuautle-Ocelotl, 51, was nabbed in the roundup. He has been convicted of third-degree assault with intent to cause physical injury in New York and driving while impaired in Minnesota.
Ban Du La Sein, a 47-year-old from Burma who has been convicted of third-degree criminal sexual conduct using force or coercion in Nobles County, Minnesota, was also arrested.
Angel Edwin Quiquintuna Capuz, a 26-year-old from Ecuador, was arrested by federal agents. Capuz has previously been convicted of robbery in Columbus and been arrested for driving while intoxicated, assaulting a police officer, obstructing the legal process and disarming a peace officer.
DHS surged roughly 2,000 federal agents and officers from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s deportation branch and Homeland Security Investigations, according to CBS News. The outlet reported the operation will be a 30-day surge in the Twin Cities area. It also said that U.S. Customs and Border Protection Commander Gregory Bovino will help oversee the operation.
McLaughlin said that “while for the safety of our officers we do not get into law enforcement footprint,” she confirmed that “DHS has surged law enforcement” to the Twin Cities area.
KLOBUCHAR WEIGHING RUN FOR MINNESOTA GOVERNOR AS WALZ ENDS RE-ELECTION BID AMID FRAUD SCANDAL
Minnesota has come under intense scrutiny in recent weeks after authorities revealed multimillion-dollar fraud operations in the state, resulting in dozens of arrests and indictments.
Last week, Homeland Security announced it was launching a “massive operation” in Minnesota to “identify, arrest, and remove criminals who are defrauding the American people.”
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The announcement came after the release of a video by an independent journalist who questioned daycare center operators in the area.
In an X post, the agency vowed to “root out this rampant fraud plaguing Minnesota.”
Timeline reveals frantic calls before dentist and wife found shot dead inside home
A manhunt is underway for the individual who shot and killed a dentist and his wife in Columbus, Ohio, just a month before their fifth wedding anniversary.
The Columbus Police Department said officers responded to the house on Tuesday morning for a wellness check when they found Spencer and Monique Tepe dead with gunshot wounds. Dispatch records state that Spencer was shot “multiple times” and Monique was shot “at least once through the chest.” Two young children were found safe at the house.
According to WSYX, police don’t believe their deaths were a murder-suicide. Officials added there wasn’t a gun recovered at the scene and there were no signs of forced entry.
Here’s a timeline of events associated with the shooting of Spencer and Monique Tepe:
POLICE SEEK SUSPECT AFTER DENTIST AND WIFE FOUND SHOT DEAD AT HOME WHILE 2 YOUNG CHILDREN ARE UNHARMED
2 a.m. to 5 a.m.: Times police are requesting video from neighbors or witnesses.
The Columbus Police Department is requesting video from any neighbors or individuals between 2 a.m. to 5 a.m. in the area where the Tepes lived.
9:03 a.m.: First 911 call.
The first 911 call was placed by the owner of Athens Dental Depot, Mark Valrose, where Spencer worked. Valrose called 911 and requested police conduct a wellness check at the Tepe residence after Spencer didn’t show up to work.
“Spencer works with me and he did not show up to work this morning and we cannot get ahold of him or his family,” Valrose said. “He is always on time and he would contact us if there is any issues whatsoever… we’re very, very concerned because this is very out of character and we can’t get in touch with his wife, which is probably the more concerning thing.”
9:22 a.m.: Columbus Police Department officer arrives at the Tepes’ house.
Following the 911 call, call logs obtained by Fox News Digital revealed that a Columbus Police Department officer went to the Tepes’ house and knocked on the front and back door “multiple times” with no answer.
9:57 a.m: Tepe’s friend calls 911 from their house, says they can hear kids.
One of Spencer’s friends went to his house and called 911 at 9:57 a.m., telling the dispatcher that he “thought he heard one of [the kids] yelling,” according to the call log.
NEWLYWED COUPLE FOUND DEAD IN CAR FROM MURDER-SUICIDE DAYS BEFORE FIRST ANNIVERSARY, POLICE SAY
10:04 a.m.: Another one of Tepe’s friends calls 911, reports seeing a body inside their house.
A separate 911 caller told the dispatcher that a body could be seen inside the Tepes’ house.
“We just came here and he appears dead. He’s laying next to his bed, off of his bed in his blood. I can’t get closer to see more than that,” the caller said. “I can tell he’s obviously not breathing or anything.”
A baby was also heard crying inside the house, according to the dispatch records.
10:13 a.m.: Bullet casings are found by police.
At 10:13 a.m., dispatch records reveal that bullet casings were found at the crime scene.
In a statement released Friday, the couple’s family said they are “heartbroken beyond words,” and called the deaths “tragic and senseless.”
“They were extraordinary people whose lives were filled with love, joy, and deep connection to others,” read the statement. “Spencer, a graduate of The Ohio State University, was known as a devoted and proud father, a loving partner, and a friend to everyone he met,” the family statement said, adding that he was “intelligent, warm, and endlessly welcoming.”
Spencer was involved with the Big Brothers Big Sisters organization, his family said.
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Monique was described by family members as a “loving, patient and joyful mother whose warmth defined her.”
Rob Misleh, Spencer’s brother-in-law, told WSYX that the couple, married in 2021, was going to celebrate their five-year anniversary next month.
Gov Tim Walz leaves reporters hanging after ending reelection campaign
Gov. Tim Walz, D-Minn., surprised reporters by leaving his press conference on Monday without taking questions.
Earlier that day, Walz confirmed reports that he would be dropping his bid for a third term as governor as the state faces massive fraud allegations.
“Like many Minnesotans, I have to tell you I was glad to turn the page on 2025. It was an extraordinarily difficult year for our state, and it ended on a particularly sour note,” Walz opened in his remarks to the press.
NICK SHIRLEY GLOATS HE ‘ENDED TIM WALZ’ AFTER MINNESOTA GOVERNOR SCRAPS RE-ELECTION BID AMID FRAUD SCANDAL
In his comments, Walz denounced people who sought to “take advantage of our state’s generosity” as well as the “organized group of political actors” he said were exploiting the chaos.
“I don’t want to mince words here. Donald Trump and his allies in Washington and in St. Paul and online want to make our state a colder and meaner place. They want to poison our people against each other by attacking our neighbors,” Walz said.
At the end of his approximately seven-minute remarks, Walz closed by saying that he would return on Tuesday with an update on Minnesota’s paid family leave program and that he would “take all your questions.”
COMER WARNS WALZ ABSENCE AT MINNESOTA FRAUD HEARING WOULD BE ‘ADMISSION TO GUILT’ BY GOVERNOR
Walz then left abruptly as his staff thanked reporters and encouraged them to return the next day.
“Wow,” one reporter could be heard saying.
Another called out to the staff, “I thought you said you were going to take questions? Why didn’t you?”
Fox News Digital reached out to Walz’s office for a comment. Director of communications Claire Lancaster confirmed that Walz plans to answer questions on Tuesday.
KEVIN MCCARTHY SAYS MINNESOTA’S ‘ENTIRE DEMOCRAT ADMINISTRATION’ WILL HAVE TO RESIGN OVER FRAUD SCANDAL
Walz launched his bid for a third four-year term as Minnesota governor in September, but in recent weeks he has been facing a barrage of incoming political fire from President Donald Trump and Republicans, and some Democrats, over the large-scale theft in a state that has long prided itself on good governance.
More than 90 people — most from Minnesota’s large Somali community — have been charged since 2022 in what has been described as the nation’s largest COVID-era scheme. How much money has been stolen through alleged money laundering operations involving fraudulent meal and housing programs, daycare centers and Medicaid services is still being tabulated. But the U.S. attorney in Minnesota said the scope of the fraud could exceed $1 billion and rise to as high as $9 billion.
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Republicans erase Democrats’ long-held voter edge in critical swing state
Republicans have officially surpassed Democrats in North Carolina voter registration for the first time in the state’s history, marking a dramatic political shift in one of the nation’s most closely watched battleground states and a development Republicans tell Fox News Digital shows the effectiveness of the Trump agenda.
Over the weekend, North Carolina State Board of Elections data showed registered Republicans now slightly outnumber registered Democrats statewide. As of early January, the state reports approximately 2.315 million registered Republicans compared to 2.313 million registered Democrats, giving the GOP a narrow but historic edge.
“Republicans are crushing Democrats’ voter registration advantage in North Carolina and taking control statewide thanks to Michael Whatley’s leadership,” RNC Chairman Joe Gruters exclusively told Fox News Digital.
“President Trump’s America First agenda is winning. Democrats are failing, their out-of-touch liberal agenda is being rejected, and voters are done with Roy Cooper and Josh Stein.”
AFTER ROUGH 2025 ELECTIONS, TOP GOP HOPEFUL SAYS CONSERVATISM’S FUTURE RUNS THROUGH SOUND ECONOMIC MESSAGE
Whatley, the former chair of the RNC who is now running for Senate as a Republican in North Carolina, told Fox News Digital that the development signals that voters in the Tar Heel State want a “strong economy with more jobs, bigger paychecks, and lower costs.”
“That’s why they’ve voted for President Donald Trump three straight times and why thousands are continuing to leave Roy Cooper’s Democrat Party,” Whatley added.
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“Democrats couldn’t win Senate races here even when they had a cash advantage and a huge voter-registration edge. Now they’ve lost that registration advantage too, and voters are making it clear they’re done with failed Democrat leadership.”
The voter registration milestone represents a significant reversal from just a decade ago. In November 2016, Democrats held a voter registration advantage of more than 645,000 voters over Republicans. Since then, the gap has steadily closed as Democratic registrations declined and Republican numbers continued to grow.
The registration momentum follows a series of high-profile political events in the state, including Trump’s visit to Rocky Mount in December, which energized GOP activists and coincided with intensified voter registration efforts.
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“Voters across North Carolina are rejecting the Democrats’ failed agenda and choosing Republican leadership,” NRCC Chairman Richard Hudson told Fox News Digital.
“This shift didn’t happen overnight, it’s the result of years of good commonsense Republican governance and our focus on offering serious solutions on the issues that matter to the people. We’re going to keep earning voters’ trust and building on this momentum.”
Despite the GOP milestone, unaffiliated voters remain the largest bloc on North Carolina’s voter rolls, totaling nearly 3 million registrants. Political analysts have noted that both parties will continue to compete aggressively for these voters, who often decide close statewide races, and some have suggested the shift is driven less by GOP gains than by long-term structural and strategic changes along with younger voters rejecting political labels.
Madison Andrus, a DCCC spokesperson, told Fox News Digital the GOP’s “share of registered voters” over the last several decades has not grown significantly “despite their repeated attempts at gerrymandering the state to subvert the will of voters.”
“Now, with this latest scheme top of mind, voters across the state are souring on Republicans’ failing agenda that has led to higher grocery prices, more expensive health care, and greater difficulty making ends meet. Republicans have abandoned North Carolina’s working families and people are taking notice.”
Trump has won North Carolina all three times he ran for president, the only presidential candidate in the modern era to do so, but low propensity MAGA voters and other Trump supporters don’t always head to the polls in elections when the president’s not on the ballot, which is a major concern for Republicans heading into next year’s midterms in addition to historical trends showing the party not in power usually performs well in midterms.
That’s why Whatley, a former state GOP chair whom Trump handpicked in 2024 to run the RNC and urged this summer to run for the Senate, would love to see the president return to the state numerous times in 2025.
“He is fantastically popular in North Carolina,” Whatley recently told Fox News Digital in an interview. “He has a real affinity for the state. The voters… love him, and it’ll be very, very good to get him back in North Carolina.”
DNC Vice Chair for Civic Engagement Reyna Walters Morgan told Fox News Digital in a statement that Democrats are “making substantial inroads in North Carolina” including big wins in 2024 in the races for governor, lieutenant governor and other top positions, making it “clear North Carolina Republicans are scared and on defense.”
“Democrats are ready to continue to win in 2026 and the momentum in North Carolina is on our side.”
Chick-fil-A’s new frosted drinks spark employee concerns as fans crave ‘retro twist’
Chick-fil-A unveiled brand-new drinks and “retro-inspired” merchandise on Monday, sparking buzz — and debate — among fans and employees.
In a Jan. 5 news release, the Atlanta-based chain announced it would begin offering frosted sodas and floats on its permanent menu.
The drinks are “hand-spun with Icedream [Chick-fil-A’s vanilla soft serve] and guests’ choice of fountain beverage for a smooth, creamy treat with a retro twist,” the company said.
TACO BELL TOPS NEW DRIVE-THRU SPEED RANKINGS, AND CHICK-FIL-A WINS ON SATISFACTION
The brand is offering three core flavors: Coca-Cola, Dr. Pepper and Sprite, with additional options including Fanta, Powerade, Hi-C and Barq’s Root Beer.
In addition to the frosted drinks, Chick-fil-A is also inviting fans to participate in its Golden Fan Cup sweepstakes.
The fast-food chain is selling four “retro-inspired” cup designs inspired by past Chick-fil-A looks. Customers can buy the cups for $3.99.
A total of 3,000 Gold Fan Cups are available — and if a customer purchases a classic cup and receives a Gold Fan Cup, the person can receive free Chick-fil-A food for a year.
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The celebrations are “nods to Chick-fil-A’s 80-year heritage,” said the press release.
“This year marks more than an anniversary — it’s a celebration of the memories, meals and meaningful moments that have brought people together at Chick-fil-A for generations,” Khalilah Cooper, vice president of brand strategy, advertising and media at Chick-fil-A, said in a statement.
In a post on a Reddit forum dedicated to Chick-fil-A, users shared reactions to the frosted sodas ahead of the rollout.
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“Frosted Dr. Pepper sounds fantastic,” one person wrote.
“Just give us lower prices.”
“The Hi-C one sounds promising,” another chimed in.
“These were tested in [Southern California] and they were pretty good. Not too expensive from what I recall too,” a third user said.
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Still, despite the buzz, one customer was unmoved by the new packaging.
“I don’t care [about] the packaging. Just give us lower prices,” the Redditor wrote.
Another Redditor added, “It’s not that bad. But when you can spend the same amount going to a fast-casual restaurant and get much better food, then the choice is obvious.”
Likewise, some people claiming to be Chick-fil-A workers expressed reservations.
“Yay, now we can make drinks and desserts even more complicated!” an employee said.
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“These are so messy to make,” another wrote.
Fox News Digital reached out to Chick-fil-A for additional comment.