Trump demands ‘NO CHANGES’ to shutdown deal as House Republicans threaten mutiny
President Donald Trump is trying to quell a growing rebellion against the funding deal he negotiated with Senate Democrats as a growing number of House conservatives threaten to sink the legislation if a key demand is not met.
House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., is walking a tightrope with House Republicans demanding the inclusion of election integrity legislation to the Trump-backed deal, which he negotiated with Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., last week.
The government is in its third day of a partial shutdown. Adding the Safeguarding American Voter Eligibility (SAVE) Act, to the package would send the legislation back to the Senate, where Schumer has already vowed to block it.
That would likely extend what was intended to be a temporary closure.
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Trump took to Truth Social to lower the temperature among House Republicans, and noted that he was “working hard with Speaker Johnson to get the current funding deal, which passed in the Senate last week, through the House and to my desk, where I will sign it into Law, IMMEDIATELY!”
“We need to get the Government open, and I hope all Republicans and Democrats will join me in supporting this Bill, and send it to my desk WITHOUT DELAY,” Trump said. “There can be NO CHANGES at this time.”
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“We will work together in good faith to address the issues that have been raised, but we cannot have another long, pointless, and destructive Shutdown that will hurt our Country so badly — One that will not benefit Republicans or Democrats,” he continued. “I hope everyone will vote, YES!”
A cohort of House Republicans, led by Rep. Anna Paulina Luna, R-Fla., wants to see the SAVE Act attached to the five-bill funding package plus short-term extension for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS).
It would require states to obtain proof of citizenship in-person when people register to vote and remove non-citizens from voter rolls.
Rep. Tim Burchett, R-Tenn., told Fox News Digital on Monday that he was leaning against voting to advance the funding deal if the SAVE Act was not attached. Reps. William Timmons, R-S.C., and Eric Burlison, R-Mo., have foreshadowed similar threats.
It’s legislation that has long been shelved since advancing from the House last year. Its passage in the upper chamber is even more unlikely because of the 60-vote filibuster threshold and Senate Democrats’ reticence to even consider supporting it.
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Their demands come as the House Rules Committee, the final gatekeeper for most legislation to get a chamber-wide vote, is set to meet Monday evening to consider the funding deal. Johnson met with Rules Committee members on Monday afternoon ahead of their scheduled meeting.
Tacking on the SAVE Act would likely kill any chance of the spending deal earning support from House Democrats, who are already resistant to the deal.
And if it were to make it to the Senate, Democrats in the upper chamber are primed to block it.
Without it, however, the group of House conservatives could kill the spending deal during a procedural hurdle called a “rule vote.” The House Rules Committee advancing the bill sets up a chamber-wide rule vote, which if successful would unlock debate and set up a final vote on passage.
Rule votes generally fall along partisan lines. And with a one-vote majority after the swearing-in of a new House Democrat who won a special election in Texas over the weekend, Johnson can afford little dissent.
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Schumer laid out an edict on Monday against the idea, where he accused Republicans of pushing legislation “reminiscent of Jim Crow-era laws,” that he argued would act as a means to suppress voters rather than encourage more secure elections.
“It is a poison pill that will kill any legislation that it is attached to,” Schumer said in a statement. “If House Republicans add the SAVE Act to the bipartisan appropriations package it will lead to another prolonged Trump government shutdown.”
Russian military plane lands in Cuba as Trump declares national emergency
A Russian cargo plane typically used to transfer military equipment landed at a military airfield in Havana Sunday night, echoing flight patterns seen ahead of the capture of Nicolás Maduro in Venezuela.
The U.S.-sanctioned Ilyushin Il-76, operated by Russian state-linked airline Aviacon Zitotrans, was tracked landing at San Antonio de los Baños Airfield, a Cuban military installation roughly 30 miles south of Havana, according to public flight data.
Flight-tracking records show the aircraft stopped in St. Petersburg and Sochi in Russia; Mauritania, Africa; and the Dominican Republic. Each landing would have required approval from host governments, offering a window into which countries are continuing to permit Russian military-linked aviation activity despite Western sanctions.
The same aircraft conducted flights to Venezuela, Nicaragua and Cuba in late October 2025, as tensions between Washington and Caracas escalated. That movement preceded U.S. military action in Venezuela that ultimately ended Maduro’s rule — a sequence U.S. officials and analysts have since pointed to as a warning indicator when evaluating similar Russian aviation activity in the region.
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Now, Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel finds himself under mounting pressure from President Donald Trump, who has sharply intensified U.S. policy toward Havana in recent weeks.
On Thursday, Trump declared a national emergency related to Cuba, asserting that the Cuban government poses an “unusual and extraordinary threat” to U.S. national security and foreign policy interests. The administration also said it would impose penalties on any country that sells or supplies oil to Cuba without U.S. authorization.
Trump confirmed Sunday that the U.S. is engaged in direct talks with Cuban officials.
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“Cuba is a failing nation. It has been for a long time, but now it doesn’t have Venezuela to prop it up,” Trump told reporters at Mar-a-Lago, Florida. “So we’re talking to the people from Cuba, the highest people in Cuba, to see what happens. I think we’re going to make a deal with Cuba.”
Trump and Secretary of State Marco Rubio have both indicated support for political change in Havana, though the administration has not said whether it would pursue that objective through military action.
Russian military ties to Cuba have repeatedly triggered concern in Washington. While the Soviet Union’s footprint on the island receded after the Cold War, Moscow has steadily rebuilt defense and intelligence cooperation with Havana over the past decade. U.S. officials have warned that renewed Russian activity in Cuba could pose security risks close to the U.S. mainland.
The Il-76 is a heavy transport aircraft capable of carrying roughly 50 tons of cargo or up to 200 personnel, a capability that has drawn scrutiny given the operator’s history. Aviacon Zitotrans has been sanctioned by the United States, Canada and Ukraine for supporting Russia’s defense sector.
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“Aviacon Zitotrans has shipped military equipment such as rockets, warheads, and helicopter parts all over the world,” the U.S. Treasury Department said in January 2023, when it added the airline to its sanctions list.
It remains unclear what cargo the aircraft carried on its most recent flight. During earlier operations in Venezuela, Russian state media and a Russian lawmaker said the same aircraft delivered Pantsir-S1 short-range and Buk-M2E medium-range air defense systems to Caracas.
Catholic priests threaten Vatican split after Pope Leo rejects bishop request
A traditionalist group of Catholic priests that has been at odds with the Vatican for decades threatened a full schism with Rome this weekend, saying it plans to consecrate bishops without approval from the Holy See.
The Priestly Society of St. Pius X (SSPX) says it plans to move forward with the consecrations on July 1. The SSPX exclusively celebrates the Traditional Latin Mass and has taken issue with certain reforms in the Second Vatican Council.
SSPX superior general Father Davide Pagliarani says he requested an audience with Pope Leo XIV in August to request new bishops for the society. Instead, the group received a letter from the Vatican that iy says “does not in any way respond to our requests.”
SSPX currently has two serving bishops: Bishop Bernard Fellay, a former superior general of the society, and Bishop Alfonso de Galarreta, according to EWTN.
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SSPX founder Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre was excommunicated in 1988 by Pope John Paul II after he ordained four bishops without the Vatican’s approval.
The four bishops were also excommunicated, but Pope Benedict XIV and Pope Francis sought to gradually return the group into the folds of the Church.
Francis allowed SSPX members to hear confessions and conduct marriages, but said they would not have an official ministry until they accepted the reforms laid out in Vatican II.
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Pagliarani has insisted that the society does not seek schism with the Vatican. He stated in November 2024, the 50th anniversary of Lefebvre’s founding of SSPX, that “the Society of Saint Pius X does not seek first and foremost its own survival: it seeks primarily the good of the universal Church.”
Pagliarani then quoted Lefebvre, saying, “This sole aim remains ours today, just as it was 50 years ago: ‘That is why, without any rebellion, bitterness, or resentment, we continue our work of priestly formation under the guiding star of the ever-present Magisterium, convinced that we cannot render a greater service to the Holy Catholic Church, to the Sovereign Pontiff, and to future generations.’”
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The Catholic Herald reported Monday that the SSPX had been in talks with the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith throughout last year, indicating that Monday’s announcement may reveal a breakdown in conversation.
Trump tells DHS to stay out of Democratic cities amid protests without request
President Donald Trump has vowed not to bring federal law enforcement into Democrat cities amid protests “unless and until” officials there “ask us” for help— and do so politely.
The president, over the weekend, announced that he directed Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem to “under no circumstances” put federal law enforcement inside far-left states to aid in protests unless they ask for help.
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“I have instructed Secretary of Homeland Security, Kristi Noem, that under no circumstances are we going to participate in various poorly run Democrat cities with regard to their Protests and/or Riots unless, and until, they ask us for help,” Trump wrote in a Truth Social post Saturday.
The president said, however, that the federal government will “guard, and very powerfully so, any and all Federal Buildings that are being attacked by these highly paid Lunatics, Agitators, and Insurrectionists.”
“Please be aware that I have instructed ICE and/or Border Patrol to be very forceful in this protection of Federal Government Property,” the president wrote. “There will be no spitting in the faces of our Officers, there will be no punching or kicking the headlights of our cars, and there will be no rock or brick throwing at our vehicles, or at our Patriot Warriors. If there is, those people will suffer an equal, or more, consequence.”
It is unclear if the phrase “equal, or more, consequence” refers to criminal charges.
Trump said the statement serves as notice to local governments that they must protect their own state and local property and are obligated to protect federal property, including buildings and parks.
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The “ask us” policy would be for local governments who are “unable to handle the insurrectionists, agitators and anarchists” involved in protests.
The president said if local governments “ask us,” he will ensure that federal law enforcement officers “immediately go to the location where such help is requested, and take care of the situation very easily and methodically.”
The president pointed to the Los Angeles Riots one year ago, and quoted a police chief who said: “We couldn’t have done it without the help of the Federal Government.”
The president said that local governments, governors and mayors should use the word “PLEASE” if they decide to request federal assistance.
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“Remember that I stated, in the strongest of language, to BEWARE—ICE, Border Patrol or, if necessary, our Military, will be extremely powerful and tough in the protection of our Federal Property,” he wrote.
“We will not allow our Courthouses, Federal Buildings, or anything else under our protection, to be damaged in any way, shape, or form. I was elected on a Policy of Border Control (which has now been perfected!), National Security, and LAW AND ORDER—That’s what America wants, and that’s what America is getting!”
Virginia man Brendan Banfield learns fate in twisted au pair affair double-murder
A Virginia jury has found former IRS law enforcement officer Brendan Banfield guilty of aggravated murder in the 2023 killings of his wife, Christina Banfield, and a second victim, Joseph Ryan, according to reports.
Banfield, 40, was convicted in Fairfax County of murdering his 37-year-old wife and Ryan, 38, a stranger prosecutors said he deliberately lured to the family’s Herndon home under false pretenses, the Associated Press reported.
The panel had got the case midday Jan. 30 and deliberated most of Monday.
The jury found Banfield guilty of using a firearm in the commission of the crimes and of child endangerment for leaving his then-4-year-old daughter unattended in the basement while the violence took place upstairs.
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The verdict came after roughly nine hours of deliberation by a panel of seven women and five men.
Prosecutors said Banfield orchestrated an elaborate murder plot with the couple’s Brazilian au pair, Juliana Peres Magalhães, with whom he was having an affair.
Testimony showed the pair created fake accounts on a fetish website posing as Christina Banfield and used them to lure Ryan to the home for what he believed would be a consensual but violent sexual encounter.
Magalhães, 25, testified that Ryan arrived armed with a knife, as instructed online and began interacting with Christina, a pediatric intensive care nurse who had previously worked with sexual assault victims, unaware he was being set up.
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Magalhães said she waited outside in a car before calling Banfield to falsely report an intruder, prompting his return to the house.
Once inside, prosecutors said Banfield shot Ryan with his service weapon to make it appear he was defending his wife, then fatally stabbed Christina multiple times in the neck to try and stage the scene and frame Ryan for her murder.
Magalhães testified she witnessed the stabbing and later helped call 911.
Banfield admitted on the stand that he shot Ryan but claimed it was self-defense, saying he walked in on Ryan attacking his wife.
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His attorney argued Magalhães fabricated the plot to protect herself, pointing to her plea deal, which resulted in a sentence of time served.
Prosecutors countered that digital evidence, forensic findings and Magalhães’ testimony showed Banfield was motivated by wanting to be with the au pair and avoid divorce.
“He was in love with Juliana,” prosecutor Jenna Sands told jurors. “He needed to get rid of his wife so they could be together.”
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In closing arguments, Sands also told the jury they did not have to rely only on Magalhães’ testimony and pointed to what she called a “plethora of evidence.”
That included expert testimony that blood stains on Ryan’s hands suggested Christine Banfield’s blood had been dripped onto him from above.
Banfield faces life in prison without the possibility of parole. He is scheduled to be sentenced May 8. Magalhães was set to be sentenced after Banfield’s trial.
Trump reacts after Noem orders all Minneapolis federal officers to wear body cams
Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Kristi Noem said DHS will immediately deploy body cameras to every federal officer in the field in Minneapolis, with plans to expand the program nationwide as funding allows.
The move comes amid renewed scrutiny of body camera use in federal immigration enforcement operations, as recent shootings in Minneapolis highlighted uneven policies across agencies and raised questions about transparency and accountability.
“I just spoke with @RealTomHoman @ICEdirector @CBPCommissioner,” Noem wrote on X. “Effective immediately, we are deploying body cameras to every officer in the field in Minneapolis.
“As funding is available, the body camera program will be expanded nationwide,” she continued. “We will rapidly acquire and deploy body cameras to DHS law enforcement across the country. The most transparent administration in American history — thank you President Donald Trump.”
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Noem concluded with, “Make America Safe Again.”
Trump said Monday that the decision to deploy body cameras in Minneapolis was made by Noem, telling reporters he deferred to her judgment and said the devices are “generally” beneficial for law enforcement because they document encounters.
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Trump added that body cameras are “80% good for law enforcement,” arguing they help prevent false claims about what happens during encounters and said he was comfortable with the rollout if Noem wanted to move forward.
The issue has come into sharper focus in Minneapolis following recent immigration enforcement shootings, including the fatal shooting of Alex Pretti by Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers who were wearing body cameras and the separate killing of Renee Good by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agent who was not.
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Good, 37, was shot and killed by the ICE agent during a federal operation in south Minneapolis earlier this year.
ICE has been gradually rolling out body-worn cameras nationwide, including during recent high-profile arrests, but the team involved in the operation that led to Good’s death did not have the devices equipped, sources said.
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Persistent gaps in camera deployment across federal immigration operations have raised questions about consistency and accountability.
Fergie’s crude email about Princess Eugenie revealed in Epstein document release
Sarah Ferguson is in the hot seat once again over her ties to the late Jeffrey Epstein.
An email where Ferguson made a crude comment about her then-19-year-old daughter surfaced in the latest batch of documents released by the Department of Justice (DOJ). The DOJ released more than 3 million Epstein records, including his personal emails, Friday.
In an email from March 2010, Epstein asked Ferguson about a trip to New York. Ferguson responded, “Not sure yet. Just waiting for Eugenie to come back from a shagging weekend!!”
Princess Eugenie, who Ferguson shares with former Prince Andrew, was 19 years old at the time. Ferguson and Andrew also share a second daughter, Princess Beatrice. Fox News Digital reached out to a representative for Ferguson.
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This isn’t the first email scandal involving Ferguson and Epstein. Back in September, an email between the two was leaked.
According to the Daily Mail, the Duchess of York – who divorced ex-Prince Andrew in 1996 – reached out to Epstein in 2011 after publicly denouncing their friendship during an interview with the Evening Standard.
During the interview, Ferguson expressed her “deep regret” and promised to “have nothing ever to do with Jeffrey Epstein ever again,” three years after he was imprisoned for soliciting prostitution from a minor.
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In an alleged email to Epstein following the interview, Ferguson referred to the disgraced financier as a “steadfast, generous and supreme friend.”
“I know you feel hellaciously let down by me from what you were either told or read, and I must humbly apologise to you and your heart for that,” Ferguson allegedly wrote.
“I was advised, in no uncertain terms, to have nothing to do with you and to not speak or email you and if I did I would cause more problems to you, [Prince Andrew] and myself,” she continued. “I was instructed to act with the utmost speed if I would have any chance of holding on to my career as a children’s book author and a children’s philanthropist.”
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A representative for Ferguson claimed she had sent the email after Epstein had threatened to sue for defamation, according to the BBC. “This email was sent in the context of advice the duchess was given to try to assuage Epstein and his threats,” the statement read.
Ferguson was dropped as a patron from multiple charities after the 2011 email became public in September.
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Swiss court makes ruling on American athlete’s Olympic dreams ahead of Winter Games
The Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) on Monday made a ruling in the case of American skeleton athlete Katie Uhlaender and her bid to receive a spot in the Milan Cortina Olympics.
The CAS Ad hoc Division ruled that it had no jurisdiction to consider Uhlaender’s case against Bobsleigh Canada Skeleton (BCS) coach Joe Cecchini and the International Bobsled and Skeleton Federation over the results of the IBSF North American Cup Race and Skeleton qualification for a spot in the Winter Olympics.
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Uhlaender sought qualification after she missed out on the chance to qualify when Team Canada withdrew athletes from the North American Cup race in early January, reducing the amount of points that the event could award. The point reduction made it impossible for Uhlaender to earn enough to qualify.
An investigation by the IBSF found that Team Canada intentionally manipulated the points at the competition in Lake Placid, New York. However, the IBSF also did not revise any of the results or deliver any penalties as a result. The U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee (USOPC) sent a letter to the International Olympic Committee (IOC) petitioning to have Uhlaender granted a spot. Fifteen other countries have joined in on that petition.
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The CAS said its panel “carefully considered” the arguments made by both sides.
Uhlaender argued that Canada’s decision to pull the athletes from the race was in violation of the Olympic Code and requested that the full points be given to her for the race. The defendants argued that even if Uhlaender was given the points, it didn’t necessarily mean she would qualify for Team USA and that the U.S. might need to pull a racer who is already in Italy.
“In its Award, the CAS Panel noted that the CAS Ad hoc Division for the 2026 (Olympic Winter Games) has been established to resolve disputes only insofar as they arise during the 2026 OWG or during a period of 10 days preceding the Opening Ceremony (on 6 February 2026). As a result, the dispute must have arisen by 27 January 2026 at the earliest in order to fall within its jurisdiction,” the ruling read.
“Considering the chronology of the events between Ms. Uhlaender and the Respondents, the CAS Panel concluded that the latest date on which the dispute arose was 23 January 2026, on which date the IBSF Appeals Tribunal issued its decision. Consequently, the application fell outside the jurisdiction of the CAS Ad hoc Division Milano Cortina 2026.”
Uhlaender reacted to the ruling in a statement to Fox News Digital.
“I’m disappointed that nothing is being done again. I am currently exploring what options are available. But I’m fighting for the right thing as this action hurt a whole field of athletes. I can’t quit now,” she said.
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The Winter Olympics officially begin on Feb. 6.
Ancient berry linked to improved blood vessel function and stronger heart health
An ancient berry linked to improved blood vessel function and circulation may offer meaningful benefits for heart health, according to a new scientific review — but most Americans aren’t eating it regularly.
The findings, released Jan. 27 by the Wild Blueberry Association of North America, are based on a review of 12 human clinical trials conducted over 24 years examining wild blueberries, conventional blueberries and a range of cardiometabolic outcomes.
“Overall, the authors report that evidence is strongest and most consistent for improvements in vascular function,” a news release said.
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“Findings related to blood pressure, blood lipids and blood sugar regulation are described as encouraging, though the authors emphasize the need for larger and more carefully controlled clinical trials to confirm these effects.”
Many of the compounds in wild blueberries aren’t absorbed right away, according to the authors.
Instead, they reach the gut, where microbes help turn them into substances that enter the bloodstream — which may help explain the positive effects on heart and metabolic health.
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People can see these benefits by regularly eating about one cup of wild blueberries per day, the review found.
“[Wild blueberries] have been valued by people for thousands of years.”
Packed with flavor, the tiny berries grow on small shrubs that are connected underground through stems called rhizomes.
The hearty plants are designed to survive the harsh winters in Maine and Canada, and researchers believe those stressors “may prompt the plants to produce a wide variety of protective compounds, particularly polyphenols such as anthocyanins.”
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Even though the berries are hard to find fresh, most of them are frozen right after harvesting — and chances are they’re hiding in your local supermarket’s freezer section.
Dorothy Klimis-Zacas, a professor at the University of Maine and co-lead author on the study, said wild blueberries “have been valued by people for thousands of years.”
“Traditional knowledge recognized their value, and today’s research continues to explore how the unique composition of wild blueberries may support health when eaten as part of an overall balanced diet,” she said.
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The specific benefits of wild blueberries are not widely recognized, said Nicolette Pace, a New York-based nutritionist who was not involved in the study — though the health community broadly understands that blueberries are healthy.
“The key takeaway is to prioritize wild, heirloom and seasonal fruits whenever possible.”
“What really impressed me about this study was that it didn’t just look at outcomes, it looked at mechanisms and what is actually happening in the body,” she said.
“Most people do not distinguish between cultivated fruits and wild or heirloom varieties.”
Pace suggested using frozen wild blueberries in smoothies, yogurt and oatmeal, or even baking with them.
She also cited black chokeberries, black currants, wild cranberries and mulberries as other berries that are rich in polyphenols and antioxidants.
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“The key takeaway is to prioritize wild, heirloom and seasonal fruits whenever possible,” she said.
“They are often far more nutritionally dense than cultivated varieties and can have powerful cardiometabolic and gut health benefits.”