Harris’ team kept secret list of Republican judges to call up in the event Biden died in office
A communications director for former Vice President Kamala Harris created a so-called “death-pool roster” of federal judges appointed by a Republican that could swear in Harris as president – in the event that President Joe Biden suddenly died, according to a new book.
The book, “Fight: Inside the Wildest Battle for the White House,” published Tuesday by William Morrow and Company, claims that Harris’ White House communications director Jamal Simmons crafted an entire communications strategy to employ in the event of Biden’s death.
The book, authored by political journalists Jonathan Allen of NBC News and Amie Parnes of the Hill, said Simmons imagined that losing Biden unexpectedly would be akin to when Lyndon B. Johnson was sworn in on Air Force One following John F. Kennedy’s assassination in 1963.
But he worried people would question her legitimacy as president, and was specifically concerned that “Trump people” would go “apes—” if Harris became president, the book claims.
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“Simmons believed Harris would be strengthened by an institutional stamp of approval if she were sworn in hurriedly because Biden had died unexpectedly,” Allen and Parnes wrote. “Her legitimacy might be questioned, he worried, recalling the January 6 effort to stop Biden from being certified as president.”
As a result, Simmons created a spreadsheet of various judges nominated by a Republican who might be equipped to help bolster her legitimacy.
“The strongest validator, he believed, would be a federal judge who had been appointed by a Republican other than Trump,” Allen and Parnes wrote. “He compiled a spreadsheet of those jurists across the country, down to a city-by-city breakdown, and carried it with him when he traveled with Harris.”
Simmons said he never told Harris about the so-called “death-pool roster” before his departure with her communications team in January 2023, however he instructed colleagues to notify him immediately if something did happen to Biden so he could implement the communications strategy. Ultimately, Simmons left the spreadsheet with another Harris staffer, according to the book.
The book did not specify which judges were included on the list.
Harris, who previously served as a senator from California, is now a speaker with CAA Speakers, which represents high-profile celebrities. CAA did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Fox News Digital.
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The book also includes details revealing how former President Barack Obama remained hesitant to back Harris in the 2024 election to replace Biden, amid concerns about his mental fitness, while also doubting Biden and Harris’ political abilities.
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According to the book, Obama didn’t believe Harris could beat now-President Donald Trump in the November 2024 race – an issue that frustrated Harris.
“Fight” chronicles how Trump secured the White House for a second term and the ramifications of his victory on the Democratic Party. Allen and Parnes conducted interviews with more than 150 political insiders for the book, according to the book’s description.
Treasury secretary lays out what’s on the table as dozens of nations look to negotiate tariffs
Treasury Sec. Scott Bessent weighed in on America’s tariff negotiations with other countries during a late Monday afternoon appearance on “Kudlow.”
President Donald Trump unveiled new tariffs on goods imported from foreign countries last week, including a baseline levy of 10% and “individualized reciprocal higher” tariffs on certain nations.
Bessent told host Larry Kudlow that Trump is “better than anyone at giving himself maximum leverage, so what he has done is we outlined the tariffs on April 2 and then gave countries several days to think about it.”
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“As I advised on many shows on April 2, I suggested that the foreign officials keep your cool, that you do not escalate and come to us with your offers on how you’re going to drop tariffs, how you’re going to drop non-tariff barriers, how you’re going to stop your currency manipulation, how you’re going to stop the subsidized financing, and at a point, President Trump will be ready to negotiate,” he explained.
Trump reported earlier today that he had talked with Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba. Bessent and U.S. Trade Representative Jameson Greer have since been tapped to head up tariff negotiations with the country.
Bessent said Trump was “going to be directly involved in those negotiations” too.
The Treasury secretary said he hadn’t seen any specific offer from Japan but told Kudlow that “50, 60, maybe almost 70 countries” have gotten in contact with the Trump administration looking to negotiate.
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“So it’s going to be a busy April, May, maybe into June,” Bessent said.
He told Kudlow that he expected Japan would get “priority” with negotiations “just because they came forward very quickly.” He also noted the important military and economic ties between America and Japan.
During his appearance, Bessent defended the Trump administration using trade deficits in its calculus for determining reciprocal tariffs on imports from some foreign countries. He also noted that “academic studies have shown that it’s the non-tariff trade barriers that are the real problem in the U.S. having free and fair access to these markets.”
Kudlow also asked the Treasury secretary whether a trade deal could get done with Japan in the next couple of weeks.
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“I’ll reiterate what I saw last week for countries that don’t retaliate. We are at a maximum tariff level, and it is my hope that through good negotiations, all we will do is see levels come down. But that’s going to depend on the other countries. And you know, President Trump is going to be personally involved in these negotiations, and he believes, as many of us do, that there’s been an unfair playing field, so the negotiations are going to be tough,” Bessent said.
Blue state Dems ram abortion, transgender bills through on limited Sunday session debate
The Colorado Democratic House majority pushed through a slate of controversial gender and abortion bills on Sunday, curtailing floor debate in what Republican lawmakers called an “unprecedented” tactic.
“It should alarm every American that Colorado’s Majority used a Sunday — a day typically reserved for family and prayer — to force through four of the most extreme bills of the session,” Republican House Minority Leader Rose Pugliese told Fox News Digital on Monday.
Pugliese said while “weekend work” is a “tactic the majority uses to punish the minority,” it was especially “unprecedented” this time because of the highly controversial nature of the bills.
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“There was no filibuster, no delay — just a determined effort to shut down discussion on legislation that directly affects parental rights, public safety, and the use of taxpayer dollars,” she said.
The bills that were passed include SB25-183, which requires taxpayers to fund abortion services; HB25-1309, mandating insurers cover transgender procedures regardless of age; HB25-1312, which imposes state-mandated gender policies on schools and considers it “coercive control” in child custody cases when a parent does not affirm a child’s gender identity; and SB25-129, which prohibits cooperation with out-of-state investigations on transgender procedures and abortion services.
According to state House Majority Democrat Leader Monica Duran, the four bills were debated on the floor for more than 12 hours last week.
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“The minority offered dozens of amendments in that time,” Duran told Fox News Digital. “Ultimately, Coloradans elected significant Democratic majorities with clear mandates, and with only 120 days in session, we will use every day we need to do the people’s work.”
“Yesterday that included passing legislation to implement voter-approved Amendment 79, which protects abortion rights and passed with nearly 62% of the vote last November.”
Other Democrats in the legislature, who authored the passage of the bills, see them as a way to shield the Centennial State from the Trump administration’s policies.
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“It’s time to fight back against out-of-state interference and Trump administration threats to restrict abortion and health care for LGBTQ+ Coloradans,” Democratic state Rep. Karen McCormick, D-Longmont, sponsor of SB25-129, said in a statement.
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Democrat Rep. Lorena Garcia, sponsor of SB5-183, also said, “Despite the Trump administration’s efforts to dismantle abortion access or restrict funding altogether, Coloradans believe it’s your constitutional right to access the reproductive health care you need.”
“This bill will expand access to life-saving reproductive health care, including abortion,” Garcia said in a statement.
The bills now head to the Democratic-dominated state Senate for consideration.
One of the most influential unelected officials could decide trajectory of Trump’s budget bill
Whether or not congressional Republicans are able to pass President Donald Trump’s “big, beautiful bill” of tax and spending cuts may hinge on one person. Not a swing vote. Not someone like Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., or Rep. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., who occasionally bucks their party. But someone you’ve probably never heard of.
After all, Washington is stocked with power players. House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y. House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan, R-Ohio.
But how about Elizabeth MacDonough?
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I ventured outside the Capitol onto the plaza near the Library of Congress to see if any of the tourists visiting Washington for the spring cherry blossoms had heard of Elizabeth MacDonough. There I came across Billy Coman from Dublin, Ireland, visiting Washington for the first time.
“Here’s a name that sounds kind of Irish,” I said to Coman. “Who is Elizabeth MacDonough?”
Coman pondered the question for a moment.
“Elizabeth MacDonough,” Coman said with an Irish lilt. “Is that the comedian?”
I asked a woman named Shirley from Anchorage, Alaska, if she knew the name.
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“Oh s—. I don’t know,” she replied.
I posed the same question to Julia Lowe from Washington state.
“Have you ever heard the name Elizabeth MacDonough?” I asked.
“It sounds familiar to me,” answered Lowe.
“Do you know who she is?” I countered.
“A historical figure possibly or someone currently in government?” responded Lowe.
Well, Elizabeth MacDonough is in fact . And when it comes to Congress, she’s one of the most powerful people you’ve never heard of.
MacDonough is the Senate parliamentarian. A sort of referee who decides what’s allowed in the big, beautiful bill pushed by President Trump — based on special Senate budget rules.
“The parliamentarian is pretty important,” said Sen. Kevin Cramer, R-N.D. “But parliamentarians don’t have the last word to say about (the bill). The Senate governs the Senate. Not the parliamentarian.”
That’s why Senate Budget Committee Chairman Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., forged ahead on the Senate’s latest framework for the tax cut package. Graham felt he didn’t need to make his case before MacDonough for this phase.
“As Budget Chairman, under Section 312 of the Congressional Budget Act, I have the authority to determine baseline numbers for spending and revenue,” said Graham. “Under that authority, I have determined that current policy will be the budget baseline regarding taxation.”
In other words, Graham felt he didn’t need MacDonough to tell him the “baseline” to determine whether this package comports with special budgetary provisions in the Senate. But the next step in passing the tax cut bill could be trickier.
Everyone will watch what MacDonough rules is in or out. In fact, her calls could alter the trajectory of the president’s “big, beautiful bill.”
“We are in conversations, as you know, with the parliamentarian about the best way to get budget reconciliation we’re trying to help across the finish line,” said Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D.
Otherwise, the bill could face a Senate filibuster and likely die. So there’s an advantage for Senate Republicans to handle their framework within the parameters of the unique budget rules — lest they run afoul of an adverse ruling from the parliamentarian.
In fact, consulting with the parliamentarian mirrors football. Case in point, Sen. Tommy Tuberville, R-Ala. Tuberville was the head football coach at Ole Miss, Auburn, Texas Tech and Cincinnati before coming to Capitol Hill.
“You’ve worked the refs before, and I’ve seen people work the parliamentarian,” said yours truly to Tuberville.
“We’ve had to work the parliamentarian since I’ve been here,” replied Tuberville. “Sometimes you might get a surprise. But you’ve got to have a referee in the game. You can’t just freelance.”
House conservatives are aiming to implement especially steep spending cuts in the tax cut package. But those special Senate budget rules make it hard for GOP senators to go as deep as the House would like. Some on the right are mystified about the role of the Senate parliamentarian.
“It is an unusual thing that one unelected official has so much authority,” said Rep. Eric Burlison, R-Mo.
House members struggle to understand the purpose and power of the Senate parliamentarian. Some of that stems from the customary rivalry and suspicion between the House and Senate, which dates back nearly to the beginning of the republic.
“The parliamentarian. Who is she? Who elected her? I don’t know,” mused House Budget Committee Chairman Jodey Arrington, R-Tex. “Where is it in the Constitution?”
Well, Article I, Section 5 to be precise. That provision grants the House and Senate the right to create their own rules and standards of operation. The parliamentarian plays a key role in the budget reconciliation process — the mechanism Republicans are using to advance their tax cut and spending reduction bill.
The Senate stuck around into the wee hours of Saturday morning, approving the latest budget framework crafted by Graham for the legislation. It’s now onto the House. House GOP leaders would like to tackle the bill Wednesday. But they’re starting midway through the week on the bill in case there are hiccups.
Or worse.
More than a handful of House Republicans say they oppose the Senate’s latest framework. The House and Senate must approve the same blueprint in order to actually do the bill itself. That’s key because the Senate needs a unified framework in place to use the budget reconciliation process to avoid a filibuster. And MacDonough’s rulings on whether various provisions fit into this bill — in compliance with the Budget Act — could have sway. Budget rules do not allow the legislation to add to the deficit over a 10-year window.
Tariffs are not in the bill. But Democrats claim tariffs and tax cuts are linked.
“They’re using tariff revenue to balance out the money that they’re going to shovel to a bunch of billionaires,” claimed Sen. Brian Schatz, D-Hawaii, of the tax cuts.
The Trump administration asserts that the tax cuts will ease tariff anxiety, which has rattled the markets in recent days.
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“The sooner we can get certainty on tax, the sooner we can set the stage for the growth to resume,” said Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent to colleague Bret Baier at the White House last week.
Regardless, the House may struggle to align with the new Senate package. And it’s likely the House must adjust to whatever the Senate requires in order to comply with the parliamentarian.
There are a lot of players whom you will hear about in the next months as Republicans try to finish the bill. Sens. Susan Collins, R-Maine, and Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska. House Freedom Caucus Chairman Rep. Andy Harris, R-Md. Rep. Chip Roy, R-Tex. All are key players as Republicans continue on this trek.
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It is often said in officiating that good referees are invisible. The ones you don’t notice.
But with so much at stake, it will be hard for Republicans to avoid noticing the calls by the parliamentarian.
Accused killer of teen track athlete issued chilling warning before attack, docs claim
The 17-year-old accused of fatally stabbing a fellow teen at a Texas track meet warned him, “touch me and see what happens,” according to a police report that has provided new details about the tent-side dispute.
Authorities have charged Karmelo Anthony, a student-athlete from Frisco Centennial High School, with murder after he allegedly stabbed 17-year-old Austin Metcalf, a junior at Memorial High School in Frisco, to death on Wednesday morning over a seating dispute.
An arrest report obtained by Fox News sheds new light on the pre-stabbing clash after Metcalf reportedly told Anthony that he needed to move out of the Memorial team’s tent, a witness told Frisco police. The report noted that Anthony “grabbed his bag, opened it and reached inside it” and said, “Touch me and see what happens.”
“Austin stood up and pushed the male to get him out of the tent,” the arrest report said.
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In the next moment, the witness told police that Anthony “reached into his bag and the male took a knife out of the bag and stabbed Austin.”
The witness told the officer that Anthony deserted the scene following the stabbing. Metcalf, 17, died in his twin brother’s arms.
Officers noted that his twin brother, Hunter, was “hysterical” at the scene as authorities talked to witnesses about the tent confrontation, the arrest report noted.
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A school resource officer was the first to arrive at the scene and confront Anthony, the police report said.
“I was protecting myself,” Anthony said. “He put his hands on me.”
Anthony was placed in handcuffs at the scene, police said. An officer noted in the arrest report that there was “blood on his [Anthony’s] left middle finger.”
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One officer at the scene referred to Anthony as the alleged suspect, and Anthony made a “spontanteous statement,” according to the report: “I’m not alleged, I did it.”
Anthony also asked the officers if Metcalf was “going to be OK” and asked if what happened could be considered “self-defense,” the report said.
Hunter Metcalf, who spoke on “The Will Cain Show” Wednesday alongside his grieving mother, Meghan, recalled the moment he saw his brother with a wound to his chest after the altercation.
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“I whipped my head around, and then all of a sudden I see him running down the bleachers just grabbing his chest… I put my hand on there, tried to make [the bleeding] stop, and I grabbed his head and I looked in his eyes. I just saw his soul leave, and it took my soul, too,” Hunter said.
An online fundraiser for Anthony has collected about $150,000 in donations.
“The narrative being spread is false, unjust, and harmful,” the Anthony family said in a statement on the crowdfunding platform GiveSendGo. “As a family of faith, we are deeply grateful for all of your support during this trying period. Your prayers and assistance mean more to us now more than ever.”
The fund, called the Help Karmelo Official Fund, was set up to support “Karmelo and his family during this challenging and difficult time.”
Anthony is being held in a Collin County jail on $1 million bail. Fox News Digital has reached out to his attorney and the Frisco Police Department for comment.
Florida swamps Houston to win first NCAA Tournament in nearly two decades
The Florida Gators have been crowned champions of the 2025 men’s basketball NCAA Tournament after defeating the Houston Cougars, 65-63, in thrilling fashion on Monday night.
The Gators had not won the national title on the hardwood since doing so back-to-back in 2006 and 2007 under Billy Donovan. This is the program’s third national title.
Florida battled the pesky Cougars all night, coming back in the second half to win it all.
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As expected, both teams played suffocating defense throughout the 40 minutes on the court, and the final two minutes of the second half turned into a back-and-forth whirlwind.
The result boiled down to multiple defensive stops for the Gators, starting with Will Richard’s block on a jumper that was followed by a Joseph Tugler turnover after a battle underneath the hoop with 1:22 left to play.
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Florida got L.J. Cryer, Houston’s leading scorer on the night with 19 points, to turn the ball over with Alex Condon recording the steal. At the other end of the floor, as Florida, down 63-62, was desperate for a bucket, Alijah Martin was fouled by Tugler and got to go to the free-throw line with the potential to take the lead with 46 seconds left on the clock.
With ice in his veins, Martin buried both charity stripe shots to take the 64-63 lead. Needing yet another stop, Florida’s defense led Houston’s Emanuel Sharp to dribble the ball off his knee and it went out of bounds with 26 seconds left.
Denzel Aberdeen would eventually be fouled with the shot clock now turned off, though he would only make one of his two free throw attempts. So, at 65-63, Houston had a chance to either tie the game or win it all with a three-pointer.
The best defensive possession of the night for Florida came at the perfect moment, as Houston couldn’t get their scripted play going and Sharp eventually went to heave a three with five seconds left, but a good close-out had him drop the ball as he jumped.
Sharp wasn’t allowed to touch the ball due to the double-dribble rule, and with the clock ticking down, a fight for the ball led to the final horn blowing and the Gators celebrating.
It was a tough look for the Cougars, as they owned a 12-point lead at one point in the second half. They were also the halftime leaders at 31-28 after holding Florida to just 37.9% shooting, including 4-of-14 from three-point territory.
Walter Clayton, the Gators’ leading scorer all season with 18.5 points averaged per game, was held scoreless in the first half as well.
But Clayton would eventually drop 11 in the second half, while Alex Condon (12 points, seven rebounds, four steals) and the team’s leading scorer, Will Richard with 18 points, eight rebounds and two assists, were crucial in the comeback.
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The Alamadome saw some fantastic Final Four games, and the men’s basketball season was capped with one of the best battles between two No. 1 seeds in the national championship in recent memory.
The Cougars were close to securing the program’s first-ever national championship, but the Gators are back on top for the first time in nearly two decades after a hard-fought victory.