GOP accuses Dems of forcing shutdown over healthcare demands as campaign ads fly
The blame game over the first federal government shutdown in seven years is intensifying.
With neither President Donald Trump and the Republican majority in Congress, nor congressional Democrats, willing to lower the temperature, the government shut down at midnight Tuesday.
And both sides are blasting each other in a verbal fistfight with plenty of policy and political implications as next year’s battle for Congress heats up.
“IT’S MIDNIGHT. That means the Republican shutdown has just begun because they wouldn’t protect Americans’ health care. We’re going to keep fighting for the American people,” Senate Minority Leader Sen. Chuck Schumer posted on social media as the shutdown began.
TRUMP’S WARNING AS THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT SHUTDOWN BEGINS
Republicans countered, blaming Schumer and Democrats for the shutdown.
“This is basically Chuck Schumer,” Vice President JD Vance said Wednesday in an interview on Fox News’ “Fox and Friends.” “He’s worried he’s going to get a primary challenge from AOC [Democratic Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez].”
Democrats insisted that any agreement to prevent a government shutdown, or now to end the shutdown, must extend tax credits for the popular Affordable Care Act (ACA) beyond the end of this year. Those credits, which millions of Americans rely on to reduce the costs of health care plans under the ACA, which was once known as Obamacare, are set to expire unless Congress acts.
HOW A FEDERAL GOVERNMENT SHUTDOWN WOULD AFFECT YOU
But most Republicans oppose the extension of the credits and argue that the Democrats’ demands would lead to a huge increase in taxpayer-funded healthcare for immigrants who entered the country illegally.
“I think it’s important for the American people to realize that the far-left faction of Senate Democrats shut down the government because we wouldn’t give them hundreds of billions of dollars for health care benefits for illegal aliens,” Vance said in his “Fox and Friends” interview.
Hours before the shutdown, a new national poll indicated that nearly two-thirds of American voters said that the Democrats in Congress shouldn’t force a federal government shutdown if their demands are not met.
But the New York Times/Siena poll also indicated that voters would blame Republicans and Trump, as well as Democrats, for a government shutdown.
But Schumer, speaking with FOX Business on Wednesday morning, argued that “the American people are on our side, completely and totally. They don’t want their healthcare decimated.”
And he charged that the White House and congressional Republicans “have refused to talk to us. They should come and talk to without conditions because the American people are suffering. Their health care is in shambles.”
HOW THE GOVERNMENT SHUTDOWN IMPACTS THE ECONOMY
While all sides are in the hot seat, the one feeling the most heat may be the 74-year-old Schumer, who has led the Senate Democrats for nearly a decade.
The shutdown appears to offer the Democrat from New York a second chance, or a do-over.
This after he faced fierce backlash from the Democratic Party base, which hungers for more vocal opposition to Trump’s unprecedented second-term agenda after his move to vote with Republicans to avoid a government shutdown this past spring.
Schumer’s move raised questions about whether he would face a leadership challenge in 15 months, and whether he’d face a primary challenge from progressive rock star Ocasio-Cortez when the senator is up for re-election in 2028.
“There is one reason and one reason alone that Chuck Schumer is leading the Democrats off this cliff. He is trying to get political cover from the far-left corner of his base. He’s afraid of a challenge for his Senate seat by AOC or someone like that,” House Speaker Mike Johnson claimed in a Wednesday interview on Fox Business’ “Mornings with Maria.”
SHUTDOWN EXPLAINED: WHO WORKS, WHO DOESN’T AND HOW MUCH IT COSTS
But Schumer, in a joint statement with House Minority Leader Rep. Hakeem Jeffries as the government shut down, pinned blame on Trump and the GOP “because they do not want to protect the healthcare of the American people.”
“Over the last few days, President Trump’s behavior has become more erratic and unhinged. Instead of negotiating a bipartisan agreement in good faith, he is obsessively posting crazed deepfake videos,” the top two Democrats in Congress and fellow New Yorkers, argued. “The country is in desperate need of an intervention to get out of another Trump shutdown.”
With the battles for the House and Senate majorities in next year’s midterm elections drawing closer, the blame-game over the shutdown quickly reached the campaign trail.
The Democrat-aligned outside group Majority Forward launched paid ads targeting Republican Sen. Susan Collins of Maine, who will likely face a challenging re-election next year.
And the National Republican Senatorial Committee, the Senate GOP re-election arm, fired up paid ads targeting Democratic Sen. Jon. Ossoff of Georgia, who is considered the most vulnerable Democrat running for re-election in the 2026 midterms.
CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP
In the battle for the House, where Republicans aim to defend their fragile majority, the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee quickly went up with digital ads taking aim at 35 Republican-controlled districts they consider in play.
And as first reported by Fox News Digital, the rival National Republican Congressional Committee launched ads across 42 districts, hitting Democrats over the government shutdown.
‘I got railroaded’: Former youngest congressman returns after Kirk assassination
FIRST ON FOX: Former North Carolina Republican Congressman Madison Cawthorn announced he will be running for Florida’s 19th congressional seat on Wednesday during a phone call with Fox News Digital.
Cawthorn pointed to the recent assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk as a core reason behind him returning to the political scene, though the 30-year-old former congressman said he had been “juggling” the idea of running for congress since Florida’s 19th District Representative Byron Donalds announced he would be vacating the seat to run for governor.
“After Charlie Kirk’s assassination, I knew that there was really no option. I’ve decided to run for Congress again,” Cawthorn told Fox News Digital. “I want to make sure [the people of Florida] have amazing representation in Washington, D.C., because I know exactly what happens in the swamp.”
GOVERNMENT SHUTS DOWN AFTER CONGRESS DEADLOCKS ON SPENDING DEAL
“There’s so many people that take advantage of freshman [members],” Cawtorn continued. “And I think that I’m the right man for the job.”
Cawthorn also told Fox his experience with hurricane relief in the district, which includes Naples, Cape Coral, Ft. Myers and Marco Island, as well as seeing the community come together also inspired his decision to run.
Madison Cawthorn was the youngest congressman to be elected to the U.S. House of Representatives since 1964, and was defeated by Rep. Chuck Edwards in the Republican primary for North Carolina’s 11th congressional district after serving one term from 2021 to 2023.
Cawthorn was embattled with various controversies at the end of his term, including pleading guilty to possessing a dangerous weapon at a Charlotte airport in April 2022, and in May 2022, a scandalous video of Cawthorn showed him “thrusting” at another individual. Cawthorn responded by saying the video was old, and he was “being crass with a friend” at the time.
DESANTIS WARNS FLORIDA IS ‘NOT PORTLAND’ AS STATE SECURES MAJOR FEDERAL IMMIGRATION FUNDING
The young Congressman also faced accusations from both Republicans and Democrats during his time in office, with some saying he violated the STOCK Act by failing to disclose ownership of crypto stock.
Cawthorn himself claimed that members of congress invited him to orgies and regularly did cocaine around him. Former House Republican Leader Kevin McCarthy reportedly scolded Cawthorn for such comments, and Cawthorn later admitted his claims were “exaggerated.”
As for the scandals and legal trouble Cawthorn faced during his term, he told Fox News Digital he got “railroaded out of Washington, D.C., by the radical left and members of [his] own party” for telling “the truth” about the city.
“You can start looking at things that happened months after I left, and I think it proves the things I was talking about,” Cawthorn told Fox. “There’s a lot of people in Washington, D.C., who enjoy just having talking points” that members have used for “decades and decades.”
WE MADE DC LIVE THE WAY THE REST OF THE WORLD LIVES: REP. BYRON DONALDS
Cawthorn was also recently arrested in Florida early last month for failing to appear in court for a traffic citation. The newly announced congressional candidate said it was simply a “mixup about court timings” and that he and his legal team “fully expect this case is going to go in a positive direction.”
“It was a simple mistake, whether through scheduling or a mishap in changing schedules,” Cawthorn added.
Despite scandals and accusations, the young former congressman now candidate, told Fox “it’s about time we have a legislative branch that’s willing to fight.”
“If you want someone who is going to go to Washington, D.C., to be swayed by outside money, [who is] just going to fade off into the swamp until they die in office… I’m not your guy,” Cawthorn explained. “But if you want someone who is going to fight for the values that conservatives truly believe in, who is going to pursue morals and ethics… then I’m your guy.”
CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP
Primary election day for the seat is set for August 18, 2021, and, as of today, Cawthorn will face 5 GOP candidates who have already filed to run for Florida’s 19th congressional district.
Harris caught in falsehoods about Afghanistan casualties and election claims
Former Vice President Kamala Harris‘ memoir recapping her experiences on the 2024 campaign trail includes a handful of inaccuracies that opened the doors to questions about whether the former Democrat Party leader hired a fact-checker to review her personal retelling of the unprecedented election year.
Harris is currently facing blowback from Biden allies for her portrayal of the 46th president, including taking shots at his “recklessness” for launching a re-election effort as an octogenarian who had been in public office for more than 50 years, and claiming the Biden White House turned its backs on providing her coverage when negative press plagued headlines.
Outside of Biden staffers taking issue with the former VP’s personal anecdotes of the book, Harris also included a handful of inaccuracies in the memoir’s copy and has made questionable claims from the book tour, a Fox News Digital review found.
Fox News Digital asked Harris’ office if a fact-checker was hired to review the memoir or Harris’ comments while on her international book tour and did not receive a response.
HARRIS WAS STUNNED OVER BIDEN’S BOTCHED DEBATE RESPONSE ABOUT FALLEN SERVICE MEMBERS IN AFGHANISTAN
‘13 marines’ were killed in botched withdrawal
Harris inaccurately claimed only U.S. Marines were killed during the Biden–Harris administration’s botched and chaotic withdrawal from Afghanistan in 2021, omitting mention that one soldier and one Navy corpsman were among the 13 U.S. service members killed in a suicide bombing at the Kabul Airport’s Abbey Gate.
Harris’ inaccuracies were included in a section of her book focused on then-President Biden failing to accurately debate President Donald Trump on his military leadership during his failed 2024 debate against Trump.
“He’s got so much material on this—Trump calling our fallen soldiers ‘suckers and losers,'” Harris wrote of what ran through her head when Biden was asked about his role as commander in chief.
“He managed to get off that line but had stepped on it earlier by saying no one had died in wars overseas on his watch, seeming to forget the thirteen marines who died in the bomb blast at the airport during the evacuation of Afghanistan. I’d been on Air Force Two when it happened, and we had to change our flight plan to get back to DC in the face of that tragedy. How could he overlook that day?” she wrote, expressing her surprise over the response, but misidentifying those who were all killed as members of the Marines Corps.
The Biden administration repeatedly came under fire for its handling of the Afghan withdrawal. The botched withdrawal, which included leaving military equipment worth millions of dollars in the hands of the Taliban, was viewed as preamble for adversaries such as Russia to invade Ukraine, as the U.S. looked weak on the international stage, critics raged at the time.
The Taliban regained control of Afghanistan upon the U.S.’ withdrawal.
HARRIS LITERALLY THREW ‘JOE BIDEN WON’ TALKING POINTS ON TABLE AFTER DISASTROUS DEBATE: ‘ARE YOU KIDDING ME?’
Identifies ‘Silk Road’ founder as ‘fentanyl dealer’
In Harris’ afterword of the book, she took issue with the individuals Trump granted clemency upon his return to the Oval Office, including those involved with the breach of the U.S. Capitol of Jan. 6, 2021, “numerous tax cheats” and Ross Ulbricht, who Harris identified simply as a “fentanyl dealer.”
“The Justice Department is going after Trump’s enemies list, while Trump supporters have been pardoned and released: January 6 rioters who attacked police, the fentanyl dealer Ross Ulbricht, numerous tax cheats,” Harris wrote.
Ulbricht, however, was never charged or convicted of fentanyl-specific crimes.
Ulbricht was the founder of the now-defunct darknet drug market previously called Silk Road, which is viewed as the first modern version of the dark web. He was arrested in 2013 at the age of 29 and found guilty in 2015 of distributing narcotics (via conspiracy), distributing narcotics by means of the internet, conspiracy to commit money laundering, conspiracy to commit computer hacking and continuing criminal enterprise.
Fentanyl is a wildly powerful synthetic opioid that has gripped the nation and caused an increase in overdose deaths. Fentanyl overdose deaths did not dramatically rise until 2013, when Ulbricht was arrested, and followed previous national addiction trends to prescription opioids and heroin between the late 1990s and 2013, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports.
Ulbricht, who identifies as a political libertarian, was sentenced to life without parole, with his friends and family advocating for his release during the more than 11 years he spent behind bars. Trump answered the call to pardon him Jan. 21.
“I just called the mother of Ross William (Ulbricht) to let her know that in honor of her and the Libertarian Movement, which supported me so strongly, it was my pleasure to have just signed a full and unconditional pardon of her son, Ross,” Trump wrote in a social media post after his inauguration. “The scum that worked to convict him were some of the same lunatics who were involved in the modern day weaponization of government against me. He was given two life sentences, plus 40 years. Ridiculous!”
Following Harris’ book release, the now-free Ulbricht took her claim of identifying him as a “fentanyl dealer” head-on in an X post slamming the characterization.
“Hey@KamalaHarris, You called me ‘the fentanyl dealer’ in your new book and attacked President Trump for freeing me after more than *ELEVEN* years in prison. Yet, I wasn’t prosecuted for dealing drugs myself and fentanyl wasn’t part of my charges. The truth has never mattered to you. The goal is just to make me and President Trump look bad at all cost, isn’t it? Don’t be a sore loser, Kamala,” he wrote.
KAMALA HARRIS PLAYS UP COZY RELATIONSHIP WITH HILLARY CLINTON AS WEDGE WITH BIDEN WIDENS
‘Closest election’ in the 21st century
Harris launched her book tour in September, when she began joining media interviews and stops in cities across the country to celebrate her 107-day campaign, and also repeatedly has claimed it was the “closest election” this century.
“It was the closest election in the 21st century. It was one of the top three closest elections in the last century. So for all those pundits who want to say that America is not ready for a woman to be president, I reject that,” Harris said during her New York City book stop on Sept. 24.
She again claimed just days later from Howard University: “By the way, what is also historic about that, in many ways — it was the closest election for president of the United States in the 21st Century.”
“Period. Period,” she added.
Harris lost both the Electoral College and popular vote to Trump during the 2024 election in a defeat that also included each of the seven battleground states voting in favor of Trump. Harris ended the campaign with 75,019,617 total votes to Trump’s 77,304,184 votes, and 226 electoral votes to Trump’s 312.
The 2000 election between George W. Bush and then-Vice President Al Gore is considered the closest election of this century, was ultimately decided by 537 votes in Florida. Bush also notably lost the popular vote in that election, but secured the needed electoral votes to cinch victory, while Trump also lost the popular vote but won the Electoral College in the 2016 election against former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.
FROM TELL ALL TO END ALL: FORMER VICE PRESIDENT KAMALA HARRIS’ 5 BIG CAREER MISTAKES
Fox News Digital reached out to Harris’ post-administration office Tuesday inquiring if her team hired a fact-checker to review the book or Harris’ comment on the 2024 election being the “closest” this century but did not receive a response.
CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP
Harris’ book tour is set to run through at least Nov. 20, and includes stops Toronto and in London.
Top insurance company exposed as ‘wokest’ in America with brutal new ad
FIRST ON FOX: A leading nonprofit dedicated to consumer information is launching a seven-figure ad campaign against what it is calling the “wokest insurance company” in the country.
In a letter to the Department of Justice and Treasury Department, Consumers’ Research alleges that Chubb Insurance has “ongoing practices” which go against the Trump administration’s agenda but “very likely the Civil Rights Act and other federal anti-discrimination laws.”
“Chubb Insurance is all-in on pushing radical woke ideology. CEO Evan Greenberg openly opposes basic protections for women’s spaces, attacks democratic laws, continues to embrace DEI, and props up groups that expose kids to dangerous transgender activism,” Will Hild, Executive Director of Consumers’ Research, said in a statement exclusively to Fox News Digital.
“On climate, Chubb has a history of weaponizing insurance coverage to hurt America’s energy industry, cutting support for coal and natural gas to chase leftist climate fantasies. Woke corporations like Chubb are going to extremes and ordinary Americans are paying the price,” Hild continues.
DEMOCRATS TARGET VULNERABLE HOUSE REPUBLICANS AS THEY SLAM TRUMP’S ‘ATTACKS ON FREE SPEECH’
Consumers’ Research is highlighting several past comments from leaders at the insurance company, including Executive Vice President and General Counsel Joseph Wayland saying in a LEADERS Magazine interview in 2021 that “Diversity, equity and inclusion are the foundation of our Chubb culture.”
“I am concerned about my country’s America First brand of nationalism and its impact on our image and leadership in both trade and geopolitics in the short and potentially longer term,” Evan Greenberg, CEO and Chairman of Chubb Insurance, wrote in a letter in a 2017 report, according to Carrier Management.
HOUSE OVERSIGHT PROBES WHETHER AMERICAN RETIREES’ PENSION FUNDS ARE BEING WEAPONIZED: ‘PROGRESSIVE PLAYBOOK’
Greenberg also criticized Trump’s America First platform in an interview with Carrier Management in 2021 and criticized the president’s trade policies.
When it comes to the company’s business practices, NPR reported in 2019 that the insurance company would not underwrite coal facilities anymore. As recently as March 2025, the company put forth strict guidelines in order for it to underwrite in the oil and gas industry.
On its website, Chubb said it will not “underwrite the construction and operation of new coal-fired plants or new risks for companies that generate more than 30% of their revenues from coal mining or energy production from coal” and began ending coverage for “existing coal plant risks” that go above the 30% mark as of 2022.
“Chubb recognizes the reality of climate change and the substantial impact of human activity on our planet,” Greenberg stated, according to the company’s website. “Making the transition to a low-carbon economy involves planning and action by policymakers, investors, businesses and citizens alike. The policy we are implementing today reflects Chubb’s commitment to do our part as a steward of the Earth.”
CONSERVATIVE ACTIVIST SLAMS CRACKER BARREL; COMPANY LEFT REELING AFTER LOGO REDESIGN
On its webpage, Chubb discusses “Advancing Racial Justice,” where the company touts its support of an organization called Equal Justice USA (EJUSA), which openly supported convicted cop-killer Mumia Abu-Jamal.
According to that same webpage, the company believes “racial justice and equity is both an individual journey and collective duty.”
“We believe in being anti-racist because a rejection of racism alone is insufficient,” the website states.
The company also says on that web page that it has curated a series of programs for employees instructing them how to “combat racism.”
As for the advertisements themselves, there will be a national television ad in addition to mobile billboards outside their offices in Washington D.C., New York City and New Jersey, as well as Capitol Hill. The campaign will also live on the website WokeChubb.com.
CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP
“Dear conservatives, Chubb Insurance is for: DEI in Everything They Do, Radical Climate Ideology, Trans Activism,” one ad states. “Chubb Insurance is against: The American First Agenda, U.S. Energy Producers, 2nd Amendment Advocates.”
Chubb’s business spans across 54 countries and territories, all 50 states, and employees over 40,000 people worldwide.
The company, based out of Zurich with a U.S. headquarters in New York City, did not respond to a request for comment from Fox News Digital.
Exclusive photos show where alleged Charlie Kirk assassin fired deadly shot
EXCLUSIVE: OREM, Utah — Two weeks after the shooting that killed Turning Point USA founder Charlie Kirk, Fox News Digital accessed the rooftop where the alleged assassin is believed to have taken the shot — stopped only a few feet short of the exact position by a waist-high barrier and a single mobile security camera.
The rooftop of the Losee Center at Utah Valley University is now at the center of growing scrutiny, as investigators examine how Tyler Robinson, 22, was able to carry out the fatal attack.
A security expert told Fox News Digital that the rooftop at UVU represented a significant vulnerability.
“If he didn’t scout it out, he got extremely lucky to find a door that was open on the roof that he needed to get onto to effectuate the actions that he took,” said Bobby McDonald, a former U.S. Secret Service agent and campus security expert. “For him to be able to get to the position that he was able to…a lot of things had to happen in the right way.”
TIMELINE OF CHARLIE KIRK’S ALLEGED ASSASSIN FROM CAMPUS SHOOTING TO SHERIFF’S OFFICE SURRENDER
Barriers and security cameras have since been installed on the Losee Center rooftop, which had not been there prior to the shooting, law enforcement officials confirmed to Fox News Digital on Tuesday.
Investigators said surveillance video captured Robinson walking onto the UVU campus shortly before noon on Sept. 10.
According to a probable cause affidavit, surveillance cameras captured him walking through a tunnel beneath Campus Drive, checking his phone, then appearing near the Losee Center with a “distinctive gait” — allegedly caused by a concealed rifle hidden in his jeans.
Video later showed a man climbing a staircase to a common area beside the building, scaling a wall and crouching on the rooftop. After waiting several minutes, he ran across the roof and took a prone shooting position with a direct line of sight to Kirk.
CHARLIE KIRK’S ACCUSED ASSASSIN ENCOUNTERED BY POLICE DURING RETURN TO CRIME SCENE: LAW ENFORCEMENT SOURCES
Authorities have not yet said whether Robinson accessed the roof through an unlocked door, forced entry or another route — a critical unanswered question now driving scrutiny of UVU’s security protocols.
McDonald suggested campus police were likely bracing for protest disruptions, not a sniper.
“Their main concern would have been someone throwing a bottle, an egg or laying down in front of his car — not a shooter with a long gun on top of the roof,” he said.
Utah Department of Public Safety Commissioner Beau Mason added that Robinson was spotted on campus earlier that morning, possibly scouting the area, according to Fox News’ Garrett Tenney.
During an episode of “The Charlie Kirk Show,” executive producer Andrew Kolvet explained that the Turning Point USA security team lacks the authority to oversee rooftops or areas beyond Kirk’s immediate location at campus events.
TURNING POINT USA SAYS SECURITY LACKED JURISDICTION TO MONITOR ROOFTOP WHEN CHARLIE KIRK WAS ASSASSINATED
“In defense of our security team, people need to understand that they do not have jurisdiction on the rooftops or the surrounding area,” Kolvet said. “Their only jurisdiction on a campus is Charlie’s physical proximity, and they were coordinating with local PD and campus PD to make sure all of those venues [were secure].”
Blake Neff, a producer for the show, emphasized that the organization didn’t deploy counter-snipers or have access to Secret Service-style protection for monitoring zones outside Kirk’s direct surroundings.
Kolvet also noted a lack of surveillance technology among many campus police departments.
CHARLIE KIRK’S KILLING AT UTAH UNIVERSITY PROMPTS SCRUTINY OF SECURITY MEASURES
“Many campus police departments do not have drone programs, which is a big problem,” he said. “I’m actually working on that because it’s something they should all have. It should be mandated by some sort of law. … So anyway, just in quick defense of the security, they’re only allowed to protect his immediate vicinity. They have to rely on PD to secure the larger perimeter.”
UVU launched a full review of its protocols amid growing scrutiny.
“We believe the findings of the comprehensive, third-party independent review of this targeted act of violence will offer valuable insights on how college campuses improve response and preparedness moving forward,” Astrid S. Tuminez, president of UVU, said. “We will integrate the findings into our efforts to strengthen and improve safety practices for UVU and all of Utah higher education.”
While some have called for counter-snipers or high-tech surveillance, McDonald cautioned that universities rarely deploy such measures absent a specific threat.
CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP
“Absent any intelligence that there was an active shooter…you’re not going to have officers stationed on rooftops,” he said.
Still, he acknowledged the assassination may prompt schools to rethink security for high-profile or controversial speakers.
“We’re used to going through metal detectors at football games, concerts, airports,” McDonald noted. “Maybe we’ll start to see that on campuses too — though in this case, I’m not sure a metal detector would have made a difference.”
Oldest living woman had ‘amazing’ lipid profile thanks to one simple food habit
At 117 years old, María Branyas was confirmed by Guinness World Records to be the world’s oldest living person — and researchers say her long life wasn’t just good luck.
In a statement to Guinness, Branyas attributed her longevity to “order, tranquility, good connection with family and friends, contact with nature, emotional stability, no worries, no regrets, lots of positivity and staying away from toxic people.”
Born in San Francisco, California, Branyas moved to Spain with her family as a child, where she lived for most of her life. Before her death on Aug. 19, 2024, scientists at the Josep Carreras Institute in Barcelona, Spain, studied Branyas’ gene samples in an attempt to confirm the reasons for her longevity.
7 COMMON FITNESS MISTAKES OLDER ADULTS MAKE AND HOW TO AVOID THEM FOR BETTER WORKOUTS
Led by Dr. Manel Esteller, head of the Cancer Epigenetics group at the Josep Carreras Leukaemia Research Institute, the research team used non-invasive methods to sample three types of tissues, according to a press release.
They analyzed Branyas’ genome (DNA sequencing), epigenome (DNA methylation), transcriptome (expression of genes at the RNA level), proteome (expression of genes at the protein level) and metabolism (small molecules such as cholesterol or sugar).
Although the team detected signs of aging in their analysis, they also found that Branyas had “genetic characteristics associated with neuroprotection and cardioprotection,” as well as low levels of inflammation.
“Branyas had an exceptional genome enriched in variants in genes that are associated with enhanced lifespan in other species (such as dogs, worms and flies) and in genes that provide cardiolipidic protection and retention of cognition,” Esteller told Fox News Digital.
“At the same time, she was devoid of gene variants associated [with] the risk of pathologies such as cancer, Alzheimer’s and metabolic disorders.”
7 STEPS TO ‘SUPER-AGING’ ARE KEY TO LIVING A LONGER, MORE FULFILLING LIFE, EXPERTS SAY
Branyas also had a large amount of the beneficial bacteria Bifidobacterium in her microbiome (gut), which the researchers chalked up to her frequent consumption of yogurt.
Bifidobacterium boosts the immune system, balances inflammation, regulates metabolism and helps to digest certain carbohydrates and dietary fibers.
“We explained to her that the consumption of yogurt and the composition of the bacteria in her gut could be related to her long lifespan,” Esteller said.
“In addition, her lipid profile was amazing — very low cholesterol, low LDL (the bad fat) and high HDL (the good fat),” he went on. “This was related to her frugal diet and genes that quickly metabolized the damaging molecules.”
Branyas also never smoked or drank alcohol.
“The consumption of yogurt and the composition of the bacteria in her gut could be related to her long lifespan.”
She had a biological age younger than her chronological age, as determined by epigenetic markers, the researchers found.
This study, which was published in the journal Cell Reports Medicine, was the most thorough deep dive into the biology of supercentenarians (people over 110 years), according to Esteller.
He referred to Branyas as an “exceptional person, with a smile that lit up the room and an optimism we deeply need,” plus someone who “was eager to help others” by participating in the study.
According to Guinness, Branyas had no health issues other than being hard of hearing and having some mobility issues, and her mind was “perfectly lucid.”
Overall, the fact that she lived to 117 without serious disease shows that aging can be “clearly distinguished from illness,” the researchers wrote.
“I think longevity is also about being lucky. Luck and good genetics.”
The team concluded that a “healthy diet, a stimulating and diverse social network, and the absence of toxic habits” likely played a role in Branyas’ “exceptional longevity,” although they also noted that more research is needed to link biological characteristics to specific habits.
Branyas also told Guinness, “I think longevity is also about being lucky. Luck and good genetics.”
6 factors of longevity
In their study, the researchers identified the following factors that likely fostered healthy aging and extended Branyas’ longevity, according to Esteller.
CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP
- A “protective and resilient” genome with variants that were linked to longevity and warded off major disorders
- A metabolism that quickly removed dangerous fats and sugars
- A low level of inflammation
- An efficient immune system that was able to attack invading microorganisms without targeting the cells (thus avoiding autoimmune disorders)
- A beneficial microbiome characteristic of a much younger individual, with several anti-inflammatory bacterial strands
- A biological age around 23 years younger than her chronological age
The biggest takeaway from the study, according to Esteller, is that it identified markers of healthy aging with a good chance of achieving considerable longevity.
“For example, her very short telomeres showed that those cells have divided many times, but that did not affect her well-being,” he said. “The rejuvenated microbiome and epigenome provided a plus for the extreme lifespan.”
CLICK HERE TO SIGN UP FOR OUR HEALTH NEWSLETTER
The study also suggests that dietary changes could not only help to avoid obesity and other related diseases, but could also extend lifespan by improving gut health.
“Finally, the identification of genes linked to the supercentenarian feature might provide new targets for pharmacological development, opening the door for more ‘intelligent’ drugs to increase healthy lifespan,” Esteller said.
The study did have some limitations, the researchers noted, including the fact that aging is a “highly individualized process” shaped by many genetic and environmental factors.
“Drawing broadly applicable conclusions from a single subject should be taken with caution,” they wrote, noting that more detailed studies of aging hallmarks are needed.
“A final limitation of our work is that we have not studied the effect of exercise or metabolic tuning, or assessed the effects of drugs targeting some of the observed features to explore their potential anti-aging effects,” the researchers added.
High court allows Fed governor Cook to keep seat until January Trump showdown
The Supreme Court on Wednesday agreed to review President Donald Trump‘s effort to fire Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook, and will allow her to remain in her spot on the board until oral arguments can be heard in January, the court said — delivering a long-awaited update on a high-profile case, and one expected to have significant political and economic implications for the nation’s central bank.
The update comes roughly two weeks after Trump officials appealed the case to the high court for emergency review.
Oral arguments are expected to be closely watched, given the unprecedented nature of the case, and the seismic shift that any ruling could have on U.S. economic decisions.
In appealing the case to the Supreme Court, lawyers for the Trump administration argued that the Fed’s “uniquely important role” in the U.S. economy only heightens the government’s and public’s interest in reviewing the case.
COOK’S POTENTIAL EXIT HANDS TRUMP GREATER SWAY OVER FED BOARD SHAPING US MONETARY POLICY
“Put simply, the president may reasonably determine that interest rates paid by the American people should not be set by a governor who appears to have lied about facts material to the interest rates she secured for herself — and refuses to explain the apparent misrepresentations,” Solicitor General D. John Sauer said Thursday in the appeal.
The review of Cook’s case is significant. Trump’s attempt to fire Cook marked the first time in the bank’s 111-year history that a president has ever attempted to remove a sitting governor from Fed — a stridently independent body whose members are shielded by law against political pressures.
The court’s decision to take up the case comes weeks after U.S. District Judge Jia Cobb issued a preliminary injunction last month blocking Trump from firing Cook from the Fed while the case continued to play out in court.
She ruled that Trump had failed to satisfy the stringent requirements needed to remove a sitting Fed governor “for cause,” and that Cook could not be removed for conduct that occurred prior to her appointment to the Fed.
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit voted 2-1 in September to to deny Trump’s request for intervention, prompting the administration to kick the case to the Supreme Court for emergency review.
The Supreme Court update comes as Trump has for months pressured the Federal Reserve to slash interest rates, in a bid to help spur the nation’s economic growth.
LAWYERS FOR COOK, DOJ TRADE BLOWS AT HIGH-STAKES CLASH OVER FED FIRING
But his attempt to fire Cook for alleged mortgage fraud violations, which she has denied, has teed up a first-of-its-kind court clash that could have profound impacts on the Fed.
Cook’s lawyers have argued that Trump’s attempt to fire her well before the end of her 14-year term is an attempt to install a nominee of his choosing and secure a majority on the Fed board.
Cook sued Trump in late August for his attempt to fire her, arguing that his removal violated her due process rights under the Fifth Amendment, as well as her statutory right to notice and a hearing under the Federal Reserve Act, or FRA — a law designed to shield members from the political whims of the commander in chief or members of Congress.
The Supreme Court has sided with Trump on similar cases in the past.
CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP
The Supreme Court in May allowed Trump to proceed with the provisional firings of two independent board members — National Labor Relations Board member Gwynne Wilcox and Merit Systems Protection Board member Cathy Harris — two Democrat appointees who were abruptly terminated by the Trump administration.
But even that decision sought to differentiate these boards from the Fed, which they stressed was a “uniquely structured, quasi-private entity that follows in the distinct historical tradition of the First and Second Banks of the United States.”
Hiker found in underwear with bloodied feet after vanishing in rugged wilderness
A group of resourceful mountain bikers came across a hiker who was missing for two days in the rugged Idaho wilderness and brought her to safety last month, authorities said.
Heather Wayment, 46, was reported missing by family on Sept. 17, a day after she was last seen in the Prairie Creek area of Blaine County, Idaho, the Blaine County Sheriff’s Office said.
A day later, three mountain bikers who were not part of the search and rescue effort discovered Wayment on a remote trail in Camas County about 17 miles from where her vehicle was found, the sheriff’s office said.
The mountain bikers, brothers Tommy and Vinton Gwinn and their friend Shelton Robinson, told East Idaho News that they were on their annual biking and camping trip when they suddenly came across a woman in her underwear and her feet bloodied.
YOUTUBE SURVIVAL SHOW CONTESTANT RESCUED IN DENSELY WOODED MICHIGAN AREA
“We stopped as she was obviously in bad shape,” said Gwinn. “She didn’t want help at first. She was scared and very guarded. It took about a half hour before she would talk.”
Gwinn said the woman told them her name and that she was lost, though the group did not recognize her as the missing hiker since they had been camping and hadn’t tuned into the news for a couple of days.
“This is really rugged country,” he said. “She was not on a bike path and had to go over numerous mountains to get where she was. It was so cold at night. It’s remarkable she’s still alive.”
As the trio helped Wayment, three dirt bikers came upon them and recognized Wayment as the missing hiker.
LOST MOTHER’S HANDWRITTEN NOTES SAVE HER AND 9-YEAR-OLD SON STRANDED IN REMOTE CALIFORNIA WILDERNESS
The bikers contacted 911 using a satellite phone and rescuers gave them coordinates where a rescue helicopter would arrive.
“The only safe place for the helicopter to land was in a meadow about a half mile below where we were,” said Robinson. “One of the dirt bike riders lifted her onto the back of his bike and took her down to the awaiting helicopter, saving the rescue crews time.”
Wayment was airlifted with unknown injuries to St. Alphonsus Medical Center in Boise. No update on her condition or how she became lost was immediately provided.
“We’re super grateful we found her,” Robinson told the outlet. “It’s always in the back of your mind that something could happen and you need to be rescued. It was cool to see how an actual rescue works. I was very impressed.”
The sheriff’s office thanked all the bikers involved for their roles in rescuing Wayment.
CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP
“We especially want to thank our Blaine County Sheriff’s Office deputies for their incredible efforts over the past two days, and the mountain bikers who were able to contact law enforcement, guide the Life Flight crew to Heather, and remain by Heather’s side offering aid until medical assistance could arrive,” the sheriff’s office said.
King Charles ‘saddened’ after son’s statement makes future peace talks harder: expert
King Charles III is said to be “saddened” after Prince Harry appeared to accuse palace insiders of sabotaging peace talks.
A spokesperson for the Duke of Sussex denied reports that the prince’s recent meeting with his father left him feeling like an “official visitor.” A statement sent to People magazine read: “The quotes attributed to him are pure invention fed, one can only assume, by sources intent on sabotaging any reconciliation between father and son.”
“Prince Harry’s counterproductive statement definitely caused disappointment for King Charles III, who was rather surprised and saddened,” British royals expert Hilary Fordwich claimed to Fox News Digital. “It overall makes future peace talks harder and reaffirms Prince William’s skepticism.”
PRINCE HARRY FIRES BACK AT ‘CATEGORICALLY FALSE’ REPORTS OF A TENSE REUNION WITH KING CHARLES
Fordwich’s comments came shortly after the Times of London reported the palace had been left “perplexed” by Harry’s statement. According to the outlet, friends of the king were “disappointed” by the news.
“The reality is that senior aides have been working behind the scenes to improve what is a delicate but important private family relationship,” a royal source told the outlet.
Fox News Digital reached out to Buckingham Palace for comment.
On Sept. 27, a spokesperson for the Duke of Sussex pushed back on reports that described his Sept. 10 reunion with the monarch as “distinctly formal.”
“Recent reporting of the Duke’s view of the tone of the meeting is categorically false,” the spokesperson told the outlet. “… Presumably, those same sources have also chosen to disclose the gifts that were exchanged.”
The spokesperson confirmed that Harry presented his father with a framed photograph that didn’t include the prince or his wife Meghan Markle. It’s believed the photo features the king’s grandchildren, Prince Archie, 6, and Princess Lilibet, 4.
CLICK HERE TO SIGN UP FOR THE ENTERTAINMENT NEWSLETTER
“While we would have preferred such details to remain private, for the sake of clarity, we can confirm that a framed photograph was handed over. However, the image did not contain the Duke and Duchess,” the spokesperson added.
Fordwich said courtiers and senior aides worked “discreetly and delicately” to help ease tensions between father and son.
“Such public accusations have undermined their earnest efforts,” she claimed.
WATCH: PRINCE HARRY SHUNS TELL-ALLS IN BID TO RECONCILE WITH KING CHARLES: AUTHOR
A palace spokesperson previously confirmed to Fox News Digital that Harry, 41, had “a private tea” with his father, 76, at Clarence House, the monarch’s London residence. The 50-minute meeting was the first time that Charles had met with his younger son in more than a year.
The Sun initially reported that Harry was “surprised” by the formalities of the recent reunion and “joked” that he felt more like an “official visitor.”
Following Harry’s spokesperson denying the report, a spokesperson for The Sun told People: “In his statement, Prince Harry confirms the exchange of gifts, including a family photograph. The office of the Duke of Sussex was given full right of reply yesterday in advance of publication and opted not to give a response to The Sun’s carefully sourced account of the meeting. We have today updated the online article to include his new statement.”
British broadcaster Helena Chard said Harry’s statement could cause more harm than good during a sensitive period in his attempt at reconciliation.
“The Harry debacle is turning into … a reality show,” she claimed. “It only reiterates the narrative that Harry cannot be trusted. Without trust, there will be no peace talks, just a few short meetings between father and son.”
According to the Times of London, Harry has made no secret of his belief that the “men in grey suits” at the palace conspired against him, just as they once did against his late mother, Princess Diana. The outlet cited his 2023 memoir, “Spare,” where the father of two accused three courtiers he called “Bee, Wasp and Fly” of acting to force him out of his royal role.
LIKE WHAT YOU’RE READING? CLICK HERE FOR MORE ENTERTAINMENT NEWS
“I’d spent my life dealing with courtiers, scores of them,” he wrote, as quoted by the outlet. “But now I dealt mostly with just three, all middle-aged white men who’d managed to consolidate power through a series of bold Machiavellian maneuvers.”
Buckingham Palace never publicly responded to Harry’s book or its claims.
“Prince Harry’s views on palace aides are unlikely to have changed,” royal expert Richard Fitzwilliams told Fox News Digital. “We heard them yet again in his emotional BBC interview in May. However, the unseemly briefings about what happened when they met for under an hour make another meeting unlikely in the near future.”
Harry has been estranged from his family since he and his wife stepped back as senior royals in 2020 and moved to California. Following their exit, the couple aired their grievances in interviews and documentaries. The royal’s memoir, which exposes embarrassing details about the House of Windsor and his sibling rivalry, worsened tensions.
In July, the U.K.’s Daily Mail reported that Harry had quietly extended an olive branch by offering to share his official schedule of engagements. The outlet said this was meant to ease tensions with the king.
The outlet also reported that Harry’s aides had a private meeting with the king’s communications secretary in London. Representatives for Buckingham Palace and the Duke and Duchess of Sussex did not respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment at the time.
CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP
Prince William’s representatives were noticeably absent from the so-called “peace summit,” and the future king’s team was reportedly not notified of the secret meeting. Royal experts previously told Fox News Digital William and Harry are not on speaking terms.
“We know William is not in contact with Harry, and that seems likely to be the case for the foreseeable future,” Fitzwilliams said.
“Prince William has had enough of his younger brother and knows his character all too well,” Chard said. “He has moved on.”
On Sept. 25, several outlets reported William quietly went to Balmoral Castle to spend time with the king. Royal experts told Fox News Digital that while the king and his heir haven’t always seen things eye to eye, they’ve grown closer than ever.
William, 43, has been supportive of his father following Buckingham Palace’s announcement in Febuary 2024 that the monarch was diagnosed with an undisclosed form of cancer.
“Prince William’s private meeting with King Charles is viewed as confirmation of the king’s increasing trust in his judgment,” Fordwich said. “They are closer and have a more trusting relationship now than ever. Prince William is loyal, devoted to the longevity of the monarchy and to his duty.”
PRINCE HARRY ‘DESPERATE’ TO WIN BACK ROYAL FAMILY IN LATEST MANEUVER WITH KING CHARLES: EXPERT
But royal expert Ian Pelham Turner told Fox News Digital he is hopeful that, despite recent reports, Harry and Charles can also strengthen their bond.
“On a positive front, King Charles is open to welcoming back Prince Harry and moving forward,” he said. “William may not be convinced or wish to support such a move. William may find it extremely hard to forgive his brother, but King Charles is far more powerful than given credit.”
According to the Times of London, it’s believed Harry wants to return to the U.K. “four or five times” a year. A palace source told the outlet there will be no “half-in, half-out” role for him.
Royal author Robert Hardman told People that palace sources will continue to keep a close eye on Harry’s next move.
“If we hear nothing, there will be another meeting,” he said. “If we hear something, it will be a very long time before there is one.”