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VA to restore education benefits eligibility to veterans ousted under Biden-era COVID vaccine mandate
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EXCLUSIVE – A major policy shift could restore education benefits to thousands of veterans who were separated from military service for refusing the COVID vaccine during the Biden administration, according to The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA).
The move follows President Donald Trump’s January executive order — Executive Order 14184 – Reinstating Service Members Discharged Under the Military’s COVID Vaccination Mandate.
This directed federal agencies to identify service members affected by the former vaccine requirement and to take steps to reinstate or restore certain benefits.
In response, Secretary of War Pete Hegseth went on to instruct military departments to facilitate discharge upgrades for those who were involuntarily separated because they declined the COVID vaccine and received a characterization of service that affected their benefits.
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A military service member gets a COVID-19 vaccine. Under the Biden administration, more than 8,000 service members were ousted from service because they refused the vaccine. (Jon Cherry/Getty Images)
According to the VA, more than 8,000 service members were separated after Biden’s Department of Defense implemented the vaccination mandate.
Over half reportedly received discharges classified as less than fully honorable, a status that can limit eligibility for education benefits under the GI Bill.
After conducting initial reviews, the Department of War found that 899 veterans from this group now meet eligibility requirements for GI Bill benefits as a result of their upgraded discharge status.
Officials said the number could grow as more cases are reviewed under the guidelines set by Trump’s executive order.
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Shana Alesi administers a second COVID-19 booster shot to Army veteran Robert Hall at Edward Hines Jr. VA Hospital on April 1, 2022, in Hines, Illinois. (Scott Olson/Getty Images)
In September, the VA began notifying veterans whose discharges had already been upgraded, telling them that they may now qualify for education assistance.
The agency is now urging any veteran discharged for refusing the vaccine to apply for a discharge review and, if upgraded, to submit an application for GI Bill benefits.
«The Biden administration’s COVID mandates upended the lives and livelihoods of thousands of service members and veterans,» VA Secretary Doug Collins said in a statement provided to Fox News Digital.
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A metal plaque on the facade of the Department of Veterans Affairs building in Washington, D.C. (Robert Alexander/Getty Images)
«We are proud to help implement President Trump’s executive order and make these Veterans whole again.»
Hegseth also offered support for the effort and said the reinstatement of benefits is an important step toward rebuilding trust among those affected.
«One of the most atrocious attacks on our military by the previous administration was the discharging and targeting of perfectly healthy warfighters who refused to take an experimental vaccine implemented by an illegal mandate,» he said.
«We must never let that happen again, and we must also right the wrongs of the past in order to restore trust,» he added. «We at the Department of War and the VA are grateful for President Trump’s Executive Order reinstating GI Bill benefits for those veterans who were targeted for refusing the illegal COVID-19 vaccine mandate.»
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Veterans seeking more information on discharge upgrades or GI Bill eligibility can contact the VA or their respective military department’s review board.
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Several Democratic lawmakers are hosting State of the Union guests who have come under scrutiny from the Department of Homeland Security, including suspected illegal immigrants, Dreamers and citizens arrested for allegedly obstructing federal immigration enforcement.
A Fox News correspondent received the list when inquiring with the agency about a tweet released earlier Tuesday that said some Democrats are «planning to bring illegal aliens as guests to the State of the Union.»
«Once again, they are putting illegal aliens above the safety of American citizens. Yesterday alone our officers arrested pedophiles, rapists, and violent criminals from our communities.
«President Trump and Secretary Noem have made it abundantly clear: if you come to our country illegally and break our laws, we will find you, we will arrest you, and you will never return,» the agency said in its tweet.
A Fox News Digital review of the list found guests with varied backgrounds and circumstances.
Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., is reportedly hosting Aliya Rahman, who was detained during an operation targeting Ecuadorian national Jonathan Chachipanta-Pualacin Jan. 13.
Members of Congress begin to arrive in the House Chamber before President Donald Trump delivers the State of the Union address at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C., 24, 2026. (Andrew Caballero-Reynolds/AFP via Getty Images)
«ICE executed an arrest warrant to arrest an illegal alien with a final order of removal in the Park Avenue area of Minneapolis. ICE officers apprehended four illegal aliens,» a DHS spokesperson said.
«As officers carried out their law enforcement duties, a significant crowd surrounded them and began impeding law enforcement operations — a federal crime. One agitator ignored multiple commands by an officer to move her vehicle away from the scene. She was arrested for obstruction,» the spokesperson added.
DHS further disputed claims from outlets such as the CBC that reported Rahman was denied medical care after being pulled from her vehicle and detained.
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Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., arrives for a town hall event in Minneapolis Jan. 27, 2026. (Angelina Katsanis/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
Another Omar guest, Mary Granlund, is a local school board chairwoman who has taken action since the detention of a 5-year-old at Columbia Heights School, according to a statement from Omar’s office.
Granlund works with a group of faculty members who are «conducting daily patrols, working to connect detained children and families with legal assistance and coordinating food deliveries for families too scared to leave their homes,» Omar’s office said.
A DHS spokesperson said ICE does not go into schools and instead targets child predators to protect those same children.
Rep. Jesus Garcia’s guest is Marimar Martinez, who DHS alleged was part of an «ambush» of federal officers in October and whom the agency labeled a «domestic terrorist.»
Martinez, who was reportedly armed and «has a history of doxxing federal agents,» «took defensive fire» from CBP and was later taken into FBI custody after a hospital stay.
When asked about the criticism, Garcia told Fox News Digital, «I invited Marimar Martinez to be my guest to the State of the Union because her own government almost murdered her and is now covering it up by smearing her and failing to hold Charles Exum and other agents accountable.
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Sen. Richard Durbin, left, Rep. Jesus Garcia (Reuters)
«This is their playbook,» the Chicago lawmaker added. «I’m proud that Marimar is my guest. Her courage stands in stark contrast to the cowardice and brutality of DHS and the rest of this lawless Administration.»
In a prior statement, Garcia said that a Border Patrol agent «brutally shot Marimar and bragged about it, and the Trump administration wrongly called her a ‘domestic terrorist’.»
Sen. Richard Durbin, D-Ill., the forefather of the DREAM Act, invited Tereza Lee, a pianist and daughter of Korean immigrants whom Durbin said is the inspiration behind the legislation he has put forth in each Congress since 2001. The latest version was introduced in 2025 and co-sponsored by Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska.
In a statement Monday, Durbin announced Lee’s invitation, crediting her «bravery for sharing her story» and adding that President Donald Trump’s «animus towards immigrants is on full display in his second term.»
DHS noted the DREAM Act would «allow noncitizens without legal status who were brought to the U.S. as children and meet certain education, military service or work requirements — to earn lawful permanent residence.»
Another Illinois lawmaker, Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi, is inviting the daughter of a man detained by DHS during the height of Operation Midway Blitz.
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U.S. Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi, D-Ill., answers questions during a news conference about the recent congressional delegation trip to the Indo-Pacific region on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., Aug. 10, 2022. (Reuters/Evelyn Hockstein/File Photo)
«Donald Trump can try to rewrite his record tonight, but communities across America are living with the consequences of militarized immigration operations that have terrorized families and left Americans dead,» Krishnamoorthi said in announcing that he invited University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign student Jamie to join him.
Rep. Seth Moulton, D-Mass., is inviting Marcelo Gomes da Silva, a man whom DHS said was detained in May 2024 while driving the car of his father, who was being sought by authorities.
Marcelo’s student visa had lapsed, and Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin told Fox News that the «facts [of his case] haven’t changed.»
«[He] is still an illegal alien and subject to removal proceedings. The Trump administration is committed to restoring the rule of law and common sense to our immigration system and will continue to fight for the arrest, detention and removal of aliens who have no right to be in this country.»
Senate Minority Leader Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., is hosting a Venezuelan immigrant whose son was detained during a May 2025 immigration court hearing and is now being held in Pennsylvania.
«Dylan Josue Lopez Contreras is an illegal alien from Venezuela who illegally entered the U.S. more than one year ago. Under the Biden administration, he was encountered at the border and released into the country,» a DHS spokesperson countered.
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«On May 21, 2025, Contreras was arrested and placed in expedited removal proceedings. Most aliens who illegally entered the United States within the past two years are subject to expedited removals. [Joe] Biden ignored this legal fact and chose to release millions of illegal aliens, including violent criminals, into the country with a notice to appear before an immigration judge.
«ICE is now following the law and placing these illegal aliens in expedited removal, as they always should have been.»
Rep. Mike Levin, D-Calif., is hosting Stephanie Quintino, whose parents, Gladys and Nelson Gonzalez, have been deported to Colombia, according to the agency.
Sen. John Hickenlooper, D-Colo., is hosting Carolina Dias-Goncalves, a Dreamer at the University of Utah who was temporarily held at an ICE detention center after a Colorado traffic stop.
Rep. Robert Menendez Jr., D-N.J., is honoring Adriana Quiroz Zapata, an asylum seeker from Colombia who reports said fled a violent and «politically connected» former partner with his choice of guest.
Zapata’s niece, Monica Van Housen, who has been working to prevent Zapata from being deported, will be joining Menendez in the chamber.
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«Adriana, Monica and their family deserve so much better from America than what Donald Trump, Kristi Noem, and ICE have subjected them to,» Menendez told the New Jersey Globe.
Fox News Digital reached out to each member mentioned by DHS for comment.
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Russian ‘dark fleet’ tanker believed to be delivering oil to Cuba, detected off US coast amid Trump ban
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A tanker allegedly carrying Russian fuel en route to Cuba is using deceptive «dark fleet» tactics, including signal manipulation and offshore ship-to-ship transfers, according to maritime intelligence firm Windward.
According to MarineTraffic, the vessel, called Sea Horse, was located Tuesday on the U.S. East Coast with its signal, noted as «roaming.»
The move comes as the U.S. pressured Cuba’s fuel supplies, disrupting deliveries and targeting third-party countries that provide oil, following new sanctions and the detention of Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro.
On Jan. 29, President Donald Trump also signed an executive order declaring a national emergency with respect to Cuba and authorizing tariffs on imports from countries that sell or supply oil there.
Windward reported that the Russian oil tanker initially broadcast Havana as its destination on Feb. 7, and was «Hong Kong-flagged» before quietly changing tack. Windward said the tanker had an expected arrival in Cuba in early March.
The Gabon-flagged crude oil tanker NS Concord at the Port of Matanzas in Matanzas, Cuba, on Saturday, March 30, 2024. (Yander Zamora/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
The vessel altered its Automatic Identification System (AIS) signal to show it would arrive in the «Caribbean Sea» within two weeks — a vague designation the firm said is often used to hide a ship’s final port of call.
The destination was later switched again to Gibraltar for orders, even after the tanker had already transited the strait, a move Windward described as inconsistent with standard commercial routing.
Windward’s analysis also suggests the vessel loaded its cargo through a ship-to-ship (STS) transfer conducted offshore near Cyprus.
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A tanker sailing under the flag of Cuba, arrives at the port of Havana on Feb. 9. (Yamil Lage / AFP via Getty Images)
During the loading process, the tanker’s AIS signal was temporarily switched off — «a tactic of deceptive maritime operations designed to avoid regulatory scrutiny,» Windward said.
Windward data also shows the vessel’s draft increased on Feb. 8, several days after leaving an area used for floating storage and transshipment of Russian middle distillate cargoes originating from Black Sea ports.
The tanker had loitered in that zone for roughly two weeks before departing, Windward said.
«Ship-to-ship transfers outside territorial waters, where port-state oversight is limited, have become a common practice in oil trade to circumvent sanctions and regulatory scrutiny,» Windward noted.
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Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, right, with Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel in 2024. (Gaby Oraa/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
The company added that AIS manipulation, offshore transfers and ambiguous destination reporting are now standard features of shadow-fleet activity sustaining Russian oil exports despite any U.S. sanctions.
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Cuba is also facing an energy crisis that has worsened in recent weeks after oil shipments from Venezuela, its primary supplier, were halted following U.S. action in early January.
Mexico, another major supplier, also suspended oil shipments, according to The Associated Press.
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