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Doubling Down: Top House Democrat says focus on high prices ‘absolutely going to continue’

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EXCLUSIVE: The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC) chair says Democrats will keep their focus squarely on affordability as they aim to «take back those gavels» by capturing the House majority in next year’s midterm elections.

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House Democrats need to flip just three GOP-held seats in 2026 to win back control of the chamber for the first time in four years.

«We’re going to hold Republicans accountable for their policies that are hurting American families,» Rep. Suzan DelBene of Washington State, who for a second straight election cycle is chairing the DCCC, said in an exclusive national news network interview with Fox News Digital.

High prices and out-of-control cost of living were key issues that boosted President Donald Trump and Republicans in the 2024 elections, as they won back the White House and Senate majority and kept control of the House.

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HOUSE GOP CAMPAIGN CHAIR WANTS TRUMP ‘OUT THERE ON THE TRAIL’ IN MIDTERM BATTLE FOR MAJORITY

 President Donald Trump holds a chart as he discusses the economy in the Oval Office of the White House, Aug. 7, 2025, in Washington. (Mark Schiefelbein/AP Photo)

But what a difference a year makes.

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Democrats, with an across-the-board focus on affordability, overperformed at the polls as they enjoyed sweeping ballot box success in the 2025 elections earlier this month. Democrats scored double-digit gubernatorial wins in blue-leaning but competitive New Jersey and Virginia, as convincing victories in high-profile showdowns in battlegrounds Georgia and Pennsylvania and left-tilting New York City and California.

SETTING THE STAGE: WHAT THE 2025 ELECTIONS SIGNAL FOR NEXT YEAR’S MIDTERM SHOWDOWNS

«It was clear that when folks are talking about the biggest issues affecting their communities, and right now, affordability, with the rising costs people have seen as a result of the policies put in place by this administration and Republicans in Congress, they rejected that,» DelBene said as she pointed to the 2025 election results.

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«Absolutely, we saw that in governor’s races like Virginia and New Jersey, but [also] in races across the country,» she added.

Fox News national poll released this week was another warning sign for Trump and the GOP.

Three-quarters of voters questioned in the survey viewed the economy negatively, and large numbers of respondents, including Republicans, said their costs for groceries, utilities, healthcare and housing have gone up this year.

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The poll indicated that voters blame the president, with nearly twice as many pointing fingers at Trump than former President Joe Biden, when asked who is responsible for the current economy.

Only 38% of those questioned gave the president a thumbs-up to how he’s handling the economy. And Trump’s overall approval rating, at 41%, was the lowest of his second term in office in Fox News polling.

ELECTION REFLECTION: ‘DEMOCRATS FLIPPED THE SCRIPT’ ON AFFORDABILITY IN BALLOT BOX SHOWDOWNS

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«Affordability is still the number one issue for families. Housing, food, health care, child care, energy costs all going up directly as a result of policies put in place by Republicans in Congress and Donald Trump. And they promised to lower costs on day one,» DelBene said.

Pointing to last year’s elections, she said, «That was their big message. They were going to lower costs. It has been a big broken promise, and people are feeling that and and that’s had a big impact and will continue. People want folks who are going to stand up to them for them, not just be blindly loyal to the President.»

GOP Rep. Richard Hudson of North Carolina, chair of the rival National Republican Congressional Committee, took aim at the former president, telling Fox News Digital, «There are challenges out there with the economy, because Biden broke it, and House Republicans, working with President Trump, are going to fix it, and we’re working very hard to do that. «

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«Certainly, we could always improve the way we communicate with our voters about it,» he added. «But we are laser focused on the issues that matter to them. You know, it’s the cost of things, it’s the security in their neighborhood, it’s a secure border. We are very focused on that, and we’ve delivered a lot of things that are going to make their lives better.»

And looking ahead to next year, he added, «come tax season, a lot of families are going to be really happy to see they’ve got a lot more take-home pay, and that’s because of Donald Trump and House Republicans.»

The DCCC, in its messaging, has tied vulnerable House Republicans to Trump.

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DelBene argued that it’s «Republican policies that are hurting American families, the tariffs that Donald Trump has put in place that have raised costs for families across the country, their ongoing work to gut health care across this country.»

And she charged the «policies that they have prioritized have been favoring the wealthy and the well-connected, tax breaks for the wealthy and the well-connected, but hurting working families across the country. People are feeling that, and we’re going to continue to call that out.»

The NRCC, in its messaging, has aimed to link Democrats facing challenging House re-elections to social New York City Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani, as it aims to paint all Democrats as far-left radicals.

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Mamdani addresses his watch party

Zohran Mamdani speaks during a victory speech at a mayoral election night watch party, Tuesday, Nov. 4, 2025, in New York.  (Yuki Iwamura/AP Photo)

«The entire Democrat Party has shifted to the left. This is Mamdani’s party now,» Hudson charged. «And every single House Democrat needs to answer for his policies, and they need to let their constituents know, do they stand with Mamdani or not?»

But DelBene, firing back, charged that «Republicans have no message, so they’re trying to come up with something.»

And discounting the GOP’s messaging, she said: «the folks in Iowa and Arizona aren’t focused on who the mayor of New York is. They’re focused on who’s running for office, who’s going to stand up for them.»

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DelBene was interviewed as a trio of new national polls indicated Democrats with the upper hand in the 2026 battle for the House majority.

«We take nothing for granted,» DelBene cautioned.

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But she was confident that Democrats will «take back the house in 2026.»

«Our number one goal is making sure that we take back those gavels. Have Speaker Hakeem Jeffries, actually have a congress, a House of Representatives, that’s going to work for the American people and do their job as a check on this administration,» DelBene emphasized.

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El hallazgo que explica por qué algunos volcanes liberan lava sin estallar

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Un estudio internacional revela cómo la fricción y las burbujas de gas en el magma determinan el tipo de erupción volcánica (Europa Press/Contacto/PVMBG)

Investigadores descubren cómo la fricción y la formación de burbujas dentro del magma determinan el tipo de erupción volcánica. Un equipo internacional de científicos presentó los resultados de una investigación clave sobre volcanes activos. El grupo estudió la relación entre las burbujas de gas, el movimiento del magma y la explosividad de las erupciones, en laboratorios y mediante simulaciones informáticas.

La investigación se centró en entender por qué algunos volcanes, aun con magma rico en gases que debería resultar altamente explosivo, presentan erupciones con lava fluida y no violentas. El estudio abordó fenómenos en volcanes conocidos como el Monte St. Helens (Estados Unidos) o el Quizapu (Chile). Los resultados permiten anticipar mejor el modo en que puede comportarse un volcán ante una acumulación de presión interna.

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La investigación explica por qué
La investigación explica por qué algunos volcanes con magma rico en gases liberan lava fluida sin explosiones violentas (Captura de pantalla)

Según precisó ETH Zürich, los científicos observaron que la cantidad y el momento en que se forman las burbujas de gas deciden si una erupción resultará explosiva o tranquila. Hasta el momento, se suponía que estas burbujas surgían principalmente cuando el magma ascendía y la presión externa disminuía. El nuevo trabajo desafía esa idea y aporta datos experimentales concretos.

De acuerdo con ETH Zurich, la fricción y el movimiento dentro del conducto volcánico cumplen un rol decisivo en la aparición de burbujas. Estas fuerzas, conocidas como fuerzas de cizallamiento, pueden generar burbujas incluso sin la necesidad de una reducción de presión.

El papel de las fuerzas
El papel de las fuerzas de cizallamiento en el magma redefine los modelos de predicción de erupciones volcánicas (Foto: X)

En zonas cercanas a las paredes del conducto, donde la fricción entre el magma y la roca es mayor, el material se mueve más lento que en el centro, creando un efecto similar al de remover miel con una cuchara. El resultado es la formación de burbujas de gas adheridas a la franja de mayor fricción.

De acuerdo con Olivier Bachmann, profesor de Vulcanología en ETH Zurich y coautor del estudio, los experimentos demostraron que el movimiento inducido en el magma basta para generar burbujas en ausencia de baja presión. Las pruebas se realizaron con líquidos viscosos saturados de dióxido de carbono que simulaban el comportamiento de la roca fundida en condiciones reales.

El Monte St. Helens y
El Monte St. Helens y el Quizapu sirven como ejemplos clave para entender la dinámica eruptiva de volcanes activos (REUTERS/Giuseppe Di Stefano)

Cuanto mayor es el contenido inicial de gas en el magma, menor es la cantidad de fricción necesaria para crear nuevas burbujas, aclara Bachmann. El equipo observó que una vez que se forman burbujas en un sector, estas facilitan la nucleación de otras burbujas alrededor.

El equipo validó los datos experimentales mediante modelos por computadora, los cuales mostraron que la formación de burbujas ocurre especialmente allí donde el magma viscoso circula cerca de las paredes del conducto y se ve sometido a intensas fuerzas de cizallamiento.

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La formación de burbujas de
La formación de burbujas de gas cerca de las paredes del conducto volcánico facilita la desgasificación antes de la erupción (REUTERS/Giuseppe Di Stefano)

El número y distribución de burbujas de gas en el magma no solo definen la forma en que este se eleva dentro del volcán, sino también el modo en que se libera hacia la superficie. En ciertos casos, las burbujas formadas por las fuerzas de cizallamiento se combinan y desarrollan canales por donde el gas escapa antes de tiempo. Así, el magma rico en gases puede desgasificarse antes de alcanzar la cima y salir en forma de una lava fluida y no explosiva.

Ejemplos como el Monte St. Helens confirman este patrón: durante su erupción de 1980, el evento comenzó con un flujo lento de lava dentro del cono volcánico. Solo cuando un deslizamiento de tierra aumentó bruscamente el tamaño del conducto y redujo la presión, se produjo la explosión. Los resultados del estudio señalan que la mayoría de los volcanes con magma viscoso permiten una salida eficiente de gases, una idea que modifica los modelos anteriores de predicción.

Modelos por computadora y experimentos
Modelos por computadora y experimentos de laboratorio validan que el movimiento interno del magma genera burbujas sin baja presión (Servicio Geológico de Estados Unidos vía AP)

Bachmann explicó que el modelo tradicional, basado solo en la presión, no capturaba la capacidad del magma de liberar gases mediante la acción de fuerzas internas. Según el investigador, actualizar los modelos con estos mecanismos permitirá predecir mejor la peligrosidad de futuras erupciones.

El equipo utilizó líquidos análogos a la roca fundida, saturados de gas, para reproducir estas condiciones en laboratorio. Cuando aplicaron movimiento y generaron cizallamiento, notaron la nucleación abrupta de burbujas apenas se superaron ciertos umbrales. El hallazgo principal consistió en que, bajo altos niveles de saturación de gas, se necesita menos fricción para repetir el fenómeno.

El hallazgo permite anticipar mejor
El hallazgo permite anticipar mejor el comportamiento de los volcanes y ajustar los modelos de riesgo ante futuras erupciones (REUTERS/Marco Restivo)

De acuerdo con los datos presentados, la presencia de burbujas iniciales también acelera la formación de más burbujas en cadena, intensificando el desarrollo de canales de escape para los gases. Los volcanes anteriormente considerados impredecibles pueden, en realidad, liberar presión internamente sin detonar explosiones, si el magma logra formar vías de desgasificación a tiempo.

Este trabajo aporta una pieza clave para comprender cómo funcionan los procesos subterráneos en volcanes activos y mejora los criterios utilizados para evaluar futuros escenarios eruptivos. Según ETH Zurich, la ciencia volcánica avanza hacia modelos más precisos, lo que facilitará la prevención y la preparación ante riesgos naturales asociados a la actividad volcánica.

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Wave of car attacks on ICE agents follows incendiary rhetoric from target-city leaders

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A surge in car-rammings and other assaults on Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents during targeted operations in California, Illinois and North Carolina has coincided with sharp criticism from local and state leaders against federal officers.

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Earlier this week, the Department of Homeland Security reported a 1,300% increase in vehicular attacks on ICE since President Donald Trump took office, and a 58% spike against CBP officers in that same time period.

There were only two vehicular rammings of ICE agents – in particular – during former President Joe Biden’s final year in office. His administration also did not conduct fervent, targeted immigration raids at the same scale or frequency, according to reports. 

DEMS URGED TO ‘STOP SIDING WITH ILLEGAL ALIENS’ AFTER ACTIVIST RAMS AGENTS IN SANCTUARY CITY

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In comments to Fox News Digital on Friday, Assistant DHS Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said:

«Since January 20, there have been 99 vehicle attacks against DHS law enforcement, a 1,000% increase in assaults against them, and an 8,000% increase in death threats to ICE officers. Make no mistake: The uptick in these kinds of attacks is being fueled by the constant demonization of ICE and CBP officers by Democrat politicians. They need to knock it off before they get one of our officers killed.» 

Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson, whose city was targeted second after Los Angeles, has repeatedly labeled Trump a racist and characterized ICE agents as terrorists.

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As recently as this week, Johnson told a podcast – in a report aired by Sky News – that «attacks» on illegal immigrants and targets of the Trump administration have the same characteristics as the priorities of antebellum freedmen.

«We know that the intentional attacks that are coming from the Trump administration and the extreme right in this country has very much been what I call an attempt to relitigate the Civil War,» Johnson said.

«They have not accepted the results that the North actually won.»

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FROM WORDS TO BLOODSHED: DEMOCRATS BLASTED FOR RHETORIC AFTER DEADLY ICE SHOOTING

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents clashed with protesters in San Francisco, Calif. on Tuesday, July 8. (United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement via X)

Johnson said that Trump is also politically targeting education, housing, transportation, jobs and health care – which he said were «literally the five demands of descendants of slaves.»

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During the Civil War, however, the Confederacy was led largely by Democrats of that era, including President Jefferson Davis, Vice President Alexander Stephens and officers like Gen. Nathan Bedford Forrest, who later became the first Grand Wizard of the Ku Klux Klan.

During the heat of immigration enforcement operations in Chicago, Johnson railed against the missions, describing scenes from the streets as «what terrorism looks like.»

Johnson also set up what he called «ICE-free zones» and in one instance, Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem was denied the use of a restroom at the Broadview, Ill., city hall just outside Chicago proper.

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BLUE STATE ICE AGENTS DODGE BULLETS, SPEEDING CARS AS LEFT RAMPS UP TRACKING CAMPAIGNS

Noem blamed Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker for the conditions that led to the incident, saying it is an example of how the Democrat «and his cronies treat our law enforcement — Absolutely shameful.»

Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass also spoke out during ICE operations in her city, saying, «These tactics sow terror in our communities.»

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Sen. Alex Padilla, D-Calif., was caught on video shouting questions at Noem during a press conference.

DHS WARNS OF ‘UNPRECEDENTED VIOLENCE’ AS DEATH THREATS AGAINST ICE OFFICERS SOAR 8,000%

Noem later claimed Padilla «lunged» at her, which resulted in various analyses of video of the confrontation.

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Padilla was quickly tackled by Noem’s security detail, and later commented on the incident, saying that if his treatment is how the Trump administration deals with a «senator with a question… you can only imagine what they’re doing to farmworkers» on the immigration enforcement front.

California Attorney General Robert Bonta publicly called the actions of ICE and CBP during its Los Angeles operations «part of a cruel and familiar patter of attacks on our immigrant communities by an administration that thrives on fear and division.»

«We won’t be silent. We won’t back down. We will continue to hold the federal government accountable when it violates the Constitution and federal law,» Bonta said in a July 7 statement.

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MANHUNT UNDERWAY AFTER FEDERAL AGENTS TAKE GUNFIRE AS RIOTERS RAM VEHICLES, HURL DEBRIS IN CHICAGO

On Friday, DHS announced another arrest of a car-ramming suspect, with officials alleging Mexican national Roberto Galeana-Guatemala struck and seriously injured an officer with his vehicle when ICE was attempting to arrest him in National City, California.

Galeana-Guatemala was charged Friday with the assault as well as one count of being a removed alien who again entered the U.S. illegally.

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McLaughlin said the incident marked roughly the 100th vehicle attack on ICE personnel since Trump took office.

After a recent case in which critics claimed DHS «kidnapped» a teenager, McLaughlin said the boy had been part of a group throwing rocks at officers who themselves were targets of another vehicle ramming attack.

She suggested rhetoric from critics over the incident was yet another accelerant on the political fire causing such attacks:

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«A U.S. teenager was arrested for assaulting law enforcement in Chicago—any claims that CBP ‘kidnapped’ a U.S. citizen and held him in a warehouse are bizarre and categorically false,» she said.

«These are more disgusting smears peddled by the media and billboard law firms. This attack is not an isolated incident, and it reflects a growing and dangerous trend of illegal aliens violently resisting arrest, and agitators and criminals ramming cars into our law enforcement officers.»

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Number of children abducted from Catholic school in Nigeria explodes to over 300

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Gunmen abducted 303 children and 12 teachers in an attack on St. Mary’s School, a Catholic institution in Nigeria. Initial reports indicated that at least 52 had been kidnapped before the tally was increased to over 200 children and then to its final count of 303.

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Most. Rev. Bulus Dauwa Yohanna said in a statement that the total number of kidnapped was determined «after a verification exercise and a final census was carried out,» according to The Associated Press. Yohanna is the chairman of the Niger state chapter of Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), who visited the school on Friday. The AP noted that the students who were kidnapped were male and female and ranged in age from 10 to 18.

GUNMEN ATTACK CHURCH IN NIGERIA, KILLING TWO AND KIDNAPPING OTHERS

In this photo released by the Christian Association of Nigeria, a man walks past belongings at the St. Mary’s Catholic Primary and Secondary School after gunmen abducted children and staff in Papiri community in Nigeria on Nov. 21, 2025. (Christian Association of Nigeria via AP)

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No group has come forward to claim responsibility for the attack, according to the AP. The outlet added that authorities said tactical squads and local hunters were working to rescue the kidnapped children.

After the attack, the state government said that St. Mary’s School reopened despite warnings of increased threats. However, Yohanna denied this claim, the AP reported.

«We did not receive any circular. It must be an afterthought and a way to shift blame,» he said, according to the AP.

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Empty beds at St. Mary's School in Nigeria after the abduction of 303 students and 12 teachers

This photo released by the Christian Association of Nigeria shows the dormitories of St. Mary’s Catholic Primary and Secondary School after gunmen abducted children and staff in Papiri community in Nigeria on Nov. 21, 2025. (Christian Association of Nigeria via AP)

RAP STAR NICKI MINAJ THANKS TRUMP FOR ADDRESSING PERSECUTION OF CHRISTIANS IN NIGERIA

The attack at St. Mary’s follows a similar incident earlier this week in which armed attackers kidnapped 25 girls from a boarding school in Nigeria’s Kebbi State and killed at least one staffer. The search for the abducted schoolgirls is still underway.

A woman walks past a classroom in northern Nigeria.

A woman looks on as she walks past a classroom in Shehu Kangiwa Model Primary School in Argungu, Kebbi State, in northern Nigeria on April 12, 2025. (Leslie Fauvel / AFP via Getty Images)

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Nigeria has seen a series of attacks on Christians and their institutions, prompting President Donald Trump to declare the West African nation a «country of particular concern.» However, the Nigerian government has disputed the U.S.’s claims.

On Tuesday, U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Mike Waltz held an event highlighting the ongoing violence in Nigeria. During the event, Waltz called the killings of Christians in Nigeria «genocide wearing the mask of chaos.» He was joined by rap superstar Nicki Minaj, who called for religious freedom for all.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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