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Senate GOP rams through blueprint to bankroll ICE, Border Patrol through end of Trump era
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Senate Republicans pushed their immigration funding plan forward early Thursday, adopting a budget blueprint after an all-night vote series that sets up billions for ICE and Border Patrol while sidelining Democrats.
Senate Republicans adopted their budget resolution, which tees up funding for Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Border Patrol, and effectively cuts congressional Democrats out of the process entirely.
It’s the first major step toward unlocking the budget reconciliation process, which Republicans are diving into once again after Democrats refused to fund ICE and Customs and Border Protection (CBP) without stringent reforms.
Despite Republicans largely being on the same page on the approach, Sens. Rand Paul, R-Ky., and Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, voted against the budget blueprint.
SENATE GOP LAUNCHES ALL-NIGHT VOTE-A-RAMA TO FUND ICE, BORDER PATROL THROUGH END OF TRUMP’S TERM
President Donald Trump walks toward reporters before boarding Air Force One at Joint Base Andrews, Maryland, on April 10, 2026. (Win McNamee/Getty Images)
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., panned Republicans for moving to spend billions in taxpayer dollars rather than addressing rising costs.
«America is crying out for relief from high costs, and you’re here adding $140 billion to an agency that nobody — two groups — Border Patrol and ICE, that nobody respects in this country,» Schumer said.
Senate Majority Whip John Barrasso, R-Wyo., countered that ICE and Border Patrol agents weren’t the problem, «Democrats are.»
«Today’s Democrats are a rogue and radical party,» Barrasso said. «You deserve better than reckless Democrat hostage-taking. You deserve the tools and support from Congress necessary to carry out the mission Congress has given you. Our country depends on you.»
SENATE REPUBLICANS UNVEIL IMMIGRATION FUNDING PLAN WITH $140 BILLION PRICE TAG AS DIVISIONS SIMMER
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer speaks during a news conference after a weekly Democrat policy luncheon at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C., on April 14, 2026. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)
The Senate GOP’s plan would fund both agencies for the remainder of President Donald Trump’s term. Republicans want to front-load the agencies with over $70 billion out of concern that Democrats would never agree to allocate taxpayer dollars to them again.
Lawmakers dashed through amendment vote after amendment vote, with Democrats teeing up several add-ons to the budget blueprint designed to attack Republicans.
Several of the Democratic amendments targeted affordability and economic issues in the country, and all failed along party lines.
But the night wasn’t without a dash of drama.
Sen. John Kennedy, R-La., who has pushed to broaden the scope of the forthcoming reconciliation package despite GOP leadership and the White House wanting to keep it narrowly tailored to immigration enforcement, threatened to derail the process.
REPUBLICANS EYE ENDING GOVERNMENT SHUTDOWNS FOREVER OVER FEARS DEMS WILL DO IT AGAIN
Sen. John Kennedy, R-La., said a classified briefing reinforced his view that Iran’s leaders would use a nuclear weapon if they obtained one during a Senate Judiciary subcommittee hearing in Washington, D.C. (Elizabeth Frantz/Reuters)
He wanted to include a swath of amendments that ultimately wouldn’t have been considered germane to the resolution and were destined to fail without support from Democrats. One of those add-ons was a version of the Safeguarding American Voter Eligibility (SAVE) America Act.
«If you don’t want to vote for it, don’t,» Kennedy said. «All I ask you is to think about it, to trust our Rules committee, to follow your heart, but take your brain with you. Because the American people, both Democrats and Republicans and independents, are questioning our elections.»
His amendment ultimately failed.
Meanwhile, adoption of the budget resolution doesn’t immediately kick off reconciliation. The House will now have to adopt the same blueprint or modify it — the latter would kick the resolution back to the Senate and trigger another marathon vote session.
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While Republicans are moving forward with the process in response to Democrats not budging on ICE and CBP funding, some are grappling with the ramifications it could have for funding the agencies and, more broadly, the rest of the federal government going forward.
Sen. Katie Britt, R-Ala., told Fox News Digital that she was «disappointed that we are where we are, but I understand the need to fund these portions of this agency.»
«I’m really disheartened, because I think it fundamentally changes the way that we move forward with appropriations, and not for the better,» Britt said. «And I’m not for that at all.»
politics, immigration, republicans elections, budget senate, senate elections, democrats senate
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La trampa china: por qué la transición energética alimenta el poder del régimen de Xi Jinping
Cuando la guerra en Irán puso en jaque el tráfico en el Estrecho de Ormuz, la reacción de los gobiernos de medio planeta fue casi unánime: acelerar la transición a energías limpias. Pero esa respuesta viene con trampa, porque desemboca en una nueva dependencia, la china.
Según el think tank de energía británico Ember, China produce cuatro de cada cinco módulos solares del mundo y una proporción similar de celdas de batería, además de más de dos tercios de los vehículos eléctricos. La Agencia Internacional de Energía (AIE) confirma esos números y agrega algo más incómodo: las fábricas chinas ya tienen capacidad instalada para abastecer por sí solas la demanda solar global proyectada para 2030.
En minerales críticos -los metales que van en turbinas eólicas, autos eléctricos y equipamiento militar- la concentración es todavía mayor. El think tank internacional Chatham House documentó en marzo de 2026 que China extrae, procesa o controla más del 70% del cobalto y el litio del mundo, y es el principal refinador de 19 de los 20 minerales industriales más importantes. Para las tierras raras -17 elementos metálicos esenciales en dispositivos de alta tecnología-, el dominio chino alcanza el 90% de la producción mundial de imanes de alto rendimiento, según el Council on Foreign Relations (CFR).
Esto no surgió solo del mercado. El mismo informe del CFR documenta que entre 2000 y 2021, Beijing canalizó casi 57.000 millones de dólares hacia la extracción y refinación de minerales en casi 20 países de África, América Latina y Asia. Con programas como “Made in China 2025”, el régimen de Xi Jinping identificó las energías renovables y los vehículos eléctricos como sectores estratégicos y les inyectó subsidios, incentivos fiscales y financiamiento estatal. Así, desde 2010, los costos de la energía solar, la eólica y las baterías cayeron entre un 60% y un 90%, según la AIE. La tecnología china no es más barata por eficiencia de mercado, es más barata porque el régimen chino decidió hace dos décadas que lo fuera.
En los primeros 44 días del conflicto, según datos citados por la presidenta de la Comisión Europea Ursula von der Leyen, la factura europea de importaciones de combustibles fósiles creció en más de 22.000 millones de euros. El Banco Central Europeo advirtió que un conflicto prolongado podría empujar a Alemania e Italia a una recesión técnica antes de fin de 2026 y elevó su proyección de inflación para la zona euro a un rango de entre 2,6% y 4,4por ciento. En Asia, la escasez de combustible derivó en semanas laborales de cuatro días en Filipinas y Bangladesh y en límites al uso de gas industrial en India.
El Centro de Estudios Estratégicos e Internacionales (CSIS) de Washington, en un análisis de marzo de 2026, destaca que a diferencia de crisis petroleras anteriores, hoy existe una alternativa tecnológicamente madura: la electrificación. Sam Butler-Sloss, director de investigación de Ember, lo explicó en una entrevista con CNBC: “Este es el momento de Asia equivalente al de Ucrania para Europa. De la misma manera en que la guerra en Ucrania obligó a Europa a cortar su dependencia del gas ruso, el Estrecho de Ormuz va a empujar a Asia a cortar su dependencia del petróleo, pero con tecnología aún más barata disponible”.
Gonzalo Escribano, investigador del Real Instituto Elcano, fue más directo: las renovables “ya no son percibidas como política ambiental sino como un activo geopolítico”. El problema es que acelerar esa transición significa comprar más paneles, baterías y autos eléctricos. Y todo eso se fabrica en China.
Frente al dilema, los países adoptaron estrategias muy distintas, y ninguna cierra del todo. Estados Unidos optó por el bloqueo duro: aranceles del 100% sobre autos eléctricos chinos y tarifas elevadas sobre paneles solares y baterías. Pero el Centro de Política Energética Global de Columbia, en un informe de octubre de 2025, advirtió que esa política es contraproducente: los aranceles a China van acompañados de tarifas similares o mayores sobre países que podrían proveer alternativas, como India o Brasil, lo que les impide competir en precio.
La Unión Europea eligió un camino intermedio. Impuso aranceles compensatorios sobre autos eléctricos chinos de hasta un 35% adicional e prepara subsidios estatales. Pero el Centre for European Reform advirtió que los aranceles de Trump sobre China están redirigiendo exportaciones baratas chinas hacia Europa, amplificando la presión sobre los fabricantes europeos. La AIE calcula que fabricar celdas de batería en China cuesta entre un 20% y un 35% menos que en Europa, una brecha estructural que ningún arancel borra de un día para el otro.
La tercera respuesta, la más extendida, es el pragmatismo. Canadá redujo su arancel del 100% sobre autos eléctricos chinos a cambio de que Beijing levantara restricciones sobre productos agrícolas canadienses. España aceptó inversión china en su sector energético, lo que en parte explica por qué su red renovable amortizó el shock de precios mejor que sus vecinos.
La región ocupa un lugar peculiar en este mapa. Chile y Argentina concentran gran parte de las reservas mundiales de litio, el mineral clave de las baterías. Brasil tiene grandes depósitos de tierras raras y niobio. Pero el flujo comercial real cuenta una historia distinta: en 2024, Brasil importó alrededor de 90 gigawatts de capacidad solar desde China, una cantidad equivalente a un tercio de toda su capacidad de generación eléctrica. El litio que se extrae en el sur del continente viaja a refinerías chinas, se convierte en baterías y vuelve a la región incorporado en productos terminados.
Brasil está intentando romper esa lógica imponiendo aranceles sobre autos eléctricos chinos para forzar la instalación de fábricas locales, apostando a capturar empleos, ingresos fiscales y conocimiento del proceso productivo. Pero la pregunta que la región todavía no ha respondido es si tiene la capacidad institucional para traducir sus recursos naturales en poder de negociación real, en lugar de repetir el patrón histórico de exportar materia prima barata e importar manufactura cara.
La trampa no tiene solución corto plazo. Los mismos gobiernos que llevan años intentando reducir su dependencia energética de regímenes autoritarios están financiando, panel por panel y batería por batería, la consolidación del dominio chino en tecnología verde.
X: @FerKobe
China,Xi Jinping,energía,solar,Irán,geopolítica,desarrollo,industria,electricidad,política
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Texas Dem James Talarico rips ‘un-Christian’ court decision on what’s allowed in classrooms
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Texas Democrat James Talarico slammed a court ruling this week allowing Texas to enforce a law requiring classrooms to display the 10 Commandments, calling it a «deeply un-Christian decision.»
He decried «Christian nationalism,» saying, «I’m a Christian, but I know that the most dangerous form of government is theocracy.»
Talarico, a Democratic Texas state representative, is running to flip one of Texas’ Senate seats blue for the first time in decades. Democrats believe Talarico has a real shot at defeating either incumbent GOP Sen. John Cornyn or current state Attorney General Ken Paxton. A Talarico victory would be devastating to the GOP’s hopes of retaining or expanding its Senate majority this November.
Speaking on CNN this week, Talarico condemned the decision by the federal Fifth Circuit Court. He suggested the law requiring the 10 Commandments to be displayed poses an affront to individuals in Texas who are Jewish, Muslim, Buddhist, Hindu, Sikh, agnostic and atheist.
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Texas state Rep. James Talarico, a Democratic candidate for the U.S. Senate, called a ruling allowing a Texas law requiring the 10 Commandments be displayed in schools «deeply un-Christian.» (Brandon Bell/Getty Images; Mike Simons/Getty Images)
«I don’t want anyone forcing their religion down my throat, and I certainly don’t want the government forcing a religion down my throat. So why would I do that to any of my neighbors?» he told CNN. «I think this is an unconstitutional decision, I also think this is a deeply un-Christian decision, because we are supposed to be loving all of our neighbors, particularly our neighbors of other faiths.»
In a 9–8 ruling on Tuesday, the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the Texas law requiring public schools across the state to display the Ten Commandments. The court ruled the law does not violate either the Constitution’s Establishment Clause or the Free Exercise Clause.
The court’s majority opinion stated that «because Plaintiffs fail to show that [Texas law] S.B. 10 substantially burdens their right to religious exercise, their Free Exercise claims must be dismissed.»
However, Talarico, who is a Presbyterian seminarian in addition to a former middle school teacher, asserted that the law runs afoul of the Christian imperative to love God and love neighbor.
«My faith teaches me to love my neighbor as myself. Not just my neighbors who look like me, not just my neighbors who vote like me, not just my neighbors who pray like me. I’m called to love all of my neighbors the way I love myself. That includes my Jewish, Muslim, Buddhist, Hindu, Sikh, agnostic and atheist neighbors,» he said.
He also decried what he referred to as «Christian nationalism,» saying, «the only thing worse than a tyrant is a tyrant who thinks they’re on a mission from God.»
WATCH: HOUSTON FACES $110M HIT AS TEXAS GOV LAYS DOWN LAW ON ‘SANCTUARY’ POLICIES
A copy of the Ten Commandments is displayed in a classroom at Bagdad Elementary School in Leander, Texas, on Nov. 19, 2025, following a state law requiring school districts to post them in classrooms. (Jay Janner/The Austin American-Statesman/Getty Images)
As a member of the Texas House of Representatives, Talarico has opposed the 10 Commandments bill as «idolatrous» for years.
While speaking on CNN, he ripped into Paxton for praising the ruling. Smiling, he said, «I’m not sure that Ken Paxton is in a place to lecture us on moral values.»
Fox News Digital reached out to Paxton for comment.
Paxton, who is currently locked in a bitter primary runoff with Cornyn, had called the ruling a «major victory for Texas and our moral values.»
He said the 10 Commandments «have had a profound impact on our nation, and it’s important that students learn from them every single day,» adding, «My office was proud to defend SB 10 and successfully ensure that the Ten Commandments will be displayed in classrooms across Texas.»
After Talarico’s dig, Paxton responded on X, writing, «James Talarico says God commands us to believe in six genders, support late-term abortion, and abuse children by ‘transitioning’ them. He’s completely and totally morally bankrupt.»
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Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton and Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, are heading to a runoff in Texas, extending their primary battle until late May. (Nathan Posner/Anadolu/Getty Images and Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)
Paxton was not the only one to slam Talarico’s take on the ruling. Turning Point USA spokesman Andrew Kolvet posted on X, «Imagine being a Christian who goes on CNN to condemn putting the Ten Commandments in schools. Imagine James Talarico.»
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In response, Talarico doubled down, telling Fox News Digital, «Jesus taught us to love God and love neighbor, because there is no love of God without love of neighbor. My faith teaches me to love my neighbor as myself. I don’t want the government forcing a religion down my throat.»
Talarico added that «the separation of church and state is a sacred boundary that doesn’t just benefit the state — it also benefits the church, because when the church gets too cozy with political power, it loses its prophetic voice.»
A spokesperson for Cornyn responded to Fox News Digital’s request for comment by saying, «We support the ruling.»
midterm elections, texas, faith personal freedoms, politics, elections
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US embassy in London warns to ‘exercise increased caution’ near Jewish sites in UK, Europe after attacks
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The U.S. embassy in London on Friday warned Americans to «exercise increased caution» while visiting Jewish and American areas in the U.K. and in Europe because of a recent rise in threats.
«The U.S. Embassy in London notes recent attacks and threats targeting Jewish and American institutions in the United Kingdom and Europe,» the alert said. «U.S. citizens, particularly those visiting institutions serving Jewish or American interests, should remain alert and exercise increased caution.»
The embassy further advised Americans to remain alert while visiting tourist and expat areas and houses of worship, review personal security plans and to check local media for updates.
Concerned citizens can also enroll in the State Department’s Safe Traveler Enrollment Program (STEP) to receive travel and security updates.
NRA FORGES HISTORIC PARTNERSHIP WITH JEWISH GROUP AMID RISING ANTISEMITISM
Charred remains of ambulances belonging to Hatzola, a Jewish community organization, are seen after a fire in northwest London on March 23, 2026. Police are treating the incident as an antisemitic hate crime. (Hannah McKay/TPX Images of the Day/Reuters)
The advisory followed a series of recent antisemitic attacks in the U.K. and in Europe, including an arson attack on four ambulances linked to Jewish charity in London on March 23, an April 18 attack on the Kenton United Synagogue in London, and a March explosion at a Jewish school in Amsterdam that authorities called a «targeted attack against the Jewish community.»
No one was injured, but the school was damaged.
ANTISEMITIC ATTACKER FACED 30-YEAR SENTENCE, GETS LESS THAN 1½ YEARS IN PLEA DEAL
Britain’s Prime Minister Keir Starmer speaks during a visit to Kenton United Synagogue in the Kenton district of London, Britain, on April 23, 2026. The synagogue was recently the target of an arson attack. (Dan Kitwood/Pool/Reuters)
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U.K. authorities are investigating whether «thugs for hire» backed by Iran are instigating the attacks in London, GB News reported.
Police officers patrol near Kenton United Synagogue in Harrow, a suburb of London, on April 19, 2026. (Jamie Lashmar/PA)
Prime Minister Keir Starmer told the Jewish Chronicle: «In relation to malign state actors more generally, proscription, we do need legislation in order to take necessary measures, and that is legislation that we’re bringing forward as soon as we can.»
travel safety, hate crime, anti semitism, uk politics, united kingdom, world
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