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Navy veteran Rocky Rochford seeks to turn Tampa Bay red, unseat 20-year House incumbent
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Navy veteran Rocky Rochford served his country for 33 years, holding the title of commodore. Now, he’s on a mission to flip Tampa Bay from blue to red, in the midst of a spirited campaign to unseat 20-year incumbent Kathy Castor in Florida’s 14th congressional district.
Rochford recently sat down to discuss his campaign with Fox News Digital.
«So in 20 years, Kathy Castor has been the author of two bills that became law. And both of those were to rename post offices. So I would say that Kathy Castor has been ineffective. She hasn’t really helped Tampa Bay in the ways that matter the most. Affordability is probably the biggest thing on everyone’s kitchen table list of discussion points. Gasoline, groceries, electricity, insurance. I mean, the list goes on and on and on.»
Rochford emphasizes that his leadership experience has prepared him to be ready to represent the people of Tampa Bay from day one.
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«So it’s about leadership. I have spent my entire adult life…33 years in the Navy, four years at Massachusetts Maritime Academy. I got to go back to the age of 18 for the first time before I was actually part of the military. So, it’s been entrenched in my being, it is in my soul, I’m very strong in my faith.
And I believe that we need someone who is not only going to bring leadership to the process, but is going to bring their faith to the process up in D.C., and be part of the solution. People who are anti the other side, whether it doesn’t matter what side you’re sitting on, when they are against the other side to the point where they won’t even talk to them, that’s problematic. We’re not gonna get anything accomplished, we’re not going to get anything done. And that’s exactly what’s happening up in DC right now, we see a lot of that.»
Children’s rights is an issue at the forefront of Rochford’s campaign.
«I have three major bills that are the highlight of what I’ve been working on. And the first is my children’s bill of rights. I do believe that children are the future, and they need to be protected far better than they’re being protected now. So the laws that govern children are written amongst 11 different government agencies. Those agencies don’t overlap and they don’t talk to each other. This bill is designed to create a shield, an organization that oversees all of those laws.
«This covers everything from AI for kids, online predators, and it provides new penalties with teeth. This is we’re going to get after those folks. The predators have been exploiting four different avenues on children across state lines. I’m going to close every one of those doors. Parental rights, no boys in girls sports. I mean, this bill covers adoption. It covers foster care, egg donor, IVF. It is complete.»
Rochford argues that foreign influence plays a large role in shaping electoral outcomes, and particularly singles out China-based political donor and activist Neville Roy Singham.
Neville Roy Singham smiles at his wedding to Jodie Evans in February 2017 in Ocho Rios, Jamaica. (Osbourne Chin / Chinphotographic)
«There’s a lot folks who have nothing to do with the United States…that are influencing our elections, they’re influencing the people…We know that Neville Singham, who’s a U.S. citizen living in Shanghai, is taking money from the CCP to disrupt America from the inside. China calls this the smokeless war, and it really is and and they’re not the only ones.
«Iran is doing the same thing, we know North Korea is involved, Russia so there’s a lot of influence happening in here that are that are causing wreaking havoc but we as a society need to see beyond that. We are one America, and I’m America first. I’m American first before politics, America first before party.»
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Florida’s 14th district is hardly politically monolithic, and Rochford emphasizes that he seeks to represent the entire district, not merely Republicans.
«I’m about listening. So I’m here to not only listen to the right, I’m here to listen to the center, and I’m here to listen the left. Because if we can’t come together and find the commonalities that will make us a better country, then we are doomed as a country. So we must support what we’re all after, which is a great America, a great society that takes care of its own and helps around the world.»
Rep. Kathy Castor, D-Fla., takes her seat for the House Select Committee on the Strategic Competition Between the United States and the Chinese Communist Party hearing in the Cannnon House Office Building on Tuesday, January 30, 2024.
He views energy policy and independence as the foundation of affordability for American workers and families.
«So I’ve been talking about affordability for some time. To me, the foundation of affordability for just about everything runs off of energy. The price of oil drives the price of gas, which is in our trucks, in our trains, in our airplanes, in ships. And so we need to get control. And so one of the bills that I have drafted will propose that…we first have to become energy independent. We’re the largest producer of energy in the world. So our people should be benefiting from it, not hurting from it.»
Among the most important policy issues for Rochford is the national debt, which he has spent a great deal of time researching. He has a plan that would retire America’s national debt by the 2060s:
«We don’t want to leave a legacy of debt to our children and grandchildren. So I had go back 40 years to try to figure out where this all started, and where we went off the tracks. And I now understand the entire policy. Balancing the budget is only treating a symptom. It does not treat the disease. So the disease is Congress, I’m sorry, but it’s true.
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«Every bit of money that comes in that’s extra from Congress goes into the general pool and they spend it. And all of the great ideas that have been used in the past, because I studied them all in the past on how to get after the national debt, balance the budget, the things that’ll help us get there. They were only policy, they were never law. So this suite of bills is law and it has teeth. And so the very first bill will design, it will create a trust and it is the American National Debt Trust. And when the money goes in there, it cannot come out and it cannot be spent by Congress in any other way. So if we enacted [my legislation] it would still take us to the 2060s to retire the national debt, but if we do nothing, and we’re on the path of doing nothing, in 10 years the national debt will be $61 trillion.»
Florida’s primary election is August 18.
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Sismo de 7.4 sacude a Guatemala: Autoridades declaran alerta anaranjada por daños y descartan tsunami
Un potente sismo de magnitud 7.4 con epicentro en las costas de Chiapas, México, provocó fuertes sacudidas en Guatemala y El Salvador. (Infobae Centroamérica/Emerson Del Cid)
La mañana de este viernes, 17 de julio, la Costa del Pacífico y la región sur-occidente del territorio guatemalteco se vieron sacudidas por un potente movimiento telúrico.
De acuerdo con el reporte oficial de la Red Sismológica Nacional del Instituto Nacional de Sismología, Vulcanología, Meteorología e Hidrología (INSIVUMEH), el evento sísmico se registró inicialmente a las 08:48 horas.
Aunque en un principio los sistemas automatizados arrojaron una magnitud preliminar de 5.8 con un supuesto epicentro dentro de la soberanía nacional, los expertos de la Sección de Sismología procedieron a realizar la revisión manual de los datos.
Tras analizar el volumen completo de la información a disposición, el instituto actualizó los parámetros oficiales, confirmando que el sismo tuvo una magnitud definitiva de 7.4 y que su epicentro se localizó realmente en las costas del Pacífico, en territorio de México, muy cercano a la frontera con Guatemala.
A raíz de la considerable magnitud de este terremoto y de su ubicación marítima, el Centro de Alerta de Tsunamis del Pacífico emitió una notificación preliminar para la región centroamericana.
No obstante, las autoridades científicas del INSIVUMEH, en su boletín de seguimiento técnico, aclararon que la clasificación de la amenaza para las costas de Guatemala es estrictamente Baja.
Los expertos detallaron que, si bien se descarta por completo un fenómeno de tsunami devastador o destructivo para el país, la población costera debe comprender el comportamiento de la naturaleza.
Un tsunami consiste en una serie de olas sucesivas y, aunque en esta ocasión no se presentará una catástrofe, los modelos hidrológicos prevén fluctuaciones en el nivel de la marea que no superarán los 100 centímetros (1 metro) de altura, viniendo acompañadas de un incremento en la fuerza de las corrientes y del oleaje convencional.
Las estimaciones de arribo de la primera perturbación marina comenzaron a registrarse a partir de las 09:35 horas en el departamento de San Marcos, extendiéndose de manera paulatina hacia Suchitepéquez, Escuintla, Santa Rosa, Retalhuleu y el puerto de Champerico.
Como parte de las acciones inmediatas de respuesta ante el potente sismo de las 08:48 horas, las autoridades han declarado formalmente la alerta anaranjada institucional.
Esta medida busca agilizar la movilización de recursos y la coordinación interinstitucional, dado que ya se reportan daños materiales en distintas partes del país. De manera preliminar, el sistema de emergencia contabiliza hasta el momento un total de 20 emergencias registradas. La distribución geográfica de estos incidentes se concentra principalmente en el occidente y centro de la República:
- Siete emergencias en el departamento de Quetzaltenango
- Cinco en Sololá
- Tres en San Marcos
- teres en Guatemala
- Una en Totonicapán
- Una en Retalhuleu.
Ante este escenario, la recomendación principal hacia las comunidades costeras y el sector pesquero artesanal es mantener la prudencia y alejarse temporalmente de la línea de playa hasta nuevo aviso, con el fin de evitar percances por los cambios súbitos en la fuerza del mar. Mientras tanto, en el territorio mexicano, las réplicas del sismo principal no han cesado; los servicios geológicos del vecino país del norte ya contabilizan más de 30 réplicas en las zonas colindantes al epicentro original, manteniendo en alerta a los cuerpos de socorro de ambos lados de la frontera.
En seguimiento directo al sismo registrado esta mañana y con el firme objetivo de salvaguardar la vida de los estudiantes guatemaltecos, el Ministerio de Educación (Mineduc), liderado por sus autoridades centrales, ha tomado medidas drásticas de carácter preventivo.
A través de una disposición oficial de última hora, la cartera educativa anunció la suspensión total de las clases presenciales para este viernes 17 de julio de 2026.
Esta orden de restricción temporal aplica estrictamente para los departamentos de San Marcos, Quetzaltenango, Suchitepéquez y Retalhuleu, las regiones del país que percibieron el movimiento telúrico con mayor intensidad y donde se concentra el mayor riesgo de réplicas.
La autoridad ministerial enfatizó que la medida de suspensión posee un carácter integral, por lo que abarca de forma obligatoria a todos los centros educativos que operan en las jurisdicciones mencionadas. Esto incluye a los establecimientos del sector público, del sector privado, los institutos por cooperativa, las escuelas municipales y todos los programas del sistema de educación extraescolar.
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Democrat scrambles to meet Angel Mom after she blasts lawmakers to their faces for ignoring families’ pleas
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Senate Judiciary Committee ranking member Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., offered to promptly meet with an Angel Mom after she said during the second day of Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche’s confirmation hearing that she and other Angel Parents have been «completely ignored» in their push for immigration reform.
«Miss Bos, anxious to meet with you,» Durbin said. «I hope we can do it soon, maybe right after this.»
Jennifer Bos, whose daughter’s body was found in a bleach-filled container in a case in which an illegal immigrant was charged with concealing her death, appeared before the Senate Judiciary Committee in support of Blanche’s nomination, underscoring the Trump administration’s focus on violent crime and immigration enforcement.
Bos is among the Angel Families — relatives of people killed or harmed in crimes involving illegal immigrants — who have pushed lawmakers for stricter immigration enforcement.
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Jennifer Bos, mother of Megan Bos, dries her tears as she speaks during the second day of acting US Attorney General Todd Blanche’s Senate Judiciary Committee confirmation hearing on his nomination to be attorney general, on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC, on July 16, 2026. President Donald Trump’s pick to be the next US attorney general — his former personal defense lawyer Todd Blanche. (Ken Cedeno / AFP via Getty Images)
Durbin’s offer to meet with Bos, one of his constituents, came as Bos revealed during an exchange with Sen. Katie Britt, R-Ala., that it was very difficult for Angel Moms to meet with their lawmakers.
«This is the first time I’ve ever spoken with him,» Bos said. «I haven’t spoken with them. He spoke to me.»
«Well, I hope—and I’m sure that—I hope I heard the ranking member yesterday talked about the need for the attorney general to meet with victims, which I support,» Britt said in response. «And I certainly am hopeful that he will, and others, will meet with you.»
Bos went on to say that several pieces of legislation introduced last session have been ignored by Democratic officials.
Sen. Dick Durbin (D-IL) during a hearing to examine the abduction of Ukrainian children by the Russian Federation on Capitol Hill on Wednesday December 3, 2025 (Demetrius Freeman/The Washington Post via Getty Images)
«And there hasn’t been any way to really get in and talk to anybody, especially those who are opposed to those legislations for whatever reason,» said Bos.
At the end of the hearing, Durbin addressed Bos for a second time, offering to meet with her immediately after the hearing ended.
«I didn’t know it was a hardship for you to make this journey here, testify, from Illinois,» Durbin continued in his remarks to Bos, offering to meet her. «And I don’t want you to have to wait to see me. I want to meet with you now, and we can talk as soon as this meeting adjourns, if it’s okay with you, if it fits in your schedule.»
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Megan Bos was allegedly found dead in Luis Mendoza-Gonzalez’ backyard in Illinois in April 2025. (Fox News)
Bos told senators during the second day of Blanche’s confirmation hearing about the «unbearable agony» her family endured after her daughter, Megan Bos, was found partially decomposed inside of a garbage can in April 2025, following a 51-day search. The Lake County Coroner’s Office ruled Bos’ cause of death «undetermined,» saying the autopsy could not determine how she died or whether her death was a homicide or drug-related.
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Jose Luis Mendoza-Gonzalez, an illegal immigrant from Mexico charged in the case, was initially released from local custody after an Illinois judge determined the state charges against him — including two counts of concealment of a death, abuse of a corpse and obstruction of justice — did not qualify for pretrial detention under state law.
ICE then arrested Mendoza-Gonzalez in Chicago in July 2025, after federal authorities said he was in the country illegally.
Bos praised Blanche for stepping in after local officials failed to secure justice.
Jennifer Bos said ICE’s VOICE office comforted her after her daughter’s alleged killer was temporarily let free under Illinois sanctuary law. (Fox News)
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«I’m asking the committee not to wait until another mother is sitting where I am,» Bos said during her opening remarks. «Confirm Todd Blanche. He is a leader who will uphold the law, honor victims, confront dangerous criminal organizations, and fight to give other American families the safety and lasting protection that came too late for mine.»
Mendoza-Gonzalez remains in federal immigration custody after being arrested by ICE in July 2025.
He was arrested on charges related to his immigration status.
He also faces state charges stemming from Bos’ death.
Fox News Digital reached out to Durbin’s office for comment.
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Un fuerte sismo azotó el viernes la costa del Pacífico Sur mexicano justo en la frontera con Guatemala y fue sentido desde Ciudad de México hasta El Salvador, aunque en la capital mexicana no hizo sonar el alerta sísmica.
El Centro de Alerta de Tsunamis de Estados Unidos emitió dos alertas de tsunami para México y Guatemala.
Según el Servicio Geológico de Estados Unidos (USGS, por sus siglas en inglés), el terremoto tuvo una magnitud de 7,3 con epicentro cerca de la costa de Chiapas y a 15 kilómetros de profundidad.
Las autoridades no han informado de daños de manera inmediata.
Guatemala earthquake and tsunami threat LATEST
A magnitude 7.4 earthquake struck the coast of Chiapas state in southern Mexico, near the border with Guatemala.
A tsunami warning was issued in the area. Eyewitnesses told Reuters news agency that in Guatemala ‘buildings shook.’… pic.twitter.com/6JVBs1CfTJ
— Abhijit Pathak (@aajtakabhijit) July 17, 2026
El terremoto tuvo lugar a las 11:48, hora argentina, según notificó el Servicio Sismológico Nacional.
Minutos después, se registró una réplica perceptible para la población, lo que prolongó la incertidumbre y llevó a muchas personas a permanecer fuera de sus viviendas, en amplias zonas de Chiapas.
La Secretaría de Protección Civil de Chiapas explicó, en su cuenta de X, que se encuentra «activa» y en «constante monitoreo» sobre la situación en las distintas regiones del estado, sin ofrecer por el momento más detalles.
En la localidad mexicana de Suchiate, junto al río que separa México de Guatemala, se realizaban monitoreos en las zonas costeras por peligro de tsunami, confirmó su alcalde Elmer Vázquez Gallardo.
En Tapachula, la principal ciudad de la frontera sur mexicana, el temblor empezó leve pero se fue intensificando.
“Estábamos arriba en el segundo piso cuando empezó a temblar, pensamos que iba pasar pero de ahí se sintió más fuerte y bajamos todos, evacuamos ordenados al patio frontal”, dijo a The Associated Press Alejandra Mendoza, una empleada administrativa de un hospital público de la ciudad.
En la capital mexicana, donde edificios de ciertas zonas crujieron y cimbraron, no sonó el alerta sísmica porque, según explicó el gobierno, “la energía radiada por el sismo durante los primeros segundos no superó los niveles de activación”.
Entre las recomendaciones difundidas por las autoridades destacan la revisión de instalaciones de gas y energía eléctrica, mantenerse alejados de estructuras que pudieran representar un riesgo y reportar cualquier incidente al número de emergencias 911.
Uno de los aspectos que generó inquietud entre habitantes de San Cristóbal de Las Casas fue la ausencia de una alerta sísmica audible, por lo que muchas personas reaccionaron únicamente al percibir el movimiento telúrico.
México se encuentra en una de las regiones sísmicas más activas del mundo debido a la interacción de las placas tectónicas de Cocos, Norteamérica, Rivera, Pacífico y Caribe. Los estados del sur y la costa del Pacífico, como Chiapas, Oaxaca y Guerrero, registran con frecuencia movimientos telúricos de intensidad considerable.
El sismo ocurre además en una zona históricamente vulnerable a este tipo de fenómenos. En septiembre de 2017, un terremoto de magnitud 8,2 con epicentro frente a las costas de Chiapas dejó decenas de muertos y severos daños en el sur del país, siendo uno de los más fuertes registrados en la historia reciente de México.
En la Ciudad de Guatemala, el terremoto sacudió los edificios y provocó que algunos residentes salieran corriendo de sus casas a la calle. Medios locales de Guatemala mostraron imágenes del personal evacuando un edificio gubernamental mientras se activaban los protocolos de seguridad.
El temblor también se sintió en El Salvador, según informó la agencias Reuters.
En el estado sureño mexicano de Oaxaca, el gobernador Salomón Jara dijo en las redes sociales que el terremoto se sintió con intensidad moderada en la capital del estado, pero no se reportaron daños graves de inmediato.
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