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Trump’s voter ID bill catches unlikely break as McConnell remains sidelined
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An unlikely reason has chipped away, for now, at Senate Republican resistance against President Donald Trump’s flagship election priority.
The Safeguarding American Voter Eligibility (SAVE) America Act has hit brick wall after brick wall in the Senate, and has only twice mustered 50 votes. Still, Trump wants Republicans to pass it by any means necessary.
Republicans, however, aren’t unified behind it. One lawmaker, Sen. Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., has routinely voted against the bill in its variety of iterations, earning the personal ire of Trump.
MCCONNELL FACES FRESH CALLS TO COME CLEAN ABOUT HEALTH ISSUES
Sen. Mitch McConnell, a Republican from Kentucky, is pushed in a wheelchair in the Senate Subway of the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C., on March 4, 2026. (Graeme Sloan/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
«Mitch McConnell,» Trump told reporters last month. «He’s very disloyal to John Thune. You know, John Thune was a very good person for him. I mean, he’s a very loyal person, and Mitch McConnell’s against him almost all the time because he’s angry, I guess. Probably at me.»
McConnell has been absent from the Senate, which is currently in recess, for almost three weeks due to health issues. When he will return still remains unclear.
But without his resistance, that’s one less «no» vote that Republicans have to contend with.
REPUBLICAN SAYS TRUMP’S TOP ELECTION PRIORITY ‘DEAD’ IN SENATE AS GOP FRACTURES AHEAD OF MIDTERMS
Still, it doesn’t address the broader math problem in the Senate weighing down the chances of the SAVE America Act passing.
Senate Democrats are unified against it, meaning Trump and the SAVE America Act’s biggest proponents can’t break through the 60-vote filibuster, which has, in part, fueled the president’s demands to nuke the filibuster.
Senate Republicans don’t have the votes to do that, either.
«The only way you could get there is to undo or get rid of the legislative filibuster, and there aren’t even close to the votes here in the United States Senate in order to achieve that,» Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., said last month.
There is the talking filibuster, which Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, has pushed for months, which Republicans have yet to turn to, largely over concerns of floor time being eaten away and fractured unity leading to Democratic wins.
Then there is the budget reconciliation route, which Trump has pushed Congress to consider. While Senate Republicans aren’t leaping at the prospect, the House is moving full steam ahead.
GOP INFIGHTING OVER TRUMP’S VOTER ID BILL ERUPTS AS TOP SENATOR CALLS STRATEGY ‘FANTASY’
Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., speaks at a press conference with other members of Senate Republican leadership after a policy luncheon in Washington, D.C., on Oct. 28, 2025. (Nathan Posner/Anadolu via Getty Images)
House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., told Fox News’ Shannon Bream that he would move ahead with the reconciliation plan.
«We passed it three times in the House. We’re going to try one more time on a budget reconciliation bill, and I think that will be the way to get it through the Senate, and finally, to the president’s desk.»
Notably, though, House Republicans have not passed the version of the SAVE America Act that Trump desires, which would include a strict crackdown on mail-in balloting, a ban on transgender athletes in women’s sports and a ban on transgender surgical procedures for minors.
But even the bill’s biggest backers see reconciliation as a far-fetched option.
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Lee last month told Fox News Digital that the SAVE America Act was «policy, it’s non-budgetary. Therefore, SAVE America itself is not eligible for consideration in a third reconciliation.»
There could be alterations, like giving states federal funding to start doling out enhanced REAL IDs with citizenship verification in a reconciliation package, while separately passing a voter ID bill.
However, Lee believed that there was «no evidence that there is a viable path to a third reconciliation bill.»
«I hope there is. I would love to be wrong on that. I want us to do that. I think we should do that. But the schedule that we’ve got, to my great disappointment, is not — it doesn’t accommodate any of it.»
politics, republicans, mitch mcconnell, senate elections, john thune, donald trump
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Top Trump official reveals how 30-minute military op unlocked Venezuela oil windfall for US buyers
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DALLAS, Texas — The 30-minute U.S. military operation that removed Nicolás Maduro from power has helped clear the way for a sweeping expansion of Venezuela’s battered energy sector, Energy Secretary Chris Wright said, sharing that the country’s national energy production will more than double by the end of 2027.
«Chevron is going to more than double their energy production. In fact, that national energy production in Venezuela will more than double by the end of next year from the intervention on Jan. 3 this year,» Wright told Fox News Digital on the sidelines of the RNC Midterm Convention.
Wright said the military actions in Venezuela helped open the door for a major increase in oil production as the administration has increasingly taken an active role in the socialist country as part of a broader push to expand U.S. influence and investment.
U.S. forces entered Venezuela for Operation Absolute Resolve Jan. 3, capturing Maduro and his wife Flores. War Secretary Pete Hegseth said the attack was part of «massive joint military and law enforcement raid» and lasted less than 30 minutes.
TRUMP TOUTS ACCESS TO 65 BILLION BARRELS OF VENEZUELAN OIL IN DEAL HE SAYS WILL SLASH GAS PRICES
A view of the town of Agua Santa Rosa, on the shores of Lake Maracaibo, among dilapidated houses in Maracaibo, Venezuela, July 27, 2026. (Jose Isaac Bula/Anadolu via Getty Images)
«You had 25 years of communist dictatorship. The standard of living has just plummeted in Venezuela. Eight million Venezuelans fled. About a million of them, and not all of them good actors, came to the United States of America. People tried to beg, borrow, bribe, anything they could to change the Venezuelan government. No luck,» Wright said.
«President Trump is an out-of-the-box, bold foreign policy leader.
«A brief military operation, arrest two criminals and now we have leverage over the government. It’s an existing government. Are they perfect? No. But we have a lot of leverage.»
Chevron scored an investment of more than $7 billion over five years and more than double its Venezuelan oil production to 600,000 barrels per day, according to its press release.
Venezuela controls more than 300 billion barrels of crude reserves, roughly 20% of the world’s total. Despite holding an estimated 17% of the world’s oil reserves, Venezuela produces only about 1% of global output after years of political instability and deteriorating infrastructure undermined its energy industry.
TOP ENERGY TRADER HAILS TRUMP’S VENEZUELA OIL DEAL AS A ‘GENERATIONAL WIN’ FOR GAS PRICES
President Donald Trump takes questions from members of the press aboard Air Force One Jan. 11, 2026, while traveling from Palm Beach, Fla. (Samuel Corum/Getty Images)
Wright said shifting the center of global energy production toward the Western Hemisphere will put the U.S. at the center and major producers, including Canada, Guyana and Mexico supplying more of the world’s oil and gas.
Millions of barrels of new Venezuelan production would be processed through U.S. refineries and produced using American rigs and infrastructure, creating thousands of American jobs, according to the White House.
STATE DEPARTMENT ANNOUNCES ‘TOTAL COMPLIANCE’ FROM VENEZUELAN GOVERNMENT IN RELIEF EFFORTS AFTER MADURO ARREST
Secretary of Energy Chris Wright speaks to Fox News Digital at the RNC Midterm Convention in Dallas, Texas. (Fox News Digital)
The administration’s emerging approach to Venezuela could use U.S. leverage with energy investment to prompt political change.
That deal comes with added importance as the war with Iran disrupts oil shipments through the Strait of Hormuz. The average U.S. price for regular gasoline rose to about $4.22 a gallon Wednesday, according to AAA, up from roughly $3.19 a year earlier.
«We’re solving a 47-year conflict with Iran. We cannot have a nuclear-armed Iran. This is a nation sounding death to America and doing everything they can to implement it. But we’ve massively grown United States natural gas exports, good for our economy, good for the world economy,» Wright said.
energy, socialism, venezuelan political crisis, foreign policy, nicolas maduro
INTERNACIONAL
Cilia Flores solicitó prisión domiciliaria por “problemas de salud” mientras espera el juicio por narcotráfico junto a Maduro
Cilia Flores, esposa del ex dictador venezolano Nicolás Maduro, solicitó a un tribunal federal de Nueva York que se le permita esperar su juicio por narcotráfico bajo arresto domiciliario en lugar de continuar detenida en una prisión de Brooklyn. Sus abogados presentaron el pedido el miércoles ante el juez Alvin K. Hellerstein, con el argumento de que una afección cardíaca que padece desde hace años se agravó desde su ingreso al centro de detención.
Según el escrito judicial, firmado por los defensores Mark Donnelly y Andrés Sánchez, Flores convivía con un “prolapso de la válvula mitral” antes de su arresto y recibía un tratamiento mensual con inyecciones que no ha podido continuar durante su reclusión. En su lugar, el equipo médico del penal le prescribió aspirina infantil, una estatina, diltiazem y nitroglicerina para los episodios de dolor en el pecho.
“Merece la oportunidad de esperar su juicio en confinamiento domiciliario”, escribieron los abogados, quienes detallaron que su clienta perdió más de once kilos, sufrió la pérdida de dos molares y presenta reflujo y gastritis persistentes desde enero. La defensa añadió que médicos recomendaron realizarle un cateterismo cardíaco, procedimiento que podría derivar en intervenciones adicionales y que, según argumentan, requiere un entorno de recuperación distinto al que ofrece una cárcel federal.
El documento también hace referencia a un episodio de salud ocurrido el 29 de julio que, de acuerdo con los propios abogados, “aparentemente” pudo tratarse de un infarto leve, aunque este punto no cuenta con confirmación médica oficial.
La defensa propuso un esquema de detención alternativa: una residencia privada dentro del distrito judicial de Manhattan, custodiada por guardias armados durante las 24 horas, con visitas restringidas a las personas autorizadas por la corte y la fiscalía, líneas telefónicas intervenidas y monitoreo por video. Flores ofreció además asumir los costos del traslado y entregar su pasaporte como garantía adicional para permanecer bajo custodia estadounidense.
Los abogados subrayaron que el personal del centro de detención “ha sido extremadamente respetuoso” con la pareja y que Flores “no cuestiona que ha recibido una atención excelente” por parte de los profesionales médicos que la atendieron tanto en la prisión como en el hospital. Sin embargo, insistieron en que “un centro de detención carece de las condiciones necesarias” para una recuperación adecuada tras eventuales procedimientos cardíacos.
Bajo sello el historial médico de Flores
Paralelamente, el juez Hellerstein aceptó una petición complementaria de la defensa para mantener bajo sello el historial médico de Flores presentado como respaldo del pedido de arresto domiciliario. En su resolución, el magistrado sostuvo que “los tribunales de este circuito autorizan regularmente la presentación de historiales médicos bajo sello”, al considerar que prevalece el interés de la acusada en proteger la privacidad de esa información sobre la presunción de acceso público a los expedientes judiciales.
La fiscalía federal de Manhattan no ha presentado aún una respuesta formal a la solicitud y un portavoz de esa oficina declinó hacer comentarios. El juez tampoco se ha pronunciado sobre el pedido.
Flores, de 69 años, y Maduro, de 63, permanecen detenidos desde el 3 de enero, cuando fuerzas estadounidenses los capturaron en un operativo nocturno en su residencia de Caracas y los trasladaron a Nueva York. Ambos se declararon no culpables de los cargos que los acusan de integrar una conspiración para introducir cocaína en territorio estadounidense.
Las defensas de ambos acusados presentaron además mociones separadas para desestimar la causa, basadas en un reclamo de inmunidad soberana por sus cargos como jefe de Estado y primera dama al momento del arresto. Una audiencia para escuchar los argumentos sobre esas mociones está prevista para el 17 de noviembre, mientras que el inicio del juicio quedó fijado para el 1 de junio de 2027.
Crime,International Relations,Law Enforcement,Crime,Diplomacy / Foreign Policy,North America
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Undercover video exposes Dem Senate nominee’s plan to embrace socialists: ‘Got to be together’
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Roy Cooper, former North Carolina governor and a Democratic candidate for the Senate, believes his party should incorporate a big-tent approach to an emerging wave of socialist candidates backed by the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA).
When asked if he would sign the Promise to America, a repudiation of socialist stances put out by moderate Democrats, Cooper said he wouldn’t.
«I don’t see any need to,» Cooper said in video footage obtained by Fox News Digital.
«I think the party needs a wide spectrum, particularly at a time when the Republican Party is shrinking and having all kinds of loyalty tests. I think we need to have all kinds of folks to be a part of our party.»
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Then-Gov. Roy Cooper, a Democrat from North Carolina, speaks with reporters on Sept. 10, 2024 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (Paul Steinhauser – Fox News)
Cooper’s comment comes as he wages a bid to fill the seat of retiring Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C., and win over a historically Republican-leaning state. It also raises questions of whether moderate Democrats believe their platforms can coexist with the aims of the DSA.
The DSA espouses positions like abolishing the U.S. Senate, establishing public ownership of corporations and abolishing Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), according to their website.
The group paints a picture of what those policies could look like in practice on its website.
«You have no debt. You don’t need health insurance. You don’t pay a mortgage or have a landlord, because comfortable housing is a human right. Your retirement is publicly funded. Food, education, energy, medicine and transportation aren’t for-profit businesses; they are common goods and utilities,» the group states.
Cooper is not affiliated with or backed by the DSA and has pitched himself as a candidate with an ability to reach across the aisle. His campaign has highlighted his ability to work with a Republican-controlled legislature during his tenure as governor from 2017 to 2025.
In his own words, Cooper has pushed back on questions about being tied to the DSA.
TRUMP HERALDED AS GOP ‘KINGMAKER’ AFTER LOUISIANA SENATE RESULTS RATTLE PARTY ESTABLISHMENT
Roy Cooper, governor of North Carolina, speaks to members of the media in the spin room following the second presidential debate at the Pennsylvania Convention Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on Tuesday, Sept. 10, 2024. (Hannah Beier/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
«For the record, no,» he told the New York Times on whether he was a Communist. «I have a record of working across the aisle. The people of North Carolina know that I can be a senator that puts them first. Before power, before party, before politics. I feel confident that at the end of the day, they’ll send me to Washington.»
When asked if Cooper’s platform is at odds with the DSA’s views, Cooper’s campaign declined to comment, noting that his commitments are reserved for his constituents.
«The only pledge Roy makes is to the people of North Carolina. Roy is not a socialist and he will work with anyone, including Republicans, as he has done his entire career to lower costs for hardworking families and fight for North Carolina,» his campaign told Fox News Digital.
Some Republicans are skeptical of that reasoning.
Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, believes moderates are afraid to challenge their progressive flank as candidates championing the far left have surged in the 2026 midterm primaries.
«That dynamic is dangerous right now because they are terrified of the extreme left. Finding a middle ground on ideological issues right now is … the prospects for success, particularly between now and election day, are not high,» Cruz said at an energy summit hosted by Club for Growth and Arnold Ventures on Thursday.
«Schumer is truly terrified right now,» he added, referring to Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y.
In the video interview, Cooper said he believes the party will only weaken itself in its resistance to the administration if it doesn’t band together.
TRAFFIC DRAMA THREATENS TO END DEM GOVERNOR’S TENURE AS VOTERS HEAD TO POLLS IN RHODE ISLAND
Roy Cooper, governor of North Carolina, during a campaign event with Vice President Kamala Harris, not pictured, at Bojangles Arena in Charlotte, North Carolina, US, on Thursday, Sept. 12, 2024. (Allison Joyce/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
«Particularly now when we’re in such difficult straits and we’re in a foxhole right now. We’ve all got to be together to take our government back,» Cooper said.
«We could fall to the autocracy, anytime we don’t stick together. So, I don’t see the need signing something,» Cooper said.
Having secured the Democratic nomination, Cooper now heads to the Nov. 3 general election where he faces off against Republican nominee Michael Whatley, the former chair of the Republican National Committee (RNC).
republicans elections, chuck schumer, ted cruz, politics, democratic party, rise of socialism
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