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Arkansas takes home top ranking for religious freedom after Gov Sanders expands key protections
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FIRST ON FOX: Arkansas has been ranked the nation’s top state for religious liberty after Republican Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders signed a series of laws expanding faith protections that helped lift the state to the top.
Earning a score of 89.2%, Arkansas became one of only two states to earn the First Liberty Institute’s annual Religious Liberty in the States index’s first-ever «excellent» rating. The index evaluates states using 50 legal protections across 20 religious liberty safeguards spanning education, healthcare, family law, economic activity and other areas of daily life.
«Religious liberty is America’s First Freedom, and Arkansas is leading the nation in protecting it,» Sanders said.
«Our rights come from God, not government, and every American should be free to live according to their faith and conscience. We’ll continue defending that freedom and ensuring the Natural State remains the best place in the country to live, work and worship.»
AMERICA’S NEXT 250 YEARS DEPEND ON PASSING FAITH AND FREEDOM TO OUR CHILDREN
Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders participates in the first-ever National Outdoor Recreation Executive Forum hosted by Outdoor Recreation Roundtable at Decatur House on May 7, 2024, in Washington, D.C. (Paul Morigi/Getty Images for Outdoor Recreation Roundtable)
The Natural State climbed six spots from last year’s rankings after lawmakers approved several measures expanding legal protections for religious exercise and conscience rights.
Arkansas’ rise was driven largely by Act 677, legislation Sanders signed last year that bars state and local governments from penalizing people, businesses and religious organizations for acting according to their religious beliefs regarding marriage and biological sex.
APPEALS COURT REVIVES LAWSUIT BY ALASKA AIRLINES FLIGHT ATTENDANTS FIRED AFTER OPPOSING PRIDE MESSAGE
A group of people hold hands in prayer. Arkansas topped a new religious liberty index after expanding faith and conscience protections. (iStock)
The state’s religious liberty push also included the Conscience Protection Act, signed by Sanders in 2023, which expanded Arkansas’ Religious Freedom Restoration Act by prohibiting state government discrimination against religious organizations based on their religious identity or status.
Kelly Shackelford, president, CEO and chief counsel at First Liberty, said other states should follow Arkansas’ lead and «strengthen religious liberty protections in their own states.»
«Religious liberty is best protected when leaders are willing to act before the rights of people of faith are threatened,» Shackelford said.
GOV SANDERS REVEALS ‘MAJOR BREAKTHROUGH’ ON EDUCATION AS RED STATE POSITIONS ITSELF AS ‘BLUEPRINT’ FOR NATION
Arkansas Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders speaking at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, on July 17, 2024. (Victor J. Blue/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
Dr. Mark David Hall, director of the Religious Liberty in the States project, said Arkansas demonstrates how states can protect what America’s founders called «the sacred right of conscience,» allowing people to practice their faith not just at church, but in their everyday lives.
«States have always served as laboratories of liberty, and this year’s results show why that matters,» Hall said.
Sanders also publicly defended religious freedom in December. She rejected demands from the Freedom From Religion Foundation (FFRF), a group that advocates for the separation of church and state, to reverse her proclamation closing state offices for Christmas.
In a response letter previously obtained by Fox News Digital, Sanders pushed back on claims it was unconstitutional, saying «only by voicing our own faith and celebrating other faiths can we make our state’s diverse religious communities feel seen and heard.»
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«With this index, citizens and legislators can see where their state is doing well, where it still has room to improve, and which existing laws could help better protect the right of conscience,» Dr. Paul D. Mueller, associate director of the Religious Liberty in the States project, said.
faith values, sarah sanders, politics, first amendment religion us, arkansas
Russia’s shadow fleet launches drone campaign across Europe
Jennifer Griffin reports on Russia’s shadow fleet launching a drone campaign across Europe to surveil military sites and test NATO’s air defenses. The International Institute for Strategic Studies report reveals 144 suspected drones near sensitive sites in Germany, France and the UK.
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A drone carrying explosives was found near a Ukrainian plane at Germany’s Leipzig/Halle Airport late Tuesday, prompting officials to warn the incident represented «a new quality of danger,» authorities said Wednesday.
The discovery temporarily shut down both runways at the major European freight hub and forced several flights to divert to other airports, according to The Associated Press.
Another flying object was spotted nearby shortly before midnight and several flights, including one passenger plane, were then diverted to other airports.
JETBLUE FLIGHT REPORTS DRONE STRIKE DURING APPROACH TO NEW YORK AIRPORT: FAA
Police said an airport worker had found the first drone near the airport’s south runway with «an unknown explosive device.» (Hendrik Schmidt/DPA via AP)
German police launched a large response and opened an investigation into the two incidents.
Police said an airport worker found the first explosive drone near the airport’s south runway with «an unknown explosive device.»
An explosives disposal robot was deployed to examine the device before authorities removed its detonator.
The plane, bearing the blue and yellow colors of the Ukrainian flag, displayed the English-language slogan, «Be Brave Like Kherson,» a tribute to the southern Ukrainian region, Deutsche Welle reported.
In the second incident, an unidentified flying object collided with a cargo aircraft that had aborted its landing at Leipzig/Halle Airport because of the runway closure.
HELICOPTER REPORTS NEAR MISS WITH RC PLANE NEAR JFK AFTER JETBLUE DRONE STRIKE
The plane bore the colors of the Ukrainian flag. (Hendrik Schmidt/DPA via AP)
The aircraft diverted to Hannover Airport, about 125 miles north-west of Leipzig, where officials found minor damage, according to The Associated Press.
German Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt said the discovery of the first drone marked a significant escalation.
«Drone sightings, drone threats, including in a hybrid context, are something we know from the past,» he said. «That a drone armed with explosives is at an airport is a new threat scenario.»
Dobrindt also described the incident as «a hybrid attack scenario.»
He said questions about the type of explosives used, the drone’s origin and who was responsible remained under investigation.
«All the speculation that is currently going on about the explosives, the construction, the question of the drone, the origin and, of course, who is behind it, is now part of the investigation,» Dobrindt said.
«What is happening now also shows that the assessment made months ago — that we are dealing with a high level of danger — was justified.»
In June, Dobrindt opened Germany’s Joint Centre for Countering Hybrid Threats, which brings together federal and state security agencies to address threats including espionage, sabotage and disinformation.
REPORT WARNS RUSSIA USING SHADOW FLEET TO PROBE NATO DRONE DEFENSES
A drone carrying explosives was found at Germany’s Leipzig/Halle Airport Tuesday night next to a Ukrainian plane, and officials warned the incident represented «a new quality of danger.» (Hendrik Schmidt/DPA via AP)
Leipzig/Halle Airport is a major European cargo hub, and Ukrainian Antonov transport aircraft are based there.
NATO said it was aware of the incidents but referred questions to German authorities.
RUSSIA LINKED TO ARSON ATTACKS ON PROPERTIES CONNECTED TO UK PM KEIR STARMER, POLICE SAY
Ukraine’s ambassador to Germany, Oleksii Makeiev, suggested Moscow may have been behind the incident, telling Welt TV Wednesday, «Who else could it be but Russia?» according to reports.
In 2024, an incendiary device ignited at a logistics center at Leipzig/Halle Airport, setting fire to a freight container in an incident Western security officials suspect was part of a Russian intelligence sabotage operation.
germany, nato, ukraine, russia, wars, drones
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El-Sayed’s threat against GOP rival backfires as conservatives bring receipts: ‘Is Dubai in Florida?’
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Abdul El-Sayed, moments after capturing the Democratic Party’s nomination in Michigan’s Senate race, sparked online controversy for his word choice in challenging Republican nominee Mike Rogers to a series of five debates.
«I know you’re going to say no because you’re a coward. Five debates. Alright?» El-Sayed said.
«You and I both know that you will wither in front of your own crimes, but I’m gonna make sure Michiganders know about them. By the time we’re done, you are not going to have safe quarter from people holding you accountable for what you’ve done,» El-Sayed continued.
The language of «safe quarter» is raising eyebrows among viewers online.
The online backlash demonstrates how closely the Michigan Senate race is being watched across the country and how viewers are analyzing every move of El-Sayed, in particular.
2026 MIDTERMS STATE OF PLAY: KEY RACES UNFOLD AS STEVENS, EL-SAYED BATTLE IN MICHIGAN
Michigan Democratic Senate nominee Abdul El-Sayed claps during a press conference in front of the Spirit of Detroit statue on Aug. 5, 2026, in Detroit. (Finn Gomez/Getty Images)
The former local public health official succeeded in his race against Rep. Haley Stevens, D-Mich., a more establishment candidate with the backing of Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., despite being heavily outspent.
His campaign has been a proxy for larger questions in the Democratic Party: whether the progressive label and promises of aggressively expanded public sector involvement will resonate with their base over the relative safety of establishment messaging.
But it has also invited scrutiny.
Conservatives ripped El-Sayed on social media for attacking Rogers’ out-of-state vacation home while he owned multiple rental properties overseas. Doug Powers, a longtime editor and contributor for Twitchy, believes it clashes with El-Sayed’s financial disclosures revealing that he owns property not just out of the state but also overseas.
«If I’m the Rogers campaign, I’m putting this in an ad. ‘A socialist who owns property in Dubai and India is attacking me for having a vacation house in Florida while threatening me in my home state?’» Powers wrote in his own post to social media.
«’No safe quarter from people holding you accountable’ is commie messaging,» he added.
«The easy rebuttal for Mike Rogers here is to point out that El-Sayed owns property in a luxury development in Dubai,» Chuck Ross, an investigative reporter for The Washington Free Beacon, pointed out.
«Is Dubai in Florida?» yet another account wrote.
Fox News Digital previously reported that El-Sayed’s most recent financial disclosure exposes how El-Sayed and his wife own at least two foreign properties in Bangalore, India and Dubai. The Dubai property is worth up to $250,000.
Other conservatives slammed El-Sayed for the tone of his message and suggested it was putting a target on the back of his Republican rival.
LIZ PEEK: MICHIGAN CAN STOP THE SOCIALIST FEVER RAGE — OR WATCH IT SWALLOW THE SENATE
Abdul El-Sayed, a Democratic Senate candidate in Michigan, at a campaign event in Detroit, Michigan on August 2, 2026 ( )
Scott Jennings, the conservative political personality and media commentator on CNN, bashed El-Sayed’s phrasing at the victory press conference.
«Abdul el Sayed threatening the safety of his opponent while the Jewish Democrat AG of Michigan says she can’t go to a Dem convention because she’s not safe, either. Does everyone see what’s happening here?» Jennings wrote in a post to X, referring to recent developments in the Wolverine state over anti-Semitic comments.
Brian Newberry, a Rhode Island state representative and former minority leader, echoed Jenning’s concern.
«Democratic U.S. Senate nominee, who pals around with [a] guy who celebrates 9/11, tells his Republican opponent that he will ‘not have safe quarter’ in his home state. Who the hell does this guy think he is?» Newberry wrote, hinting at El-Sayed’s association with Hasan Piker, a progressive streamer who has drawn backlash for past comments of his own.
«And will any — and I mean ANY — Democrat condemn this rhetoric?»
AG Hamilton, a popular conservative X account, called on El-Sayed to bring more clarity to the statement.
«Someone should ask el Sayed what exactly this means because it certainly comes off as a threat of political violence aimed at his opponent,» the account wrote.
El-Sayed’s campaign did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the phrasing or on whether the online reactions were overblown.
DEMS SELECT THEIR CANDIDATE TO FACE LONGTIME GOP LAWMAKER WHO BALKED AT VIRGINIA REDISTRICTING
Abdul El-Sayed, a progressive candidate in the Democratic primary for U.S. Senate in Michigan, speaks during a primary election night event Wednesday, Aug. 5, 2026, at the Majestic Theatre in Detroit. (Julia Demaree Nikhinson/AP Photo)
In his remarks on Wednesday morning, El-Sayed continued to press his case against Rogers.
«Mike Rogers is a guy whose politics and vision and perspective are old. Mike Rogers is a guy who has never shied away from a corporation he could do a favor for,» El-Sayed said.
«If you want a senator who’s going to lick some boots, fine. Go vote for Mike Rogers. But if you want a senator who’s going to stand up to Donald Trump, then you’ve got your option right here.»
With the Democratic primary in the rear-view mirror, El-Sayed will face off against Rogers in the state’s general election on Nov. 3.
michigan, politics, democrats elections, senate
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