Connect with us

INTERNACIONAL

Embattled Rep Tony Gonzales announces plans to resign amid sexual misconduct allegations

Published

on


NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles!

Rep. Tony Gonzales, R-Texas, abruptly announced his decision to resign from Congress Monday evening amid calls for him to step aside after admitting to sexual misconduct with a staffer earlier this year.

Advertisement

The embattled lawmaker is facing an anticipated expulsion vote that could occur as early as this week. 

«There is a season for everything and God has a plan for us all. When Congress returns tomorrow, I will file my retirement from office,» Gonzales wrote on social media. «It has been my privilege to serve the great people of Texas.»

It is currently unclear when Gonzales will formally resign. A spokesperson for Gonzales did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Advertisement

Rep. Tony Gonzales, R-Texas, is seen in the U.S. Capitol before the House voted to keep the government funded into March, on Thursday, Jan. 18, 2024. (Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)

SWALWELL ANNOUNCES RESIGNATION FROM CONGRESS AFTER SEXUAL MISCONDUCT ALLEGATIONS TORPEDOED GUBERNATORIAL BID

Gonzales has come under bipartisan pressure to immediately step aside or face expulsion following his acknowledgment of an affair with his former staffer, Regina Santos-Aviles, who later died by setting herself on fire.

Advertisement

Rep. Teresa Leger Fernandez, D-N.M., has vowed to move forward with her expulsion resolution if Gonzales does not quickly resign.

«He has until 2PM tomorrow—when we will file his expulsion. He better write that resignation «effective immediately,» Leger Fernandez wrote on social media.

He first admitted to an affair with Santos-Aviles during a radio interview in March after repeatedly denying the existence of a sexual relationship.

Advertisement

«I made a mistake, and I had a lapse in judgment, and there was a lack of faith, and I take full responsibility for those actions,» Gonzales told conservative radio host Joe Pags during the interview. «Since then, I’ve reconciled with my wife, Angel. I’ve asked God to forgive me, which he has, and my faith is as strong as ever.» 

Gonzales, who is married and has six children, has not acknowledged a second accusation of sexual misconduct with a former aide reported by The San Antonio-Express News.

Lawmakers are prohibited from engaging in sexual relationships with staffers, per House rules. 

Advertisement

His announcement came just an hour after Rep. Eric Swalwell, D-Calif., said he planned to resign from the lower chamber amid serious allegations of sexual misconduct and rape. The California Democrat has not specified the particular day he plans to leave office.

REP TONY GONZALES ANNOUNCES HE WILL NOT SEEK RE-ELECTION AMID HOUSE ETHICS INVESTIGATION INTO AFFAIR

Rep. Eric Swalwell sits during a hearing.

Rep. Eric Swalwell (D- CA), left, listens to former Special Counsel Jack Smith testifies during a hearing before the House Judiciary Committee in the Rayburn House Office Building on Capitol Hill in Washington DC on January 22, 2026. Former special counsel Jack Smith defended his prosecution of Donald Trump accusing him of engaging in a «criminal scheme» to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election. (Demetrius Freeman/The Washington Post via Getty Images)

Swalwell, too, was facing a potential expulsion vote that Rep. Anna Paulina Luna, R-Fla., was pressuring House GOP leadership to bring to the floor by Wednesday.

Advertisement

«The actions of these two Members reflect poorly on every single one of us,» Luna wrote in a letter to colleagues on Monday that was reviewed by Fox News Digital. «We as Members of Congress need to stand together in publicly condemning this behavior and restore the trust we have lost with the American people. 

«We are the company we keep,» she added.

It takes a two-thirds majority to expel a lawmaker from Congress.

Advertisement

Gonzales, a three-term lawmaker, suspended his reelection campaign in March after House GOP leadership called on him to exit the race.

President Donald Trump and House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., then switched their endorsements to conservative activist Brandon Herrera, who was competing in a run-off against Gonzales for the GOP nomination. 

CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APP

Advertisement
Vice President JD Vance and House Speaker Mike Johnson sit behind President Donald Trump as he delivers the State of the Union address

President Donald Trump delivers his State of the Union address in the House Chamber of the U.S. Capitol on Tuesday, February 24, 2026.  (Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)

Both Gonzales and Swalwell were under investigation by the House Ethics Committee. However, the committee is expected to suspend its investigation into both members when they officially step aside.

Johnson had urged lawmakers to allow the ethics panel’s investigation into Gonzales to be completed before the consideration of drastic measures, such as expulsion. 

The dual resignation announcements could impact House Republicans’ razor-thin majority. If the lawmakers both officially resign tomorrow, then each party will have one fewer lawmaker. 

Advertisement

However, Congressman-elect Clay Fuller, R-Ga., who won a special election last week to fill former Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene’s seat, R-Ga., is expected to be sworn in on Tuesday.

eric swalwell, republicans, sex crimes, house of representatives politics

Advertisement

INTERNACIONAL

Vulnerable Democrat warns party to ‘fight back’ against growing socialist movement

Published

on


NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles!

A senior House Democrat is urging his party to push back against the growing socialist wing that’s been gaining influence in recent years.

Advertisement

«I don’t ascribe to any of those ideas at all, and I think that there’s very little support for those ideas,» Rep. Tom Suozzi, D-N.Y., told Fox News Digital in an interview.

He compared the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) to the House Freedom Caucus, a group on the rightmost flank of the House GOP, while denouncing the DSA’s use of the word «democratic» in its name — implying its ideals were mostly socialist in nature.

«Much like the Republicans have had to deal with the Freedom Caucus, the Democrats are going to have to deal with this group,» Suozzi said. «I don’t like the idea of them using ‘democratic.’ I think that we should be, as the Democratic Party, should be fighting against that and saying, ‘You know, you shouldn’t be using the word democratic … that’s us, that’s not you.»

Advertisement

RAHM EMANUEL WARNS DSA AGENDA DOESN’T PLAY WELL OUTSIDE ‘UPPER WEST SIDE OF MANHATTAN’

Members of the Democratic Socialists of America gather outside a Trump-owned building on May Day, May 1, 2019, in New York City. (Getty Images)

It comes as DSA-linked candidates are making significant inroads in primary elections across the country, even defeating incumbent House progressives in New York and Colorado.

Advertisement

HOUSE REPUBLICANS AIM TO TURN DEMOCRATIC CIVIL WAR INTO MIDTERM WEAPON

And as Republicans work to capitalize on a burgeoning civil war within the party, Suozzi warned fellow Democrats to take the perception of a DSA takeover seriously.

«I try not to waste my time on worry. I try to take action. So I just say very clearly, ‘That’s not me and that’s not us, and this is why that’s not us, and that’s why this is not me.’ And I fight back against it,» Suozzi said. «And there are a lot of Democrats who say, ‘Oh, if you look at it, it’s just a very small percentage in very deep-blue seats. And it’s not that big a deal.’ I think that’s wrong to just discount it like that. I think you just come out head-on, and take it on and say, ‘These guys are wrong. We’ve got nothing to do with them.’»

Advertisement

100 DAY SPRINT TO THE MIDTERMS KICKS OFF AS REPUBLICANS AND DEMOCRATS CLASH FOR CONTROL ACROSS THE COUNTRY

Suozzi himself is part of an ever-shrinking group of moderates on both sides of the aisle. He’s also co-chair of the bipartisan Problem Solvers Caucus, which is dedicated to finding legislative solutions that both parties can get behind.

The New York Democrat is one of Republicans’ top targets in the coming midterm elections, and his November victory would be key to Democrats taking back control of the House. Suozzi’s district, anchored in the wealthy Long Island suburbs outside of New York City, was won by President Donald Trump in 2024.

Advertisement
Tom Suozzi

Rep. Tom Suozzi, D-N.Y., walks down the House steps after a vote in the U.S. Capitol on April 23, 2026. (Bill Clark/CQ-Roll Call, Inc. via Getty Images)

He told Fox News Digital that Democrats should not focus on running against Trump the person, but rather argue about his specific policy actions.

«Your grocery prices are higher, your fuel prices are high, your health insurance costs are higher. Your energy bill is higher. Your kids can’t buy a house — all these different factors. And that’s happening because of this administration,» Suozzi argued. «I think it should be less about Trump himself. You know, when I say it should be a referendum on Trump, it should be a referendum on this administration’s performance addressing the things in your life.»

Meanwhile, Republicans have argued that a Democrat-controlled House will embolden the party’s socialist wing to take control and push policies that are unpopular with Americans.

Advertisement

In the Empire State, for example, New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani, a self-described democratic socialist, has become a prominent boogeyman for the right.

Suozzi said the tactic «would be effective» if he had not distanced himself from the socialist’s policy platform early on.

Mayor Zohran Mamdani speaks at a rally in New York with 1199SEIU members and immigration advocates.

Mayor Zohran Mamdani speaks at a rally in New York alongside union members and immigration advocates after the Supreme Court ruled the Trump administration can revoke protections for Haitians and Syrians. (Lev Radin/Pacific Press/LightRocket via Getty Images)

«He’s a very smart guy, he’s very charismatic,» Suozzi said. «I just fundamentally disagree with his positions on things.»

Advertisement

But it’s not enough to speak out against the socialist left, Suozzi warned.

«I started a thing called The Promise to America, where I’ve got now 10 members of Congress signed onto it. We’re in the process of getting 200 state and local officials,» he said. «We’ve identified 10 candidates, Democratic candidates, to sign the pledge that says ‘We’re capitalist, not socialist. We’re for safety, not lawlessness. We’re proud, not ashamed of America, and we’re mainstream, we’re not extreme.’ So we’ve just got to organize, we’ve got to do the work necessary.»

Suozzi is running against Republican former state lawmaker Mike LiPetri, whom Trump endorsed to flip the seat red.

Advertisement

republicans, democrats, zohran mamdani, politics, democratic party

Continue Reading

INTERNACIONAL

Temporal en Chile: al menos dos muertos y más de 300 afectados por las fuertes lluvias y ráfagas de 100 km/h

Published

on


Varias personas permanecen de pie en una calle inundada con un árbol caído durante las fuertes lluvias (REUTERS/Rodrigo Garrido/Archivo)

Al menos dos personas murieron y más de 300 resultaron afectadas debido al fuerte temporal que afecta al centro y sur de Chile, según informaron el sábado las autoridades. Las lluvias provocaron desbordes e inundaciones que mantienen en emergencia a varias comunas desde la región del Maule hasta Los Lagos.

Advertisement

El subsecretario del Interior, Máximo Pavez, confirmó el fallecimiento de dos personas en la región de Los Ríos. “Quisiéramos dar cuenta como gobierno del fallecimiento de dos personas en el contexto de este evento meteorológico en la Región de Los Ríos tras la caída de un árbol a su vehículo”, señaló el funcionario.

Las autoridades mantienen la alerta por las lluvias persistentes, los fuertes vientos y el aumento del caudal de los ríos. La dirección nacional del Servicio Nacional de Prevención y Respuesta ante Desastres (Senapred) reportó el sábado 347 personas damnificadas y 2.052 aisladas, principalmente por la interrupción de caminos tras el desborde de ríos. Además, la institución emitió 13 alertas de evacuación e informó sobre vientos con rachas superiores a 100 kilómetros por hora.

Además, se reportan 11 viviendas destruidas, 107 con daño mayor, 1.007 con daño menor y otras 572 en evaluación, según el levantamiento preliminar de los municipios.

Advertisement

El suministro eléctrico, aunque se mantiene para el 97,7% de los clientes a nivel nacional, presenta interrupciones en 155.891 hogares de las zonas afectadas. Tan solo en la Región del Biobío, más de 34.000 familias permanecen sin energía. En Alto Biobío, 180 personas quedaron aisladas y se reportan múltiples remociones en masa en localidades como Florida, Los Ángeles, Nacimiento, Mulchén y Santa Juana.

Suben a cinco los muertos por temporales de viento y lluvia en Chile: hay 4 desaparecidos
El suministro eléctrico, aunque se mantiene para el 97,7% de los clientes a nivel nacional, presenta interrupciones en 155.891 hogares de las zonas afectadas (Archivo)

En cuanto al desarrollo de la emergencia, el fenómeno meteorológico provocó anegamientos, crecidas de ríos y remociones en masa en varios puntos. En Biobío, se declararon alertas rojas por desbordes en distintas comunas y en La Araucanía permanece vigente la alerta roja desde el viernes por condiciones similares. En total, permanecen activas ocho alertas rojas y once amarillas.

La directora nacional de Senapred, Alicia Cebrián, informó que las precipitaciones moderadas a fuertes continuarían durante la noche del sábado y solo comenzarán a disminuir hacia la madrugada y mañana del domingo. Añadió que sigue vigente el aviso meteorológico por tormentas eléctricas en sectores de La Araucanía y Los Ríos.

Las autoridades activaron en trece ocasiones el Sistema de Alerta de Emergencia (SAE) para las regiones de Biobío, La Araucanía y Los Lagos, principalmente con carácter preventivo para advertir sobre el aumento del caudal en diversos cursos de agua.

Advertisement
Agentes de policía trasladan el cuerpo de una víctima de un deslizamiento de tierra provocado por fuertes lluvias asociadas a un frente meteorológico que causó inundaciones y llevó a las autoridades chilenas a declarar el estado de emergencia en La Serena, Chile (REUTERS/Jorge Vega/Archivo)
Agentes de policía trasladan el cuerpo de una víctima de un deslizamiento de tierra provocado por fuertes lluvias asociadas a un frente meteorológico que causó inundaciones y llevó a las autoridades chilenas a declarar el estado de emergencia en La Serena, Chile (REUTERS/Jorge Vega/Archivo)

En La Araucanía, las comunas de Traiguén, Lumaco, Purén, Los Sauces, Angol, Renaico y Toltén concentran las principales afectaciones. Unas 22 personas permanecen albergadas y cerca de 38.000 clientes siguen sin energía eléctrica. En Los Ríos, continúan las alertas rojas para Valdivia, Los Lagos y La Unión debido a desbordes. Por su parte, en Los Lagos, están activas las alertas rojas para San Pablo —por el desborde del río Bueno— y para Osorno, a raíz de la crecida del río Rahue. En San Pablo, unas 300 personas se encuentran aisladas por el aumento del caudal.

Las autoridades insisten en la importancia de mantenerse informados a través de los canales oficiales, evitar acercarse a ríos y zonas inundadas, y respetar las instrucciones contenidas en los mensajes SAE. El subsecretario Pavez subrayó que, pese a las condiciones atmosféricas adversas, no se han registrado oficialmente tornados durante la jornada.

(Con información de AFP)



Disasters / Accidents,South America / Central America,Weather Markets / Weather

Advertisement
Continue Reading

INTERNACIONAL

Israeli orphans of fallen heroes find pride, connection on US journey

Published

on


NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles!

Twenty-eight children from across Israel who lost a parent killed while serving in the country’s security forces participated in a three-week delegation to North America as part of the IDF Widows & Orphans Organization’s annual Bar/Bat Mitzvah program.

Advertisement

The journey began earlier this month in Chicago, where the children spent a weekend with host families before traveling to Camp Chi in Wisconsin for nearly a week of activities with American kids. They then continued to New York City, where they visited Times Square and saw The Lion King on Broadway, before heading to New Jersey. For many, it was their first visit to the United States.

FREED HOSTAGE ROM BRASLAVSKI DETAILS ABUSE, STARVATION DURING 738 DAYS IN GAZA CAPTIVITY

The IDF Widows & Orphans Organization’s annual Bar/Bat Mitzvah program delegation in NYC at Times Square. (Yiftach Moran)

Advertisement

«Everything is planned very carefully. The Lion King, for instance, is more than a Broadway show for them. It’s the story of an orphan who is able to honor his father’s memory and move forward because of the support of his friends. Nothing about this trip is accidental. It is deliberately designed to give them as powerful and meaningful an experience as possible,» Daniel Elbaum, executive director of the IDF Widows & Orphans Organization, told Fox News Digital.

With the United States home to the world’s largest Jewish population outside Israel, the trip gave the children an opportunity to meet people from diverse backgrounds and levels of religious observance while, for many, experiencing international travel independently for the first time — which Elbaum said reflects their entry into the covenant with the Jewish people in a tangible and meaningful way.

Although the trip was not designed as an initiative to combat antisemitism, Elbaum said fostering a strong Jewish identity, pride in Israel and solidarity with its people are among the most important ways to help American Jews confront the world’s oldest hatred.

Advertisement
Israeli flag flutters at the memorial for those killed at the Nova music festival in Israel

Memorials at the site of the Oct. 7 Hamas terror attack on the Supernova music festival near Kibbutz Re’im, Israel, on Monday, May 27, 2024. (Kobi Wolf/Bloomberg via Getty Images )

«As much as I think we are doing something important for these Israeli children, whose families have paid the highest price for Israel, what we are doing for the American children is almost as important in giving them a sense of pride and connection they might not otherwise experience,» he added.

INSIDE ISRAEL’S MISSION TO TRAIN CIVILIANS TO STOP THE NEXT OCT 7-LIKE TERROR ATTACK

Founded in 1991, the IDF Widows & Orphans Organization supports more than 18,000 widows, widowers and orphans through assistance programs, rehabilitation, advocacy and legislative efforts. Since the Hamas-led Oct. 7, 2023 massacre and the ensuing war, 359 widows and widowers — including 48 pregnant widows — and 910 new orphans have joined Israel’s circle of bereavement.

Advertisement

Among this year’s participants was 11½-year-old Tal Goldstein-Almog from Kibbutz Kfar Aza, who was taken hostage to Gaza with his mother and two siblings on Oct. 7 and held for 51 days. His father, Nadav, and sister Yam, an IDF soldier, were murdered during the attack.

Tal did not tell the other children he had been held captive until one evening, when he felt ready to share his experience.

Israeli kids visit Lion King

The IDF Widows & Orphans Organization’s annual Bar/Bat Mitzvah program delegation in NYC after seeing the Lion King on Broadway. (Yiftach Moran)

«It’s not hard to tell people, but it’s not easy either. Once you’ve said it, you don’t know how others will react or treat you. That night, it felt safe to open up, and nothing has changed in the way they treat me since,» he told Fox News Digital.

Advertisement

The trip was Tal’s first extended journey without his family. He learned about the program from a friend from the kibbutz who also participated.

ISRAEL’S NEW EXHIBIT EXPOSES YEARS OF HAMAS TERRORIST PLANNING BEFORE OCT 7 MASSACRE

«Now that I came, I think I will continue taking part in these things after meeting new kids, feeling comfortable around them and understanding that we experienced the same things,» he said.

Advertisement

Tal said that since Oct. 7, the connections in his life have helped him maintain a sense of normalcy.

«My motto is that life is always going to continue,» he added. «It feels refreshing to come to a new country and experience fun things here.»

Shadan Knefiss first participated in the program as an IDF orphan and has since returned as a counselor, supporting the next generation of bereaved children. A member of Israel’s Druze community, she also joined the delegation to help translate for participants whose first language is Arabic.

Advertisement

«I met a lot of people here who don’t know about the Druze. We serve the country, we love our country, and we even die for it. We pay the same price as everyone else. Most terrorists in Israel are Arab, but because we speak Arabic and serve our country, it’s a bit of a twist,» she told Fox News Digital.

SIGN UP FOR ANTISEMITISM EXPOSED NEWSLETTER

Israeli kids visit New York City

Shadan Khnefiss (left) enjoying New York pizza with other participants in the IDFWO delegation.  (Yiftach Moran)

Shadan became an orphan at the age of three. Her father, a Border Police officer stationed in Jerusalem, transferred to northern Israel after her brother was born with a serious skin condition so he could be closer to the family. He was killed in a car accident during his first shift there.

Advertisement

«This program helped me in so many ways throughout my life. The people around me have not all lost their father, so sometimes I can’t relate to them. Sometimes I want to share how I feel, but they don’t understand. This program made me feel comfortable talking about things I can’t discuss with people in my everyday life,» she said.

Noor, 13, was one of three participants whom Shadan helped during the trip. His father, Yosef Saleh, served in the IDF before joining the Israel Police, where he was killed in the line of duty in 2013.

Noor told Fox News Digital that it was his first trip to the United States. «My message to other children like us is to go on trips, meet new kids and make new friends,» Noor said.

Advertisement



anti semitism, israel, judaism, terrorism

Advertisement
Continue Reading

Tendencias