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Dem senator accuses top Trump official of being responsible for ‘hundreds of thousands of children dying’
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Sen. Jeff Merkley, D-Ore., accused Trump Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Director Russell Vought of being responsible for the deaths of hundreds of thousands of children due to the budget cuts he has overseen under the Trump administration.
Vought faced a high-intensity grilling from both Democratic and GOP senators in the Senate Appropriations Committee on Wednesday over a package of proposed budget cuts – called a rescissions package – the administration sent to the legislative branch earlier this month.
Democratic committee members, as well as some Republicans, appeared very frustrated with the administration over the proposed cuts. At one point during the hearing, several protesters stood and began shouting, causing the proceedings to briefly come to a halt. It was unclear what the protesters were objecting to.
While Vought claimed that the administration’s cuts to USAID and PEPFAR have not halted lifesaving treatment, Merkley asserted that the claim is a «huge deception.»
TRUMP’S PLAN TO SLASH ‘WOKE’ FOREIGN AID, NPR FUNDS CLEARS HOUSE AS SENATE BATTLE LOOMS
In this Jan. 24, 2019 file photo, Sen. Jeff Merkley, D-Ore., speaks during the U.S. Conference of Mayors meeting in Washington. Right: President Donald Trump’s Office of Management and Budget Director Russell Vought is sworn in during the Senate Banking Committee nomination hearing in the Dirksen Senate Building on Jan. 22, 2025, in Washington, D.C. (Kayla Bartkowski/Getty Images and AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana, File)
According to Merkley, a Boston University School of Public Health study claims that some 246,000 children have died due to the various foreign aid programs cut by DOGE.
«We are talking a quarter million children because of your irresponsible shutdown of programs that Congress had fully authorized, and you unconstitutionally shut down in partnership with Elon Musk and the Secretary of State,» fired Merkley. «How do you feel about being responsible for hundreds of thousands of children dying because of your sudden interruption in these key programs?»
Vought soundly rejected the assertion, saying that every administration «has the ability to do a programmatic review when they come into office» and to make changes based on «new spending priorities.»
Before he could finish, Merkley cut Vought off, saying, «I find your response both ignorant and callous.»
MARJORIE TAYLOR GREENE LAUNCHES PROBE INTO PLANNED PARENTHOOD’S USE OF TAXPAYER FUNDS
An American flag and USAID flag fly outside the USAID building in Washington, D.C., U.S., Feb.1, 2025. (REUTERS/Annabelle Gordon)
«You chose to shut down programs in the middle that have resulted in hundreds of thousands of children dying in the last few months. I find that abhorrent, and few Americans have ever had such a devastating and disastrously impact,» Merkley exclaimed.
Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., also confronted Vought, accusing the administration of trying to illegally maneuver around Congress to make its cuts, which she said undermine American interests abroad.
«Will you tell us specifically where, the Philippines, Pacific islands, Jordan, you’re planning to undermine American interests?» she asked, to which Vought responded: «Of course not. We’ve been very clear in all the administration’s priorities that all of our commitments with regard to Jordan and Egypt are maintained.»
Before Vought could finish, Murray cut in again, saying, «I assume you’re unwilling to share which humanitarian crisis this administration plans to walk away with, which is what we would be voting on, and that is critical information.»
WATCH: RFK JR. REBUKES DEM SENATOR FOR PLAYING POLITICS WITH CANCER-STRICKEN CONSTITUENT: ‘YOU DON’T CARE’
Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., was among Appropriations Committee Democrats who challenged Vought on DOGE cuts and their impact. (Jacquelyn Martin)
But it wasn’t just Democrats taking Vought to task during the hearing.
Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, also voiced frustration over the Trump administration’s DOGE cuts, taking particular issue with cuts to public broadcasting, which she said plays an important emergency services role in her state.
Sen. Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., also voiced objections to the cuts to foreign aid, which he said were opportunities to project American soft power.
«Instead of creating efficiency, you’ve created vacuums for adversaries like China to fill responsible investments in soft power, prevent conflict, preserve American influence, and save countless of lives at the same time,» said McConnell.
For his part, Vought said that «it is critical that this body and the American people writ large, understand that many foreign aid programs use benevolent-sounding titles to hide truly appalling activity that is not in line with American interests.»
FOUR PLEAD GUILTY IN MASSIVE BRIBERY SCHEME AT AGENCY DEMOCRATS FOUGHT TO PROTECT FROM DOGE
OMB Director Russell Vought, shown here from a Jan. 2025 confirmation hearing, was subject to some critical questions by Republican Sens. Murkowski and McConnell at an Appropriations Committee hearing held Wednesday, June 26. (Kayla Bartkowski/Getty Images)
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Vought said the «entire federal government must be responsible with each taxpayer dollar that comes to Washington.»
«The American people voted for change. President Trump stands ready to put our fiscal house back in order and put the American taxpayer first,» he said, adding, «A vote for rescissions is a vote to show that the United States Senate is serious about getting our fiscal house in order. I hope that the Senate will join us in that fight.»
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El drama de un salvadoreño deportado por Donald Trump a una cárcel de Nayib Bukele suma otra pesadilla: lo echarían de EE.UU. a Uganda
Una pesadilla tras otra
Kilmar Abrego García asiste a una manifestación de apoyo en la oficina local del Servicio de Inmigración y Control de Aduanas (ICE) en Baltimore. Foto APINTERNACIONAL
DNC chair demands Dems stop ‘bringing a pencil to a knife fight’ at fiery summer meeting
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MINNEAPOLIS, MN – As Democrats hunger for more forceful pushback against sweeping and controversial moves by President Donald Trump and Republicans, the party’s national chair stressed that it’s time to «stand up and fight.»
And in a fiery speech Monday, Democratic National Committee (DNC) chair Ken Martin argued that the president is acting as «a dictator-in-chief» and that Trump’s second administration is «facism dressed in a red tie.»
«We are the only thing standing in his way,» Martin emphasized as he addressed the more than 400 elected party officials from all 50 states and seven territories, as the summer meeting kicked off at a downtown hotel in his hometown of Minneapolis, Minnesota.
«Are you ready to take back our country from the wannabe-king in the White House,» he asked the audience, to loud cheers.
AMID PLUNGING POLLS, ANEMIC FUNDRAISING, DEMOCRATS LOOK TO REBOUND AT PARTY’S SUMMER MEETING
Democratic National Committee chair Ken Martin addresses party members at the DNC’s summer meeting, on Aug. 25, 2025 in Minneapolis, Minnesota (Paul Steinhauser – Fox News )
Martin, pointing to the forceful response by Democrats to moves this summer by Trump and Republicans to create more right-leaning U.S. House seats in states across the country through rare mid-decade congressional redistricting ahead of next year’s midterm elections, said that he’s «sick and tired of this Democratic Party bringing a pencil to a knife fight.»
«We cannot be the only party that plays by the rules anymore,» he urged.
Democratic Party leaders and officials face a multitude of problems as they try to escape the political wilderness.
The party is trying to escape the political wilderness after last year’s elections, when Democrats lost control of the White House and the Senate and fell short in their bid to win back the House majority. And Republicans made gains with voters who make up key parts of the Democratic Party’s base.
DNC CHAIR TELLS FOX NEWS PARTY HAS HIT ‘ROCK BOTTOM’
But the situation has only worsened for the Democrats in the 10 months since last year’s election setbacks.
The Democrats’ brand is deeply unpopular, especially with younger voters, as the party’s poll numbers continue to drop to all-time lows in national surveys.
The DNC faces a massive fundraising deficit at the hands of the rival Republican National Committee (RNC), fueled in part by major party donors cutting back their contributions as they express their frustrations with the national party committee.
New voter data first reported last week by the New York Times showed Democratic Party registration plunging while GOP sign-ups were on the rise in the 30 states that register voters by party.
«There’s no doubt that … we have work to do,» Martin acknowledged in a sit-down interview this summer with Fox News Digital.
But seeing a silver lining, he added that «when you hit rock bottom, there’s only one direction to go, and that’s up, and that’s what we’re doing.»
On Monday, amid talk that Democrats remain divided over a slew of policy and political issues, Martin highlighted that «in this big tent party of ours, we are unified towards one single goal, to stop Donald Trump and put this country back on track.»
LONGTIME TRUMP ALLY TAKES OVER CHAIRING REPUBLICAN NATIONAL COMMITTEE
Sen. Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota took aim at talk of the party’s divisions.
Klobuchar rejected the «we suck club» label and said «we’re not getting into it when they try to divide us on every single issue online. Complaining about each other to each other – it isn’t how we win again.»
Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz took aim at media reports of the party’s divisions, saying «it boggles my damn mind that in the midst of a military takeover of our cities and the attempt to go into others, the flaunting of the rule of law, the coolness and the unconstitutional nature of the way they’re attacking our neighbors, that the press finds the need to talk about, ‘oh, there’s a division in the Democratic Party.’»
«There’s a division in my damn house, and we’re still married, and things are good,» Walz said. «That’s life. That’s life. We are strong. We are strong because we challenge each other.»
Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz took aim at media reports of the party’s divisions at the annual DNC summer meeting, saying, «There’s a division in my damn house, and we’re still married, and things are good,» saying (Paul Steinhauser – Fox News)
Walz, who served as then-Vice President Kamala Harris’ running mate on the Democrats national ticket last summer and autumn, slammed Trump as «petty as hell.»
And he said Americans wake each morning to «a man child crying about whatever’s wrong with him.»
Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison told the audience that he and fellow Democratic state attorneys general who’ve fought the Trump administration in court have «sued this dude 44 times and we’ll sue him 44 more and 44 more after that.»
«We have sued Trump for gender-affirming care. We are not going to scapegoat the transgender community.» Ellison highlighted.
While the 2024 election has faded in the rearview mirror, Republicans have been relentless in characterizing Democrats as extreme leftists.
Former RNC chair Michael Whatley, who formally stepped down last week as he runs for the Senate, argued in a Fox News Digital interview last week that the Democrats «are moving further and further and farther to the left. They are walking away from Main Street right now. They are beholden to left-wing radical woke policies.»
«They haven’t learned a single thing from their election losses in 2024,» Whatley claimed.
RNC communications director Zach Parkinson, responding to Monday’s DNC session, told Fox News that «under Ken Martin’s leadership, Democrats have sunk to their lowest approval rating in 35 years, the DNC is still paying off millions in debt from Kamala Harris’ failed campaign, and Martin himself is actively supporting a communist for mayor of New York City. As Republicans, we think he is doing a fantastic job, and we fully endorse him to stay on as DNC Chair.»
The «communist» reference points to Democratic socialist Zohran Mamdani, the Democrats’ nominee in this year’s New York City mayoral election.
But despite all the problems and setbacks facing the Democrats, they have enjoyed some victories of late.
Democrats have scored a slew of off-year and special election wins, ahead of next year’s midterm elections, when the GOP will be defending its majorities in the House and Senate as the party in power will likely face historical political headwinds.
Democrats have also landed some top recruits – former Gov. Roy Cooper in North Carolina and former Sen. Sherrod Brown in Ohio, in two of the most crucial 2026 Senate races.
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And while the Democratic Party’s poll numbers are in the gutter, the approval and favorable ratings for Trump and the GOP are nothing to brag about. Plus, polls indicate that the so-called ‘Big Beautiful Bill,’ which is the Trump-inspired massive Republican domestic policy, tax cuts and spending law, remains unpopular with Americans.
«We’ve already won, this year, 38 special elections…..We’re winning all across this country, including in many places that haven’t gone blue in generations,» Martin touted.
And he said that «not all of these elections make national news, but I know that every race matters. Every inch of ground that we gain matters. Every single inch.»
democratic party,republicans elections,democrats elections,midterm elections,donald trump,tim walz,politics
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Australia boots Iranian diplomats after alleging Islamic Republic behind recent antisemitic attacks
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The Australian government says it is expelling two Iranian diplomats after alleging that the Islamic Republic was behind at least two antisemitic attacks in Sydney and Melbourne.
Speaking to reporters, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said the country’s main domestic spy agency, ASIO, had «gathered enough credible intelligence to reach a deeply disturbing conclusion.»
«The Iranian government directed at least two of these attacks,» Albanese said, referring to recent attacks on a Sydney restaurant and a Melbourne synagogue. «Iran has sought to disguise its involvement but ASIO assesses it was behind the attacks.»
The Australian government informed Iran’s ambassador to Australia shortly before Albanese’s announcement that they would be expelled. It also withdrew Australian diplomats posted in Iran to a third country.
ANTISEMITIC ATTACKERS VIOLENTLY TARGET SYNAGOGUE, ISRAELI RESTAURANT IN AUSTRALIA
Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese announces that Australia will recognize a Palestinian state at a press conference in Canberra, Monday, Aug. 11, 2025. (Mick Tsikas/AAP Image via AP)
Antisemitic incidents in both Melbourne and Sydney rose steeply following the Oct. 7, 2023 massacre in Israel that triggered Israel’s ongoing offensive on Gaza.
The prime minister also said Australia plans to designate Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps as a terrorist organization.
A member of the Jewish community recovers a Torah scroll from the Adass Israel Synagogue on December 06, 2024 in Melbourne, Australia. (Asanka Ratnayake/Getty Images)
The move comes after Australia announced earlier this month that it plans to recognize Palestinian statehood at the United Nations General Assembly in September.
A general view of the Iranian Embassy in Canberra, Australia, Friday, Feb. 10, 2023. (Lukas Coch/AAP Image via AP)
The announcement triggered a scathing response from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu who accused Australia of betraying Israel.
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«History will remember Albanese for what he is: A weak politician who betrayed Israel and abandoned Australia’s Jews,» Netanyahu said.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
israel,iran,australia,middle east
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¿Cómo va el historial entre Rosario Central y Newell´s Old Boys y quién ganó más?
