INTERNACIONAL
Republicans question Trump’s ‘privately funded’ ballroom after report points to taxpayer burden
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President Donald Trump’s colossal ballroom could be backed by hundreds of millions in taxpayer money, and after months of the president declaring that it was completely privately funded, lawmakers aren’t happy.
A report from the Washington Post found that estimates for Trump’s 90,000-square-foot ballroom had skyrocketed to $600 million. Of that, about half would come from taxpayer-funded sources.
Both Republicans and Democrats had already drawn a sharp line against dipping into taxpayer funds to pay for the project earlier this year when confronted with tacking on roughly $220 million in security enhancement funding for the ballroom through budget reconciliation.
TRUMP DEMANDS SENATE PARLIAMENTARIAN’S OUSTER FOR AXING BALLROOM SECURITY FUNDING
President Donald Trump holds a design rendering of a proposed $400 million presidential ballroom at the White House. (Aaron Schwartz/CNP/Bloomberg)
«We have to have a serious conversation about the benefit to the taxpayers, right? If taxpayers aren’t paying for it, it’s a different bar, but if they’re paying for it, we have to have a totally different conversation,» Sen. John Curtis, R-Utah, said. «Is that how they want their money spent?»
The Post’s report, published Tuesday, reviewed documents between the White House and Clark Construction, a McLean, Va.-based company leading the construction of the ballroom, dating back over the last several months.
A project summary from March 5 detailed that the ballroom, which Trump initially said would cost $100 million, would clock in at $600 million.
Of that, $293 million was expected to come from private donors. The remaining $307 million was to come from the Secret Service, White House Military Office and Executive Residence. All three are funded by taxpayers.
SENATE REPUBLICAN THREATENS TO DERAIL ICE, BORDER PATROL PACKAGE OVER TRUMP’S BILLION-DOLLAR REQUEST
When asked the veracity of the reported figures, Clark Construction referred Fox News Digital to the White House and noted that all project information was confidential.
White House spokesman Davis Ingle did not deny the figures in a statement and said, «The East Wing Modernization Project is inextricably tied to the security of the president, the White House grounds and the certain security infrastructure assets.»
«The press release announcing the construction of the ballroom highlighted coordination with the White House Military Office and the United States Secret Service regarding design features and planning,» Ingle said. «President Trump and generous American patriots are funding the ballroom to the tune of approximately $400 million, which will be a secure and appropriate venue for presidents for generations to come.»
«The events over the weekend and the foiled attempted attack on the historic UFC Freedom 250 event at the White House proves exactly why the East Wing Modernization Project is severely needed for large-scale events, which include drone proof structures and drone ports among other critical security enhancements,» he continued.
Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., said he had not yet seen the report but noted that it would be a «different narrative than what we’ve heard.»
SENATE REPUBLICANS BALK AT $1B WHITE HOUSE BALLROOM REQUEST: ‘YOU MADE THAT NUMBER UP’
Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., and Senate Republicans advanced a Trump-backed funding deal out of the Senate with the help of Senate Democrats in Washington, D.C., on Jan. 28, 2028. (Nathan Posner/Anadolu)
«I think there’s a rationale, particularly when it comes to the security parts of this to keep that place safe we need to be responsible for,» Thune said. «I just don’t know enough about how it’s being used — what it’s being used for.»
Sen. Rick Scott, R-Fla., said he would prefer the ballroom to be paid for with private funding but was open to dipping into taxpayer dollars if the goal was to «make it safer, protect the president.»
When asked if he or other Republicans were contacted by the White House about the use of taxpayer money for the ballroom, Scott said, «No.»
«You’d have to, and you know you’d think it’d have to come up over here for funding, and I haven’t seen anything yet,» Scott said.
Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C., said lawmakers had seen this situation before with another project: the renovations to the Federal Reserve’s headquarters going over budget that spurred, in part, a public feud with former Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell.
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«I think when you move quickly, that’s when mistakes are made,» Tillis said.
«It’s not surprising that the estimates were up. I have the same view about the Arch,» he continued, referring to Trump’s proposed United States Triumphal Arch. «You know, we think it’s gonna be $25 million. I don’t know what the number is right now, but my guess is it’s gonna be a lot more than that.»
«And we ought to be very thoughtful, go through the process versus fitting things into arbitrary timeframes,» he added. «Never works out.»
Some Republicans shrugged off the report, largely because it was produced by the Washington Post.
Sen. Bernie Moreno, R-Ohio, said, «You lost me at Washington Post.»
«I have no idea,» Moreno said. «Do I trust the Washington Post? No, but it does — when you have a cat litter situation, and you don’t want it to spill, newspapers serve a really good purpose.»
politics, costs, national security, white house, republicans elections, donald trump
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Francesca Hong, the likely Democratic nominee for governor in Wisconsin backed by the Democratic Socialists of America, once argued that Americans should not celebrate Thanksgiving.
«Cancel Thanksgiving. Should have done this in 1621,» Hong wrote in a now-deleted post to X.
«If it takes a worldwide pandemic for us to realize we should stop celebrating colonialism and the original superspreader event that killed indigenous folx [sic] and women, so be it,» she added, referring to the spread of smallpox that killed many indigenous Americans.
WISCONSIN DEM SOCIALIST GUBERNATORIAL HOPEFUL DODGES WHETHER SHE STILL WANTS TO ‘ABOLISH POLICE’
Governor candidate Francesca Hong speaks on stage during the Wisconsin Democrats 2026 Convention on June 14, 2026, in Madison, Wis. (Getty Images for WisDems)
The post, which was originally made in November 2020, sheds more light on Hong’s progressive thinking as she emerges as a frontrunner in the Wisconsin gubernatorial contest and drew mockery online.
«‘Folx,’» Stephen Miller, a conservative podcaster, posted to X, noting the term used to signal inclusivity of LGBTQ+ and other marginalized groups.
«Francesca Hong is all but certain to be the Democratic nominee for governor of Wisconsin. She also wants to ‘Cancel Thanksgiving,’ according to a since-deleted tweet. What is going on in Wisconsin??» another observer wrote.
Hong has leaned into her socialist record in her campaign, describing it as ensuring that «working-class people have their fair share.»
Hong shares policy positions with other notable progressives like New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani, another self-proclaimed socialist. Among other platform positions, Hong is championing race-based grants for social workers, publicly funded grocery stores and a state-run bank.
The stances seem to have paid off as Hong has gained momentum in recent months, and, with under two weeks to go until the primary, looks poised to capture the Democratic nomination.
‘FREE BEER’ FOR TRUMP DEATH DEM ACTIVIST RUNNING FOR WISCONSIN GOV: ‘I WILL WIN’ IF THEY SILENCE ME
Wisconsin gubernatorial candidate Francesca Hong. (Matthew Ludak for The Washington Post via Getty Images)
Hong also started getting mocked Friday for a resurfaced 2019 post where she said, «I ate two bites of my kid’s cheeseburger at a Culver’s in black river falls and told him they ran out of ice cream. Mostly just wanted to leave bc I was on the verge of a anxiety attack…to (sic) many old white people who didn’t think we spoke english.»
«Omg English ***TOO **AN,» she replied.
«Bold choice for Democrats in Wisconsin running someone statewide who gets a panic attack at Culver’s at the sight of ‘old white people,’» Former White House Principal Deputy Communications Director Alex Pfeiffer wrote on X.
«The only way this post could be worse for someone running for office in Wisconsin is if she had complained that Culver’s uses too much butter,» Chuck Ross, an investigative reporter at the Washington Free Beacon, wrote on X.
«One of the democrats running for Governor of Wisconsin doesn’t know that Culver’s serves only fresh frozen custard. She thinks they serve ice cream. Disqualifying,» Brick Suit, an online MAGA personality, wrote on X.
The race was shaken up on Thursday when Mandela Barnes, the state’s former lieutenant governor, dropped out of the race. Barnes was considered a frontrunner in the race because of his proximity to outgoing Gov. Tony Evers and his name recognition.
His exit also coincides with rumblings that Barnes may have abused his position in the past to make sexual advances toward women in the workplace, an allegation currently under investigation by The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
With his departure, Hong and Milwaukee County Executive David Crowley were left as the two main contenders.
Hong has received backing from a number of nationally recognized progressives, including Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., and Rep. Ro Khanna, D-Calif. She has raised nearly $709,000 as of late June, according to state records.
SCHIFF-BACKED CANDIDATE ABRUPTLY ENDS GUBERNATORIAL CAMPAIGN AMID RUMBLINGS OF A DAMAGING REPORT
Wisconsin state Rep. Francesca Hong, a Democratic Socialist candidate for governor, poses for a portrait at St. Paul Baptist Church on July 19, 2026, in Racine, Wis. (Sara Stathas/For The Washington Post via Getty Images)
By comparison, Crowley has secured $250,000 and enjoys the support of a number of local organizations and figures.
Gov. Evers has endorsed Crowley , citing his experience.The gubernatorial primary will take place Aug. 11.
Fox News Digital has reached out to Hong’s campaign for comment.
wisconsin, gubernatorial, politics
INTERNACIONAL
Honduras: Suspenden búsqueda del adolescente desaparecido entre Cayos Cochinos y Corozal tras una semana de rastreo
La comunidad de Corozal, en el litoral atlántico de Honduras, suspendió las labores de búsqueda activa del adolescente Joseph Vuelto, de 16 años, quien permanece desaparecido desde el pasado 25 de julio tras un incidente ocurrido en el mar entre Cayos Cochinos y esa comunidad.
La decisión fue tomada luego de siete días de intensos operativos en los que participaron pescadores, voluntarios y cuerpos de socorro, quienes recorrieron amplias zonas del Caribe hondureño sin lograr ubicar al menor.
Aunque las labores comunitarias concluyeron, las autoridades informaron que el caso permanecerá registrado mientras familiares y habitantes de Corozal continúan esperando conocer el paradero del adolescente.
Desde la desaparición de Joseph Vuelto, ocurrida el 25 de julio, decenas de pobladores organizaron jornadas de búsqueda para intentar localizar al joven en el sector marítimo comprendido entre Cayos Cochinos y la comunidad de Corozal.
A los esfuerzos comunitarios se sumaron elementos del Primer Batallón de Infantería de Marina, personal del Cuerpo de Bomberos y otras instituciones de respuesta, que realizaron recorridos por diferentes sectores del litoral atlántico.
Las operaciones incluyeron inspecciones en áreas costeras y mar adentro, con la esperanza de encontrar algún indicio que permitiera ubicar al adolescente.
Según explicó el pescador Lorenzo Solís, una de las principales dificultades que enfrentaron los equipos de búsqueda fueron las fuertes corrientes marinas que predominan en la zona.
El poblador indicó que el mar representa un escenario complejo para este tipo de operaciones, debido a la amplitud del área y a la posibilidad de que las corrientes hayan desplazado al menor hacia otros sectores del Caribe.
Estas condiciones obligaron a ampliar progresivamente el radio de búsqueda durante los últimos días sin que se obtuvieran resultados positivos.
De acuerdo con la información proporcionada por la comunidad, durante las jornadas de búsqueda las embarcaciones navegaron por amplias zonas comprendidas entre Trujillo, en el departamento de Colón, y Roatán, en Islas de la Bahía.
En la última jornada participaron alrededor de siete embarcaciones, además de personal del Cuerpo de Bomberos y efectivos de la Marina, quienes realizaron un último recorrido antes de concluir oficialmente las labores comunitarias.
Los participantes señalaron que, pese al esfuerzo desplegado durante toda la semana, las condiciones del mar impidieron obtener pistas sobre el paradero del adolescente.
La suspensión de las operaciones dejó un ambiente de profunda tristeza entre los habitantes de Corozal, quienes durante siete días se organizaron para colaborar en la búsqueda del joven desaparecido.
Familiares, vecinos y pescadores manifestaron su agradecimiento a todas las personas e instituciones que participaron en los operativos, destacando la solidaridad mostrada por comunidades cercanas durante la emergencia.
Aunque la búsqueda activa fue suspendida, las autoridades mantienen abierto el registro del caso y no descartan recibir información que pueda contribuir a esclarecer lo ocurrido.
Mientras tanto, la desaparición de Joseph Vuelto continúa generando consternación entre los pobladores del litoral atlántico, quienes esperan que la familia pueda obtener respuestas sobre este caso.
La desaparición de Joseph Vuelto también ha puesto de relieve los riesgos que enfrentan las comunidades costeras del Caribe hondureño, donde las fuertes corrientes marinas y las cambiantes condiciones del clima pueden dificultar las labores de rescate y búsqueda.
Las autoridades reiteraron el llamado a extremar las medidas de precaución durante las actividades en el mar y a reportar de inmediato cualquier emergencia para facilitar una respuesta oportuna de los cuerpos de socorro.
Corresponsal:Desde Tegucigalpa, Honduras
INTERNACIONAL
Migrant crisis pushes Italy to restore border checks with Spain, testing Europe’s open-border system
Spain migrant crisis is an ‘ABSOLUTE DISASTER’ for Europe, expert warns
Spain deploys military forces to its enclave of Ceuta after a massive surge of over 49,000 migrants overwhelms the border in a single day. Nile Gardiner, former advisor to Margaret Thatcher, joins Brian Kilmeade to warn that the United States faces a similar catastrophic border threat if current migration policies are not urgently reversed.
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Italy temporarily restored border controls on travelers arriving from Spain Friday as the mass migrant crossing into Ceuta, Spain, escalated from a Spanish emergency into a wider test of Europe’s passport-free travel system.
The move followed the entry of approximately 60,000 migrants from Morocco into Ceuta, Spain — a Spanish autonomous city on the North African coast. Spain’s Interior Ministry said 48,300 people had since voluntarily returned to Morocco, leaving fewer than 2,000 people in the territory, while the reported death toll among migrants attempting to reach the enclave rose to 57 people.
The crisis is reverberating far beyond Spain because it challenges one of the European Union’s central promises: that member states can maintain open internal borders while jointly protecting the bloc’s external frontier.
Schengen rests on a tradeoff: participating countries remove most controls between one another while jointly securing the zone’s external borders. Italy’s decision to restore checks, alongside calls for tougher restrictions from conservative leaders across Europe, has raised questions about whether migration pressures could lead governments to retreat from free movement and reclaim more national control.
WHITE HOUSE BLASTS SPANISH GOVERNMENT AS THOUSANDS OF MIGRANTS SURGE FROM MOROCCO, EMERGENCY REQUEST DENIED
Migrants from Morocco pour into Spain’s North African enclave Ceuta, July 30, 2026. (Reuters)
President Donald Trump also seized on the images from Spain, warning during a Cabinet meeting at Camp David, Maryland, Friday that a similar crisis could unfold in the United States if Republicans lose power.
«I saw Spain yesterday, and I watched the catastrophe that took place,» Trump said.
«That same thing is going to happen to us if the Republicans don’t get elected — except worse,» he said, blaming «weak law, bad management» and liberal migration policies.
The breach also ignited a broader conservative backlash across Europe and the United States.
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said in a post on X that Italy would impose targeted checks on non-European Union nationals arriving from Spain by air or sea for one month, while coordinating with France to strengthen controls along the Franco-Italian border.
«This is an extraordinary measure, adopted to safeguard national security and prevent possible repercussions for our nation,» Meloni wrote.
She said the controls would remain in place only as long as necessary and would be designed to limit disruption to summer tourism.
France was increasing checks along its border with Spain, Reuters reported Friday, while right-wing parties across Europe blamed Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez’s migration policies for weakening Spain’s ability to secure an external European Union border.
Reform UK leader Nigel Farage warned on X that the crisis would eventually affect Britain, while French politician Marine Le Pen called for tighter French border controls.
Israeli Ambassador to the United Nations Danny Danon criticized Spain for lecturing Israel on security while struggling to control its own border.
White House officials Steven Cheung and Anna Kelly also connected the images from Ceuta, Spain, to the Biden administration’s border policies and Trump’s longstanding warnings about mass migration.
Nile Gardiner, director of the Margaret Thatcher Center for Freedom at the conservative Heritage Foundation think tank, told Fox News Digital that Ceuta, Spain, could become «a key turning point in the unraveling of the European Union.»
EU ADMITS IT ‘DIDN’T HAVE CONTROL’ ON MIGRATION AS BLOC RUSHES CRACKDOWN AHEAD OF NEW RULES
Migrants run and cheer as they cross on foot into the North African enclave of Ceuta from Morocco, after swimming over from the Moroccan side and overwhelming police at the city’s breakwater, according to Spain’s Guardia Civil, in Ceuta, Spain, July 30, 2026. (FARO TV via Reuters)
«I think we are witnessing the beginning of the end of the European Union,» he said while acknowledging that his view remains outside the European mainstream. «Once you unravel Schengen — which I think is inevitable — this breaks down the entire European project.»
Mark Dubowitz, CEO of the Foundation for Defense of Democracies think tank, broadened the criticism of Sánchez.
«We told you Sánchez was a disaster,» Dubowitz wrote on X. «You dismissed the warnings because he vilified Israel, defended Hamas, attacked America, and cozied up to Chávez, Khamenei, and other anti-American dictators. Now that his migration policies are threatening Europe at home, you’ve suddenly woken up.»
Ceuta is legally part of Spain despite being located on the North African coast, across the Strait of Gibraltar from mainland Spain. The approximately seven-square-mile territory shares a land border with Morocco and is one of two Spanish autonomous cities in Africa, along with Melilla.
Ceuta, Spain, is not a protectorate or colony. Its residents are Spanish citizens, and Madrid considers it an integral part of Spain, although Morocco disputes Spanish sovereignty over both territories.
The surge followed controversy over a Spanish Supreme Court ruling limiting authorities’ ability to summarily return migrants intercepted at sea, as well as a separate Sánchez government program granting legal status to undocumented migrants already living in Spain.
The court ruled earlier in July that migrants intercepted while swimming or traveling by sea toward Ceuta or Melilla, Spain, could not be immediately returned under a special procedure written for people attempting to cross the territories’ fortified land borders. They must instead be processed through Spain’s ordinary immigration, asylum and removal system. The ruling did not grant them an automatic right to remain.
TRUMP CRITICIZES SPAIN AMID IRAN, NATO RIFT AS PM SANCHEZ FACES QUESTIONS OVER POLITICAL MOTIVES
A map shows Ceuta, a Spanish autonomous city on the North African coast bordering Morocco. (Fox News)
Sánchez blamed trafficking networks for spreading a false impression that migrants who reached Ceuta, Spain, by sea would be allowed to stay.
Critics also pointed to Spain’s mass regularization program. The government initially estimated that approximately 500,000 undocumented migrants would qualify for renewable residence and work permits if they had lived in Spain for at least five months before the end of 2025 and had no criminal record. Applications ultimately reached approximately 1 million, far exceeding the original estimate.
«When you offer amnesty to over a million illegal migrants in Spain, this acts as a huge incentive for millions more to try to enter Spain illegally,» Gardiner said. «What we’ve seen in Ceuta over the last 24 hours is just the tip of the iceberg.»
Gardiner said the footage appeared to show that roughly 99% of those crossing were «fighting-age males» and warned of a potentially «significant terror risk.»
«This is what happens when you introduce amnesty policies,» he added. «You literally open the floodgates on a biblical scale.»
The Spanish government argues that the program applies only to migrants who were already in the country before the cutoff and is designed to bring workers into the formal economy rather than encourage new arrivals.
Andrew Fox, senior associate fellow at the Henry Jackson Society, told Fox News Digital the crisis may have been deliberately triggered in response to regional geopolitics.
«This is a crisis likely engineered by Morocco in response to Spain’s recent engagement with Algeria,» Fox said. «On a normal day, Spanish security can man gates and crossings, but they cannot control the Algerian side of the border. The fact that these people cannot simply be returned to Morocco en masse, however, shows that the international asylum and refugee system is fundamentally broken and open to widespread abuse. Without fixing that, there can be no border security in Europe.»
Gardiner warned that the political fallout could threaten Schengen and the wider European project.
Although the pressure on Ceuta, Spain, appeared to ease as thousands returned to Morocco, the breach had already spread beyond Spain — fueling a European fight over borders and entering the American political debate through Trump’s warning about a possible Democratic return to power.
Morocco denied facilitating the mass crossing. Morocco’s ambassador to Spain, Karima Benyaich, told the Associated Press that the events in Ceuta had unfolded against Rabat’s wishes.
Spanish and Moroccan maritime patrols, supported by Spain’s Maritime Rescue service, conduct rescue operations off the southern coast of Ceuta after a sharp increase in migrant arrivals to the Spanish enclave in North Africa. (Antonio Sempere / JNA Press/Sipa USA)
«We have always prioritized legal, orderly and safe migration for all,» Benyaich said. She did not address what triggered the sudden surge. Moroccan security forces later used water cannons and warning shots to prevent additional crossings, according to The Associated Press.
illegal immigrants, spain, border security, immigration
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