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WATCH: Spanberger knocked for ‘bait and switch’ hypocrisy as popularity plummets amid redistricting fiasco
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EXCLUSIVE: One of the Democratic Party’s top rising stars, Virginia Gov. Abigail Spanberger, is coming under increasing fire as critics accuse her of pulling a «bait and switch» on voters by abandoning her affordability promises in favor of tax increases on «just about anything that moves.»
A new ad released by Unleash Prosperity on Monday slammed Spanberger over her affordability promises as Virginia Democrats propose new taxes on everyday expenses like dry cleaning, gym memberships and pet care. Unleash Prosperity’s ad puts it bluntly, saying, «Virginia can’t afford this.»
The governor has not publicly supported or signed the measures. A statement by the governor’s office sent to Fox News Digital on Monday emphasized that Spanberger did not sign the tax bills into law «because the General Assembly never passed them, and the bills never reached her desk.» The statement said that Spanberger has «remained laser-focused on addressing high costs for Virginians.»
However, Spanberger has supported a broader set of revenue measures since taking office, including proposals targeting digital services and business activity, as part of an effort to fund priorities such as education and healthcare.
TRUMP BLASTS SPANBERGER AHEAD OF VIRGINIA MEETINGS, SAYS STATE FACES TAX BASE EXODUS LIKE NEW YORK, CALIFORNIA
Abigail Spanberger while campaigning for governor in Fairfax Virginia, on June 26, 2025. (Maxine Wallace/The Washington Post/Getty Images)
Steve Moore, an economist who co-founded Unleash Prosperity, told Fox News Digital that while Spanberger cashed in on Virginians’ worries over prices, she «raced out of the gate with all of these very liberal policies, including tax increases on just about anything that moves in Virginia.»
Moore said Democrats across the country should take Spanberger’s decline as a «warning» ahead of 2028.
There has been much buzz around Spanberger and her gubernatorial victory last year, which resulted in Republicans being ousted from power in Virginia. The Democratic Party selected her to give its response to President Donald Trump’s State of the Union, further evidencing her stardom.
Yet, despite the Democrats elevating her and even floating her as a presidential or vice-presidential pick, Moore said Virginians have been «shocked about that,» explaining why her approval ratings have «absolutely plummeted.»
«She has seen one of the swiftest declines in her popularity in the first six months in office that I’ve seen in many years of politics,» Moore said.
Forty-six percent of Virginians disapprove of her job performance, while 47% approve, according to a recent Washington Post-Schar School poll. Compared with Virginia governors from both parties since 1994, Spanberger has the highest disapproval rating at this point in her term.
In contrast, predecessor Gov. Glenn Youngkin had a 54-39 job approval rating at this point in his term, with the highest favorability going to Democrat Mark Warner – now Virginia’s senior senator – at 78-20.
Moore called Spanberger’s tumbling ratings «the price for her bait-and-switch tax hike on Virginia residents and small businesses.»
DEMS WHO RAN ON AFFORDABILITY NOW FACE BACKLASH AS COSTS CLIMB IN NY, VIRGINIA
Scouts march in a parade for Gov. Abigail Spanberger. (Al Drago/Getty Images)
«She campaigned on affordability, and nearly on day one in office, she and Virginia Democrats in Richmond endorsed a catalog of left-wing tax increase proposals on everything from dry cleaners to dog groomers, which make Virginia look like California,» he said.
«Spanberger promised to be a pro-business moderate Democrat,» he went on, quipping, «Maybe she should be known as ‘Scam-Berger.’»
Moore said Spanberger’s quick decline in the polls does not bode well for the Democratic Party’s hopes of taking back the White House in 2028.
«Spanberger is not alone,» he explained. «We’re seeing that with a lot of Democrats around the country; they run as moderates and as soon as they get in, they move to the extreme left.»
«You’re seeing Democrats who are governors and mayors across the country who are advancing very liberal pro-tax policies that are anti-business. And I think it’s a very tough agenda for Democrats to run with in 2028 on the national picture,» he went on.
«That should be a warning signal to Democrats across the country.»
VIRGINIA DEMS TAKE TAX HIKES INTO OVERTIME, TARGET FANTASY FOOTBALL LEAGUES
Virginia Gov. Abigail Spanberger and President Donald Trump, who has criticized the governor’s tax policies and warned of a potential business exodus. (Marvin Joseph/Getty Images; Brendan Smilowski/AFP)
Last week Trump took a similar line of criticism against Spanberger ahead of meetings in the state. He warned in a Truth Social post that her policies are triggering a tax base exodus similar to New York and California.
«She is adding so many Taxes, a Food and Beverage Tax, Digital Services Tax, Utilities Tax, and more,» Trump wrote. «It has lost its Energy, Vitality, and Strength. People are leaving that would never have even thought of doing so!»
In a statement shared with Fox News Digital, Spanberger’s office slammed criticisms of the governor raising taxes as «misinformation.»
«The volume of misinformation — spread across social media and repeated in press coverage — made a clarification necessary. The facts are straightforward,» the statement said. «Governor Abigail Spanberger did not sign dozens of tax bills into law — because the General Assembly never passed them, and the bills never reached her desk.»
The office added that «in the opening months of her administration, Governor Spanberger has remained laser-focused on addressing high costs for Virginians» and is «also working alongside legislators and local communities to attract new capital investment.»
Spanberger has also pushed back on the criticism herself. In a post on X, she said Trump and his allies were mischaracterizing her policies.
«The president and his allies are talking about taxes that our state legislature never even voted on and I certainly didn’t sign,» she wrote. «Why? Because if they don’t flood the zone with fake news about fake taxes, people might hear about the bills I am signing to lower energy costs, strengthen our schools, make housing more affordable, and bring billions of dollars of business investment to Virginia.»
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A Spanberger spokesperson added that businesses have announced «more than $500 million in new investment in the commonwealth since Governor Spanberger took office in January,» while accusing Trump of focusing on politics instead of economic stability.
«The ballgame changed when the President — whose been busy raising costs for Virginians by starting a reckless war that has skyrocketed inflation and driven gas prices up to $4 — strong-armed states into drawing more Republican congressional seats that he asserted he was ‘entitled’ to before the midterms,» the governor’s spokesperson said. «As prices rise in Trump’s economy, Governor Spanberger will continue her work with both parties to address the high housing, healthcare and energy costs that Virginians are feeling.»
Fox News Digital’s Charles Creitz and Michael Dorgan contributed to this report.
democrats elections, abigail spanberger, governors, virginia, taxes
INTERNACIONAL
Crece la ola de incendios en Europa: las llamas se extienden a Grecia, Portugal, Inglaterra y Turquía
Francia y España atraviesan este jueves una tregua frente a algunos de los peores incendios forestales de la historia reciente, pero las llamas se propagan en otros países de Europa, como Grecia, Portugal, Inglaterra y Turquía.
El presidente del Gobierno español, Pedro Sánchez, levantó el estado de emergencia decretado la semana pasada por un incendio forestal que amenazaba zonas cercanas a Madrid, después de que las autoridades anunciaran que ya no quedaban “focos activos”.
Más de 60.000 personas habían sido evacuadas en el peor momento de los incendios, pero la mayoría ya ha podido regresar a sus hogares.
Al menos cien viviendas quedaron destruidas solo en la región de Madrid, según una evaluación inicial, pero se espera que esa cifra aumente, dijo la presidenta regional Isabel Díaz Ayuso. En la colindante provincia de Ávila, el fuego también está estabilizado.
Unas 50.000 hectáreas quemadas en España
El incendio -el más grande en España desde que comenzaron los registros en 1961- quemó unas 50.000 hectáreas y estuvo a punto de fusionarse con el de Madrid.
Pero España enfrenta esta semana una nueva ola de calor y las autoridades advierten que el riesgo sigue siendo “muy alto”. Bomberos utilizan quemas controladas para detener un incendio que sigue expandiéndose cerca de Cebreros, Ávila, España, el martes 28 de julio de 2026. (AP Foto/Manu Fernández)
De hecho, un nuevo incendio en el oeste del país, cerca de Portugal, obligó a evacuar el jueves a más de 600 personas.
Primer día “optimista” en Francia
En la vecina Francia, el jueves fue el primer día “un poco optimista” desde que se originó la semana pasada un megaincendio que destruyó cerca de 240 viviendas en el suroeste del país.
“Es el primer día un poco optimista, ya que tenemos la impresión de que estamos volviendo al camino de una vida normal y de que las cosas empiezan a mejorar claramente”, dijo a la prensa la prefecta del departamento de Gironda, Sophie Brocas.
Leé también: Nueva reacción de Lula tras los insultos de Milei: “Ustedes vieron la payasada que hizo aquí”
Tras una ligera lluvia matutina, el servicio regional de bomberos también se mostró “razonablemente optimista”, ya que el fuego no se extendió más allá de las 42.000 hectáreas desde el fin de semana, si bien se mantienen “seis focos activos”.
El peor incendio forestal en Francia desde 1949 obligó a evacuar a más de 220.000 personas de esta región turística cercana a la ciudad de Burdeos, en plena temporada alta de verano.
Actualmente, más de la mitad de los evacuados pudieron regresar a sus hogares, entre ellos 84.000 que fueron autorizados este jueves.
“Es el inicio del fin del fuego, pero es el comienzo de la crisis”, advirtió Nina Rosazza, administradora de una metalúrgica en Andernos-les-Bains, quien acudió como voluntaria a la zona en el bosque devastado de Lanton.
“Turísticamente, ecológicamente, visualmente, es una catástrofe a largo plazo”, resume.
Aunque no hubo pérdidas humanas, los rescatistas viven con la “obsesión” de encontrar animales muertos, mientras gatos, gallinas, perros y conejos deambulan por las localidades evacuadas.
Incendios más pequeños afectaban a otras partes del sur de Francia, incluido uno declarado la noche del miércoles en Brignoles, que obligó a George Clooney y su familia a abandonar su propiedad.
“Días difíciles” en Grecia
Aunque la atención actual se centra en Europa occidental, la Unión Europea advirtió que las condiciones propicias para incendios se extenderán hacia el centro del continente en los próximos días.
En la isla griega de Creta, 8000 personas fueron evacuadas la noche del miércoles ante los incendios declarados durante la jornada y avivados por fuertes vientos cambiantes, que causaron la muerte de dos bomberos.
Un tercero falleció combatiendo las llamas cerca del puerto de Gitión, en el Peloponeso, mientras el primer ministro griego advirtió que se avecinan “días difíciles”.
En la vecina Turquía, los bomberos intentaban extinguir al menos 115 fuegos activos, especialmente en las provincias de Antalya y Mugla, en la turística Riviera Turca, y en la costa de los Dardanelos (oeste).
No obstante, las autoridades indicaron que 110 estaban completamente bajo control.También en Portugal, cerca de 800 bomberos combatían un incendio forestal en la localidad norteña de Valpaços, que causó cinco heridos, según el servicio de protección civil.
También Inglaterra fue afectada por incendios.
Los bomberos luchan este jueves “en condiciones difíciles” contra un incendio en Suffolk, en el este del país, que arrasó un centenar de hectáreas y obligó a algunos habitantes y turistas a evacuar.
El fuego, que se propaga en una zona costera al sur del municipio de Dunwich, se declaró el miércoles y fue catalogado como “incidente grave” por las autoridades.
“El incendio se extiende por unas 100 hectáreas, por lo que 18 vehículos de bomberos y medios de refuerzo están en el lugar”, indicó el jueves el consejo local de Suffolk.
(Con información de AFP)
Europa, Incendios
INTERNACIONAL
White House blasts Spanish government as thousands of migrants surge from Morocco, emergency request denied
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The White House bashed Spain’s left-wing government after the border between Spain’s North African enclave of Ceuta and Morocco collapsed Thursday.
«President Trump has long warned Europe what would happen if they continue to implement far-left, globalist policies – including enabling mass migration. Spain and other countries who have adopted this destructive philosophy should immediately reverse course or risk their own demise,» White House principal deputy press secretary Anna Kelly told Fox News in a statement.
Ceuta’s president formally requested a national emergency declaration Thursday after more than 2,000 migrants crossed the border from Morocco in the past 10 days, as videos showed chaotic scenes of migrants pouring into the Spanish territory.
Video shows hordes of apparently military-aged men smiling and posing for cameras, some carrying swimming flippers, and sprinting through the streets as authorities struggle to corral the unruly masses.
TRUMP CRITICIZES SPAIN AMID IRAN, NATO RIFT AS PM SANCHEZ FACES QUESTIONS OVER POLITICAL MOTIVES
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)
Other footage shows crowds of migrants emerging from the sea, climbing up onto Ceuta’s rocky shores and working their way around border fences.
Ceuta President Juan Jesús Vivas formally requested that Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez declare a national emergency to help respond to the border crisis, Spanish media outlets reported. Madrid, however, denied the request.
DEM REP SETH MOULTON SAYS PARTY HAS NO IMMIGRATION PLAN, IS ONLY ‘OPPOSITION TO TRUMP’
«The declaration of a national emergency is part of the state civil protection regulations, which do not consider migratory flows as a risk to the National Civil Protection System, nor do they establish special plans, basic guidelines, or specific civil protection instruments for their management. Therefore, it is not possible to activate this mechanism, as requested by the president of the Government of Ceuta, Juan Jesús Vivas,» Spain’s Ministry of the Interior said in a statement, according to Spanish outlet El Pais.
Ceuta’s government, in their request for a national emergency declaration, noted that immigration from Moroco is always a problem for the Spanish enclave, but claimed the last 10 days represented a peak «of particular intensity.» That peak has seen more than 2,000 migrants cross the border in the past 10 days, Ceuta officials said, according to El Pais.
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)
«The Government of Spain is fully committed to providing an immediate response to the situation in Ceuta. We are mobilizing all necessary resources, working with Moroccan and international authorities, and preparing the necessary measures to restore normalcy as soon as possible,» Sánchez wrote in a Thursday post on X.
BIDEN ADMINISTRATION FORCED A FALSE CHOICE ON AMERICANS ABOUT IMMIGRATION
Sánchez has faced considerable backlash from his country’s conservatives for his policies on immigration, with many arguing that Spain’s policy of guaranteeing social services to minors who illegally enter the country incentivizes mass migration.
Migrants cross on foot into the North African enclave of Ceuta from Morocco by attempting to swim, according to Spain’s Guardia Civil, near the border with Ceuta, in Fnideq, Morocco, July 30, 2026, in this still image obtained by Reuters (Reuters)
«When they cross the border as minors, you cannot send them back to Morocco,» Javier Negre, a conservative Spanish journalist and owner of La Derecha Diario and UHN Plus, told Fox News Digital.
«The Spanish state has to take care of them and pay money to NGOs to care for these minors until they turn 18,» he continued.
«It’s proof that Europe and Spain are on the verge of becoming a failed continent because of the future policies and promotion of this illegal invasion under Pedro Sánchez,» Negre criticized.
Sánchez, for his part, has claimed that accepting migrants is necessary to keep Spain’s economy alive, arguing the country’s low birth rates necessitate accepting immigrants.
Spain’s Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez delivers a statement at the Moncloa Palace in Madrid, Spain. (AP Photo/Andrea Comas)
«The West needs people. Currently, few of its countries have a rising population growth rate. Unless they embrace migration, they will experience a sharp demographic decline that will prevent them from keeping their economies and public services afloat. Their gross domestic product will stagnate. Their public healthcare and pension systems will suffer. Neither AI nor robots will be able to prevent this outcome… The only option to avoid decline is to integrate migrants in the most orderly and effective way possible,» Sánchez wrote in a February op-ed in The New York Times.
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Fox News Digital contacted the offices of Sánchez and Vivas for further comment.
Fox News’ Patrick Ward contributed to this report.
illegal immigrants, border security, spain, world, europe, africa
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Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier said he will be opening up an investigation into former National Institutes of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) Dr. Anthony Fauci following Fauci’s explosive decision to invoke his Fifth Amendment right and not answer any questions during a congressional hearing Wednesday.
«Fauci’s lack of candor to Congress is unbelievable. My office is launching an investigation into Dr. Fauci. It’s past time we get the truth of what happened during COVID,» Uthmeier wrote in a Wednesday post on X.
Uthmeier further expanded on his decision in an exclusive statement to Fox News Digital.
FAUCI PLEADS FIFTH WITH ‘ZERO LEGAL JUSTIFICATION’ AS CRITICS ERUPT AND DEMAND CONTEMPT CHARGES
James Uthmeier spoke at the National Conservative Convention on Sept. 3, 2025, in Washington, D.C. (Dominic Gwinn/Middle East Images/AFP via Getty Images)
«In light of recent reports exposed by Senator Rand Paul, we will investigate any and all potential violations of Florida law involving Anthony Fauci,» Uthmeier told Fox News Digital.
«Our inquiry will focus on what Fauci knew, when he knew it, and how he misled the American people. We will examine the physical and monetary harms to Floridians that may have resulted from his deceptions and determine whether his conduct exposes him to liability under state law,» Uthmeier’s statement concluded.
Uthmeier cited revelations published by Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee Chairman Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., which revealed internal notes Fauci wrote on government computers during his time at NIAID.
FAUCI’S NEWLY RELEASED COVID DIARIES REVEAL BIZARRE FIXATION ON FAME AS PANDEMIC DEATHS MOUNTED
Former NIH Director Anthony Fauci listens during a Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee hearing on July 29, 2026, in Washington, D.C. Fauci declined to answer questions, asserting his Fifth Amendment right. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)
The internal notes, which Paul and others have taken to referring to as Fauci’s «diary,» suggest Fauci appeared to publicly overstate the death rate from COVID-19 compared to what he wrote privately.
«[Former CDC Director] Tom Frieden called me this AM and we discussed various aspects of the outbreak,» Fauci wrote on Feb. 8, 2020.
«He and I are on the same page in thinking tht [sic] this is acting like a bad influenza in its transmissibility and that the denominator is much greater than 34,867 (above) making the case fatality rate (CFR) more like 0.2-0.3 % rather than 2.0%,» Fauci’s entry concluded.
However, a month later, in congressional testimony to the House Oversight Committee on March 11, 2020, Fauci pegged the mortality rate at 1%.
«I think if you count all the cases of minimally symptomatic or asymptomatic infection, that probably brings the mortality rate down to somewhere around one percent, which means it is 10 times more lethal than the seasonal flu,» he testified.
Anthony Fauci declined to testify in a Senate committee hearing on his role in the US response to COVID-19, invoking his Fifth Amendment rights. (Left (Alex WROBLEWSKI / AFP via Getty Images), Right (Al Drago/Bloomberg via Getty Images))
When called to testify on the revelations before the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee on Wednesday, Fauci exercised his Fifth Amendment right and refused to answer legislators’ questions 111 times.
Uthmeier is not the only Republican to take aim at the former COVID czar Fauci in light of the revelations.
Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, said Wednesday that Fauci should be held in congressional contempt for refusing to answer questions despite receiving a presidential pardon.
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«I think Anthony Fauci has had contempt for Congress and contempt for the American people for decades,» he said. «His diary shows that he deliberately lied to the American people over and over and over again,» Cruz said.
Paul, for his part, said his committee will vote on whether to hold Fauci in contempt next week.
investigations, anthony fauci, politics, florida, trending news
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