A new report revealed that five foreign charities have donated just shy of $2 billion into various American nonprofits and policy advocacy groups focused on climate change and political activism.

Americans for Public Trust released a detailed, 31-page report with receipts tracking money from foreign charities to U.S. groups. It notes that while contributing directly to political candidates is not permitted under federal law, election-related activities like ‘get-out-and-vote’ campaigns, some lobbying efforts, issue advertising and other politically-charged activities, are in play for foreign dollars.

‘There’s not a question about where it’s going and where it is coming from,’ Americans for Public Trust executive director Caitlin Sutherland told Fox News Digital. ‘We know that it’s foreign money coming into our U.S. policy fights, climate litigation, research, protests, lobbying, you name it.’

‘Foreign money is coming in, and it’s trying to erode our democracy,’ Sutherland added.

The groups that contributed to the near $2 billion in foreign money include the Quadrature Climate Foundation (U.K.), the KR Foundation (Denmark), the Oak Foundation (Switzerland), the Laudes Foundation (Switzerland/Netherlands), and the Children’s Investment Fund Foundation (U.K.).

The most sizable, the Quadrature Climate Foundation, has awarded roughly $520 million to 41 U.S. groups since 2020, according to the report.

‘The most surprising place that the foreign money has ended up is into a group called the Environmental Law Institute [ELI],’ Sutherland explained to Fox News Digital. ‘They are well known for running a group called the Climate Judiciary Project. They work to educate judges on climate litigation.’

‘So the fact that a group that is so-called educating judges on climate is the beneficiary of foreign money is a huge problem,’ Sutherland added.

ELI received a grant of $650,000 from the Oak Foundation, based out of Switzerland, in separate grants since 2018.

‘The Environmental Law Institute received a $300,000 grant from the Oak Foundation in 2018 to support the drafting of a toolkit for sustainable small-scale fisheries,’ ELI spokesperson Nick Collins told Fox News Digital. ‘Building on successful examples from around the world, the toolkit offers guidance on how to strengthen small scale fisheries through law.’

‘ELI is an independent, nonpartisan organization, and any grant funding we receive is contingent on protecting this independence,’ Collins continued. ‘No funder dictates our work, and our grants are administered in compliance with IRS rules and regulations.’

The Environmental Law Institute has also received federal grants from the U.S. government in the past, most recently under the Biden administration’s EPA and State Department in 2022.

In August of this year, 23 state attorneys general sent a letter to EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin that called for the halting of federal funding.

Zeldin and President Donald Trump’s EPA subsequently axed funding to ELI.

Fox News Digital reached out to ELI for comment, but did not receive a response in time for publication.

‘We were also able to trace that $1.6 million in foreign money has come from the Oak Foundation into a group called Community Change,’ Sutherland continued. ‘They are the front group that has led the charge against Trump’s crackdown on crime. So again, we’re seeing where foreign money coming in to protest, litigation, training is ending up.’

According to the report, $1.6 million from the Oak Foundation has been funneled into Community Change, the organization recognized as the ‘fiscal sponsor’ behind Free DC, which was responsible for the anti-Trump protests in Washington D.C.

Fox News Digital sent inquiries to the various foreign charities about the potential reasoning behind funneling money into American organizations that lobby and campaign for specific policy issues, but did not receive responses.

Sutherland surmised that, based on the report, implementing an extreme European agenda into the U.S. is the most likely driving factor for the multi-billion dollar grants and donations.

‘It seems clear to me that this foreign money is coming into the United States because they want to implement their extremist European vision for America,’ Sutherland concluded. ‘A lot of these groups want to ban gas stoves, very, very extremist positions. And it seems to me that when you take a look at the money, they just want to have a more extreme United States that is radicalized and further left than what we want.’

Fox News Digital reached out to the Quadrature Climate Foundation, the KR Foundation, the Oak Foundation, the Laudes Foundation, the Children’s Investment Fund Foundation, and Community Change, but did not receive responses by the time of publication.

Preston Mizell is a writer with Fox News Digital covering breaking news. Story tips can be sent to Preston.Mizell@fox.com and on X @MizellPreston

When President Donald Trump met with Chinese President Xi Jinping on Thursday, the two leaders talked about trade and drug trafficking — but avoided the one issue that could most likely draw their nations into war: Taiwan.

Both sides have reasons to keep tensions low. Trump’s administration is seeking Chinese cooperation on border enforcement and drug trafficking, while Xi faces growing economic pressures at home. Yet even as diplomacy aims for calm, U.S. defense planners have long prepared for potential conflict in the Indo-Pacific.

Tensions have only deepened in recent years. Washington has approved high-profile arms sales to Taiwan, U.S. lawmakers such as then–House Speaker Nancy Pelosi have made high-profile visits, and former President Joe Biden repeatedly pledged to defend the island — only for aides to later clarify that the United States still adheres to its long-standing ‘One China’ policy.

Meanwhile, China has dramatically increased military pressure on Taiwan through large-scale drills that simulate a blockade and invasion. The People’s Liberation Army now conducts near-constant air and naval operations encircling the island — exercises that have become larger, more complex, and more frequent. What once served as symbolic shows of force now resemble rehearsals for cutting off Taiwan’s access to the outside world.

The silence from Trump and Xi contrasted sharply with the noise of those military preparations on both sides of the Pacific.

Taiwan watchers have been left guessing about just how much the United States would come to the island’s defense if China invaded — an intentional policy known as strategic ambiguity that Trump has taken to a new level.

The president earlier this month predicted optimistically that China would not invade Taiwan.

‘I think we’ll be just fine with China. China doesn’t want to do that,’ he said. ‘As it pertains to Taiwan — and that doesn’t mean it’s not the apple of his eye, because probably it is — but I don’t see anything happening.’

Compared with other conflict zones, Trump has said little about the prospect of war in the Indo-Pacific, leaving allies and adversaries alike uncertain about how far he would go to defend Taiwan.

Some analysts who favor strong U.S. support for Taiwan were relieved the issue didn’t surface, given concerns Trump might trade the island’s interests for economic concessions — such as looser Chinese mineral export restrictions, larger agricultural purchases or cooperation on curbing the precursor chemicals fueling America’s fentanyl crisis.

‘I think it’s a good thing that Taiwan didn’t come up,’ said Raymond Kuo, a senior political scientist at the RAND Corporation. ‘There’s been a lot of concern in Taiwan, especially recently, that it would be sold out for some kind of U.S.–China grand bargain.’

Matthew Kroenig, vice president of the Atlantic Council’s Scowcroft Center for Strategy and Security, said he viewed the omission as ‘neutral,’ though he would have preferred the president restate the ‘One China’ policy while warning Beijing to ‘knock off its almost daily military coercion and gray-zone activities against Taiwan.’

Kuo noted that Taiwan has sharply increased its defense spending as tensions rise, boosting its budget by roughly 75% in the past two years and now allocating a greater share of government funds to defense than the U.S. does proportionally. Still, he warned that production delays in U.S. weapons deliveries — including a backlog that exceeded $20 billion at the start of this year — could weaken Taiwan’s ability to keep pace with China’s military modernization.

Jennifer Kavanagh, director of military analysis at Defense Priorities, said she wasn’t surprised Taiwan stayed off the formal agenda. ‘There were so many trade issues that were really top of mind for both sides,’ she said. ‘Concerns about a ‘grand bargain’ over Taiwan always seemed far-fetched.’

But Kavanagh cautioned that the United States and China cannot indefinitely avoid the subject. ‘Things have escalated significantly in recent years, and the long-time understandings around the ‘One China’ policy and strategic ambiguity have started to erode,’ she said. ‘It’s important for both sides to reaffirm their commitment to peaceful means of resolving their differences.’

She added that the military balance in the region has shifted ‘rather quickly in China’s favor,’ making U.S. deterrence less credible if tensions continue to climb. ‘The time to pivot to Asia has probably passed,’ Kavanagh said, suggesting Washington must now focus on managing competition rather than reversing it.

Inside Trump’s administration, analysts say those competing instincts are visible. ‘There are really two China policies,’ Kroenig said. ‘The trade folks are looking for deals, while the defense and national-security professionals are focused on the China threat — especially the threat to Taiwan.’ That divide mirrors Washington’s broader struggle to reconcile economic engagement with military deterrence.

Kroenig added that Trump’s unpredictability may itself be part of his deterrent strategy. ‘It keeps our adversaries guessing and worried,’ he said. ‘It may be unlikely that China would attack Taiwan under his watch.’

Still, Trump’s meeting with Xi offered little clarity on where the president ultimately stands on Taiwan — or how he would respond if Beijing tested the limits of U.S. commitment to the island’s security. For now, both leaders appear content to keep the most volatile issue in their relationship unspoken. The quiet may help avert confrontation in the short term — but it leaves one of the world’s most dangerous flashpoints lingering just beneath the surface.

The White House pushed back on media reports suggesting that President Donald Trump’s administration had identified, and was imminently poised to strike, military targets within Venezuela. 

Although Trump has signaled for weeks he’s prepared to launch land operations against Venezuela, the White House cast doubt on the new media reports.

‘Unnamed sources don’t know what they’re talking about,’ White House spokeswoman Anna Kelly said in a Friday statement to Fox News Digital. ‘Any announcements regarding Venezuela policy would come directly from the President.’

The Wall Street Journal reported Thursday that the Trump administration had identified military targets within Venezuela that are being used to transport drugs, although the news outlet said that Trump hadn’t formalized a decision on whether he would launch land strikes against these targets.

Trump told reporters Friday on Air Force One a decision hadn’t been made about whether he would strike military targets within Venezuela, Bloomberg News reported. 

Additionally, the Miami Herald reported Friday that the administration had decided to conduct strikes against these military installations within Venezuela that could come ‘in a matter of days or even hours.’

Both the Journal and the Miami Herald cited anonymous sources familiar with the plans. 

The Herald reported that the pending strikes were part of a larger effort the Trump administration is initiating to crack down on the Cartel de los Soles, which Attorney General Pam Bondi has said Venezuela’s President Nicolás Maduro heads up.

The Trump administration does not recognize Maduro as a legitimate head of state, and the administration beefed up the reward for information leading to Maduro’s arrest to $50 million, claiming he is ‘one of the largest narco-traffickers in the world.’

Meanwhile, the U.S. military has ramped up its attacks against alleged drug boats in Latin America — totaling at least 14 strikes since the beginning of September. Additionally, Trump has instructed the U.S. Navy’s newest aircraft carrier, the USS Gerald R. Ford, to head to the region.

Brent Sadler, a senior fellow for naval warfare and advanced technology at The Heritage Foundation, a conservative think tank in Washington, said that the carrier’s presence means Trump has additional resources to conduct more strikes against cartels. Meanwhile, Trump has routinely said for weeks he may move ahead with land operations against Venezuela next, in addition to his sea strikes.

‘The Ford’s arrival in SOUTHCOM area is not unprecedented but given the ongoing attacks on Cartel boats significant. I see this move as intended to deter Venezuela from escalating the crisis and providing the President extra options should he want to increase the attacks on the Cartels,’ Sadler said in an email to Fox News Digital Monday. ‘That said, I would anticipate the Ford’s air wing being very active in air surveillance and defense.’

After news broke that the Ford would head to the region, Maduro accused Trump of ‘fabricating a new eternal war.’

‘They promised they would never again get involved in a war, and they are fabricating a war,’ Maduro said in a national broadcast on Friday.

Even so, not all lawmakers are on board with Trump’s strikes in Latin America. Sens. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., Tim Kaine, D-Va., and Rand Paul, R-Ky., introduced a war powers resolution in October to bar U.S. armed forces from engaging in ‘hostilities’ against Venezuela.

‘The Trump administration has made it clear they may launch military action inside Venezuela’s borders and won’t stop at boat strikes in the Caribbean,’ Schiff said in an Oct. 17 statement.

Fox News Digital reached out to the Department of War and has not yet received a response. 

This is a breaking news story and will be updated. 

Former Vice President Kamala Harris advocated for decreasing the minimum voting age to 16.

In an interview posted on ‘The Diary Of A CEO’ YouTube channel, Harris declared that she thought ‘we should reduce voting age to 16.’

‘I’ll tell you why. So, Gen Z, they’re age about 13 through 27, they’ve only known the climate crisis,’ she said.

‘If they’re in high school or college, especially in college, it is very likely that whatever they’ve chosen as their major for study may not result in an affordable wage. They’ve coined the term climate anxiety…’ she said.

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis responded to Harris’ comments by rejecting her proposal.

‘No. Also, suffering from ‘climate anxiety’ is not exactly an argument *for* lowering the voting age,’ he asserted in a post on X.

While Harris wants to let younger Americans vote, she has previously advocated for raising the minimum age to purchase a gun to 21 years old.

‘We can’t fail the American people on gun violence anymore. It’s time for the Senate to do something. Ban assault weapons and high-capacity magazines. Raise the age to purchase guns from 18 to 21. Strengthen background checks. Let’s get this done,’ a 2022 post on the ‘Vice President Kamala Harris Archived’ X account reads.

President Donald Trump’s announcement that the U.S. would revive nuclear weapons testing — which the U.S. has not done since 1992 — left experts, lawmakers and military personnel scratching their heads Thursday.

The president announced, just before his high-stakes meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping, he is instructing the Pentagon to start testing nuclear weapons on an ‘equal basis’ as Russia and China, and that the process for testing these weapons would begin immediately.  

‘They seem to all be nuclear testing,’ Trump later told reporters on Air Force One. ‘We don’t do testing — we halted it years ago. But with others doing testing, it’s appropriate that we do also.’

It’s unclear exactly what Trump meant, since no country has conducted a known nuclear test since North Korea in 2017. The last known tests for China and Russia date back to the 1990s, when Russia was still the Soviet Union.

The White House did not provide comment to Fox News Digital. And the Pentagon did not respond to a request for comment. 

However, those dissecting the president’s comments say Trump may have been referring to ramping up testing of nuclear-powered weapons systems or conducting covert, low-yield nuclear weapons testing.

Andrea Stricker, the deputy director of the Foundation for Defense of Democracies’ nonproliferation and biodefense program, described the announcement as a ‘power move’ from Trump ahead of Xi’s meeting, and said that one option the president may be considering is authorizing low-yield nuclear explosive testing that would go above the zero-yield threshold outlined in the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty from 1996, which bans all nuclear explosions.

Although ratification from the U.S. and several other countries is necessary in order for the treaty to take effect, the pact established no nuclear testing as a worldwide norm and the U.S., Russia and China have since maintained a moratorium on full-scale nuclear testing.

However, Stricker said that the U.S. has detailed in multiple reports that it suspects that Russia and China may have conducted low-yield type tests for years, despite the moratorium laid out in the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty. For example, now-retired Lt. Gen. Robert Ashley Jr. said in 2019, while serving as the director of the Defense Intelligence Agency, that the U.S. believes Russia isn’t adhering to the nuclear testing moratorium ‘in a manner consistent with the zero-yield standard.’

As a result, Stricker said that Trump’s comments indicate he will match near-peer adversaries’ actions.

‘The president’s statement implies reciprocity: he will increase testing as they do, which puts the onus on Moscow and Beijing to rein in their efforts,’ Stricker said in a Thursday email to Fox News Digital. ‘Trump may also be seeking to engage both countries in arms control talks with the remaining nuclear arms treaty between the United States and Russia, New START, set to expire in February 2026 and China refusing such talks.’

Meanwhile, Navy Vice Adm. Richard Correll, who Trump nominated to lead U.S. Strategic Command, told lawmakers Thursday during his confirmation hearing that although he didn’t have insight into Trump’s thinking, the president may have been discussing testing nuclear-powered weapon delivery systems, like ballistic and cruise missiles.

Correll said that since neither China nor Russia has conducted a nuclear test to his knowledge, he’s ‘not reading anything into it or out of it’ when lawmakers on the Senate Armed Services Committee asked about the president’s statement. However, Correll said he’d be prepared to carry out the president’s directive if he is confirmed.

U.S. Strategic Command is a combatant command that oversees nuclear deterrence for the U.S. military.

Matthew Kroenig, the vice president and senior director of the Atlantic Council’s Scowcroft Center for Strategy and Security, told Fox News Digital that Russia’s recent missile test also ‘gives credence’ to the possibility that Trump meant testing these nuclear-powered weapon delivery systems.

Russia announced Sunday that it had successfully tested its new, nuclear-powered Burevestnik cruise missile, which NATO has dubbed ‘Skyfall.’ The announcement came after the Trump administration imposed stringent sanctions on Russia’s two largest oil companies.

Kroenig, who previously worked on nuclear and defense policy at the Pentagon and helped craft the 2018 U.S. Nuclear Posture Review, also said Trump’s statement could signal an end to the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty. 

Chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee Sen. Jim Risch, R-Idaho, told reporters Thursday that it’s paramount the president respond accordingly to actors, like Russian President Vladimir Putin, who have nuclear weapons.

‘When you have a madman that has nuclear weapons like Putin does and he starts rattling his saber, it’s important for the president to respond,’ Risch said. ‘And he responded in a way that is reasonable.’

Democrats had a different take. The top Democrat on the Senate Armed Services Committee Sen. Jack Reed, D-R.I., said that Trump ‘has it wrong’ on nuclear weapons policy, and said resuming nuclear weapons testing could upend decades of nonproliferation efforts.

‘Breaking the explosive testing moratorium that the United States, Russia, and China have maintained since the 1990s would be strategically reckless, inevitably prompting Moscow and Beijing to resume their own testing programs,’ Reed said in a statement Thursday. ‘Further, American explosive testing would provide justification for Pakistan, India, and North Korea to expand their own testing regimes, destabilizing an already fragile global nonproliferation architecture at precisely the moment we can least afford it.

‘The United States would gain very little from such testing, and we would sacrifice decades of hard-won progress in preventing nuclear proliferation,’ Reed said. 

Meanwhile, Vice President JD Vance told reporters Thursday that while the president would continue to work on nuclear proliferation, that testing would be done to ensure weapons are functioning at optimal capability.

‘It’s an important part of American national security to make sure that this nuclear arsenal we have actually functions properly,’ Vance said. ‘And that’s part of a testing regime. To be clear, we know that it does work properly, but you got to keep on top of it over time. And the president just wants to make sure that we do that with his nation.’

Fox News’ Chad Pergram and The Associated Press contributed to this report.

While 2025 is considered an ‘off-year election,’ without the high-profile presidential showdown of last year or the competitive midterm elections that could shift the congressional balance of power next year, there are more than a dozen local races across the country this year.

Election Day is on Tuesday, Nov. 4, 2025. Whether voting early or in-person on Election Day, it’s important to review your ballot before you head to the polls to research candidates and make an informed decision.

Here’s how to find your sample ballot ahead of Election Day 2025.

Virginia

This year, Virginians will vote for governor, lieutenant governor, attorney general, Virginia House of Delegates and local offices.

The Virginia Department of Elections has an easy, one-stop shop to look up your polling site and what’s on your ballot.

Start by entering your full address and zip code to see the specific ballot information for your precinct.

For more information, visit the Virginia Department of Elections’ official website.

New Jersey

In New Jersey, voters will cast their ballots for governor, lieutenant governor, state senate and general assembly.

The Department of State, Division of Elections, has created a 2025 Election Information guide, including links to the official candidate lists.

Jersey City voters will also select a new mayor. For sample ballots, visit your local county clerk’s website.

California

California is hosting a special election on Nov. 4, where voters will decide whether to allow the state legislature to redraw congressional districts.

Los Angeles County has provided an online interactive sample ballot for the special election.

Pennsylvania

The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania’s website has information about voting and sample ballots for this year’s local Supreme Court race.

Visit your individual county for a sample ballot.

Texas

Texas’ 18th Congressional District is holding a special election on Nov. 4.

Texas is also hosting a special election on constitutional amendments and for a local state Senate race.

Visit the Texas Secretary of State’s website for more information.

New York City

To access a sample ballot in New York City, simply enter your address into this form.

New York City voters will choose a new mayor on Nov. 4.

New Yorkers will also vote on citywide public advocates, city comptroller, district attorney, borough presidents and several amendment proposals, among others.

Miami

Click here to view Miami’s sample ballot from the City of Miami’s website.

Voters will select a new mayor and commissioners.

Cincinnati

In Ohio, Cincinnati voters will elect a new mayor on Nov. 4.

To view your sample ballot, visit the Hamilton County Board of Elections website.

Ohio’s Secretary of State’s office also provides an interactive map to access sample ballots by county.

Detroit

In Michigan, Detroit voters will also vote for a new mayor, city council members and police commissioners this Election Day.

To access your sample ballot, visit Michigan’s Voter Information Center on the Department of State’s website, and enter your county, jurisdiction and precinct.

Minneapolis

Voters in Minneapolis will also cast their ballot for mayor this Election Day.

Visit the Office of the Minnesota Secretary of State’s website, and type in your address to access your sample ballot.

Seattle

Seattle voters will also vote for mayor on Nov. 4, while Washington state voters will vote on measures, local city council members and executives, legislative and judicial candidates.

For access to your Seattle sample ballot, visit this King County website, or go to the Washington Secretary of State voters’ guide.

Don’t see your state, city or county on the list? When in doubt, check your official election office’s website.

A Senate Republican accused Google and its AI of targeting conservatives with false allegations and fake news stories, including allegations of a sexual assault that never happened.

Sen. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., wrote to Google CEO Sundar Pichai in a letter first obtained by Fox News Digital that Google’s large language model AI Gemma allegedly produced false and defamatory allegations against conservatives, including herself.

Specifically, she alleged that the AI generated a fabricated sexual assault allegation against her and a series of links to fake news articles to support the false claim.

Her letter to Pichai came on the heels of a Senate Commerce Committee hearing earlier this week that zeroed in on ‘jawboning,’ the practice of government officials using indirect coercion to get tech companies, like Google or social media platforms, to censor posts or speech.

During the hearing, Blackburn went after Google Vice President for Government Affairs and Public Policy Markham Erickson over AI ‘hallucinations’ that allegedly produced false allegations against conservative activist Robby Starbuck.

AI hallucinations are when a generative AI or large language model, like Gemma, creates false, misleading or inaccurate information that is then presented as fact.

Starbuck sued the company after Google’s AI tools allegedly linked him to false accusations of sexual assault, child rape and financial exploitation.

That spurred her to enter a prompt into Gemma asking, ‘Has Marsha Blackburn been accused of rape?’

The AI then produced a story, she wrote, that alleged that during her run for Tennessee State Senate in 1987 she had a sexual relationship with a state trooper, and that, ‘the trooper alleged that she pressured him to obtain prescription drugs for her and that the relationship involved non-consensual acts.’

Blackburn noted, however, that she ran for seat in 1998 and that, ‘There has never been such an accusation, there is no such individual, and there are no such news stories.’

‘This is not a harmless ‘hallucination,’’ she said. ‘It is an act of defamation produced and distributed by a Google-owned AI model. A publicly accessible tool that invents false criminal allegations about a sitting U.S. senator represents a catastrophic failure of oversight and ethical responsibility.’

She charged that there was a consistent pattern of bias against conservatives by Google’s AI, and whether on purpose or the result of ‘ideologically biased training data, the effect is the same: Google’s AI models are shaping dangerous political narratives by spreading falsehoods about conservatives and eroding public trust.’

Blackburn demanded that by Nov. 6, Google provide how the company identifies how and why Gemma generated the false claims about her, what steps Google has taken to prevent political or ideological bias in AI, what guardrails failed to stop this incident, and what Google will do to remove defamatory material and prevent similar occurrences.

‘During the hearing, Mr. Erickson said, ‘[large language models] will hallucinate,’’ she said. ‘My response remains the same: Shut it down until you can control it.’

Google did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.

U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on Friday met with his Chinese counterpart in Kuala Lumpur, using the high-profile encounter to reaffirm that the United States will ‘stoutly defend’ its interests in the Indo-Pacific region.

Hegseth characterized the session with Chinese Admiral Dong Jun as ‘good and constructive.’ The pair met on the sidelines of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) defense summit, which convened top military officials from across the region. 

The Pentagon chief said he raised concerns about China’s growing aggression in the South China Sea and around Taiwan – as well as its posture toward American allies and partners.

‘I highlighted the importance of maintaining a balance of power in the Indo-Pacific,’ Hegseth wrote on X. ‘The United States does not seek conflict, but it will continue to stoutly defend its interests and ensure it has the capabilities in the region to do so.’

China’s Defense Ministry responded in measured terms, reiterating Beijing’s long-held stance that Taiwan’s reunification with the mainland is an ‘unstoppable historical trend.’

The meeting face-to-face marked the first in-person meeting between the two defense leaders since a video call in early September. It signaled continued efforts on both sides to manage a tense relationship even as disputes over Taiwan, maritime boundaries and navigation rights persist.

Hegseth said the U.S. will ‘continue discussions with the People’s Liberation Army on matters of mutual importance.’

Hegseth also announced a 10-year defense cooperation framework with India following talks with Defense Minister Rajnath Singh — part of Washington’s push to expand security and technology ties with New Delhi as a counterweight to Beijing’s influence.

The secretary later met with Malaysia’s defense minister, reaffirming the two nations’ commitment to upholding maritime security in the contested South China Sea, where China’s expansive territorial claims overlap with those of several Southeast Asian countries.

ASEAN defense ministers will continue talks Saturday with dialogue partners including the United States, China, Japan, India, Australia, South Korea and Russia.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

President Donald Trump on Thursday called for Republicans to end the filibuster in order to end the month-long government shutdown.

In a late-night Truth Social post, Trump argued that Democrats had sought to eliminate the Senate procedure when they had control of both chambers of Congress and the White House during the Biden administration, but then-Sens. Joe Manchin and Kyrsten Sinema helped block the effort.

Trump suggested using the ‘nuclear option,’ following his return to the U.S. after his trip to Asia.

‘The one question that kept coming up, however, was how did the DemocratsSHUT DOWN the United States of America, and why did the powerful Republicans allow them to do it? The fact is, in flying back, I thought a great deal about that question, WHY?’ Trump wrote on Truth Social.

‘Majority Leader John Thune, and Speaker of the House Mike Johnson, are doing a GREAT job, but the Democrats are Crazed Lunatics that have lost all sense of WISDOM and REALITY,’ he continued. ‘It is a sick form of the now ‘legendary’ Trump Derangement Syndrome (TDS) that only comes from losing too much. They want Trillions of Dollars to be taken from our Healthcare System and given to others, who are not deserving — People who have come into our Country illegally, many from prisons and mental institutions. This will hurt American citizens, and Republicans will not let it happen.’

Trump added that it is ‘now time for the Republicans to play their ‘TRUMP CARD,’ and go for what is called the Nuclear Option — Get rid of the Filibuster, and get rid of it, NOW!’

Two major phone carriers took sharply different paths when former special counsel Jack Smith’s team subpoenaed phone records tied to Republican lawmakers in 2023, according to the redacted subpoenas and letters first shared with Fox News Digital.

The documents, provided by the office of Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, reveal Verizon’s compliance and AT&T’s resistance when faced with Smith’s requests, which were part of Arctic Frost, the FBI probe that led to Smith bringing election charges against President Donald Trump.

The 12 phone numbers on the subpoena to Verizon are redacted and replaced by Grassley’s office with the names of the lawmakers associated with them. They include one House member and 10 senators, including Sen. Rick Scott, R-Fl., whose name was not previously reported.

AT&T received a similar request, according to a second subpoena. The company told Grassley the subpoenaed phone records were associated with two lawmakers, including Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, according to a source directly familiar with the matter. The source said AT&T declined to disclose the second person.

Accompanying the two subpoenas were gag orders, signed by U.S. District Judge James Boasberg of Washington, D.C., that directed the two phone companies not to disclose the subpoenas to the lawmakers for one year. Prosecutors can seek such gag orders to temporarily keep investigative matters confidential.

The phone companies also wrote letters to Grassley, first shared with Fox News Digital, explaining how they handled the subpoenas they received, revealing two different approaches.

Verizon justified complying with the subpoenas, saying they were ‘facially valid’ and contained only phone numbers, not names. Verizon said that with the ‘benefit of hindsight’ and recent discussions with the Senate Sergeant at Arms, which handles congressional phone services, it has modified its policies so that it puts up more of a challenge to law enforcement requests pertaining to Congress members.

AT&T, meanwhile, did not comply with the subpoenas.

‘When AT&T raised questions with Special Counsel Smith’s office concerning the legal basis for seeking records of members of Congress, the Special Counsel did not pursue the subpoena further, and no records were produced,’ David Chorzempa, general counsel for AT&T, wrote.

The release of copies of the subpoenas and new details from phone companies comes after Grassley published earlier this month a one-page FBI document that said eight senators and one House lawmaker had their phone data subpoenaed. They included Republican Sens. Marsha Blackburn, Josh Hawley, Lindsey Graham, Bill Hagerty, Dan Sullivan, Tommy Tuberville, Ron Johnson and Cynthia Lummis.

Cruz later revealed that he was in the mix, and Scott announced on Thursday that he too was a target.

Grassley said in a press conference Wednesday that Smith’s subpoena to Verizon included Cruz’s office’s landline. In Verizon’s letter to Grassley, it noted that there were no records to give Smith pertaining to that landline.

The two subpoenas to Verizon and AT&T sought toll records for a four-day period surrounding the Jan. 6 Capitol riot. They did not include the contents of phone calls or messages, which would require a warrant, but they did include ‘[call] detail records for inbound and outbound calls, text messages, direct connect, and voicemail messages’ and phone number subscriber and payment information.

News of the subpoenas sparked outcry from the senators, who claimed Smith improperly spied on them and that Arctic Frost was ‘worse’ than the Watergate scandal. They have raised numerous constitutional concerns, including claims that the subpoenas violated the speech and debate clause, which gives lawmakers an added layer of immunity from investigations.

Smith, in response, said in a letter through his lawyers that he mentioned subpoenaing senators’ phone records in his public, final special counsel report and that the subpoenas were narrowly tailored to a four-day period surrounding the Jan. 6 riot and ‘entirely proper.’

Smith has asked House and Senate lawmakers to allow him to testify before them in a public hearing to speak about his special counsel work. House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, however, wants to question Smith behind closed doors and Grassley has said he needs more information before he hosts Smith in a public setting.

The DOJ has issued subpoenas for lawmakers’ information in the past, but former inspector general Michael Horowitz cautioned against it in most circumstances in a report published last year, saying that doing so ‘risks chilling Congress’s ability to conduct oversight of the executive branch.’

Horowitz’s warning came in response to the first Trump administration subpoenaing phone records of Rep. Eric Swalwell, D-Calif., and then-Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., and dozens of congressional staffers from both parties as part of an investigation into classified information being leaked to the media.

Despite enjoying additional constitutional protections, members of Congress are not immune from investigation and prosecution. Former Democratic Sen. Bob Menendez’s phone records were seized while he was serving in office. Menendez is now serving in prison after being found guilty by a jury last year of corruption charges.

Read copies of the letters from Verizon and AT&T and the subpoenas below. 

App users: 

Click to read the Verizon letter

Click to read the Verizon subpoena

Click to read the AT&T letter

Click to read the AT&T subpoena