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Vance jokes about Greta Thunberg as he goes scorched earth on European censorship

Vice President JD Vance quipped that Europe could survive Elon Musk’s criticisms if the U.S. could “survive” climate activist Greta Thunberg’s.

In a speech at the Munich Security Conference largely critical of Europe’s censorship activities, the vice president insisted the gathered leaders should listen more to their voters.

“Trust me, I say this with all humor,” he said. “If American democracy can survive 10 years of Greta Thunberg scolding, you guys can survive a few months of Elon Musk.”

Thunberg, the 22-year-old Swedish environmental crusader, stole the spotlight among liberals over her climate concerns before she even turned 18.

VANCE EVISCERATES ‘SOVIET’-STYLE EUROPEAN CENSORSHIP IN ADDRESS TO MUNICH SECURITY CONFERENCE

Vice President JD Vance quipped that Europe can survive Elon Musk’s criticisms if the U.S. could ‘survive’ climate activist Greta Thunberg. (REUTERS/Wolfgang Rattay)

“I know you are trying, but just not hard enough. Sorry,” Thunberg told a U.S. Senate climate panel in 2019.

“Don’t invite us here to just tell us how inspiring we are without actually doing anything about it,” she said at age 16.

“How long do you think you can continue to ignore the climate crisis, the global aspect of equity and historic emissions without being held accountable?” Thunberg asked U.S. lawmakers two years later before the House Oversight Subcommittee on the Environment.

GERMANY ACCUSES ELON MUSK OF TRYING TO INTERFERE IN ITS NATIONAL ELECTIONS

Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg is removed by police during a pro-Palestinian demonstration outside the Malmo Arena venue ahead of the final of the 68th Eurovision Song Contest (ESC) 2024 on May 11, 2024. ((Photo by JOHAN NILSSON/TT/TT NEWS AGENCY/AFP via Getty Images))

”You get away with it now, but sooner or later, people are going to realize what you have been doing all this time. That’s inevitable. You still have time to do the right thing and to save your legacies.”

Musk, meanwhile, has gone toe-to-toe with Europe over censorship, and the European Commission recently ramped up its probe into whether Musk’s X had breached EU rules on content moderation. Musk has called the commission “undemocractic” and called on the European Union to hold referendums to vote on policies that apply to all of its nations.

Musk has also riled European officials with his support for the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) in Germany’s elections, and for endorsing Britain’s right-wing Reform party.

Musl riled European officials with his support for the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) in Germany’s elections, and for endorsing Britain’s right-wing Reform party. (REUTERS/Nathan Howard)

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“It’s good to be proud of German culture, German values, and not to lose that in some sort of multiculturalism that dilutes everything,” he said in a recent video appearance at an AfD campaign event.

February 14, 2025
Trump’s ‘two sexes’ order spurs state-level efforts to crack down on trans treatments for minors

Several states emboldened by President Donald Trump’s executive orders are moving to introduce bills banning transgender medical care for minors, and one legal expert believes it’s a “continuation” of the success other states have achieved in the last several years fighting against the Biden administration.

“You go back to 2020, when Idaho became the first state to pass a save women’s sports law, and in 2021, Arkansas was the first state to protect kids from dangerous gender transition, drugs and surgeries,” Alliance Defending Freedom senior counsel Matt Sharp told Fox News Digital in an interview. “And since that time, we’ve had over 25 states pass both of those laws, plus other measures to protect women’s privacy and safety and schools or women’s shelters or correctional facilities.”

“So, what we are seeing is truly the continuation of incredible work by state legislatures and others to address the concerns of gender ideology and make sure that women and children in their states are not being harmed by it,” he said.

TRUMP’S ‘TWO SEXES’ EXECUTIVE ORDER COMES ON HEELS OF SCOTUS ACCEPTING ANOTHER CHALLENGE TO LGBT AGENDA

US President Donald Trump signs the No Men in Women’s Sports Executive Order into law in the East Room of the White House in Washington, D.C., on February 5, 2025. (Andrew Caballero-Reynolds / AFP)

So far this year, several states have introduced or considered legislation to ban transgender medical procedures for minors. More than two dozen states already have laws in place restricting such procedures.

Alabama recently passed a bill in the Senate aiming to legally define gender based on one’s biological sex, in line with Trump’s “two sexes” declaration. Georgia’s state Senate also passed a bill this week that would cut state funding for transgender surgical treatments, extending to both minors and adults. The bill aims to block state funds for state employee and university health insurance plans, Medicaid, and the state’s prison system.

Some states are still rebelling against Trump’s orders. Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly, a Democrat, vetoed a bill this week that would have prohibited state funds from being used on gender transition treatments and procedures on minors and allow civil actions against healthcare providers conducting such treatments.

Despite Trump’s executive orders, Democratic attorneys general from 15 states – California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Nevada, New Jersey, New York, Rhode Island, Vermont and Wisconsin – issued a joint statement this month doubling down on their support for transgender procedures for minors.

LGBT ACTIVISTS MOBILIZE TO CHALLENGE TRUMP’S ‘EXTREME GENDER IDEOLOGY’ EXECUTIVE ORDERS

Activists hold a rally outside the Supreme Court building in Washington, D.C., as the court hears oral arguments in the transgender treatments case Skrmetti vs. U.S. on Dec. 4, 2024. (Fox News Digital)

The executive orders, signed in late January, include a reinstatement of the ban on transgender troops in the military, a ban on federal funding for sex changes for minors and a directive requiring federal agencies to recognize only “two sexes,” male and female, in official standard of conduct.

“What these executive orders represent is a 180-degree turn from that, rather than the federal government trying to push this dangerous ideology and being an adversary of states and their efforts to protect women and girls, you know, have an ally at the federal government,” Sharp, who filed one of the first state cases against a Connecticut policy allowing men to compete in women’s sports in 2020, said.

Sharp described Trump’s executive orders as a “return to normalcy.”

“What we saw starting a new Obama administration and continuing in the Biden administration, I think was trying to erase sex and replace it with the concept of gender identity,” he said. “And I think Americans have seen that. They’ve seen the harm that’s caused to countless young women, to young children, pushed to do irreparable damage to their bodies through these gender transition drugs and surgeries to even families who have had their rights violated by policies that were hiding information, lying to parents about a child who was experiencing distress over their sex and gender.”

TRUMP SIGNS EXECUTIVE ORDERS BANNING ‘RADICAL GENDER IDEOLOGY,’ DEI INITIATIVES IN THE MILITARY

President Joe Biden speaks at the Pride Month celebration on the South Lawn of the White House on June 10, 2023, in Washington, D.C. (Tasos Katopodis/Getty Images)

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While the Trump White House has made its stance on gender-related issues clear, the U.S. Supreme Court will determine a critical ruling this summer on whether the 14th Amendment’s Equal Protection Clause, which guarantees equal treatment under the law for individuals in similar circumstances, prevents states from banning medical providers from offering puberty blockers and hormone treatments to children seeking transgender surgical procedures.

Jamie Joseph is a writer who covers politics. She leads Fox News Digital coverage of the Senate.

February 14, 2025
Title IX complaint filed against RIT for rostering trans athlete Sadie Schreiner

The Concerned Women for America (CWA) has filed a Title IX complaint against the Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT) for allowing trans athlete Sadie Schreiner to compete on the women’s track and field team, Fox News Digital has learned.

The CWA has filed its complaint with the U.S. Department of Education, which has recently launched investigations into other institutions for potential Title IX violations, including San Jose State University, the University of Pennsylvania, and high school athletic associations in Massachussetts, Minnesota and California.

CWA CEO and President Penny Nance provided a statement to Fox News Digital, elaborating on the complaint.

“Rochester Institute of Technology continues to violate Title IX anti-discrimination rules for male and female teams by rostering a trans-identifying male on its women’s track team. RIT makes the excuse it is following the NCAA’s Transgender Participation Policy (TPP) but that policy is not federal law and, in fact, does not comply with Title IX. The NCAA does not have the authority to re-define the meaning of sex under federal law for participation on male and female teams,” Nance said.

“Though RIT publicly claims it is following NCAA policy, its duty under the law is to follow Title IX. Educational institutions cannot hide behind the NCAA for its willful violations of women’s civil rights. Neither the NCAA’s previous policy nor its revised policy announced on February 6, 2025, fully protects women’s sports for women only as required under Title IX regulations which differentiate male and female teams on the basis of sex.”

Fox News Digital has reached out to RIT for comment.

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Sadie Schreiner races to qualify in the 400m race at the 2024 NCAA DIII outdoor track and field championships at Doug Shaw Memorial Stadium on May 24, 2024, in Myrtle Beach, SC. (Jahi Chikwendiu/The Washington Post via Getty Images)

An RIT spokesperson previously told Fox News Digital that Schreiner isn’t participating in future events, as the program is complying with the NCAA’s new policy that reflects President Donald Trump’s recent executive order that bans trans athletes from women’s sports.

“We continue to follow the NCAA participation policy for transgender student-athletes following the Trump administration’s executive order. Sadie is not participating in the next meet,” the spokesperson said.

However, RIT has not confirmed to Fox News Digital whether Schreiner has been removed from the roster and is no longer practicing with the team. Schreiner still has a player profile page on the team’s official website.

The NCAA’s policy also states that a biological male can still practice on a women’s team and “receive benefits.”

“A student-athlete assigned male at birth may practice on an NCAA women’s team and receive all other benefits applicable to student-athletes,” the policy reads.

President Donald Trump signed the “No Men in Women’s Sports” executive order last week, which cuts federal funding for any institution that allows trans athletes to compete in women’s sports.

Schreiner currently holds multiple school records in women’s track, including as RIT’s women’s indoor track record holder in the 200-, 300-, and 400-meter dashes,5 and RIT’s women’s outdoor record holder in the 200- and 400- meter dashes.

Schreiner has been a prominent controversial figure in women’s track and field this past year, especially after an appearance at the 2024 NCAA Division III Outdoor Track & Field Championship in May.

TEEN GIRLS OPEN UP ON TRANS ATHLETE SCANDAL THAT TURNED THEIR HIGH SCHOOL INTO A CULTURE WAR BATTLEGROUND

Earlier that month, Schreiner competed at the Liberty League Championship and won both the women’s 200- and 400-meter, breaking the 400-meter record in the process. Schreiner would have finished last by more than two seconds if the athlete had put up the same performance in the men’s competition.

Recently, in late January, Schreiner bragged after winning an event against female opponents.

“Not the race I was looking for at all this week, my spikes nearly fell off on the turn and with a poor start my time wasn’t nearly what I wanted,” the RIT runner wrote in an Instagram post.

“The good news is that the season just started, and I’m going to leave everything on the track at nationals,” Schreiner added with a transgender pride flag emoji.

On Jan. 17, Schreiner took first place in the 200- and 400-meter dashes at the Brockport Friday Night Rust Buster, taking top spots over two female seniors. In the 200-meter dash Schreiner beat RIT teammate Caroline Hill by 1.5 seconds and took first place honors in the 400-meter dash from Brockport’s Marissa Wise by nearly 3.5 seconds. Schreiner’s results achieved automatic qualification for the All-Atlantic Regional Track and Field Championships.

On Jan. 24, Schreiner took first place in the 200-meter dash at the RIT Friday Meet, beating out Liberty League junior Lexi Rodriguez of Brockport with an even faster time. On Jan. 30, Schreiner took first place in the 200- and 400-meter dashes against Liberty League opponents.

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Sadie Schreiner sports a transgender flag before heading to the awards stand after finishing 3rd in the finals of the 200m race at the 2024 NCAA DIII outdoor track and field championships at Doug Shaw Memorial Stadium on May 25, 2024, in Myrtle Beach, SC. (Photo by Jahi Chikwendiu/The Washington Post via Getty Images). (Jahi Chikwendiu/The Washington Post via Getty Images)

Schreiner also made it a point to speak out against states and colleges that were not offering the trans athlete a full scholarship when Schreiner wanted to transfer, in December. The athlete blamed laws in 25 states that prohibit trans athletes from competing with girls and women.

“Among all the hurdles transfers usually have, there is an extra layer because it is trans, 50% of the country banned me from participating and that meant I couldn’t attend any of those colleges even if they reached out to me with a full ride,” Schreiner said.

“It also became clear that states that did, no matter how adamant the coaches were to have me on their teams, the college administrations would usually stop them from allowing me to participate.”

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Jackson Thompson is a sports writer for Fox News Digital. He previously worked for ESPN and Business Insider. Jackson has covered the Super Bowl and NBA Finals, and has interviewed iconic figures Usain Bolt, Rob Gronkowski, Jerry Rice, Troy Aikman, Mike Trout, David Ortiz and Roger Clemens.

February 14, 2025
Trump executive order to block funds for schools with COVID vaccine mandates

President Donald Trump is expected to sign an executive order Friday barring schools who still have coronavirus vaccine mandates from receiving federal funds.

The order, according to a report from Breitbart confirmed by the White House, prohibits “federal funds from being used to support or subsidize an educational service agency, state education agency, local education agency, elementary school, secondary school, or institution of higher education that requires students to have received a COVID-19 vaccination to attend in-person education programs.”

It also tasks Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy and the Secretary of Education to establish guidelines for compliance and to “provide a plan to end coercive COVID-19 vaccine mandates.”

That includes coming up with a system to block federal funding to “educational entities” that have coronavirus vaccine mandates.

NO LONGER TAKEN ADVANTAGE OF: TRUMP SIGNS ORDER PRIORITIZING ‘UNIFIED’ US FOREIGN POLICY FRONT

President Donald Trump speaks to reporters in the Oval Office of the White House, where he signed an executive order, on Thursday, Feb. 13. (AP/Ben Curtis)

TRUMP ISSUES EXECUTIVE ORDERS ON RECIPROCAL TARIFFS

An executive order Trump signed in late January called a vaccine mandate for U.S. service members “unfair, overbroad, and [a] completely unnecessary burden.”

That order called to “make reinstatement available to all members of the military (active and reserve) who were discharged solely for refusal to receive the COVID-19 vaccine and who request to be reinstated.”

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The order said in August 2021, the Secretary of Defense “mandated that all service members receive the COVID-19 vaccine.” That mandate was rescinded in January 2023.

Trump also signed an executive order in January that removes federal funding from K-12 schools that teach critical race theory.

This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.

Greg Norman is a reporter at Fox News Digital.

February 14, 2025
Eagles star CJ Gardner-Johnson delivers crude message to Taylor Swift fans at Super Bowl parade

Philadelphia Eagles safety C.J. Gardner-Johnson might have had the final say in a back-and-forth with Taylor Swift fans.

Arriving in Philadelphia for the Eagles’ Super Bowl parade on Friday, the NFL player went on Instagram Live to show off his custom hoodie.

Philadelphia Eagles safety C.J. Gardner-Johnson celebrates after winning Super Bowl LIX at Caesars Superdome on Sunday. (Geoff Burke-Imagn Images)

The shirt, directed at loyal fans of the global pop star, read, “Swifties can LIX my b—s.”

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The dig at fans comes after Gardner-Johnson took aim at Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce and his relationship with Swift after the Eagles routed the Chiefs 40-22 in Super Bowl LIX on Sunday.

Gardner-Johnson took to Instagram and posted a photo of himself and Kelce on the field with a caption that read, “Should’ve stayed w that thick s***.”

The Instagram Story seemingly referenced Kelce’s ex, Kayla Nicole, in comparison to Swift.

Philadelphia Eagles safety C.J. Gardner-Johnson went on Instagram Live on Friday before the Super Bowl parade to show off his hoodie aimed at Taylor Swift fans. (ceedy.duce via Instagram)

NFL FANS INTERVENE AFTER RESTAURANT OWNED BY EAGLES’ CJ GARDNER-JOHNSON’S MOM HIT BY UNWARRANTED BAD REVIEWS

Swifties reacted by flooding Google and Yelp with poor reviews for a restaurant owned by Gardner-Johnson’s mom.

“I have friends who were sending me the screenshots,” Delatron Johnson told TMZ Sports. “They were going, ‘Oh my god, look at this!’ And the first thing everyone said was, ‘the Swifties have attacked.’”

Johnson said the restaurant that fans were spamming was her old restaurant, which is now closed.

Philadelphia Eagles safety C.J. Gardner-Johnson and Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce face off during Super Bowl LIX at Caesars Superdome in New Orleans on Sunday. (Gregory Shamus/Getty Images)

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The unfavorable reviews were later removed, and Yelp placed an “unusual activity alert” on the restaurant’s page which “temporarily disabled the posting of content.”

Some NFL fans tried to counter the negative reviews by posting good reviews of Johnson’s establishment.

Fox News’ Ryan Gaydos and Chantz Martin contributed to this report.

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February 14, 2025
Top Trump official teases 2026 bid for California governor if Harris jumps in race

One of President Donald Trump’s top aides is floating a potential bid for California governor if former Vice President Kamala Harris also runs.

Richard Grenell, a longtime Trump loyalist who is serving as U.S. envoy for special missions in the president’s second administration, ended a gaggle with reporters at the Munich Security Conference in Germany on Friday by teasing, “I’ll make a little news.”

Grenell then pointed to the 2026 race to succeed term-limited Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom of California.

“If Kamala Harris runs for governor, I believe that she has such baggage and hundreds of millions of dollars in educating the voters of how terrible she is, that it’s a new day in California and that the Republican actually has a shot,” Grenell said.

SOURCES TELL FOX NEWS THIS TRUMP SUPPORTING CALIFORNIA SHERIFF WILL RUN FOR GOVERNOR

Former Acting Director of National Intelligence Ric Grenell speaks on stage on the third day of the Republican National Convention at the Fiserv Forum on July 17, 2024, in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

There has been plenty of speculation since Harris’ defeat last November, regarding her next political move, with the two potential options likely being launching a 2026 gubernatorial run in her home state of California or seeking the presidency again in 2028.

Harris served as San Francisco district attorney and California attorney general and U.S. senator before becoming vice president.

MAJOR CALIFORNIA DEMOCRAT PREEDICTS FORMER VICE PRESIDENT KAMALA HARRIS WOULD CLEAR GUBERNATORIAL FIELD

Sources in the former vice president’s political orbit say no decisions have been made about any next steps.

The Democrats’ field for governor in the heavily blue-leaning state is already crowded.

Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris speaks during a campaign rally, Saturday, Nov. 2, 2024, at the PNC Music Pavilion in Charlotte, North Carolina. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)

Among the more than a half-dozen candidates already running for governor are Lt. Gov. Eleni Kounalakis, a Harris ally, and former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa.

Former Rep. Katie Porter, who unsuccessfully ran for the Democratic Senate nomination last year, has expressed interest in launching a campaign.

Former Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra, who served in Congress and as California attorney general before joining the Biden administration, is also seen as a potential contender.

But pundits predict that Harris could clear the Democrats’ field if she decides to launch a gubernatorial campaign.

It’s been nearly two decades since a Republican won statewide office in California. You have to go all the way back to former Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger’s 2006 re-election victory.

Grenell considered a run for California governor during the 2021 recall election that Newsom eventually ended up easily winning, but he ultimately decided against launching a campaign.

FILE – Then-former President Donald Trump speaks next to Richard Grenell during a presidential election campaign event at a farm in Smithton, Pa., on Sept. 23, 2024. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon, File)

Grenell served as ambassador to Germany and as acting director of national intelligence during Trump’s first term.

In his role as U.S. envoy for special missions in Trump’s second administration, he took part in a mission to Venezuela that led to the release of six hostages.

Grenell also joined the president in Los Angeles last month to survey the horrific wildfire damage in the area. Grenell, who along with Trump blasted state and local Democratic leaders for their performance handling the wildfire crisis, returned to Los Angeles last week as he accompanied EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin on a recovery tour.

Grenell isn’t the only California Republican considering or moving toward a gubernatorial campaign in 2026 in the race to succeed Newsom.

Sheriff Chad Bianco of Riverside County speaks during a news conference at the U.S. Capitol on May 15, 2024, in Washington, D.C. (Photo by Kent Nishimura/Getty Images)

Fox News confirmed earlier this week that Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco is planning to announce his candidacy at a scheduled event Monday in Riverside, California.

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And former Fox News Channel host and conservative commentator Steve Hilton is considering a Republican run for California governor.

In California, unlike most other states, the top two finishers in a primary, regardless of party affiliation, advance to the general election.

Fox News’ Kaitlin Sprague contributed to this report.

Paul Steinhauser is a politics reporter based in New Hampshire.

February 14, 2025
White House shares Valentine’s Day message but it has a Trump’s twist | World News

Donald Trump’s White House decided to skip the chocolates and love notes this Valentine’s Day, opting instead for a not-so-sweet message aimed at migrants.

In a post that could only be described as dystopian poetry, the official White House Instagram shared a Valentine’s Day rhyme alongside a picture of Trump and his border czar: “Roses are red, violets are blue, come here illegally and we’ll deport you.”

Happy Valentine’s Day ♥️ pic.twitter.com/6d7qmo7gtz

— The White House (@WhiteHouse) February 14, 2025

The White House shared the post with a simple “Happy Valentine’s Day” and an heart emoji, just as Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers wrapped up weeks of mass arrests.

More than 8,000 undocumented immigrants have been detained since his second term began on January 20, according to White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt. Some have already been deported, while others are being held in federal prisons or sent to Guantanamo Bay.

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But not everyone is on board. Resistance is coming from 13 sanctuary states—including California, New York, and Illinois—as well as 220 cities and counties that refuse to comply with Trump’s immigration policies.

His new border czar, Tom Homan, isn’t thrilled, warning that sanctuary policies are making enforcement “more difficult and more dangerous,” and suggesting more people will be caught in the crossfire “if they want to play that game.”

Well, nothing says romance quite like a deportation threat wrapped in a nursery rhyme.

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February 14, 2025
World Hippo Day 2025 Date and Aim: Know History and Significance of the Day That Highlights the Challenges Faced by Hippos in the Wild

Every year, World Hippo Day is celebrated across the globe on February 15 to raise awareness about hippopotamuses. The day also highlights the challenges hippos face in the wild and calls for their protection and conservation. Hippos are one of the largest land mammals, native to sub-Saharan Africa. They are famous for their semi-aquatic lifestyle, powerful build, and social behaviour. Despite their bulky appearance, hippos are excellent swimmers and spend most of their time in rivers and lakes to stay cool. This year, World Hippo Day 2025 falls on Saturday, February 15.

It is said that after elephants and rhinoceroses, the hippopotamus is the next largest land mammal on Earth. They live in rivers, lakes, and mangrove swamps. Despite their physical resemblance to pigs and other terrestrial even-toed ungulates, the closest living relatives of the hippopotamids are cetaceans, i.e. whales, dolphins, porpoises, etc., from which they diverged about 55 million years ago. In this article, let’s know more about World Hippo Day 2025 date and the significance of the annual event. February 2025 Holidays and Festivals Calendar: Get Full List of Major Events in the Second Month of the Year.

World Hippo Day 2025 Date

World Hippo Day 2025 falls on Saturday, February 15.

World Hippo Day Significance

World Hippo Day is an important event that highlights the need of conservation of hippos as they are classified as vulnerable due to habitat loss, poaching for their ivory-like teeth, and conflicts with humans. On this day, wildlife organisations around the world come together to raise awareness and educate the public, promote conservation efforts, and encourage sustainable practices that help protect hippos and their ecosystems. World Hippo Day serves as a great medium, to ensure a better future where hippos can thrive in their natural habitats.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Feb 14, 2025 11:33 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).

February 14, 2025
Murkowski, Sullivan, buck Trump, push to rename Mount McKinley, Denali

Following President Donald Trump’s move to change the name of the tallest mountain in North America to Mount McKinley, Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, has once again introduced a measure to designate the mountain as Denali.

Sen. Dan Sullivan, R-Alaska, is the original cosponsor.

“In Alaska, it’s Denali,” Murkowski, said, according to a press release.

TRUMP TO RENAME GULF OF MEXICO, MOUNT DENALI ON FIRST DAY IN OFFICE

Left: President Donald Trump arrives to speak with schoolteacher Marc Fogel, who had been detained in Russia, not pictured, in the Diplomatic Reception Room of the White House in Washington, D.C., on Tuesday, Feb. 11, 2025; Right: Sen. Lisa Murkowski speaks during the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Defense in Washington D.C., on May 11, 2023. (Left: Aaron Schwartz/CNP/Bloomberg via Getty Images; Right: Celal Gunes/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)

“Once you see it in person, and take in the majesty of its size and breathe in its cold air, you can understand why the Koyukon Athabascans referred to it as ‘The Great One.’ This isn’t a political issue – Alaskans from every walk of life have long been advocating for this mountain to be recognized by its true name. That’s why today I once again introduced legislation that would officially keep this mountain’s quintessential name, ‘Denali.’”

Trump issued an executive order on his first day in office to change the name of the mountain from Denali back to Mount McKinley, in honor of President William McKinley, who was assassinated in 1901.

“In 1917, the country officially honored President McKinley through the naming of North America’s highest peak. Yet after nearly a century, President Obama’s administration, in 2015, stripped the McKinley name from federal nomenclature, an affront to President McKinley’s life, his achievements, and his sacrifice,” the executive order declares.

MURKOWSKI AND CASSIDY ANNOUNCE THEY’LL VOTE TO CONFIRM TULSI GABBARD TO TRUMP CABINET POST

The Alaska Range with Mount McKinley and Wonder Lake with Tundra swans (Cygnus columbianus) in the fall, Denali National Park, Alaska (Arterra/Universal Images Group via Getty Images)

Trump’s order directed the Interior secretary to “reinstate the name ‘Mount McKinley.’”

“The Secretary shall subsequently update the Geographic Names Information System (GNIS) to reflect the renaming and reinstatement of Mount McKinley. The national park area surrounding Mount McKinley shall retain the name Denali National Park and Preserve,” the order states.

The same order also directed the Interior secretary to rename the Gulf of Mexico the Gulf of America.

GOOGLE MAPS, FAA OFFICIALLY ACKNOWLEDGES GULF OF AMERICA AFTER TRUMP DECLARATION: ‘ISN’T IT BEAUTIFUL?’

The controversy over the name of the continent’s tallest peak has persisted over the years, and Murkowski has been engaged in the debate for more than a decade.

She previously pushed measures regarding the mountain’s name several times in the past, including one in 2015 for which Sullivan was the original cosponsor.

Interior Sec. Sally Jewell issued an order to change the name from Mount McKinley to Denali in 2015 during President Barack Obama’s White House tenure.

“President Obama wants to change the name of Mt. McKinley to Denali after more than 100 years. Great insult to Ohio. I will change back!” Trump declared in an August 2015 tweet.

He asked about potentially changing the name while meeting with Murkowski and Sullivan, but the senators expressed their opposition, Sullivan, whose wife is Athabascan, recounted in 2017, according to adn.com.

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If “you change that name back now, she’s going to be really, really mad,” the senator said he told Trump, according to the report. “So he’s like, ‘all right, we won’t do that,’” Sullivan recalled.

Murkowski is one of the GOP senators who voted to convict Trump after the House impeached him in 2021 following the U.S. Capitol riot — but notably, the Senate vote, which was held after Trump had already departed from office, failed to clear the threshold necessary for conviction.

Alex Nitzberg is a writer for Fox News Digital.

February 14, 2025
Court blocks Biden admin’s airline fee transparency rule

Erin Witte, director of consumer protection for the Consumer Federation of America, explains why a federal court halted the airline junk fee transparency rule.

A rule that would have required the country’s biggest airlines to disclose any service fees – such as extra baggage charges or reservation change fees – was blocked by a federal appellate court, threatening its chances of taking effect.

The Department of Transportation (DOT), which argued that travelers were overpaying for their fares due to the so-called “junk fees,” claimed in a report that the rule would have saved consumers more than $500 million annually. In contrast, the trade group for the country’s largest airlines contended that there was nothing in the department’s findings that proved the rule would help consumers, even saying that it would interfere with airlines’ efforts to meet customer needs.

The United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit didn’t side with either argument. Instead, it ruled that the DOT “failed to fully comply with the requirements” under the Administrative Procedure Act, which governs the process by which federal agencies develop and issue regulations. The court still upheld the department’s right to impose such rules and instead sent the matter back to the DOT so airlines and others could comment on the cost savings that the department estimated would benefit passengers by making certain fees more transparent.

Under the Biden administration’s rule, airlines would be required to list out any fee associated with purchasing a ticket, otherwise known in the industry as “ancillary fees.” The DOT – then led by Pete Buttigieg – spent years fighting for this rule, claiming that airlines were pocketing billions of dollars from unexpected baggage, seating, change and cancelation fees. During Buttigieg’s tenure, the DOT issued more than $164 million in penalties against airlines for consumer protection violations.

EXPERT PUTS ONUS ON FAA FOR AMERICAN AIRLINES, HELICOPTER CRASH: ‘BAD MANAGEMENT’ IS ‘PUTTING US AT RISK’

Travelers gather with their luggage in the international terminal at Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) ahead of the July 4th holiday travel period on June 25, 2024, in Los Angeles, California. (Mario Tama/Getty Images / Viral Press)

Airlines for America, the trade group representing major U.S. carriers such as American Airlines, JetBlue and Alaska Airlines, was pleased with the ruling, saying the court recognized that the department “relied on information which the public and airlines were never given an opportunity to evaluate or comment on.”

The group argued that a lawful comment process would have revealed that the rule would “interfere with airlines’ longstanding efforts to meet customers’ needs.” It also said the carriers invest in user-friendly websites and apps that offer transparent pricing and that this “rule embodies regulatory overreach that would confuse consumers who would be inundated with information that would only serve to complicate the buying process.”

Erin Witte, director of Consumer Protection for the Consumer Federation of America, said that this wasn’t a “total win” for the airline industry.

“What they were actually seeking was to completely undo the DOT’s authority to ever issue rules based on unfair and deceptive conduct,” Witte said. “And the Fifth Circuit actually drew the line and said, ‘No, we’re not going to go that far.’”

While the court’s action could end up being the catalyst for killing the rule, she said it’s important to note that the court didn’t permanently block the rule, either.

This means the current administration could implement a similar rule, as long as the department follows the proper procedure. However, Witte isn’t confident that will happen.

Ryan Bourne, an economist at the Cato Institute, told FOX Business that he doubts this matter will be a priority for President Donald Trump, who launched a massive deregulation initiative upon taking office. Bourne isn’t in favor of the move, saying the “rule was always unnecessary red tape.” He also agreed with the airlines that the rule would only confuse passengers.

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Travelers wait to board a Boeing 737 Max 8 plane operated by United Airlines at Newark Liberty International Airport in Newark, New Jersey, on March 13, 2024. (Bing Guan/Bloomberg via Getty Images / Getty Images)

“Most passengers are sufficiently familiar with booking flights and know you can pay extra fees for services like checking bags or having flights you can cancel anytime,” he said. “To require airlines to state total bundled prices for all these services upfront would be confusing to customers and harm competition by misrepresenting the opportunities for low-cost travel on budget airlines.”

Bill McGee, senior fellow for Aviation at the American Economic Liberties Project, strongly criticized the argument that this would overburden consumers, calling it one of the “weakest” arguments he has ever seen. McGee argued that if airlines can quickly implement fees – sometimes overnight – then they should also be able to inform customers about them.

“There’s sticker shock in the airlines . . . that’s what this is all about,” McGee said. “It’s a really very simple premise. . . . Before you book, you should know your bottom line total price. And the airlines fight tooth and nail against that.”

Passengers and flight attendants aboard a flight from LaGuardia Airport bound for Kansas City International Airport on May 4, 2022, in Queens, New York. (Kent Nishimura / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images / Getty Images)

Witte also questioned the pushback from the airlines, given that the rule didn’t talk about an all-out ban on junk fees, either.

“It didn’t even prohibit airlines from charging them. I think that voters probably would have supported that kind of rule,” she said. “All the rule did was say, tell people, tell them upfront, make it easier for them to figure out how much it will cost for them to fly from A to B and bring a bag.”

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McGee still considers the ruling a “huge victory” as some people were concerned that the “court was going to say the DOT never had the authority to do this in the first place.”

February 14, 2025