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DOGE committee member cautions Democrats over next ‘reckoning’ for federal agencies

Rep. Tim Burchett, R-Tenn., discuss the protests erupting nationwide from Democrats regarding Elon Musk’s DOGE budget cuts on ‘The Bottom Line.’

As the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) reportedly gets closer to accessing more integrated data from federal agencies, one of the congressional subcommittee members previewed a budget “reckoning” in the works.

“These alphabet agencies are getting ready to see a reckoning. And I’m glad that Donald J. Trump is doing it. All he’s doing is keeping his word,” Rep. Tim Burchett, R-Tenn., said on “The Bottom Line,” Monday.

White House principal deputy press secretary Harrison Fields recently told Fox News that DOGE will soon have access to an Internal Revenue Service (IRS) system that contains sensitive taxpayer information and account details.

The news comes just after a federal judge in Washington on Friday handed Elon Musk’s government efficiency team a win by declining a request to temporarily block it from accessing sensitive data from at least three federal agencies: the Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.

ELON MUSK’S D.O.G.E. PREPARES TO AUDIT U.S. GOLD RESERVES AT FORT KNOX AFTER URGING BY SEN. RAND PAUL

The Justice Department has also argued that DOGE personnel are “detailed” U.S. government employees who have access to the requested information under provisions of the Economy Act.

DOGE is ready to unleash a “reckoning” on certain federal agencies, according to congressional subcommittee Rep. Tim Burchett. (Getty Images)

“The IRS is… porous… and the IRS is angry,” Burchett said. “The reason they’re angry is they’re going to have to start showing up for work. You know, I’m a United States congressman, and it can take me up to six months to get a dadgum response from them. That is not acceptable.”

“And then when we find out the IRS employees are getting audited themselves, and they’ve delayed their audits, there’s a lot going on there,” he continued.

EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin weighs in on the Department of Government Efficiency and their latest move to cancel ‘wasteful’ contracts within the EPA.

The newly minted DOGE agency, a key promise of President Trump’s reelection campaign, is aggressively slashing government waste when it comes to government spending. It was created via executive order and is a temporary organization within the White House that will spend 18 months carrying out its mission.

DOGE has long claimed its ultimate goal of reducing the national debt by at least $2 trillion, and as part of its budget overhaul, recently carried out layoffs, mandatory return-to-office mandates for federal workers and even closed agencies completely, like the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID).

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O’Leary Ventures Chairman Kevin O’Leary discusses DOGE’s effort to cut government waste and fraud on ‘The Big Money Show.’

“It shows that every department is corrupt, and you’re going to see the money, where it flows back to, and it goes right out of the American taxpayer’s pocket into the back pocket of politicians in Washington,” Burchett claimed. “And you’re going to see congressmen, I hope it’s not on both sides of the aisle, but I’m afraid it will be because that’s who will start pitching a fit.”

“We’ve found them in the past, they’ve been funneling money into campaigns and things like that. And yet these so-called legacy media, which is in bed with these folks, has decided to turn a blind eye.”

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Fox News’ Hillary Vaughn, Stephen Sorace, Michael Dorgan, Breanne Deppisch and Jake Gibson contributed to this report.

February 18, 2025
Senate Judiciary Committee to vote on Kash Patel nomination for FBI director

The Senate Judiciary Committee is set to vote Thursday on whether to advance Kash Patel’s nomination for FBI director to the Senate floor after a fiery confirmation hearing last month.

The vote is scheduled for 9 a.m. ET. If Patel passes through committee, his nomination will be up for a full Senate vote.

Democrats had successfully delayed Patel’s committee vote last week in an effort to force the Trump nominee to testify a second time.

Sen. Charles Grassley, R-Iowa., said attempts by Judiciary ranking member Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., and others to force Patel to testify again were “baseless” as he already sat before the committee for more than five hours and disclosed “thousands of pages” of records to the panel, as well as nearly 150 pages of responses to lawmakers’ written questions.

PATEL CAMP DECRIES DURBIN ACCUSATIONS AS ‘POLITICALLY MOTIVATED’ ATTEMPT TO DERAIL FBI CONFIRMATION

Kash Patel appears before the Senate Judiciary Committee for his confirmation hearing at the Capitol, Jan. 30, 2025. (AP)

This week on the Senate floor, Durbin alleged that Patel was behind mass firings at the FBI. Durbin said he’d seen “highly credible” whistleblower reports indicating Patel had been “personally directing the ongoing purge of FBI employees prior to his Senate confirmation for the role.”

An aide to Patel denied Durbin’s claim, telling Fox News Digital the nominee flew home to Las Vegas after his confirmation hearing and has “been sitting there waiting for the process to play out.”

Patel, a vociferous opponent to the investigations into President Donald Trump and who was at the forefront of his 2020 election fraud claims, vowed during his confirmation hearing that he would not engage in political retribution.

However, the conservative firebrand was likely chosen for his desire to upend the agency.

In his 2023 book, “Government Gangsters,” he described the FBI as “a tool of surveillance and suppression of American citizens” and “one of the most cunning and powerful arms of the Deep State.”

Patel has said intelligence officials are “intent” on undermining the president, but he promised he would not go after agents who worked on the classified documents case against Trump.

4 OF THE BIGGEST CLASHES BETWEEN PATEL, SENATE DEMS AT HIS CONFIRMATION HEARING

If Patel passes through committee, his nomination will be up for a full Senate vote. (AP)

“There will be no politicization at the FBI,” Patel said. “There will be no retributive action.”

Additionally, in another message meant to assuage senators’ concerns, Patel said he did not find it feasible to require a warrant for intelligence agencies to surveil U.S. citizens suspected to be involved in national security matters, referring to Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA).

“Having a warrant requirement to go through that information in real time is just not comported with the requirement to protect American citizens,” Patel said. “It’s almost impossible to make that function and serve the national, no-fail mission.”

“Get a warrant” had become a rallying cry of right-wing conservatives worried about the privacy of U.S. citizens and almost derailed the reauthorization of the surveillance program entirely. Patel said the program has been misused, but he does not support making investigators go to court and plead their case before being able to wiretap any U.S. citizen.

Patel also seemed to break with Trump during the hearing on the pardons granted to 1,600 persons who had been prosecuted for their involvement in the Jan. 6 Capitol riot, particularly around those who engaged in violence and had their sentences commuted.

Kash Patel served as the acting Defense secretary’s chief of staff during President Donald Trump’s first administration. (White House)

“I have always rejected any violence against law enforcement,” Patel said. “I do not agree with the commutation of any sentence of any individual that committed violence against law enforcement.”

Patel held a number of national security roles during Trump’s first administration – chief of staff to acting Defense Secretary Chris Miller, senior advisor to the acting director of national intelligence, and National Security Council official.

FORMER TRUMP OFFICIALS REJECT WHISTLEBLOWER CLAIM THAT FBI DIRECTOR NOMINEE KASH PATEL BROKE HOSTAGE PROTOCOL

He worked as a senior aide on counterterrorism for former House Intelligence Chairman Devin Nunes, where he fought to declassify records he alleged would show the FBI’s application for a surveillance warrant for 2016 Trump campaign aide Carter Page was illegitimate, and served as a national security prosecutor in the Justice Department.

Patel’s public comments suggest he would refocus the FBI on law enforcement and away from involvement in any prosecutorial decisions.

Kash Patel promised to get the FBI back to its law enforcement mission. (FBI)

In a recent Wall Street Journal op-ed, he suggested his top two priorities were “let good cops be cops” and “transparency is essential.”

“If confirmed, I will focus on streamlining operations at headquarters while bolstering the presence of field agents across the nation. Collaboration with local law enforcement is crucial to fulfilling the FBI’s mission,” he said.

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Patel went on: “Members of Congress have hundreds of unanswered requests to the FBI. If confirmed, I will be a strong advocate for congressional oversight, ensuring that the FBI operates with the openness necessary to rebuild trust by simply replying to lawmakers.”

Fox News’ Breanne Depisch contributed to this report.

February 13, 2025
Tulsi Gabbard slated for confirmation vote after key committee triumph

President Donald Trump is on the cusp of seeing his 14th Cabinet member confirmed in former Democratic Rep. Tulsi Gabbard.

Gabbard is slated for a final Senate confirmation vote to be Trump’s director of national intelligence (DNI) after midnight in the early morning hours of Wednesday.

This is when the 30 hours of post-cloture debate expires on her nomination. Frequently, the debate between the cloture motion and the final vote is minimized in what’s referred to as a “time agreement” between Republicans and Democrats. But with the controversial nature of Gabbard’s nomination and ongoing frustrations with the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) and its government audit, no such agreement is expected.

NOEM, HEGSETH, BONDI PLEAD WITH CONGRESS FOR MORE BORDER FUNDING AMID LARGE-SCALE DEPORTATIONS

Gabbard is expected to be confirmed. (Getty Images)

Gabbard is expected to be confirmed and has already amassed support from hesitant Republicans who voted against Trump’s Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, requiring Vice President JD Vance to break the tie in the upper chamber.

Sens. Susan Collins, R-Maine, and Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, who are often considered the conference’s moderate members, have both already come out in support of Gabbard. Both lawmakers voted against confirming Hegseth.

LORI CHAVEZ-DEREMER: THE LITTLE-KNOWN TRUMP NOMINEE WHO MAY NEED TO RELY ON DEMS

Murkowski said she would back Gabbard after opposing Hegseth. (Jemal Countess/Getty Images for JDRF)

Collins is a member of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence and voted in favor of the nomination, helping advance it to the full Senate floor.

Gabbard also snagged the backing of key Sens. Bill Cassidy, R-La., and Todd Young, R-Ind., despite the latter being uncertain before the committee vote.

TRUMP NOMINEE TULSI GABBARD CLEARS LAST HURDLE, HEADS FOR FINAL CONFIRMATION VOTE

Sen. Young came out in support of Gabbard hours before the committee vote. (Reuters)

Young is also on the Intel Committee and ultimately voted to advance her to the floor, but only after some prodding and discussions with Chairman Tom Cotton, R-Ark., and Vance, who operated rigorous operations to ensure the nomination got through.

SCHUMER REVEALS DEM COUNTER-OFFENSIVE AGAINST TRUMP’S DOGE AUDIT

Tulsi Gabbard, nominee for director of national intelligence, and Edward Snowden (AP/Getty)

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Some concerns that followed Gabbard through her confirmation hearing were her past meeting with former Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, her previous FISA Section 702 stance and her past support for NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden.

But these worries were apparently quelled by her answers and the persuasive support of both Cotton and Vance.

Julia Johnson is a politics writer for Fox News Digital and Fox Business, leading coverage of the U.S. Senate. She was previously a politics reporter at the Washington Examiner.

Follow Julia’s reporting on X at @JuliaaJohnson_ and send tips to Julia.Johnson@fox.com.

February 11, 2025
Trans youth mental health psychiatrist resigns from NCAA committee after org complies with Trump order

Dr. Jack Turban, the director of the gender psychiatry program at the University of California, San Francisco, who specializes in the mental health of transgender youth, resigned from an NCAA committee on Friday after the organization complied with President Donald Trump’s executive order.

Trump signed an executive order to protect women’s sports. The order banned biological males from competing in women’s and girls’ sports. It gave the federal government authority to penalize federally funded entities that “deprive women and girls of faith athletic opportunities.”

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President Donald Trump signs an executive order barring transgender female athletes from competing in women’s or girls’ sporting events, in the East Room of the White House, Wednesday, Feb. 5, 2025. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

In response, the NCAA changed its trans-inclusion policy to ban transgender athletes from women’s sports altogether. Turban wrote a letter to NCAA president Charlie Baker announcing his resignation from the NCAA Committee on Competitive Safeguards and Medical Aspects of Sports (CSMAS).

“Unfortunately, your recent decision to issue a blanket ban on trans female participation in women’s sports does not align with medical or scientific consensus,” Turban’s letter read. “I cannot in good conscience participate in this kind of politicization of science and medicine at the expense of some of our most vulnerable student athletes.

“I am immensely grateful for my time with CSMAS and have been impressed by the academic and medical rigor the committee brings to ensuring competitive fairness and the safety of student athletes. I am particularly thankful to have had the opportunity to work with the other physician members of the committee. Their compassion and scientific expertise have been unparalleled.

TRUMP TOUTS EXECUTIVE ORDER KEEPING BIOLOGICAL MALES FROM WOMEN’S SPORTS

President Donald Trump speaks in the East Room of the White House, Wednesday, Feb. 5, 2025. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

“However, it is clear that your decision was based on politics and not science, as the CSMAS membership was not consulted prior to the decision.”

The NCAA announced the change a day after Trump signed the executive order.

“The NCAA is an organization made up of 1,100 colleges and universities in all 50 states that collectively enroll more than 530,000 student-athletes,” Baker said in a statement. “We strongly believe that clear, consistent, and uniform eligibility standards would best serve today’s student-athletes instead of a patchwork of conflicting state laws and court decisions. To that end, President Trump’s order provides a clear, national standard.

“The updated policy combined with these resources follows through on the NCAA’s constitutional commitment to deliver intercollegiate athletics competition and to protect, support and enhance the mental and physical health of student-athletes,” Baker said. “This national standard brings much needed clarity as we modernize college sports for today’s student-athletes.”

Trump’s executive order banned biological males from competing in women’s and girls’ sports. (Scott Taetsch/NCAA Photos via Getty Images)

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Turban added in an Instagram post, “I am sad to see the #NCAA politicize science and medicine at the expense of some of our most vulnerable student athletes.”

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Ryan Gaydos is a senior editor for Fox News Digital.

February 10, 2025
First on Fox: Senate GOP campaign committee looks to streamline operations to hold majority in 2026

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EXCLUSIVE: Republicans are showcasing their “team effort” as they aim to defend and expand their Senate majority in the 2026 midterm elections.

The National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC), the Senate GOP’s campaign arm, unveiled its new vice chair program as the panel held its annual winter meeting this past weekend in Palm Beach, Florida.

According to sources attending the event, who shared details first with Fox News Digital, the five vice chairs serving under NRSC Chair Sen. Tim Scott will operate as an informal board of directors, providing ideas, oversight and accountability as the committee works to expand its services and seeks to modernize and become more streamlined.

“We’re one team. President Donald J. Trump and Senate Republicans are united to deliver for the American people and protect our Senate majority. The team effort is stronger than ever thanks to this tremendous group of Vice Chairs who have stepped up to raise the resources and build the organization needed to win,” Scott said at the winter meeting.

SENATE REPUBLICANS JUMP OUT TO FAST START IN THIS KEY CAMPAIGN METRIC

President Donald Trump speaks at a dinner with Senate Republicans at Mar-a-Lago in Palm Beach, Florida, on Friday, Feb. 7, 2025. (AP Photo/Ben Curtis)

Scott was named NRSC chair for the 2026 cycle soon after Republicans, in November’s elections, flipped four seats from blue to red to win back control of the Senate and hold a 53-47 majority in the chamber.

The five vice chairs, previously announced by Scott, are Sens. Jim Banks of Indiana, Marsha Blackburn of Tennessee, Katie Britt of Alabama, Bernie Moreno of Ohio and Pete Ricketts of Nebraska.

TRUMP-BACKED 2024 GOP SENATE NOMINEE IN KEY BATTLEGROUND STATE MOVING TOWARDS ANOTHER RUN IN 2026

During a panel discussion this past weekend with Majority Whip Sen. John Barrasso of Wyoming, the vice chairs highlighted their pledge to help Scott protect incumbents facing difficult re-elections in the upcoming midterm elections, and to raise the resources needed to win.

“Each of these Vice Chairs contributes their unique experiences and passions to the fight to defend our incumbents, raise resources, and recruit top tier talent in the seats we want to flip,” Barasso emphasized.

National Republican Senatorial Committee vice chairs, from left to right, Sens. Bernie Moreno of Ohio, Jim Banks of Indiana, Marsha Blackburn of Tennessee, Pete Ricketts of Nebraska, and Katie Britt of Alabama, join Senate Majority Whip Sen. John Barrasso of Wyoming at a panel discussion at the NRSC winter meeting, in Palm Beach, Florida. (NRSC)

Among the vice chairs’ duties going forward are holding regular meetings to discuss and review NRSC budget items, fundraising progress and relevant political updates,

They also pledged to each raise $5 million for the committee, help with candidate recruitment and take part in a new incumbent protection program, in which each vice chair will be responsible for walking alongside four to five Senate Republicans up for re-election in 2026.

“Failure isn’t an option, and that’s why I am committed to this role – to making sure the NRSC wins in battleground states and keeps the Majority so we can continue working with President Trump to turn Promises Made into Promises Kept,” Britt said.

MEET THE REPUBLICAN SENATOR TASKED WITH DEFENDING THE GOP’S SENATE MAJORITY IN 2026

Blackburn emphasized that “I’m committed to working with our incumbents to develop aggressive new media strategies. We will deliver our message of prosperity and opportunity through as many platforms as possible and meet the American people where they are.”

Banks highlighted that “it’s critical we leverage every resource available to protect and expand our Senate majority. Senate Republicans and President Trump are unified. I’m ready to make sure we’re using every tool we have to win and continue delivering for the American people.”

Moreno stressed that “it’s essential we hold our majority in 2026 to ensure President Trump has allies for four full years in the Senate.”

Additionally, Ricketts pledged that the vice chairs “will ensure the NRSC has the resources necessary to protect and expand our majority.”

Senate Republicans enjoyed a very favorable map in the 2024 cycle as they won back control of the majority. An early read of the 2026 map shows they will continue to play offense in some states, but will be forced to play defense in others.

The GOP will target an open Democrat-held seat in battleground Michigan, where Sen. Gary Peters announced two weeks ago that he would not seek re-election in 2026. They will also target first-term Sen. Jon Ossoff in battleground Georgia and longtime Sen. Jeanne Shaheen in swing state New Hampshire.

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However, Democrats plan to go on offense in blue-leaning Maine, where GOP Sen. Susan Collins is up for re-election, as well as in battleground North Carolina, where Republican Sen. Thom Tillis is also up in 2026.

February 10, 2025
Hall of Fame voter says Eli Manning discussion was one of ‘most contentious’ ever among committee

Eli Manning came up short of Pro Football Hall of Fame induction on Thursday night, and as a matter of fact, he wasn’t particularly close.

Manning was not inside the top 10 of voting for this year’s class, which features just four players: Jared Allen, Eric Allen, Antonio Gates and Sterling Sharpe.

The New York Giants legend has been a polarizing figure for the Hall of Fame, even well before he retired. On the one hand, he was never an All-Pro or got an MVP vote. On the other hand, he’s responsible for two of the greatest Super Bowl drives of all time, and he ranks 11th all time in passing yards and touchdowns.

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Giants quarterback Eli Manning warms up as the New York Giants face the Dallas Cowboys at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, on Sunday, September 8, 2013. (Ron Jenkins/Fort Worth Star-Telegram/Tribune News Service via Getty Images)

So, when the committee met, Hall of Fame voter Gary Myers and another New York-based voter made their case, and Myers said the battles are hot.

“I’ve been on the committee for 15 years. Other than the Terrell Owens conversation that we had for three years, this was the most contentious discussion that I’ve been a part of,” Myers said Friday on ESPN New York’s “DiPietro and Rothenberg.”

“I knew there was going to be some anti-Eli sentiment . . . but I was really surprised at the amount of criticism and degrading his accomplishments that went on in that room.”

That criticism, Myers said, was apparent hypocrisy from the other voters.

“What they said, that the Giants defense won those two Super Bowls, but Eli was responsible for only having a .500 record. Voters wanted it both ways. They didn’t want to give Eli credit for beating the Patriots twice in the Super Bowl and having those two-minute drives. They wanted to put it all on the defense. But then, they wanted to say the reason he was 117-117 was because of him, not because it was a team game,” added Myers.

Eli Manning after being named MVP after Super Bowl XLVI in Indianapolis, February 5, 2012. (IMAGN)

HOW TO WATCH SUPER BOWL LIX BETWEEN CHIEFS, EAGLES STREAMED ON TUBI

“My point was, you can’t wait away the credit for the Super Bowls but put the blame of the record on him. . . . To make it seem like the Giants go into those games with a shutdown defense and that Eli was along for the ride, I thought was really wrong.”

Myers also pointed to the fact that Plaxico Burress, who caught the Super Bowl XLII winning touchdown, shot himself in the leg the following season while Big Blue was threatening to go back-to-back with an 11-1 start. They lost in the divisional round that year. He also tried to argue that the front office decisions later in Manning’s career were not beneficial to the quarterback at all.

“His career would’ve looked a lot more differently if he got more support from his teammates, and more importantly, his front office,” Myers quipped.

Myers said he compared Manning to Warren Moon and Dan Fouts, who went 102-101 and 86-84-1, respectively, with zero Super Bowl appearances (Moon never even made a conference title game) and worse counting stats than Manning, mostly across the board, yet were inducted on the first ballot.

“His numbers are superior, and throw in he won two Super Bowl MVPs . . . then what are we doing here?”

Super Bowl LIX will be streamed on Tubi. (Tubi)

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It will be tougher for Manning to get in next season. The new rules state that only five people can be elected per year. Drew Brees, Larry Fitzgerald, Jason Witten and other ex-stars are eligible next year, all while Manning will have to beat out finalists from this year, including Luke Keuchly and Adam Vinatieri.

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February 7, 2025
Dems delay Patel committee vote, deride Trump FBI pick as danger to US security

Democrats succeeded Thursday in delaying a committee vote to advance the confirmation of FBI director nominee Kash Patel until next week at least.

The vote, which was supposed to happen at 10:15 on Thursday, was pushed back after Senate Democrats demanded a second hearing from the Trump-aligned former Defense Department official.

In a statement Tuesday night, Grassley said attempts by top Judiciary Democrat Dick Durbin, Ill., and others to force Patel to testify again were “basesless” as he’d already sat before the committee for more than five hours and disclosed “thousands of pages” of records to the panel, as well as nearly 150 pages of responses to lawmakers’ written questions.

A committee vote on advancing the confirmation of FBI nominee Kash Patel has officially been delayed to next week. (AP)

This is a breaking news story. Check back for updates.

February 6, 2025
Dems delay Patel committee vote, ream Trump FBI pick as danger to US security

Democrats succeeded Thursday in delaying a committee vote to advance the confirmation of FBI director nominee Kash Patel until next week at least.

The vote, which was supposed to happen at 10:15 on Thursday, was pushed back after Senate Democrats demanded a second hearing from the Trump-aligned former Defense Department official.

In a statement Tuesday night, Grassley said attempts by top Judiciary Democrat Dick Durbin, Ill., and others to force Patel to testify again were “basesless” as he’d already sat before the committee for more than five hours and disclosed “thousands of pages” of records to the panel, as well as nearly 150 pages of responses to lawmakers’ written questions.

A committee vote on advancing the confirmation of FBI nominee Kash Patel has officially been delayed to next week. (AP)

This is a breaking news story. Check back for updates.

February 6, 2025
Trump’s trade representative pick to appear before Senate Finance Committee

President Donald Trump’s pick to serve as the next U.S. trade representative, Jamieson Greer, is slated to appear before the Senate Finance Committee on Thursday.

Greer, who previously served as the chief of staff to the trade representative during Trump’s first term, played a key role in implementing tariffs during Trump’s first administration, the president said when unveiling Greer’s nomination.

Specifically, Trump said Greer assisted with imposing tariffs on China and other nations and replacing the trade agreement with Canada and Mexico.

A lawyer and Air Force Judge Advocate General’s Corps veteran with one deployment to Iraq, Greer’s role as U.S. trade representative would require him to negotiate with foreign governments on trade deals and disputes and membership of international trade bodies like the World Trade Organization.

‘MAKING AMERICA EXPENSIVE AGAIN’: DEMS FIND A TAX THEY DON’T LIKE IN TRUMP TARIFFS

Jamieson Greer’s confirmation hearing comes just after President Donald Trump announced he would impose new tariffs on Mexico, Canada and China. Trump and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, right, came to a deal in which Trump agreed to push back tariffs on Canadian goods by one month. (Frank Augstein/Associated Press)

Greer’s confirmation hearing comes just after Trump announced he would impose new tariffs on Mexico, Canada and China.

The White House announced Friday that in response to an “invasion of illegal fentanyl” to the U.S., it would impose a 25% tariff on all goods entering the United States from Mexico and Canada, a 10% tariff on Canadian energy and a 10% tariff on all goods entering the U.S. from China.

Tariffs against China went into effect Tuesday, although Trump agreed to push back tariffs against Mexico and Canada by at least one month after discussions with each respective country about securing the border.

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While Trump acknowledged on Friday the tariffs might result in “temporary, short-term disruption,” Democrats claim American taxpayers will end up hurting and paying the price.

According to one Washington think tank, the nonpartisan Peterson Institute for International Economics, these rounds of tariffs are expected to cost U.S. households roughly $1,200 a year annually.

Fox News’ Louis Casiano contributed to this report.

Diana Stancy is a politics reporter with Fox News Digital covering the White House.

February 6, 2025
House committee holding hearing on regulatory policy’s impact on LA fires

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A subcommittee of the U.S. House of Representatives will hold a hearing on Thursday on how regulatory policy impacts the prevention of natural disasters, with a focus on the deadly wildfires that ravaged Southern California last month.

The GOP-led House Judiciary Subcommittee on the Administrative State, Regulatory Reform and Antitrust will kick off the hearing, titled “California Fires and the Consequences of Overregulation,” at 10 a.m. on Thursday.

Not only will the hearing examine how regulatory policy in the Golden State has affected the prevention of natural disasters, specifically wildfires, it will also address how “excessive regulation” on insurance and permitting slows down recovery.

Days after the fires began, California Gov. Gavin Newsom suspended regulations related to rebuilding, waiving permitting requirements based on the California Coastal Act and the California Environmental Quality Act to allow for a quicker rebuilding process.

CALIFORNIA GOV. NEWSOM TO SEEK MORE FEDERAL FUNDS FOR LA FIRE RECOVERY DURING DC MEETING WITH TRUMP

Firefighters work from a deck as the Palisades Fire burns a beachfront property in Malibu, California, Jan. 8, 2025. (AP Photo/Etienne Laurent)

In the wake of the fires, a March 2024 announcement from California’s largest private insurer, State Farm, stating that it was discontinuing coverage for 72,000 home and apartment policies resurfaced, generating backlash and questions surrounding the accessibility of insurance in that area specifically.

The insurer said a letter sent to the California Department of Insurance (CDI) shortly after that announcement was an “alarm signaling the grave need for rapid and transformational action.”

Now, State Farm is asking the CDI to “immediately approve” a 22% rate increase for non-tenant homeowners, a 15% increase for renters and condo owners, and 38% for rental dwellings.

Smoke from the Palisades Fire rises over residences in Mandeville Canyon Saturday, Jan. 11, 2025, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

ESSENTIAL PHONE NUMBERS FOR LOS ANGELES-AREA RESIDENTS AND HOW YOU CAN HELP THEM

The increased rates are to help “avert a dire situation,” State Farm said, and would go into effect on May 1, 2025.

“As of February 1st, State Farm General (Fire only) has received more than 8,700 claims and has already paid more than $1 billion to customers,” the insurer wrote in a release on its website. “State Farm General will ultimately pay out significantly more, as collectively these fires will be the costliest disasters in the history of State Farm General.”

An aerial photo shows multiple charred homes after the Eaton Fire in Altadena, California, on Jan. 30, 2025. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

KELSEY GRAMMER SAYS CALIFORNIA LAWMAKERS ‘TOOK THEIR EYE OFF THE BALL’ IN WILDFIRES CATASTROPHE

The hearing comes a day after Newsom traveled to Washington, D.C., to meet with President Donald Trump and Congressional members in efforts to secure more federal funding for wildfire recovery.

The Secretary of the California Natural Resources Agency, Wade Crowfoot, who oversees water and fire policy across the state, also attended the meeting.

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Witnesses at the hearing include Steve Hilton, founder of Golden Together; Steven Greenhut, R Street Institute resident senior fellow and western region director; and Edward Ring, who oversees Water and Energy Policy at the California Policy Center.

Fox Business’ Rachel Wolf contributed to this report.

February 6, 2025