Politics

Hunter Biden was seen out and about with his family in Cape Town, South Africa, Friday amid Republicans’ investigation into an alleged ‘conspiracy’ related to his father’s cognitive decline as president. 

The embattled son of the former president toured Cape Town with his wife, Melissa Cohen Biden, and son, Beau Biden Jr., driving a rented Toyota sedan, a big change from the black Chevy Suburbans he was used to traveling in before President Donald Trump yanked his Secret Service detail. 

In March, Trump terminated Hunter Biden’s Secret Service detail after former President Joe Biden extended his son’s detail indefinitely. Typically, children of former presidents only enjoy Secret Service protection if they are 16 or younger.

Trump’s move to remove Hunter Biden’s detail came as the former president’s son was once again vacationing in South Africa.

Hunter Biden and his family were seen on the Sea Point Main Road, a main thoroughfare in a wealthy part of Cape Town, paying for parking and stopping into the local butcher. Based on the images, it is apparent Hunter no longer has the luxury of a Secret Service detail.

The new pictures also mark the first time Hunter Biden has been seen publicly since his father’s public cancer announcement.

Republicans are launching a new investigation into the alleged ‘conspiracy’ behind former President Joe Biden’s cognitive decline. 

Senstors Eric Schmitt, R-Mo., and John Cornyn, R-Texas, announced plans to hold a Senate Judiciary hearing June 18 to look into the alleged cover-up of the 82-year-old former president’s mental decline while in office by the media and those closest to him.

The lawmakers are still gathering witnesses for the probe, which would be the first full congressional committee hearing on the subject.

Fox News Digital’s Alex Miller contributed to this report.

A federal appeals court paused a lower ruling blocking President Donald Trump’s sweeping tariffs, siding with the administration Thursday in a legal fight over the White House’s use of an emergency law to enact punishing import taxes. 

The back-and-forth injected more volatility into markets this week after several weeks of relative calm, and court observers and economists told Fox News Digital they do not expect the dust to settle any time soon. 

Here’s what to know as this litigation continues to play out.

What’s happening now?

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit temporarily stayed a lower court ruling Thursday that blocked two of Trump’s sweeping tariffs from taking force.

The ruling paused a decision by the U.S. Court of International Trade (CIT) allowing Trump to continue to enact the 10% baseline tariff and the so-called ‘reciprocal tariffs’ that he announced April 2 under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, or IEEPA.

It came one day after the U.S. Court of International Trade ruled unanimously to block the tariffs.

Members of the three-judge panel who were appointed by Trump, former President Barack Obama and former President Ronald Reagan, ruled unanimously that Trump had overstepped his authority under IEEPA. They noted that, as commander in chief, Trump does not have ‘unbounded authority’ to impose tariffs under the emergency law. 

Now, lawyers for the Trump administration and the plaintiffs are tasked with complying with a fast schedule with deadlines in both courts. Plaintiffs have until 5 p.m. Monday to file their response to the Court of International Trade, according to Jeffrey Schwab, senior counsel and director of litigation of the Liberty Justice Center, which represents five small businesses that sued the administration. 

The Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit gave plaintiffs until Thursday to file a response to the stay and the Trump administration until June 9 to file a reply, Schwab told Fox News Digital in an interview. 

The goal is to move expeditiously, and lawyers for the plaintiffs told Fox News they plan to file briefs to both courts before the deadlines to mitigate harm to their clients.

‘Hopefully,’ Schwab said, the quick action will allow the courts to issue rulings ‘more quickly than they otherwise would.’

What’s at stake?

The Trump administration praised the stay as a victory.

The appellate court stay on the CIT ruling ‘is a positive development for America’s industries and workers,’ White House spokesman Kush Desai said in a statement.

‘The Trump administration remains committed to addressing our country’s national emergencies of drug trafficking and historic trade deficits with every legal authority conferred to the president in the Constitution and by Congress.’

But some economists warned that continuing to pursue the steep tariffs could backfire. 

The bottom line for the Trump administration ‘is that they need to get back to a place [where] they are using these huge reciprocal tariffs and all of that as a negotiating tactic,’ William Cline, an economist and senior fellow emeritus at the Peterson Institute for International Economics, said in an interview. 

Cline noted that this had been the framework laid out earlier by Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, who had embraced the tariffs as more of an opening salvo for future trade talks, including between the U.S. and China. 

‘I think the thing to keep in mind there is that Trump and Vance have this view that tariffs are beautiful because they will restore America’s Rust Belt jobs and that they’ll collect money while they’re doing it, which will contribute to fiscal growth,’ said Cline, the former deputy managing director and chief economist of the Institute of International Finance.

‘Those are both fantasies.’

What happens now?

Plaintiffs and the Trump administration wait. But whether that wait is a good or bad thing depends on who is asked.

Economists noted that the longer the court process takes, the more uncertainty is injected into markets. This could slow economic growth and hurt consumers. 

For the U.S. small business owners that have sued Trump over the tariffs, it could risk potentially irreparable harm.

‘Some of the harm has already taken place. And the longer it goes on, the worse it is,’ said Schwab. 

The White House said it will take its tariff fight to the Supreme Court if necessary. But it’s unclear if the high court would choose to take up the case.

The challenge comes at a time when Trump’s relationship with the judiciary has come under increasing strain, which could make the high court wary to take on such a politically charged case. 

Lawyers for the plaintiffs described the case as ‘very likely’ to be appealed to the Supreme Court, but it’s unclear whether it will move to review it.

‘It’s possible that because the case is before the Federal Circuit Court of Appeals, which essentially applies to the country, unlike specific appellate courts, which have certain districts, that the Supreme Court might be OK with whatever the Federal Circuit decides and then not take the case,’ Schwab said. 

For now, the burden of proof shifts to the government, which must convince the court it will suffer ‘irreparable harm’ if the injunction remains in place, a high legal standard the Trump administration must meet.

Beyond that, Schwab said, the court will weigh a balancing test. If both sides claim irreparable harm, the justices will ask, ‘Who is irreparably harmed more?

‘And I think it’s fair to say that our clients are going to be more irreparably harmed than the United States federal government. Because our clients might not exist, and the United States federal government is certainly going to exist.’

President Donald Trump wrote a fiery, lengthy post on social media Thursday night in response to the intense legal battle surrounding his proposed tariffs.

On Thursday, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit allowed Trump’s tariffs to temporarily remain in effect, just one day before the US. Court of International Trade on Wednesday ruled that Trump overstepped his authority over tariffs under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA).

On Truth Social, Trump wrote that the U.S. Court of International Trade ‘incredibly’ ruled against the ‘desperately needed’ tariffs, but the order was stayed by the federal court.

‘Where do these initial three Judges come from? How is it possible for them to have potentially done such damage to the United States of America?’ the Republican’s post read. ‘Is it purely a hatred of ‘TRUMP?’ What other reason could it be?’

Trump then took aim at Leonard Leo, a chairman on the Federalist Society’s board of directors. Trump said that he used the conservative legal organization to pick out judges when he was ‘new to Washington.’

‘It was suggested that I use The Federalist Society as a recommending source on Judges,’ Trump wrote. 

‘I did so, openly and freely, but then realized that they were under the thumb of a real ‘sleazebag’ named Leonard Leo, a bad person who, in his own way, probably hates America, and obviously has his own separate ambitions.’

Trump added that he was ‘so disappointed’ in the Federalist Society ‘because of the bad advice they gave me on numerous Judicial Nominations.’

‘This is something that cannot be forgotten!’ the Republican said. ‘With all of that being said, I am very proud of many of our picks, but very disappointed in others. They always must do what’s right for the Country!’

The president then rounded out his lengthy post by calling attention back to his pending tariffs, which he claimed would lead to a ‘rich, prosperous, and successful United States of America.’

‘The ruling by the U.S. Court of International Trade is so wrong, and so political!’ Trump said. ‘Hopefully, the Supreme Court will reverse this horrible, Country threatening decision, QUICKLY and DECISIVELY.’

‘The President of the United States must be allowed to protect America against those that are doing it Economic and Financial harm. Thank you for your attention to this matter!’

Fox News Digital’s Greg Wehner and Bill Mears contributed to this report.

Elon Musk is finishing his official role in the Trump administration, but if President Trump’s latest Truth Social post is any indication, the billionaire isn’t going far.

‘I am having a Press Conference tomorrow at 1:30 P.M. EST, with Elon Musk, at the Oval Office,’ Trump posted Thursday. ‘This will be his last day, but not really, because he will, always, be with us, helping all the way. Elon is terrific!’

Musk’s government service will end May 30, the legal 130-day limit for his ‘special government employee’ designation. He was appointed in January to head the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), created by executive order on Inauguration Day.

‘As my scheduled time as a Special Government Employee comes to an end, I would like to thank President @realDonaldTrump for the opportunity to reduce wasteful spending,’ Musk posted on X Wednesday. ‘The @DOGE mission will only strengthen over time as it becomes a way of life throughout the government.’

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt emphasized Thursday ‘the DOGE leaders are each and every member of the President’s Cabinet and the president himself, who is wholeheartedly committed to cutting waste, fraud and abuse from our government.’

And the cuts are adding up.

According to a May 26 update on DOGE’s website, the initiative has saved $175 billion through asset sales, contract cancellations, fraud payment crackdowns and other spending cuts. That translates to about $1,087 in savings per taxpayer.

DOGE’s reach has extended across the federal government, but not without pushback.

Democrats in Congress have sharply criticized Musk’s role. During a February House Oversight hearing, Rep. Melanie Stansbury, D-N.M., called his influence ‘reckless and illegal,’ accusing Trump of ‘outsourcing governing to a billionaire who answers to no one.’ 

Rep. Jasmine Crockett, D-Texas, warned Musk was acting as an ‘unelected official’ inside the executive branch.

Despite the criticism, markets are welcoming Musk’s return to the private sector. Bloomberg reported Tesla shares rose 4.2% this week on news of his government exit.

In an investor call earlier this month, Musk reassured shareholders, ‘Starting in June, I’ll be allocating far more time to Tesla and SpaceX now that the groundwork at DOGE is in place.’

The White House did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.

Fox News Digital’s Diana Stacy and Andrew Mark Miller contributed to this report.

House Republicans are mounting a push to start a new select committee focused on investigating the Biden administration for allegedly ‘covering up’ signs of the 82-year-old former president’s decline.

Rep. Buddy Carter, R-Ga., is introducing legislation Thursday that would establish a panel of congressional investigators to ‘investigate and report upon the facts of President Joseph Robinette Biden, Jr.’s cognitive and physical health decline and the potential concealment of information from the American public,’ according to bill text obtained by Fox News Digital.

As of Thursday morning, the resolution had four co-sponsors in addition to Carter: Reps. Mark Alford, R-Mo., John Rose, R-Tenn., Derrick Van Orden, R-Wis., and Barry Moore, R-Ala.

Republicans have unleashed a tidal wave of scrutiny on the previous Democrat White House as new reports – as well as old concerns previously dismissed by mainstream media – surface about Biden’s mental state while in office and what lengths those closest to him took to allegedly hide it from others. 

Carter’s text calls to investigate former Vice President Kamala Harris and former first lady Jill Biden as well as whoever took part in keeping the audio tapes of Special Counsel Robert Hur’s interview with Biden from the public.

The select committee would also focus on whether Biden allies ‘concealed’ his prostate cancer diagnosis before it was announced publicly last week. 

Biden’s spokesperson denied prior knowledge of the diagnosis in a statement to the New York Times.

The resolution also specifically called for a probe into the use of the autopen in Biden’s White House to sign meaningful legislation.

‘This is potentially the biggest political scandal of our lifetime, and the American people deserve to know the truth about who was really running the White House during Biden’s tenure as president,’ Carter told Fox News Digital of his legislation.

‘From using the autopen to pardon his own family members to likely concealing a cancer diagnosis, our government must restore trust with the public by fully investigating the former administration’s lies and getting to the bottom of one of the most consequential coverups in history.’

Carter, who is currently running for Senate in Georgia, was among several Republicans who demanded Biden take a cognitive test last year.

‘The American people can no longer be left to wonder about their safety and security because of the President’s deteriorating mental state,’ Carter wrote in a June 2024 letter to the White House.

His new resolution comes on the heels of House Oversight Committee Chair James Comer, R-Ky., opening his own investigation into revelations surrounding Biden’s cognitive decline.

Comer spent much of the last Congress investigating whether Biden and his family unjustly profited from foreign cash.

The House Oversight chair sent letters to former senior White House aides, including Biden’s doctor, Kevin O’Connor, announcing a probe into ‘the role of former senior Biden White House officials in possibly usurping authority from former President Joe Biden and the ramifications of a White House staff intent on hiding his rapidly worsening mental and physical faculties.’

Meanwhile, first-term Rep. Jimmy Patronis, R-Fla., called for a similar select committee on Wednesday.

House Republicans are celebrating Medicaid reform in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, which the House GOP says eliminates waste, fraud and abuse to deliver for Americans who need coverage most. 

Meanwhile, Democrats have railed against possible Medicaid cuts since President Donald Trump was elected in November. Now that his ‘big, beautiful bill’ has passed in the House of Representatives, Democrats are defining Medicaid cuts as a driving issue ahead of competitive midterm elections in 2026. 

Republicans say there is more to the story. 

‘The One, Big Beautiful Bill puts Americans first. We’re securing the border. We’re protecting benefits for the most vulnerable. We are investing in American manufacturing. We’re investing in our own energy production,’ Rep. Erin Houchin, R-Ind., told Fox News Digital in an exclusive interview. 

‘The Democrats have been focusing on this specific line of attack that 13.7 million Americans are going to lose their health care, and that’s just blatantly false.’

The Congressional Budget Office (CBO), a nonpartisan analysis for the U.S. Congress, estimates that 8.6 million people in the United States will lose health insurance by 2034 through the One Big Beautiful Bill Act’s Medicaid reform. 

‘Five million of those people are receiving a tax credit under the Affordable Care Act that was passed by the Democrats with a sunset date that was implemented by the Democrats. We’re simply allowing the sunset date to expire as the Democrats originally intended,’ Houchin said. 

CBO estimates that 13.7 million Americans will lose coverage by 2034, which also includes the 5 million Americans who were already set to lose coverage. A number of Democrats have already deployed the figure in campaign messages rejecting Trump’s ‘big, beautiful bill’ passing in the House.

‘I don’t trust the CBO score, nor should the American people, because it’s been proven again and again to be wildly off,’ added Houchin, who served on three major committees leading budget markup, including the House Rules, Budget and Energy and Commerce committees. 

The American Accountability Foundation, a conservative government research nonprofit, found that of the 32 staff members on CBO’s Health Analysis Division, 26 of them have ‘clearly’ verified liberal partisan biases, as a Democrat donor, registered Democrat or a Democratic primary voter, as Fox News Digital reported this month. 

The One Big Beautiful Bill Act does not cut Medicaid for the most vulnerable, according to Houchin. Instead, she says targeting waste, fraud and abuse in the Medicaid program cuts benefits to illegal immigrants, those ineligible to receive benefits who are currently receiving benefits, duplicate enrollees in one or more states and those who are able-bodied but are choosing not to work. 

‘If you have to think about the four things that we’re doing in Medicaid to strengthen it, we’re removing anybody that is illegal, ineligible or duplicate, and we’re ensuring that able-bodied adults, on the expansion population, have a very modest work requirement, in exchange for receiving benefits. Those things are overwhelmingly supported by the American people, yet the Democrats continue to lie about what this bill is actually doing,’ Houchin said. 

Republicans say they are cleaning up the program to ensure working families and the most vulnerable Americans can rely on the program for generations to come. 

‘What we’re trying to do is protect precious Medicaid dollars for those who need it most,’ Houchin said. ‘That’s what we’re doing. No one in the traditional Medicaid population needs to worry. And even if you’re in the able-body expansion population, there are many opportunities to comply to participate in Medicaid.’

However, Democrats have already designated Medicaid cuts as a defining issue in 2026. 

‘House Republicans’ giant tax scam will kick millions of people off their health insurance,’ Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC) spokesperson Viet Shelton told Fox News Digital. ‘It is fact. Independent analysts say it. Health care professionals say it. Hell, even Republican senators say so. Their saying anything to the contrary is just them trying to protect their already in danger majority.’

After weeks of negotiating through budget reconciliation, House Republicans finally reached a consensus and passed the One Big Beautiful Bill Act last week. The bill passed just 215 to 214, and all Democrats voted against it. Republicans’ slim majority managed to deliver a legislative win for Trump. 

However, the ‘big, beautiful’ fight is far from over as the Senate is tasked with drafting their own version of the bill. Senate Republicans have indicated they do not support the bill in its current form. 

‘I don’t want to see rural hospitals close their doors because funding got cut. I also don’t like the idea of a hidden tax on the working poor. That’s why I’m a NO on this House bill in its current form,’ Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., said. 

The sweeping, multitrillion-dollar legislation advances Trump’s agenda on taxes, immigration, energy, defense and the national debt. The bill includes Trump’s key campaign promises, including no tax on tips and overtime, and it seeks to permanently extend his 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. 

‘By passing the largest cut to Medicaid in history, Republicans are ripping away health care from millions of Americans and levying a de facto hidden tax on working-class families,’ DCCC Chair Suzan DelBene said in a statement after the bill passed. ‘Now that vulnerable Republicans are on the record voting for it, this betrayal of the American people will cost them their jobs in the midterms and Republicans the House Majority come 2026.’

While Democrats target vulnerable Republicans for supporting Medicaid reform in Trump’s ‘big, beautiful bill,’ Republicans are taking aim at Democrats for voting against the bill’s tax cuts.

‘House Democrats voted for the largest tax increase in generations while giving taxpayer-funded freebies to illegal immigrants. The NRCC will make sure voters don’t forget how they betrayed working families,’ National Republican Campaign Committee (NRCC) spokesman Mike Marinella said in a statement to Fox News Digital. 

As House members return to their home states and communicate with constituents during the congressional recess, the NRCC is encouraging House Republicans to go on the offense on Medicaid reform. 

‘We’re encouraging all of our caucus, our conference members to continue to communicate with the local and national media to reiterate what we know to be true about this One Big Beautiful Bill,’ Houchin said. 

‘It puts Americans first and will ensure that these programs will be around for the next generation, because we’re not wasting any tax dollars, any precious benefits on people who are illegal, ineligible, enrolled in multiple states or are able-bodied and could be working. These programs were designed for our most vulnerable Americans, and the One Big Beautiful Bill protects benefits for those people.’

Fox News Digital’s Elizabeth Elkind and Louis Casiano contributed to this report. 

The 2028 presidential election seems like a long way away, but in reality, the early moves are already underway by some Democrats with likely national ambitions.

And one Republican politician is already selling 2028 merchandise.

‘Trump 2028’ hats are available for $50 and T-shirts that read, ‘Trump 2028 (Re-write the Rules),’ sell for $36 on the Trump Organization’s website. 

But the rules are quite clear: The 22nd Amendment to the U.S. Constitution restricts presidents to two terms in office. 

And after months of flirting with running for a third term in the White House, President Donald Trump appears to be ruling out another campaign.

Despite touting strong support in the MAGA world for a 2028 run for re-election, the president in an interview this month on NBC News’ ‘Meet the Press’ said, ‘I’m not looking at that.’

‘I’ll be an eight-year president,’ Trump added. ‘I’ll be a two-term president. I always thought that was very important.’ 

But Trump’s 2028 flirtations, which he said weren’t a joke, and his sweeping moves since the start of his second tour of duty in the White House are keeping the spotlight firmly on him, averting any lame-duck talk and putting a damper on any early moves by those in the Republican Party hoping to succeed the president.

The race for the next GOP presidential nomination won’t get underway until Trump’s ready to share the spotlight, and he recently said it’s ‘far too early’ to begin holding those discussions.

But Trump also added, ‘I’m looking to have four great years and turn it over to somebody, ideally a great Republican, a great Republican to carry it forward.’

With that in mind, here’s a look at the potential 2028 Republican White House contenders.

Vice President JD Vance

Vice President JD Vance appears to be the heir apparent to the ‘America First’ movement and the Republican Party’s powerful MAGA base. It was a point driven home by Donald Trump Jr., the president’s eldest son, MAGA rockstar and powerful ally of the vice president.

‘We are getting four more years of Trump and then eight years of JD Vance,’ Trump Jr. said on the campaign trail in Ohio a few weeks ahead of the November 2024 election.

As sitting vice president, Vance enjoys plenty of perks that could boost him to frontrunner status. Among them, a large staff that comes with the job, and Air Force Two, which he has repeatedly used to make stops across the U.S. and the globe since the start of the second Trump administration.

And Vance is now finance chair of the Republican National Committee, the first sitting vice president to hold such a position with a national party committee. The posting puts Vance in frequent contact with the GOP’s top donors.

But while Trump has hinted that Vance could be his successor and called him ‘a fantastic, brilliant guy’ in the ‘Meet the Press’ interview, he has avoided anointing his vice president as the party’s next nominee.

Vance has taken no steps toward a 2028 presidential run and isn’t seriously thinking about it at this time, a source in the vice president’s political orbit told Fox News.

‘I really am just not focused on politics,’ Vance said in early April in a ‘Fox and Friends’ interview. ‘I’m not focused on the midterm elections in 2026, much less the presidential election in 2028. When we get to that point, I’ll talk to the president. We’ll figure out what we want to do.’ 

And the 40-year-old vice president added, ‘The way I think about it is, if we do a good job, the politics take care of themselves.’

Secretary of State Marco Rubio

In his ‘Meet the Press’ interview, besides Vance, Trump also named Secretary of State Marco Rubio as a ‘great’ potential GOP leader.

‘Marco’s doing an outstanding job,’ the president said.

Rubio, a one-time rival who clashed with Trump during the combustible 2016 Republican presidential nomination battle, became a leading Trump ally in the U.S. Senate during the president’s first term in office.

And besides serving as secretary of state, the 53-year-old former senator from Florida is also acting national security advisor, acting head of the National Archives and acting administrator of the U.S. Agency for International Development.

While Rubio’s expanding portfolio in the second Trump administration is fueling speculation about a potential 2028 presidential bid, he still faces skepticism from parts of MAGA world who question his ‘America First’ credentials.

Florida Gov Ron DeSantis

Conservative Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis was flying high after a landslide re-election in 2022, but an unsuccessful 2024 presidential primary run and a bruising battle with Trump knocked him down in stature.

However, the term-limited 46-year-old governor, who has a year and a half left in office steering Florida, proved in the past few years his fundraising prowess and retains plenty of supporters across the country.

DeSantis was also able, to a degree, to repair relations with Trump, helped raise money for the GOP ticket during the general election and earned a prime-time speaking slot at the 2024 Republican convention. And in December 2024, the governor was seen as a possible replacement when now-Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s nomination briefly faltered.

While DeSantis is certain to still harbor national ambitions, his feud this year with the Republican-dominated Florida legislature and the controversy over a charity tied to Florida first lady Casey DeSantis are seen as potential hurdles.

Virginia Gov Glenn Youngkin

Thanks to his 2021 gubernatorial victory, the first by a Republican in Virginia in a dozen years, Gov. Glenn Youngkin instantly became a GOP rising star.

In Virginia, governors are limited to one four-year term, which means Youngkin has seven months left in office.

The 58-year-old governor, who hails from the Republican Party’s business wing but has been able to thrive in a MAGA-dominated party, likely harbors national ambitions. 

And Youngkin’s trip to Iowa, the state that for a half century has kicked off the GOP’s presidential nominating calendar, in July to headline a state party fundraising gala is sparking 2028 speculation.

Asked in late 2024 in a Fox News Digital interview about a White House run, Youngkin pointed to his job as governor, saying, ‘I need to finish strong so Virginia can really continue to soar. And that’s what I’m going to spend my time on.’

After that, he said, ‘We’ll see what’s next.’

Georgia Gov Brian Kemp

The popular conservative governor is one of the few in the GOP who can claim he faced Trump’s wrath and not only survived, but thrived.

Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp, who is term-limited, has two years left in office and enjoys strong favorable ratings in a crucial battleground state.

Kemp was heavily recruited by national Republicans to run in 2026 to try and flip a Democrat-controlled Senate seat. And the announcement earlier in May by the 61-year-old governor that he would pass on a 2026 Senate run, fueled buzz that Kemp may instead be mulling a 2028 White House run.

Asked in November 2024 about a potential presidential run, Kemp told Fox News Digital, ‘I try to keep all doors open in politics.’

Sen Ted Cruz

Sen. Ted Cruz was the runner-up to Trump in the blockbuster 2016 Republican presidential battle.

The controversial conservative firebrand passed on challenging Trump again in 2024 as he ran for what was thought to be another difficult re-election bid after narrowly surviving his 2018 re-election.

However, the 54-year-old senator ended up winning a third six-year term in the Senate by nearly nine points.

Since the start of Trump’s second administration, Cruz has reaffirmed his conservative credentials by voicing opposition to the president’s controversial tariffs.

Honorable mentions

Among the others to keep an eye on is Nikki Haley. 

The former two-term South Carolina governor, who served as U.N. ambassador in Trump’s first term, was the first GOP challenger to jump into the race against the former president in the 2024 nomination race. 

Haley outlasted the rest of the field, becoming the final challenger to Trump before ending her White House bid in March 2024.

While the 53-year-old Haley ended up backing Trump in the general election, her earlier clashes with the president during the primaries left their mark. Even though she addressed the GOP faithful at the 2024 convention, her political future in a party dominated by Trump is uncertain.

Also, not to be discounted are three politicians who considered but passed on 2024 runs: Sens. Tom Cotton of Arkansas and Josh Hawley of Missouri and Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem.

And besides Haley, we’ll put three other 2024 candidates on the large list of possible 2028 contenders. Businessman Vivek Ramaswamy is the Republican frontrunner in the 2026 campaign for Ohio governor but likely still has strong national ambitions.

Interior Secretary Doug Burgum is a very visible player in Trump’s Cabinet.

And former Vice President Mike Pence, when asked earlier this month by Fox News Digital if he might consider another White House run, reiterated that he intends to ‘be a voice’ for traditional and conservative values and ‘we’ll let the future take care of itself.’

President Donald Trump is the first president since Ronald Reagan to run and get elected on a peace through strength platform. To date, the president has executed this vision by leveraging America’s forward presence across the Middle East and Asia — aircraft carriers, fighters and bombers, and a global network of American military installations — to project power and restore deterrence.  

The next challenge in realizing a peace through strength program is more fundamental: it will require addressing critical military vulnerabilities, including an overextended force, an industrial base at capacity, and severe readiness challenges.  

To his credit, the president has lived up to his security goals on a number of fronts. Just as he dismantled ISIS shortly after entering office in 2017, the president targeted the Houthis to cripple their ability to interfere with international shipping transiting the Red Sea. 

Operation Rough Rider, the largest air campaign since Trump’s operation against ISIS, went beyond President Joe Biden’s targeted pinprick attacks. U.S. airstrikes hit more than 800 targets and significantly reduced Houthi missile and drone launches. The president subsequently announced a ceasefire ending Houthi attacks on ships navigating Middle Eastern waters. 

As for Iran, the primary source of instability in the Middle East, the president’s maximum pressure campaign includes arming Israel and bolstering deterrence in the region, by deploying a second carrier strike group, a THAAD missile battery, Patriot missile battalions and B-2 bombers. 

In East Asia, the theater many Trump administration officials would like to prioritize, Trump has deployed anti-ship cruise missiles overlooking the critical waterways between the Philippines and Taiwan. It is the closest to the Chinese mainland that U.S. land-based cruise missiles have been deployed.  

Trump has also ordered two freedom of navigation missions through the Taiwan Strait. The second operation on April 23, China’s Navy Day, was a direct rebuke to Chinese claims over Taiwan. 

Now comes the harder part — addressing that trifecta of fundamental pressure points facing the military. 

In the Red Sea, the Navy has performed admirably in its longest surface engagement since World War II. However, a friendly fire incident, the loss of several drones and two F/A-18s, one falling overboard during an evasive maneuver and another due to a failed arrest, reveal the limitations of a historically small fleet that is overworked and highly exposed. 

Operations in the Middle East have also compromised readiness in Asia. In addition to air defense redeployments, the Pentagon may have to dip into stockpiles in Asia to replenish munition supplies in the Middle East. The shortage reveals a larger issue: transferring munitions gives up existing capability in Asia that won’t be replenished for years given the state of the industrial base.  

Industrial challenges affect every munition from JASSM-ERs to 155mm shells. For example, in 2023 the Pentagon bought 55 Tomahawk missiles, yet 68% of that annual purchase was expended in one single day against the Houthis. Each new Tomahawk faces a two-year lead time, underscoring the urgent need for industrial expansion.  

Trump’s application of peace through strength in the Western Hemisphere, while laudable, is adding new pressures to a force already at its breaking point. The USS Gravely, a destroyer that recently completed a nine-month tour in the Red Sea, was quickly redeployed to assist with border protection. 

Some of the strain can be addressed with smart policy choices, such as how U.S. forces are organized in Europe. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth recently ordered a major restructuring of the Army, replacing some armored and attack helicopter formations with drone swarms and precision munitions which have proven their worth in Ukraine. Hegseth’s 8% budget reallocation plan is another opportunity to reinvest low-priority budget items into next generation warfighting technology needed elsewhere. 

Unfortunately, there are signs that techno-optimism may be interfering with prudent budgeting: the administration requested a $893 billion base defense budget for FY26, well below the $1 trillion budget the administration promised which does not keep pace with inflation.  

As a percentage of GDP, the president’s budget would be the lowest since the Clinton years, when the U.S. cashed a peace dividend at the end of the Cold War. The administration will find it challenging to implement a peace through strength program with a shrinking defense budget that would fall short of providing the necessary resources to sustain a forward presence that provides the president with military options and negotiating leverage over adversaries.  

Fortunately, President Trump has congressional partners ready to pair his ambitious strategy with an ambitious buildup and budget. The chairs of the Armed Services Committees are determined to provide significant real growth to the president’s budget request, and the House reconciliation bill includes $150 billion for shipbuilding, Golden Dome, and other administration priorities.  

As Reagan warned in 1986, ‘blueprints alone don’t deter aggression. We have to translate our lead in the lab to a lead in the field. But when our budget is cut, we can’t do either.’  

Flanked by large ‘Peace through Strength’ banners at al-Udeid Air Base, a major staging area during the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, Trump recently declared that ‘America’s military will soon be bigger, better, stronger and more powerful than ever.’  

With the right budget and right focus, he has a historic opportunity to fulfill that promise and cement himself as a peace-through-strength president. As the president confronts an ascending axis of China, Russia and Iran, he can move beyond employing the tools of strength to rebuilding that strength and delivering a lasting peace. 

Michael Stanton is a research assistant at the Reagan Institute. 

U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. met with Argentine President Javier Milei on Tuesday at the Casa Rosada, where both leaders reaffirmed plans to withdraw their nations from the World Health Organization (WHO) and build a new international health framework.

The meeting brought together two strong-willed political outsiders. Milei, a libertarian economist known for cutting government spending, and Kennedy, a Trump-appointed health chief skeptical of pandemic-era mandates. Both promised to challenge what they call global overreach and politicized health policy.

Argentina officially confirmed its exit from the WHO during Kennedy’s visit, following Milei’s initial announcement in February. The move aligns with President Trump’s revived pledge to pull the U.S. out of the WHO as part of his ‘Make America Healthy Again’ (MAHA) agenda.

Milei’s government blasted the WHO for what it called a failed COVID response. ‘The WHO’s prescriptions do not work because they are not based on science but on political interests and bureaucratic structures that refuse to review their own mistakes,’ the government said, referring to the group’s lockdown strategy as a ‘caveman quarantine.’

Kennedy offered support, encouraging other countries to also exit the WHO in a recent address to the World Health Assembly. He has argued the organization is compromised by foreign governments and corporate interests, and that a fresh approach is needed.

After the meeting, Kennedy posted on X: ‘I had a wonderful meeting with President Milei about the mutual withdrawal of our nations from the WHO and the creation of an alternative international health system… free from totalitarian impulses, corruption, and political control.’

Both governments say the new alliance will prioritize real science, individual freedom, and national sovereignty, pushing back against what Milei’s team calls ‘interference’ from global agencies.

The meeting also highlighted shared philosophies between the two leaders. Milei took office vowing to slash Argentina’s massive public spending. He famously carried a chainsaw during his campaign to symbolize budget cuts—and has since followed through, cutting public salaries, halting state projects, and ending energy subsidies.

His tough measures have produced results: Argentina posted its first budget surplus in nearly 15 years and sharply reduced monthly inflation.

Kennedy’s MAHA campaign echoes Milei’s anti-establishment style, but in the health sector. The Trump administration’s health agenda has focused on rolling back federal overreach, enforcing science-based policy, and promoting transparency in public health.

Tuesday’s meeting marks a deeper alignment between Argentina and the current U.S. administration. Milei has welcomed top American officials in recent months and shown clear interest in building strong ties with Washington. Now, by joining the U.S. in rejecting the WHO, Milei becomes the first foreign leader to openly back Trump’s health sovereignty push.

The decision is a major departure from Argentina’s previous international partnerships and could signal a shift for other countries weighing similar moves. Both Milei and Kennedy have framed the initiative as the start of a more accountable and independent global health network.

Critics, including some in Argentina’s opposition, warn that leaving the WHO could limit access to funding and vaccines. Global health experts largely defend the WHO’s role, despite acknowledging its COVID missteps.

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.

U.S. President Donald Trump purported on Tuesday that Canada was ‘considering’ giving up its statehood in exchange for protection by the proposed ‘Golden Dome’ missile defense system at no cost, despite Canadian officials repeatedly stating that the country is not for sale.

‘I told Canada, which very much wants to be part of our fabulous Golden Dome System, that it will cost $61 Billion Dollars if they remain a separate, but unequal, Nation, but will cost ZERO DOLLARS if they become our cherished 51st State,’ Trump wrote on Truth Social.

‘They are considering the offer!’ he claimed.

Trump has threatened in recent months to annex Canada, an idea fiercely rebuked by Canadian officials and their citizens.

Canada’s Prime Minister Mark Carney, who secured an election win last month in part due to Canadians’ opposition to Trump’s wish to make the country part of the U.S., told Trump earlier this month that his country ‘won’t be for sale, ever.’

King Charles III, who is recognized as Canada’s sovereign, gave a speech before the Canadian Parliament on Tuesday in which he appeared to reject Trump’s idea of purchasing the North American country and making it the 51st U.S. state.

‘Canadians can give themselves far more than any foreign power on any continent can ever take away,’ he said. ‘And that, by staying true to Canadian values, Canada can build new alliances and a new economy that serves all Canadians.’

As for the ‘Golden Dome,’ Trump announced last week that the U.S. had officially selected the architecture for the missile defense system that would create a network of satellites to detect, track and potentially intercept incoming ballistic missiles.

The U.S. president said the project would cost $175 billion to build and that it was expected to be ‘fully operational’ within three years. He also said Canada would be included in its safety net.

‘Canada has called us, and they want to be a part of it. So we’ll be talking to them; they want to have protection also,’ Trump said at the time.

Carney’s office said last week that there were ‘active discussions’ between the U.S. and Canada on current and new security programs, including the ‘Golden Dome.’

‘Canadians gave the prime minister a strong mandate to negotiate a comprehensive new security and economic relationship with the United States,’ a spokesperson for Carney told BBC News.

‘To that end, the prime minister and his ministers are having wide-ranging and constructive discussions with their American counterparts. These discussions naturally include strengthening [North American Aerospace Defense Command] and related initiatives such as the Golden Dome,’ the spokesperson continued.