President Donald Trump's administration has reached a deal to grant the Texas National Guard new authority to make immigration arrests this weekend.
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott referenced the deal on social media, saying it would "boost manpower for border security." Under the agreement, Texas National Guard troops would be able to arrest illegal immigrants so long as there is a U.S. immigration officer or Border Patrol agent present. U.S. Customs and Border Protection did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Fox News Digital.
Abbott said the deal was "effective immediately" as of Sunday night.
The deal is only the latest front in Trump's nationwide blitz against illegal immigration. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and other border security groups have leaned into their deportation efforts since Trump gained office.
Trump's 2024 campaign promised to curb illegal immigration that flourished under the Biden administration. The 47th President promised to deport migrants, including those who had long rap sheets or ties to gangs or terrorist organizations.
On the first day of his second term, Trump issued ten executive orders aimed at overhauling U.S. immigration law and policy. Less than a week back in the Oval Office, Trump touted that he is keeping his promises.
"Within hours of taking the oath of office, I declared a national emergency at our southern border. I sent active duty troops on the border to help repel the invasion. Tom Homan is leading the charge. You know that. We like Tom Homan. Doing a great job," Trump said at a recent rally.
"We immediately halted all illegal entry and began sending every border trespasser and violator back to the places from which they came. I signed an order that will designate the cartels as foreign terrorist organizations. It's a big deal, it's a big deal. Biden didn't want to do that," he added. "Biden didn't know he was alive. He didn't want to do it."
Federal officials deported some 7,300 illegal immigrants in the opening week of Trump's administration alone.
Fox News' Sarah Rumpf-Whitten contributed to this report
U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) workers were informed to stay out of USAID's D.C. headquarters on Monday, a notice disseminated to them indicated, according to the Associated Press.
Workers noted they tracked over 600 workers who reported getting locked out of the USAID computer systems overnight, according to the outlet, which also reported that people who remained in the system got emails stating that "at the direction of Agency leadership" the headquarters facility "will be closed to Agency personnel on Monday, Feb. 3."
Elon Musk, who is spearheading the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) effort, had said during an X spaces conversation that President Donald Trump agreed that the USAID should be shut down.
Amid a wave of early shakeups in the new administration, President Donald Trump has twice this month proposed "denuclearization" talks with U.S. adversaries.
"Tremendous amounts of money are being spent on nuclear, and the destructive capacity is something we don’t even want to talk about today, because you don’t want to hear it," Trump mused in remarks to the World Economic Forum at Davos, Switzerland, last week.
"I want to see if we can denuclearize, and I think it’s very possible," suggesting talks on the issue between the U.S., Russia and China.
Such an idea could represent a major thawing in U.S. relations with two global adversaries – but beg the question of whether the U.S. could trust the nations to hold up their end of the deal.
President Vladimir Putin announced Russia would suspend its participation in the New START treaty in 2023 over U.S. support for Ukraine. Russia had frequently been caught violating the terms of the deal. But China has never engaged in negotiations with the U.S. over arms reduction.
Trump reiterated to Fox News' Sean Hannity on Wednesday that he'd been close to a "denuclearization" deal with Russia during his first term.
"I was dealing with Putin about the denuclearization of Russia and the United States. And then we were going to bring China along on that one. I was very close to having a deal. I would have made a deal with Putin on that denuclearization. It's very dangerous and very expensive, and that would have been great, but we had a bad election that interrupted us."
The Defense Department now expects that China will have more than 1,000 nuclear warheads, a near-doubling of the estimated 600 they possess right now.
In a speech on Jan. 17, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said that "amid a ‘hybrid war’ waged by Washington against Russia, we aren’t seeing any basis, not only for any additional joint measures in the sphere of arms control and reduction of strategic risks, but for any discussion of strategic stability issues with the United States."
But Putin, in an address on Monday, struck a more diplomatic tone: "We see the statements by the newly elected president… about the desire to restore direct contacts with Russia. We also hear his statement about the need to do everything possible to prevent World War III. We, of course, welcome this attitude."
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun said of Trump's comments at a news conference on Wednesday: "China's development of nuclear weapons is a historic choice forced to be made. As a responsible major country, China is committed to the path of peaceful development and friendly cooperation with all countries in the world."
Experts argue Russia is using its leverage over nuclear arms control as a means for the U.S. agreeing to favorable terms to end the war with Ukraine.
"Russians are ‘me first’ painstaking negotiators, and what they're doing in this case, is they're clearly laying a bit of a trap," said John Erath of the Center for Arms Control and Non-proliferation.
"It makes sense dangling arms control, which they perceive as something that we want, in front of us and saying, ‘Oh, by the way, we'll talk about reducing nuclear weapons,’ as an incentive to get us to throw the Ukrainians under the bus."
But whether Trump was revealing a policy priority or speaking on a whim with the Davos comments is anyone’s guess.
The president took heat during his first term for meeting with North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un to discuss nuclear reduction. That effort fell apart, and Trump resorted to threatening to rain "fire and fury" on North Korea.
"I think he's very sensitive to the dangers of nuclear war, and realizes that in many ways, we're closer to that today than we have been in many, many decades," said George Beebe, a director at the Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft.
One thing most experts agree on is that the U.S. nuclear program is expensive and outdated. With some 3,700 warheads in its arsenal, the U.S. is expected to spend $756 billion to store and maintain its nuclear weapons between 2023 and 2032.
"Regardless of reductions, however, the administration and Congress must continue modernizing and ensuring the reliability of the U.S. nuclear arsenal while eliminating excessive spending where possible," said Andrea Stricker, deputy director at the Foundation for Defense of Democracy's nonproliferation program.
Arms experts admit that Russia has cheated on arms treaties, but U.S. intelligence capabilities have grown to ensure compliance.
"We've done it throughout the Cold War to varying degrees, and I think we've gotten better and more capable in our intelligence community of monitoring compliance with these sorts of things. So that is certainly a feasible approach to take," said Beebe.
But China and Russia aren’t the only U.S. adversaries with nuclear weapons. North Korea is estimated to have an arsenal of 50 nuclear warheads, Iran is on the precipice of enriching uranium to potent enough levels for a bomb.
"Before engaging in arms control talks, Washington needs a strategy for how it will simultaneously deter two peer nuclear competitors, Russia and China, which could combine forces with states like North Korea and Iran to attack or coerce the United States," said Stricker.
In the four decades between the U.S. atomic bombings of Japan in 1945 and the first arms control treaty between the U.S. and Russia, the world was on edge as the two superpowers raced to claim the world's largest arsenal. In 1987, Washington and Moscow signed the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty (INF), which led to the dismantling of thousands of bombs.
But over the years, the U.S. and Russia lost their monopoly on civilization-ending weapons: now nine countries are nuclear-armed, rendering bilateral treaties less and less effective.
The Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), which is led by tech billionaire Elon Musk, is taking aim at the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) and, according to senior congressional sources, moved to seize control of the independent agency over the weekend.
The senior congressional sources told Fox News that more than 50 senior USAID staff members were placed on administrative leave and subjected to a gag order, meaning they were not allowed to communicate with anyone outside the agency without approval.
Signs were also removed from USAID’s headquarters in the Ronald Reagan Building in Washington, D.C., and the DOGE team took over the computer systems, the sources said. USAID is responsible for distributing civilian foreign aid and development assistance to countries around the globe. The agency managed approximately $40 billion in appropriations last year, according to the Congressional Research Service.
On Sunday, the Associated Press reported that the Trump administration placed two top security chiefs at USAID on leave after refusing to turn over classified material in restricted areas to DOGE.
After initially being refused access to USAID’s classified information, DOGE eventually gained that access on Saturday, allowing them to see things like intelligence reports, a current and a former U.S. official told the AP.
The DOGE team members lacked high enough security clearance to access the information, so the two USAID security officials – John Voorhees and deputy Brian McGill – believed they were legally obligated to deny access.
On Sunday, Musk took aim at USAID on his social media platform X, writing, "USAID is a criminal organization. Time for it to die."
He also wrote several other posts about the agency, saying things like, "USAID was a viper’s nest of radical-left Marxists who hate America" and "USAID is evil."
The latter was in response to a post suggesting USAID helped fund coronavirus research in Wuhan, China, which referred to an interaction posted on Forbes between Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., and now former USAID Administrator Samantha Power in April 2023.
ABC News reported that those familiar with USAID were questioning whether the moves at USAID were being made in an effort to move the agency under the State Department, where there could be better accountability.
Last week, at least 56 USAID officials were placed on administrative leave with full pay and benefits, and several hundred contractors based in Washington and elsewhere were laid off.
The actions came after Secretary of State Marco Rubio, acting on Trump's executive order, paused all U.S. foreign assistance funded by or through the State Department and USAID.
The 90-day pause has halted thousands of U.S.-funded humanitarian, development and security programs worldwide and forced aid organizations to lay off hundreds of employees because they can't make payroll.
Fox News Digital’s Chris Pandolfo and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
President Donald Trump defended his recent tariffs against Canada, Mexico and China while speaking to reporters at Joint Base Andrews on Sunday night.
The tariffs, which were authorized in an executive order on Saturday, will go into effect Tuesday. Under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA), a 25% additional tariff will be levied on imports from Canada and Mexico and a 10% tariff on imports from China.
During his exchange with reporters, Trump accused Canada of being "abusive" towards the U.S.
"Canada has been very abusive of the United States for many years. They don't allow our banks," Trump claimed. "And you know that Canada does not allow banks to go in, if you think about it. That's pretty amazing if we have a U.S. bank. They don't allow them to go in."
"Canada has been very tough for oil on energy. They don't allow our farm products in, essentially. They don't allow a lot of things in. And we allow everything to come in as being a one way street.
Trump also said that the U.S. subsidizes Canada "by the tune of about $200 billion a year."
"And for what? What do we get out of it? We don't get anything out of it. I love the people of Canada. I disagree with the leadership of Canada and something is going to happen there."
President Donald Trump has a busy week planned to start February, including speeding through more confirmations for the president’s Cabinet picks.
Trump made good on his promise of new tariffs over the weekend, hitting Canada and Mexico with 25% duties and China with a 10% tariff over concerns about fentanyl and continued illegal immigration.
Those tariffs are expected to be fully in force by Tuesday and have already drawn retaliation from Canada, with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announcing a 25% tariff on some goods coming into the country from the U.S. on Sunday. Mexico, meanwhile, has also signaled a plan to impose tariffs on the U.S., though specific increases have yet to be announced.
The beginning of the week will also see the deadline pass for six senior FBI officials to retire, resign or be fired, according to a report by USA Today, making good on Trump’s plans to push aside leaders who were promoted by former FBI Director Christopher Wray.
Monday will also see the Senate vote on Trump’s pick for treasury secretary, Scott Bessent, as well as a vote to advance former Rep. Sean Duffy, R-Wis., Trump’s pick to serve as transportation secretary.
Tuesday will see Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu meet with Trump at the White House, the first meeting between the two leaders since Trump regained control of the Oval Office.
Robert F. Kennedy Jr., Trump’s pick to lead the Department of Health and Human Services, will appear before the Senate Committee on Finance on Wednesday, a day that will also see Howard Lutnick, Trump’s choice for commerce secretary, appear before the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, and former Sen. Kelly Loeffler, R-Ga., Trump’s choice to lead the Small Business Administration, will testify in front of the Senate Committee on Small Business.
Wednesday will also see the Senate Committee on the Judiciary vote on whether to send former Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi, Trump’s pick to lead the Department of Justice, to the full floor for a confirmation vote.
Thursday is the deadline for federal workers to decide whether they would prefer to return to work in the office or accept a buyout and severance package that would see them paid through the end of September, part of Trump’s plan to trim the federal workforce.
Thursday will also be a busy day for Trump Cabinet picks, with Kash Patel, Trump’s pick to lead the FBI, appearing before the Senate Judiciary Panel. Meanwhile, Kennedy will make an appearance in front of the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions, while former Rep. Tulsi Gabbard of Hawaii, Trump’s choice to be the director of national intelligence, will appear before the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence.
The Senate’s Budget panel will also vote whether to move Russ Vought, who Trump nominated to lead the Office of Management and Budget, to a vote on the full floor, while the Senate Foreign Relations Committee will decide whether to advance Rep. Elise Stefanik, R-N.Y., Trump’s choice for U.S. ambassador to the United Nations.
The busy week will see another highlight Friday when the Bureau of Labor Statistics' first monthly jobs report comes out since Trump took office, with the U.S. looking to hit 49 consecutive months of job gains.
Conservatives on social media are having a field day mocking the Democratic National Committee for featuring a handful of "beyond parody" moments during its leadership vote over the weekend, which critics say underscores that Democrats have "learned absolutely nothing" from their 2024 election losses.
The DNC voted to elect Minnestota Democrat Party leader Ken Martin as its chair on Saturday, after eight candidates vied to succeed Jaime Harrison. Following the Democratic Party's losses in November, when Republicans reclaimed the White House and Senate and retained control of the House, the DNC's chair vote serves as a fresh slate for the party as they ramp up strategies and fundraising for the next election cycle.
Conservatives and critics took to social media over the weekend to highlight what they viewed as the most out of touch speeches and comments from party leaders, including the election of left-wing activist David Hogg as one of its three co-chairs. Hogg is an outspoken gun control advocate and the co-founder of March for Our Lives, a gun control group that was formed after the Parkland school shooting in 2018.
"DNC Vice Chair David Hogg has some legitimately INSANE views that are wildly out of step with the American people. Good to see that the Democrat Party has learned absolutely nothing," conservative communicator Steve Guest posted to X.
Hogg, a Parkland school shooting survivor, said from the DNC vote in Maryland that the party will put Republicans "on the defense" in the coming days and reclaim lost political ground.
"After Parkland, our country was in a similar moment – where we had a Republican trifecta in Washington," the 24-year-old said during the DNC election. "We went on the offense, put the Republicans on the defense, and we won. That’s what we need to do right now."
"We’re going to show people that the reason people should vote for us isn’t just because we’re not Republicans – it’s because we’re damn Democrats. We give a s---," he pledged. "And we deliver. Now it’s time to rebuild the party and to rethink the way we’ve been doing things."
Amid the hours-long vote and gathering of Democrats on Saturday in Maryland, former DNC chief Harrison announced that the elections must be gender-balanced, including when a non-binary candidate is in the running, sparking condemnation from conservatives.
"We have an amazing group of new officers. So far, as you know, our three at large vice chair positions are used to ensure gender balance among seven offices: treasury secretary, national finance chair and vice chair for civic engagement and voter participation and the three at large vice chairs. Our rules specify that when we have a non-binary candidate or officer, the non-binary individual is counted as neither male nor female, and the remaining six offices must be gender balanced with the results of the previous four elections. Our elected officers are currently two male and two female. In order to be gender balanced… we must elect one male, one female, and one person of any gender."
Before the election kicked off on Saturday, the eight candidates had traveled to Georgetown University for a forum co-hosted by MSNBC on Thursday, where they declared "racism and misogyny" compounded former Vice President Kamala Harris' election loss.
"So, I’m going to have a show of hands. How many of you believe that racism and misogyny played a role in Vice President Harris’ defeat?" MSNBC's Jonathan Capehart asked the eight candidates.
"That’s good. You all passed," Capehart said after all candidates raised their hands in agreement.
Republican lawmakers and pundits pounced on clips of the exchange, including Sen. Tommy Tubervile, R-Ala., who quipped that the GOP will expand its majority in the midterms.
Singing also broke out both during the forum and the vote. Dr. Quintessa Hathaway was in the running for chair and belted out a song with the lyrics, "You fight on, when the government is doing you wrong, you fight on" during the Thursday forum. She also sang another song ahead of the vote on Saturday vowing, "We shall overcome."
DNC members also "acknowledged" during the vote that the U.S. was "built on indigenous lands."
Ken Martin, who previously slammed Trump as a "traitor" who should be prosecuted for treason, celebrated his win on Saturday, vowing to combat Trump and the Republican Party.
"We have one team, one team, the Democratic Party," Martin said following his victory. "The fight is for our values. The fight is for working people. The fight right now is against Donald Trump and the billionaires who bought this country."
"We need to go on offense," Martin said. "We're going to go out there and take this fight to Donald Trump and the Republicans."
New York Democratic lawmakers are working to keep Republican Rep. Elise Stefanik's House seat vacant until the summer in an unprecedented move hashed out during late-night discussions last week, a Republican Empire State assemblyman told Fox Digital.
"We still haven't seen the final proposal from the Democrats in Albany, but there's no doubt that Tammany Hall corruption is alive and well in the state capital," Republican New York Assemblyman Matt Slater, who represents the state's 94th district in areas of Putnam and Westchester counties, told Fox News Digital in an exclusive Zoom interview on Sunday morning.
"It is just blatantly corrupt for the New York State Democrats to keep changing the rules of engagement simply out of self-interest. Meanwhile, New Yorkers are struggling in so many different ways. U-Haul just gave us our worst migration rating ever because there's so many New Yorkers who are fleeing this state. So they can get things done, but they only do it when it benefits them," Slater continued.
Slater, who serves as the ranking Republican on the state's Election Law Committee, was reacting to state Democrats working to introduce legislation that could keep Stefanik's House seat vacant until June, when the state holds its scheduled primary elections. Stefanik is in the midst of her confirmation process to serve in the Trump administration and is expected to resign her House seat if the Senate confirms her as the next U.S. ambassador to the United Nations.
Under current law, New York's governor has 10 days to declare a special election for a vacant seat and an additional 80 to 90 days to hold the election. Stefanik's seat is key for the Republican Party and Trump's second administration, as Republicans hold a slim majority at 218 members to the Democrats' 215 members.
The state Democrats' anticipated legislation has not yet been introduced, but Democrats were summoned to an emergency conference on Friday evening to reportedly discuss such a bill, Slater explained. He expects to have a copy of the Democrats' bill on Monday morning.
Slater said the Democrats' objective of changing election laws to move the special election back to the summer is part of their bigger agenda to combat the second Trump administration.
"Speaker Johnson has the hardest job in government right now, trying to keep the Republican conference, caucus together. This obviously would make that margin of Republican control that much more thin and that much more challenging for the speaker and, again, jeopardizing President Trump's agenda to get through Congress. That's their entire mission and goal, the Albany Democrats, is to make sure that they're combating President Trump each step of the way. And this is their latest way of doing it," Slater said.
He pointed to a bevy of instances in which New York Democrats have leveraged their state power to combat Trump and the Republican Party in recent years, including gerrymandering and "stacking" New York's top court with Democrats.
"If you look at the track record of the Democrats, who control every aspect of state government here in New York, they have changed the rules so many times just because it benefits them. Whether it's redistricting, whether it's stacking the Court of Appeals, whether it's allowing the governor to remove her then-indicted lieutenant governor from the ballot. The list goes on and on," he said.
"And in this case, it will deprive 800,000 New Yorkers of proper representation in Washington. And oh by the way, there were two special elections last year. And the Democrats didn't say anything about changing the rules because fact of the matter is, these are Republican districts that will be impacted, and they are trying to disrupt the Trump administration and, frankly, Leader Johnson from being able to deliver on their agenda."
President Donald Trump nominated Stefanik to serve as the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations under his second administration. The Senate Foreign Relations Committee voted to advance the New York Republican's confirmation on Thursday, with her full Senate floor vote expected later this week.
Stefanik is expected to resign from the U.S. House to take the ambassadorship if and when the Senate officially confirms her nomination.
A spokesperson for Democrat New York Gov. Kathy Hochul told Gothamist that she "believes it’s critical to increase voter turnout and reduce the cost of election administration, and she would support legislation that achieves that goal."
Slater poured cold water on the office's claim that the proposal is rooted in promoting voter turnout and easing costs, pointing to two special elections held last year – former Democrat Rep. Brian Higgins' seat as well as the February 2024 special election to replace former Republican Rep. George Santos' in a district where Democrats were expected to have an edge over the GOP. Democrats, who have held trifecta control in the state since 2018, did not push to change special election laws last year, Slater noted.
"I can't believe how hypocritical the governor and her office can be in this, because let me remind the governor that she had two special elections for Congress last year," he said.
"To sit here and say that this is going to save taxpayer money and increase voter turnout, but you didn't think about that last year when your own party had special elections that you were favored to win? Fact of the matter is, this has everything to do with the fact that this is a Republican seat. This is about control of Republicans in Congress, and this is about disrupting President Trump's agenda in Washington."
Local outlets have reported the bill could push the special election beyond June to November, when the state holds its general elections, though Slater cast doubt that Democrats would push the envelope that far.
"If you want to talk about increasing voter turnout and saving taxpayer money, they really don't have an excuse to wait past that June date. And so, you know, yes, it's always a possibility that November is the date that they put in the legislation. But I'm hard-pressed to believe that they would go that far," he said.
Slater argued that the push from Democrats to approve the special election change is a wake-up call for New Yorkers.
"[It's] so transparently political that New Yorkers need to wake up, and they need to understand that this isn't the leadership that we're asking for. President Trump has a great agenda moving forward, and this is all about disrupting that agenda to put America first," he said.
Stefanik is a longtime Trump ally who chaired the House Republican Conference from 2021 to 2025, making her the fourth-most powerful Republican in the House. She was first elected to the House in blue New York in 2014 at age 30, making her the youngest woman elected to the House at the time.
Fox News Digital reached out to the governor's office on Sunday but did not immediately receive a reply.
Sen. John Fetterman, D-Pa., said the confirmation of Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to lead the Department of Health and Human Services is "not a slam dunk," as President Donald Trump's nominee works to shore up support.
In an appearance on "Fox News Sunday," Fetterman said he has met with Kennedy twice in his office and that whatever his decision ends up being on the HHS nominee, it will be "an informed view."
"I've invested a lot of time to really understand his background and to learn more about the man," Fetterman said, adding: "I approached with an open mind and I watched the hearing. And that's how the process works."
Asked if he's reached a decision on whether he'll vote "yay" or "nay" for Kennedy, Fetterman said he has spoken to colleagues on both sides regarding the matter.
"It's been challenging for sure. Absolutely. It's certainly not a slam dunk for the nomination," Fetterman told "Fox News Sunday" host Shannon Bream.
"I've made an investment to really understand and talk to all of the nominees, and I treated everyone with respect and I took the time to listen, and that's been part of my commitment," he added.
Kennedy, a lifelong Democrat who switched his presidential campaign against Biden to run as an Independent before ultimately dropping from the race to back Trump, made it through back-to-back grillings by the Senate Finance Committee on Wednesday and the Health Committee on Thursday. He still faces crucial committee and full Senate confirmation votes in his mission to lead 18 powerful federal agencies that oversee the nation's food and health.
Most of the tough questions and sparring over his stances on vaccines, abortion, Medicaid and other issues came from Democrats on the two committees, but Thursday's hearing ended with the top Republican on the Health panel saying he was "struggling" with Kennedy's nomination.
"Your past of undermining confidence in vaccines with unfounded or misleading arguments concerns me," Sen. Bill Cassidy, R-La., told the nominee.
The physician from Louisiana, who is a crucial vote and who has voiced concerns over Kennedy's past stance on vaccines, asked whether Kennedy can "be trusted to support the best public health." The senator told Kennedy, who seeks to lead key health agencies like the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the Food and Drug Administration, the National Institutes of Health and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, that "you may be hearing from me over the weekend."
Kennedy, whose outspoken views on the pharmaceutical and food industries have also sparked controversy, has said he aims to shift the focus of the agencies he would oversee toward promotion of a healthy lifestyle, including overhauling dietary guidelines, taking aim at ultra-processed foods and getting to the root causes of chronic diseases.
A strong pro-life advocate, Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., told "Fox News Sunday" that he is supporting Kennedy despite the nominee's past comments saying he supported codifying Roe v. Wade and abortion "even if it's full term."
"I am now OK to supporting RFK Jr. because I think during the course of the hearing he's committed to a Republican pro-life agenda, President Trump's pro-life agenda," Graham said when asked about those specific past remarks from Kennedy. "So I will take him at his word. I'm comfortable with what he said on the pro-life issue. He has been radically pro-choice as a person. But I do believe that as secretary, he will implement a pro-life agenda that will be pushed by President Trump. I will be a yes, but I'll also watch every move he makes."
Fox News' Paul Steinhauser contributed to this report.
Newly elected Democratic National Committee Vice Chair David Hogg has previously called on U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement to be abolished and for the defunding of police.
"Defund the police not USPS," Hogg, who first entered the national spotlight after surviving the 2018 Parkland, Florida, school shooting, said in an X post on Aug. 15, 2020.
"Abolish ICE," Hogg said in a different post two weeks earlier.
The posts, which were made more than two years after Hogg survived the Florida school shooting, came as he became increasingly involved in political activism, most notably by his staunch advocacy for stricter gun laws.
Now just 24 years old, Hogg took to social media early Sunday to celebrate his election to leadership within the DNC.
"I’ve just been elected as a Vice Chair of the DNC. I’m deeply grateful to the members for their trust and belief in me and I don’t take it lightly. Now it’s time to get to work," Hogg said in a post on X, going on to promise a "Democratic Party that is authentic, relatable, earns people's trust, and wins again."
"It’s time we stop surrendering, go on offense, and take the fight to Donald Trump and every single Republican who is gutting our rights, attacking workers, and rigging the system for the wealthy and well-connected," Hogg said.
But the elevation of Hogg to vice chair of the DNC also comes at a time of deep soul-searching for the Democratic Party, with many analysts blaming the party’s poor 2024 showing on its seemingly soft stances on crime and illegal immigration.
Nevertheless, Hogg called on the party to "rethink the way we've been doing things" in his post on X, arguing that it is vital "to rid our party of its judgmental attitudes, and do the work to win back every group we lost this year, from the working class to young people."
The DNC did not immediately respond to a Fox News Digital request for comment.
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