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Biden admin moves to reinstate Trump-era rule, delist gray wolves from endangered species list

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Biden admin moves to reinstate Trump-era rule, delist gray wolves from endangered species list

The Biden administration is moving to reinstate a Trump-era rule that lifted endangered species protections on gray wolves in the U.S.

Wolves were delisted from the Endangered Species Act (ESA) under President Trump in 2020, returning management of gray wolf populations to state and tribal wildlife professionals, according to a press release from the Department of Interior.

However, a federal judge reversed Trump’s decision in 2022 after environmental groups sued the Department of the Interior over the delisting, reinstating protection for the species.

Gray wolves are currently protected under the ESA as “threatened” in Minnesota and “endangered” in the remaining states, except for those in the Northern Rocky Mountain region, according to U.S. Fish and Wildlife Services. However, a new filing by the Biden administration suggests that the Trump-era ruling should be reinstated.

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Stebbins, a gray wolf in the exhibit pack at the Minnesota Zoo, walks through their snow-filled enclosure on March 15, 2022 in Apple Valley, Minnesota. (Anthony Souffle/Getty Images)

Attorneys with the Justice Department filed a motion with the 9th U.S. District Court of Appeals on Friday to reverse the court’s decision on the Trump-era delisting and lift ESA protections on gray wolves.

WASHINGTON OFFICIALS WILL VOTE TO REMOVE GRAY WOLF FROM ENDANGERED SPECIES LIST

The filing with the U.S. Court of Appeals in San Francisco claimed that the court was wrong in overturning the Trump-era ruling on the species. 

“The district court misunderstood the ESA’s clear mandate and compounded that error by imposing its own views of the science,” court documents read. “Its decision invalidating the rule should be reversed.”

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Biden giving remarks

The Biden administration is moving to reinstate a Trump-era rule that lifted endangered species protections on gray wolves in the U.S. (Yuri Gripas/Abaca/Bloomberg )

The Biden administration claimed in its 87-page filing that gray wolves no longer meet ESA standards of protection in that they are no longer considered “endangered” or “threatened.”

Court documents referenced the 2020 ruling from Trump’s Department of Interior Fish and Wildlife Service that delisted the wolf species.

“After that thorough analysis, the Service concluded that no configuration of gray wolves was threatened or endangered in all or a significant portion of its range. That analysis was well-reasoned and well-supported by the administrative record,” the brief reads.

The move comes just months after a group of 20 House Republicans sent a letter to U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) Director Martha Williams, urging the Biden administration to remove protections for the gray wolf, citing sometimes life-threatening conflicts with ranchers and farmers.

Wolves were delisted from the Endangered Species Act under President Trump in 2020.

Wolves were delisted from the Endangered Species Act under President Trump in 2020. (Alex Brandon/AP Newsroom)

In February, FWS rejected requests from conservation groups to restore protection for gray wolves across the Northern Rocky Mountain region. 

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Most recently, a bipartisan group of House lawmakers passed legislation in April to end federal protection for gray wolves and remove them from the endangered species list. 

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Obama makes TikTok appearances to push for voter registration: report

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Obama makes TikTok appearances to push for voter registration: report

Former President Obama will make appearances on TikTok to push for voter registration, a report says. 

As part of a broader Democratic initiative to reach approximately 30 million potential voters through non-traditional means on National Voter Registration Day, Obama conducted a series of interviews with 25-year-old TikTok influencer and non-profit director Carlos Espina for TikTok, Axios reported. 

Espina, who has 10.5 million followers on the Chinese-owned platform, has made appearances with President Biden and Vice President Harris on the app in recent months. Playing into the traditional Democratic advantage among young Americans under 30, Obama is trying to move the dial for Harris in encouraging TikTok viewers to visit IWillVote.com, register and make a plan for Election Day. 

The Harris-Walz campaign is also planning to target young Americans with voter registration initiatives online and on campuses in key battleground states for National Voter Registration Day, Axios reported. 

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Barack Obama poses for a selfie during the Friday Four Ball of the first round of the 2024 Solheim Cup on Sept.13, 2024, in Gainesville, Virginia.  (Brian Spurlock/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

The Biden campaign and the Harris campaign afterward have called on Obama in the past to help raise money among wealthy donors and small-donor party activists. The Harris campaign also pulled a portion of Obama’s speech at the Democratic National Convention during which he used a suggestive hand gesture while discussing former President Trump’s “crowd sizes” to use in a recent campaign video. 

The voter registration push comes a day after attorneys for TikTok faced off with the U.S. government in federal court in Washington, D.C., arguing a law that could ban the platform in a few short months is unconstitutional, while the Justice Department said the app needed to eliminate a national security risk. 

Attorneys for both sides – and content creators – were pressed on their best arguments for and against the law that forces TikTok and its China-based parent company ByteDance to break ties by mid-January or lose one of their biggest markets in the world. 

TikTok building in California

The TikTok Inc. building is seen in Culver City, Calif., on March 17, 2023.  (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes, File)

Biden signed the measure in April as the culmination of a years-long saga in Washington over the short-form video-sharing app, which the U.S. government has said is collecting vast swaths of user data, including sensitive information on viewing habits, that could fall into the hands of the Chinese government. 

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BIDEN CAMPAIGN TO STAY ON TIKTOK EVEN AFTER PRESIDENT SIGNS LAW TO FORCE SALE OR BAN APP IN US

Officials have also warned the proprietary algorithm that fuels what users see on the app is vulnerable to manipulation by Chinese authorities, who can use it to shape content in a way that is difficult to detect.

Obama smiles on DNC stage

Barack Obama speaks during the Democratic National Convention (DNC) at the United Center in Chicago, Illinois, on Tuesday, Aug. 20, 2024.  (Victor J. Blue/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

Trump, who first raised national security concerns about TikTok in 2020, warned allies in March that now banning the platform would benefit Meta-owned Facebook, which Trump has claimed hampered his 2020 re-election bid.

Biden’s campaign joined TikTok in February with a Superbowl-themed video. After Biden discontinued his re-election campaign in July, Harris took to TikTok stating, “Thought I would get on here myself.” 

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Trump joined TikTok in June with a video showing him waving to fans at an Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) fight in Newark, New Jersey. UFC CEO Dana White declared “the president is now on TikTok,” to which Trump replied, “It’s my honor,” as the song “American Bad A–” by Kid Rock played. 

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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Judge orders deportation of 'migrant influencer' who bragged about handouts, encouraged squatting: report

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Judge orders deportation of 'migrant influencer' who bragged about handouts, encouraged squatting: report

The illegal migrant from Venezuela who went viral on social media for mocking America and encouraging squatting has been ordered to leave the U.S., according to an exclusive report by the New York Post.

Homeland Security sources told the Post that an Ohio-based judge ordered Leonel Moreno, 27, to be deported from the country on September 9.

Moreno was initially arrested in March for not showing up to required check-ins with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). He had illegally crossed into Eagle Pass, Texas, on April 23, 2022.

Whether or not Moreno will actually be deported is up in the air, according to the Post. Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro’s administration recently stopped accepting flights of migrants, complicating the deportation process.

VENEZUELAN ‘MIGRANT INFLUENCER’ WHO ENCOURAGED SQUATTING UNDER INVESTIGATION FOR GUN CHARGES: REPORT

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Leonel Moreno was reportedly ordered to be deported earlier in September. (@Leitooficial_26/Instagram / iStock)

Moreno became infamous earlier in 2024 because of his inflammatory TikTok videos. In one clip, he flaunted a stack of cash and bragged about not working. He also also made fun of migrants who work in landscaping, construction and cleaning.

“I didn’t cross the Rio Grande to work like a slave,” Moreno reportedly said in Spanish. “I came to the U.S. to mark my territory.”

Moreno also claimed that he made $1,000 a week on TikTok, in addition to his family being given $350 a week in government handouts. He also encouraged fellow migrants to squat in abandoned homes, according to TikTok screenshots.

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Split images of Moreno's TikTok

Leonel Moreno speaks to his followers in a combination of still images taken from video. (@Leitooficial_26/Instagram)

After his TikTok account – which amassed over half a million followers – was removed earlier this year, Moreno bragged about the amount of money he earned on Facebook and Instagram.

“Yes, they closed my TikTok account, but I keep earning on Facebook and on Instagram,” the migrant reportedly said in Spanish. “I won’t earn the same, but I am going to get my TikTok account back. I am going to keep earning money.”

Moreno speaking to camera

Venezuelan TikToker Leonel Moreno urged illegal immigrants to take over abandoned homes and invoke squatters’ rights. (TikTok/Screenshot/Leonel Moreno)

Fox News Digital reached out to ICE for additional information.

Fox News Digital’s Stepheny Price contributed to this report.

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Video: Video Shows Arrest of Suspect in Trump Assassination Attempt

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Video: Video Shows Arrest of Suspect in Trump Assassination Attempt

new video loaded: Video Shows Arrest of Suspect in Trump Assassination Attempt

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Video Shows Arrest of Suspect in Trump Assassination Attempt

The Martin County Sheriff’s Office released body camera footage of the arrest of Ryan Wesley Routh, the man suspected of trying to kill the former president at Trump International Golf Club in West Palm Beach, Fla.

“Driver, take two steps to your right. Take two steps to your right.” “Come back.” “Driver — walk straight back. Keep walking.”

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