Politics
Biden's bogus college claim is just latest in decades-long pattern of embellishment
President Biden falsely claimed earlier this week that he was the “first” person in his family to “go to college,” continuing a decades-long habit of making false or embellished claims about his life.
Biden has been scrutinized several times over the years for fabricating tales, including claiming to have been arrested in apartheid-era South Africa, being in a helicopter that was “forced down” by Al-Qaeda insurgents in Afghanistan, and even trivial events involving an Amtrak conductor who had passed away before his alleged story took place.
Biden continued the trend on Monday while speaking in the battleground state of Wisconsin as he outlined his plan to provide “life-changing” relief to student loan debt.
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President Biden has a history of exaggerated tales about his life and career. (Fox News)
“I, like an awful lot of people in this audience, was the first in my family to go to college and watched by dad struggled to help me get there,” Biden told the crowd.
However, less than two years ago, during a speech in Pennsylvania, Biden told an audience that his grandfather played college football.
“My grandfather Finnegan from Scranton would really be proud of me right now,’ Biden said in Pittsburgh in October 2022. “No, I’m not joking. He would. By the way, he was an All-American football player [inaudible] in Santa Clara.”
When asked about his recent comments and his embellishments throughout the years, White House deputy press secretary Andrew Bates told Fox News Digital that President Biden “is proud to have restored honesty, integrity, and respect for the rule of law to the Oval Office.”
He added that Biden is also proud “to be the first Biden to graduate college.”
Biden’s exaggerations regarding colleges also extend to a previous claim that he taught “political theory” at the University of Pennsylvania, which he mentioned in Maryland in September 2023.
“Democracy is at stake, folks. Our democracy is under attack. And we gotta fight for it,” Biden said. “I taught at the University of Pennsylvania for four years. And I used to teach political theory. And folks, you always hear every generation has to fight for democracy. And I found myself – it’s automatic, we didn’t have to believe it – but we do. We do.”
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Fact Checkers have hit Biden over his stories in the past. (Jacquelyn Martin/AP/Bloomberg via Getty)
There is little to no evidence that Biden ever taught “political theory” at the University of Pennsylvania. While the university’s website notes that the president was the Benjamin Franklin Presidential Professor of Practice from 2017 to 2021, a Snopes.com fact-check on his previous but similar claim – that he was a “full professor at the University of Pennsylvania” for four years – found that “he did not teach a semester’s worth of courses” while in this role.
Snopes noted that this “role was honorary” and that he “gave lectures and talks to students on campus but did not teach a full semester’s course load during that time.”
Years before, when he ran for president in 1987, Biden exaggerated his academic record by bragging that he graduated “in the top half” of his class while berating a reporter on the campaign trail.
“I think I have a much higher I.Q. than you do, I suspect,” Biden told the reporter in New Hampshire at the time. “I went to law school on a full academic scholarship, the only one in my class to have a full academic scholarship.”
“In the first year of law school, I decided I didn’t want to be in law school and ended up in the bottom two-thirds of my class,” he said. “And then I decided to stay, went back to law school, and in fact ended up in the top half of my class.”
He later admitted that he graduated 76th in a class of 85.
“I did not graduate in the top half of my class at law school, and my recollection of this was inaccurate,” he told the New York Times.
“I graduated from the University of Delaware with a double major in history and political science,” he said. “My reference to degrees at the Claremont event was intended to refer to these majors -—I said ‘three’ and should have said ‘two.’”
The outlet pointed out that Biden received a single B.A. degree in history and political science.
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Biden’s tall tales date back decades. (Getty Images)
Since then, Biden has told numerous stories that have also been deemed exaggerations. Mainstream outlets, including the Washington Post, have even called him out on them, including the publication’s top fact-checker Glenn Kessler.
In September 2023, Kessler penned an article about how “Biden loves to retell certain stories” and how some lack credibility. His report assembled several of Biden’s accounts, including one about an Amtrak conductor he claimed hailed him on having traveled more than two million miles on the railroad, exceeding the 1.2 million miles traveled on Air Force planes as vice president as of 2016.
However, the conductor retired in 1993 and passed away two years before Biden reached that milestone in the air.
Other stories Kessler addressed include Biden’s claim that he and his father saw two men in suits kissing each other in public when he was a teenager, that he was arrested for trying to see Nelson Mandela in South Africa, and how, as vice president, he arranged for his uncle to be presented a Purple Heart that he was owed and never received, except the uncle died in 1999, long before Biden was vice president.
Biden has also been repeatedly called out for his claims of being very close with Somali cab drivers in Wilmington, Delaware.
“Somalis have made my city of Wilmington, Del. (their home) on a smaller scale. There is a very identifiable Somali community,” then-Vice President Biden said. “I might add if you come to the train station with me you’ll notice I have great relationships with them because there’s an awful lot driving cabs and are friends of mine. For real. I’m not being solicitous. I’m being serious.”
US President Joe Biden and US First Lady Jill Biden wear Hawaiian leis as they walk to board Air Force One before departing Kahului Airport in Kahului, Hawaii, on August 21, 2023. The Bidens spent the day meeting with first responders, survivors, and local officials following deadly wildfires in Maui. (MANDEL NGAN/AFP via Getty Images)
Politifact, a liberal fact checking website, rated the statement as “Pants on fire” and said the statement “set eyerolls rolling.” Other outlets also covered the claim and dismissed it as “strange” and “insensitive.”
Biden also repeated a false claim last year about his house burning down to try to relate to those who lost their houses from the wildfires ravaging Maui.
“I don’t want to compare difficulties, but we have a little sense, Jill and I, of what it was like to lose a home,” Biden said. “Years ago, now, 15 years, I was in Washington doing ‘Meet the Press’… Lightning struck at home on a little lake outside the home, not a lake a big pond. It hit the wire and came up underneath our home, into the… air condition ducts.
“To make a long story short, I almost lost my wife, my ’67 Corvette, and my cat,” the president added.
A 2004 report from the Associated Press, archived by LexisNexis, said lightning struck the Bidens’ home and started a “small fire that was contained to the kitchen.” The report said firefighters got the blaze under control in 20 minutes and that they were able to keep the flames from spreading beyond the kitchen.
Fox News Digital’s Jessica Chasmar, Gabriel Hayes, Joseph A. Wulfsohn, and Greg Wehner contributed to this report.
Politics
US military announces another deadly strike against ‘narco-terrorists’
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The U.S. military announced another deadly strike against a vessel that it alleges was involved in “narco-trafficking” efforts.
“On April 19, at the direction of #SOUTHCOM commander Gen. Francis L. Donovan, Joint Task Force Southern Spear conducted a lethal kinetic strike on a vessel operated by Designated Terrorist Organizations,” U.S. Southern Command indicated in a post on X.
“Intelligence confirmed the vessel was transiting along known narco-trafficking routes in the Caribbean and was engaged in narco-trafficking operations,” the post continued.
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The U.S. military announced that it killed three “narco-terrorists” in a strike in the Caribbean on Sunday, April 19, 2026. (@Soutcom via X)
SOUTHCOM indicated that the attack killed three men.
“Three male narco-terrorists were killed during this action. No U.S. military forces were harmed,” the post noted.
President Donald Trump’s administration has carried out dozens of deadly strikes against vessels of alleged “narco-terrorists.”
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Marine Corps Lt. Gen. Francis L. Donovan, nominee for commander of U.S. Southern Command, testifies during his Senate confirmatino hearing on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., on Jan. 15, 2026. (Brendan Smialowski/AFP via Getty Images)
In a completely different part of the world, amid ongoing tensions between America and Iran, the U.S. attacked an Iranian-flagged cargo ship on April 19.
“Guided-missile destroyer USS Spruance (DDG 111) intercepted M/V Touska as it transited the north Arabian Sea at 17 knots enroute to Bandar Abbas, Iran. American forces issued multiple warnings and informed the Iranian-flagged vessel it was in violation of the U.S. blockade,” U.S. Central Command noted.
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President Donald Trump on the South Lawn of the White House before boarding Marine One in Washington, D.C., on Thursday, April 16, 2026. (Graeme Sloan/Sipa/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
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“After Touska’s crew failed to comply with repeated warnings over a six-hour period, Spruance directed the vessel to evacuate its engine room. Spruance disabled Touska’s propulsion by firing several rounds from the destroyer’s 5-inch MK 45 Gun into Touska’s engine room. U.S. Marines from the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit later boarded the non-compliant vessel, which remains in U.S. custody,” CENTCOM noted.
Politics
Uproar over mama bear killing could help launch a state wildlife coexistence program
SACRAMENTO — A month after a public uproar over a mama bear being euthanized after swiping at a resident in Monrovia, state lawmakers are considering mandating the use of nonlethal ways to help allow wildlife and humans to coexist.
Sen. Catherine Blakespear (D-Encinitas) said she believes the bear’s death, and the state’s decision to kill four wolves last year that were preying on cattle, raised public concern.
“That made everybody realize we have to do better here,” she told The Times on Thursday. “We need to recognize the importance of seeing ourselves, humans, as part of a larger ecosystem that includes animals and plants and our world and trying to protect it.”
Senate Bill 1135, introduced by Blakespear, would direct the California Department of Fish and Wildlife to create the Wildlife Coexistence Program, which would provide public education, offer technical assistance and maintain a statewide incident reporting system. It would help communities deploy nonlethal devices to deter predators, like barriers or noise and light machines.
At a legislative hearing on Tuesday, Blakespear told the Senate Committee on Natural Resources and Water that a three-year state initiative offering similar services was seeing positive results — until it was discontinued two years ago after funding ran dry. She said it was time to implement a permanent program.
“Human population growth, habitat loss and the growth of industry across California inevitably leads to interaction between humans and wildlife,” Blakespear told legislators. “No two animal species are the same and each has unique behavior patterns and territories. SB 1135 recognizes these differences and gives communities the tools to prevent conflict and respond when it occurs.”
The bill would also rename a state program that reimburses ranchers who lose livestock to wolves, calling it the Wolf-Livestock Coexistence and Compensation Program. It would require ranchers seeking compensation to show they were using nonlethal deterrents approved by the department.
Sen. Shannon Grove (R-Bakersfield) stressed that life in rural areas is different than living in a city. She said some families and cattle ranchers have a genuine fear of predators.
“When these baby calves drop on the ground and then two wolves start ripping them apart, it’s not the prettiest thing you’ve ever witnessed,” said Grove, who abstained from voting on the measure. “These wolves are not puppies.”
More than 30 organizations are supporting the legislation, including the National Wildlife Federation, Defenders of Wildlife, California State Assn. of Counties, Animal Legal Defense Fund and Citizens for Los Angeles Wildlife.
The California Farm Bureau and the California Cattlemen’s Assn. are in opposition due to concerns over funding.
Last month, Blakespear sent a letter to the chair of the Senate Committee on Budget and Fiscal Review requesting $48.8 million to implement the legislation, with $25 million earmarked for addressing wolf encounters. Half of the money for wolf conflicts would go toward deterrents; the remainder would compensate ranchers for their losses.
Kirk Wilbur, vice president of government affairs cattlemen’s association, said the organization is concerned about that division of funding — especially if funding is reduced.
Wilbur told legislators Tuesday that the organization supports some aspects of the bill and was having productive conversations with Blakespear to address their concerns.
The bill ultimately passed the committee with a 5-to-1 vote and now heads to the Senate Committee on Appropriations.
Human wildlife conflicts have made headlines in California recently, with a bear refusing to leave a basement for weeks in Altadena and a mama bear dubbed Blondie crossing paths last month with a woman walking her dog in Monrovia.
Blondie swiped the woman’s leg, and was subsequently euthanized by the California Department of Fish and Wildlife. Her two cubs were sent to the San Diego Humane Society’s Ramona Wildlife Center. The bear’s death upset many in the community, as thousands had signed a petition calling for other solutions, like relocation.
Deadly wildlife attacks on humans, however, are rare in California.
There have been six reported human fatalities from mountain lions since 1890, according to the state Fish and Wildlife Department. The agency recorded one human fatality from a coyote in 1981 and another fatality from a black bear in 2023. The department has no recorded human fatalities from gray wolves.
Politics
Trump ally diGenova tapped to lead DOJ probe into Brennan over Russia probe origins
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The Justice Department is turning to former Trump attorney Joeseph diGenova to spearhead a probe into ex-CIA Director John Brennan and others over the origins of the Trump-Russia investigation, as the department reshuffles leadership of the sprawling inquiry.
Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche has tapped diGenova to serve as counsel overseeing the matter, according to a New York Times report, putting a former Trump attorney in a key role in the high-profile probe. A federal grand jury seated in Miami has been impaneled since late last year.
The Department of Justice did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.
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Joseph diGenova represented President Donald Trump during special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation. (Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call/Getty Images)
DiGenova, a former U.S. attorney in Washington, D.C., who represented Trump during special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation, has repeatedly accused Brennan of misconduct tied to the origins of the Russia probe—allegations that have not resulted in criminal charges.
He also said in a 2018 appearance on Fox News that Brennan colluded with the FBI and DOJ to frame Trump.
The origins of the Russia investigation have been the subject of ongoing scrutiny by Trump allies, who have argued that intelligence and law enforcement officials improperly launched the probe.
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Joseph diGenova has previously said that ex-CIA chief John Brennan colluded with the FBI and DOJ to frame Trump. (Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call/Getty Images)
DiGenova’s appointment follows the ouster of Maria Medetis Long, a national security prosecutor in the South Florida U.S. attorney’s office. She had been overseeing the inquiry, including a false statements probe related to Brennan and broader conspiracy-related investigations.
As the investigation continues, federal investigators have issued subpoenas seeking information related to intelligence assessments of Russian interference in the 2016 election.
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John Brennan has denied any wrongdoing related to the Russia investigation. (William B. Plowman/NBC/NBC NewsWire via Getty Images; Alex Wong/Getty Images)
Brennan has previously denied wrongdoing related to the Russia investigation and has defended the intelligence community’s assessment that Moscow interfered in the 2016 election.
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