Politics
House Dems seeking re-election seemingly reverse course, call on Biden to 'bring order to the southern border'
Five vulnerable Democrats who voted against measures to strengthen border security in the past have seemingly changed their tune as they seek re-election to their posts in the lower chamber.
Following President Biden’s signing of a $95 billion package with aid to both Ukraine and Israel last week, five Democrats – Reps. Jared Golden of Maine, Marie Gluesenkamp Perez of Washington, Mary Peltola of Alaska, Vicente Gonzalez of Texas and Don Davis of North Carolina – released a joint statement agreeing with calls for Congress and the president to “act and bring order to the southern border.”
“Beyond defending our allies, we strongly agree with the National Border Patrol Council that Congress and the President must act and bring order to the Southern border,” the lawmakers stated. “That is why we also voted for H.R. 3602 on Saturday, and why we all voted last month for $19.6 billion for Border Patrol so that it could ramp up its efforts to secure the border.”
The comments from the five Democrats – three of whom (Golden, GluesenKamp, and Davis) are engaged in tough re-election battles that have been labeled “toss up” races by the Cook Political Report, and another two (Peltola and Gonzalez) competing in races labeled “lean Democrat” – came after each one of them voted against the Secure the Border Act of 2023.
VULNERABLE HOUSE DEMS DO A U-TURN ON ILLEGAL IMMIGRATION AFTER CALLING CRISIS ‘NON-EXISTENT THREAT’
Five House Democrats – Reps. Jared Golden of Maine, Marie Gluesenkamp Perez of Washington, Mary Peltola of Alaska, Vicente Gonzalez of Texas and Don Davis of North Carolina – released a statement last week agreeing with calls for Congress and President Biden to “act and bring order to the southern border.” (Getty Images)
That bill, which passed in the House, would have expanded the type of crimes that make someone ineligible for asylum, limited the eligibility to those who arrive at ports of entry, mandated a system similar to the E-Verify employment eligibility verification system, and created additional penalties for visa overstay.
In addition to not supporting the Secure the Border Act, the same five Democrats voted on two different occasions against GOP-led efforts to impeach Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, whom many Republicans have argued is largely responsible for the migrant crisis at the southern border.
Certain Democrats, like Gluesenkamp Perez, who was first elected to Congress in 2022 and co-chairs the Blue Dog Coalition with Golden and Peltola, have made dismissive comments about the border crisis in recent years.
The Washington lawmaker previously faced criticism from Republicans over border-related comments she made in March 2023 during an appearance on Pod Save America, which came prior to the ending of the Title 42 public health order.
“Listen, nobody stays awake at night worrying about the southern border,” she said at the time. “That’s just not… people stay awake at night worrying that their kid is gonna relapse or that, you know, someone’s going to drop out of school or they’re going to lose their house.”
Gluesenkamp Perez was also one of many Democrats who defended Mayorkas amid calls for his impeachment earlier this year, saying it was “frustrating to see” Republicans push for his ouster because “he doesn’t set policy, he implements it.”
Despite her past remarks, Gluesenkamp Perez has been critical of Biden’s handling of the border crisis in recent months, saying in April that she voted in support of H.R. 3602, which provides for criminal penalties for certain conduct that interferes with U.S. border control measures, because “President Biden has failed to end the crisis at our Southern Border.”
“Every country has an obligation to protect its citizens and secure its sovereign borders, and H.R. 3602 focuses on the urgent need to restore operational control of the Southern Border. Unlike the unworkable and un-American immigration proposals pushed by far-right extremists, this bipartisan bill doesn’t create burdensome government mandates that would harm small businesses, agricultural employers, rural communities, and our economy,” she said at the time.
In a statement to Fox News Digital, a member of the congresswoman’s press team insisted that she has “called on the [Biden] Administration her entire time in office to fix the crisis at our Southern Border, and for Congress to do its job to pass meaningful border security legislation.”
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Migrants attempt to enter the U.S. illegally by rushing an opening in the border wall on March 21, 2024. (James Breeden for New York Post / Mega)
The spokesperson also touted the Washington lawmaker’s introduction of the “Defending Borders, Defending Democracies Act to restore operational control at the Southern Border by restoring expulsion authority for Border Patrol and requiring the President to reinstate Remain in Mexico,” as well as her support for the End Fentanyl Act.
“Marie continues to urge Congress to get back to work to address the real crisis at our border and end the petty gamesmanship,” the spokesperson said.
Gonzalez is another Democrat who made dismissive remarks prior to the expiration of Title 42, which provided the ability for American officials to bar migrants from entering the country during a health crisis such as the COVID-19 pandemic.
During a July 2023 stop in Edinburgh, Texas, Gonzalez reportedly shot down questions and concern over whether Biden was doing enough to secure the southern border amid an overwhelming influx of illegal immigrants.
“We have seen major improvements along the border.… If you go to the border now, in our region, it’s pretty unremarkable what you see,” Gonzalez said, according to the Rio Grande Guardian. “When they lifted Title 42 and implemented Title 7, which I advocated against… I’ll be the first to admit that I was wrong. What the president did, what Secretary Mayorkas has done, has positively impacted our border and that’s a fact.”
“People could point fingers and say things, but the reality is, undocumented crossings are down by 70%,” he added at the time.
A little more than a week after Gonzalez gave those remarks, the Texas Tribune reported that Border Patrol agents “made more than 130,000 arrests along the Mexico border [in July 2023], preliminary figures show, up from 99,545 in June.”
Gonzalez is one of 154 Democrats who voted this January against the Agent Raul Gonzalez Officer Safety Act, which would have created hefty federal penalties for illegal migrants who evade U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers during motor vehicle pursuits. The measure was named after a Border Patrol officer who died in a vehicle crash in Texas last year during a pursuit.
A U.S. Border Patrol agent talks with asylum-seekers along the U.S.-Mexico border near Tijuana, Mexico, on May 8, 2023, in San Diego. (Denis Poroy/AP Newsroom)
Along with Golden and Gluesenkamp Perez, Gonzalez was one of 201 Democrats who voted in July 2023 against the Schools Not Shelters Act, which would have prohibited “the use of the facilities of a public elementary school, a public secondary school, or an institution of higher education to provide shelter for aliens who have not been admitted into the United States, and for other purposes.”
Peltola joined 218 Republicans in voting in favor of that measure at the time, while Davis did not vote.
“I remain dedicated to addressing the border crisis. However, we must not inflict harm on American agriculture in the process,” Davis said in a statement to Fox. “Initially, I had concerns about the e-verify provision in HR-2, but it was removed, allowing me to fully lend my support, along with just four other Democrats, to H.R. 3602, the Bipartisan End the Border Catastrophe Act.”
Asked whether he believes Biden is responsible for the border crisis, Davis said his “votes speak for themselves.”
CBP records show the first six months of fiscal year 2024 had 1,340,801 total encounters, exceeding the first six months of fiscal year 2023, which set a record of 1,226,254 total encounters.
House Armed Services Committee Chairman Mike Rogers, R-Ala., is being considered to serve as secretary of defense in a second Trump administration.
A source familiar with discussions told Fox News Digital Rogers has been contacted by the Trump transition team.
Fox News Digital reached out to a spokesperson for comment.
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U.S. Rep. Mike Rogers, R-Ala., speaks during a hearing in Washington, D.C., Sept. 29, 2021. (Getty Images)
Rogers was re-elected to a third term Tuesday after running unopposed.
Another potential candidate for defense secretary is Rep. Mike Waltz, R-Fla., a retired Green Beret. In addition to serving in the military before joining Congress, Waltz was an adviser to defense secretaries Robert Gates and Donald Rumsfeld and spent time in the private sector as CEO of defense contractor Metis Solutions.
He sits on the House Armed Services and Intelligence committees, in addition to the House Foreign Affairs Committee.
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Former President Trump, the Republican presidential candidate, speaks during a campaign rally at Madison Square Garden in New York Oct. 27, 2024. (Angela Weiss/AFP via Getty Images)
Republicans are bullish about keeping the House majority after victories in the Senate and the White House on election night.
Replacing a House member, even one from a district that heavily favors one party or the other, generally takes at least several weeks. Republican leaders have already signaled they would not want to waste any time in using their majorities in Congress to forward Trump’s agenda.
President-elect Donald Trump brings Susie Wiles to the podium at an election night watch party in West Palm Beach, Fla. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
On Thursday, Trump announced his campaign manager, Susie Wiles, will serve as his White House chief of staff.
House GOP Conference Chairwoman Elise Stefanik, R-N.Y., is being discussed as a potential candidate for U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, two people familiar with such discussions told Fox News Digital.
Imagine if the Super Bowl audience dropped by 25%. That’s what happened on Tuesday when Nielsen tallied the viewership for TV networks that provided coverage of former President Trump’s historic electoral victory over Vice President Kamala Harris for the White House.
But election night was just the grand finale of a political season that showed how legacy media organizations are struggling to maintain relevance while alternatives in the digital universe chip away at their influence.
Young viewers are getting information from TikTok, YouTube and Elon Musk’s X, skipping the evening news broadcasts and cable shows as they go without pay TV subscriptions.
Trump largely bypassed traditional media outlets, granting lengthy interviews to comedians such as Theo Von and the influential Joe Rogan, who eventually endorsed the former commander-in-chief. Harris went on podcasts such as Alex Cooper’s popular “Call Her Daddy” and “All the Smoke” with former NBA players Matt Barnes and Stephen Jackson.
The emergence of podcasters is an extension of what has happened in cable news, where the largest audiences are drawn by opinion hosts whom fans treat as tribal leaders. While overall TV ratings were down, the top two networks on election night were Fox News, which draws big ratings with its conservative hosts, and the progressive MSNBC.
“What Joe Rogan tells you is this business has become personality-driven, not journalism-driven,” said a TV news agent who was not authorized to speak publicly.
Meanwhile, newspapers continue to fight an uphill battle to get users to pay for digital content as their print editions fade into obsolescence. Public opinion polling by Gallup shows that trust in mass-media institutions is at a record low.
TV news organizations are still absorbing what Trump’s return will mean to them. Anchors and correspondents are having frank conversations with their agents about how they will navigate another four years covering a president who has a hostile view of journalists.
The public will have more answers in the coming weeks as news organizations use a new White House administration to reassign correspondents. It’s also possible that some conservative news hosts and commentators could end up as part of a new Trump administration.
There’s hope for at least a short-term boost in ratings and readership from another unpredictable Trump administration. Trump’s 2016 victory was the lighter fluid that accelerated a news bonfire, driving ratings and subscription revenue. But a repeat of that effect probably will be ephemeral and won’t make newsgathering a sustainable business in an increasingly fragmented news environment.
Alex Cooper interviews Vice President Kamala Harris on “Call Her Daddy” for an Oct. 6, 2024, episode.
(Call Her Daddy)
“The Trump bump may be a way in,” said Neil Brown, president of the Poynter Institute. “It won’t be a way to keep them unless you find a lasting way to serve them.”
Roland Martin, a former CNN commentator who now owns and operates the digital Black Star Network, believes outlets are counting on a turbocharged news cycle.
“A lot of legacy-media people were pining for Trump’s return because they know it’s going to be a s— show every single day,” Martin said. “It will be another four-year reality show about his craziness.”
Some news executives believe — perhaps wishfully — that the administration will focus on policy at the beginning and there will be less emphasis on the president-elect’s rambunctious personality.
“I think he’s going to be way too busy, especially in the first two years if he has the House and Senate,” Alex Castellanos, chairman of the communications firm Purple Strategies and a former Republican political consultant.
On the campaign trail, Trump promised radical changes, including mass deportations of undocumented migrants and putting vaccine and fluoridated water critic Robert F. Kennedy Jr. in a position of influence over public health.
“It won’t be the obsessive fascination with this novel phenomenon that it was last time,” said Andrew Heyward, a former CBS News president who now advises media companies. “It’ll be based more on news value and therefore there may be less of it and it may not last as long.”
Experts believe that Trump’s better-than-expected performance revealed a larger problem.
They say large media organizations spent too much time in Washington focused on opinion polls and punditry from political professionals and didn’t listen enough to what the electorate was saying on the ground. Outside of right-leaning outlets, media outlets may not have paid enough attention to working-class anger over the cost of living during an otherwise robust economic recovery.
Mainstream news outlets also were slow to see the shift of Latino voters to Trump. Martin attributed it to the lack of Latino journalists or executives in their organizations. He also noted that the media overstated the narrative of Black voters flocking to Trump.
“They were using mainstream white polls and they never put Black-specific pollsters on the air,” Martin said. “And Black men congregate in other places than barber shops.”
Fox News was criticized several years ago for its aggressive coverage of the influx of migrants at the U.S.’ southern border, but the reporting foretold the emergence of immigration as a major issue in the 2024 presidential campaign. The story did not get significant attention from its competitors until migrants were bused into major media centers such as New York.
Criticism that corporate-owned media outlets don’t get deep enough into diverse communities or a wider range of issues has gone on for years. Addressing the problem is more difficult as the organizations come under greater pressure to cut costs and deal with declining revenue.
“We’re in a changing world and everybody knows it,” Heyward said. “Unfortunately it’s a time of restricted resources. That means deciding what can we afford to do very well to serve a unique role in this much more complicated landscape.”
Aside from increased competition, media companies are seeing advertisers become more skittish about running their ads in news programming, as they are turned off by the vitriol and divisiveness in the current polarized political landscape. Scripps News cited the attitude as a factor in its recent decision to shut down its 24-hour news service.
Presidential campaigns fully took advantage of the upheaval, calling their own shots on the debates — there was only one between Trump and Harris — and being more selective in their formal media appearances.
“The candidates were able to control the relationship with legacy media, perhaps more than in previous cycles, by either going around them or controlling the drip of when they would give them interviews,” said Joshua Darr, senior researcher at Syracuse University’s Institute for Democracy, Journalism and Citizenship.
President Trump reached nearly 40 million viewers in the first three days after his interview with podcaster Joe Rogan became available on YouTube.
(Evan Vucci / Associated Press, left; Gregory Payan / Associated Press, right)
There is no penalty for avoiding tough media platforms when there are so many options to reach pockets of voters on alternative outlets, Heyward said. Rogan’s interview with Trump received nearly 40 million views in its first three days on YouTube.
“‘60 Minutes’ has been the No. 1 TV news program for five decades, but Trump had no problem not only skipping it but suing it,” said Heyward, referring to the $10-billion lawsuit Trump filed against the network over its editing of a Harris interview answer on the CBS News magazine show. Trump initially agreed to an interview on the show but then canceled his appearance.
While loyalty to legacy media and a sense of public connection to these organizations have declined, media experts said there is still power in these longtime brands. Harris went on “The View,” did an interview with CNN’s Dana Bash, sat for a grilling by Fox News’ Bret Baier and did local media in battleground states. Her appearances on traditional networks got millions of views.
“Legacy media continue to be vital, and there’s nothing about this result that changes that at all,” said the Poynter Institute’s Brown. “I believe fully that the legacy media have the credibility and institutional connection to their communities, that they provide a profound service.”
Politics
Republicans within striking distance of House majority as key races remain too close to call
The majority in the House of Representatives appears within reach for Republicans, who have already won control of the Senate and the White House.
Associated Press race projections show Republicans holding 210 seats compared to 198 seats for Democrats as of Friday morning.
A total of five sitting House lawmakers are projected to lose their re-election bids so far — three Republicans and two Democrats.
Several races involving GOP incumbents in California are still too close to call and are likely to be pivotal to the House majority.
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Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., has expressed confidence in keeping the House. (Getty Images)
Republicans in three Arizona districts, as well as GOP lawmakers in Nebraska, Iowa and Oregon, are also still awaiting result projections.
Whichever party reaches 218 seats first will hold the House majority in the 119th Congress.
House Republican leaders have been touting confidence in their eventual victory, with the top four House leaders already formally announcing bids to hold the same spots in a January House majority.
“It appears we’re going to hold the House and flip the Senate,” House Majority Leader Steve Scalise, R-La., told Fox News Digital on Wednesday night. “California’s the main state still. You know, in a lot of those close races, our incumbents are leading the way — by small margins, but we knew there would be small margins.”
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House Majority Leader Steve Scalise, R-La., said margins were expectedly tight. (Reuters/Mike Segar)
It’s a far cry from House Democrats, whose hopes of winning the majority are rapidly decreasing. Multiple sources told Fox News Digital on Wednesday that Democrats were bracing for Republicans to win complete control of Congress and the White House.
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., pointed out that a Republican victory is not a forgone conclusion, however.
“It has yet to be decided who will control the House of Representatives in the 119th Congress. We must count every vote and wait until the results in Oregon, Arizona and California are clear,” Jeffries said in a statement that also congratulated President-elect Trump.
JOHNSON BLASTS DEM ACCUSATIONS HE VOWED TO END OBAMACARE AS ‘DISHONEST’
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., has urged patience as the votes are counted. (Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)
Democrats have scored key wins in projections by unseating Republican incumbents in three New York seats — Reps. Marc Molinaro, Brandon Williams and Anthony D’Esposito.
Republicans are projected to flip three seats as well — one vacated by a Rep. Elissa Slotkin, D-Mich., to run for Senate, and two districts held by moderate Democrats in Pennsylvania.
The GOP also saw former House Freedom Caucus Chairman Scott Perry, R-Pa., projected to survive his toughest race yet as of Thursday afternoon.
Get the latest updates from the 2024 campaign trail, exclusive interviews and more at our Fox News Digital election hub.
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