Schiff launches legal defense fund in response to claims Trump is ‘weaponizing’ justice system

Posted on August 19, 2025 by Latest Political News on Fox News

Sen. Adam Schiff launched a legal defense fund as the California Democrat faces a federal investigation for alleged mortgage fraud and President Donald Trump repeatedly condemns him for years of allegedly promoting the "Russiagate" hoax.

"It’s clear that Donald Trump and his MAGA allies will continue weaponizing the justice process to attack Senator Schiff for holding this corrupt administration accountable," a spokeswoman for Schiff told Fox News Digital on Tuesday evening. "This fund will ensure he can fight back against these baseless smears while continuing to do his job."

The legal fund, dubbed "Senator Schiff Legal Defense Fund," was filed with the Internal Revenue Service Thursday, according to the New York Times.

Trump and Schiff have long been political foes, stretching back to the president's first administration, when Schiff — who was serving in the U.S. House at the time — oversaw the first impeachment trial against Trump in 2020 for alleged abuse of power and obstruction of Congress, and for repeatedly promoting the narrative that Trump's 2016 campaign colluded with Russia.

SEN ADAM SCHIFF UNDER FEDERAL CRIMINAL INVESTIGATION FOR ALLEGED MORTGAGE FRAUD VIOLATIONS

"Russia, Russia, Russia. Totally phony, created by Adam Schiff, Shifty Schiff, and Hillary Clinton and the whole group of them," Trump said from the Kennedy Center Wednesday.

Trump was referring to recently declassified documents alleging the Obama administration "manufactured and politicized intelligence" to create the narrative that Russia was attempting to influence the 2016 presidential election, despite information from the intelligence community stating otherwise.

"It made it very dangerous for our country because I was unable to really deal with Russia the way we should have been," Trump continued from the Kennedy Center, referring to Attorney General Pam Bondi. "And I'm looking at Pam because I hope something's going to be done about it."

White House spokesman Harrison Fields called Schiff a "fraud" and "corrupt politician" when approached for comment on Tuesday regarding the legal fund.

"Adam Schiff is a sleazy and corrupt politician who betrayed his oath to the Constitution by prioritizing his selfish and personal animosity toward the President over the interests of the American people. No amount of money can shield Adam from the truth that he is a fraud," Fields told Fox News Digital.

Schiff also came under fire earlier in August when documents released to Congress by FBI Director Kash Patel reported that a Democratic whistleblower who worked for Democrats on the House Intelligence Committee for more than 10 years told the FBI in 2017 that Schiff allegedly approved leaking classified information on Trump that "would be used to indict President TRUMP."

Schiff denied the allegations as "absolutely and categorically false."

Schiff notably served on the Jan. 6 committee, which investigated the day in January 2021 when Trump supporters breached the U.S. Capitol, and was among lawmakers who were granted preemptive pardons on President Joe Biden's final day in office in 2025.

HOW TRUMP'S 'NO SHRINKING VIOLETS' DOJ IS DIGGING IN ON SCHIFF'S MORTGAGE DEALINGS AS LEGAL PERIL LOOMS

Schiff, however, had publicly condemned the prospect of Biden doling out preemptive pardons as "unnecessary" and setting a bad precedent.

"First, those of us on the committee are very proud of the work we did. We were doing vital quintessential oversight of a violent attack on the Capitol," Schiff said during a media interview in December 2024. "So I think it’s unnecessary."

"But second, the precedent of giving blanket pardons, preemptive blanket pardons on the way out of an administration, I think is a precedent we don’t want to set," he added.

TRUMP INVOKES RUSSIA COLLUSION HOAX WHILE CALLING FOR LONGTIME FOE SCHIFF TO FACE JAIL TIME

The California Democrat also is facing a federal investigation for mortgage fraud, Fox Digital previously reported. Schiff has denied any wrongdoing, claiming the matter is a "baseless attempt at political retribution."

The U.S. Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) sent a criminal referral to the Department of Justice in May claiming that in "multiple instances," Schiff allegedly "falsified bank documents and property records to acquire more favorable loan terms, impacting payments from 2003-2019 for a Potomac, Maryland-based property."

Fox News Digital's Brooke Singman contributed to this report.

White House reacts to Dem whistleblower’s ‘bombshell’ claim Schiff leaked to hit Trump

Posted on August 12, 2025 by Latest Political News on Fox News

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt called the recent release of Democratic whistleblower testimony claiming Democratic Sen. Adam Schiff approved leaking classified information in order to discredit President Donald Trump during the Russiagate probe a "bombshell" Tuesday afternoon.

"This is obviously a bombshell whistleblower report," Leavitt said at a Tuesday White House press briefing. "Hopefully more people in this room will cover it as such."

"I understand Kash Patel, last night, declassified a 302 FBI document showing that a whistleblower, who is a Democrat, a career intelligence officer who worked for Democrats on the House Intel Committee for more than a decade, repeatedly warned the FBI in 2017 that then-Rep. Adam Schiff had approved leaking classified information to smear then President Donald Trump over the Russiagate scandal," she added.

Schiff served in the U.S. House representing California for decades before he was elected to the U.S. Senate in 2024.

Trump and Schiff have long been political foes, which was underscored during Trump's first administration when Schiff served as the lead House manager during the first impeachment trial against Trump in 2020, and when Schiff repeatedly promoted claims that Trump's 2016 campaign colluded with Russia.

TRUMP-FOE ADAM SCHIFF DISMISSES TULSI GABBARD'S DECLASSIFIED RUSSIA COLLUSION INTELLIGENCE AS 'DISHONEST'

On Monday evening, reports spread that a whistleblower who reportedly worked for Democrats on the House Intelligence Committee for more than 10 years told the FBI in 2017 that the Democrat lawmaker green-lit leaking classified information on Trump that allegedly "would be used to indict President TRUMP," according to the report.

"In this meeting, SCHIFF stated the group would leak classified information which was derogatory to President of the United States DONALD J. TRUMP. SCHIFF stated the information would be used to indict President TRUMP."

The whistleblower "stated this would be illegal and, upon hearing his concerns, unnamed members of the meeting reassured that they would not be caught leaking classified information," the report added.

KAROLINE LEAVITT EXCORIATES MEDIA FOR PERPETUATING 'COMPLETE SCAM' OF RUSSIA HOAX

Leavitt continued Tuesday by reading a quote from FBI Director Kash Patel that "for years certain officials used their positions to selectively leak classified information to shape political narratives."

"It was all done with one purpose: to weaponize intelligence and law enforcement for political gain," Leavitt said, quoting Patel. "Those abuses eroded public trust in our institutions. The FBI will now lead the charge with our partners at DOJ, and Congress will have the chance to uncover how political power may have been weaponized and to restore accountability."

TRUMP INVOKES RUSSIA COLLUSION HOAX WHILE CALLING FOR LONGTIME FOE SCHIFF TO FACE JAIL TIME

Leavitt added, when asked if Trump plans to investigate Schiff over the matter, doubled down that Trump "has already said he wants to see Adam Schiff held accountable for the countless lies he told the American people in relation to the Russiagate scandal."

Schiff's office hit back against the report in comment to Fox Digital Tuesday afternoon, claiming it was a "smear" that is "absolutely and categorically false."

"Kash Patel’s latest smear against Senator Schiff is absolutely and categorically false, and is just the latest in a series of defamatory attacks from the President and his allies meant to distract from their plummeting poll numbers and the Epstein files scandal," a spokesperson for Schiff said.

"These baseless smears are based on allegations that were found to be not reliable, not credible, and unsubstantiated from a disgruntled former staffer who was fired by the House Intelligence Committee for cause in early 2017, including for harassment and potentially compromising activity on official travel for the Committee," the spokesperson continued. "Even Trump’s own Justice Department and an independent inspector general found this individual to not be credible, have "little support for their contentions" and was of "unknown reliability," and concluded that his accusations against Members of Congress and congressional staff "were not ultimately substantiated.'"

Schiff is also currently facing a criminal investigation for alleged mortgage fraud stretching back to the early 2000s — a case where he has denied wrongdoing.

The release of the whistleblower's account follows Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard bombshell claims in July that Obama-era officials "manufactured and politicized intelligence" to create the narrative that Russia was attempting to influence the 2016 presidential election.

Gabbard released unclassified documents in July that reportedly show "overwhelming evidence" that then–President Barack Obama and his national security team laid the groundwork for what would be the yearslong Trump–Russia collusion probe after Trump's election win against former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in 2016.

How Trump’s ‘no shrinking violets’ DOJ is digging in on Schiff’s mortgage dealings as legal peril looms

Posted on July 28, 2025 by Latest Political News on Fox News

The Department of Justice is likely digging into Sen. Adam Schiff's mortgage paperwork trail stretching back to a Maryland home purchase from the early 2000s as it weighs whether it has an airtight case to potentially prosecute the longtime political foe of President Donald Trump, according to a Cornell Law School professor.

"The one thing they don't want to do is to bring a case that fails," William Jacobson told Fox Digital in a Zoom interview, referring to the DOJ potentially investigating Schiff's alleged mortgage fraud. Jacobson is a clinical professor and the Director of the Securities Law Clinic at Cornell.

"Either it fails legally, or it fails in court. They don't want to lose that case if you're going against a major political opponent. And that's part of the calculation that will take place."

Jacobson talked about the ins and outs of the Democratic California senator's potential legal woes following the U.S. Federal Housing Finance Agency sending a letter to the DOJ this year claiming that Schiff falsified banking and property documents by listing two homes – on two separate coasts – as his primary residence out of an effort to allegedly get more favorable loans.

The DOJ has not yet said whether it would take up the case, but is likely digging into Schiff's paper trail as it weighs whether to move forward, Jacobson explained.

TRUMP ACCUSES 'SCAM ARTIST' SCHIFF OF LYING ABOUT MARYLAND HOME TO COMMIT MORTGAGE FRAUD

"I would expect that the first thing the Department of Justice is going to do is to gather documents. There will be a paper trail here. There will be many things that are documentable, and not ‘he said, she said,’ as to where Adam Schiff was actually living," he said.

As investigators go through the documents, they will ask questions such as: What was his actual primary residence? What did he sign? Who was present when he signed? Did he have conversations with people about it?

The law professor, who founded the popular conservative legal blog Legal Insurrection, said that there will likely be a "significant paper trail" to go through due to the case stretching back more than 20 years and due to companies keeping tight records following the 2008 financial crash.

"Mortgage companies preserve all of these things because of the financial crisis and other things. They have to maintain these records. . . . And I would expect that that would be the first thing the Department of Justice would look at is the paper trail and the circumstantial evidence as to where Adam Schiff was, in fact, living," he continued, remarking that there are "no shrinking violets" at the Trump DOJ.

Schiff first fell under scrutiny this year in May, when the U.S. Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) sent a letter to the Department of Justice sounding the alarm that, in "multiple instances," Schiff allegedly "falsified bank documents and property records to acquire more favorable loan terms, impacting payments from 2003-2019 for a Potomac, Maryland-based property."

At the heart of the issue are two properties purchased by Schiff: a home purchased in 2003 in Potomac, Maryland, for $870,000 under a Fannie Mae-backed mortgage agreement for $610,000 at a rate of 5.625% over a term of 30 years, and a 2009 Burbank, Calif., condo. Schiff reaffirmed the Potomac property as his principal residence in mortgage refinancing paperwork in 2009, 2011, 2012, and 2013, according to the FHFA letter to the DOJ.

Over the same time frame, Schiff took a homeowner’s tax exemption on the Burbank condo while also claiming that home as his primary residence for a $7,000 reduction off of the 1% property tax, FHFA Director William Pulte wrote in the letter to the DOJ, citing media reports.

In 2023, the letter continued, a spokesperson for Schiff asserted that "Adam’s primary residence is Burbank, California, and will remain so when he wins the Senate seat."

FHFA is an independent federal agency that oversees Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and the Federal Home Loan Bank System.

TRUMP INVOKES RUSSIA COLLUSION HOAX WHILE CALLING FOR LONGTIME FOE SCHIFF TO FACE JAIL TIME

In 2020, Schiff refinanced his mortgage, listing his Maryland home as his secondary residence.

Trump publicly slammed Schiff over his mortgages in July on Truth Social, accusing him of fraud and putting the issue back on the public's radar following 2023 news reports on Schiff's homes in Maryland and California.

"I have always suspected Shifty Adam Schiff was a scam artist," Trump posted to Truth Social Tuesday. "And now I learn that Fannie Mae’s Financial Crimes Division have concluded that Adam Schiff has engaged in a sustained pattern of possible Mortgage Fraud."

"Adam Schiff said that his primary residence was in MARYLAND to get a cheaper mortgage and rip off America, when he must LIVE in CALIFORNIA because he was a Congressman from CALIFORNIA. I always knew Adam Schiff was a Crook. The FRAUD began with the refinance of his Maryland property on February 6, 2009, and continued through multiple transactions until the Maryland property was correctly designated as a second home on October 13, 2020."

FOX NEWS POLITICS NEWSLETTER: SCHIFF FLAGGED FOR POTENTIAL MORTGAGE FRAUD BY TRUMP OFFICIAL

Schiff has repeatedly denied and brushed off the accusations, including refusing to answer questions from Fox News Digital about his alleged mortgage fraud when confronted in the nation's capital on July 16.

"Since I led his first impeachment, Trump has repeatedly called for me to be arrested for treason. So in a way, I guess this is a bit of a letdown. And this baseless attempt at political retribution won’t stop me from holding him accountable. Not by a long shot," he posted to X in July following Trump's initial Truth Social attack on Schiff's mortgages.

"This is just Donald Trump’s latest attempt at political retaliation against his perceived enemies. So it is not a surprise, only how weak this false allegation turns out to be. And much as Trump may hope, this smear will not distract from his Epstein files problem," he added.

Schiff's primary residence discrepancies first hit the public's radar in 2023, when Schiff launched an ultimately successful campaign to serve in the Senate after decades in the U.S. House. CNN published the first news article detailing that Schiff had claimed the Maryland home as a primary residence while also taking a homeowner’s tax exemption on the Burbank condo.

The campaign said at the time that Schiff's two properties were listed as primary residences "for loan purposes because they are both occupied throughout the year and to distinguish them from a vacation property."

WATCH: ADAM SCHIFF SILENT AFTER TRUMP ACCUSED HIM OF MORTGAGE FRAUD

Days after Trump first posted about Schiff's mortgages in Maryland and California, the president's Director of National Intelligence, Tulsi Gabbard, declassified documents that reportedly show "overwhelming evidence" that then-President Barack Obama and his national security team laid the groundwork for what would be the yearslong Trump–Russia collusion probe after Trump's election win against former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in 2016.

Schiff was an incredibly vocal lawmaker amid the Russian collusion claims, most notably when the House censured him in 2023 over his promotion that Trump's 2016 campaign colluded with Russia. Schiff served in the House representing California from 2001 to 2024, when he was sworn-in as a senator after his successful 2024 campaign to serve in the nation's upper chamber.

Schiff served as the ranking member of the House intelligence committee from 2015 to 2019, before becoming the committee's chair from 2019 to 2023. In that role, he was kept up to date on classified materials surrounding the Russian collusion claims.

Trump also recently invoked Gabbard's alleged revelations while attacking Schiff over his mortgages in another Truth Social post.

FEDERAL HOUSING OFFICIAL SUBMITTED SCHIFF CRIMINAL REFERRAL TO DOJ OVER MORTGAGE DOCUMENTS

Trump went on to ominously warn during a White House event last week that Schiff has "a lot of other things far worse than" his mortgage inquiry.

"He defrauded banks and insurance companies and the federal government, but it's, very simple. It's mortgage loan fraud ... But he has a lot of other things far worse than that. So no Adam Schiff, they have him 100% on mortgage fraud," Trump said last Tuesday from the White House while hosting a meeting with Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.

Jacobson said that Democrats have boxed themselves out of attempting to claim that Trump is targeting a political foe over the mortgage criminal referral because the party had spent the last decade launching "lawfare" at Trump.

"One of the ironies here that I think everybody understands, is that Democrats launched a lawfare campaign against Donald Trump. And it didn't just start once he took office this year. It's been going on for a decade," he said.

"They have used every tool available to try to destroy him, including through criminal prosecutions, including through federal investigations. . . . They've really tried to get him. And for them now to say, 'oh, just because we did that to you for 10 years doesn't give you the right to do it to us.' Legally, that's sound. I mean, you have to prove your case in court. But politically, I don't think that's going to fly. Democrats screaming that Donald Trump is weaponizing prosecutors against them is not going to really impress a lot of people."

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Jacobson speculated that there will likely be more woes for Schiff in the coming days, but that potential legal cases hinge on prosecutors.

"We don't know where this is going ahead, of course, but it does appear that Adam Schiff is in the sights of Donald Trump. No surprise about that, because Donald Trump has been in the sights of Adam Schiff for a decade. So, I fully expect that there will be more here. The question is going to be really though, once it moves into the realm of prosecution, what are the prosecutors going to do?"

The Department of Justice declined comment when approached about potentially investigating and taking up the Schiff case. Schiff's office did not respond to Fox Digital's request for comment.

Fox News Digital's Danielle Wallace and Peter Doocy contributed to this report.

Trump-foe Adam Schiff dismisses Tulsi Gabbard’s declassified Russia collusion intelligence as ‘dishonest’

Posted on July 24, 2025 by Latest Political News on Fox News

Sen. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., is throwing cold water on Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard's assertion about the Obama administration's role in pushing the Trump-Russia collusion narrative during the 2016 presidential election.

Gabbard has declassified documents, including a House Intelligence Committee memo, alleging that former President Barack Obama and his national security team "manufactured an Intelligence Community Assessment they knew was false."

"I think what Gabbard and her staff are doing is dishonest and misstated, and I'll leave it at that," Schiff told Fox News Digital on Capitol Hill.

But White House Spokesman Davis Ingle was quick to fire back in a statement to Fox News Digital. "Pencil neck, watermelon head Adam ‘Shifty’ Schiff was one of the chief propagandists behind the Russia collusion hoax," he said. "He’s now trying to desperately cover his tracks as this entire lie is being exposed to the world."

DNI GABBARD CLAIMS ‘DEEP STATE ACTORS’ DIDN’T WANT TRUMP-RUSSIA INFORMATION TO 'SEE THE LIGHT OF DAY'

Schiff was elected to the Senate last year but served in the House while Congress investigated whether Trump colluded with Russia to influence the 2016 election.

NEW RUSSIAGATE EVIDENCE 'DIRECTLY POINT TO' OBAMA, DOJ WILL DECIDE 'CRIMINAL IMPLICATIONS': GABBARD

And as a ranking member and then chair of the House Intelligence Committee, Schiff was directly involved in the congressional investigation and became a leading Democratic voice accusing Trump's 2016 presidential campaign of colluding with Russia.

"Should Obama and his team be held responsible in some way for pushing the Russia collusion narrative that was proven false to take down Trump?" Fox News Digital asked Schiff.

"Well, if you read the well-reported intelligence community report, you know they documented Russia's efforts to help denigrate Hillary Clinton, which gave a boost to the Trump campaign," Schiff responded.

Schiff was referring to an Intelligence Community Assessment report from 2017 that asserted that Russia's goals were to undermine faith in the U.S. democratic process and to "denigrate" former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, and that Russian President Vladimir Putin "developed a clear preference" for Trump.

Gabbard's office alleged in a press release outlining the unearthed documents that Putin did not favor a candidate in 2016. It also said, "There is irrefutable evidence detailing how President Obama and his national security team directed the creation of an Intelligence Community Assessment that they knew was false."

When asked if he should apologize, Schiff told Fox News Digital, "It's been proven accurate."

And as he walked away, Schiff seemed to nod in agreement and say, "Yes," when asked if everything he had said about the Russia collusion was accurate.

The Justice Department, however, has formed a "strike force" to assess the evidence publicized by Gabbard into the Obama administration's role in the Trump–Russia collusion narrative.

Trump and Schiff have long been political foes, as the president often evoked Schiff's nickname on the presidential campaign trail in 2024 while Trump weaved through a range of topics, including what he has come to refer to as the "Russia, Russia, Russia hoax."

"Adam ‘Shifty’ Schiff is in BIG TROUBLE!" Trump said on Truth Social on Sunday. "He falsified Loan Documents. He once said my son would go to prison on a SCAM that Schiff, along with other Crooked Dems, illegally ‘manufactured’ in order to stage an actual coup."

"My son did nothing wrong, knew nothing about the fictional story," he added. "It was an American Tragedy! Now Shifty should pay the price of prison for a real crime, not one made up by the corrupt accusers!"

The U.S. Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) sent a letter to the Department of Justice in May alleging that Schiff has "falsified bank documents and property records to acquire more favorable loan terms, impacting payments from 2003-2019 for a Potomac, Maryland-based property."

"Since I led his first impeachment, Trump has repeatedly called for me to be arrested for treason," Schiff said after Trump first accused Schiff of mortgage fraud. "So in a way, I guess this is a bit of a letdown. And this baseless attempt at political retribution won’t stop me from holding him accountable. Not by a long shot."

Fox News Digital's Brooke Singman, Emma Colton, Danielle Wallace, and Peter Doocy contributed to this report.

Trump invokes Russia collusion hoax while calling for longtime foe Schiff to face jail time

Posted on July 21, 2025 by Latest Political News on Fox News

President Donald Trump called for California Democrat Sen. Adam Schiff to face jail time while invoking recently declassified documents alleging Obama administration officials "manufactured and politicized intelligence" to create the narrative that Russia was attempting to influence the 2016 presidential election.

"Adam ‘Shifty’ Schiff is in BIG TROUBLE!" Trump posted to Truth Social Sunday evening. "He falsified Loan Documents. He once said my son would go to prison on a SCAM that Schiff, along with other Crooked Dems, illegally ‘manufactured’ in order to stage an actual coup."

Schiff is under scrutiny after the U.S. Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) sent a letter to the Department of Justice in May sounding the alarm that in "multiple instances," Schiff allegedly "falsified bank documents and property records to acquire more favorable loan terms, impacting payments from 2003-2019 for a Potomac, Maryland-based property."

FEDERAL HOUSING OFFICIAL SUBMITTED SCHIFF CRIMINAL REFERRAL TO DOJ OVER MORTGAGE DOCUMENTS

FHFA is an independent federal agency that oversees Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and the Federal Home Loan Bank System.

Schiff’s office did not respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment Monday morning.

Trump publicly lambasted Schiff Tuesday over the alleged mortgage fraud, while Fannie Mae's financial crimes investigations concluded last week in a letter to the FHFA that Schiff allegedly engaged in "a sustained pattern of possible occupancy misrepresentation" on five Fannie Mae loans, Fox News Digital previously reported.

Schiff has passed off the allegations as a continuation of Trump's history of slamming the liberal lawmaker.

"Since I led his first impeachment, Trump has repeatedly called for me to be arrested for treason," Schiff posted to X earlier in July after Trump first accused Schiff of mortgage fraud. "So in a way, I guess this is a bit of a letdown. And this baseless attempt at political retribution won’t stop me from holding him accountable. Not by a long shot."

WATCH: ADAM SCHIFF SILENT AFTER TRUMP ACCUSED HIM OF MORTGAGE FRAUD

Days after Trump first posted about Schiff's mortgages in Maryland and California, the president's Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard declassified documents that reportedly show "overwhelming evidence" that then-President Barack Obama and his national security team laid the groundwork for what would be the yearslong Trump–Russia collusion probe after Trump's election win against former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in 2016.

"It lays out, these over 100 documents that you're referencing, that I declassified and released, spells out in great detail exactly what happens when you have some of the most powerful people in our country directly leading at the helm, President Obama and his senior-most national security cabinet, James Comey, John Brennan, James Clapper, and Susan Rice and others, essentially making a very intentional decision to create this manufactured, politicized piece of intelligence with the objective of subverting the will of the American people," Gabbard told Fox News' Sean Hannity Friday evening.

TRUMP ACCUSES 'SCAM ARTIST' SCHIFF OF LYING ABOUT MARYLAND HOME TO COMMIT MORTGAGE FRAUD

She argued that the goal of Obama and his team was to essentially "not accept the decision of the American people" in 2016, and to use this "manufactured, politicized piece of intelligence" as a means to enact a "years-long coup against President Trump."

Schiff served as the ranking member of the House intelligence committee from 2015 to 2019, before becoming the committee's chair from 2019 to 2023. In that role, Schiff was kept up to date on classified materials surrounding the Russian collusion claims.

Schiff advocated in 2018 that Donald Trump Jr., the president's son, face a subpoena amid Special Counsel Robert Mueller's investigation into claims Trump's 2016 campaign colluded with Russia to secure the election, which Trump cited in his latest Truth Social aimed at Schiff. Mueller's investigation, which wrapped up in March 2019, into the Russia claims determined there was no evidence of collusion between the Trump campaign and Russia.

Obama officials, Trump critics target Hegseth’s Ukraine ‘concessions’ as ‘biggest gift’ to Russia

Posted on February 13, 2025 by Latest Political News on Fox News

Obama officials and Trump critics are up in arms after Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said a return to the Eastern European country's pre-war borders with Russia is "unrealistic."

Hegseth, speaking to the Ukraine Defense Contact Group in Belgium on Wednesday, said "returning to Ukraine’s pre-2014 borders is an unrealistic objective." He also called for Europe to offer Ukraine security guarantees after the war – not the U.S.

Trump administration critics accused the secretary of giving up leverage before the start of peace negotiations with Russia.

"Putin is gonna pocket this and ask for more," Brett Bruen, director of Global Engagement under the Obama White House, told Fox News Digital.

RUSSIAN MISSILES RAINED DOWN ON KYIV JUST AHEAD OF TREASURY SECRETARY SCOTT BESSENT'S VISIT

Hegseth said Wednesday that "durable peace" for Ukraine must "ensure that the war will not begin again."

"The United States does not believe that NATO membership for Ukraine is a realistic outcome of a negotiated settlement. Instead, any security guarantee must be backed by capable European and non-European troops," he said.

"If these troops are deployed as peacekeepers to Ukraine at any point, they should be deployed as part of a non-NATO mission and not covered under Article 5. There also must be robust international oversight of the line of contact. To be clear, as part of any security guarantee, there will not be U.S. troops deployed to Ukraine."

While it is little surprise the Trump administration does not currently support Ukraine’s NATO membership, or believe Ukraine can take back all of its territory including Crimea, critics argue that Hegseth vocalizing these beliefs just as President Donald Trump fired the opening salvo in peace negotiations took them off the table as leverage.

"Why would you unilaterally surrender on some of those key strategic issues? Even if Trump ultimately wants to give ground, at least get something in return," Bruen said.

‘NO BETRAYAL’ IN TRUMP MOVE TOWARD UKRAINE WAR NEGOTIATIONS, HEGSETH SAYS

"Anyone with any diplomatic experience would have said it is critical that we use this as part of our negotiation, as President Trump wants to have with Moscow. But the idea that we're simply going to announce all of the things that we are not going to do goes against 70 years of our diplomacy and our military strategy."

Michael McFaul, ambassador to Russia under the Obama administration, asked why the Trump administration appeared to be giving Russian President Vladimir Putin wins for free.

"Why is the Trump administration giving Putin gifts – Ukrainian land and no NATO membership for Ukraine – before negotiations even begin?" he asked on X. "I've negotiated with the Russians. You never give up anything to them for free."

Alexander Vindman, a Trump impeachment witness and former Europe director at the National Security Council – who continues to be a fierce Trump critic – characterized Hegseth's comments as "complete capitulation to Putin" that justifies Russia's wars of aggression going back to Georgia in 2008.

"This will embolden Putin and undermine the interests of peace in Ukraine and Europe. A major blow to U.S. national security," Vindman asserted.

Rep. Judy Chu, D-Calif., chimed in that Hegseth's comments show, "Trump's foreign policy has always been Russia First. Never America and its allies first."

The defense secretary also called on Europe to "take ownership of conventional security on the continent."

HEGSETH WARNS EUROPEANS 'REALITIES' OF CHINA AND BORDER THREATS PREVENT US FROM GUARANTEEING THEIR SECURITY

"European allies must lead from the front," Hegseth said. "Together, we can establish a division of labor that maximize our comparative advantages in Europe and Pacific, respectively."

His comments came just before Trump called both Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and as Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent traveled to Kyiv.

On Friday, Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio will meet with Zelenskyy on the sidelines of the Munich Security Conference.

The Putin conversation came one day after the release of American Marc Fogel, who had been detained by the Kremlin, which Trump said he saw as a sign of "good faith" by the Russians.

Trump, meanwhile, has begun pressuring Ukrainians to turn over access to rare Earth minerals in exchange for security aid. Bessent presented Ukraine with a draft deal exchanging aid for minerals on Wednesday in Kyiv, according to Zelenskyy.

"We agreed to work together, very closely, including visiting each other’s Nations," Trump posted to Truth Social on Wednesday of his call with Putin. "We have also agreed to have our respective teams start negotiations immediately."

He announced that he would asked Rubio, Director of the CIA John Ratcliffe, National Security Advisor Michael Waltz and Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff to lead negotiations.

Trump also said his call with Zelenskyy went "very well."

"It is time to stop this ridiculous War, where there has been massive, and totally unnecessary, DEATH and DESTRUCTION. God bless the people of Russia and Ukraine!"

Ex-FBI informant charged with lying about Bidens’ business dealings re-arrested

Posted on February 22, 2024 by Latest Political News on Fox News

A former FBI informant who was arrested last week on charges of lying to the bureau about the Bidens’ alleged business dealings with a Ukrainian energy company, was re-arrested Thursday after a judge deemed him a flight risk.

Alexander Smirnov, 43, was released by a Nevada judge earlier this week. A California judge ordered him arrested again on Thursday after federal prosecutors argued Smirnov, who holds dual U.S.-Israeli citizenship, was a flight risk.

The informant, Alexander Smirnov, is "actively peddling new lies that could impact U.S. elections," federal prosecutors said Wednesday, as they appealed to a judge to keep him behind bars ahead of trial on charges alleging he lied to the FBI about a phony multimillion-dollar bribery scheme involving the Bidens and the Ukrainian energy company Burisma.

FBI REPORTEDLY INVESTIGATING CONTROVERSIAL DEMOCRATIC MAYOR WHO SCHMOOZED WITH BIDEN LAST MONTH

The latest charges were filed in Los Angeles, California, meaning if his case goes to trial, that's where the case will be.

Several sealed entries were listed in the court docket, but no additional details about his return to custody were immediately available.

Smirnov is charged with making a false statement and creating a false and fictitious record.

According to attorneys David Chesnoff and Richard Schonfeld, Smirnov was arrested Thursday morning at their law offices in downtown Las Vegas on the same charges. The lawyers did not immediately respond to phone and text message requests for further comment.

Prosecutors say Smirnov falsely told his handler that executives from the Ukrainian energy company Burisma paid President Biden and Hunter Biden $5 million each around 2015. The claim became central to the Republican impeachment inquiry in Congress.

FBI informant who lied about the Bidens’ ties to Ukrainian energy company had high-level Russian contacts: DOJ

Posted on February 21, 2024 by Latest Political News on Fox News

A former FBI informant charged with lying about a multimillion-dollar bribery scheme between a Ukrainian energy company and the Bidens had contacts with Russian intelligence officials, prosecutors said Tuesday.

In court filings, prosecutors said Alexander Smirnov admitted during an interview before his arrest last week that "officials associated with Russian intelligence were involved in passing a story" about the president’s son, Hunter Biden. They said Smirnov's contacts with Russian officials were recent and extensive, and said Smirnov had planned to meet with one official during an upcoming overseas trip.

They said Smirnov has had numerous contacts with a person he described as the "son of a former high-ranking government official" and "someone with ties to a particular Russian intelligence service." They said there is a serious risk that Smirnov could flee overseas to avoid facing trial.

Prosecutors revealed the alleged contact as they urged a judge to keep Smirnov behind bars while he awaits trial.

HUNTER BIDEN WAS PAID $100K A MONTH THROUGH CHINESE FIRM VENTURE, EX-ASSOCIATE TESTIFIED

Smirnov, who holds dual U.S.-Israeli citizenship, is charged with falsely reporting to the FBI in June 2020 that executives associated with the Ukrainian energy company Burisma paid Hunter and Joe Biden $5 million each in 2015 or 2016.

Smirnov had only routine business dealings with the company starting in 2017 and made the bribery allegations after he "expressed bias" against Joe Biden while he was a presidential candidate, prosecutors said. Special Counsel David Weiss said Smirnov’s lies were aimed at affecting the 2024 presidential election.

Smirnov is charged with making a false statement and creating a false and fictitious record. The charges were filed in Los Angeles, where he lived for 16 years before relocating to Las Vegas two years ago.

Smirnov was due in court later Tuesday in Las Vegas. He has been in custody at a facility in rural Pahrump, about an hour drive west of Las Vegas, since his arrest last week at the airport while returning from overseas.

U.S. Magistrate Judge Daniel Albregts allowed Smirnov to be released from custody on electronic GPS monitoring while he awaits trial. He must stay in Clark County, Nevada, and is prohibited from applying for a new passport.

Before his arrest, Smirnov had been scheduled to leave the U.S. for a months-long, multi-country trip that – by his own admission – involved meetings with officials of foreign intelligence agencies and governments, prosecutors said.

Ahead of Tuesday's hearing, Defense attorneys David Chesnoff and Richard Schonfeld had argued for Smirnov's release while he awaits trial "so he can effectively fight the power of the government."

Smirnov's claims have been central to the Republican effort in Congress to investigate the president and his family, and helped spark what is now a House impeachment inquiry into Biden. Democrats called for an end to the probe after the indictment came down last week, while Republicans distanced the inquiry from Smirnov's claims and said they would continue to "follow the facts."

Hunter Biden is expected to give a deposition next week.

The Burisma allegations became a flashpoint in Congress as Republicans pursuing investigations of President Biden and his family demanded the FBI release the unredacted form documenting the allegations. They acknowledged they couldn't confirm if the allegations were true.

Fox News' David Spunt and The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Media deem Trump the nominee, despite Haley tying him to Putin

Posted on February 20, 2024 by Latest Political News on Fox News

Nikki Haley is campaigning hard, making the television rounds and ramping up her rhetoric against Donald Trump.

She is fighting on her home turf – South Carolina, the state that knows her best – and yet the media are acting in many ways as if the campaign is over.

That’s largely because the state’s former governor trails Trump by 22 to 36 percentage points, according to the last several South Carolina polls.

RON DESANTIS ACCUSES NIKKI HALEY OF APPEALING TO 'LIBERAL' T-SHIRT WEARERS: 'SHE'S POISONED THE WELL'

Haley is not only way behind Trump, she’s not closing the gap in a way that makes it a competitive contest on Saturday.

And if she loses by more than 20, the pundits will view that as the final nail in her political coffin.

Beyond that, I can’t think of a single state that Haley can win outright. She says she’ll continue at least through Super Tuesday, but the former president may have mathematically clinched the nomination by then, or shortly afterward.

This is not a knock on Haley (though contemporaries say she burned some bridges in South Carolina). The former U.N. ambassador managed to be the last woman standing, well after Pence, DeSantis, Scott, Christie and the others dropped out. But it’s instructive to look at how she’s campaigning, and why Trump – despite his four indictments and $355 million civil fraud penalty – seems unstoppable.

In a Sunday interview on ABC’s "This Week," Haley increasingly tried to tie Trump to Vladimir Putin’s murderous tactics in the wake of the Arctic prison killing of opposition leader Alexei Navalny:

"When you hear Donald Trump say in South Carolina a week ago that he would encourage Putin to invade our allies if they weren’t pulling their weight, that’s bone-chilling, because all he did in that one moment was empower Putin. And all he did in that moment was, he sided with a guy that kills his political opponents, he sided with a thug that arrests American journalists and holds them hostage, and he sided with a guy who wanted to make a point to the Russian people, don’t challenge me in the next election or this will happen to you too."

TRUMP’S NATO COMMENTS TRIGGER FIERCE MEDIA AND EUROPEAN OPPOSITION: HOW SERIOUS IS HE?

What’s more, Haley told Jonathan Karl, "it’s actually pretty amazing that he – not only after making those comments that he would encourage Putin to invade NATO, but the fact that he won’t acknowledge anything with Navalny. Either he sides with Putin and thinks it’s cool that Putin killed one of his political opponents, or he just doesn’t think it’s that big of a deal."

Trump had said he wouldn’t protect any NATO country that didn’t spend 2% of its funds on defense, and in that case he would encourage Putin and Russia to "do whatever they hell they wanted." He has made no mention of Navalny’s death, which President Biden quickly blamed on Putin.

Haley reminded viewers that if Ukraine falls, Poland or the Baltics could be next.

Now think about this. If a candidate not named Trump had made comments interpreted as potentially blowing up the Atlantic alliance – drawing condemnation from top European leaders – and stayed silent when Russia’s dictator had the opposition leader killed, after a previous poisoning attempt, wouldn’t there be a political uproar?

But since it is Trump, who as president had a friendly relationship with Putin, there has been scant criticism from Republicans. If Trump believes it, most of the party falls into line.

It harkens back to his old 2016 line about shooting someone on Fifth Avenue. Just as the Senate seemed on the verge of passing a bipartisan border bill that included aid to Ukraine and Israel, Trump torpedoed the measure by coming out against it.

DEMOCRATS WIN SEAT, REPUBLICANS WIN IMPEACHMENT, TWO PRESIDENTS CLASH OVER NATO

And in a FOX town hall Sunday night, Haley, who often says her ex-boss was a good president at the time, offered a more negative assessment:

"There were things that he did wrong," Haley told John Roberts. "His press conference in Helsinki, when he went and was trying to buddy up with Putin, I called him out for that. I explained that deeply in my book…how he was completely wrong. Because every time he was in the same room with him, he got weak in the knees. We can't have a president that gets weak in the knees with Putin."

About 20 minutes after Haley used the "weak in the knees" line yesterday on "Fox & Friends," saying Trump has "yet to say anything about Navalny’s death," the ex-president responded on Truth Social:

"The sudden death of Alexei Navalny has made me more and more aware of what is happening in our Country. It is a slow, steady progression, with CROOKED, Radical Left Politicians, Prosecutors, and Judges leading us down a path to destruction." You might have noticed the pivot, and the failure to mention Putin at all.

All this, in a nutshell, is why the press are far more interested in the veepstakes chatter surrounding Trump than in Haley’s dogged campaigning.

What most of the media and other critics fail to understand is that Trump represents the majority of his party. He has remade the GOP in his own image. Most leaders, with the notable exception of the strongly pro-Ukraine Mitch McConnell, follow their leader, as do rank-and-file members afraid of a Donald-backed primary challenger.

Speaker Mike Johnson admitted he consulted with Trump before declaring the border compromise DOA. Marco Rubio, who two months ago helped pass a law barring any president from withdrawing from NATO, said he had no problem with Trump’s remarks about the alliance.

There are even lines that Haley won’t cross. Asked repeatedly on ABC whether she still plans to endorse Trump if he wins, as she said at the campaign’s outset, Haley kept deflecting the question.

A decade ago, Haley’s pro-military and anti-Russia views would have been a comfortable fit for the Republican Party, but that party no longer exists.

Senate voted in favor of $95 billion international spending bill, there may be another around the corner

Posted on February 16, 2024 by Latest Political News on Fox News

Members of the House and Senate usually like to gab.

But word of a cryptic, major national security threat against the U.S. cast a pall on Congress this week.

Loggorrheic lawmakers suddenly turned mute when they were sworn to secrecy considering the gravity of Russia potentially deploying a weapon in outer space.

"I can’t discuss this. I’m sorry," lamented Rep. Carlos Gimenez, R-Fla.

"Absolutely no comment," said Rep. Richie Torres, D-N.Y.

WARNING ABOUT 'THREAT' TO US HAS 'SOMETHING TO DO WITH OUTER SPACE': CHAD PERGRAM

"We should be concerned. It’s serious," offered. Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi, D-Ill., "That’s all I can say right now."

House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., was practically verbose when he chatted up reporters about the threat.

"I’m going to be very precise and I’m not going to take questions," said Johnson.

But Johnson lent little detail into the disconcerting reports.

"Steady hands are at the wheel," said Johnson. "There’s no need for alarm."

House Intelligence Committee Chairman Mike Turner, R-Ohio, said the White House "confirmed that, in their view, the matter was ‘serious.’"

This consternation is cast against the backdrop of the Senate approving a $95 billion international security bill for Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan. In other words, if there’s a pressing threat from Russia, this could impact Ukraine.

An eye-popping 70 senators voted in favor of the bill just before daybreak Tuesday morning. Twenty-two Senate Republicans voted yes. Three senators who caucus with the Democrats voted nay.

HOUSE VOTE ON FOREIGN AID FUNDING IN LIMBO

Twenty-two GOP yeas is not quite half of the 49 member Senate Republican Conference. But that’s still a substantial showing. And 70 votes is a robust figure from the Senate. Seventy yeas would make the bill hard to ignore in the House - under other circumstances.

"I think the House will face a moment of truth. This is a historical moment," said Sen. Chris Van Hollen, D-Md. "You can also be sure our allies are watching, whether in NATO or East Asia, to see whether the United States surrenders, or betrays a partner."

Democrats demanded that Johnson take up the foreign aid bill. But he immediately resisted.

"We are not going to be forced into action by the Senate who in the latest product they sent us over does not have one word in the bill about America's border. Not one word about security," said Johnson.

Even though Johnson – and Senate Republicans – mauled a bipartisan Senate compromise for the border.

"What is he afraid of to put national security first to help our country, to push back and push back against (Russian leader Vladimir) Putin, and to make sure that our country is protected?" asked House Democratic Caucus Chairman Pete Aguilar, D-Calif.

It’s not often that House members can bypass the leadership and deposit a bill on the floor. But there is a way to do it. The gambit is called a discharge petition.

Here’s how it works:

A discharge petition requires a solid number of 218 House members to sign up to go over the head of the Speaker. The number is locked in at 218, regardless of the side of the House. The House has 435 members at full population. It’s currently at 431 members. Thus, the discharge petition provision wants at least half of the body to favor sidestepping the leadership.

Rep. Jerry Nadler, D-N.Y., the top Democrat on the Judiciary Committee said he was "absolutely" for a discharge petition.

When asked if most Democrats would sign on, Nadler replied, "yeah, I do."

But not so fast.

Many Democrats might push to advance the foreign aid package. But there are plenty of progressives who aren’t in favor of the bill at all because of concerns for Palestinians.

RUSSIAN NUCLEAR CAPABILITIES IN SPACE COULD THREATEN INTERNATIONAL SATELLITES, US MILITARY COMMS: SOURCES

"I can’t support that bill with aid to Israel," said Rep. Pramila Jayapal, D-Wash. "There’s also a lot of concerns about the restrictions on the aid to Gaza that the Senate put into the bill, including suspending aid to UNRWA, which is the only agency that can deliver aid in Gaza."

Moreover, Rep. Robert Garcia, D-Calif., thought it was "premature" to execute a discharge petition. He wanted the House to try to work through the issue and get it on the floor another way.

So certainly more Democrats favor of a discharge petition. But no one knows what might constitute that particular universe of votes. Therefore, a discharge petition certainly needs substantial GOP support.

A successful discharge petition will require the support of advocates for Ukraine and moderate Republicans. Someone in that wheelhouse is Rep. Don Bacon, R-Neb. When asked if he was open to signing a discharge petition, Bacon replied "not now." He added he wouldn’t "lean too far forward" just yet.

The Nebraska Republican said "one or two" Democrats talked to him about signing the discharge petition. But he added a caveat.

"I'm interested in finding something we could all agree on," said Bacon.

But that’s just the start.

"I’d never sign a discharge petition when we are in the majority," said Rep. Mario Diaz-Balart, R-Fla.

Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., suggested that that signatories weren’t team players for the GOP.

"A discharge petition would be a betrayal on the part of anyone signing it," said Gaetz.

This is why there have only been two successful discharge petitions in the House in the past 22 years.

One was on the House’s version of the famous "McCain-Feingold" campaign finance law, named originally after late Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., and former Sen. Russ Feingold, D-Wisc., in 2002. The other was on a measure to renew the Export-Import Bank.

So, this enterprise is challenging. And while it’s an intriguing parliamentary maneuver, the odds – and history – work against discharge petitions.

The House is now out of session until February 28. The Senate is done until the week after next. Another (yes, another) deadline to avert a government shutdown looms on March 1. A bigger one is barreling down the tracks for March 7. And the Senate must wrestle with an impeachment trial for Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas at the end of the month.

In short, a resolution to the international aid bill isn’t coming soon – if ever.

The threats loom – be a weapon from space for Russia. Threats at the border. Threats from China. The war in Ukraine. Instability in the Middle East.

The Senate finally acted – after a months-long circumnavigation into the border talks.

But there is no viable plan right now to pass the foreign aid package in the House.

It was long said that the Senate is where the House’s hot coffee cools.

In this case, the Senate served the House hot coffee.

And in today’s environment, it’s cooling instead in the House.