Prepared for the Office of Public Affairs (OPA)
U.S. Department of Homeland Security

Editorial Note: The DHS Daily Briefing is a collection of news articles related to Department’s mission. The inclusion of particular stories is not intended to reflect their importance, nor is it intended to endorse the political viewpoints or affiliations included in news coverage.

The AP [3/19/2026 5:06 PM, Meg Kinnard, 35287K] reports Sen. Markwayne Mullin moved a step closer to becoming President Donald Trump’s next homeland security secretary after a Senate committee Thursday narrowly advanced his nomination. The 8-7 vote came after a contentious hearing Wednesday and sent the Cabinet nomination to the full Senate, which could act to confirm the Oklahoma Republican next week. That vote included a "no" from the Republican chairman, Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky, and a "yes" from a Democrat, Sen. John Fetterman of Pennsylvania. The approval comes as the parties are fighting bitterly over the policies of the Department of Homeland Security, leading to a funding lapse that is now in its 34th day. During his testimony before the Senate Homeland Security and Government Affairs Committee, Mullin tried to make the case that he would be a steady hand after the tumultuous tenure of Kristi Noem, Trump’s first DHS secretary. Mullin also signaled support for Trump’s immigration priorities, which are central to the funding standoff after the death of at least three American citizens at the hands of federal agents. Mullin’s hearing was unusually combative and came close to going off the rails as he engaged in heated exchanges with some Democrats as well as Paul. Politico [3/19/2026 10:12 AM, Eric Bazail-Eimil, 21784K] reports Paul, a Kentucky Republican, voted against advancing Mullin’s nomination as he had pledged to do Wednesday. Paul took Mullin to task in Wednesday’s hearing over past disparaging comments Mullin made against him and the nature of “special missions” he claimed to have taken as a member of the House. Democrat John Fetterman of Pennsylvania broke away from the other members of his party and voted to advance Mullin’s nomination. Fetterman — who had previously indicated he’d back Mullin — justified his move in a social media post Thursday, saying: “We need a leader at DHS. We must reopen DHS. My AYE is rooted in a strong committed, constructive working relationship with Senator Mullin for our nation’s security.” Fetterman’s Democratic colleagues strongly disagreed with his stance. Sen. Gary Peters (D-Mich.), the top Democrat on the committee, said he tried to keep an “open mind” throughout the hearing, but argued Mullin lacked the experience and “temperament” to be DHS chief. Paul offered no additional remarks about his vote at the markup Thursday.

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Daily Wire [3/19/2026 6:23 AM, Jennie Taer, 2314K] reports that the Senate Homeland Security Committee voted Thursday to advance the nomination of Sen. Markwayne Mullin (R-OK) to lead the Department of Homeland Security. Mullin’s nomination will now head to a full Senate vote after clearing the committee in an 8-7 vote. The vote largely followed party lines, though Sen. John Fetterman (D-PA) broke with Democrats to support the nomination. Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY), who chairs the committee, voted against Mullin after a contentious exchange during Wednesday’s confirmation hearing, where Paul raised concerns about what he described as Mullin’s "pattern" of aggressive behavior. CNN [3/19/2026 12:14 PM, Morgan Rimmer, 19874K] reports Democratic Sen. John Fetterman cast the deciding vote Thursday to advance Markwayne Mullin’s nomination to serve as US Department of Homeland Security secretary, crossing party lines to send President Donald Trump’s nominee to the full Senate for consideration. He explained in a post on X his decision to join Republicans on the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee in backing the Oklahoma Republican senator to replace outgoing DHS Secretary Kristi Noem. "In January, I called on the president to fire Noem—and he did. I truly approached the confirmation of my colleague and friend, Senator Mullin, with an open-mind," Fetterman wrote. "We need a leader at DHS. We must reopen DHS. My AYE is rooted in a strong committed, constructive working relationship with Senator Mullin for our nation’s security," he continued. If confirmed, Mullin will lead a department of more than 260,000 employees that oversees critical agencies including Immigration and Customs Enforcement, the Transportation Security Administration and the Coast Guard.

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New York Post [3/19/2026 11:14 AM, Josh Christenson, 40934K]
NewsNation [3/19/2026 9:50 AM, Anna Kutz, 4464K]
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Daily Wire [3/19/2026 9:04 AM, Jennie Taer, 2314K] reports that President Donald Trump has tapped Sen. Markwayne Mullin (R-OK) to serve as his next Secretary of Homeland Security, but the question remains: can he salvage the agency’s reputation and its mass deportation effort? Leading up to the firing of outgoing Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, the department faced backlash for its handling of immigration sweeps across major cities. In Minneapolis, it all came to a head after the fatal shootings of anti-ICE activists Renee Good and Alex Pretti by federal immigration agents. At the time, Noem tagged Good and Pretti as domestic terrorists, drawing backlash from both sides of the aisle for getting ahead of federal probes. In an attempt to clean up the situation, Trump sent his border czar, Tom Homan, into the Twin Cities to change the course of immigration raids and to quell chaos in the streets. In doing so, Trump replaced Noem ally Gregory Bovino, of Border Patrol, who was known for his aggressive tactics of carrying out roving patrols. Homan changed all that, putting the focus on nabbing the worst criminals first. On Wednesday, Fox News host Martha MacCallum asked Homan how Mullin would differ from Noem as secretary. The former Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) director said that while Mullin "doesn’t know the immigration game very well," he’s relying on "people with 30, 40 years of experience to guide him," adding: "That’s the way it should be." Mullin’s nomination passed a committee vote Thursday and is headed to the Senate floor.

NewsMax [3/19/2026 9:55 AM, Staff, 3760K] reports that a Senate committee on Thursday voted to advance the nomination of Sen. Markwayne Mullin to become Homeland Security secretary, even as the committee’s Republican chairman criticized Mullin and voted against him. The vote sends President Donald Trump’s homeland pick to the Republican-controlled full Senate for a vote, where Mullin will need a majority to be confirmed. Trump fired embattled Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem earlier this month after she was criticized by Republican lawmakers over her handling of Trump’s aggressive immigration crackdown and management of the 260,000-person department. The Republican president then nominated Mullin, a businessman who spent a decade in the U.S. House of Representatives before becoming a senator in 2023, to take over the role. During a confirmation hearing on Wednesday before the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, Republican Chairman Rand Paul criticized Mullin for making violent statements, including showing support for a man who attacked Paul in 2017. After the hearing, Paul said he would oppose Mullin’s nomination. If confirmed, Mullin, a member of the Cherokee Nation, would be the second Native American to serve as a Cabinet member. Mullin signaled at the hearing on Wednesday that he would approach some issues differently than Noem if confirmed as secretary.

NewsMax [3/19/2026 11:53 AM, Staff, 3760K] reports that Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Wis., said Thursday to Newsmax that he came away "impressed" with Sen. Markwayne Mullin, R-Okla., following a contentious confirmation hearing to replace outgoing Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, praising both his demeanor and personal testimony. "I learned quite a bit during that hearing, and what I learned impressed me," Johnson said during an appearance on "National Report," adding, "It did impress me." Johnson acknowledged tensions between Mullin and Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., saying he "wasn’t overly surprised" by their exchange. "Obviously, those two are not best friends forever," he said. "We’re human beings. Some people like each other, some people don’t." Still, Johnson emphasized Mullin’s relationships across the aisle as "the main takeaway," noting the nominee "has made long-standing, deep friendships both in the House and the Senate with both Democrats and Republicans." On Mullin’s vision for the Department of Homeland Security, Johnson highlighted his stated goal "that we’re not in the lead story every single day," interpreting it as a focus on effectiveness over publicity. "His overall goal is to protect Americans, no doubt about that," Johnson said, adding a "secondary goal is to do it quietly; do it effectively."

FOX News [3/19/2026 12:53 PM, Charles Creitz, 37576K] reports that Homeland Security Secretary-designate Markwayne Mullin was challenged Wednesday over concerns that the Trump administration could position ICE agents near polling places this November. The back-and-forth with Sen. Elissa Slotkin, D-Mich., comes amid warnings from some on the right that many blue states’ election security policies are potentially allowing illegal immigrants to cast ballots for races they are prohibited from participating in. Illegal immigrants are allowed to vote in certain local elections, starting with Takoma Park, Maryland, in 1993, but are federally banned from voting for congressional and presidential candidates. When asked by Slotkin whether the feds or the states run elections, Mullin cited the Constitution in responding that they are a state responsibility that includes some federal oversight. "So if you’re talking about the SAVE America Act requiring you, which is within the Constitution, by the way… to be citizens of the United States, I don’t think it’s too much to ask somebody to prove they’re a citizen of the U.S. to vote in a federal election," he said. Slotkin said she was not inferring any controversy over the SAVE Act, which remains held up in the Senate, but instead was raising concerns about immigration enforcement activity on Election Day. [Editorial note: consult video at source link]

FOX News [3/19/2026 12:35 PM, Staff, 37576K] reports that Sen. Elissa Slotkin, D-Mich., warns DHS secretary-designate Sen. Markwayne Mullin, R-Okla., against placing ICE at polling places. [Editorial note: consult video at source link]

Univision [3/19/2026 10:43 PM, Staff, 4937K] reports Senator Markwayne Mullin appeared before Congress on Wednesday, March 18, 2026, during his confirmation hearing as the next Secretary of Homeland Security (DHS), where he urged lawmakers to put aside partisan divisions and approve funding for the department, which has been affected by a partial shutdown due to the immigration policy promoted by US President Donald Trump. Mullin, a close ally of the president and a congressman with over a decade of experience , is poised to replace Kristi Noem, who was dismissed following heavy criticism of her management. During his remarks, he stated that his priority will be to stabilize the agency and prevent it from becoming embroiled in further controversy. The candidate stressed that the lack of resources is directly affecting workers, many of whom have gone weeks without pay, and warned that this puts national security at risk. However, his nomination faces questions, both because of his support for Trump’s immigration agenda and because of his controversial statements, which generated clashes during the hearing with legislators such as Republican Rand Paul. [Editorial note: consult video at source link]

FOX News [3/19/2026 9:34 AM, Taylor Penley, 37576K] reports that the Trump administration will not allow a refugee spillover into the United States as the Iran conflict escalates, White House Deputy Chief of Staff for Policy Stephen Miller vowed Wednesday. "There’s not going to be a refugee problem for the United States — that is a promise and a guarantee..." Miller told "The Ingraham Angle," contrasting the situation with the Biden administration’s handling of Afghan refugees. The Biden-era Operation Allies Welcome relied on "unvetted referrals" to allow nearly 190,000 Afghan nationals into the country from 2021 to 2022, according to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). The agency said those admitted into the U.S. included terrorists, sexual predators, pedophiles, domestic abusers and kidnappers. "They didn’t just magically end up in the United States," Miller continued. "We flew them here. Refugees come to the United States because they are flown to the U.S." "You also have illegal immigrants too, and those come to [the] United States across the southern border, which has been shut down. So no one is getting across the border illegally, and no refugees are going to be flown to United States, so, therefore, no one can get in." Miller also addressed reports that Russia has been feeding intelligence to Iran that could help the Islamic regime identify U.S. military assets in the Middle East, telling "The Ingraham Angle" that the Trump administration anticipated the involvement.

AP [3/19/2026 5:46 PM, Kevin Freking, 35287K] reports a bipartisan group of senators met behind closed doors Thursday with White House border czar Tom Homan, a small sign of progress as lawmakers look to end a shutdown of the Department of Homeland Security that began more than a month ago. Funding for the department lapsed on Feb. 14 as Democrats refused to fund Immigration and Customs Enforcement as well as Customs and Border Protection without changes to their operations in the wake of the deaths of Alex Pretti and Renee Good in Minneapolis. Sen. Katie Britt, R-Ala., said the next step in resolving the impasse will be another White House counteroffer, then lawmakers will regroup. Other senators in the meeting included top appropriators on both sides of the political aisle. They indicated the two sides are still far apart, but at least they are talking. The talks come at a time of growing strain at the nation’s airports, where some are reporting long lines at screening stations because Transportation Security Administration agents working without pay are calling out sick. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said the problem is likely to get worse next week without a resolution. Both chambers of Congress are scheduled to be out of Washington the first two weeks of April, and Thune warned that those plans will be in jeopardy if the shutdown is not resolved by the end of next week.

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CBS News [3/19/2026 3:55 PM, Kaia Hubbard, 51110K]
NewsMax [3/19/2026 4:36 PM, Sam Barron, 3760K]

Roll Call [3/19/2026 7:32 PM, Aris Folley, 673K] reports Senate Majority Leader John Thune set a deadline of next week for resolving the Homeland Security Department funding standoff, as Senate appropriators of both parties held a face-to-face meeting Thursday with White House "border czar" Tom Homan. Thune, a South Dakota Republican, said the meeting — the first of its kind since the department’s partial shutdown began a month ago — was a "pretty big deal and a recognition that we need to get this resolved." He also threatened to curtail a scheduled two-week spring recess in early April if there was still no deal by then. "It needs to get resolved by the end of next week," Thune told reporters. "I can’t see us taking a break if the government’s still shut down.” But lawmakers signaled little progress after the roughly 90-minute meeting with Homan adjourned at the Capitol Thursday afternoon. "I’m glad that the White House is here, but we’re still a long ways apart," said Sen. Patty Murray of Washington, the top Democrat on the Appropriations Committee. Asked if both sides were closer to a deal, she said, "No.” Homan wouldn’t characterize progress from the talks and said lawmakers need to "get the government back open.” "We’re going to keep having discussions," Homan told reporters when asked if the White House was willing to make further concessions in bipartisan talks. "That’s all I’m going to say.” The meeting drew participation from several key moderates who broke ranks to help end the historic partial government shutdown last fall, including Sens. Maggie Hassan, D-N.H., and Angus King of Maine, an independent who caucuses with Democrats. Neither took questions from reporters afterward, though there hasn’t been any indication yet that a repeat of the caucus defections from last fall is on the table. Senate Appropriations Chair Susan Collins, R-Maine, said "there was a robust discussion" and that progress was made, but she also accused Democrats of adding more demands. However, Collins also said she expects to see another offer from the White House. "We’re going to keep trying, but it would be helpful if the Democrats showed some movement on their part, which doesn’t seem to be happening," she said. In a letter to Collins earlier this week, Homan and Office of Legislative Affairs Director James Braid said they would agree to legislation expanding the use of body-worn cameras by immigration agents, limiting enforcement at certain "sensitive" locations such as schools and hospitals, as well as mandating agents wear visible identification, among other items. But a Democratic aide said the party is continuing to push for measures they’ve proposed for weeks following public uproar over the fatal shootings in January of two U.S. citizens in Minneapolis by immigration enforcement agents.

Washington Examiner [3/19/2026 4:00 PM, Rachel Schilke, 1147K] reports a bipartisan duo in the House is offering a compromise plan to end the monthlong shutdown of the Department of Homeland Security that would fund the agency while tightening oversight of Immigration and Customs Enforcement — a rare middle-ground effort amid an escalating partisan standoff over immigration. Reps. Brian Fitzpatrick (R-PA) and Tom Suozzi (D-NY) are introducing a bill to fund DHS but also include some restrictions on ICE, largely pushed by Democrats, such as body cameras, training, visible officer identification, and others. Fitzpatrick, a former FBI agent, said Suozzi and himself are working to iron out the details on their proposal, hoping to keep it simple and include reforms to ensure ICE is "conducting themselves, comporting themselves in a way that’s consistent with all federal law enforcement." Suozzi, who oversaw the 12th-largest police department in the U.S. as Nassau County Executive, said he and Fitzpatrick are going to present the legislation to their colleagues and work to get the required support necessary to pass the bill.

Washington Examiner [3/19/2026 3:41 PM, David Sivak, Ramsey Touchberry, 1147K] reports Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) is planning to keep senators in town for the April recess if Democrats cannot reach a compromise with the White House on funding for the Department of Homeland Security. In an interview with the Washington Examiner, Thune said he expects to cancel his travel plans if the department, at the center of a partial government shutdown over immigration enforcement, is still shuttered by the end of next week, when the Senate is scheduled to take a two-week Easter recess. The White House sent border czar Tom Homan to Capitol Hill on Thursday to meet with a group of Senate Republicans and Democrats, a sign that a deal may be closer at hand, more than a month into the shutdown. But Democrats, who have refused to fund Immigration and Customs Enforcement after two protesters were fatally shot in Minneapolis, have so far not budged off their demand that DHS agree to substantial reforms in exchange for their votes.

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NewsMax [3/19/2026 5:02 PM, Michael Katz, 3760K]

NewsMax [3/19/2026 9:37 PM, Jim Thomas, 3760K] reports Sen. Roger Marshall, R-Kan., told Newsmax on Thursday that Senate Democrats had only begun direct talks with Republicans after 34 days of stalemate over Department of Homeland Security funding, as the two parties remained divided over methods of enforcing immigration law. On "Rob Schmitt Tonight," the senator framed the dispute as a late-opening negotiation over efforts by Democrats to fund major DHS agencies while excluding Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Customs and Border Protection, an approach that has become a flash point in the broader immigration debate. Asked about House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., and the push to withhold ICE funding, Marshall said Democrats had waited more than a month to engage directly with Senate Republicans. "This is day 34," Marshall said. "And today is the first day that these Democratic senators were willing to sit down face-to-face and have a conversation.” His comments came as Democrats pressed their effort to fund major parts of DHS, including the Transportation Security Administration, the Federal Emergency Management Agency, the Coast Guard, and the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, while excluding ICE and CBP. Marshall said Republicans were not prepared to give ground. He said the remaining points of dispute had narrowed to two issues: Democrats’ demands to identify ICE agents and a fight over what kind of warrants should be required for immigration arrests. "There’s no backing off here. We’re going to stick with the Trump policies," Marshall said. Marshall called demands to "unmask" ICE agents a nonstarter, saying officers and their families could be put at risk if agents are more easily identified. He also rejected calls for judicial warrants in cases involving deportation enforcement, arguing that by the time ICE agents are arresting someone, that person has "been through this process already, a judicial process.” "We need to stick with that administrative warrant," Marshall said. "So indeed, we can deport the illegal aliens as well.” "But those are the last two issues, I think, outstanding right now," he said.

Breitbart [3/19/2026 10:29 PM, Ian Hanchett, 2238K] reports that, on Thursday’s broadcast of “CNN This Morning,” Rep. Lauren Underwood (D-IL) discussed the DHS shutdown and said that funding the agency piecemeal and using it as leverage “is not a best practice. You can see that on display. It’s terrible.” Underwood said, “Well, on the Appropriations Committee, we certainly try to make sure that agencies have the resources that they need to execute their missions on behalf of the American people. And what we see now is that we have a Republican Party that is not willing to look at some harm that’s being done, a couple agencies, ICE, Customs and Border Protection, U.S. Border Patrol, that clearly need reform. And instead of really looking and tackling that issue, we have other agencies performing essential functions for the American people, essential safety functions, brave TSA officers, we have Coasties, Coast Guard, who are out in harm’s way every single day that are working without pay, showing up and doing their missions.” Host Audie Cornish cut in to ask, “[D]oing it piecemeal, using it as political leverage, over time, does that just become damaging?” Underwood answered, “This is not a best practice. You can see that on display. It’s terrible.” [Editorial note: consult video at source link]

FOX News [3/19/2026 10:23 AM, Staff, 37576K] reports that Sen. Katie Britt, R-Ala., criticizes Democrats for delaying Homeland Security funding, leaving TSA and other agencies without pay. She urges negotiation, calling out political posturing amid the ongoing shutdown. [Editorial note: consult video at source link]

FOX News [3/19/2026 1:30 PM, Leo Briceno, 37576K] reports that Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., remained silent earlier this week when asked how long Democrats intended to hold out on funding the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) amid a recent string of suspected terror attacks. Fox News Digital approached Schumer with a pair of questions in the basement of the Senate. "Is it time to fund the DHS after four domestic suspected terror attacks have occurred?" a Fox News Digital reporter asked. "If the Republicans don’t agree to the ICE reforms that you guys want, all of them, what’s the next step? How long are you willing to leave DHS unfunded?". Schumer deflected the questions. "Ask the Republicans," Schumer answered. Funding for DHS originally lapsed on Feb. 14 when Democrats refused to advance spending legislation for DHS that didn’t also include a set of demands to reform ICE. Among other changes, Democrats have conditioned their support on a ban on masks for ICE agents, stiffer warrant requirement for apprehending suspects in public and a ban on roaming patrols. Republicans have rebuffed the demands, arguing they would handcuff President Donald Trump’s immigration enforcement goals. Republicans need at least seven Democrats to reach the 60-vote threshold to break a filibuster in the Senate, where they hold just 53 seats. [Editorial note: consult video at source link]

DailySignal [3/19/2026 2:23 PM, Pedro Rodriguez, 474K] reports that in the wake of terror attacks across the United States, House Democrats told The Daily Signal that President Donald Trump is to blame for the heightened threat of terrorism. "Donald Trump has made our country less safe, that’s for sure," Rep. Maxwell Frost, D-Fla., co-chair of the House Democratic Policy and Communications Committee, told The Daily Signal when asked about the increased terrorism threat. When The Daily Signal asked House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., about the threat of terrorism, Jeffries put the onus back on Trump, emphasizing he "is concerned with Trump’s unexplained war in Iran." Democrats in Congress, however, have repeatedly refused to fund the Department of Homeland Security, which shut down in mid-February after a lapse in funding. While Democrats have continued to demand reforms to Immigration and Customs Enforcement before reopening the department, Congressional Republicans have repeatedly claimed the reforms demanded are unworkable and expressed their concern that Democrats are leaving Americans vulnerable to terrorist attacks. Republicans have blamed their Democratic colleagues of "refusing to acknowledge and condemn the threat of radical Islam."

DailySignal [3/19/2026 3:35 PM, Tyler O’Neil, 474K] reports last week, a jury convicted eight alleged members of an Antifa cell for providing material support to terrorists, and the lead prosecutor says the case presents a "road map" to implement President Donald Trump’s strategy to combat domestic terrorism and organized political violence. The jury convicted eight people of riot, providing material support to terrorists, and other charges related to a July 4, 2025, riot outside the Prairieland Detention Facility operated by Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Rioters set off fireworks, and when police arrived at the scene, one of the rioters opened fire, wounding an officer in the shoulder. Before trial, seven other defendants pleaded guilty to providing material support to terrorists. Trump’s memorandum notes examples of political violence that fit under the "umbrella of self-described ‘anti-fascism.’" The president explains that the movement portrays "foundational American principles (e.g., support for law enforcement and border control) as ‘fascist’ to justify and encourage acts of violent revolution." A Department of Homeland Security spokesperson emphasized that the verdict represents justice.

NPR [3/19/2026 10:05 AM, Benjamin Swasey, 28764K] reports that the U.S. Senate on Tuesday began consideration of the SAVE America Act, a sweeping election overhaul that would introduce new proof-of-citizenship requirements to register to vote, among its provisions. The Republican-backed legislation is a top priority for President Trump, who has long railed — falsely — about widespread voting by non-U.S citizens. And while the bill is unlikely to overcome Democratic opposition and the Senate’s legislative filibuster, GOP-led states have taken up the cause. Proof-of-citizenship bills are now sitting on governors’ desks in Florida, South Dakota and Utah. Those follow similar laws passed in recent years in Louisiana, New Hampshire and Wyoming, according to the Voting Rights Lab, which tracks election policy, and narrower measures in places like Ohio. Arizona has long had a bifurcated registration system, with proof of citizenship required to vote in state and local elections. Some other state laws have been blocked by courts. It’s already illegal for noncitizens to vote in state and federal elections, and reviews have found noncitizen voting to be vanishingly rare, yet Trump and other Republicans have remained fixated on the issue in recent years. Proponents of the SAVE Act and its state-level replicas say documentary proof of citizenship is needed to maintain election security. Opponents counter that such measures are not worth the risk of disenfranchising some portion of the millions of Americans who say they don’t have easy access to documents that prove citizenship, like a valid U.S. passport or certified birth certificate — especially in the middle of a critical election year.

Federalist [3/19/2026 7:39 AM, Jeffrey Shapiro, 540K] reports in Fairfax County, Virginia, election officials quietly remove noncitizens from the voter rolls almost every month. In the past four years alone, the county has canceled 1,912 voter registrations belonging to individuals who identified themselves as noncitizens. None were discovered through a verification system; they surfaced only when the registrants voluntarily disclosed their status. This vulnerability exists by design, not by accident. American election law does not permit verification of citizenship at the time of voter registration. Under the National Voter Registration Act of 1993, states must accept and use the federal mail-in voter registration form created by the Election Assistance Commission. That form includes a checkbox for affirming citizenship and requires a signature under penalty of perjury, but it does not allow states to request documentation verifying citizenship. Virginia, like every other state, must operate within this framework. The system therefore relies on enforcement after the fact rather than verification before registration occurs. Prosecutions for voter registration fraud are virtually nonexistent because such cases are resource-intensive and difficult to pursue. In September 2024, the Fairfax Office of Elections adopted a policy of referring canceled noncitizen registrants to the Virginia attorney general and Fairfax commonwealth’s attorney for investigation. The policy was recently rescinded on the grounds that it imposed a significant administrative burden, yet no prosecutions have occurred. Without a credible threat of prosecution, there is no deterrence. In any system where accuracy matters, such as in banking or aviation, eligibility is verified at the front end. Prosecution after the fact is no substitute. It may deter some violations, but it cannot undo them or catch more than a fraction. Yet America’s voter registration system relies almost entirely on this backward approach, leaving it poorly equipped to ensure that only citizens register. The Safeguard American Voter Eligibility Act, known as the SAVE Act, would close this gap by requiring documentary proof of citizenship to register to vote. It would add the front-end safeguard that the current system lacks.

FOX News [3/19/2026 1:31 PM, Eric Mack, 37576K] reports that Sen. John Kennedy, R-La., in his patented off-the-cuff, southern style, urged the "smart lawyers" in Congress and beyond to rework the SAVE America Act to pass Senate parliamentarian "muster," so it can move to law with a simple budget reconciliation majority. "You don’t know till you try, and we haven’t tried," Kennedy said Wednesday night during the brief Senate debate window on the federal election integrity bill seeking voter I.D., proof of citizenship, vetted voter rolls and mail-in ballot reforms. "And if this bill is as important as everybody says it is — and I think it is because we’re not just talking about voting; we’re talking about the confidence, the trust of the American people in our elections if — this bill is as important as we say it is, we should try it through reconciliation." Kennedy admitted he is "in the minority on this," but joked that "sometimes the majority just means all the fools are on the same side." "Sometimes someone in the minority can be right," he said, noting Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., needs even more convincing on budget reconciliation than he needed to bring this week’s limited debate to the Senate floor on what could be President Donald Trump’s signature election integrity law. There are enough "smart lawyers" in the U.S. to find a budget reconciliation form of the bill, according to Kennedy. Fox News Digital reached out to Lee’s office for comment on Kennedy’s budget reconciliation recommendation. [Editorial note: consult video at source link]

FOX News [3/20/2026 5:00 AM, Alex Miller, 37576K] reports Senate Republicans launched a test of Senate Democrats’ resolve against voter ID legislation, and while it may not look like what many wanted, Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., argued it was the only path forward. Thune has been pressured by President Donald Trump, a cohort in the Senate GOP, and a fervent online network of conservatives demanding that he activate the talking filibuster to pass the Safeguarding American Voter Eligibility (SAVE) America Act. But it’s a floor tactic that Thune argued has never proven successful in passing legislation. "Nobody really knows how this ends, and the people who are out there saying they do, don’t," Thune told Fox News Digital in an interview. "Because it’s never been done, or at least hasn’t been done in modern history." Proponents of the talking filibuster view it as a method to blow through the Senate’s 60-vote filibuster threshold and ensure that the SAVE America Act is passed. But it comes at the steep price of the upper chamber’s most valuable currency — floor time — which, during an ongoing shutdown, is not something lawmakers would want to give up. Thune added that Senate Democrats have also considered the move in the past under former Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., and noted that they "opted against it in both cases because I think they felt like the price that we would make them pay wasn’t worth whatever it was they were trying to get done."

Washington Post [3/20/2026 5:00 AM, Andrew Ackerman, 24826K] reports the Trump administration has delayed an executive order that could have required banks to collect and report more information on the immigration status of their customers, after Wall Street and small community lenders pushed back on that plan, according to three people familiar with the internal deliberations. In meetings with administration officials, representatives of the banking industry argued that requiring millions of existing customers to provide records verifying their citizenship status was not practical. The delay has not been previously reported, and such an order could still be revived, said the people who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss private discussions. But it is expected to be significantly narrowed from earlier drafts. The original idea, reported earlier by The Washington Post, could have gone well beyond existing “know your customer” rules. Generally, banks collect a customer’s name, date of birth and address, verified with a driver’s license, to guard against money laundering and other financial crimes. The order could have required new forms of documentation, such as a passport, to verify citizenship, from both new and existing customers, the people said. Any revived push may only apply to new accounts, rather than requiring banks to determine the immigration or citizenship status of existing customers. Such a change would substantially reduce the operational burden, though industry officials said it would still represent a major administrative undertaking. A White House official acknowledged the administration is working on an order that could touch on immigration and banking but denied it ever seriously considered requiring citizenship audits of existing customers. The official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss internal deliberations, said new bank customers could be targeted under a coming order but disputed The Post’s characterization without elaborating.

Wall Street Journal [3/19/2026 8:30 PM, Michelle Hackman and Josh Dawsey, 646K] reports President Trump is seeking to lower the profile of his mass deportation effort, and has directed his top advisers to adopt a new approach on one of his central campaign promises, according to people familiar with the matter. In conversations with top advisers and his wife Melania, Trump has become convinced that some of his administration’s deportation policies have gone too far, and voters don’t like the term “mass deportation.” The president has told them he wants to see more attention on arresting “bad guys” and less chaos in American cities, according to people familiar with the matter. The desire for an immigration reset is being driven in part by Trump’s White House chief of staff, Susie Wiles, who believes the president’s immigration team has turned one of his marquee issues into more of a challenging issue ahead of the midterms, the people said. As a result, the administration is attempting to change not only how it talks about the issue—but also what actual enforcement looks like on the ground. The shift has been spearheaded by White House border czar Tom Homan since he took over ICE operations in Minneapolis. Long a relatively measured voice inside the administration on immigration issues, Homan prefers Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers to focus on bread-and-butter arrests of criminals, particularly those who can be handed over by local jails. ICE leadership isn’t moving forward, for now, with high-profile operations like the ones it previously conducted in big blue cities like Chicago, Washington, D.C., and Minneapolis, according to officials familiar with the matter. Administration officials said they still could increase operations in the future. Arrests of immigrants have ticked down to roughly 1,200 a day, from more than 1,500 a day when ICE was running its unprecedented operation in Minnesota, according to people familiar with the numbers.

Federal News Network [3/19/2026 3:18 PM, Terry Gerton, 1297K] Video: HERE reports several weeks into the DHS shutdown, front‑line employees from TSA to the Coast Guard are working without pay as airport delays mount and families feel the strain. At the same time, the administration is accelerating major personnel changes, from Schedule Policy/Career conversions to new RIF rules that could redefine job security for tens of thousands of federal workers.

Politico [3/19/2026 5:56 AM, Daniel Lippman, 21784K] reports two companies with ties to veteran political operatives received at least $23 million in commissions for their role in the controversial Department of Homeland Security ad campaign that helped lead to Secretary Kristi Noem’s ouster. One of the firms, Safe America Media, received at least $15.2 million and was formed last February just a few days before it was awarded the limited-bid contract to work on the overall $220 million, taxpayer-funded ad campaign, according to an internal DHS memo and three people familiar with the contracts who were granted anonymity because they weren’t authorized to speak publicly about the contracts. Safe America Media was run by Republican operatives Mike McElwain and Patrick McCarthy, who have ties to a firm that did extensive media buying on President Donald Trump’s 2024 campaign. The second firm, People Who Think, received at least $7.7 million from its 10 percent commission on a portion of the $220 million, according to the memo, which was written by DHS Deputy Under Secretary for Management Paul Stackhouse, and reviewed by POLITICO. People Who Think was co-founded by Jay Connaughton, who did work for Trump’s 2016 campaign and has reportedly worked for other conservative politicians and causes. The March 3 DHS memo noted there was only a “limited competition” for the awarded contracts because of the “urgent and compelling need” for the ad campaign. It also stated that People Who Think’s 10 percent commission for international advertising and Safe America Media’s 12 percent commission for domestic advertising was below the industry norm of 15 percent. Besides military recruiting efforts and Covid-19-related campaigns, the DHS ads were the most expensive U.S. government marketing campaign in the last 10 years, Bloomberg reported. The information about the contracts add new details to the ongoing fallout over DHS’s $220 million ad campaign, which included a video of a cowboy-hat clad Noem riding a horse at Mount Rushmore. It also highlights how political operatives were awarded contracts worth millions of dollars with seemingly little oversight or guardrails — including from President Donald Trump, who White House officials have said did not sign off on the ad campaign. The ads became a sore spot within the White House, including with Trump, because they fed into a perception that Noem used her position to set herself up for a future political run. “Safe America Media submitted a proposal for and was awarded a contract to support DHS’s nationwide public awareness campaign, and committed substantial resources to meet an accelerated timeline on budget,” Safe America Media lawyer Joseph Folio said in a statement to POLITICO. “We look forward to providing additional information to address inaccuracies in the public reporting and ensure the record accurately reflects the scope and context of that work.” It’s unclear what he is referring to and a spokesperson didn’t respond to a follow-up question.

NBC News [3/19/2026 6:57 PM, Staff, 42967K] reports Corey Lewandowski, a powerful aide to outgoing Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, is facing allegations he solicited payment in exchange for security contracts at DHS, according to multiple industry sources and government officials. NBC News’ Julia Ainsley reports. [Editorial note: consult video at source link]

Telemundo [3/19/2026 4:55 PM, Anagilmara Vílchez, 2524K] reports two Democratic lawmakers told Telemundo News that they will not support funding for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) until Republicans concede on one of their main demands: that federal immigration agents identify themselves and show their faces to prevent imposters from terrorizing the immigrant community. His statements come in response to a Telemundo News investigation that documented at least 30 cases of people impersonating federal agents to rob, intimidate, and even rape immigrants in 2025; a notable increase compared to the 53 incidents identified over a decade (2024-2004) after an analysis of hundreds of court documents, police reports, and news reports. Out of fear of deportation, immigrants sometimes do not report crimes or decline to participate in investigations or legal proceedings, experts and activists explained. According to Padilla, the copycats have been able to commit these crimes because DHS has allowed federal agents to “enter our communities with their faces covered, without identifying themselves, using unmarked vehicles and sowing terror.” The senator admitted that he himself couldn’t tell the difference between a real agent and a fake one. Three victims of ICE imposters interviewed by Noticias Telemundo said that the clothing worn by their attackers was not much different from that worn by the officers carrying out raids amid President Donald Trump’s nationwide offensive against immigration.

Breitbart [3/19/2026 10:05 PM, Elizabeth Weibel, 2238K] reports nearly all House Democrats voted against a bill to ensure migrants can be deported for harming animals used by law enforcement officials. The bill, known as the Bill to Outlaw Wounding of Official Working Animals Act (BOWOW Act) passed in a 228-190 vote, the Hill reported. While Republicans, along with 15 Democrats, voted in favor of the bill, 190 Democrats opposed the bill. Under the BOWOW Act, a non-citizen of the United States who is "convicted of, or who admits to having committed, an offense related to harming animals used in law enforcement is inadmissible and deportable.” In a post on X, House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) expressed that the Democratic Party was now "the party of PUNCHING PUPPIES" after 190 Democrats opposed the bill. "The Democrats just decided to officially become the party of PUNCHING PUPPIES," Johnson wrote. "190 Democrats just voted to give illegal immigrants the RIGHT TO PHYSICALLY ABUSE American service dogs — serving with law enforcement protecting American citizens.” "The level Democrats will go to protect illegal aliens instead of Americans is disturbing, disgusting, and dangerous," Johnson added. White House Deputy Chief of Staff for Policy and Homeland Security Advisor Stephen Miller stated that it was "truly sickening.” "Harming a law enforcement working animal is appalling and evil," Rep. Mike Simpson (R-ID) wrote in a post on X. "As a dog lover and someone who adamantly supports the working dogs who have served on the front lines, voting in favor of this bill was one of the easiest decisions of my congressional career.” The bill, which was introduced by Rep. Ken Calvert (R-CA), comes after an Egyptian national kicked and injured a dog used by U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP).

Reported similarly:
FOX News [3/19/2026 10:34 AM, Adam Pack, 37576K]

Blaze [3/19/2026 4:15 PM, Rebeka Zeljko, 1556K] reports Republican Rep. August Pfluger of Texas is leading a bipartisan charge to combat the rise of nitazenes, a class of illicit drugs that could be deadlier than fentanyl, Blaze News has learned. Pfluger and co-leader Rep. Michael Baumgartner (R-Wash.) introduced the House version of the DETECT Nitazenes Act Thursday alongside Democratic Rep. Eugene Vindman of Virginia. The bipartisan and bicameral legislation would direct resources from the Department of Homeland Security’s Science and Technology Directorate and the Drug Enforcement Administration to enhance technologies to detect illicit drugs like nitazenes at extremely low concentrations, according to bill text obtained exclusively by Blaze News. Republican Sen. Eric Schmitt of Missouri, who is leading the companion bill in the Senate, demonstrated just how destructive nitazenes can be, urging Congress to take swift action.

Wall Street Journal [3/19/2026 5:35 PM, Kimberley A. Strassel, 646K] reports in a bid to reopen the Department of Homeland Security, the White House on Thursday offered to make Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer head of the department. Mr. Schumer flatly rejected the offer, saying he could never trust anyone the Trump team appointed. Kidding, kidding. But the reality isn’t so far off. Welcome to the new White House strategy on immigration, unveiled this week, a D.C. version of that immortal “Jerry Maguire” plea: “Help me help you.” The administration learned some powerful lessons from the fallout in Minnesota—namely, that there is real benefit in looking reasonable on immigration. Its decisions to dispatch border czar Tom Homan, to oust Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, and to roll out body cameras have all been to its political good. So this week it doubled down, using the confirmation hearing for Mrs. Noem’s replacement, Oklahoma Sen. Markwayne Mullin, to propose a new DHS deal to Democrats. It includes a raft of policy changes that address Democratic concerns. The changes have the potential also to help Republicans regain the immigration high ground. Note that this week’s letter was authored by Mr. Homan, who is as serious as a heart attack about border security and who knows DHS inside out. If he feels these changes can be accommodated, they can. The letter lays out five alterations, all of which, in some form, address Democratic demands. It promises an expansion of the use of body cameras, new limits on enforcement operations in sensitive places (hospitals, schools), additional DHS oversight in the form of mandatory inspector-general audits, a promise that officers will visibly wear ID and say their names if asked, and adherence to laws against the deportation or detention of U.S. citizens. The deal stresses some reasonable caveats—say in cases of an imminent security risk—to ensure DHS can still do its job. But this is a good-faith offer, especially as the White House is also agreeing to “codify” these “improved operational guidelines.” Mr. Mullin continued the theme.

Los Angeles Times [3/19/2026 9:30 AM, Staff, 12718K] reports that to the editor: In his recent article, Juan A. Lozano writes that Immigration and Customs Enforcement has "reported 14 custody deaths from the start of the government’s fiscal year on Oct. 1 through Jan. 6" ("Afghan man who worked with U.S. military dies after being taken into ICE custody," March 16). This is not merely a statistic; it reflects a serious problem that demands clarity and accountability. The public has the right to know the truth and understand the circumstances surrounding these deaths through clear reporting and independent investigations. Metaphorically speaking, looking at an institution that operates without transparency is like driving in foggy weather — conditions cannot be fully understood. Ensuring clarity in detention practices is necessary to upholding justice and protecting human rights. Justice requires more than acknowledgment; it requires meaningful action. This includes verifying safe conditions, ensuring access to adequate medical care and nutrition and holding responsible parties accountable. These steps are essential to prevent further loss of life.

Bloomberg [3/19/2026 7:00 AM, Mary Ellen Klas, 18082K] reports cracks are widening in the Republican Party’s support for the Trump administration’s hardline approach to immigration enforcement. The latest fissure developed this week in deep-red Florida. A panel of Republican sheriffs and chiefs of police, the backbone of Florida’s law enforcement establishment, agreed on Monday to draft a letter to President Donald Trump and congressional leaders urging them to stop rounding up immigrants who they said arrived in the U.S. “inappropriately” but have otherwise lived law-abiding lives. Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd, chairman of the State Immigration Enforcement Council, argued that Congress should provide undocumented immigrants “who are being very productive” with “a path forward” because “These are the folks we need in this country.” “We are a country of immigrants,” he observed. It was an extraordinary development. Judd, 72, is a die-hard conservative Republican and an architect of Governor Ron DeSantis’ aggressive immigration enforcement agenda. He stood by the governor’s side at numerous press conferences and tough-on-crime political stunts as DeSantis erected Alligator Alcatraz, the trouble-plagued detention camp in the Everglades that made Florida the poster child for Draconian immigration enforcement. Now, Judd was voicing what much of America has known for years: “There needs to be a conversation at some point in time about a path forward for the appropriate people,” he said. Six other law enforcement leaders on the legislatively created advisory board agreed.

Blaze [3/19/2026 4:30 PM, Candace Hathaway, 1556K] reports Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents arrested several criminal illegal aliens, including those with convictions for murder and child sexual abuse. A Department of Homeland Security press release obtained by Blaze News highlighted five arrests made by ICE on Wednesday. "U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) announces the arrest of more criminal illegal aliens convicted for heinous crimes, including murder, lewd acts with a child, forcible sexual abuse, and possession and intent to distribute methamphetamine," the press release stated. The DHS noted that nearly 70% of the immigration agency’s arrests are of illegal aliens with prior charges or convictions in the United States.

Reuters [3/19/2026 6:24 PM, Ted Hesson, 38315K] reports at least 13 immigrants have died in U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement custody from January 2026 through early March, according to ICE. That follows 31 deaths last year, a two-decade high. Perez Jimenez’s death was a presumed suicide, ICE said, adding that the official cause of death was under investigation after he was found unresponsive in the early hours of the morning. The detention center’s staff unsuccessfully ​tried to resuscitate him for nearly 10 minutes after he was found, according to ICE.

New York Times [3/19/2026 4:24 PM, Ana Ley, 148038K] reports Dylan Lopez Contreras spent his first full day back home in New York City worrying about the people he had left behind in immigration detention. Mr. Lopez Contreras, a migrant from Venezuela who is seeking asylum, was arrested 10 months ago during an appearance at a courthouse for a routine hearing. His detention, which lasted nearly a year, was the first widely known instance of a public school student in the city being apprehended by federal agents as part of President Trump’s immigration crackdown. On Wednesday, officials with the Department of Homeland Security said that Mr. Lopez Contreras had entered the United States illegally under the Biden administration, and that he remained subject to deportation. Mr. Lopez Contreras was 20 when he was arrested last May and he turned 21 while in detention. He had been attending Ellis Preparatory Academy, a school in the Bronx that enrolls migrant students who are considered too old to start at a traditional high school. He left Venezuela in 2024 with his family and was going to school while working as a delivery driver.

FOX News [3/19/2026 7:00 PM, Madison Colombo, 37576K] reports federal immigration agents are being told they will "answer in hell" by their own families as the political divide over border security grows increasingly personal. Immigration agents are being vilified and disowned by relatives who spoke to Vanity Fair about their reactions. The fractures comes as the Department of Homeland Security continues its mass deportation push under the Trump administration. "You’ll answer in hell for some of the atrocities you commit daily," wrote one family member, Jake, in an email to his brother, an ICE agent for nearly a decade. Vanity Fair assigned pseudonyms to those interviewed. Months earlier, he left a voicemail for his brother expressing anger over his vote for President Donald Trump and its consequences, and even deleted his contact. "At times, I feel like I need to be the one to rise above and put this stuff aside and maintain these relationships," he said, adding, "But I’ll maybe have just seen something in the news that kind of triggers you again, where you’re like, I can’t separate this." Jake said he felt compelled to confront his ICE agent brother after the death of Alex Pretti during an altercation with federal agents in Minneapolis last January. Animosity toward federal agents has intensified after the Trump administration deployed additional agents to the city to arrest illegal immigrants under "Operation Metro Surge."

Daily Caller [3/19/2026 11:34 AM, Derek VanBuskirk, 803K] reports that an immigration judge ordered the deportation of a former New York City (NYC) Council employee and allegedly criminal illegal alien Wednesday. NYC Council Speaker Julie Menin announced the judge’s decision to deport Rafael Rubio Wednesday after he had been detained for more than two months during a "routine immigration check-in, despite having legal authorization to remain in the country," according to a statement from the City Council. A January Department of Homeland Security (DHS) statement said the Venezuelan national had a criminal history at the time of detention, including having been arrested for alleged assault in New York. The DHS statement also alleged Rubio was illegally employed and had no work authorization. Rubio entered the U.S. on a B-2 tourist visa in 2017 and was allegedly required to leave by Oct. 22, 2017, according to the DHS statement. "A criminal illegal alien with no authorization to work in the U.S. being employed by the New York City Council is shocking. This takes sanctuary city to a whole new level," said then-Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin in the statement. But Menin claims that Rubio did have legal authorization to remain in the United States and said Judge Charles R. Conroy apparently based the ruling on a "procedural issue related to his asylum application.” "That is extremely troubling," Menin said. "A technical error should not determine the fate of a man who has done everything right and poses no risk to anyone." Menin said an appeal will be filed and that Rubio should not be detained throughout the process.

Reported similarly:
Breitbart [3/19/2026 1:36 PM, Amy Furr, 2238K]

National Review [3/19/2026 9:20 AM, Kamden Mulder, 109K] reports a former data analyst for the New York City council is being deported after overstaying his visa — and Mayor Zohran Mamdani is defending his right to remain in the U.S. and collect a paycheck from taxpayers. Rafael Rubio, 53, entered the U.S. in 2017 under a B2 tourist visa that required him to leave the country after six months. He overstayed the visa and began working for the city council without legal authorization, the Department of Homeland Security said in January when Rubio was detained by ICE during a check-in at a Long Island immigration center. Immigration Judge Charles Conroy ordered Wednesday that Rubio be deported to his native Venezuela. “Today, an immigration judge ordered Rafael Andres Rubio Bohorquez, a criminal illegal alien from Venezuela and an employee of New York’s City Council a final order of removal,” DHS said in a statement. “His criminal history includes an arrest for assault. This ruling is a victory for the rule of law. ICE will work as quickly as possible to return this criminal to his home country.” Prominent New York Democrats, including Mayor Zohran Mamdani, rushed to Rubio’s defense, insisting that he be allowed to remain in the country. “This is an affront to justice,” Mamdani said in a post on X. “A dedicated public servant with legal authorization to remain in the country, Rafael showed up for a routine immigration appointment and, despite following the rules, he was detained and has now been held for months.” City Council Speaker Julie Menin joined Mamdani in calling the situation a “miscarriage of justice and wholly deplorable.”

FOX News [3/19/2026 4:03 PM, Peter Pinedo, 37576K] reports a road rage incident in a Philadelphia suburb led to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) arresting an illegal immigrant with a massive and violent criminal history. Fox News Digital learned that ICE apprehended Christopher Leon Bailey, a 27-year-old Jamaican national, Monday in Ridley Township, Pennsylvania, following his arrest by local authorities for a road rage incident Jan. 23. Bailey allegedly was the aggressor in the incident, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) says, which took place late January after a near collision. The agency said Bailey allegedly pulled a knife and attempted to stab the other individual, before jumping back into his car to chase down and ultimately run over the victim. The department does not know the status of the victim and the Ridley Township Police Department did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s inquiry. Bailey then allegedly fled the scene following the incident, the DHS said. Bailey was arrested by local authorities and charged with aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, recklessly endangering another person, possessing an instrument of crime, simple assault, disorderly conduct and reckless driving. The charges were later increased to attempted murder. The charges are currently pending with the Delaware County Court in Ridley Township, Pennsylvania.

FOX News [3/19/2026 10:15 AM, Kristine Parks, 37576K] reports that Virginia’s largest public school district is facing renewed scrutiny after parents accused Fairfax County Public Schools officials this week of delaying notification that an adult student identified as an illegal immigrant allegedly groped multiple female classmates. News broke last week that Israel Flores Ortiz, 19, a junior at Fairfax High School, was charged with nine counts of assault and battery after multiple female students accused him of inappropriately touching them while they were walking in school hallways between classes. Furious parents who spoke with Fox News Digital and local news outlet WJLA this week claim school officials waited two weeks to inform parents and the move only came after parental pressure. They also claim district officials sanitized the nature of the groping. The district said in a statement, "While Fairfax County Public Schools (FCPS) is unable to comment on specifics due to federal and state privacy laws, we prioritize student and staff safety and fully investigate any time someone reports an incident or says they do not feel safe at school. We are grateful to our law enforcement partners, who continue to work swiftly and thoroughly when there are safety concerns in our schools. The safety of all FCPS students and staff remains a top priority.” The Fairfax High allegations follow several other criminal cases involving alleged sexual misconduct tied to FCPS schools in recent years.

CBS Baltimore [3/19/2026 3:00 PM, J.T. Moodee Lockman, 51110K] reports a court order that halted work at a proposed Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) facility in Washington County, Maryland, has been extended by at least another week. A federal judge initially granted the temporary restraining order in early March, which immediately halted work at a warehouse near Hagerstown that was purchased by ICE to be turned into an immigration detention center. Maryland Attorney General Anthony Brown filed the emergency motion on March 11, asking the court to halt work for 14 days. The initial order was set to expire next week, on March 25. In the order, U.S. District Judge Brendan Hurson said he plans to hear arguments over the detention center in mid-April.

Univision [3/19/2026 6:00 PM, Staff, 4937K] reports Luis Alonso Delgadillo, a 44-year-old Mexican immigrant, was following GPS directions when he passed through Chicken Road in Fayetteville, North Carolina, and was stopped by the military. “He took a wrong route, which led him to a Fort Bragg checkpoint . There he was questioned by guards,” said Samuel Reyes de Luna, a relative of Delgadillo. Reyes told NC Newsline that Delgadillo “entered by accident and was immediately asked for federal documents, including his Social Security number.” “He felt intimidated and has difficulty with English, so I can imagine how terrifying it must have been. It’s just very sad,” the report reads. The immigrant’s family says there are no signs in the area indicating that it is a Federal Area or that it belongs to Fort Liberty, formerly known as Fort Bragg. Following his arrest, Delgadillo was taken to the ICE Detention Center in Irwin County, Georgia. “He wasn’t given any chance to defend himself, nor was he given time to find someone to come for him. In less than an hour, he already had an arrest warrant issued by the military because he had never had an arrest warrant before,” described another relative of Delgadillo. The organization Siembra NC has received reports of at least 10 people detained since November 2025 after accidentally entering military bases in North Carolina and then being turned over to ICE. According to the report, many of those arrested were workers on their way to work or making deliveries , such as delivery app drivers , and had no criminal record. [Editorial note: consult video at source link]

New York Times [3/19/2026 6:53 PM, Emily Cochrane, 148038K] reports Estefany Maria Rodriguez Florez, a Nashville reporter detained by immigration agents early this month after the government said she had overstayed a tourist visa, was released on a $10,000 bond on Thursday, her legal team said. Ms. Rodriguez arrived in the country from her native Colombia in 2021 and sought asylum. She applied for a green card earlier this year after marrying an American citizen. She had frequently reported on the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown for the Spanish-language outlet Nashville Noticias. Lawyers for Ms. Rodriguez went to court to challenge her detention, writing in filings that there were indications she had been targeted because of her reporting. They said that in doing so, immigration agents had violated her First Amendment right to free speech. They have also argued that the agents did not show Ms. Rodriguez a valid warrant. The government has denied the claim, maintaining that Ms. Rodriguez was lawfully arrested and detained. In court filing last week, lawyers for the administration suggested that the First Amendment “may not even be applicable to an illegal alien.” The accusation “is nothing more than a challenge to a discretionary decision to commence removal proceedings,” they wrote. An immigration judge said on Monday that Ms. Rodriguez could be released on a $10,000 bond, but that she had to remain in detention in Louisiana while the federal government decided whether to appeal . The case challenging the constitutionality of her arrest is continuing, with her lawyers seeking “not only her complete release, but an order prohibiting ICE from mistreating her in a similar way in the future,” said Mike Holley, one of the lawyers. “We are grateful that Estefany is able to walk away with her freedom to be with her family as she continues to fight for her right to remain in her community and in the US,” Mr. Holley said in a statement on Thursday.

Reuters [3/19/2026 3:00 PM, Jasper Ward, 38315K] reports a 19-year-old man died at a federal detention center on ​Monday, according to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, the ‌youngest known person to die in federal immigration custody during the second Trump administration. ICE identified the man as Royer Perez Jimenez, of Mexico, who was being ​held at the Glades County Detention Center in Moore Haven, ​Florida. His death raised to at least 13 the ⁠number of immigrants to die in federal immigration custody this year. Perez ​Jimenez’s death is a presumed suicide, ICE said, adding that the ​official cause of death is under investigation after he was found unresponsive in the early hours of the morning. The detention center’s staff unsuccessfully tried to resuscitate ​him for nearly 10 minutes after he was found, ICE said. The ​agency said Perez Jimenez was in custody after being arrested and charged with ‌felony ⁠fraud for impersonating and resisting an officer. He had initially entered the U.S. in 2022, was returned home after an encounter with the U.S. Border Patrol, and later reentered the U.S. illegally on an ​unknown date, ICE ​said. ICE said 31 deaths - a two-decade high - were recorded among immigrants ⁠in ​federal custody all of last year, the ​first year of U.S. President Donald Trump’s second White House term. CBS Miami [3/19/2026 2:23 PM, Steven Yablonski, 51110K] reports that according to ICE, Perez-Jimenez was evaluated by medical staff when he first arrived at the immigration detention center in late February, and answered "no" to all suicide screening questions. Perez-Jimenez was arrested by the Volusia County Sheriff’s Office on Jan. 22 and was charged with felony fraud for impersonation and misdemeanor resisting an officer, ICE said. ABC News [3/19/2026 2:57 PM, Laura Romero, 34146K] reports Perez-Jimenez is the 44th person to die in ICE custody during the second Trump administration, according to lawmakers. The AP [3/19/2026 9:38 PM, Gisela Salomon, 35287K] reports Perez-Jimenez is the second person to die in ICE custody this week, after an Afghan immigrant — whose family said he had been evacuated from his country after working for years with U.S. forces — died in a Texas hospital after being detained by immigration authorities. Since the beginning of this year, 13 immigrants have died in ICE custody. Perez-Jimenez is the youngest to do so since the beginning of Trump’s second term.

Reported similarly:
Univision [3/19/2026 2:29 PM, Staff, 4937K]

CBS Miami [3/19/2026 4:01 PM, Staff, 51110K] reports Gov. Ron DeSantis rebuked some of Florida’s top law enforcement officials Thursday, criticizing their calls to Congress and President Donald Trump to work on a path to citizenship for some undocumented immigrants. On Monday, the State Immigration Enforcement Council, a group of local law enforcement officials who were appointed to advise the State Board of Immigration Enforcement on illegal immigration enforcement, decided to send a letter to federal government officials asking them to work on a path to citizenship for noncriminal undocumented immigrants who pay a fine. What the sheriffs said about immigrants was a departure from the state and federal immigration crackdown.

Breitbart [3/19/2026 6:39 AM, Ian Hanchett, 2238K] reports on Wednesday’s edition of NBC’s “Meet the Press NOW,” U.S. Senate candidate Illinois Lt. Gov. Juliana Stratton (D) advocated for abolishing ICE and said that “what does not work — and I don’t think anyone would say it does — is criminalizing our immigrant neighbors. That’s unacceptable,” and “when you put ICE under DHS, you already start thinking about our immigrant communities through that punitive lens. And that, in and of itself, is not something that’s going to really focus on how we provide support and really get people on a path to citizenship.” [Editorial note: consult video at source link]

CBS News [3/19/2026 10:03 AM, Staff, 51110K] reports Mohammad Nazeer Paktiawal, a refugee who helped U.S. forces in Afghanistan, died in ICE custody after he complained about his health, his brother said. CBS News’ Camilo Montoya-Galvez reports. [Editorial note: consult video at source link]

Federalist [3/19/2026 8:06 AM, Breccan F. Thies, 540K] reports anti-Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agitators in Minnesota operate as a "front group" for a state teachers union in the leftist campaign against immigration law, according to activist documents and federal records brought to light by Defending Education. Minneapolis Families for Public Schools (MFPS), reportedly an "initiative" of TakeAction Minnesota (TAM), helps organize "Rapid Response Networks & ICE Watch" centered around neighborhoods and schools, the documents show, while TAM has partnered with other radical-left groups in events that involve student walk-outs and backed other leftist activism at schools. "The teachers unions continue to prove they are rotten apples that only care about far-left street activism, to the detriment of educating children," Rhyen Staley, research director at Defending Education, told The Federalist. "Teachers and community groups should be dedicating time to improving learning outcomes for students, not creating strategies and lists of people to attempt to thwart law enforcement." Education Minnesota, the state teachers union, has financially supported TAM, and an archived version of TAM’s website shows MFPS stating that it is "standing with" the Minneapolis Federation of Educators (MFE), the local union, during its next contract negotiation, because "the MFE contract is a place to win strong language and enforcement on our priorities.”

Univision [3/19/2026 12:17 PM, Staff, 4937K] reports that Venezuelan student Dylan López Contreras, 20, appeared before the media after regaining his freedom following 10 months in the custody of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE)—a case that sparked public outrage, protests, and questions regarding immigration policy. The young man, a resident of the Bronx, was arrested on May 21, 2025, after attending a routine asylum hearing at a courthouse in Lower Manhattan. His detention set a precedent, as he became the first public high school student in the city to be arrested by federal authorities since the beginning of President Donald Trump’s second term. Upon regaining his freedom, Dylan expressed his gratitude for the community support and affirmed that his experience had motivated him to continue advocating for other detained migrants. "I’ve seen all kinds of people who really don’t deserve to be there. I want to keep fighting for them," he stated at a press conference. He added that he had lived in conditions he described as "super ugly," where he was held alongside people who, like him, should not have been detained. "I wish I’d had the chance to take them all with me when I left, but I couldn’t," he lamented. His mother, Raiza Contreras, celebrated his release and attributed the outcome to both faith and community support. "Thank you, New York... I met people with a depth of humanity I never expected," she said, acknowledging the support of lawyers, activists, and political leaders. Governor Kathy Hochul described the arrest as "reprehensible and repugnant," emphasizing that Dylan had followed immigration regulations prior to his detention. "I am proud that Dylan is home." Furthermore, she expressed hope that "we will begin to see some sanity now that the reign of terror unleashed by Kristi Noem has come to an end," adding that she would continue fighting for those who remain in detention.

AP [3/20/2026 12:06 AM, Steve Karnowski, 31753K] reports Protestant and Catholic clergy are asking a federal judge to order that they be allowed to minister to immigrants in a holding facility at the headquarters of the Trump administration’s enforcement surge in Minnesota. U.S. District Judge Jerry Blackwell will hear Friday from attorneys for Minnesota branches of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, the United Church of Christ, and a Catholic priest. They’re suing for an injunction requiring Department of Homeland Security officials to allow prompt in-person pastoral visits to all detainees at the Bishop Henry Whipple Federal Building in Minneapolis, the site of frequent protests over roughly the 3,000 federal officers who had surged into the state at the height of the crackdown. The Minnesota lawsuit alleges the Whipple building, named for Minnesota’s first Episcopal bishop, a 19th-century advocate for human rights, "now stands in stark contrast to its namesake’s legacy." It says the building has "become the epicenter of systematic deprivation of fundamental constitutional and legal rights by the federal government." Government attorneys plan to argue the request is at least partly moot because Operation Metro Surge officially ended on Feb. 12. They also say the number of new detentions has since subsided, so temporary restrictions on visitors have been eased, and clergy visits have been allowed for over two weeks. In a recent filing, they said staff members weren’t in a good position previously to allow visitation because the Whipple building had been "both a hub of heightened ICE operations and the symbolic center of community unrest.”

FOX News [3/19/2026 3:59 PM, Louis Casiano, Bill Melugin, 37576K] reports a staffer for Rep. Veronica Escobar, D-Texas, allegedly lied about being an attorney at least 11 times for detainees at a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility in an effort to meet with them and sneak in cell phones. Acting ICE Director Todd Lyons informed Escobar in a letter dated Thursday about Benito Torres, a senior caseworker on the congresswoman’s staff. Lyons said Torres lied about being a lawyer for detainees in ICE custody at the Camp East Montana facility at Fort Bliss in El Paso. An image of a sign-in log shows Torres allegedly claiming to be a "lawyer" visiting a "client." ICE records show that Torres first misrepresented himself as a legal professional in September 2025, Lyons said. The most recent incident happened on Jan. 30.

Univision [3/19/2026 6:13 PM, Staff, 4937K] reports the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) confirmed to N+ Univision 45 this Thursday, March 19, the arrest of Dennis Arguello-Acosta, identified by authorities as the driver involved in the hit-and-run that caused the death of Fort Bend County Sheriff’s Deputy Kenneth Lewis on February 21. According to the official statement, ICE agents arrested the suspect on March 14 , after an intense search coordinated with the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and other law enforcement agencies. The investigation progressed after an anonymous tip was received on March 11 , which allowed authorities to locate the man’s residence and proceed with his arrest. The DHS reported that Arguello-Acosta, described as an “undocumented immigrant with a criminal record”, was taken into federal custody to prevent his release within the country.

Univision [3/18/2026 10:16 PM, Staff, 4937K] reports a DACA recipient was detained by immigration agents in Texas as he was on his way to visit his newborn daughter, who remains in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU). According to a report by MS NOW , Juan Chavez Velasco, 35, was intercepted by agents in Weslaco while taking milk to the hospital where his prematurely born baby is located. His wife, who was speaking with him on the phone at the time, recounted hearing the officers order him out of the vehicle. Although Chávez Velasco informed them that he was protected under DACA, he claims the officers responded that “it didn’t matter.” After his arrest, he was transferred to a facility in Laredo, leaving behind his wife and three children, all U.S. citizens. His youngest daughter, just weeks old, remains hospitalized. The case, according to MS NOW, reflects a trend of increasing arrests of “dreamers” and delays in DACA renewals , leaving some beneficiaries without current status.

Washington Examiner [3/19/2026 12:35 PM, Emily Hallas, 1147K] reports that a protest outside a new Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility in Utah on Wednesday ended with tensions high, after a handful of demonstrators committed vandalism. Hundreds gathered for the protest against ICE’s newly purchased detention center in Salt Lake City. The demonstration during the day was largely peaceful. But as the evening wound down, several dozen people were involved in rioting, with multiple people scuffling with federal law enforcement, prompting police in riot gear to respond to the situation. The Salt Lake City Police Department told the Washington Examiner that it arrested three people in connection with the incident on riot and property damage charges. Several demonstrators threw rocks at the ICE center’s glass windows, and a structure outside the building was also vandalized with a spray paint "Kill all Nazis" message featuring a giant swastika with a red circle and line drawn through it, according to photos of the incident featured by the Utah News Dispatch. Protest organizers sought to intervene and halt the vandalism, but the group smashed nearly 20 windows, threw rocks, and broke inside the building, KUTV reported. A security guard said they identified themselves as "antifa" and had knives. Sergeant Gregory Wilking, the Public Information Officer for Salt Lake City Police Department, said that no one broke into the building and that he did not believe antifa was involved.

Univision [3/19/2026 3:52 PM, Staff, 4937K] reports in the City Heights neighborhood of San Diego, California, a mother was detained on March 3 by ICE agents in front of her home. Her three children, all U.S. citizens, were separated from her for nearly two weeks. One of them has a severe disability. Her lawyer maintains that Contreras has an approved U visa, an immigration status created for victims of certain crimes who have cooperated with authorities. She also has a valid work permit and, according to her testimony, has lived in the United States for more than 20 years. Following her arrest, she was transferred to the Otay Mesa Detention Center, where she remained for nearly two weeks. During that time, her children were left without their primary caregiver. The difference between an approved petition, a waiting list, and fully granted status can be crucial. According to her defense, official reports classified her as undocumented, which she considers legally incorrect. Contreras also has no criminal record. After posting bail, Contreras was released, but her situation did not return to where it started. She now faces her immigration proceedings under electronic monitoring.

Los Angeles Times [3/19/2026 7:16 PM, James Queally, 12718K] reports a 23-year-old man accused Los Angeles police of blinding him at a protest earlier this year when an officer allegedly shot him in the face with a less-lethal weapon, according to a legal claim filed Thursday. Jesus Javier Islas said he was at a demonstration against immigration enforcement near the Metropolitan Detention Center on Jan. 31 in downtown L.A. when he was shot in the face with a projectile that stained his face and clothes with bright green paint. Video of the incident shows Islas leaning on a scooter in the middle of Alameda Street when the impact happens. An explosion of green paint can be seen as Islas stumbles and screams in pain. The footage does not appear to show any confrontations between police and protesters happening nearby at the time he was hit. Hours later, doctors at L.A. County-USC Medical Center told Islas he would never see out of his right eye again, according to Islas and his attorney, Jamal Tooson. Police did not attempt to render aid at the scene, Tooson said. "My client was doing nothing wrong. He was posing zero threat to anyone. And in a moment, LAPD has shattered his life," said Tooson, whose claim demands $100 million in damages. The footage does not capture an officer firing a weapon and the claim does not identify the officer responsible. Tooson said he has a "strong belief" that Los Angeles police shot his client based on the results of his own investigation, and noted the LAPD’s practice of using a weapon that can mark protesters with paint for future arrests. An LAPD spokesman said he could not comment on pending litigation. The department acknowledged in a document published to its website on Thursday that officers used foam baton rounds and a weapon known as the FN 303 against protesters near the detention center that night. Officers fired nearly three dozen of those rounds, according to the report. Police claimed protesters threw rocks and fireworks while committing acts of vandalism, according to the report. The FN 303 does have the ability to shoot rounds that stain protesters with paint in order to highlight them for arrest. The incident happened around 9:40 p.m. and was part of a broader string of protests that happened across the city and nationwide after ICE agents shot and killed Alex Pretti, a Minneapolis nurse who was protesting the Trump administration’s aggressive raids in his city. Islas, who said he has been diagnosed with autism, maintained he wasn’t doing anything combative that night. He told The Times he came to the protest after work, was there for less than 10 minutes and had only stopped by to see a friend when he was shot.

Federalist [3/19/2026 7:40 AM, Hart Celler, 540K] reports in 1982, a staffer for House Speaker Tip O’Neill called Social Security the "third rail of American politics." Today, that title belongs to Temporary Protected Status (TPS) — a program so politically charged that administrations from both parties have repeatedly extended it rather than confront its structural failures. But the Trump administration could finally fix this broken program with a few moves that will simplify ongoing legal battles. Created under the Immigration Act of 1990, TPS was designed as a narrow authority to respond to qualifying events abroad — armed conflict, famine, or natural disaster. It was never meant to confer semi-permanent status, or even legal immigration status at all, as the Congressional Research Service has noted. The statute allows DHS to designate a country for TPS when "extraordinary and temporary conditions" prevent safe return. Designations must last between 6 and 18 months, with renewals in the same range. But the law is silent on how long a designation should last once conditions improve — a silence that has allowed TPS to become a revolving door of indefinite extensions for some, while other citizens of those countries are deported back amid those same conditions. Former DHS secretaries agree: TPS is a tool for short–term emergencies. It cannot function when designations last decades — a point underscored by then‑Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen, who noted in 2018, that "to pretend that conditions continue to exist [based on events] 20 years ago is a fiction." TPS has drifted far from the finite relief Congress envisioned into a programmatic and political circus.

Daily Caller [3/19/2026 1:43 PM, Alexis Lapp, 803K] reports a Haitian-born man’s citizenship was revoked after authorities discovered evidence of $3.8 million worth of COVID-19 fraud, officials announced Tuesday. Twenty-five-year-old Joff Stenn Wroy Philossaint of Fort Lauderdale, Florida, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit wire fraud and two counts of conspiracy to launder money in 2022, according to a press release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida. A jury deemed him guilty of "obtaining citizenship contrary to law." An investigation into the Haitian-native’s business records indicated that between April 2020 and May 2021, he and his co-conspirators allegedly submitted a total of 40 fake loan applications that garnered $3.8 million in proceeds, the release stated. Philossaint allegedly received about $549,000 from these schemes. He was sentenced to 50 months in prison in June 2023. In February 2026, the court began the process of revoking his citizenship over unlawfully concealing his involvement in the 2020 fraud scheme, according to the press release. "This defendant built his path to citizenship on false statements while stealing millions from programs meant to keep small businesses alive during the pandemic," the press release stated.

ABC News [3/19/2026 10:54 AM, Laura Romero, 34146K] reports an immigration judge has denied Liam Conejo Ramos and his family’s asylum claim, their attorney confirmed. The 5-year-old boy and his father, Adrian Conejo Arias, were detained on Jan. 20 by immigration agents in Minneapolis and held in a Texas detention facility. A judge ordered them to be released and they flew back to Minnesota on Feb. 1. Attorney Danielle Molliver told ABC News on Thursday the family was unable to present any evidence in the case before the government filed a motion to terminate the case which a judge granted. Molliver said she has filed an appeal with the Board of Immigration Appeals. "We understand that this decision will be appealed and remain hopeful for a positive outcome," a spokesperson for Columbia Heights Public School District said earlier in confirming the asylum claim denial. "The detention in January of Liam and his father shed light on the harm caused by Operation Metro Surge, during which many children and families have been detained.” In a statement after a judge ordered them to be released, Department of Homeland Security spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin said, "The facts in this case have NOT changed: ICE did NOT target or arrest a child." "On January 20, ICE conducted a targeted operation to arrest Adrian Alexander Conejo Arias an illegal alien from Ecuador who was RELEASED into the U.S. by the Biden administration," McLaughlin said. "As agents approached, Adrian Alexander Conejo Arias fled on foot -- abandoning his child." McLaughlin said ICE officers remained with Liam while other officers apprehended his father. Officers, according to McLaughlin, attempted to place Liam with his "alleged mother" who was inside the house, but she allegedly refused to accept custody of the child. McLaughlin said Conejo Arias told officers he wanted his son to remain with him.

Reported similarly:
AP [3/19/2026 2:09 PM, Tim Sullivan, 35287K]

Univision [3/19/2026 1:53 PM, Jorge Cancino, 4937K] reports that a group of 41 Democratic senators sent a letter to the outgoing Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), Kristi Noem, urging her to reduce delays in the renewal process for Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) and thereby eliminate the risk of detentions and deportations. Signed—among others—by Senators Alex Padilla (California, ranking member of the Senate Judiciary Committee’s Subcommittee on Immigration), Adam Schiff (California), Catherine Cortez Masto (Nevada), and Dick Durbin (Illinois, Senate Democratic Whip), the letter calls upon both Noem and the Director of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), Joseph Edlow, "to reduce severe delays" in the processing of applications for renewal of deferred action and employment authorizations. The senators also drew Noem’s attention to the heightened risk of detention and deportation faced by DACA recipients when their renewal applications are not processed before their status expires. "Across the country, DACA recipients are reporting significant delays in the processing of their renewal applications. Many applicants who submitted their renewals on time and in accordance with agency guidelines are experiencing prolonged adjudication periods that extend beyond their current period of deferred action and employment authorization," the letter states.

San Francisco Chronicle [3/19/2026 7:00 AM, Staff, 3833K] reports the Trump administration’s overhaul of the Bay Area tech industry’s most-used visa program has scrambled the plans of companies and foreign workers and left families separated across continents, as immigration attorneys brace for more shocks to H-1B holders and hopefuls as new rules roll out. Thursday marks the end of the registration period for the latest H-1B lottery, which has been transformed under President Donald Trump’s anti-immigration policies. The employer-sponsored visa is used to bring foreign workers in for specialty jobs from software to health care and offers a pathway to a green card. But Trump has taken a restrictive stance on the program, saying the changes prioritize American jobs. Lawyers who guide employers through the program are anticipating not only fewer applicants this year because of a new $100,000 fee, but an uptick in denials, which happened during Trump’s first presidency. Any fallout will have an outsize impact on the Bay Area labor market, where the San Jose and San Francisco metro areas have welcomed the highest concentration of H-1B workers in the country. Current H-1B visa holders say they feel frozen in fear, scared to travel outside the U.S. as they face added layers of scrutiny upon returning.

FOX News [3/19/2026 9:36 PM, Greg Wehner, 37576K] reports the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) said Thursday that Border Patrol agents have not released a single migrant into the U.S. interior for 10 consecutive months, pointing to what officials described as historically low levels of illegal crossings. The DHS said in a press release that data from February shows U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) recorded its tenth straight month with zero migrant releases at the border, and the agency credited an "enforcement-first" approach for the sustained drop. "Ten straight months of ZERO illegal aliens released at the border. President Donald Trump promised to secure the Border, and that is a promise we delivered," former DHS Secretary Kristi Noem said in a statement. "We have the most secure border in American history. Our borders are CLOSED to lawbreakers.” CBP Commissioner Rodney Scott said the trend reflects a broader decline in crossings, adding that Border Patrol has not released any migrants into the country during that period. "February marks the tenth straight month that U.S. Border Patrol has not released a single illegal alien into the interior of the United States, a clear reflection of the enforcement-first posture restoring integrity to our nation’s borders," Scott said. According to CBP data, agents recorded 26,963 encounters nationwide in February, down 22% from the previous month and 88% below the monthly average during former President Joe Biden’s administration. At the southwest border, agents made 6,603 apprehensions in February, a figure the agency said is 92% lower than the monthly average over the past three decades and 97% below the peak of the Biden administration in December 2023. Officials also pointed to a sharp decline in daily crossings, with Border Patrol averaging 236 apprehensions per day in February, a 95% drop compared to the previous administration. At the same time, CBP reported a surge in drug seizures after agents confiscating more than 79,000 pounds of narcotics nationwide last month, the highest monthly total since October 2021. The agency said fentanyl seizures increased 67% from January, while marijuana, methamphetamine and cocaine seizures also rose significantly. Scott said the agency remains focused on enforcement and national security. "While threats to our national and economic security continue to evolve, so does our resolve to meet them as we carry out our mission of protecting the homeland while facilitating lawful travel and trade," he said.

Telemundo 48 El Paso [3/19/2026 3:51 PM, Staff, 19K] reports U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers seized 139.5 kilograms of narcotics hidden in a pickup truck at the Paso del Norte Bridge on February 28, the agency reported. According to CBP, the discovery occurred when a Mexican citizen driving a white 2016 Dodge Ram, with Mexican license plates, requested to enter the United States through the border crossing. A non-intrusive inspection revealed anomalies in the vehicle. Subsequently, a dog trained to locate narcotics and hidden people alerted to the presence of drugs. During the secondary inspection, officers located 122 packages of narcotics. CBP officers arrested the driver, while the U.S. Attorney’s Office agreed to prosecute the case at the federal level. In addition to the vehicle and the narcotics, the case was turned over to special agents from Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), who will continue the investigation as part of the Homeland Security Task Force.

Politico [3/19/2026 7:00 PM, Oriana Pawlyk and Myah Ward, 21784K] reports White House officials and Democrats on Capitol Hill know the shutdown pain is about to get a lot worse. But neither side is blinking — yet. In the weeks ahead, long lines and canceled flights, so far localized in cities such as Houston, Atlanta and New Orleans, are expected to grow. Experts say the country is on the precipice of a surge in TSA callouts and resignations, which would strain the system nationwide. And there’s a tight timeline to resolve the impasse: Congress is set to leave for recess at the end of next week. “It is not yet widespread ...[but] keep this thing going for another week or two, and there’s a real good chance it is going to be widespread,” said an aviation industry official, granted anonymity to discuss industry’s engagement with the Trump administration about the ordeal. “There’s a decent chance that this isn’t going to get resolved before [Congress recesses at the end of next week], and it’s going to take a giant meltdown to get it resolved.” As the DHS shutdown entered its fifth week, both sides dug in, gambling that they can win the political messaging war over who’s responsible for the shutdown’s ripple effects. From the Trump administration, top officials blitzed the airwaves and cast blame on Democrats from official social media accounts, accusing the left of holding TSA agents’ livelihoods “hostage” and warning that the administration will have to take dire measures in the weeks ahead. TSA agents last week missed their first full paycheck after getting only partial checks since the shutdown began in mid-February. “We’re fully stretched,” said acting deputy TSA administrator Adam Stahl on Fox News this week. “If this continues, it’s not hyperbole to suggest that we may have to quite literally shut down airports.” Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy likened the DHS shutdown to previous ones that have crippled the FAA’s air traffic controller force. In an interview with CNBC, Duffy warned: “you’re going to see small airports, I believe, shut down, you’re going to see extensive lines, and air travel is going to almost come to a …stop.” Delta Air Lines CEO Ed Bastian, in an appearance on CNBC Tuesday, called the whole ordeal “inexcusable,” adding that TSA workers are just being used as “political chips” amid the shutdown fight. “We’re outraged,” Bastian said, referring to the airline industry.

Reuters [3/19/2026 3:03 PM, David Shepardson, 38315K] reports overall absences among ​Transportation Security Administration ‌airport security officers rose to 10.2% ​on Wednesday, ​up slightly as ⁠a partial government ​shutdown continues, ​the government said on Thursday. The absenteeism rate ​was much ​higher at some major ‌airports ⁠on Wednesday including 25% at New York’s JFK ​and ​San ⁠Juan, Puerto Rico, 38% ​at Atlanta ​and ⁠at Houston Bush, the Homeland ⁠Security ​Department said.

FOX News [3/19/2026 1:37 PM, Taylor Penley, 7946K] reports that a top TSA union leader warned Thursday that airport security risks linked to the ongoing government shutdown are set to "get worse," pointing to a critical issue he says has largely gone unaddressed. "TSA has been under a... hiring freeze since last year, so when you look at what we had in the fall, the 50 days that we had off of shutdown, we have people that left, that retired," TSA union leader George Borek told "Varney & Co." "The acting director yesterday said we had 400 some odd agents that so far have signaled that they’re leaving," he added. "That number is going to grow exponentially." Borek said the problem will only exacerbate as the agency struggles to replace those who left, noting the length of time it takes to get agents certified for checkpoints. That struggle could be compounded as the busiest travel season of the year approaches and as an anticipated uptick in international flyers arrive in the U.S. for the FIFA World Cup this summer. "The other part is — what happens once this is settled?" he asked. "Are we going to continue having the resources that we need in order to do our jobs effectively?" TSA agents have gone unpaid since the onset of a partial government shutdown, forcing airports like Hartsfield-Jackson in Atlanta to find ways to mitigate the issues some agents are facing financially. The dispute stems from a political standoff in Washington over funding for the Department of Homeland Security, which has created concerns of potential security loopholes as the government shutdown drags on with no end in sight.

NewsMax [3/19/2026 10:37 PM, Jim Thomas, 3760K] reports a senior Transportation Security Administration official warned Thursday that airport security delays are likely to worsen as the Department of Homeland Security shutdown drags on, with rising employee absences straining checkpoints nationwide and raising the possibility that some smaller airports could temporarily suspend screening operations. Adam Stahl, acting deputy TSA administrator, said smaller airports are especially vulnerable because they have fewer screening lanes and fewer officers available when workers call out, adding that TSA could temporarily suspend operations at some airports rather than risk weakening security. The warning lands as spring break travel collides with a prolonged funding lapse at DHS, leaving TSA officers working without pay and passengers facing longer waits at some airports. Stahl said the problem is likely to intensify if the impasse continues for days or weeks. He urged travelers to arrive early and check with airports and airlines for updates. The staffing strain is already visible. Reuters reported that more than 10% of TSA airport security officers did not report for work on Sunday, far above the agency’s usual rate of under 2%, and 366 officers have left during the shutdown. Absences spiked above 50% in Houston and above 30% in New Orleans and Atlanta, while some airports have already closed security checkpoints. The shutdown began after DHS funding lapsed on Feb. 13, and The Associated Press reported Thursday that lawmakers remained far apart even after a closed-door meeting between White House officials and senators. On Wednesday, House Democrats were also pushing a discharge petition on a bill from Rep. Rosa DeLauro, D-Conn., to fund TSA and other DHS agencies while excluding Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Customs and Border Protection, and the office of the secretary. Democrats made another attempt Thursday to fund most DHS agencies, but not ICE or CBP. Republicans blocked the measure. For travelers, the immediate effect is uncertainty at checkpoints. For airports, especially smaller ones, the next step depends on whether staffing falls further before Congress reaches a deal.

Reuters [3/19/2026 9:12 AM, David Shepardson, 16072K] reports that

U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy warned on Thursday that if a partial government shutdown continues, small airports could soon shut down as 50,000 airport security officers go without pay. Since Sunday, around 10% of Transportation Security Administration airport personnel have failed to show for work daily, about five times the normal rate. That has led to long security lines at a number of major airports. The U.S. Travel Association and a coalition of travel industry groups including airlines, hotels and car rental companies on Thursday called for urgent action. "The security of travelers and the country is at ⁠stake," they said in a letter. "This situation is placing increasing strain on the frontline workforce responsible for protecting millions of travelers." Senate Republicans and Democrats on Thursday made dueling attempts to fund the TSA but could not reach unanimous agreement. Duffy said in a CNBC interview that if the standoff continues into next week, the government might have to take extraordinary steps. He noted next week TSA officers are set to miss another full paycheck on March 27 and said things are likely to get worse as that approaches. "As we get into next week and they are about to miss another payment, this is going to look ⁠like child’s play what’s happening right now," Duffy said. "You’re going to see small airports, I believe, shut down. You’re going to see extensive lines."

AP [3/19/2026 7:27 PM, R.J. Rico, Rio Yamat and Holly Ramer, 31753K] reports the wait times at airport security checkpoints have become a guessing game during the shutdown of a single U.S. government department, with the daily attendance of Transportation Security Administration officers determining whether lines move quickly or stretch far outside terminals. Travelers at Houston’s largest airport endured hourslong waits Thursday morning due to staffing shortages, causing some to miss their flights or scramble to their gates, before conditions shifted dramatically, with wait times dropping to under 10 minutes later in the day. At Atlanta’s Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport, which a day earlier saw some of the country’s longest security lines, officials reported largely moderate-to-low wait times on Thursday. One checkpoint was closed due to low staffing, however, and lines during the early morning rush exceeded an hour. Experts say it’s hard to predict where the lines will be the longest at any given time because much of the problem stems from TSA personnel not showing up for their shifts. The roughly 50,000 federal workers who screen passengers and bags have been working without pay while lawmakers fail to agree on funding the Department of Homeland Security. Homeland Security has said at least 376 TSA agents have quit since the current shutdown began on Feb. 14. About 10% of TSA officers nationwide missed work each day between Monday and Wednesday, the department reported Thursday. The agency’s employees saw their first income-free paydays last weekend.

ABC News [3/19/2026 11:51 AM, Staff, 34146K] reports Carlos Rodriguez, a TSA officer and regional VP of AFGE Northeast, explains the financial hardship TSA employees are experiencing as a result of the partial government shutdown. [Editorial note: consult video at source link]

New York Post [3/19/2026 10:31 AM, Emily Crane, 40934K] reports that massive hourslong security lines continued to plague major airports across the country Thursday — with smaller hubs at risk of shutting down entirely during the spring break rush. Fed-up passengers were forced to endure lengthy lines for Transportation Security Administration check points at several airports, including in Philadelphia and Houston, first thing Thursday morning. Chaotic footage on social media showed travelers backed up on escalators and stairs at Philadelphia International Airport, which only had a handful of TSA stations open. The security line at Houston’s Bush Intercontinental Airport was already snaking outside the terminal before 7 a.m., videos showed. More than 1,200 flights had already been delayed nationwide as of 10 a.m., according to flight-tracking site FlightAware. The delays and huge wait times are being blamed on the Democrat-led partial shutdown of the Department of Homeland Security, forcing roughly 50,000 airport security officers to go without pay. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy warned Thursday that if the shutdown and TSA standoff continued, small airports could soon be shuttered in a drastic escalation.

FOX News [3/19/2026 10:15 AM, Ashley J. DiMella, 37576K] reports that while TSA officers on the front lines of airports across the nation continue to miss their paychecks, chaos is gripping some U.S. airports. Footage from the Philadelphia International Airport, shot early Thursday morning, shows hundreds of passengers waiting on elevators and escalators to get through a security check point. The airport announced it was temporarily closing three security checkpoints "to help optimize operations across other checkpoints," starting Wednesday. The Philadelphia International Airport has a total of six main checkpoints — now with just half of those points open and operating. An airport spokesperson told Fox News Digital that airport staff were on hand to direct flight passengers through the lines. "The longest wait time was 44 minutes at our D/E checkpoint, which opens at 3 a.m., the first checkpoint to open," said the spokesperson. As of 9 a.m., the longest wait time was at the airport’s Terminal B checkpoint, at 20 minutes — which the spokesperson said was "not unusual for this time of day." Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport has had lines as long as 90 minutes with the airport posting on X to alert travelers to arrive three hours early. Acting Deputy TSA Administrator Adam Stahl told Fox News Digital this week that as the shutdown drags on, the TSA faces the risk of losing even more officers. "The reality is [that] as this continues, as our officers continue not to receive a paycheck, it just stretches into weeks… [and] rates [of callouts] are going to continue to go up," said Stahl. "We’re going to have individuals that can’t afford to go into work and individuals quit, possibly altogether." [Editorial note: consult video at source link]

New York Post [3/19/2026 10:58 AM, Ariel Zilber, 40934K] reports that Delta Air Lines CEO Ed Bastian tore into Congress for forcing airport security agents to work without pay, calling the situation "inexcusable" and accusing lawmakers of using frontline workers as "political chips" while a partial government shutdown drags into its fifth week. "It’s inexcusable that our security agents, our frontline agents, that are essential to what we do, are not being paid, and it’s ridiculous to see them being used as political chips," Bastian told CNBC on Tuesday. The airline boss said Delta is already seeing the impact, with staffing shortages at security checkpoints fueling longer lines and delays at major hubs — including Atlanta, where extended wait times flared over the weekend. "We certainly are [seeing it]," Bastian said, noting the disruptions tend to hit hardest on weekends. He said weather worsened the situation but stressed the underlying issue is unpaid workers. The standoff in Washington has left about 50,000 Transportation Security Administration officers working without pay since mid-February after lawmakers failed to fund the Department of Homeland Security. The Post has sought comment from lawmakers. [Editorial note: consult video at source link]

NewsMax [3/19/2026 9:26 PM, Solange Reyner, 3760K] reports an Alaska Airlines 737 and FedEx cargo plane nearly collided Tuesday while attempting to land at Newark Liberty International Airport, according to radar data from FlightRadar24. The incident took place around 8:17 p.m. Tuesday as the Alaska flight arrived from Portland, Oregon, and the FedEx plane arrived from Memphis, Tennessee. Alaska Airlines Flight 294 was ordered to perform a go-around when FedEx Flight 721 was cleared "for the final approach to an intersecting runway," the Federal Aviation Administration said in a statement. The FAA said it was investigating the incident. Alaska Airlines cleared the FedEx plane by just 300 to 325 feet. FedEx in a statement said its plane was "following instructions from air traffic control, the flight crew of FedEx flight 721 landed safely without incident at Newark Liberty International Airport Tuesday.” Alaska Airlines in a statement said air traffic control "issued a go around to our aircraft, which our pilots are highly trained for.” The incident happened on the 34th day of the partial government shutdown. Since Sunday, around 10% of Transportation Security Administration airport personnel have failed to show for work daily – about five times the normal rate. That’s led to long security lines at a number of major airports. On Tuesday, around 30% of TSA officers did not show up at New York’s JFK, Pittsburgh, and Houston’s George Bush Intercontinental Airport, and 40% at Houston’s William P. Hobby Airport, the Homeland Security Department said. Some airports have closed security checkpoints and others are working to raise money to help TSA workers buy food or other essentials as they go without pay. Major airline CEOs have called for a quick end to the standoff.

Houston Chronicle [3/19/2026 9:43 AM, Jarrod Wardwell, 2493K] reports travelers were waiting up to three hours for TSA screening at George Bush Intercontinental Airport Thursday morning in the latest delays to riddle Houston airports during the partial government shutdown. The wait for standard security screening was three hours at Terminal E and an hour or more at Terminal C North, Terminal A North and South and Terminal E’s TSA PreCheck around 9:15 a.m., according to the Houston Airport System. Lines were meanwhile running smoothly at William P. Hobby Airport, where waits dipped to 10 minutes or lower, according to Houston Airports. TSA staffing shortages during the Department of Homeland Security’s more than monthlong shutdown have created hourslong lines at airports in Houston and across the United States this month. Hobby had back-to-back days with waits of 3 hours or more earlier in March, but the situation resolved after TSA’s national deployment officers arrived there. Hobby still logged the highest rate of single-day absences for TSA agents of any airport in the country on Saturday, according to DHS. The staffing levels at Bush Airport Thursday were not immediately known. Houston Airports and TSA did not immediately return a request for comment.

Daily Caller [3/19/2026 4:50 PM, Sean Hustedde, 803K] reports Congress expanded a probe into the Potomac Interceptor sewage spill by demanding to look at negotiated repair contracts between DC Water and a construction company, according to a letter obtained exclusively by The Daily Caller News Foundation. Republican House Committee Chairmen Brett Guthrie, John Joyce and Gary Palmer sent a joint letter to Garney Companies, Inc. CEO, David Burkhart, to obtain information regarding the two-year Potomac Interceptor (PI) rehabilitation contract arranged between Garney and DC Water. DC Water was negotiating an Emergency Master Service Agreement with Garney, set to begin on May 15, 2025, which was never finalized, according to the letter. President Donald Trump announced in February that the federal government would intervene to assist in the Potomac River’s cleanup and said the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) would play a key role in coordinating the response. The president blamed the PI’s rupture on the "Gross Mismanagement of Local Democrat Leaders, particularly, Governor Wes Moore, of Maryland," in a Truth Social post.

Daily Caller [3/19/2026 9:19 AM, Hudson Crozier, 803K] reports that a Wisconsin cultist targeted President Donald Trump in a deadly plot with inspiration from mysterious online figures who have remained in the shadows since. Nikita Casap received life sentences in March for killing his parents after the FBI uncovered his plans to take their money, obtain weaponry needed to kill Trump and flee to Ukraine with help from unnamed contacts, some based in Europe. One contact expressed concern in private messages to an undercover researcher about the FBI hunting down another possible accomplice, though only one has been captured to date, documents reviewed by the Daily Caller News Foundation show. Casap supported the fringe Satanic group Order of Nine Angles and embedded himself in foreign neo-Nazi chat rooms, the FBI said in a March 2025 affidavit. His internet friends gave him detailed tips for hiding the dead bodies, crafting a "manifesto," escaping Wisconsin and buying a weaponized drone before law enforcement apprehended him in Kansas in February 2025, according to court records. The 18-year-old’s case highlights a disturbing trend of anonymous online actors steering young people toward violent crimes only to fade into obscurity after the fact. The FBI tied Casap to "Nihilistic Violent Extremists," criminals who want to collapse all current political systems. Killing Trump and other terroristic actions would cause "Jewish occupied governments" to fall, Casap’s manifesto obtained by the FBI says.

Los Angeles Times [3/19/2026 1:21 PM, Cierra Morgan, 12718K] reports that dozens of shipping containers on a vessel at the Port of Long Beach were lost or damaged after heavy weather sent them toppling over in the harbor, the Coast Guard said. The OOCL Sunflower was completing a trans-Pacific voyage from Kaohsiung, Taiwan, when 32 containers fell overboard, according to the Coast Guard. Another 57 containers were reported damaged after the ship berthed at the Port of Long Beach. Heavy weather in the North Pacific, including strong winds and rough seas near the Aleutian Islands, contributed to the loss and damage of the containers aboard the vessel, Coast Guard Petty Officer Roberto Nieves said. In footage broadcast by KTLA, about 14 containers can be seen tipped over on the vessel. Authorities have since then established a 100-yard safety zone around the ship, according to the Coast Guard. Crews have carried out emergency lashing operations at the Port of Long Beach to secure damaged containers, using straps, chains and turnbuckles to prevent further shifting, Nieves said. Contractors conducted visual inspections of the affected containers, along with internal and external air quality and heat monitoring, Nieves said. There have been no initial reports of hazardous releases, loss of containment or pollution from the damaged containers. Officials did not have details of what cargo was lost or damaged.

New York Post [3/19/2026 10:34 PM, Titus Wu, 40934K] reports the US Coast Guard is working to safely move off more than 100 shipping containers from a cargo ship at the Port of Long Beach in what was described as a precarious situation. Aerial views Thursday showed multiple containers stacked and on the verge of dangerously teetering into the water. A video showed many of the large containers in uneven and awkward positions. The OOCL Sunflower departed from Taiwan on Feb. 23 but encountered heavy weather in the Northern Pacific. The vessel and its 27 crew members were OK but 32 containers fell overboard, officials said. Around 60 containers were damaged and 42 were offset. It arrived in Long Beach on March 12, but the vessel was kept offshore for several days as officials were concerned about the stability of the remaining cargo. The ship had a capacity of 16,828 20-foot cargo containers. The containers contained raw materials used to manufacture semiconductors and rubber, propellants, and refrigerants, ABC 7 reported. Contractors have inspected each container and are conducting air monitoring and heat detection. There haven’t been any reports of pollution at the port so far. A 100-yard safety zone was established around the vessel, according to the Patch.

USA Today [3/19/2026 9:30 AM, Jeanine Santucci, 70643K] reports that two tugboat crew members were killed in what officials said was a "confined space incident" while moored in Alaska. Ben Fowler and Sidney Mohorovich died on March 15 aboard a freight barge Waynehoe about 25 miles from Ketchikan, on the southeastern coast of Alaska, according to the U.S. Coast Guard, which is investigating the incident. The two were crew members on the tug vessel Chukchi Sea and were on board Waynehoe when other tug crew members lost contact with them. Two other crew members with them on the barge survived and were in stable condition. Watchstanders at the Coast Guard Sector Southeast Alaska command center in Juneau about 200 miles away received a mayday call at about 9:14 a.m. on March 15, the Coast Guard said. They launched a response boat and crew with members of a volunteer fire department on board. By the time the responders reached the barge, the other tug crew members had recovered a body and helped the two surviving crew members get out of the confined space. The response team then towed the barge to a pier in Ketchikan and recovered the second body on March 17, the Coast Guard said. A cause of death for the two deceased crew members was not released.

CBS News [3/19/2026 7:23 AM, Staff, 51110K] reports two crew members of a tugboat were killed and two others were injured in what the Coast Guard described Wednesday as a "confined space incident" aboard a barge moored in southeast Alaska last weekend. A Coast Guard news release provided limited details about what happened to the four, but said they were in a confined space aboard the freight barge Waynehoe on Sunday when other crew members from their tug, the Chukchi Sea, lost contact with them. The barge was moored about 25 miles northwest of Ketchikan. The deceased crew members were identified as Sidney Mohorovich and Ben Fowler, according to the Coast Guard. Its news release didn’t identify the surviving crew by name. Coast Guard spokesperson Alexander Ransom later told the Associated Press in an email that both survivors were reported to be in good condition. The parents of Mohorovich, 28, said they were told by Coast Guard officials there was methane gas present in the confined space.

CBS News [3/19/2026 11:26 PM, Joe Walsh, 51110K] reports the Justice Department says it has shuttered four websites that were allegedly used by Iranian government-linked groups to post hacked information and threaten regime critics. The move comes amid fears that the U.S. and Israel’s war with Iran could expand into cyberattacks. A news agency linked to the Iranian Revolutionary Guards has threatened American tech companies that they could be targets, and one of the Iran-linked groups targeted by the Justice Department appeared to take credit for a hack on a Michigan medical technology company last week. Meanwhile, U.S. military officials have said cyber operations helped to degrade Iran’s communications in the early hours of the war. The websites that were shut down by the Justice Department had names that corresponded to three different alleged hacking groups: Handala, Homeland Justice and Karma Below. In court papers, the FBI said all three groups are run by Iran’s Ministry of Intelligence and Security, and they use similar tactics, including "custom-built malware.” The Justice Department says the four sites were used for Iranian government-sponsored "hacking and transnational repression schemes," and for "attempted psychological operations targeting adversaries of the regime." NBC News [3/19/2026 7:57 PM, Kelly O’Donnell, 42967K] reports that the seized domains "Justicehomeland.org," "Handala-Hack.to," "Karmabelow80.org," and "Handala-Redwanted.to," were also used by Iranian Intelligence and Security Ministry to claim credit for hacking and to post sensitive data, the Justice Department said Thursday. The United States and Israel began an air assault on Iran on Feb. 28. Since then, Iran has retaliated against U.S. military bases, consulates, Israel and other targets across the Middle East using drones and missiles. Last week, an Iran-backed group also claimed responsibility for hacking an American company, the first significant instance since the start of the war. Handala Team, which cybersecurity companies say has ties to the Iranian Intelligence Ministry, said on its Telegram and X accounts that it had orchestrated the technology company hack. The group routinely brags about its exploits on the social media platforms, which have in recent days taken down previous versions of their accounts. According to the Justice Department, the group used the domain Handala-hack.to claim credit for the malware attack. The group also posted photos, details of roughly 190 people affiliated with the Israel Defense Forces or government. The group also harassed and sent death threats to Iranian dissidents and journalists, both in the U.S. and abroad. The other two domains were used to make claims that sensitive documents and data were stolen from the Albanian government. "The Iranian regime exploits cyberspace to advance authoritarian objectives, suppress democratic institutions, and undermine our national and economic security," Jimmy Paul, FBI Baltimore’s special agent in charge, said in a statement. "The FBI will act swiftly, deliberately, and proactively to disable cyber threats to America.” More than 2,000 people have been killed across the Middle East since the war began. In Iran, more than 1,200 people have been killed by Israeli and American strikes, according to the Iranian Red Crescent Society. At least 850 people have been killed in Lebanon and 13 have died in Israel. Thirteen U.S. service members have been killed, and two more died of noncombat causes. Deaths have also been reported in Kuwait, Iraq, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Saudi Arabia.

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Breitbart [3/19/2026 9:37 PM, Staff, 2238K]
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Washington Examiner [3/19/2026 7:57 PM, Claire Carter, 1147K]

USA Today [3/19/2026 10:52 AM, Greta Cross, 70643K] reports that two new – otherworldly – government-operated website domains created this week have caused a stir. Alien.gov and Aliens.gov were both registered by the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), a part of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, on Tuesday, March 17, according to get.gov, the registry the CISA manages to request, approve and manage government websites. Both domains are hosted on Cloudflare, an internet management company, which hosts countless mainstream websites, including Amazon, Spotify, Zoom, DoorDash and OpenAI. As of March 19, neither website is live. Visiting the URLs simply results in an error message. Why did the federal government create Alien.gov and Aliens.gov? As of March 19, the federal government has not provided information on why the two domains were created. In a statement provided to USA TODAY on March 19, White House Principal Deputy Press Secretary Anna Kelly said, "Stay tuned!", including an alien emoji after her message. The Pentagon did not immediately respond for comment about the domains when contacted by USA TODAY on March 19. As of March 19, neither Alien.gov or Aliens.gov directs online users to a finished website. Domains come soon after Trump’s promise to release files about ‘extraterrestrial life.’

DefenseScoop [3/19/2026 4:25 PM, Jon Harper, 150K] reports a senior Department of Defense Cyber Crime Center official is seeing the quantity and sophistication of digital attacks increase, a trend that he suggests may be attributable to the emergence of new AI capabilities that can aid hackers. Terry Kalka, director of the DOD-Defense Industrial Base Collaborative Information Sharing Environment (DCISE), noted that malicious cyber actors can now use AI to do a lot of their work. “I don’t think we’ve gotten to a point where we get a report and we go ‘ah, that was an AI attack there.’ [But] the general trends you see about the increasing numbers of attacks, abandoning of traditional forms of malware, using more sophisticated attacking, living off the land, discovery of zero days — we’re seeing those trends increase pretty much commensurate with what you see in the public. And so we can connect that probably with the ratio of AI,” Kalka said Thursday at the Elastic Public Sector Summit presented by FedScoop. He continued: “And what really hit home for me just the other day as I was looking at sort of a standard attack kill chain and seeing how much of that can be time-differenced through AI, you can really build a model as an attacker that all you need to do is sort of set basic context [such as directing the model to] ‘go look at this organization, come back to me with, you know, vulnerabilities and what we can get out of them, prioritize them for me. OK, go exploit this. Come back to me when you have, you know, data that I can use and exploit further.’ And … we need our defenders to be thinking along that mindset as well.”

CyberScoop [3/19/2026 9:25 PM, Matt Kapko, 122K] reports a 27-year-old North Carolina man was found guilty of six counts of extortion for a series of crimes he committed while working as a data analyst contractor for a D.C.-based international technology company, the Justice Department said Thursday. Cameron Nicholas Curry, also known as “Loot,” stole a trove of corporate data, including sensitive employee and compensation information, which he used to extort his employer, according to court records. Curry ultimately made off with approximately $2.5 million from the victim organization in January 2024. The insider attack underscores immeasurable risks companies accept when employees, or contractors placed in roles by a third-party recruitment company, as was the case with Curry, are allowed to access sensitive data on a company-owned laptop. Officials did not name the company. Curry used his access to the company’s network to remove corporate data for extortion while he worked for the company between August and December 2023. Immediately following his last day of employment with the company, Curry started sending threatening emails to its employees and demanded a ransom to not leak and destroy the data.

New York Times [3/19/2026 3:31 PM, Devlin Barrett, 148038K] reports that the F.B.I. director, Kash Patel, told lawmakers on Thursday that agents who had worked on an investigation of President Trump were dismissed last month because they were found to have violated the bureau’s ethics rules, a claim that is likely to be challenged in court. The assertion came during Mr. Patel’s testimony before a House Intelligence Committee about national security threats elicited by the war in Iran. Democratic lawmakers pressed him to explain the firings of about 10 of those agents, who were also members of a counterintelligence unit that specialized in addressing terrorism threats from the Middle East. “People were terminated for violating their ethical obligations,” he said of the agents, who had worked on the investigation into Mr. Trump’s handling of classified documents found at his Mar-a-Lago estate after he left office. Mr. Patel emphasized that other F.B.I. agents had scrutinized the issue and found problems in the conduct of the fired agents. “They are internal investigations conducted by the careers at the F.B.I. that highlight unethical or inappropriate conduct, and it’s up to me to make the decision,” he said. He declined to specify what the purported violations were, claiming that there was “pending litigation” over the matter. The Mar-a-Lago agents fired last month have yet to file any lawsuits, though some agents fired earlier in Mr. Patel’s tenure have sued.

FOX News [3/19/2026 3:03 PM, Jasmine Baehr, Efrat Lachter, 37576K] reports new photos obtained by Fox News Digital show extensive damage inside Temple Israel in West Bloomfield, Michigan, after a suspect rammed a vehicle into the building and opened fire last week. Images reveal blackened hallways, shattered glass, and debris scattered across floors, including inside areas used by children. The photos provide the clearest look yet at the aftermath of what authorities described as a "targeted act of violence against the Jewish community." The synagogue houses an early childhood center, and officials said all children and staff were safely accounted for after the attack. Authorities say the suspect, identified as Ayman Mohamad Ghazali, 41, allegedly drove a truck into the synagogue and opened fire at security guards. A security guard shot and killed the suspect. According to the Department of Homeland Security, Ghazali entered the U.S. in 2011 on a spouse visa, and later became a naturalized citizen in 2016. Authorities described Ghazali’s vehicle as "traveling with purpose," and 30 first responders were treated for smoke inhalation.

New York Post [3/19/2026 11:48 AM, Victor Nava, Samuel Chamberlain, and Steven Nelson, 40934K] reports the FBI is investigating Joe Kent, the former head of the National Counterterrorism Center, who resigned Tuesday in protest of the war with Iran, for allegedly leaking classified information, according to four sources familiar with the matter. The probe, first reported Wednesday by Semafor, predates Kent’s dramatic departure from the Trump administration, though it is not clear when exactly it started or what revelation triggered it. Kent, 45, had access to the nation’s most guarded secrets, and two sources claimed the FBI has direct evidence of Kent leaking. One said it was to at least two like-minded media figures, another said it was to a newspaper. A third source said that Kent, who claimed President Trump was manipulated into attacking Iran at the behest of Israel and shielded from dissenting views, was effectively iced out ahead of his Tuesday resignation due to the investigation. “There was a recognition that he was self-serving, so the fear of putting him on leave or firing him before there was more certainty was that he’d go out and do exactly what he’s doing,” the third source said.

AP [3/19/2026 9:41 PM, Larry Neumeister and Michael Liedtke, 31753K] reports a senior vice president of Super Micro Computer Inc. and two others affiliated with the company were charged Thursday with conspiring to smuggle billions of dollars of computer servers containing advanced Nvidia chips to China. The men violated U.S. export controls laws by scheming to divert massive quantities of the high-performance servers assembled in the United States to China between 2024 and 2025, according to the indictment in Manhattan federal court. In a release, FBI Assistant Director in Charge James C. Barnacle Jr. said the defendants used fabricated documents, staged bogus equipment to pass audit inventories and utilized a pass-through company to conceal their misconduct and true clientele list. U.S. Attorney Jay Clayton said schemes such as this “pose a direct threat to U.S. national security.” Nvidia’s processors have emerged as indispensable building blocks for the data centers that power artificial intelligence — a potentially game-changing technology that could reshape society and change the balance of power in the world. For that reason, the U.S. and China are dueling to gain the upper hand in AI, evoking memories of the arms race between the U.S. and Germany to develop the first nuclear bomb during World War II.

FOX News [3/19/2026 1:30 PM, Morgan Phillips, 37576K] reports that U.S. officials detected unidentified drones near a military installation in Washington, D.C., where top administration officials reportedly have been housed, and security concerns are mounting amid escalating tensions in the Middle East and with Iran. Multiple drones were spotted in recent days near Fort Lesley J. McNair, where Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Secretary of War Pete Hegseth are living, The Washington Post reported, citing people briefed on the situation. The origin of the drones has not been determined. The base, located in Southwest Washington, D.C., houses the National Defense University and senior military leadership. It also reportedly has been used to accommodate high-level administration officials amid elevated security concerns. Officials with Joint Task Force – National Capital Region and the U.S. Army Military District of Washington said they are aware of the reported drone sightings. "We are aware of the reported drone sightings near Fort McNair and the surrounding areas," Heather Chairez, media chief for Joint Task Force - National Capital Region and the U.S. Army Military District of Washington, told Fox News Digital Thursday. "We are working with our law enforcement and interagency partners to monitor and investigate the reported sightings. "Our top priority is the safety of our service members and civilian personnel that work and live on the base," she added. "Currently, there is no credible threat to Fort McNair, but we will continue to monitor the situation and adjust force protection measures as needed." The Pentagon and State Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Reuters [3/19/2026 2:09 PM, Phil Stewart and Idrees Ali, 38315K] reports that the U.S. military is not rehearsing for an invasion of Cuba or actively preparing to militarily take over the island, the top general overseeing American forces in Latin America told lawmakers on Thursday. But the U.S. stands ready to address any threats to the U.S. embassy, defend its base at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, and aid U.S. government efforts to address any mass migration from the island, if needed, General Francis Donovan, head of U.S. Southern Command, said. Donovan’s remarks came during a Senate hearing focused on President Donald Trump’s increasingly muscular use of the U.S. military in Latin America, where his administration has re-asserted the idea that the region falls into Washington’s zone of influence. Trump has launched military strikes on suspected drug boats and is expanding counter-narcotics alliances with pro-Washington governments in Latin America, even carrying out joint operations with Ecuador on the ground there earlier ⁠this month. In January, U.S. special forces seized Venezuela’s then-President Nicolas Maduro in a raid on his Caracas compound and whisked him to New York to face drug-trafficking charges. Donovan, who was the No. 2 at Special Operations Command at the time of the raid, made a surprise visit to Venezuela for security talks last month shortly after taking over the Latin America post.

New York Times [3/19/2026 1:25 PM, Alan Rappeport, 148038K] reports that the Trump administration said on Thursday that it planned to remove sanctions on Iranian oil, an unorthodox move intended to lower surging crude prices, which have hurt U.S. consumers and helped Iran profit. The strategy would be a sharp reversal from years of maximum-pressure sanctions aimed to cripple Iran’s economy. The plan, described by Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, reflects the administration’s desperation to reduce oil prices, encouraging Iran to sell more oil even while it is at war with the United States. Since the war started late last month, Iran has continued to export its oil, most of which is sold to China, despite U.S. sanctions. But the confrontation with Iran has revealed an economic paradox: Because the war has caused global oil prices to surge, Iran has actually been profiting from it. “In essence, we will be using the Iranian barrels against the Iranians to keep the price down for the next 10 or 14 days as we continue this campaign,” Mr. Bessent said in an interview on Fox Business, adding that the administration had “lots of levers” and “plenty more” at its disposal. President Trump said on Thursday that the United States would do “whatever is necessary” to contain oil prices. Speaking at the White House, he said that he knew attacking Iran could affect the U.S. economy but that the war was necessary.

ABC News [3/19/2026 6:39 PM, Staff, 34146K] reports President of the National Iranian American Council, Jamal Abdi, weighs in on the latest developments in the war with Iran and whether there us a chance for a potential ceasefire. [Editorial note: consult video at source link]

Reuters [3/19/2026 6:44 PM, Staff, 38315K] reports United Arab Emirates authorities said on Friday they had dismantled a "terrorist network" funded and operated by Lebanon’s ‌Hezbollah and Iran, and arrested its members. According to the state news agency, the network was involved in "money laundering, financing terrorism and threatening national security." There was no immediate comment from Hezbollah or ⁠Iran.

Washington Post [3/20/2026 5:01 AM, John Hudson, Warren P. Strobel, and Steve Hendrix, 24826K] reports when the United States and Israel initiated the war against Iran last month, their messages were perfectly in sync on the sweeping goal of regime change. President Donald Trump told Iranians to seize their “only chance” for generations to “take over your government,” and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu implored them to “cast off the yoke of this murderous regime.” But nearly three weeks into the conflict, the war aims are diverging between a U.S. president who saw the historic opportunity of a quick military victory with only modest economic pain and an Israeli leader with grander visions of toppling a regime he’s sought to vanquish for 40 years, said multiple U.S., Israeli and Middle East officials and lawmakers familiar with the matter. Trump’s latest outburst against Israel’s attacks on Iran’s huge South Pars gas field on Wednesday laid bare the tensions between the two allies and the inconsistency of the president’s approach to the conflict. Trump said Israel had “violently lashed out” at Iran and distanced himself from the assault on the world’s largest natural gas deposit, which Iran shares with Qatar, a close U.S. ally and host of Washington’s biggest military base in the Gulf. “The United States knew nothing about this particular attack, and the country of Qatar was in no way, shape, or form, involved with it,” Trump said on Truth Social. But multiple officials directly contradicted that claim in conversations with The Washington Post, saying that while the U.S. was not involved in the strike, the Israelis informed Washington about the attack in advance. The incident, which drove energy prices higher and prompted retaliatory Iranian missile fire at Qatar’s main gas facility and Saudi Arabia’s capital, was indicative of Trump’s vacillation as he’s tried to manage an unpopular war that has killed 13 Americans to date.

Politico [3/19/2026 4:09 PM, John Sakellariadis, 21784K] reports Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard told lawmakers plainly Thursday that the United States and Israel have different goals in the war in Iran — one of the clearest indications yet from a top U.S. official that the two allies may be diverging on their approach to the weekslong war. “The objectives that have been laid out by the president are different from the objectives that have been laid out by the Israelis,” Gabbard testified at a House Intelligence Committee hearing on top security threats facing the country. Gabbard’s statements follow the departure of her top counterterrorism aide, Joe Kent, who publicly expressed opposition to the war in Iran and claimed that Israel pressured the U.S. into taking decisive action. He also claimed that Iran “posed no imminent threat” to the U.S. — a question that hung over Gabbard and CIA Director John Ratcliffe during back-to-back hearings featuring the nation’s top spy chiefs. Ratcliffe on Thursday testified that Israel went into the war with Iran with more sweeping goals than the U.S. “The president’s objectives with respect to Operation Epic Fury did not include regime change. That may be different from what Israel’s objectives were,” Ratcliffe said. Even Trump has more publicly tried to distance U.S. efforts in Iran from Israel. Speaking to reporters on Air Force One on Sunday, the president admitted Israel’s aims might be “a little bit different” than his. “You know, they’re there, and we’re very far away,” he said. An Israeli attack on a major Iranian gas facility Wednesday night sent energy prices soaring briefly Thursday and appeared to open a fresh fissure in the coordination between the two allies. The White House in recent days has struggled to tamp down rising global gas prices — an issue that some polls say has sunk public support for the war and spooked Republicans ahead of the midterms. In a Truth Social post late Wednesday evening, Trump said the U.S. “knew nothing about this particular attack” and suggested that the U.S. was reining Israel in. “NO MORE ATTACKS WILL BE MADE BY ISRAEL pertaining to this extremely important and valuable South Pars Field,” he wrote. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth also waded into the discussion about whether Israel and the U.S. are working in lockstep. “We hold the cards. We have objectives. Those objectives are clear. We have allies pursuing objectives as well, and the truth speaks for itself,” Hegseth told reporters Thursday morning.

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