The head of Microsoft’s Israeli subsidiary will step down in the wake of an inquiry that has scrutinised its business dealings with the Israeli military.
Microsoft ordered the inquiry last year in response to a Guardian investigation revealing the military had used the company’s technology to operate a powerful surveillance system that collected Palestinian civilian phone calls on a mass scale.
The joint investigation with the Israeli-Palestinian publication, +972 Magazine, and the Hebrew-language outlet, Local Call, found the military’s elite spy agency, Unit 8200, had used Microsoft’s Azure cloud platform to store a vast trove of intercepted calls from Gaza and the West Bank.
The inquiry commissioned by Microsoft is understood to have recently concluded. Its findings are unclear, however sources familiar with the situation said they prompted an announcement last week that Microsoft Israel’s general manager, Alon Haimovich, would leave the company.
The Israeli business newspaper, Globes, reported on Monday that Haimovich’s departure followed a major controversy at the subsidiary relating to violations of Microsoft’s code of ethics. It reported that several other managers had also left their positions.
Within weeks of launching the inquiry, Microsoft concluded that its initial findings showed Unit 8200 had violated its terms of service, which prohibit the use of its technology to facilitate mass surveillance. As a result, the company terminated the unit’s access to cloud services and AI products used to support the surveillance project.
Equipped with Azure’s near-limitless storage capacity and computing power, Unit 8200 built an indiscriminate system allowing its intelligence officers to collect, play back and analyse the content of millions of Palestinian cellular phone calls every day.
Details of the surveillance programme’s reliance on Azure sparked concerns among senior executives at Microsoft that some of its Israel-based employees may not have been fully transparent with headquarters about how Unit 8200 used the company’s technology.
Sources familiar with the inquiry, which involved lawyers at Covington & Burling, a US firm, said this had been one area of focus. According to Globes, Haimovich was summoned by the inquiry team after they visited Microsoft Israel’s offices near Tel Aviv.
Documents seen by the Guardian suggest Haimovich played a role in developing the relationship between Microsoft Israel and Unit 8200 following a 2021 meeting between Microsoft’s chief executive, Satya Nadella, and the unit’s then commander.
This included overseeing a partnership with the spy agency to build a segregated area within Azure to store sensitive intelligence material. Once complete, Unit 8200 began to move the expansive archive of everyday Palestinian communications into Microsoft’s cloud infrastructure.
Haimovich did not respond to a request for comment. In an email to staff announcing his departure last week, he said he had positioned Israel as “one of Microsoft’s fastest-growing markets worldwide”.
Microsoft has previously said its senior executives such as Nadella were unaware Unit 8200 was using Azure to store intercepted Palestinian communications. The company’s vice chair and president, Brad Smith, said last year: “We do not provide technology to facilitate mass surveillance of civilians.”
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President Donald Trump’s next pick to lead the nation’s central bank is one step closer to securing the job, despite early fears that his nomination was doomed.
The Senate confirmed Kevin Warsh to be on the Federal Reserve’s Board of Governors, the main governing body of the central bank, and a post he previously served on nearly two decades ago. The institution dictates monetary policy for the nation and has been a thorn in Trump’s side throughout his second term.
Tuesday’s successful test vote was the first step in Republicans’ quest to confirm Warsh as the next chair of the Federal Reserve. And it comes as current Chair Jerome Powell’s term at the helm comes to a close on May 15.
Kevin Warsh, incoming chairman of the U.S. Federal Reserve, has called a government-issued digital currency a “bad policy choice.”(Graeme Sloan/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
The Senate is expected to wrap up confirmation of Warsh on Wednesday.
It’s a far quieter ending to a process that for months was marred by high-stakes drama, legal disputes and speculation about whether Trump’s handpicked successor to Powell could actually survive the process.
That’s because until recently, Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C., vowed to block any replacement pick unless the Department of Justice dropped its criminal probe against Powell.
President Donald Trump speaks during a military Mother’s Day event in the East Room of the White House in Washington, D.C., on May 6, 2026.(Yuri Gripas/Abaca/Bloomberg)
That probe, which ended late last month amid pressure from top Senate Republicans, was related to alleged mismanagement of renovation funds for updates of the Federal Reserve’s headquarters in Washington, D.C., and played out despite Powell’s anticipated exit this month.
Speculation swirled about whether the probe was launched as a retaliatory effort against Powell, who refused to adhere to Trump’s desires to sharply lower interest rates as the central bank navigates inflation and new economic pressures from the war in Iran.
Though Powell’s time in the spotlight as chair of the Federal Reserve is soon coming to a close, he’s not going anywhere. He told reporters last month that when his term ended, he would stay on the Board of Governors.
President Donald Trump nominated Jerome Powell to led the Federal Reserve in 2017.(Al Drago/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
“I plan to keep a low profile as a governor. There is only ever one chair of the Federal Reserve Board. When Kevin Warsh is confirmed and sworn in, he will be that chair,” Powell said.
Warsh’s vision of the Federal Reserve is one that would maintain the central bank’s independence while shifting away from delving into political and social issues.
“The Fed must stay in its lane,” Warsh said during his testimony before the Senate banking panel last month. “Fed independence is placed at greatest risk when it strays into fiscal and social policies where it has neither authority nor expertise.”
Warsh needed every Republican vote he could get, given that Democrats have heavily scrutinized his finances and lack of financial disclosures related to his wife, Jane Lauder’s, colossal fortune, and view him as a “sock puppet” for Trump’s economic vision rather than a force that would push back if need be.
Alex Miller is a writer for Fox News Digital covering the U.S. Senate.
Back in 2022, on our way to an Airbnb we rented for the weekend, my husband and I drove past Lookout Mountain Flight Park. A small, unassuming building stood next to a concrete launch ramp — where three hang gliders were lined up on the edge of a steep, towering cliff.
A vacation rental property next to Lookout Mountain Flight Park in Rising Fawn, Georgia.(Amber Harding Snyder)
And by a million years, I guess I actually meant four. Because last weekend, we pulled up to that same flight park. Except this time, I had a reservation for a tandem flight.
I went into this experience completely blind. What even is hang gliding? Is there a way to steer? Does this thing have a motor or do you just sort of get a running start and hurl yourself off the mountain? A mystery to me.
Along with a group of seven other people, I was directed to a back room, where we were promptly handed clipboards with paperwork to sign. Waivers to acknowledge that — although safety is the No. 1 priority for Lookout Mountain Flight Park — gliding 1,500 feet above the ground in a large kite does not come entirely without risk.
After we signed on the dotted line, the staff member gave us driving directions to our launch point. My husband and I hopped in the car, pulled up Google Maps, and found ourselves driving… all the way down the mountain.
Which, I guess, answers my question about that running head start.
But at this point, I was utterly dumbfounded. How do we get the hang glider way up there if we’re starting way down here? That question was quickly answered when we pulled up to a vast open field containing three hang gliders and a couple of ultralight towplanes.
My stomach started doing flips. This was getting real.
Three hang gliders wait for the clouds to clear at Lookout Mountain Flight Park.(Amber Harding Snyder)
We were instantly greeted by a group of incredibly nice humans wearing heart-shaped sunglasses. I doubted that was regulation hang-gliding eye pro, but I could tell these folks have a lot of fun down here. They also have a sweet dog — a boxer mix, best I could tell — named Honeybear. Honeybear would become my unofficial emotional support animal while I waited to take flight.
Which turned out to be quite a long time.
Unfortunately, on this particular Sunday, Georgia’s “Cloudland” was living up to its name. Dense layers of clouds had descended upon the valley, and there was zero visibility above a few hundred feet. For obvious reasons, these are not ideal or even safe flying conditions.
On the morning of my flight, there was zero visibility from the top of the mountain.(Amber Harding Snyder)
So after watching a brief safety video, we were left with no choice but to wait until the clouds cleared. And they eventually did — about three hours later.
To their credit, the flight park crew gave us frequent updates on the weather and visibility. They assured us that we would begin flights as soon as it was safe to do so. Which was fine with me. Because I had no interest in flying before it was safe to do so.
Finally, though, they began to get us suited up in a near-full-body harness, glasses (not heart-shaped) and helmet. I looked sort of like a horse jockey and sort of like I was ready for my X-rays at the dentist’s office.
A man named Dalton introduced himself as my tandem flight partner. As we strapped into the hang glider, Dalton assured me he’d done this about 1,000 times before, which made me feel slightly less terrified.
As we lay prone just above the ground, dangling from the glider, Dalton instructed me to hold onto the handles on either side of his harness.
“Do not touch this bar,” he emphasized, pointing to the horizontal metal bar directly in front of us. “It is my steering wheel.”
You don’t have to tell me twice. I had an absolute death grip on that harness.
On his signal, the ultralight began to accelerate, towing our hang glider by a long rope. If you’ve ever ridden in an inner tube behind a boat, it’s just like that. Only instead of through the water, you’re being pulled into the sky. And just like that, we were airborne. But not without a little turbulence.
Once we reached altitude, Dalton detached us from the airplane, and we were officially on our own. Dare I say, I was actually able to relax a bit at this point. We sailed through the air like a bird. The scenery was truly mesmerizing. I’ve spent a lot of time hiking around Lookout Mountain. Seeing it from above is an entirely different experience. Dalton pointed out the flight park — the original one at the top of the mountain — and did some sort of maneuver that created a “zero gravity” sensation.
While we maxed out around 1,700 feet, LMFP also offers tandem flights for beginners up to 3,000 feet. I told Dalton I can’t even fathom being up that high in a hang glider.
That’s when he broke down the science for me, explaining that strong thermals can actually take hang gliders up as high as 10,000 feet, adding that he’s personally flown up to around 9,000.
You can call me a wimp or a coward or whatever you want, my friends. But there ain’t no way.
After about eight to 10 minutes of air time, we circled around and began our descent back to the flight park. Dalton warned me it might feel like we were “flying at the earth way too fast.” I appreciated the heads-up, but the landing was surprisingly smooth.
Once we came to a stop, I slid myself out of the harness, dropped to my knees and ceremoniously kissed the steady ground beneath my feet.
Just kidding, I did not do that.
In reality, the whole experience was exhilarating. Sure, I was out of my comfort zone — 1,700 feet above it, to be precise — but there was never a moment when I felt unsafe. Dalton’s confidence put me at ease, he communicated with me the entire time and was clearly in full control of the glider.
The ‘Blue Wave’ – the enviable nickname given to Curacao’s national football team – will soon be surging across to North America.
The tiny Caribbean island of just over 150,000 people and covering only 443 square kilometres (171 square miles) will become the smallest country ever to compete at a FIFA World Cup when the 2026 tournament kicks off on June 11.
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Curacao, a self-governing entity within the Kingdom of the Netherlands, scripted a fairytale story to secure qualification. Now, as one of four debutants at the tournament, the island nation will look to give its people more reasons to celebrate as their team plays in football’s most prestigious global competition.
Here’s everything you need to know about Curacao in Al Jazeera’s World Cup minnows series:
Curacao players celebrate their 2026 World Cup qualification [Endrymar Martis/AP]
Where is Curacao?
It is 60km (37 miles) off the coast of Venezuela.
Willemstad, in the south of the island, is the capital.
How did Curacao qualify for the World Cup?
Curacao endured two challenging qualification rounds to punch their maiden World Cup final ticket.
They played 10 matches, won seven and finished their campaign unbeaten.
Curacao’s journey began in the second round of the CONCACAF qualifiers. They upset Barbados, Aruba, Saint Lucia and Haiti, scoring 15 goals to remain unbeaten.
Curacao supporters at the final World Cup qualifier in Jamaica on November 18, 2025 [Gilbert Bellamy/Reuters]
In the third and final qualification round, they were in Group B alongside heavyweights Jamaica, Trinidad and Tobago and Bermuda.
Curacao drew 0-0 in Trinidad and Tobago in the first match before defeating Bermuda 3-2 on their home turf. Playing at home, they beat Jamaica 2-0, sending an unequivocal warning to their opponents that World Cup qualification was their clear goal.
In the next game, they drew 1-1 with Trinidad and Tobago before thrashing Bermuda 7-0.
Defying the odds in a crucial final fixture against Jamaica last November, goalkeeper Eloy Room and a resolute Curacao defence kept the Reggae Boyz at bay, holding on for a goalless draw. But the stalemate was not without drama; in stoppage time, Jamaica were awarded a penalty, only for a VAR review to overturn the decision that proved decisive.
The resulting draw secured Curacao top spot in Group B and sealed the most remarkable chapter in their World Cup journey.
Curacao’s players burst into celebrations after holding Jamaica to a goalless draw, a result which confirmed their World Cup qualification [Collin Reid/AP]
“It’s an impossibility that is made possible,” winger Kenji Gorre told the Guardian newspaper. “It’s literally impossible for such a small island, such a small 150,000 population, and now to go to the biggest pinnacle of football is unbelievable.”
Curacao are by far the smallest nation ever to qualify for the World Cup, which is being expanded to 48 teams for the first time. Previously, the smallest country to qualify for the tournament was Iceland in 2018, with a population of around 350,000.
Have Curacao played at a major tournament?
The nation state successor to the Netherlands Antilles in international competition, it only began competing as Curacao after 2010, and first appeared in FIFA World Cup qualifying under the new name before the Brazil 2014 tournament.
With many of their players based in the Netherlands but boasting heritage from the southern Caribbean island, Curacao quickly became a footballing nation on the rise in the CONCACAF region, winning their first World Cup two-legged qualifying tie against Montserrat in 2015.
Two years later, the team qualified for the CONCACAF Gold Cup for the first time, though they crashed out in the group stage, losing all their fixtures. But in 2019, they bounced back in style, reaching the quarterfinals, where they lost to the eventual runner-up, the United States.
Curacao came close to reaching the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, only to be eliminated by Panama in the penultimate round of qualification.
What is Curacao’s FIFA ranking?
Ten years ago, Curacao were 150th in the FIFA world rankings. Now they have jumped to 82nd.
Who will Curacao face at the World Cup?
Curacao are in Group E, alongside former champions Germany, Ecuador and African heavyweights Ivory Coast. They will play all group games in the US.
Curacao’s World Cup 2026 matches:
June 14: Germany vs Curacao – Houston Stadium
June 20: Ecuador vs Curacao – Kansas City Stadium
June 25: Curacao v Ivory Coast – Philadelphia Stadium
Former NHL superstar Wayne Gretzky helped pick Curacao’s opponents during the FIFA World Cup 2026 draw in Washington in December [Dan Mullan/Pool via AP]
Curacao’s head coach carousel
Veteran Dutch coach Dick Advocaat led Curacao to their first-ever World Cup, calling it the “craziest thing” he had achieved in a managerial career spanning nearly four decades.
But four months before the tournament, he stepped down from the post due to his daughter’s ill health.
Fellow Dutchman Fred Rutten, who previously managed Feyenoord, PSV Eindhoven and Schalke 04, was later named the replacement and looked set to lead them at the World Cup.
Head coach Dick Advocaat is back with the team and will lead Curacao to the World Cup finals in North America [File: Godofredo A. Vasquez/AP]
But there was another twist: on May 11 – exactly a month out from the tournament – Rutten stepped down to protect the squad’s professional environment after calls from players and sponsors to reinstate Advocaat.
A day later it was swiftly announced that the 78-year-old would return to the head coaching role following improvements in his daughter’s medical condition, according to reporting from ESPN. Advocaat’s reappointment makes him the oldest manager in World Cup history.
Who are Curacao’s key players?
Forward Gervane Kastaneer was Curacao’s top scorer during qualifying with five goals in six matches, which included a hat-trick against Saint Lucia.
Striker Rangelo Janga, Curacao’s all-time leading scorer with 21 goals, bagged a hat-trick against Barbados, while Juninho Bacuna and Gorre scored three goals in total during that phase.
Livano Comenencia, a 22-year-old right-back and Tahith Chong, a 26-year-old midfielder who is a product of the Manchester United academy, are promising players in Curacao’s squad.
Curacao’s Juninho Bacuna (#7) is one of several talented midfielders on the team [Collin Reid/AP]
What is the Dutch connection in Curacao’s squad?
The majority of the squad are Dutch-born, but have family links that make them eligible to play for Curacao.
Many represented the Netherlands in age-group teams, such as central midfielder Juninho, who played for the Dutch U-18, U-20 and U-21 teams. His older brother, Leandro, also played for the Netherlands’ youth sides before representing Curacao at senior level.
Juninho, who switched allegiance from the Netherlands to Curacao in 2019, said it was a “big decision”.
All of Curacao’s starting lineup against Jamaica in their final World Cup qualifier last November were born in the Netherlands [Gilbert Bellamy/Reuters]
“At that time, I was only 21 and had a lot of years in front of me to see my chances for the Dutch national team,” he told the BBC. “But I made a choice early to play for Curacao. One of the reasons was that I could play in the same team as my brother, and for the family to see us play together.
“We’re seeing more players that are still young and able to play for Holland, and they come to play for Curacao – and make the team even stronger,” he added.
Chong, who plays for second-tier Sheffield United, is the only squad member born on the island.
How are Curacao preparing for the World Cup?
Curacao played two international friendlies in March, losing 2-0 to China in Sydney before being thrashed 5-1 by Australia in Melbourne. They are due to face Scotland in a friendly in Glasgow in May before heading to the World Cup.
Both Australia and Scotland are also competing in North America this summer.
What can we expect from Curacao?
An uphill task awaits Curacao at the World Cup, beginning with their opening match against four-time champions Germany. Although the Germans suffered a shock group-stage exit in 2022, they remain favourites to top the group and reach at least the quarterfinals.
Curacao fans, however, can expect a determined fight from their team – and perhaps a few goals too. The Caribbean side scored an impressive 28 goals in 10 matches while conceding just five during their World Cup qualifying campaign.
“Generally, if it’s a world championship or European championship, there are always surprises,” coach Rutten told reporters in March. “And why not this year for us?
“We have a team of fighters and they never give up.”
Curacao’s fans are excited to see their team on the biggest stage after a fairytale qualification campaign [Ricardo Makyn/AFP]
You can follow the action on Al Jazeera’s dedicated FIFA World Cup 2026 page with all the latest news, match build-up and live text commentary, and keep up to date with group standings, real-time match results and schedules.
The Senate will soon decide whether lawmakers should be paid during another government shutdown as the specter of more closures looms large.
Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., teed up a vote on a measure that would prevent senators from being paid during a government shutdown, a political option of last resort that has now become commonplace in the midst of President Donald Trump’s second term.
The resolution from Sen. John Kennedy, R-La., is straightforward: if there is another shutdown, he and his colleagues won’t get paid. It’s one of several resolutions and bills tossed around by lawmakers to find a way to stop shutdowns, or at least find a leverage point against them.
Senate Majority Leader John Thune spoke to the media outside the Senate chamber at the U.S. Capitol after the Senate passed a Department of Homeland Security funding bill by unanimous consent on April 2, 2026, in Washington, D.C.(Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)
Thune quietly set up the resolution for a vote when the Senate returned on Monday as lawmakers gear up to fund immigration operations for the next three and a half years — a route they’re having to take as a result of the most recent shutdown.
When asked how he felt about his measure getting a shot, Kennedy said he pushed Thune to do it.
“He did it, and I think he’s a fine American,” Kennedy said.
Shutdowns have become a common tool over the last year and a half that Democrats have turned to as a negotiating counterpoint. In Trump’s second term alone, Congress has been on the precipice of a closure four times.
That reality, where Democrats are using a shutdown like a political cudgel in a way lawmakers have never seen, has some Republicans worried that they’ll do it again before the midterm elections in November.
Sen. Eric Schmitt, R-Mo., accused Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., and Democrats of being “legislative terrorists” who view political opportunity in forcing another closure.
Sen. James Lankford, R-Okla., and Senate GOP leaders spoke to the media outside the White House Rose Garden in Washington, D.C., on Oct. 21, 2025, amid a government shutdown.(Allison Robbert/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
“It’ll be something else, and then we’ll just shut the whole thing down, and we should not, you know, let them do that,” Schmitt said. “So I think we ought to have some plans in place to account for that, to make it painful for them if they want to do that, because the American people suffer on it.”
Kennedy isn’t the only lawmaker trying to take the option off the table. Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Wis., has been pushing his Shutdown Fairness Act, which would require that working federal workers are paid during a shutdown.
And Sen. James Lankford, R-Okla., has his own legislation, the Prevent Government Shutdowns Act, which would automatically fund the government for two-week stretches until Congress landed on a compromise funding deal.
“We need to pass it so we never have a moment like this again,” Lankford told Fox News Digital. “We will have disagreements. It’s America, but we should not have federal workers, programs that stop because we’re having a disagreement. Let’s have the fight. But let’s keep going.”
Alex Miller is a writer for Fox News Digital covering the U.S. Senate.
The statistics shared by Save the Children refer to the first 25 days of the truce that came into effect on April 16.
Published On 12 May 202612 May 2026
Israeli attacks on Lebanon have killed or injured more than four children on average per day in the first 25 days of the “ceasefire” that came into effect last month, according to the global charity Save the Children.
The report published on Tuesday cited figures from Lebanon’s Health Ministry, saying at least 22 children have been killed and 89 injured since the temporary ceasefire between Hezbollah and Israel came into effect on April 16.
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This brings the number of children killed in Israeli strikes since the renewed escalation in hostilities in Lebanon on March 2 to almost 200, with about 2,900 people killed.
“I just want the war to end so I can go home to my village and sleep in my own bed. I really miss school. I want to see my teachers and be with my friends, and study and play again,” the report quoted a 10-year-old named Tala as saying in a collective shelter after being displaced from southern Lebanon.
Israel has said its air force had hit more than 1,100 sites across Lebanon since mid-April, claiming that the target was the armed Lebanese group Hezbollah.
“Attacks on civilians have not stopped – it has simply continued under another name,” said Nora Ingdal, Save the Children’s director for Lebanon. “Colleagues have told me that the air strikes feel more intense in some areas than they ever did before. Children are not safe until there is a permanent and definitive ceasefire with no violations.”
More than one million people have been displaced by the fighting, and since the ceasefire, the number of families seeking temporary housing in collective shelters has risen by five percent. About 125,000 people are currently living in such shelters, including 44,800 children – equivalent to 36 percent of occupants.
Conditions in the shelters remain poor due to overcrowding and inadequate sanitation facilities, increasing the risk of disease outbreaks.
Peace negotiations
Lebanon and Israel are due to hold direct talks aimed at ending the war on Thursday and Friday in Washington, DC, the United States.
Both countries have committed to disarming the Iran-backed group Hezbollah, which holds significant political influence in Lebanon and is a key member of Tehran’s “axis of resistance”.
Hezbollah, however, has said it will not surrender its weapons. On Tuesday, the group’s leader, Naim Qassem, warned that Hezbollah’s arsenal should not be part of the upcoming negotiations.
EXCLUSIVE:Virginia Republicans blasted national and state Democrats over their “insane” ideas on how to reverse the Supreme Court of Virginia’s 4-3 ruling against their redistricting gambit, targeting House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries and other national Democrats’ latest intercession.
The New York Times reported Monday on a meeting between national and Virginia Democrats to discuss ways to revive their now-blocked 10-1 map, drawing sharp backlash.
“It is insane — is my first take on that, because I mean, it would be crazy to throw out judges for making the right decision,” said Virginia House Minority Leader Terry Kilgore, D-Gate City.
“That would just be beyond the pale. I think a lot of Virginians would see through that. And it’s too late for them to do it as a matter of law,” he said, citing a May 12 pre-primary deadline.
House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries, left; Virginia House Minority Leader Terry Kilgore, right.(Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images; Douglas Graham/Getty Images)
The report claimed Jeffries, D-N.Y., was party to discussions that ranged from lowering the retirement age of state justices to ostensibly re-trying the case before a hand-picked court, as well as using the otherwise Republican-favorable ruling out of Tazewell County.
The Tazewell decision — from Judge Jack Hurley — initially invalidated the redistricting referendum, but SCOVA allowed the vote to proceed. The Times reported Democrats are considering using Hurley’s reasoning to instead invalidate the 2020 referendum that created the independent redistricting commission they tried to circumvent with their April vote.
“That just shows you how power-hungry Hakeem Jeffries and his Democrats are up there, and I’m glad the Supreme Court followed the rule of law, and it was a good day for Virginia,” Kilgore said.
Democrats disagreed, with Virginia Senate Majority Leader Scott Surovell, D-Mount Vernon, announcing an emergency application for relief was made to the Supreme Court of the United States by late Monday.
Surovell said in a statement that the response was brought by himself, House Speaker Don Scott, D-Portsmouth, and Senate PresidentPresident Pro Tem L. Louise Lucas, D-Portsmouth.
Critics pointed out the haste with which the case was filed, evinced by several visible typos on the first page.
The case was filed with SCOTUS, but the page itself indicated in its second reference that it was filed to the “Supreme Court of Virginia.”
House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries, center, addresses reporters while flanked by Democrats.(Nathan Posner/Anadolu via Getty Images)
Senate Minority Leader Ryan McDougle, R-Hanover, the original plaintiff, was labeled as a “Sentator” — leading to potato memes from critics on X, while a Virginia political commentary account renamed itself “Virgnia Sentator” over that and a second misspelling in Scott’s title.
In a Thursday statement following the original ruling, Scott said he “respect[ed]” it and said the close vote showed Virginians wanted to “fight back” against President Donald Trump — and that Virginia Democrats will “keep fighting for a democracy where voters — not politicians — have the final say.”
Rep. Ben Cline, R-Va., whose Shenandoah Valley district was primed to be chopped in three, agreed with Kilgore in a statement saying Jeffries and national Democrats are “furious” at SCOVA for “up[holding] the rule of law.”
Cline urged Virginians to get involved politically, warning of what he called an “illegal” Democratic push to reshape the maps.
Kilgore dismissed the idea of using the Tazewell ruling to dismantle the redistricting commission as “grasping at straws,” noting the panel has already drawn state-legislative districts without challenge.
Amid the current battle, neighboring West Virginia lawmakers launched a bid to allow some of Virginia’s more conservative, rural communities to secede from the Old Dominion, as the Mountaineer State itself did on June 20, 1863.
Kilgore’s delegate district comprised a large swath of the mountainous country featured in maps put out by proponents in Charleston.
“I think that’s a little bit premature,” Kilgore responded. “I took an oath to uphold the Constitution of Virginia and I’m going to stay right here and take Virginia back.”
“We can take Virginia back, as you saw the close vote in the yes-no. That’s where Virginians are. We’re a close state. We’re a purple state.”
Kilgore said he expects Virginia voters to “swing back hard” toward Republicans in response to the hijinks playing out so far this year – which could create a purple-state pendulum just in time for Trump’s own effort to hold the House of Representatives in November.
Fox News Digital reached out to Jeffries for comment.
Charles Creitz is a reporter for Fox News Digital.
He joined Fox News in 2013 as a writer and production assistant.
Charles covers media, politics and culture for Fox News Digital.
Charles is a Pennsylvania native and graduated from Temple University with a B.A. in Broadcast Journalism. Story tips can be sent to charles.creitz@fox.com.
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California gubernatorial candidate and former Fox News host Steve Hilton criticized Gov. Gavin Newsom, D-Calif., over a $20 million state-funded diaper initiative, arguing the program pays significantly more per diaper than parents would spend at retail stores.
“Gavin Newsom is taking $20 million of your money to send 100,000 babies 400 diapers,” Hilton said in a video posted to social media. “That works out at $0.50 per diaper. We just came into Target to check out what you could buy it for in the store. $15.62 for the box. That works out at $0.16 per diaper.”
Hilton filmed the video inside a Target store while comparing retail diaper prices to the state program’s projected costs. The program announced by Newsom’s administration would provide diaper supplies to low-income families through nonprofit organizations and community partners.
California gubernatorial candidate Steve Hilton questions Gov. Gavin Newsom’s $20 million diaper initiative, claiming the program costs taxpayers roughly three times more per diaper than store prices.(Leonard Ortiz/MediaNews Group/Orange County Register/Getty Images)
“Gavin Newsom’s diapers are three times more expensive,” Hilton said. “This isn’t even Costco. Why is it three times more expensive for Gavin Newsom to send diapers to 100,000 babies than just leaving the money in the bank accounts of the parents in the first place?”
California gubernatorial candidate Steve Hilton questions Gov. Gavin Newsom’s $20 million diaper initiative, claiming the program costs taxpayers roughly three times more per diaper than store prices.(Kayla Bartkowski/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)
Fox News contributor Joey Jones also criticized the initiative during a television appearance, arguing California families face broader affordability problems.
“If Democrats REALLY cared about this issue, make it easier to raise a family in California,” Jones said. “Don’t charge them $2 extra a gallon for gas because that needs to be special California gas, and there’s this crazy, weird surcharge that you don’t even know where it comes from.”
“Don’t do things like spend a hundred million dollars on a land bridge so the California cougars can get from one side of the interstate to the other,” Jones said. “What do you do? You put a Band-Aid on a tourniquet problem and run for president.”
Retired Marine and Fox News contributor Joey Jones argues California should focus on lowering the cost of living for families rather than expanding government assistance programs.(John Lamparski/Getty Images)
Republican congressional candidate Melissa Bailey accused Democrats of using taxpayer money inefficiently.
“There’s no such thing as a free diaper,” Bailey wrote on X. “CA has a shiny new free diaper program but taxpayers are footing the bill.”
“Democrats do this EVERY SINGLE TIME,” Bailey wrote. “Gavin Newsom is stealing taxpayer money, laundering it to a nonprofit run by his wife’s friend, to buy diapers at $.50 a pop. Diapers cost less than half that at major retailers. Connected insiders win. Taxpayers lose.”
Fox News Digital reached out to Gov. Newsom for comment, but did not immediately receive a response.
CJ Womack is an associate editor at Fox News.
CJ joined Fox News Digital’s team in 2026, which highlights the vital role journalism plays in shaping politics and culture. He has years of experience analyzing and reporting on the news media.
CJ graduated from Long Beach State University in 2025 with a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science and a minor in Journalism.
Story tips can be sent to cj.womack@fox.com, and you can follow on Twitter.
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