The Supreme Court will hear oral arguments Tuesday in Mahmoud v. Taylor, a closely watched case that could reshape the role of parental rights and religious freedom in public education. 

At issue is whether a Maryland school district violated the First Amendment by requiring elementary school students to engage with LGBTQ+ storybooks that include topics about gender transitions and same-sex relationships, without allowing parents to opt out. 

The policy was implemented to disrupt ‘cisnormativity’ and promote inclusivity, according to Supreme Court documents. Initially, the school allowed parents to opt their children out of these lessons, but later reversed this decision, eliminating the opt-out option and not notifying parents when such content was being taught.

Parents, supported by religious freedom organizations, argue that this policy infringes upon their First Amendment rights by compelling their children to engage in instruction that contradicts their religious beliefs. The Fourth Circuit Court, a federal appeals court, ruled last year that there was no violation of religious exercise rights, stating that the policy did not force parents to change their religious beliefs or conduct and that parents could still teach their children outside of school.

Thomas More Society attorney Michael McHale told Fox News Digital in a previous interview that ‘while there is an opt-out statute in state law, the school initially abided by it.’

‘The school decided to yank the opt-out exception, so to speak, and it really triggered the issue of whether the Constitution requires an opt-out in that circumstance,’ McHale said. 

‘For the Fourth Circuit to say there was no religious burden, it really seems radical, and given how pressing that issue of school curriculum on sexual orientation, gender identity is, I think it raises an issue worth the Supreme Court’s attention,’ he said.

Earlier this year, President Donald Trump signed several executive orders related to gender policies in federal institutions. McHale said these actions could reduce legal conflicts involving religious rights, such as disputes over whether teachers must use students’ preferred pronouns in schools.

Mahmoud v. Taylor is one of three major religious cases the Supreme Court has scheduled oral arguments for this year.  

Earlier this month, the high court heard a case brought by a Wisconsin-based Catholic charity group’s bid for tax relief, which could alter the current eligibility requirements for religious tax exemptions. 

At issue in that case is whether the Wisconsin branch of Catholic Charities, a social services organization affiliated with Catholic dioceses across the country, can successfully contest the state’s high court determination that it is ineligible for a religious tax exemption because it is not ‘operated primarily for religious purposes.’

The third case is about whether a Catholic online school can become the first religious charter school in the U.S. 

Vice President JD Vance touted progress made toward a U.S.-India trade deal on Tuesday, saying a partnership between the Trump administration and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi would ensure a 21st century that’s ‘prosperous and peaceful.’ 

Speaking in the northwestern Indian city of Jaipur, Vance also warned of ‘dire’ consequences in the Indo-Pacific and a ‘dark time’ for the world should the partnership between the U.S. and India fail. 

‘Critics have attacked my president, President Trump, for starting a trade war in an effort to bring back the jobs of the past, but nothing could be further from the truth,’ Vance said, referring to Trump’s aggressive tariff policies and commitment to revitalize U.S. manufacturing. ‘He seeks to rebalance global trade so that America, with friends like India, can build a future worth having for all of our people together.’ 

President Donald Trump and Modi announced in February that the U.S. and India aim to double bilateral trade to $500 billion by the end of the decade. 

‘Both of our governments are hard at work on a trade agreement built on shared priorities, like creating new jobs, building durable supply chains and achieving prosperity for our workers,’ Vance said on Tuesday. ‘In our meeting yesterday, Prime Minister Modi and I made very good progress on all of those points, and we’re especially excited to formally announce that America and India have officially finalized the terms of reference for the trade negotiations. I think this is a vital step toward realizing President Trump and Prime Minister Modi’s vision because it sets a roadmap toward a final deal between our nations. I believe there is much America and India can accomplish together.’ 

Vance noted that his trip to India was the first time he had visited the birthplace of the parents of his wife, Usha Vance. The vice president, the second lady and their three children visited Modi for dinner on Monday. 

In his speech Tuesday, Vance said his children have only built a rapport with two world leaders – Trump and Modi, who the second family first met in February at the AI Action Summit in Paris. 

‘Our kids just like him,’ Vance said, arguing that children are ‘brutally honest’ and typically good judges of character. ‘I just like Prime Minister Modi too. And I think it’s a great foundation for the future of our relationship.’ 

‘President Trump and I know that Prime Minister Modi is a tough negotiator. He drives a hard bargain. It’s one of the reasons why we respect him. And we don’t blame Prime Minister Modi for fighting for India’s industry,’ Vance said. ‘But we do blame American leaders of the past for failing to do the same for our workers. And we believe that we can fix that to the mutual benefit of both the United States and India.’ 

Vance appeared to reference China – though not directly – in addressing the high-stakes nature of trade negotiations between the U.S. and India. 

‘This audience knows better than most: neither Americans nor Indians are alone and looking to scale up their manufacturing capacity,’ Vance said. ‘The competition extends well beyond cheap consumer goods and into munitions, energy infrastructure and all sorts of other cutting-edge technologies. I believe that if our nations fail to keep pace, the consequences for the Indo-Pacific, but really the consequences for the entire world will be quite dire.’ 

‘We believe a stronger India means greater economic prosperity. But also greater stability across the Indo-Pacific, which is, of course, a shared goal for all of us in this room,’ the vice president continued. ‘I believe that if India and the United States work together successfully, we are going to see a 21st century that is prosperous and peaceful. But I also believe that if we fail to work together successfully, the 21st century could be a very dark time for all of humanity.’ 

In the past, Vance argued, Washington has approached Modi with an ‘attitude of preachiness or even one of condescension,’ using India ‘as a source of low-cost labor’ while criticizing the prime minister’s government. 

Vance said the Trump administration recognizes that’cheap, dependable energy is an essential part of making things and is an essential part of economic independence for both of our nations.’ He said America isblessed with vast natural resources and an unusual capacity to generate energy,’ arguing that India would benefit from purchasing expanding U.S. energy exports by being able ‘to build more, make more, and grow more, but at much lower energy costs.’

‘We also want to help India explore its own considerable natural resources, including its offshore natural gas reserves and critical mineral supplies,’ he said. ‘We believe that American energy can help realize India’s nuclear power production goals, and this is very important as well as its AI ambitions, because as the United States knows well, and I know that India knows well there is no AI future without energy security and energy dominance.’ 

‘Americans want further access to Indian markets. This is a great place to do business, and we want to give our people more access to this country,’ Vance said. ‘And Indians, we believe, will thrive from greater commerce in the United States. This is very much a win-win partnership. It certainly will be far into the future.’ 

An Indiana lawmaker is celebrating an American bicycle company opening a new manufacturing plant in her district after President Donald Trump launched his aggressive tariff campaign against China.

Rep. Erin Houchin, R-Ind., told Fox News Digital that Guardian Bikes is starting with a new $19 million investment in Seymour, Indiana to expand their operations there – which she said will create new local jobs.

‘The number of job opportunities that are available, the investment right here in southern Indiana, that’s money that’s staying right here at home and not going outside the country. And certainly away from China,’ Houchin said in her first interview on the topic.

The Indiana Republican, now in her second term, said she first visited Guardian Bikes shortly after being elected to Congress. At the time, they had just 16 employees, she said.

‘At the time, they talked to us about their desire to become a 100% made in the USA bicycle factory,’ Houchin said. ‘Currently, over 97% of bicycles are made outside of the United States. Many are assembled in the United States, but their component parts mostly come from China.’

Guardian Bikes specifically relied on Chinese imports for 70% of its production, she said.

After Trump’s election in November 2024, however, she said ‘they have been slowly working toward being 100% made in the USA.’

‘They just announced $19 million in financing with JPMorgan Chase to launch the first large-scale bicycle frame manufacturing operation in the United States,’ Houchin said. ‘This has been made possible by President Trump’s trade policies…it’s just pretty incredible that we have a president right now that is focused so much…on creating a level playing field for American companies.’

Houchin said the company is aiming to increase its ‘mass market’ bicycles manufactured in the U.S. from 100,000 to over 1 million.

‘That’s just very, very exciting,’ she said.

Guardian Bikes also currently has locations in California and Pennsylvania, with two more expected in Texas and Georgia this year, according to the company’s website.

The site also touts the company’s plans to manufacture its bike frames in Indiana, and vows to be ‘rapidly’ moving toward being made entirely within the United States.

‘We brought Guardian Bikes production to the U.S., because we believe the future of manufacturing is local, fast, and data-driven. Indiana, and specifically Seymour, offers the perfect combination of workforce, infrastructure, and proximity to our customer base,’ Guardian Bikes CEO Brian Riley told Fox News Digital. ‘It’s not just about making bikes – it’s about building a new model for American manufacturing.’

It comes as critics of Trump’s sweeping tariff plans have accused him of upending the global economy.

Supporters of the plan, however, have hailed it as both a potent negotiating strategy and a long-needed solution to jobs moving overseas.

A cornerstone of Trump’s policy has been a 10% tariff on all imports to the U.S. Plans for additional reciprocal tariffs, which Trump announced earlier this month, were dropped against countries that have not retaliated against the U.S.

However, Trump has levied a massive 145% base tariff across all of Beijing’s exports in a bid to crack down on the U.S.’s growing reliance on Chinese manufacturing.

When reached for comment by Fox News Digital, White House spokesman Kush Desai told Fox News Digital, ‘Trillions in historic investment commitments from industry leaders – now including Guardian Bikes – since Election Day only reinforces what President Trump has been saying all along: if you make your product in America, you don’t have to worry about tariffs.’

There have been 266 papal leaders of the Catholic Church since Jesus Christ’s death in the AD 30s through Pope Francis – Jorge Mario Bergoglio – who died on Easter Monday at 88.

The most prominent pope is considered to be St. Peter, the first holder of the title.

Christ had appointed him the inaugural Bishop of Rome, and the papal church – St. Peter’s Basilica in Vatican City – is named in his honor.

St. Peter’s writings to persecuted people in the Asia Minor region are also chronicled in the New Testament’s epistles.

Peter reportedly died around 64 and was succeeded by Pope Linus.

In the present day, there is wide agreement across the Catholic world that one of the most recent popes, John Paul II, deserves to be in consideration as the most influential pontiff.

John Paul II was also the first non-Italian pope since Pope Adrian in the 1500s. Born Karol Wojtyla in Poland, John Paul’s lengthy three decades in the Vatican were marked with very prominent situations for the Catholic Church.

John Paul II oversaw the movement into the digital age, but he continued to be a prolific writer.

He revised the Canon Laws for the church, wrote more than a dozen encyclicals, apostolic exhortations, nearly 50 apostolic letters and several books, as chronicled by Father William Saunders in his cataloging of ‘great’ popes.

While Pope John Paul II has not officially been dubbed John Paul the Great, there is wide consensus that one day he will be.

John Paul notably held a Mass praying for God’s forgiveness for the past sins of the Catholic Church itself and made more than 100 state visits, which included engaging with non-Christians, Saunders wrote in Catholic Answers.

One of those visits featured the pope offering Mass to 80,000 people at Yankees Stadium in The Bronx, New York in 1979.

Only a few popes – Leo I, Gregory I and Nicholas I – have been given the moniker ‘the great.’

In the 400s, Pope Leo met with Attila the Hun and prevented a siege of Rome, though the Vandals took it over later.

Pope Gregory I was the Catholic leader who in the late 500s stylized ‘Gregorian Chant’ – a tradition still present in many Catholic churches today.

Born wealthy, Gregory I later gave up his riches and moved into a monastery and aided the poor.

Gregory was considered the treasurer of Rome, according to the Encyclopedia Britannica, which chronicles his efforts to prevent sieges from groups like the Lombards.

He also repaired Roman infrastructure, sought détente with the Lombards and Gauls and enforced government laws he personally disagreed with and protested against – explaining that he did his duty to obey [Emperor Maurice] while not ‘restrain[ing] what ought to be said on God’s behalf.’

Pope Nicholas became pontiff in the mid 800s. He notably urged against the attempt by a king to divorce his wife and marry another woman. He also believed the Holy See was the head of the Catholic Church and urged the ‘supremacy of Rome,’ according to the Encyclopedia Britannica.

Other popes may not have been monikered ‘the great’ but have had lasting impact on the world and society.

One such pontiff was Pope Gregory XIII. 

Purported miscalculations in the Julian calendar spurred Gregory XIII to decree a new calendar in 1582 – as the spring equinox had fallen back to early March over a span of 1,400 years.

On Oct. 4, 1582, Gregory XIII ordered the next day be considered Oct. 15, not Oct. 5 – therefore fixing the lunar discrepancy. By the end of the 16th century, most Western lands had come around to following the new ‘Gregorian calendar.’

Another historically influential pontiff was Pope Innocent III. Around 1200, Innocent III launched several ‘Crusades’ against Muslim-held lands in what is now France, Spain and Portugal, as well as an effort to take back the historic Holy Land near today’s Israel and Jordan.

He also extended his power into personal affairs, ordering King Philip of France to return to his separated wife.

The most recent pope, Francis, was considered influential in that he was one of few to delve more into the political sphere than past pontiffs.

In 2015, Francis published the first papal encyclical to be focused on the environment: Laudato Si.

Among its repercussions, it helped foreshadow that year’s U.N. Climate Change Conference in Paris, which led to a global warming treaty between 196 countries, according to Vatican News.

He was also known for his critiques on Western market capitalism, once calling the ‘unfettered pursuit of money’ the ‘dung of the devil’ during a speech.

President Donald Trump endorsed Sen. Steve Daines, R-Mont., calling the lawmaker ‘a Great Man, and TREMENDOUS Senator’ in a post on Truth Social.

‘I love Montana, won every one of my Races there by a landslide, and would only recommend the best to represent you in the Senate!’ the president declared. 

‘Senator Steve Daines, of the Great State of Montana, has my Complete and Total Endorsement — HE WILL NOT LET YOU DOWN!’

Daines served as National Republican Senatorial Committee chair prior to current chair, Sen. Tim Scott, R-S.C.

‘As Chairman of the National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC), Steve worked tirelessly with me in the last Election to help elect smart, tough, and sincere America First Patriots. In the Senate, Steve is fighting hard to Grow the Economy, Cut Taxes, Secure the Border, Stop Migrant Crime, Support our Military/Vets, Unleash American Energy Dominance, Restore PEACE THROUGH STRENGTH, and Defend our always under siege Second Amendment,’ Trump declared in his post.

Daines, who has served in the Senate since 2015, thanked Trump for the endorsement.

‘I’m honored to have your support as we fight to protect Montana values, secure our border, cut taxes, and Make America Great Again! Together, we’ll deliver results for our state and nation,’ Daines noted in a tweet. 

Sen. Tim Sheehy, R-Mont., also backed Daines for re-election.

‘Steve Daines is a champion for the America First agenda and hardworking Montanans. Working with President Trump, he helped deliver our Republican Senate majority and is fighting to cut taxes, secure the border, unleash American energy, and lower costs for families in The Treasure State,’ Sheehy said in a post on X.

‘I’m proud to join @realDonaldTrump in endorsing my friend @SteveDaines so he can keep fighting for Montana,’ the senator noted.

President Trump indicated Monday – following news of Pope Francis’s death – that he and first lady Melania Trump will be attending the Pope’s funeral at the Vatican, despite the president’s somewhat contentious history with the late leader of the Catholic Church.

Traditionally, papal funerals take place four to six days following their death, so Francis’s funeral is expected to take place before the end of the month. Vatican spokesperson Matteo Bruni told reporters that the General Congregation of Cardinals will occur Tuesday morning, during which an exact date for the funeral should be decided.

‘Melania and I will be going to the funeral of Pope Francis, in Rome,’ Trump posted on his social media platform Truth Social on Monday afternoon. ‘We look forward to being there!’

Trump’s announcement that he would be traveling to Rome for the ceremony followed a separate announcement he made earlier in the day indicating that he had ordered all American flags on government grounds, including military installments and embassies abroad, to fly at half-staff until sunset Monday.

Trump’s relationship with Pope Francis over the years was one marked by ideological differences and – at times – tension.

Amid Trump’s first run for office, Pope Francis criticized one of Trump’s signature campaign promises of building a wall along the southern border, calling the move ‘not Christian’ in 2016.

‘A person who thinks only about building walls, wherever they may be, and not building bridges, is not Christian,’ Francis told reporters during a mid-flight interview on his way to Mexico in 2016, according to a translation from the Associated Press.

Trump, meanwhile, shot back at the pontiff’s remarks, arguing it was ‘disgraceful’ for the Pope, or any religious leader for that matter, to question another person’s faith. 

‘If and when the Vatican is attacked by ISIS, which as everyone knows is ISIS’s ultimate trophy, I can promise you that the Pope would have only wished and prayed that Donald Trump would have been President because this would not have happened,’ Trump said in a statement released by his team following the Pope’s criticism. ‘ISIS would have been eradicated unlike what is happening now with our all talk, no action politicians.’

During Francis’s life he also took aim at increasing nationalistic sentiments around the world, criticism that implicitly targeted Trump’s ‘America First’ agenda. 

Francis was also a believer in climate change posing a major problem for society, something Trump also differed with him on. In both Trump’s first and second terms, he has pulled the U.S. out of the international Paris Climate Accords, which is an international initiative aimed at mitigating global warming. 

Trump, who considers himself a Christian but is not a Catholic, only met with Francis once during his first term. By contrast, Joe Biden, who is a confirmed Catholic, met with Francis in-person on multiple occasions throughout his single-term presidency. 

Trump’s Vice President J.D. Vance, a Catholic himself, was notably one of the Pope’s last visitors, seeing him on Easter Sunday – one day before Francis passed.

Fox News Digital reached out to the White House for comment but did not receive a response in time for publication.  

Rep. Don Bacon, R-Neb., on Monday signaled he wouldn’t tolerate Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth allegedly once again sharing sensitive information about military operations in a Signal group chat. 

‘If the reporting is true, this is unacceptable. I would never tell the White House what to do, but I wouldn’t tolerate it,’ Bacon told Fox News Digital, reiterating his comments first reported by Politico. 

Bacon, a retired military officer and Republican on the House Armed Services Committee, said it would be ‘unacceptable’ if Hegseth sent classified information in a Signal chat about a mission in Yemen targeting the Houthis. The New York Times reported on Sunday that Hegseth shared information about the March 15 strikes in Yemen in a private Signal group chat that included his wife, brother and personal lawyer, claiming they were essentially the same plans shared in the separate Signal chat that included an editor of The Atlantic. 

Bacon told Politico he had reservations about Hegseth’s experience since his nomination, and while a spokesperson for Bacon’s office emphasized to Fox News Digital that he would not tell President Donald Trump to fire Hegseth, Bacon said he ‘wouldn’t tolerate’ the latest Hegseth reporting if he was the commander in chief. 

White House officials have joined Hegseth in denying the reporting. 

‘No matter how many times the legacy media tries to resurrect the same nonstory, they can’t change the fact that no classified information was shared. Recently fired ‘leakers’ are continuing to misrepresent the truth to soothe their shattered egos and undermine the president’s agenda, but the administration will continue to hold them accountable,’ White House spokesperson Anna Kelly told Fox News Digital.

Trump himself shut down the reporting, calling it ‘fake news’ and touting recruitment rates and Hegseth’s leadership of the armed forces.

‘The president stands strongly behind Secretary Hegseth, who is doing a phenomenal job leading the Pentagon,’ White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said on Fox News on Monday. 

Hegseth lamented ‘disgruntled employees’ and ‘anonymous smears’ when pressed by reporters during the White House Easter Egg roll about the latest Signal controversy.

‘This is why we’re fighting the fake news media. This group right here is full of hoaxsters,’ Hegseth said.

The Trump administration has maintained that no classified material was transmitted in the Signal chat reported by The Atlantic. Signal is an encrypted messaging app with additional security measures that keep messages private to those included in the correspondence.

Fox News Digtal’s Emma Colton contributed to this report.

With President Donald Trump’s former reality TV show ‘The Apprentice,’ streaming on Amazon Prime as of last month, politically astute viewers across the political spectrum have zeroed in on an episode from when Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., now one of the president’s biggest political detractors, praised his fellow New Yorker as a business prodigy.

During Season 5, Episode 8, of ‘The Apprentice’ in 2006, contestants were given a challenge — as was typical during each episode — and the winners of said challenge got the chance to fly to the nation’s capital and have breakfast with Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y. During the breakfast, Schumer sought to draw parallels between his family and Trump’s, while also showering praise on the president, telling the contestants he always knew Trump, even as a young person, ‘was going to go places.’

‘I was born in Brooklyn, the same place where Donald Trump’s family comes from,’ Schumer reminisced with the contestants during breakfast at the famous Hay-Adams hotel in Washington, D.C. ‘His father, and my grandfather, were builders together in Brooklyn.’

‘Wow!?’ one contestant could be heard replying. ‘Really?’ asked another.

‘Yeah!,’ Schumer responded to the room. 

The show then cut to Schumer lauding Trump as a business prodigy.

‘Even when [Trump] was much younger, you knew that he was going to go places,’ Schumer said, before a voice-over from one of the contestants present at the breakfast reiterated that ‘Sen. Schumer and Mr. Trump are good friends.’

Despite Schumer’s apparent friendly sentiment towards the president in 2006, as evidenced by his appearance on ‘The Apprentice,’ the Democratic New York senator told Politico in 2016, ahead of Trump’s first term, that, ‘[Trump] was not my friend.’ Rather, Schumer described his relationship with Trump as a ‘casual acquaintance.’

‘Donald Trump is a lawless, angry man,’ Schumer said of the president during an interview last month. ‘The fact that The Apprentice President Donald ‘You’re Fired’ Trump is refusing to hold people accountable just shows how weak he is,’ Schumer added in a post on social media earlier this month.

Considering Schumer’s vehement animosity towards Trump today, Michigan State GOP Sen. Aric Nesbitt, the Michigan Senate’s minority leader, remarked ‘How things change…’ in a post that highlighted the resurfaced clip of Schumer’s scene on ‘The Apprentice.’  

But it’s not just Republicans having fun at Schumer’s expense. 

‘As Schumer sells out our Constitution and democracy, you just gotta watch this clip of him sucking up to Trump on an episode of the Apprentice,’ remarked former Democratic Rhode Island legislator Aaron Regunberg. ‘What a world class slug of a man.’

Shortly before taking office during his first term, Trump was asked by MSNBC’s Joe Scarborough and Mika Brzezinski about whether he will be able to get along with Democratic leaders in Congress, such as Schumer. Trump struck a positive chord, saying at the time that he thought he would ‘be able to get along well with Chuck Schumer.’

‘I was always very good with Schumer. I was close to Schumer in many ways,’ Trump said at the time.

As time has progressed, however, Trump’s rhetoric towards Schumer has become increasingly critical of the senator, as the pair of political heavyweights continue to fight over whatever political issue is dominating Washington each week. 

Recently, Trump took a jab at Schumer’s alleged lack of support for the Jewish community amid the rise in antisemitism, particularly on college campuses, in the wake of Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023 attacks against innocent Israelis. Schumer is Jewish. 

‘Schumer is a Palestinian, as far as I’m concerned,’ Trump told reporters from the Oval Office last month. ‘He’s become a Palestinian. He used to be Jewish. He’s not Jewish anymore.’ 

Trump’s comments from earlier this month also mirror a similar sentiment he relayed about Schumer during his most recent campaign for the presidency, referring to him as a ‘proud member of Hamas.’

In addition to Schumer, other high-profile public figures have praised the now-president, only to become his political enemy years later. In a 1988 interview with Oprah Winfrey, the celebrity talk show host appeared to be amazed at Americans’ ‘fascination’ with Donald Trump and even described him as a ‘folk hero’ for being so popular. 

Meanwhile, celebrity music producer who co-founded Def Jam Records, Russell Simmons, similarly had nice things to say about Trump before he entered politics, calling him ‘very nice’ and remarking how supportive Trump has been to his family, according to media reports. Nonetheless, following the tragic politically motivated violence in Charlottesville during Trump’s first term, Simmons reportedly criticized his ‘friend’ for leading the legacy of a ‘great divider,’ and a ‘destroyer of the environment and … everything we as Americans have fought so hard to call ours.’     

Fox News Digital reached out to Schumer’s office for comment but did not receive a reply in time for publication.

The commander of Fort McCoy was relieved of duty after the U.S. Army base failed to install photos of President Donald Trump, Vice President JD Vance and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on a wall displaying their chain of command. 

Col.  Sheyla Baez Ramirez was suspended as garrison commander of Ft. McCoy in Fort Bragg, North Carolina. ‘This suspension is not related to any misconduct,’ the U.S. Army Reserve Command said in a statement, ‘We have no further details to provide at this time while this matter is under review.’

Hegseth on Sunday reposted an X post claiming: ‘Commander of Fort McCoy, whose base chain-of-command board was missing photos of Trump, Vance and Hegseth, has been SUSPENDED.’

It came after the Defense Department (DOD) announced a probe into why a wall displaying the chain of command had empty frames on the wall where Trump, Vance and Hegseth’s images would typically be displayed. 

A new image they posted of the wall showed the frames had been filled. 

‘Regarding the Ft. McCoy Chain of Command wall controversy…. WE FIXED IT! Also, an investigation has begun to figure out exactly what happened,’ the department’s rapid response account posted on X. 

Ramirez assumed the garrison commander role in ​​July of last year. 

Previously, she had served as chief of the Reserve Program, United States Army Intelligence and Security Command at Fort Belvoir, Virginia, and in other roles throughout the Army and Army Reserves.

The move came after a series of leadership shake-ups across the U.S. military. Earlier this month, the Pentagon fired the base commander for Pituffik Space Force Base in Greenland after she ‘undermined’ Vance. 

After the vice president’s visit, Col. Susannah Meyers emailed base personnel on March 31, writing, ‘I do not presume to understand current politics, but what I do know is the concerns of the U.S. administration discussed by Vice President Vance on Friday are not reflective of Pituffik Space Base.’

She added that she had ‘spent the weekend thinking about Friday’s visit — the actions taken, the words spoken, and how it must have affected each of you.’ 

The Space Force said in a public statement Meyers had been relieved of command ‘due to loss of confidence in her ability to lead.’ 

‘Commanders are expected to adhere to the highest standards of conduct, especially as it relates to remaining nonpartisan in the performance of their duties,’ the statement read. 

And Hegseth fired four former aides after in-fighting and a leak investigation came to a head late last week. 

The secretary blamed ‘disgruntled employees’ for leaking reports about a second Signal chat that discussed Houthi strikes, this one including his wife, brother and personal lawyer on the chain.

Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem’s announcement that REAL IDs will be required to fly starting May 7 has forced Americans to finally get compliant – 20 years after Congress passed the law. 

On May 11, 2005, President George W. Bush signed the REAL ID Act into law to enhance national security in the aftermath of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. Passed by the U.S. Congress, the act set federal standards for issuing identification cards, like driver’s licenses.

Starting next month, REAL ID will be required to access federal facilities, enter nuclear power plants and board commercial aircraft. REAL ID’s rollout has faced nearly two decades of political pushback, setbacks and delays. 

In the two years after it was passed, the National Governors Association (NGA), the National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL) and the American Association of Motor Vehicle Administrators (AAMVA) called for delaying its implementation, citing logistical concerns. 

Since its passing, states and advocacy groups have rejected its implementation. The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) – a longtime opponent of REAL ID implementation – called it ‘discriminatory, expensive, burdensome, invasive, and ultimately counterproductive’ in 2007 as disapproval grew nationwide. By 2009, at least 25 states had enacted legislation opposing the REAL ID Act.

States rejected REAL ID for a range of reasons, including costs, states’ rights and privacy concerns. Three years after the law was passed, REAL ID’s first deadline was set for May 11, 2008. But in the face of opposition, DHS extended the deadline to May 11, 2011, under President Barack Obama’s administration. 

DHS later implemented a four-phase plan that extended beyond the 2011 deadline. By 2016, 23 states were fully compliant with the REAL ID Act, 27 states and territories were granted extensions, and six were noncompliant without extensions, according to a DHS letter. 

By Jan. 22, 2018, travelers would no longer be allowed to use a state-issued ID for domestic travel, and by Oct. 1, 2020, REAL ID ‘or another acceptable form of identification’ would be required for domestic air travel. 

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, President Donald Trump extended the REAL ID deadline to Oct. 1, 2021. That deadline was later extended to May 3, 2023, by President Joe Biden’s administration ‘due to circumstances resulting from the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.’

The Biden administration finally extended the deadline to May 7, 2025, to give states ‘additional time to ensure their residents have driver’s licenses and identification cards that meet the security standards established by the REAL ID Act.’

Noem announced the May 7, 2025, deadline would hold as the Trump administration seeks to prevent illegal immigrants from traveling within the United States.

‘Starting May 7, you will need a REAL ID to fly. REAL IDs make identification harder to forge, thwarting criminals and terrorists. If you plan to fly, make sure you get a REAL ID so you won’t be denied from your flight or face travel delays!’ Noem said.