Contributing Writers

Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.V. is hitting the Biden administration for its response to the East Palestine train derailment. A train with 50 rail cars, 10 of which were carrying vinyl chloride, derailed in East Palestine on Feb. 3. The derailment caused hazardous chemicals to spill onto the ground and sent a plume of smoke into the air. In the days after the derailment, a controlled release of chemicals was conducted because of the risk of a major explosion, officials said.

Senator Marco Rubio is demanding the resignation of Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg over his handling of the East Palestine, Ohio train derailment. A Norfolk Southern train with 50 rail cars, 10 of which were carrying vinyl chloride, derailed in East Palestine on Feb. 3. The derailment caused hazardous chemicals to spill onto the ground and sent a plume of smoke into the air.  Officials conducted a controlled release of chemicals to avoid the risk of an explosion.

Philadelphia mayoral candidates have begun releasing plans to try cleaning up the city’s open-air drug market, but the neighborhood’s residents are skeptical. Kensington’s streets are covered in litter and discarded needles — as well as passed out addicts. But residents say they’ve watched candidates and politicians make empty promises for decades.

FIRST ON FOX: Special Presidential Envoy for Climate John Kerry’s family quietly sold their private jet to a New York-based hedge fund following intense criticism of the plane’s carbon footprint in light of Kerry’s work fighting global warming. The Kerry family’s private jet, a Gulfstream GIV-SP, is no longer owned by his family’s charter firm Flying Squirrel LLC.

The Tennessee Senate passed a bill prohibiting medical providers from offering gender-transitioning treatment to transgender youth.  The legislation passed Monday along party lines in a 26-6 vote, with every Republican voting for the bill. The prohibited treatment includes puberty blockers, hormone treatments and gender-transitioning surgeries. Doctors could risk losing their medical licenses if they continue providing the treatment. Republican state Sen.

For over four decades, South Carolina has played a crucial role in determining the eventual Republican presidential nominee. Voting third in the GOP’s nominating calendar — after the Iowa caucuses and the New Hampshire primary — South Carolina’s Republican contest boasts an impressive track record. Dating back to its inception in 1980, only once has the eventual GOP standard-bearer failed to carry the Palmetto State.

White House officials were adamant in a virtual briefing with governors on Monday that flying objects recently spotted over North America are not of extraterrestrial origin, according to a recording of the briefing obtained by Fox News Digital.  “There are no UFOs. This is not an invasion of the aliens,” White House Homeland Security Adviser Liz Sherwood-Randall told governors on the half-hour call.

California’s electric grid faces years of potential blackouts and failure as state leaders continue pushing aggressive measures to transition to renewable energy sources, policy experts tell Fox News Digital.  The state’s grid, which is still mainly powered by fossil fuels, is undergoing a major shift from natural gas and coal power to renewable power like wind and solar.

Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg took to Twitter Monday evening to address the disastrous Ohio train derailment after completely avoiding any mention of the situation while speaking at a conference earlier in the day.

North Carolina House Republicans are again proposing to modify their chamber’s operating rules on veto overrides for the next two years, only now offering Democratic colleagues some broad limits on when they could be attempted. Temporary House rules approved on a party-line vote last month omitted a rule from previous years that required chamber leaders to give at least two days’ notice before holding an override vote.

A top Virginia Department of Health official has been tapped to lead agency operations for now, after Senate Democrats effectively ousted the former health commissioner, Dr. Colin Greene. Gov. Glenn Youngkin’s administration has asked VDH chief operating officer Christopher Lindsay to handle the day-to-day operations at the agency, a Youngkin spokeswoman said in a statement Monday. VIRGINIA SENATE DEMOCRATS VOTE TO REJECT 3 APPOINTEES OF GOP GOV.

New Jersey state Sen. Samuel Thompson said Monday he’s leaving the Republican Party and plans to seek reelection this year as a Democrat. Thompson, 87, said in a phone interview that he decided to leave the GOP after party leaders questioned his fitness for office because of his age. “The betrayal by so many of my friends — that was too much for me,” he said. “I am not leaving my party. My party leadership has left me.

The United States continues to lead the world in contributions to Ukraine with nearly $200 billion in promised or sent aid, as the U.S. ally continues its fight against Russia. According to the Ukrainian government, the U.S. leads all countries with $196 billion in total military, financial and humanitarian aid to Ukraine between Jan. 24, 2022 through Nov. 20, 2022. Germany has sent the second-most funds, with $172 billion sent in that span.

The Federal Aviation Administration announced Saturday that it issued a temporary flight restriction over a portion of Montana shortly after an unidentified object was shot down over Canada and later said the restriction was lifted. “The FAA closed some airspace in Montana to support Department of Defense activities,” the FAA told Fox News Digital in a statement on Saturday evening. The airspace closed down was in the area around Havre, Montana not far from the U.S.

The Pentagon issued a statement Saturday revealing details about how an unidentified object was shot down by the U.S. military over Canada on Saturday. Pentagon Press Secretary Brig. Gen. Pat Ryder said in a statement that President Biden authorized NORAD to work with the Canadian government to shoot down a “high-altitude airborne object” on Saturday after a call with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.

Republicans are reacting after the U.S. military shot down a “high-altitude airborne object” on Saturday, saying that the U.S. is facing an “unprecedented” challenge Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said in a tweet that an “unidentified object” over Canadian airspace was shot down. “I ordered the take down of an unidentified object that violated Canadian airspace,” Trudeau tweeted. “@NoradCommand shot down the object over the Yukon.

House and Senate Democrats this week introduced a bill that would force the Supreme Court to adopt a code of conduct for justices, a step they say is needed to restore trust in the conservative majority court that has eroded because of recent Republican actions. “The word unprecedented is starting to lose its meaning as we see more and more questionable behavior from justices,” said Rep. Hank Johnson, D-Ga.