Fox News RSS Feed

The last message in your family group chat may have seemed completely harmless. It could have been a beach photo, a flight arrival time, a dentist appointment or an update about Dad's cardiologist.

These are the everyday details that keep families connected. They can also give scammers the information they need to impersonate someone you love.

A criminal may already know your relatives' names, phone numbers and addresses before making contact. Your family group chat can supply the current details that make the scam believable.

New! Free live CyberGuy class: Protect Your Money From Today’s Biggest Threats

Join us Saturday, August 29, at 10 AM ET for a free CyberGuy LIVE class covering five simple steps to help defend yourself against AI scams, fraud, identity theft and financial hacks. Kurt "CyberGuy" Knutsson will explain how to set up bank alerts, strengthen your account logins, protect your phone number, freeze your credit and help secure your retirement savings against unauthorized transfers. No technical experience is needed. You’ll also receive our financial protection checklist, and every registrant will get a link to the class recording afterward.

Reserve your free spot today at CyberGuyLive.com.

YOUR SENIOR PARENTS ARE EASIER TO IMPERSONATE THAN YOU ARE

Scammers do not always need to hack an account. Instead, they may need only a few minutes and access to a data broker site. Sites such as Spokeo, Whitepages and BeenVerified may reveal your name, address history and phone number. They may also list your relatives, including your spouse, adult children, grandchildren and siblings. That information gives a scammer the outline of your family. Meanwhile, your family group chat can fill in the missing details.

For example, you might post that you just returned from Florida. Your daughter may mention that your grandson is backpacking through Europe. You might also share Dad's next doctor's appointment or the date the grandkids start at a new school. Those updates may feel private. However, they can become exposed if someone shares them elsewhere, posts similar details on social media or loses control of an account.

The FBI has explained how criminals use this information in grandparent scams. A scammer may learn that a grandson is a photographer who often travels to Mexico. Then the caller claims to be stranded there after losing his passport and camera equipment. The story sounds believable because it includes real details. The FTC warns that scammers "may know your name, where you live, and other information they could have found on social media." In other words, criminals can combine public records with personal updates to create a convincing lie.

In 2025, Americans age 60 and older reported $7.7 billion in losses to the FBI's Internet Crime Complaint Center, with more than 201,000 complaints filed. Here is the number that should stop you. A data removal service analysis of FBI data found that 72% of elder fraud cases in 2024 were enabled by victims' personal data being available online. Those cases accounted for $4.2 billion in losses, or 86% of the total amount stolen.

An 86-year-old woman named Joyce received a call about her real grandson, Grant. The caller reportedly knew he wore glasses, worked as a teacher and was in his mid-20s. Her daughter-in-law later recalled, "There were comments like, 'He's such a nice young man. I love the glasses he wears.'"

Gary Schildhorn told the U.S. Senate Aging Committee about receiving a call from what sounded exactly like his son's voice. The caller asked for nearly $9,000 in bail money. "There was no doubt in my mind that it was his voice on the phone," he said. It was an AI-generated voice clone.

Security researchers say criminals may need only a short audio clip to reproduce someone's voice. That is the type of clip families share in group chats every day. In August 2025, federal prosecutors in Massachusetts charged 13 people in a ring accused of stealing more than $5 million from over 400 victims across five states. The victims' average age was 84. The U.S. Attorney's summary was blunt: "Their goal was to trick our parents, grandparents, neighbors and friends into handing over their life savings under false pretenses, and they succeeded."

Scammers do not always rely on information posted outside the group. Sometimes they take over the chat itself. One common WhatsApp takeover trick starts with a message claiming that a verification code was sent to you by mistake. The sender asks you to forward it. That code is actually your registration code. Forwarding it may allow someone to register your number on another phone. The criminal could then lock you out, create a new PIN and start messaging your family while pretending to be you.

Facebook Messenger accounts can also be cloned or hijacked. With iMessage scams, criminals may try to persuade you to respond to a disabled scam link so that the link becomes active again. SIM swapping presents another threat. A criminal who convinces your carrier to transfer your phone number to a different device may gain access without asking you to forward a code. Once that happens, the scammer no longer needs to guess your relatives' names. The criminal may be inside the group chat using them.

HI MOM TEXT SCAM: HOW TO SPOT FAKE EMERGENCY TEXTS

Good. You should not. Nobody is asking you to leave the family group chat. Disappearing from it would take away one of the best parts of getting older: staying close to your family every day. This isn’t about talking less. It is about making a few five-minute security changes that can close the doors scammers use while preserving the connection your family values.

A few changes can strengthen your account security and help your family respond safely when a suspicious message appears.

Two-step verification adds another layer of protection to your accounts. Therefore, turn it on for every messaging, social media and email account that supports it.

WhatsApp: Open Settings > Account > Two-step verification.

Facebook: Open Accounts Center > Password and security > Two-factor authentication.

Apple Account: Open Settings > [your name] > Sign-In & Security > Two-Factor Authentication.

This extra security step can help block an account takeover, even if a scammer steals your password or tries to register your account on another device.

Create a family rule that nobody forwards a verification code received by text, email or an authentication app. A legitimate platform will not ask you to send your private login code to another person. A real family member should not need it either. Even when the request appears to come from your child or grandchild, call that person using a phone number you already have before taking action.

Choose a word, phrase or question that only your real family knows. Before anyone sends money or responds to an emergency request, ask for the codeword. Apply the rule every time, even when the person's voice sounds convincing. Do not place the codeword in the same group chat you are trying to protect. Share it by phone or in person.

YOUR FAMILY COULD BE ONE PHONE CALL FROM A BANK SCAM

Post beach photos after you return home rather than while you are still traveling. Real-time travel posts may reveal that your home is empty. They can also give scammers a believable opening line about where you are, where you have been or when you are expected to return. You can still share every great photo. A short delay makes the information less useful to someone watching your activity.

On WhatsApp, review who can see your profile photo, last seen status and About information. Consider limiting those details to your contacts. You can also restrict who is allowed to add you to groups. For conversations containing addresses, appointments or routines, consider enabling Advanced Chat Privacy when it is available. Review similar privacy settings on Facebook, Instagram and any other service your family uses.

Treat an account as untrusted when a family member suddenly asks you to forward a code, send money, buy gift cards or keep an emergency secret. Getting logged out unexpectedly can also indicate that someone is attempting to take over your account. Stop responding in the chat and call the family member directly using a phone number you already had. Do not call a new number provided in the suspicious message.

Use a password managerto create and store a different strong password for every messaging, email and social media account. Reusing the same password gives criminals more opportunities. If one service suffers a breach, the stolen password may be tested against your other accounts. Apassword manager also reduces the temptation to choose short passwords based on birthdays, pets or family names that a scammer could discover online.

There is one problem these security settings cannot solve: the data broker profile that may have made the scam believable in the first place.

Search for your name on sites such as Spokeo or Whitepages. You may find your address, phone number and relatives listed by name. That is the information a scammer can see before making contact.

Meanwhile, your group chat supplies the current details that make the eventual call or message convincing. The data broker profile may have helped identify your family as a possible target.

You can request removal from data broker sites yourself. However, the process can take time, and your information may reappear later.

For ongoing help, consider using a reputable data removal service. These services send removal requests to data brokers on your behalf and continue checking whether your personal information returns.

No service can remove every trace of your data from the internet. Still, reducing the number of sites that display your address, phone number and family connections can make it harder for scammers to build a convincing profile around you.

Check out my top picks for data removal services and get a free scan to find out if your personal information is already out on the web by visiting Cyberguy.com

The family group chat may feel like the safest room in your digital life, but the information shared there can become valuable to criminals. Data brokers may already have your relatives mapped out by name, while travel plans, appointments and everyday updates give scammers the current details they need to create a convincing story. Real families have lost thousands of dollars to callers who appeared to know everything about them. Messaging accounts can also be hijacked through stolen verification codes, weak passwords, phishing attempts or SIM-swapping attacks. You do not need to leave the family group chat. Turn on two-step verification, use unique passwords stored in a password manager, create a family codeword and wait until you return home before sharing travel updates. Those precautions can protect your accounts, but they cannot remove information that is already sitting on data broker sites. Reducing that exposure requires regularly checking what is public and requesting that your information be removed. Stay close to your family. Just make it harder for someone else to use that closeness against you.

Has a scammer ever contacted you or a relative using real names, travel details or other personal information that made the story feel convincing? Let us know by writing to us at Cyberguy.com

Sign up for my FREE CyberGuy Report

Copyright 2026 CyberGuy.com. All rights reserved.

from Latest & Breaking News on Fox News https://ift.tt/In0Hs93
via IFTTT

Fox News RSS Feed

Two travelers arriving from London allegedly packed nearly 850 pounds of khat into 12 suitcases before the massive haul was uncovered by customs officers at a Maryland airport.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) said the two U.S. citizens from New York arrived at Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport on Aug. 13 and were referred for secondary inspection.

During a subsequent baggage examination, officers discovered what appeared to be a large quantity of tea leaves, which later tested positive for khat, or Catha edulis, according to CBP.

MEXICAN NATIONAL FACES FEDERAL CHARGES AFTER CBP FINDS $238K IN FENTANYL INSIDE ELECTRIC MOPED

Authorities said each traveler had six soft-sided suitcases filled with khat. The seized material weighed approximately 847 pounds and had an estimated street value of about $100,000.

The men were released pending further investigation, CBP said.

Khat, also known as Abyssinian tea and African salad, is typically grown in East Africa and the Arabian Peninsula and is chewed for its amphetamine-like effects, according to CBP. Dried khat leaves can also be boiled to make a stimulant tea.

According to the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), khat contains two central nervous system stimulants — cathinone, a Schedule I controlled substance, and cathine, a Schedule IV controlled substance.

MAN BUSTED AFTER CUSTOMS UNCOVERS BIZARRE CARGO HIDDEN INSIDE 22 PAIRS OF SOCKS

Symptoms of khat toxicity can include delusions, loss of appetite, difficulty breathing and increased blood pressure and heart rate, according to the DEA.

The World Health Organization classified khat as a drug of abuse in 1980.

The discovery came just days after CBP officers seized another 412 pounds of khat from unclaimed traveler baggage at the same airport.

In that case, CBP said officers "spooked" a suspected smuggler, who fled the inspection station and left the khat behind.

CBP SEIZES MASSIVE METH HAUL WORTH MILLIONS STASHED IN SECRET TILE SHIPMENT

"Customs and Border Protection officers have observed substantial quantities of khat being smuggled in commercial shipments, but smuggling loads of this volume inside traveler baggage is a bit unusual, and not any more successful," CBP's Baltimore Area Port Director Adam Rottman said in a statement.

"Khat is illegal and poses severe health risks to users," Rottman continued. "CBP will continue to seize khat and other dangerous drugs when we encounter it and we will work with our law enforcement partners to hold smugglers accountable."

CBP officers seized roughly 46,000 pounds of khat last fiscal year and nearly 20,000 pounds during the current fiscal year so far, according to the agency.

from Latest & Breaking News on Fox News https://ift.tt/f34zQiH
via IFTTT

Fox News RSS Feed

One of the betting favorites to replace Karoline Leavitt as White House press secretary declared Wednesday that she is not in the running for the job.

The 28-year-old White House press secretary, fresh off maternity leave, announced earlier this month that she would end her tenure at the podium at the end of August to spend more time with her two young children.

As speculation continued to swirl over whom President Donald Trump would tap to succeed Leavitt, bettors on prediction market platform Kalshi began favoring Alina Habba for the role.

KAROLINE LEAVITT'S REPLACEMENT AS PRESS SECRETARY FACES 'CRITICAL' TEST AS MIDTERMS LOOM, TRUMP ADVISOR SAYS

Habba, who serves as senior adviser to the attorney general for U.S. attorneys, was previously floated for the position after Trump won re-election.

Bettors on Kalshi gave Habba a 35% chance of being named Leavitt's replacement at the time before she publicly dismissed the speculation.

Habba, however, threw cold water on that idea.

"Flattered by the Kalshi odds, but I'm not in the running for any job," Habba posted on X.

"However, if I'm getting a new one, I'd love for one of these anonymous sources to let me know first," she continued. "Fake news remains the undefeated champ…well…until I come at them."

DAVID MARCUS: KAROLINE LEAVITT’S LASTING LEGACY IS OPENING THE WHITE HOUSE TO INDIE PRESS

When speculation emerged about Habba potentially becoming press secretary following Trump's 2024 election victory, she said she was "flattered" by the consideration but believed she would "be better served in other capacities."

Habba went on to serve just over two months as counselor to the president before being appointed interim U.S. attorney for the District of New Jersey. After a federal appeals court upheld a ruling that her subsequent service as acting U.S. attorney was unlawful, she resigned from the position and was later named senior adviser to the attorney general for U.S. attorneys.

Habba also previously served as Trump's personal attorney and was a high-profile surrogate during his 2024 presidential campaign.

JIM ACOSTA DEMANDS CNN FIRE SCOTT JENNINGS AFTER ON-AIR CONFRONTATION WITH PANELIST

Following Habba's post Wednesday, CNN political commentator Scott Jennings became the new betting favorite on Kalshi, followed by Leavitt's deputy, Anna Kelly.

Jennings, a former aide to President George W. Bush, was also reportedly considered for the press secretary role after Trump won the 2024 election before Leavitt was ultimately selected.

Trump has touted Jennings' recent book and referred to him as a "patriot" who "gets it."

"The next press secretary will undoubtedly be someone who has a strong existing relationship with President Trump," former White House press secretary Sean Spicer previously told Fox News Digital.

Fox News Digital has reached out to the White House for comment.

Fox News Digital's Ashley J. DiMella contributed to this report.

from Latest & Breaking News on Fox News https://ift.tt/f1dcNvy
via IFTTT

Fox News RSS Feed

President Donald Trump is scaling back major joint military exercises with South Korea after Seoul declined to support U.S. operations against Iran, a sharp U-turn with an ally his administration publicly praised just days prior.

The move came just three days after Secretary of State Marco Rubio called South Korea an "indispensable partner" and said the allies had entered a "historic new era" of cooperation following Trump’s state visit to Seoul last fall.

Victor Cha, the Korea Chair at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, told Fox News Digital that Trump appears to see the drill reduction as a win-win for the U.S. — pressure Seoul to move faster on investment and burden-sharing while offer Kim incentives to reopen diplomacy.

"He sees this as a two for one," Cha said. "A combination of things led to Trump's frustration, that South Korea is not moving the trade and investment framework agreement on investments faster and his desire to meet the North Korean leader."

TRUMP ORDERS MAJOR CUT TO US-SOUTH KOREA DRILLS AS NORTH KOREA RAMPS UP MISSILE TESTS

Behind the administration’s recent praise of Seoul, strains had been building, potentially leading to the mixed-messaging.

Trump has grown frustrated with the slow rollout of a $350 billion trade and investment framework, commercial disputes involving American companies and what he sees as South Korea’s unwillingness to do more for U.S. priorities, Cha detailed.

"That combination of things led Trump to make a decision where he said, 'Hey, yeah, I'm gonna scale down these exercises maybe it'll get a response from Kim Jong-un. At the same time, the South Koreans are rich, they should be doing their own exercises and like we should not be paying for them.'"

The deal would bring substantial South Korean investment to the United States while offering Seoul expanded cooperation on shipbuilding and nuclear-powered submarines.

But the first investments have moved slowly, despite Trump’s earlier threat to raise tariffs on South Korean goods by 25%, while parallel agreements with Japan are advancing faster.

The pressure on Seoul comes as Trump returns to another unfinished project from his first term: diplomacy with Kim.

Trump’s tumultuous relationship with the North Korean leader swung between threats of "fire and fury" and historic summits. The first was in Singapore in 2018 and the second in Hanoi in 2019, which was followed by a third meeting at the Korean demilitarized zone later that year.

NORTH KOREA EXPERT WARNS US CAN 'NEVER TAKE THEIR EYE OFF' KIM JONG UN FOLLOWING MISSILE TEST DURING IRAN WAR

The formal encounters made Trump the first sitting U.S. president to meet a North Korean leader, but the diplomacy ended without a denuclearization deal after negotiations collapsed over the terms of sanctions relief and North Korea’s nuclear program.

In announcing the exercise cut, Trump wrote that the drills "send a signal that is totally inappropriate and hostile" to North Korea, which he said "has been unthreatening and respectful" during his second term.

The White House did not immediately respond to a request for more details. A War Department official said the department is "actively working on executing the Commander-in-Chief’s directive," while declining to offer details.

Kim’s sister, Kim Yo Jong, has said her brother retains good memories of Trump, but North Korea has expanded its nuclear and missile capabilities since the first summits while deepening its ties with Russia and China.

Pyongyang has not ruled out returning to diplomacy, but it has also signaled that Washington would first need to abandon its demand for North Korean denuclearization.

NORTH KOREA LAUNCHES ANOTHER BALLISTIC MISSILE AS US, SOUTH KOREA PREPARE FOR MILITARY DRILLS

"Where they haven't ruled out negotiations with the U.S., but they have basically said, unless the U.S. accepts their nuclear status, there isn't really a reason to talk," Jenny Town, a senior fellow at the Stimson Center and director of 38 North, told Fox News Digital.

The drills are more than a show of force, they are where American and South Korean troops practice how to fight together if deterrence fails — from moving forces and equipment to sharing targeting information and operating under a single command structure.

Before Trump’s order, this year’s Ulchi Freedom Shield exercise was set to incorporate lessons from the war in Ukraine, including drone warfare, GPS disruption and the prospect of losing communications in a crisis.

Those are no longer theoretical concerns for the alliance: North Korean troops have fought alongside Russian forces and brought battlefield experience back to the peninsula.

SOUTH KOREAN PRESIDENT JUMPS TO INVEST IN MILITARY AFTER TRUMP CUTS JOINT EXERCISES

"The exercises are the biggest military maneuver exercise that the Alliance does every year," Cha said. "There's nothing that can substitute for live fire and military exercises."

Town said the last-minute nature of the decision risks creating uncertainty inside the alliance.

"This last minute haphazard way of sending this message really sends a lot of mixed messages, but also creates a lot of angst in the U.S.-South Korea alliance," she said.

Trump’s order drew bipartisan criticism on Capitol Hill.

Sen. Mark Kelly, D-Ariz., said: "North and South Korea are still technically at war."

"Our ability to help defend our ally against the North Koreans is because our forces are well trained and able to coordinate with the South Koreans. Hollowing out these joint exercises is shortsighted and a mistake," the retired U.S. Navy Captain added.

Republican Sen. Thom Tillis of North Carolina, a Republican, said reducing the drills "does nothing more than free up thousands of North Korea's troops to support Putin's systematic kidnapping, torture, rape, and murder of innocent Ukrainian citizens."

"President Trump is playing right into Kim Jong-Un's hands," Sen. Elissa Slotkin, D-Mich., claimed on X.

"Our alliance with South Korea is critical to U.S. security and announcing a decision to unilaterally scale back joint exercises, over social media, all while touting a "very good relationship" with Kim, is a gross miscalculation," she added.

"Trump is rewarding a regime that sends weapons and troops to fight for Russia and has a long history of cooperation with Iran. Undermining our allies while making concessions to our adversaries is not a show of strength—it only emboldens those who threaten us.:"

from Latest & Breaking News on Fox News https://ift.tt/l7FD41O
via IFTTT

Fox News RSS Feed

The special election to fill the seat vacated by former Rep. Eric Swalwell, D-Calif., remained undecided in the early Wednesday morning hours.

The battle to succeed Swalwell comes after he resigned in April amid sexual assault allegations from at least five women. Prior to the allegations, Swalwell was also making a bid for California's gubernatorial race, but he dropped that bid as well.

Vying for Swalwell's seat are two women: progressive state Sen. Aisha Wahab and moderate Democrat and Bay Area Rapid Transit Board (BART) President Melissa Hernandez.

Tuesday's primary race will determine who will immediately fill Swalwell's seat for the remainder of the term. However, it is also serving as the primary race for the midterms, meaning that Wahab and Hernandez will face each other again in November.

STATE OF PLAY: HIGHLY WATCHED HONG RACE REMAINS TOO CLOSE TO CALL AS PROGRESSIVES NOTCH KEY PRIMARY WINS

Wahab and Hernandez both emerged as the "top-two" vote getters in the special election's jungle primary race held on June 16 for California's 14th Congressional District. Under California law, elections have open primaries, meaning whoever the top vote getters are, regardless of their party affiliation, will move on to the general election.

The race between Hernandez and Wahab mirrors a larger trend reflected across Democratic primary races, as far-left progressive candidates, often backed by the Democratic Socialists of America, are seeking to defeat establishment-backed Democratic candidates.

Wahab, who has served in the state Senate since 2022, is running on a campaign platform centered on cracking down on ICE, having co-authored legislation making it easier for citizens to sue agents, lowering prescription drug prices and pushing for investments in green and renewable energy. She has received the backing of Our Revolution, a group that was founded by Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., Attorney General Rob Bonta, and fellow progressives Congresswoman Pramila Jayapal and Congressman Greg Casar.

Hernandez, on the other hand, has taken a moderate approach on key issues such as immigration. Hernandez, who is the daughter of Mexican immigrants, acknowledged that the immigration system is "broken" but that she "supports smart border security and regional cooperation."

She has received the endorsement of close to a dozen Congressional members.

But despite Wahab's critical stance of ICE, she found herself in the hot seat when her father took to Facebook calling for his daughter's supporters to "call ICE" on Hernandez. The mishap led to Wahab's campaign to issue an apology on its website.

from Latest & Breaking News on Fox News https://ift.tt/PWAfIFb
via IFTTT

Fox News RSS Feed

A heated battle for Alaska's only U.S. House seat will see a handful of candidates face-off in November after four candidates advanced in Tuesday's rank-choice primary.

First-term incumbent Rep. Nicholas Begich III, R-Alaska, is hoping to hang onto his seat, and will have a chance to do so in November. But he is facing an insurgency from independent candidate Bill Hill.

AP called the race for Begich and Hill early on, and Begich led by a 47.9% to 29.5% margin. Both will advance to the general election. 

The crowded race in the open primary also featured two other Republicans, Ed Goldfarb and Clay Strickland, Democrats Eric Hafner and Yaquelin Reynoso, Libertarian John Foddrill, along with nonpartisan candidates David Ambrose, Lady Donna Dutchess, David Richey and Melania Salazar. William Schultz, a Democrat, dropped out of the race citing financial concerns, but remained on the ballot. 

WASHINGTON REWARDS FAILURE. IT’S TIME TO SEND CAREER POLITICIANS HOME

Despite dropping out, Schultz was in third place at the time the race was called, followed by Hafner, who himself faces unique circumstances. 

Hafner is described by the Anchorage Daily News as a "federal inmate and perennial candidate," and a review of Ballotpedia shows Dutchess has run several times for office with little support. Hafner is serving a 20-year sentence for making false bomb threats and threatening judges and police officers. He was convicted in 2022.

Hill is a standout when it comes to running an independent campaign. He has raised more than $1.3 million in 2026, nearly all of it from individual donors.

SENATE CANDIDATE RUNNING AS 'INDEPENDENT' CONTINUES TO BE BANKROLLED BY LEFT-WING DONORS

A lifetime commercial fisherman and member of the Dena’ina Athabascan native Alaskan people, Hill has lived in Anchorage and Fairbanks in the past. He currently lives with his wife in the southwestern Alaskan town Naknek, which has a population of 470 people.

His platform incorporates popular positions from both sides of the political aisle. While he supports the Second Amendment, tax cuts and police and first responders, he also supports a "woman's right to choose" and making billionaires pay their "fair share," according to his campaign website.

Meanwhile, Begich led the charge to overturn a Biden-era rule restricting oil and gas exploration in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. "Unlocking Alaska's resources" is listed as a major priority on Begich's campaign site, along with cutting costs, creating jobs, protecting Alaska's native communities and securing the border.

He serves as the Executive Vice Chair of the Congressional Western Caucus.

from Latest & Breaking News on Fox News https://ift.tt/0avqz5S
via IFTTT

Fox News RSS Feed

If history is any guide, Republicans could be in store for a beating at the ballot box in November.

President Donald Trump’s average approval rating has dipped below 40%, while his disapproval rating has climbed into the high 50s. In previous elections, when presidents had approval ratings below 50%, their parties have almost always performed poorly in the midterms. Trump is nowhere near that threshold.

Congressional Republicans are not doing much better. The generic ballot shows that most midterm voters favor Democrats, and congressional disapproval has soared in 2026 compared to 2025. It now sits in the high 60s.

TRUMP’S ‘FIREWALL’ AGAINST SOCIALISM IN BATTLEGROUND STATE PUNCHES TICKET TO ELECTION

Republicans clearly need a new strategy. As strange as it might sound, one of the best models could come from their former nemesis, President Barack Obama, who managed to pull off one of modern political history’s biggest turnarounds in 2012.

Many Americans have forgotten that Obama’s reelection was far from assured. The Tea Party helped propel Republicans to a massive midterm victory in 2010. The recovery from the 2008 financial crash was extremely sluggish. Instability was spreading overseas, and fears about government spending were widespread. Throughout 2011, Obama’s approval rating remained in the low 40s and sometimes fell into the high 30s.

Obama turned things around in time for the 2012 presidential election by adopting two strategies that conservatives could use in 2026.

First, although many Americans were deeply unhappy with the economy in 2012, the Obama administration successfully persuaded millions of voters that their economic problems had been inherited from the George W. Bush administration.

Obama argued America could not afford to return to the failed policies that, in his view, caused the 2008 crash. Of course, his account conveniently ignored that many of those policies had been strongly supported by Democrats in Congress, but the political strategy worked.

The message became one of the centerpieces of Obama’s campaign. His team even adopted "Forward" as an official campaign slogan.

TOP REPUBLICAN PUSHES FOR RECONCILIATION 3.0 TO ADDRESS AFFORDABILITY

Republicans have an obvious opportunity to make a similar case today. They inherited one of the worst inflation crises in decades when they took power in 2025. Housing costs and the prices of most consumer goods skyrocketed under Democratic rule for numerous reasons, including reckless spending, unnecessary lockdown and stimulus programs, supply chain problems and the Biden administration’s obsession with costly "green" energy sources.

If Republicans want to survive November, they must convince voters that returning power to the architects of those policies could make the affordability crisis even worse.

The second strategy Republicans could borrow from Obama is related but distinct.

Obama acknowledged in 2012 that the country had more work to do, but he also argued that his administration had made real progress in recovering from the 2008 housing crisis. Finishing the job, Obama warned, was "going to take more time than any of us would like."

TRUMP WILL ‘DELIVER’: RNC CHAIR SIGNALS MIDTERMS CONFIDENCE DESPITE ‘DOOM AND GLOOM’

Republicans could make "Let us finish what we started" one of their central messages in 2026.

There is little reason for Republican candidates to pretend that the promised American Golden Age has already arrived. Voters know that groceries, housing, healthcare and other basic necessities remain painfully expensive. Any campaign that ignores those realities could come across as insulting or hopelessly detached.

A more credible message would acknowledge Americans’ continued struggles while arguing that free-market policies are beginning to work and need more time to produce the results voters want. Republican policymakers inherited a crisis so large that no administration could reasonably reverse it in only two years.

There are plenty of victories for Republicans to tout.

SENATE REPUBLICANS ARE RUNNING OUT OF TIME TO PROVE THEY CAN ACTUALLY GOVERN

Under President Joe Biden, there were more than 10 million border encounters, along with an unknown number of additional illegal entries that were never detected. Today, the border is secure, and illegal immigration is no longer a serious problem.

Under Democrats, the Consumer Price Index, a common measure of inflation, increased by a whopping 21% from January 2021 to January 2025.

Since Republicans took control of the federal government, CPI has increased by just 5%, well within historical norms.

The average sales price of a home also skyrocketed under Biden, increasing by more than $100,000 during his first two years in office.

THE SURPRISING HIDDEN COST QUIETLY ADDING NEARLY $132K TO NEW HOME PRICES REVEALED

Under Trump and congressional Republicans, home prices have hardly budged. Housing affordability remains a major problem, but conservative policies have at least stopped it from getting worse.

None of these accomplishments guarantees Republicans a victory. Elections are rarely won by statistics alone. Voters must believe that the country is moving in the right direction and that changing course could erase whatever progress has been made.

Obama understood this in 2012. He did not need voters to believe that every problem had been solved. He needed them to accept three basic claims: He had inherited a disaster, his policies had produced measurable progress and his opponents would reverse that progress.

CLICK HERE FOR MORE FOX NEWS OPINION

Whether voters accept a similar argument from Republicans could determine control of Congress in November. If Republican candidates continue acting as though public frustration is irrelevant, history suggests they could face a devastating defeat.

If they study Obama’s successful strategy, acknowledge the country’s continuing problems and make a persuasive case for finishing the work they began, they might still have time to change the trajectory of the election.

CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM JUSTIN HASKINS

from Latest & Breaking News on Fox News https://ift.tt/ctzvsNP
via IFTTT