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As America prepares to celebrate its 250th birthday, I find myself reflecting not only on this nation's remarkable journey, but also on my own.

I was born in Cuba under a socialist system that promised equality and prosperity but delivered scarcity, repression and limited opportunity. At 16, my family left the island and embarked on a difficult journey through Central America in search of something millions around the world still seek today: freedom.

My story is not unique. It is part of a larger American story repeated for generations. Immigrants from Cuba, Venezuela, Eastern Europe and countless other places have come to the United States not because it is perfect, but because it offers something rare in human history: the freedom to build a better life through hard work, personal initiative, and individual liberty.

As we approach the semiquincentennial of the United States, Americans should consider a simple question: Why do people flee socialist societies and risk everything to come to capitalist democracies?

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The answer is not found in political slogans. It is found in human behavior.

For more than six decades, Cuba has served as one of the world's most enduring socialist experiments. The Cuban regime operates under a centralized one-party socialist system in which the state owns or controls much of the economy, emphasizing collective goals and public ownership over private enterprise and individual economic decision-making.

The result has been economic stagnation, chronic shortages, political repression, human rights violations, deteriorating infrastructure, and a mass exodus of citizens seeking opportunities elsewhere. Generations of Cubans have left behind family, careers and everything familiar because they believed they could find greater freedom and prosperity in America.

CUBA’S DICTATORSHIP HAS LONG BEEN A THREAT TO AMERICA. NOW, IT’S FINALLY TEETERING

The contrast between Cuba and the United States is not merely economic. It is fundamentally philosophical.

Socialism places faith in the state. Capitalism places faith in the people.

Socialism assumes government planners can best direct society and allocate resources. Capitalism recognizes that millions of individuals making free choices create innovation, opportunity and prosperity in ways no bureaucracy can replicate.

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America's system has never been perfect. No human system is. But it has produced extraordinary economic growth, unprecedented innovation and opportunities that continue to attract people from every corner of the globe.

The story of America's success is inseparable from the story of freedom.

That is why, as Independence Day approaches and our nation prepares to mark 250 years of independence, I encourage every American to revisit the Declaration of Independence and its timeless assertion that all people are "endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights."

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This revolutionary idea — that liberty is not granted by government but belongs inherently to every human being — remains just as relevant today as it was in 1776.

For those of us who have lived under socialism, these are not abstract words.

And to those younger generations captivated by socialist ideas, I offer a simple reminder: look at Cuba.

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Today, many Cubans endure power outages lasting 20 and 30 hours. Food shortages are the norm. Citizens face consequences for speaking out against the regime. Many survive only through remittances from relatives abroad and assistance from foreign nations. Just 90 miles from Florida's coast, Cuba stands as a living reminder of what happens when freedom is sacrificed for promises of government provision.

As America turns 250, there will be debates about its past, present and future. Those debates are healthy and necessary. But amid those discussions, we should not lose sight of a fundamental truth: the United States remains one of history's greatest experiments in human liberty.

That achievement deserves celebration. It deserves gratitude. And it deserves protection.

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For immigrants like me, America's 250th birthday is more than a national anniversary. It is a reminder of why we came here in the first place.

We came for freedom.

We came for opportunity.

I wasn’t seeking perfection, but I found possibility.

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I love college sports.

As a former college athlete, coach, broadcaster and someone who has spent a lifetime around tennis, I’ve seen firsthand how college athletics can transform lives. For generations, American universities have offered young people a remarkable bargain: earn an education, compete at a high level and develop the skills needed to succeed long after the games are over.

That model has served America extraordinarily well.

Today, however, it is worth asking a difficult question:

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Have universities begun prioritizing winning over developing students?

The question extends far beyond tennis.

In recent years, college athletics has undergone a dramatic transformation. The transfer portal, NIL money, conference realignment and growing financial pressures have created powerful incentives to pursue immediate success. Coaches are increasingly rewarded for winning now, not developing athletes over time.

COLLEGE SPORTS SEES PIVOTAL MOMENT AS SENATE LOOKS TO MOVE LEGISLATION ON NIL, TRANSFERS ACROSS GOAL LINE

When immediate results become the priority, recruiting strategies change.

The quickest path to victory is often to acquire older, more experienced athletes who can contribute immediately.

That trend is particularly visible in sports like tennis. Current NCAA data shows that approximately 64% of men’s Division I tennis players and 61% of women’s players are international, the highest percentages of any sport. In some conferences, the numbers are even more striking.

But tennis is not the story.

Tennis is the warning sign.

The larger story is what these changes may mean for the developmental mission of college athletics itself.

For decades, college sports served as one of America’s most important talent-development systems. Universities helped young athletes mature physically, emotionally and academically. They produced Olympians, national team players, coaches, business leaders and countless successful professionals whose careers had little to do with sports.

The goal was not simply to identify finished products.

It was to develop potential.

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Increasingly, that mission appears to be under pressure.

Parents see it. Coaches see it. Athletes certainly see it.

Across a range of sports, American athletes are finding it harder to earn scholarships, roster spots and meaningful playing opportunities. Even highly accomplished junior athletes are increasingly asking whether the pathway that once existed for them is still there.

TOM BRADY IMPLORES PARENTS TO 'TEACH YOUR KID THE RIGHT VALUES' AMID RISE OF NIL IN COLLEGE SPORTS

Many families are responding accordingly.

Why spend years training, traveling and investing in youth sports if the opportunities that once justified those sacrifices are becoming increasingly difficult to access?

That question should concern anyone who cares about the future of American athletics.

To be clear, this is not an argument against international athletes.

Many are outstanding competitors, excellent students and valued members of their campuses. They are taking advantage of opportunities available to them, just as any ambitious young person would.

The responsibility lies not with the athletes but with the incentives that universities have created.

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Nor is this simply a question of nationality.

In some sports, athletes arrive on American campuses after years of high-level competition overseas. It is not unusual to see athletes in their mid-20s competing against 18-year-old freshmen. Most Americans would recognize that as an uneven playing field.

Again, the issue is not individual athletes.

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It is the system.

The consequences may extend far beyond college campuses.

When universities shift from developing athletes to importing finished ones, they weaken the pipeline that has historically helped produce American Olympians, national team members and future leaders in sport.

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At one point this spring, the University of Arkansas announced it would eliminate both its men’s and women’s tennis programs. The decision sent shockwaves through college tennis and raised broader concerns about the future of Olympic and developmental sports.

To its credit, the university later reversed course and reinstated the programs. That outcome was welcome news for athletes, coaches and supporters of college sports.

But the episode itself remains instructive. The fact that a major SEC institution seriously considered eliminating nationally competitive tennis programs should serve as a warning sign. Arkansas may have changed direction, but the financial and structural pressures that led to the decision have not disappeared.

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Either way, it deserves attention.

Because the central question is not whether college sports should remain globally competitive.

They should.

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The question is whether universities still view athletic programs as part of their educational mission.

For generations, winning and development were viewed as complementary goals. Coaches built programs. Athletes improved over time. Universities invested in young people.

Today, that balance appears to be shifting.

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Universities have every right to pursue excellence. But excellence should include developing students, not simply acquiring talent.

That is especially true for institutions that receive public support, benefit from alumni generosity and occupy a unique place in American life.

The mission of a university is not merely to assemble the strongest possible roster.

NCAA SETTLEMENT CHAOS: NEW LEGAL MOVE COULD TRIGGER MASSIVE INCREASE IN NIL SPENDING

It is to educate, develop and prepare the next generation.

College sports should support that mission.

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If we lose sight of that principle, we risk losing something far more important than a few roster spots.

We risk losing one of the most successful athlete-development systems ever created.

Arkansas showed that these outcomes are not inevitable. Institutions can still choose to invest in development, opportunity and the next generation of athletes.

The question is whether more universities will make that choice before those pathways become significantly harder to rebuild.

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The Department of Justice warned California on Wednesday that it would file a lawsuit against state officials if they do not scrap plans to enforce a "Glock ban," which the federal government argues violates the Second Amendment's right to bear arms.

In a letter to California Gov. Gavin Newsom and state Attorney General Rob Bonta, Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights Harmeet Dhillon said California residents "have the constitutional right to acquire and use state-of-the-art handguns to protect themselves."

"They should not be forced to settle for decade-old models of handguns to ensure that they remain safe inside or outside the home," she wrote.

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This comes as California’s Assembly Bill 1127, otherwise known as the "Glock ban," is set to take effect on July 1. It was signed into law by Newsom last fall.

The law prohibits licensed firearms dealers from selling or transferring any "machinegun-convertible pistol." It also reclassifies Glocks, which are semi-automatic pistols, as "machinegun-convertible" since state officials say their trigger mechanisms can be quickly modified with illegal aftermarket conversion devices.

People who already own these firearms may keep them, while sales to law enforcement agencies or the military are exempt from the restrictions.

Dhillon said she approved the filing of a complaint in federal district court against California officials over the law, but explained that she would consider deferring the filing if the state agreed to enter pre-suit negotiations.

"Although the specific provisions are open to discussion, a resolution must, at a minimum, require that the State: (1) immediately cease enforcement of the laws identified above; (2) acknowledge the unconstitutionality of these laws; and (3) agree to enter into a court-enforceable consent decree permanently enjoining the State from violating its citizens’ constitutional rights through these or any similar laws," the letter reads.

Dhillon gave California officials until 5 p.m. Tuesday to agree to enter pre-suit negotiations.

FEDERAL APPEALS COURT RULES CALIFORNIA AMMUNITION BACKGROUND CHECKS UNCONSTITUTIONAL

"We hope that the State shares our interest in achieving a voluntary resolution of this matter," she wrote.

Fox News Digital reached out to Newsom's and Bonta's offices for comment.

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Is it all Bibi Netanyahu’s fault?

There’s little question that his relentless warmongering – and the chilling toll of civilian casualties – is turning Israel into a pariah state.

While Israel was an effective partner in joining President Trump – some say prodding him – in attacking Iran, the two sides are now very much at odds. 

Trump has called him "f------ crazy" and told him "you’d be in prison if it wasn’t for me."

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Netanyahu faces a corruption trial that has been repeatedly postponed because of Israel’s war against Hamas and now Iran. 

"All the Jews are sick of you," Trump told the prime minister last year, according to the Maggie Haberman/Jonathan Swan book "Regime Change," when the president was trying to negotiate a ceasefire in Gaza.

Trump is particularly angry with Bibi right now because his continued attacks against Hezbollah in Lebanon have undermined his efforts to strike an agreement with the Iranians. 

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He says he’s creating a security zone to protect his country and that the U.S. would do the same thing.

There has long been a natural sympathy for Israel as the only thriving democracy in the Middle East. 

It was immediately attacked by its Arab neighbors when, in the wake of the Holocaust, it was created by the United Nations in 1948. 

While the Jewish state has since made peace with some of its neighbors – notably Egypt, thanks to Jimmy Carter – other Arab nations insist that Israel has no right to exist.

Yet Netanyahu has fiercely opposed a two-state solution that would create an independent Palestinian country, and Israel has been accused of becoming an apartheid state.

There was a new wave of global horror after Oct. 7, 2023, when Hamas brutally butchered more than 1,200 Israelis, of all ages, in a barbaric assault.

But even with the understandable retaliation, Netanyahu’s military tactics have since dissipated much of the resulting goodwill – and arguably fueled a rise in the ancient hatred of anti-Semitism around the world. 

Hamas, which sacrifices its own Palestinians by embedding them with the military, puts the death toll at 70,000.

"Though Netanyahu defeated Hamas militarily," writes three-time Pulitzer winner Thomas Friedman in the New York Times, "he never nurtured or welcomed a moderate Palestinian alternative. So, killing all those Palestinian civilians during the war looked to the rest of the world just like that: killing, pure and simple, not to clear the way for better Palestinian governance but to clear the way for NO Palestinians in Gaza." 

And that brings us to Zohran Mamdani.

Though he won the mayor’s race a year ago as a socialist promising free buses and government-run grocery stores, he never retracted his support of the phrase "from the river to the sea," which means wiping Israel off the map.

But by successfully pushing three pro-Palestinian candidates for Congress in Tuesday’s primary, knocking off two incumbents, the mayor scored big in New York politics. 

But he also created a huge headache for the national Democratic Party.

"Mayor Mamdani pulled through three solid Communists, and has received loud and universal applause from the Fake News Media," Trump posted yesterday. 

Apparently the word socialist no longer packs a strong enough punch.

The problem is that most of the country is well to the right of the five boroughs.

Now it will be easy for the opposition to label the Democrats not just as socialists but as pro-Palestinian.

In fact, the Democratic Party is moving sharply toward an anti-Israel stance. That’s where the energy is, particularly among younger voters who perhaps don’t remember all the wars in which the country has been attacked.

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"You’d better believe this is a sign of where the party is headed, which is why Republicans are foaming at the mouth over what they’ve dubbed ‘The Commie Corridor,’" said columnist Rachael Bade on her website.

The commentary has been withering. Joe Scarborough said on MS NOW: "The idea that you’re going to be able to brutalize children and women in Gaza with bombing that looks indiscriminate on TV day in and day out for years, that you’re going to be able to level half of Lebanon, that you’ll be able continue to allow thugs to run wild in the West Bank."

"And brutalizing Palestinians, brutalizing Christians in Bethlehem, brutalizing Christians across that area, along with Palestinian Muslims — especially Palestinian Muslims — blowing up Catholic churches in Gaza. Of course, I’m saying things that would relate to some of these people who are so shocked that Israel is in such low standing in America right now."

In a faceoff of Jewish Democrats, Rep. Dan Goldman was ousted by Mamdani’s pick, former comptroller Brad Lander, who argued that the congressman’s support for Israel made the U.S. "complicit in genocide."

Goldman, who rejects the characterization, said after his loss: 

"As history has taught us, anti-Semitic tropes and stereotypes — some of which I heard personally on this campaign — will ultimately be the undoing of our democracy if we all don't lean in and speak out."

Even in liberal New York City, which has the largest Jewish population outside Israel, it’s stunning that Israel and its cause have become so unpopular. 

There has been something of a freak-out among Democrats, including New York Attorney General Letitia James, who sued Trump for alleged financial fraud. James says she and others are "disappointed" in the outcome.

"Some of the candidates that he has supported are individuals who do not understand the politics of New York City, the cultural differences from district to district, who have not been part of the history and the struggle of some of these districts, and are relatively new to the body politic."

One of Mamdani’s three winning candidates, community organizer Darializa Avila Chevalier, walked out of a radio interview on Election Day when pressed about her past support on social media for abolishing the police, eliminating ICE, and declaring that "Israel doesn’t exist." Chevalier, saying only that she regrets past tweets in general, also wrote that "all deportation is wrong"– and used a sexual taunt against the NYPD.

Some of these offensive messages were posted as recently as 2022.

There’s little question that Mamdani has hurt his party for years to come. 

A New York Post editorial yesterday said "Mamdani Takes the Jew-Hate All the Way to 11," adding that he’s going "full-on anti-Semite."

Keep in mind that Big Apple voters ignored the endorsement of the party’s leaders, Hakeem Jeffries and Chuck Schumer, in backing the Muslim mayor’s candidates. 

There is great frustration with anything that reeks of the Democratic establishment, which is viewed as a bastion of empty promises and failing to deliver for the working class. 

That’s why Washington and Seattle also elected socialists for mayor.  

So there are several layers of politics here. You can write it off as a low-turnout race, with half as many Democrats showing up as for Mamdani’s election.

But given the socialist mayor’s determination to play Palestinian politics, it’s fair to say it all comes back to Bibi Netanyahu.

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President Donald Trump said late Wednesday that two powerful earthquakes that struck Venezuela had caused what he described as "a devastating number of deaths" as officials continued assessing the extent of the disaster.

Venezuela's interim President Delcy Rodríguez later said at least 32 people were killed and more than 700 were injured in the earthquakes, marking the country's first official casualty figures.

Trump's comments came after back-to-back earthquakes rocked Venezuela earlier Wednesday, causing widespread damage, including in the capital of Caracas, where buildings were damaged, and rescue crews searched through rubble.

In a Truth Social post, Trump said the pair of "massive" earthquakes had caused widespread devastation.

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"The two major earthquakes that just hit the great people of Venezuela are both massive in scale and have left a devastating number of deaths," Trump wrote.

Trump said the United States was prepared to assist with the ongoing response.

"The U.S.A. stands ready, willing, and able to help!" Trump said. "I have instructed all agencies of our government to get ready to move quickly. We will be there for our new and great friends."

Trump added that early reports from Venezuela were "not good."

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According to the U.S. Geological Survey, an initial magnitude 7.2 earthquake struck at 6:04 p.m. ET, with its epicenter about 15 miles east-northeast of San Felipe.

Just 39 seconds later, a magnitude 7.5 quake struck with its epicenter about 14 miles southeast of Yumare.

"High casualties and extensive damage are probable, and the disaster is likely widespread," the USGS said in a rare red alert statement.

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Officials said the earthquakes were among the strongest to strike Venezuela in more than a century.

Rodríguez declared a state of emergency Wednesday after the earthquakes, which were followed by nearly two dozen aftershocks.

In a televised address later that day, Rodríguez urged Venezuelans to remain calm.

"We urge our population to remain calm," Rodríguez said. "We urge unity."

VENEZUELA RELEASES ALL KNOWN AMERICAN DETAINEES FOLLOWING MADURO CAPTURE AND GOVERNMENT TAKEOVER

On Thursday, Rodríguez announced that at least 32 people had been killed and more than 700 others injured in the earthquakes.

"We urge our population to remain calm," Rodríguez said. "We urge unity."

U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau wrote on X that American officials were in contact with Venezuelan authorities and working to deliver assistance to the South American nation.

VENEZUELAN OPPOSITION LEADER MARÍA MACHADO HAS URGENT MESSAGE FOR PRESIDENT-ELECT DONALD TRUMP

"The U.S. stands with the Venezuelan people in the aftermath of this evening's devastating earthquakes," he wrote. "We're in touch with the authorities and mobilizing assistance."

The State Department's Bureau of Western Hemisphere Affairs said it was tracking developments following the powerful earthquakes.

"The U.S. Government is closely monitoring the aftermath of a large earthquake in Venezuela," the bureau said in a statement.

"We extend our deepest condolences to the victims and are committed to supporting the people of Venezuela during this difficult time," the statement continued.

The bureau also urged U.S. citizens in Venezuela to enroll in the Smart Traveler Enrollment Program (STEP) and monitor embassy updates.

The Associated Press and Reuters contributed to this report.

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Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has broken staffing records this spring, the agency announced, reaching 21,471 agents — the most in the agency’s 102-year history.

Agency leadership has said it has plans to go further.

"Surpassing 21,000 agents is a milestone, but we aren’t stopping here and are committed to growing our workforce and providing the tools and resources needed for CBP’s mission," Human Resources Management Assistant Commissioner Andrea Bright said in a statement to Fox News Digital.

The staffing record adds another benchmark for assessing the seriousness with which the Trump administration is addressing border security.

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Already, immigration levels have dropped precipitously in President Donald Trump's first year and a half back in office, decreasing more than 87% from levels in October 2024.

But Republicans in Congress have also shored up those efforts by flooding the agency with cash through Trump’s signature Big Beautiful Bill as well as recent efforts to fund the Department of Homeland Security through the end of the administration.

The two bills included $64 billion and $26 billion for CBP, respectively. A large portion of the second bill is set aside for agency manpower.

BORDER PATROL COULD FACE KEY RECRUITMENT CHANGE AS CONGRESS DEBATES NEXT IMMIGRATION MOVES

"Our focus is on bringing in top talent and supporting our agents so they can succeed," Bright said.

In order to reach its personnel goals, the agency has worked to include competitive salaries, benefits and hiring incentives that can reach upwards of $60,000 for agents in eligible locations, CBP officials said.

In particular, the agency has hopes to attract talent from former U.S. servicemembers.

U.S. Border Patrol Chief Rosario Vasquez believes the record-breaking staffing levels are evidence that those efforts are paying off.

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"This record-setting achievement highlights the effectiveness of our recruitment efforts," Vasquez said.

"We are building a stronger workforce every day, and our progress toward 25,000 agents will further enhance our ability to protect our borders and serve the nation," she continued.

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New York City's socialist Mayor Zohran Mamdani did it again.

One year after sending political shock waves across the country with his New York City Democratic primary victory on his way to winning election as mayor of the nation's most populous city, Mamdani tested the limits of his political powers.

And he easily passed the test, upending the Democratic Party establishment as a trio of Mamdani-endorsed far-left congressional candidates won their primaries over more moderate incumbents and rivals.

Mamdani was the biggest winner on Tuesday, but President Donald Trump also covered his bases, as New York, Maryland, Utah and South Carolina held primaries and runoff elections.

DEMOCRACY ’26: STAY UP TO DATE WITH THE FOX NEWS ELECTION HUB

Democrats lurching left

The mayor's most shocking victory came in New York's 13th Congressional District, where Mamdani-backed candidate Darializa Avila Chevalier, a 32-year-old community organizer and democratic socialist, narrowly topped incumbent Democrat Adriano Espaillat, the 71-year-old Congressional Hispanic Caucus chair and the first Dominican American elected to the U.S. House.

Espaillat, who has been in Congress for a decade, was supported by a slew of party leaders, including New York Gov. Kathy Hochul.

MAMDANI-BACKED SOCIALIST WITH HISTORY OF ANTI-AMERICAN RHETORIC WINS VICIOUS DEM PRIMARY RACE

In the race to succeed retiring Democratic Rep. Nydia Velazquez, Mamdani-endorsed state Assembly Member Claire Valdez, who is also aligned with the Democratic Socialists of America, downed Brooklyn Borough President Antonio Reynoso by double digits. Reynoso, who was supported by Velazquez, was downed by more than 20 points.

"Tonight, we haven't just won an election. We have declared that this movement is durable -- that it is growing, and that it will not stop until working people are no longer asked to just build the table, no longer just offered a seat at the table, but will run the table," Valdez said in declaring victory.

And a third Mamdani-backed congressional candidate, progressive Brad Lander, crushed incumbent Democratic Rep. Dan Goldman. Lander, the former New York City comptroller, ran against Mamdani last year in the crowded Democratic primary field but became one of his biggest backers in the general election.

Chevalier, Valdez, and Lander showcased the mayor's platform of focusing on affordability in a city with one of the nation's highest costs of living. And all three were very critical of Israel.

MAMDANI STANDS BY FELLOW SOCIALIST CANDIDATE DESPITE RESURFACED FAR-LEFT, ANTI-AMERICAN POSTS

Lander, who is Jewish, said in his victory speech, "You can criticize Israel and not be antisemitic. You can be an anti-Zionist and not be antisemitic

It was a risky bet for Mamdani, just six months into his tenure as New York City mayor, to take on the establishment, but he comes out of the primary as an emboldened kingmaker in the party.

Mamdani, who campaigned relentlessly for all three congressional candidates, had emphasized that the Democratic Party "must change."

And on Tuesday night, at the Valdez primary celebration, the mayor said, "Let's hear it for a politics...that will never forget working people. For a politics that is ready to write a new chapter in our party's history, and for a politics that realizes the old politics that got us to this crisis, is not the politics that's going to get us out of this crisis."

Progressive Rep. Ro Khanna of California, a potential 2028 Democratic presidential contender, said that the results in New York City "shows we have a new party."

But the results also give Republicans, who have long cast Mamdani as a radical, more ammunition to use him as a cudgel as they work to hold their razor-thin House majority in this year's midterm elections.

REPUBLICANS RELENTLESSLY USE MAMDANI AS SOCIALIST CUDGEL TO BASH VULNERABLE DEMOCRATS

"Tonight wasn't just a bad night for so-called 'Leader' Hakeem Jeffries. It was the night the Democrat establishment officially surrendered to Zohran Mamdani and the socialist wing of their party. Every House Democrat, in safe and competitive districts alike, will now answer to the radicals calling the shots. And Americans should be terrified by where the Democrat Party is headed," National Republican Congressional Committee spokesman Mike Marinella argued in a statement.

Trump wins again

The power of the Trump endorsement in GOP primaries was tested again, this time in New York.

And the president prevailed.

Trump-backed first-time candidate Anthony Constantino, a businessman and former boxer, defeated Robert Smullen, a retired Marine Corps colonel and New York assemblyman who had the backing of the state party, in the upstate New York race to succeed retiring GOP Rep. Elise Stefanik.

Meanwhile, in South Carolina's Republican gubernatorial runoff, Trump couldn't lose.

That's because he endorsed both candidates in the race to succeed term-limited GOP Gov. Henry McMaster.

State Attorney General Alan Wilson defeated Lt. Gov. Pamela Evette in a landslide.

TRUMP CAN'T LOSE IN HIGH PROFILE REPUBLICAN RUNOFF

Trump endorsed Evette late last month, a week and a half before the gubernatorial primary.

Evette finished on top of a crowded field of contenders in the primary election, with Wilson second. The field also included Reps. Nancy Mace and Ralph Norman, and multimillionaire businessman Rom Reddy. Since no candidate won a majority of the vote, as the top two finishers, Evette and Wilson advanced to Tuesday's runoff.

Mace and Norman endorsed Wilson after failing to advance to the runoff. And Wilson was also backed a week ago by Sen. Ted Cruz, the conservative firebrand from Texas.

Trump, meanwhile, made an 11th-hour endorsement on Friday, backing Wilson in addition to his earlier endorsement of Evette, in what appeared to be a move by the president to hedge his bet.

Wilson, who topped Evette by a more than two-to-one margin as the votes continued to be counted, gave a shout-out to the president in his victory speech.

"I believe he recognized what we’ve been doing," Wilson said of Trump. "I think he saw the fight in our campaign and the energy in our campaign. I think he likes a fight. I think that’s what won him over."

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