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A U.S. appeals court upheld an Indiana law barring minors from being able to access medicines to help them transition genders.

On Wednesday, the 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals cemented the new ban in a 2-1 ruling, which a lower court had previously blocked. Those challenging the ban have argued it infringes on parents’ rights and discriminates “on the basis of sex” by prohibiting treatments based on one’s gender. 

“Courts have long permitted states to hold closely the power to regulate the practice of medicine. This power is strongest when the safety and effectiveness of the treatment is uncertain,” Circuit Judge Michael Brennan wrote in the court’s majority opinion. Meanwhile, Brennan also rejected the claim that the ban was discriminatory on the basis of sex, noting that the law “bars gender transition procedures regardless of whether the patient is a boy or a girl.”

PUBERTY BLOCKERS COULD CAUSE LONG-TERM FERTILITY AND HEALTH ISSUES FOR BOYS, STUDY FINDS: ‘MAY BE PERMANENT’

The 7th circuit’s ruling Wednesday overturned an earlier ruling from a lower court that blocked the new ban on transgender medical treatments. 

“The Seventh District Court of Appeal’s decision today is a huge win for Hoosiers and will help protect our most precious gift from God — our children,” Indiana’s Republican Attorney General Todd Rokita wrote on X, formerly Twitter, following the decision. “By rejecting the injunction against our commonsense state law, dangerous and irreversible gender-transition procedures for minors will remain banned in Indiana.”

STUDY SHOWING PUBERTY BLOCKERS DO NOT IMPROVE KIDS’ MENTAL HEALTH NOT PUBLISHED FOR FEAR OF BEING ‘WEAPONIZED’

The ruling that upheld the Indiana law on puberty blockers and hormones for minors comes in advance of the U.S. Supreme Court’s hearing on a challenge to a similar law in Tennessee.

Currently, the use of puberty blockers and hormones to treat gender-confused minors is either banned or restricted in at least 26 states.

A federal appeals court determined that the White House does not have the authority to issue binding environmental regulations under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), upending several decades of the practice.

NEPA is a federal law that requires federal agencies to conduct a review of environmental impacts before making any decisions and then issue a “detailed statement” of the environmental review.

In a divided decision Tuesday, the D.C. District Court of Appeals ruled that the White House Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ), established to instruct agencies on NEPA compliance, does not have the power to issue regulations on other federal agencies as it has been for more than 40 years.

Then-President Carter signed an executive order in 1977 allowing CEQ to begin issuing “regulations” rather than “guidelines” to federal agencies. However, the federal court challenged Carter’s executive order by ruling that CEQ is not granted authority under NEPA to issue binding regulations.

TRUMP TO INSTALL ‘ENERGY CZAR’ TO DISMANTLE BIDEN CLIMATE RULES: REPORT

The decision stemmed from the Marin Audubon Society v. Federal Aviation Administration case, which challenged the Federal Aviation Administration’s compliance with NEPA after the agency allowed tourist flights over national parks without environmental review.

However, the CEQ’s role in the environmental regulation process is what stole the court’s attention.

“Here, CEQ’s authority to issue regulations on the basis of an Executive Order raises what is essentially a “separation of powers” issue,” the ruling reads.

LEAVE THE OIL TO ME: TRUMP VOWS TO UNLEASH US ENERGY, UNDO KEY BIDEN RULES IN 2ND TERM

“The separation of powers and statutory interpretation issue that CEQ’s regulations present is thus unremarkable,” the court continued. “What is quite remarkable is that this issue has remained largely undetected and undecided for so many years in so many cases.”

The court ruled that “the Constitution does not permit the President to seize for himself the ‘law-making power of Congress’ by issuing an order that, ’like a statute, authorizes a government official to promulgate rules and regulations.”

The CEQ has carried out major rules over the years, such as ensuring that agencies consider climate change when conducting environmental analysis and integrating “environmental justice” into federal administrative law.

However, the new ruling suggests that CEQ has not had the authority all these years to implement any regulations.

It could face appeal and a final decision by the entire D.C. Circuit bench.

President-elect Trump is expected to choose Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to lead the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).

A single source from the transition team who asked to be identified as “familiar to the matter” confirmed via phone call that Trump will name RFK Jr. to HHS.

The announcement comes just over a week after Trump won back the presidency.

Kennedy, who has been a key figure in the Trump campaign since endorsing him, was asked about his potential role in the next White House and whether he would begin “clearing out the top level federal service workers that are currently at the FDA and the CDC.”

He continued, “In some categories, their entire departments, like the nutrition department in the FDA, they have to go. They’re not doing their job. They’re not protecting our kids. Why do we have Froot Loops in this country that have 18 or 19 ingredients, and you go to Canada, and it’s got two or three?” 

This is a developing story. Please check back for updates. 

The Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure is demanding that the Federal Emergency Management Agency provide documentation after an employee was terminated for instructing hurricane relief workers in Florida to avoid homes with Trump flags.

In a letter Thursday to FEMA Administrator Deanne Criswell, Committee Chair Sam Graves, R-Mo., demanded accountability for the incident that came as Florida residents faced Hurricane Milton.

“As the FEMA Administrator, you are responsible for leading the Nation’s efforts to prepare for, protect against, and respond to natural disasters,” the letter reads. “The Committee is troubled that under your leadership FEMA failed to aid all Americans, regardless of party affiliation.”

The letter came after FEMA confirmed to Fox News Digital that an employee had instructed aid workers to deny relief to residents who had Trump campaign signs at their homes. The Daily Wire was the first to report it.

The outlet said approximately 20 homes in Lake Placid, Florida, were passed over and not given government assistance after the devastating hurricane. Hurricane Helene hit Florida nearly two weeks earlier.

HOUSE OVERSIGHT CALLS ON FEMA DIRECTOR TO TESTIFY AFTER OFFICIAL TELLS WORKERS TO AVOID HOME WITH TRUMP SIGNS

Criswell said in a statement to Fox News Digital that the employee was “terminated,” saying “we take our mission to help everyone before, during and after disasters seriously.”

FEMA OFFICIAL DIRECTED HURRICANE RELIEF WORKERS TO AVOID HOMES WITH TRUMP SIGNS AS AGENCY CONDUCTS CLEANUP

“We take our mission to help everyone before, during and after disasters seriously. This employee has been terminated, and we have referred the matter to the Office of Special Counsel,” Criswell said. “I will continue to do everything I can to make sure this never happens again.”

The Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure argued that FEMA’s No. 1 priority is “focused on equity.”

“Yet, under the Biden Administration, FEMA’s number one strategic goal, per its Strategic Plan, is focused on equity, while preparedness and readiness were relegated to FEMA’s third goal, after climate change,” the letter reads. 

Marn’i Washington, the fired FEMA Disaster Survivor Assistance worker who led a crew in Florida after Hurricane Milton, told Roland Martin, a longtime media commentator, on his YouTube show that the agency provides clear guidance to disengage from “politically hostile” communities.

FEMA OFFICIAL FIRED FOR DIRECTING HURRICANE RELIEF AWAY FROM TRUMP SUPPORTERS’ HOMES

“Your inability to ensure that FEMA provides relief to all Americans affected by disasters, free of discrimination, represents a substantial failure of leadership,” the letter reads. “The blatant disregard of President-elect Trump supporters directly contradicts FEMA’s core mission and values.”

The agency requested that FEMA provide the following documentation:

Including Graves and subcommittee Chair Rep. Scott Perry, R-Pa., 35 Republican committee members signed the letter.

Criswell is expected to attend a hearing at 10 a.m. on Nov. 19.

Fox News Digital’s Peter Pinedo contributed to this report.

New York state leaders signaled they’re ready to revisit a costly “congestion pricing” program for Midtown and Lower Manhattan that originally would have charged drivers $15 per entry-day, reportedly in order to implement it before President-elect Trump takes office.

Gov. Kathy Hochul halted her long-held plan after initial backlash against state Democrats — but now some in the Empire State are warning Trump may quickly kill their revenue stream dream.

A group of New York Republicans wrote a letter to Trump asking him to use the power of the federal government to reverse what they called a wrongly-accelerated process by the Biden administration.

“Congestion pricing has only moved forward due to the MTA [Metropolitan Transportation Authority] and Federal Highway Administration’s (FHWA) manipulation of the FHWA’s Value Pricing Pilot Program (VPPP), a pilot program initially authorized by Congress over three decades ago in 1991,” the letter read.

HOMAN SCOFFS AT HOCHUL’S SUDDEN OUTRAGE OVER VIOLENT MIGRANTS

“The Biden Administration even conspired to allow an abbreviated environmental review in order for the program to skip the normal process.”

Rep. Sam Graves, R–Mo., chair of the House Transportation Committee, said Trump has made his opposition clear and that the “rush to institute it before he can take office is a blatantly political move.”

“Just before it was scheduled to begin this summer, and prior to the election, the governor acted unilaterally to ‘indefinitely pause’ the congestion pricing proposal because of its unpopularity. Now it’s conveniently being resurrected barely a week after the polls closed,” he said.

State Sen. Andrew Gounardes, D-Bay Ridge, conversely told the Albany Times-Union a congestion pricing plan must be started “immediately — before Trump can block it,” as the Republicans asked.

Congestion pricing would institute a video-enforced toll at newly-built gantries surrounding the city’s core. Traffic moving below 60th Street and Central Park, and entering from New Jersey, Brooklyn or Queens — except for via RFK Triboro Bridge — would be subject to the toll.

The lawmakers, including Rep. Michael Lawler of Rockland County, Nicole Malliotakis of Staten Island, and Andrew Garbarino, Nick LaLota and Anthony D’Esposito of Long Island, called on Trump to respond.

“Congestion pricing, the latest in a long string of tyrannical taxes, has been pressed forward through consistent opposition about the burden on New York families and workers, the timing of the effort, areas lacking adequate transit, the fiscal responsibility of the move, the negative impact that congestion pricing will have on residents of some of the lowest-income neighborhoods in New York City and more,” they wrote.

AFTER LEE ZELDIN ATTACK, HOCHUL CRITICIZED OVER LAX BAIL LAWS

“Governor Hochul recently announced that she would pursue an almost immediate implementation of the congestion pricing cash grab, despite cynically ‘pausing’ it earlier this year in an effort to win back the House.”

The lawmakers claimed Hochul is acting now because the move failed to engender goodwill to elected Democrats this past election, adding that the MTA — which falls under state auspices — is running a massive deficit in part due to fare evasion and internal waste and fraud.

Democratic-majority New Jersey joined with Republican-majority Long Island lawmakers in bipartisan opposition to the plan, with the Garden State at one point pursuing legal action.

New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy said Thursday he remains “firmly opposed to any attempt to force through a congestion pricing proposal in the final months of the Biden Administration.”

“All of us need to listen to the message that voters across America sent last Tuesday, which is that the vast majority of Americans are experiencing severe economic strains and still feeling the effects of inflation. There could not be a worse time to impose a new $9 toll on individuals who are traveling into downtown Manhattan for work, school, or leisure,” he said.

Murphy said New York never meaningfully consulted New Jersey in crafting a plan that would have great repercussions on their neighbor.

Rep. Tom Kean Jr., R-N.J., agreed with Murphy, calling the program a commuter “cash grab.”

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“[T] this effort has always simply been a way to take money from the pockets of New Jersey residents to bail out the MTA from a mountain of debt,” he said.

MTA Chairman Janno Lieber on Thursday said a problematic transit system that includes “buses that are slower than walking” and increased car accidents is “not the New York that we all want to live in.”

As for critics of congestion pricing, Lieber suggested that if first responders were stuck in Manhattanesque gridlock in any given town, their residents and local officials would clamor for a fix.

Hochul previously said she would like to see a slightly lower price point than the original $15, instead around $9, citing inflation, and Lieber suggested on Thursday he was open to seeing whether a lower toll could achieve the same revenue goals.

The news arrives as Democratic New York City Comptroller Bradford Lander announced that Trump’s presidency comes with “grave risks for New York City [including in] education, housing, health care and transit… to the mass deportation of hundreds of thousands of New Yorkers.”

Fox News Digital reached out to Team Trump for its response and to Hochul for additional comment.

National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC) Chairman and top Trump ally Sen. Steve Daines, R-Mont., suggested to senators ahead of the Wednesday Republican leader election that President-elect Donald Trump was supporting Senate Minority Whip John Thune, R-S.D., to win, despite choosing not to endorse publicly. 

Daines, who gave one of Thune’s two nominating speeches before voting began, claimed that Trump was backing Thune in the race against Sens. Rick Scott, R-Fla., and John Cornyn, R-Texas, two sources told Fox News Digital, including one senator in the room. 

TOP GOP SENATORS WARN DOJ TO PRESERVE JACK SMITH DOCS IN TRUMP CASES, CITING ‘PAST DESTRUCTION’ OF RECORDS

Daines’ office confirmed to Fox News Digital that he had told his colleagues, “Trump likes Thune” before ballots were cast. 

Scott had notably received several public endorsements from Trump-aligned individuals, including billionaire X owner Elon Musk. He also had the support of several Trump-ally Senate colleagues. However, he was knocked out on the first secret ballot, receiving only 13 votes. 

THUNE SAYS TRUMP’S BORDER PLAN IS 1ST UP IN RIGOROUS PRIORITY LIST FOR NEW CONGRESS: ‘REAL WORK BEGINS’

Whether Trump would be content with a Thune win was speculated prior to the race, considering the fractured relationship the two men had during and after his first term as president. 

Since then, Thune and Trump have been in contact and have apparently repaired their relationship, according to Daines’ remarks.

MATT GAETZ FACES GOP SENATE OPPOSITION AFTER TRUMP SELECTION FOR ATTORNEY GENERAL

Thune won the leader’s race on the second secret ballot, receiving 29 votes, which was two more than the necessary 27-vote majority. Cornyn got 24 votes. 

The South Dakota Republican had received early backing from another top Trump ally, Sen. Markwayne Mullin, R-Okla., who revealed his support for him soon after he announced his bid. 

Following his win on Wednesday, Trump congratulated Thune in a post on Truth Social. “Congratulations to Senator John Thune, the Newly Elected Senate Majority Leader. He moves quickly, and will do an outstanding job,” he said. 

THUNE WINS SECRET BALLOT TO BECOME NEW SENATE GOP LEADER, SUCCEEDING MCCONNELL

Trump’s private support for Thune, as Daines suggested, came despite the South Dakota senator’s hedging on committing to allow recess appointments after Trump publicly requested that the leader candidates agree. 

Thune simply said that everything was on the table when it came to confirming Trump’s selections for his administration, without committing to letting him confirm them unilaterally during recess. 

Trump’s transition team and Thune’s office did not immediately provide comment to Fox News Digital.

The incoming Trump administration is already preparing to dramatically increase its capacity to detain illegal immigrants as part of the massive deportation operation it has pledged to launch in January, Fox News Digital has confirmed — the latest sign that it plans to deliver on that promise.

President-elect Trump said during the campaign that he intends to launch a historic mass-deportation campaign in the wake of the historic migrant crisis at the southern border. It is a promise that he and top officials have repeated since his election victory last week.

Karoline Leavitt, a spokeswoman for the transition team told Fox News Digital: “The American people re-elected President Trump by a resounding margin, giving him a mandate to implement the promises he made on the campaign trail. He will deliver.” 

DEM GOVERNOR THREATENS TO USE ‘EVERY TOOL’ TO FIGHT BACK AGAINST TRUMP-ERA DEPORTATIONS

NBC News reported this week that the Trump administration is considering locations where it can expand immigration detention centers and that the transition team is looking at how many migrants can be held in regions across the country and talking to private prison companies about expansion.

A source familiar with the plans confirmed the report. NBC reported that the plan is to double the number of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) beds allocated by Congress, but the source said that the intention is to significantly increase the number of beds, and that a doubling of capacity was too specific.

Locations are expected to be expanded near areas where there have been significant numbers of illegal immigrants. “Sanctuary” cities like New York City, Washington D.C., and Chicago have been overwhelmed by a surge of migrants into their jurisdictions, some of whom have been bused in by Texas, so detention centers could be set up, expanded or re-opened in those areas.

‘LIBERATION DAY’: WHAT TO EXPECT FROM PRESIDENT-ELECT TRUMP ON BORDER SECURITY, IMMIGRATION

There are currently a number of ICE facilities that are not at full capacity, or that could have capacity expanded. Some cases are unique, like a facility in Adelanto, Calif., that has been largely shuttered due to a COVID-era court order.

Republicans have repeatedly hammered the Biden administration for a lower level of deportations, even amid a historic surge of migrants into the U.S. interior. Critics of the Trump plan have claimed that the cost would be too high, but immigration hawks have said that it is cheaper than allowing them to stay.

The administration may face significant pushback from Democratic governors. Mass Gov. Maura Healey said last week that “every tool in the tool box has got to be used to protect our citizens, to protect our residents and protect our states and to hold the line on democracy and the rule of law as a basic principle.”

“No. Absolutely not,” she said when asked whether  state police would help with deportations.

CLICK HERE FOR MORE COVERAGE OF THE BORDER SECURITY CRISIS

Trump announced three major immigration-related staffing moves this week. On Monday, he announced that former acting ICE Director Tom Homan will be the “border czar” and will be in charge of border security and overseeing the deportation operation. On Tuesday, Trump announced that Kristi Noem was his pick to lead the department of Homeland Security. 

“With Donald Trump, we will secure the border and restore safety to American communities so that families will again have the opportunity to pursue the American dream,” she said in a statement.

On Wednesday, Trump announced that Stephen Miller, who spearheaded many immigration policies in Trump’s first term, will serve as assistant to the president and deputy chief of staff for policy and homeland security adviser. 

One of Donald Trump Jr.’s allies and business partners has reportedly been offered a key position in his father’s second term in the White House.

Sergio Gor is expected to lead the Presidential Personnel Office and will be tasked with aiding President-elect Donald Trump in recruiting, vetting and nominating thousands of political appointees across the federal government, according to a report. 

“Awesome news. Sergio will be great!” Trump Jr. posted on the social media platform X in response to the news, first reported by Semafor. 

As president and co-founder of Trump Jr.’s publishing company, Gor is part of President-elect Trump’s latest efforts in assembling a second administration full of allies, loyalists and other supporters.

TRUMP’S PICKS SO FAR: HERE’S WHO WILL BE ADVISING THE NEW PRESIDENT

Trump has previously said that the biggest mistake of his first presidency was picking disloyal people to join his administration.

“The biggest mistake I made was I picked some people – I picked some great people, you know, but you don’t think about that. I picked some people that I shouldn’t have picked,” Trump said last month on the “The Joe Rogan Experience” podcast.

TRUMP’S SPEEDY CABINET PICKS SHOW HIS ‘PRIORITY TO PUT AMERICA FIRST,’ TRANSITION TEAM SAYS

“I picked a few people that I shouldn’t have picked,” he said.

Not only did Gor help publish books by the former and future president, he also left his position as a longtime aide to Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., to join the finance committee for Trump’s 2020 re-election campaign. 

In 2021, Gor also officiated a wedding in California for Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., another Trump ally who Trump recently tapped to be his nominee for attorney general.

Gaetz has since resigned from the House of Representatives after his selection for the Department of Justice, Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., announced.

Gor is among the latest in a string of announced picks for Trump’s new administration. The president-elect has also picked, among others, Rep. Elise Stefanik, R-N.Y., to be U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, Rep. Mike Waltz, R-Fla., for national security adviser and Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., for secretary of state. 

Tesla CEO and billionaire endorser Elon Musk and former GOP presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy are expected to lead Trump’s new Department of Government Efficiency.

Fox News’ Bonny Chu contributed to this report.

Top Republican senators are telling officials in the Department of Justice to ensure that all records concerning the investigation into President-elect Donald Trump by Special Counsel Jack Smith are preserved ahead of the new administration. 

“[C]onsidering the Justice Department’s past destruction of federal records relevant to congressional oversight and political bias infecting its decision-making process, we request that you preserve all records related to the Justice Department’s criminal investigations of former President Trump by Special Counsel Smith,” wrote Sens. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, and Ron Johnson, R-Wis., in a letter to Smith, Attorney General Merrick Garland and FBI Director Christopher Wray. 

THUNE SAYS TRUMP’S BORDER PLAN IS 1ST UP IN RIGOROUS PRIORITY LIST FOR NEW CONGRESS: ‘REAL WORK BEGINS’

“The improper conduct of the past cannot be repeated in this matter; therefore, all records must be preserved so that Congress can perform an objective and independent review.”

Smith led federal investigations into Trump’s possession of classified documents and federal election interference before introducing charges. 

After Trump decisively won the presidential election last week against Vice President Kamala Harris, Smith filed a motion to vacate all deadlines in the 2020 election interference case against Trump, which was widely expected . 

MATT GAETZ FACES GOP SENATE OPPOSITION AFTER TRUMP SELECTION FOR ATTORNEY GENERAL

The case has not yet been officially dropped, but Smith claimed his team plans to give an updated report on its official status on Dec. 2. 

Smith also filed a motion in the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals to halt his previous request to appeal the classified documents case after it was dismissed by U.S. Judge Aileen Cannon. 

THUNE WINS SECRET BALLOT TO BECOME NEW SENATE GOP LEADER, SUCCEEDING MCCONNELL

Grassley and Johnson noted in their correspondence that in 2020, released DOJ records revealed that cell phones of multiple people on then-Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s investigative team were “wiped” for various reasons during its probe into Trump. 

According to the records at the time, the devices were wiped of information because of forgotten passcodes, irreparable screen damage, loss of the device, intentional deletion or other reasons before they could be reviewed. 

RICK SCOTT KNOCKED OUT OF SENATE LEADER RACE ON FIRST BALLOT AS THUNE AND CORNYN ADVANCE

“In addition, Senator Grassley’s oversight exposed that during the FBI’s investigation of Secretary Clinton’s mishandling of highly classified information, the FBI agreed to destroy any records that were not turned over to the investigatory team and agreed to destroy laptops associated with Secretary Clinton’s staff,” they wrote.

The DOJ did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.

Big Oil is calling on President-elect Donald Trump to keep the U.S. in the Paris climate agreement after withdrawing from the treaty during his first term.

The Paris Agreement, established at the U.N. Climate Change Conference in 2015, is a legally binding treaty between nearly 195 parties who are committed to international cooperation on climate change.

Trump officially withdrew from the treaty in 2020, but the U.S. was reinstated to the climate agreement in 2021 after President Biden took office.

After winning a second term in the 2024 election, Trump is expected to consider a second withdrawal from the agreement. However, some oil companies have expressed opposition to the idea.

TRUMP TO INSTALL ‘ENERGY CZAR’ TO DISMANTLE BIDEN CLIMATE RULES: REPORT

When Trump first announced plans to withdraw from the climate agreement in 2017, then-CEO of Shell, Ben van Beurden, was opposed to the idea.

“We believe climate change is real,” van Beurden told NPR. “We believe that the world needs to go through an energy transition to prevent a very significant rise in global temperatures. And we need to be part of that solution in making it happen.”

Ahead of his upcoming second term, Trump is facing renewed calls to consider remaining in the international climate agreement.

BIDEN ADMIN SAYS CLIMATE CHANGE POSES NATIONAL SECURITY RISKS, SENDS DELEGATION TO ADDRESS THEM

“I don’t think the stops and starts are the right thing for businesses,” Darren Woods, CEO of oil giant ExxonMobil, recently told the Wall Street Journal. “It is extremely inefficient. It creates a lot of uncertainty.”

Woods also suggested that it’s not good for business “to have the pendulum swing back and forth as administrations change.” 

Asked about whether Trump should consider staying in the agreement, the American Petroleum Institute told Fox News Digital they support the treaty’s ambitions.

“We have long supported the ambitions of the Paris Agreement, including global action to reduce greenhouse emissions and alleviate poverty around the world,” an API spokesperson told Fox. “The U.S. leads the world in producing energy and reducing emissions, and our industry remains focused on accelerating that progress.” 

The Trump campaign confirmed to Politico in June that the president-elect would be in favor of once again removing the U.S. from the agreement if elected to a second term.

Fox News Digital reached out to Chevron, TotalEnergies and BP for comment but did not hear back by press time.