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Five more of President Biden’s judicial nominees advanced out of the Senate Judiciary Committee on Thursday and will proceed to the Senate floor in the coming days.

Senate Democrats confirmed Biden’s 220th federal court appointment on Wednesday and are hoping to add to that number before the Thanksgiving holiday. Republicans have fought several of these nominees on grounds that they are too left wing, but a number of Biden’s appointments were confirmed after GOP senators missed votes.

President-elect Trump accused Democrats of attempting to “stack the Courts” with radical appointees and urged Republicans to “Show Up and Hold the Line.” 

“No more Judges confirmed before Inauguration Day!” Trump posted on Truth Social.

SENATE SHOWDOWN: GOP SECURES DEAL WITH SCHUMER TO SAVE COVETED APPELLATE JUDGES FOR TRUMP

Democrats are in a mad rush to confirm as many of Biden’s nominees as possible before Trump returns to the White House and Republicans install their incoming Senate majority. 

The nominees advanced Thursday include Anthony Brindisi, nominated to the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of New York; Elizabeth Coombe, nominated to the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of New York; Sarah Davenport, nominated to the District Court for the District of New Mexico; Tiffany Johnson, nominated to the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia; and Keli Neary, nominated to the U.S. District court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania.

The committee also advanced Miranda Holloway-Baggett, a nominee to be United States Marshal for the Southern District of Alabama. 

Senators reached a bipartisan agreement on judicial nominations late Wednesday that secured Trump’s ability to appoint four crucial appellate court judges after he assumes office in January.

SENATE GOP INITIATES THUNE-ENGINEERED SLOWDOWN AS SCHUMER LOOKS TO STACK JUDICIAL VOTES

Republicans agreed to halt procedural delay tactics and permit Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., to hold votes on four district court judges in exchange for pulling four higher tier circuit court judicial nominees, a Senate source told Fox News Digital.

Trump will be able to fill those higher court vacancies while Democrats confirm judges to the lower courts.

Under the terms of the agreement, the Senate will vote to end debate on the Biden nominees this week and will vote to confirm several judges when the Senate reconvenes after Thanksgiving, a Democratic source familiar told Fox News Digital.

The nomination of Amir Ali to the District of Columbia was confirmed Wednesday night. The Senate voted on cloture on four other nominations as well. The Senate will vote Thursday on cloture on two further nominations, Noel Wise of California to be District Judge for the Northern District of California and Gail A. Weilheimer to be District Judge for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, and vote on confirmation of one District Court Judge, Sharad Desai to be District Judge for Arizona. 

SPRINT TO CONFIRM TRUMP NOMINEES KICKS OFF IN JANUARY

The deal was primarily motivated by a Senate slowdown initiated by Republicans through procedural maneuvers on Monday night, which was spearheaded by Senate Minority Whip John Thune, R-S.D., who was recently elected as the next Republican Senate leader. The delay tactic plan came in response to Schumer’s efforts to stack additional judicial confirmation votes on the calendar ahead of the Thanksgiving holiday. 

“If Sen. Schumer thought Senate Republicans would just roll over and allow him to quickly confirm multiple Biden-appointed judges to lifetime jobs in the final weeks of the Democrat majority, he thought wrong,” Thune told Fox News Digital in an exclusive statement at the time. 

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By objecting to Democrats’ unanimous consent requests in order to file cloture on the Biden nominees, Republicans were adding additional votes to the schedule, taking up a substantial amount of time and forcing senators to spend all night at the Capitol.

The source noted to Fox News Digital that the new deal did not mean Republicans were going to allow the Biden district judges to sail through without opposition. GOP senators are still expected to fight and vote against the Democrat-nominated judges as they have done throughout Biden’s term. 

Fox News Digital’s Haley Chi-Sing and Julia Johnson contributed to this report. 

FIRST ON FOX: Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, is urging the Biden administration to halt a $1.25 billion “Digital Equity” program, calling it unconstitutional for using race-based criteria to expand broadband access.

“I urge you to withdraw the unlawful [Notice of Funding Opportunity] NOFO and halt issuing Program grants before you cause real harm,” Cruz wrote to Alan Davidson, the assistant secretary of the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) Thursday morning. “NTIA’s use of racial classifications, as set forth in the NOFO, does not serve a compelling governmental interest.”

The letter comes as Republicans push back against diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives as they gear up for the incoming Trump administration. Under the soon-to-be Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), headed by Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy, such programs like the Digital Equity Competitive Grant Program could be examined as government waste.

“Any source of government waste is in scope for DOGE,” a Ramaswamy spokesperson told Fox News Digital. 

DEMOCRATIC LAWMAKER RANTS ABOUT ‘THE WHITE MAN’ DURING A HEARING ON THE DISMANTLE DEI ACT

The letter criticizes NTIA’s guidance for the Digital Equity Competitive Grant Program, as Cruz claims it violates the Fifth Amendment’s Due Process Clause, lacking evidence of racial discrimination in internet access and failing to provide clear metrics for its race-based criteria.

The program was a key initiative under the Digital Equity Act, which was authorized by President Biden’s Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act of 2021. It is the third of three digital equity programs established by the act.

Cruz asserts that the program requires grant applicants to prioritize “Covered Populations,” a category that explicitly includes racial and ethnic minorities in the program. He argued the approach includes impermissible racial discrimination, arguing that the federal government cannot use racial classifications without demonstrating a compelling interest and “narrowly tailored” measures. 

RAMASWAMY OUTLINES DOGE’S VISION

“The NOFO provides no evidence racial minorities face discrimination in accessing the internet, let alone specific instances of discrimination that NTIA is seeking to address,” Cruz wrote. “And it does not attempt to make any claim that this discrimination is necessary to avoid a prison race riot.”

Cruz added that “the NOFO does not define ‘minority,’ making it impossible to determine whether it is underinclusive, but in any event, it is overinclusive because it includes anyone who falls into some racial group, without any determination that that specific group has faced discrimination in access to broadband.”

ELON MUSK, VIVEK RAMASWAMY TO LEAD TRUMP’S DEPARTMENT OF GOVERNMENT EFFICIENCY

Cruz, the ranking member of the Senate Commerce, Science & Transportation Committee, urged the NTIA to respond by Dec. 12, either by confirming the withdrawal of the guidance or by providing a detailed explanation of how it complies with constitutional requirements.

Fox News Digital has reached out to the NTIA for comment. 

Bipartisan backlash erupted in response to news that Pre-Trial Chamber I of the International Criminal Court targeted Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant with arrest warrants.

The chamber issued the arrest warrants against the two men “for crimes against humanity and war crimes,” according to the ICC.

Sen. John Fetterman, D-Pa. – who has been a stalwart supporter of Israel in the wake of the heinous Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas terror attack against the Jewish state – responded to the ICC’s move in a post on X, writing, “No standing, relevance, or path. F— that.” He capped off the tweet with an Israeli flag emoji.

ICC REJECTS ISRAELI APPEALS, ISSUES ARREST WARRANTS FOR BENJAMIN NETANYAHU, YOAV GALLANT

Rep. Ritchie Torres, D-N.Y., excoriated the ICC, accusing it of ignoring the context of Israel’s war effort, which the U.S. ally launched in response to the horrific Oct. 7 attack last year. During the assault, Hamas terrorists committed atrocities including rape, murder and kidnapping.

“The ICC’s decision to issue arrest warrants against the leadership of Israel represents the weaponization of international law at its most egregious. The ICC has set a precedent for criminalizing self-defense: any country daring to defend itself against an enemy that exploits civilians as human shields will face persecution posing as prosecution,” Torres declared in a post on X.

“The ICC ignores the cause and context of the war. Israel did not initiate the war. The war was imposed upon Israel by the unbridged barbarism of Hamas on October 7th. Not only did Hamas wage war on Israel, causing the deadliest day for Jews since the Holocaust, it carefully constructed a battlefield designed to maximize the loss of civilian life,” he continued. 

NEW YORK DEM WARNS ‘VILIFYING VOTERS OF COLOR AS WHITE SUPREMACISTS’ PUSHES ‘THEM FURTHER INTO TRUMP’S CAMP’

“None of that context seems to matter to the kangaroo court of the ICC, which cannot let facts get in the way of its ideological crusade against the Jewish State. The ICC should be sanctioned not for enforcing the law but for distorting it beyond recognition,” the congressman concluded.

Rep. Chip Roy, R-Texas, declared in a post, “Enough of this dangerous lawfare against ⁦⁦@netanyahu & Israel. @SenSchumer must stop blocking a Senate vote on my bipartisan (42 Dems joined) House-passed ICC sanctions bill, #HR8282. Vote now!”⁦

Torres was one of the dozens of House Democrats who voted in favor of passing the measure earlier this year.

THUNE THREATENS INTERNATIONAL CRIMINAL COURT WITH SANCTIONS IF IT DOESN’T DROP NETANYAHU WARRANT FOR ARREST

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Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., referred to the ICC as “a dangerous joke,” declaring in a tweet, “It is now time for the U.S. Senate to act and sanction this irresponsible body.”

Matt Gaetz, the former Florida representative and Trump nominee for Attorney General, announced Thursday that he is withdrawing as Trump’s pick for the top prosecutor, citing what he described as the “distraction” his nomination had caused due to a swirl of allegations about paying underage women for sex. 

“While the momentum was strong, it is clear that my confirmation was unfairly becoming a distraction to the critical work of the Trump/Vance Transition,” Gaetz said.

“There is no time to waste on a needlessly protracted Washington scuffle, thus I’ll be withdrawing my name from consideration to serve as Attorney General. Trump’s DOJ must be in place and ready on Day 1.”

This is a breaking news story. Check back soon for updates. 

Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., claims that Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas and FBI Director Christopher Wray skipped a public Senate hearing Thursday to avoid criticism over the verdict in the case of Laken Riley’s murder.

Mayorkas and Wray were scheduled to testify before the Senate Homeland Security Committee on Thursday, but the hearing was postponed after they insisted it be classified and not open to the public. Hawley told Fox News Digital in a Thursday interview that he is calling on Committee Chairman Gary Peters, D-Mich., to subpoena the pair’s public testimony.

“Let’s not forget who let him into country,” Hawley said of Riley’s murderer, Jose Ibarra. “Mayorkas lied about how he got into country. He said authorities didn’t have information about his past crimes. False. Then he claimed he didn’t remember the details. False. Now he’s refusing to comment.” Fox News Digital reached out to the Department of Homeland Security for comment on Hawley’s remarks, but they did not immediately respond.

Ibarra was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole on Wednesday.

LAKEN RILEY MURDER: FAMILY OF SLAIN UGA STUDENT SOBS IN COURT AS WITNESSES DESCRIBE CRIME SCENE EVIDENCE

Thursday’s hearing is the second time in as many days that Mayorkas and Wray have forced the postponement of their testimony before Congress by insisting on a classified setting.

The House Homeland Security Committee punted its hearing, originally scheduled for Wednesday, to December. A source with the committee told Fox News Digital that the hearing will be classified.

LAKEN RILEY MURDER TRIAL: PROSECUTORS PLACE ILLEGAL IMMIGRANT SUSPECT AT SCENE IN OPENING STATEMENTS

Hawley indicated that the Senate would not comply so easily, however. He said he is formally calling on Peters to issue subpoenas to force both Mayorkas and Wray to testify publicly.

Representatives for the FBI and DHS told Fox News Digital earlier on Thursday that they believe Mayorkas and Wray have already provided “extensive testimony” to the House, Senate and the American people.

LAKEN RILEY’S ALLEGED KILLER JOSE IBARRA FLEW FROM ‘GROUND ZERO’ OF MIGRANT CRISIS TO GEORGIA

Peters’ office did not immediately respond when asked about potential subpoenas. The senator was heavily critical of Mayorkas and Wray in a statement on X, however, saying that their refusal to testify publicly “robs Americans of critical information.”

Hawley went on to call for Wray to resign ahead of President-elect Doanld Trump’s inauguration, citing his record on illegal immigration and his alleged hostility toward Catholic Americans.

“If he doesn’t resign, Trump should fire him,” Hawley said of Wray.