The Food and Drug Administration is shifting its annual COVID-19 vaccine approval policies to focus on Americans older than age 65 and other "high-risk" individuals, while increasing the standard of evidence to approve COVID vaccines for low-risk individuals."The FDA will approve vaccines for high-risk persons and, at the same time, demand robust, gold-standard data on persons at low risk," FDA's Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research chief, Vinay Prasad, and FDA Commissioner Martin Makary, wrote in the New England Journal of Medicine Tuesday. "These clinical trials will inform future directions for the FDA, but more important, they will provide information that is desperately craved by health care providers and the American people."Americans over the age of 65 and those considered at high-risk of contracting the virus will be able to receive an annual COVID-19 vaccine this fall, the essay outlined, while vaccines for low-risk Americans will likely face stricter scientific analysis before they are made available to the public. The FDA estimated that about "100 million to 200 million Americans" older than age 65 or considered at high-risk will still have access to vaccines.Prasad and Makary said in their essay that the U.S. will move away from a "one-size-fits-all" paradigm that promoted COVID-19 vaccines for the vast majority of Americans, stretching from children to the elderly. The shift, they said, will bring America's policies more in line with guidelines in European nations.RFK JR'S HHS TO END ROUTINE COVID VACCINE GUIDANCE FOR CHILDREN, PREGNANT WOMEN: REPORT"While all other high-income nations confine vaccine recommendations to older adults (typically those older than 65 years of age), or those at high risk for severe Covid-19, the United States has adopted a one-size-fits-all regulatory framework and has granted broad marketing authorization to all Americans over the age of 6 months," the health leaders wrote in the New England Journal."The U.S. policy has sometimes been justified by arguing that the American people are not sophisticated enough to understand age- and risk-based recommendations," they wrote. "We reject this view."FIERY RFK JR. FLOGS WHO FOR CAVING TO CHINA ON COVID, CELEBRATING PANDEMIC FAILURES IN STUNNING VIDEO TO ORGThe FDA's policy shift will include requiring vaccine manufacturers to gather clinical trial data to justify rolling out new COVID-19 vaccines for Americans at low risk of contracting the virus.BEN & JERRY'S CO-FOUNDER ARRESTED PROTESTING SENATE HEARING: 'RFK KILLS PEOPLE WITH HATE'Prasad and Makary held a roundtable discussion on the framework outlined in their medical essay Tuesday afternoon to walk Americans through the policy shift. Prasad explained that health officials under the Trump administration are taking into account that Americans have balked at the FDA's guidance under the Biden administration to receive multiple booster shots, while other Americans demand access to the vaccines."We have to admit to ourselves that America is deeply divided on the policy issue of repeat COVID 19 vaccine doses or boosters," he said. "There are some Americans out there who are worried that the FDA has not fully documented and interrogated the safety harms of these products, and they are categorically opposed to these products. There are also some Americans we also have to recognize, who are desperate for additional protection, and they demand these products. But the truth is that most doctors and most of the public are entirely uncertain, and that is reflected in low vaccine uptake of these products."The pair added during the roundtable that Americans' trust in the scientific community has cratered since the pandemic."Survey after survey shows trust in institutions like the FDA and scientists in general, it's rock bottom," Prasad said during the roundtable. "I mean, we have lower trust than Congress, and that's saying something, you know. And we need to rebuild that trust. And part of rebuilding that trust is having conversations like this, writing articles like we've done in the New England Journal, and having a common-sense evidence-based framework for rebuilding that trust."CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APPThe pair cited in their article in the New England Journal that "public trust in vaccination in general has declined," including for "vital immunization programs such as that for measlesmumpsrubella (MMR) vaccination, which has been clearly established as safe and highly effective."

The state of cybersecurity in the healthcare industry worries me a lot. Healthcare organizations, whether nonprofit or for-profit, collect an enormous amount of data. And it's not just phone numbers, addresses or emails but also sensitive information like medical records, insurance details and more. This data is extremely valuable, which makes it a prime target for hackers.What's worse is that many healthcare institutions often neglect cybersecurity and treat it as an afterthought. In 2024 alone, an industry tracker recorded 1,160 healthcare breaches that exposed 305 million patient records. This marked a 26% increase compared to the previous year.Against this backdrop, Ascension, a Missouri-based Catholic health system with 142 hospitals and 142,000 employees, recently disclosed that a December 2024 breach exposed the personal and medical information of more than 430,000 patients.Join the FREE "CyberGuy Report": Get my expert tech tips, critical security alerts and exclusive deals, plus instant access to myfree "Ultimate Scam Survival Guide" when you sign up!According toAscension's breach notification letters, the compromise began on Dec. 5, 2024, when the network learned patient data"may have been involved in a potential security incident." By Jan. 21, 2025, its investigators had determined that Ascension had "inadvertently disclosed information to a former business partner," and that attackers likely stole data from that partner via a flaw in its software. In other words, patient records passed from Ascension into a third party's system and were then siphoned off by cybercriminals.The attackers gained a broad array of information. Impacted patients' demographic and financial details, names, mailing addresses, phone numbers, email addresses, dates of birth, race, gender and Social Security numbers were exposed. Even more worryingly, the breach included clinical data from hospital stays, including physician names, admission and discharge dates, diagnosis and procedure codes, medical record numbers and insurance details. This is the very data that criminals can exploit for fraud or identity theft.THINK YOU CAN DELETE YOUR OWN DATA? WHY IT'S HARDER THAN YOU THINKAscension reported the breach to regulators via an HHS filing on April 28, 2025, which shows 437,329 patients affected. By comparison, the company had earlier disclosed the impact in state filings. For example, 114,692 Texas patients and 96 Massachusetts residents were individually notified of exposure. In response, Ascension is offering those affected two years of free identity monitoring services (credit monitoring, fraud consultation and identity theft restoration).For scale, Ascension is a major nonprofit health system, one of the largest in the U.S., operating 142 hospitals across North America. The company has not named the third-party partner, but its description fits a vendor whose secure file-transfer software was breached.The timing aligns with a series ofrecent Cl0p ransomware attacks. Cl0p has publicly claimed responsibility for exploiting a zero-day flaw in Cleo's secure file-transfer products, stealing data from dozens of organizations worldwide. While Ascension itself was not directly hit by ransomware, its data might have ended up in that same attack campaign.Ascension's patients and employees are no strangers to data breaches. In May 2024, aBlack Basta ransomware attack compromised Ascension's own network. That incident, traced back to a single employee opening a malicious file, resulted in the exfiltration of data belonging to nearly 5.6 million people.The fallout was severe. Hospitals lost access to digital records, forcing clinicians to record vitals, medications and orders on paper. Elective procedures and some appointments were paused, and emergency services were redirected to unaffected facilities to avoid delays in care.We reached out to Ascension for a comment on our article but did not hear back before our deadline.HOW TO GET RID OF ROBOCALLS WITH APPS AND DATA REMOVAL SERVICESIf you think you were affected or just want to be cautious, here are some steps you can take right now to stay safe from the Ascension data breach.1) Watch out for phishing scams and use strong antivirus software:With access to your email, phone number or identification documents, Ascension attackers can craft convincing phishing emails pretending to be from healthcare providers or banks. These emails might include malicious links designed to install malware or steal login information. To defend yourself, use a strong antivirus program.Get my picks for the best 2025 antivirus protection winners for your Windows, Mac, Android and iOS devices.2) Scrub your data from the internet using a personal data removal service:The more exposed your personal information is online, the easier it is for scammers to use it against you. Following the Ascension breach, consider removing your information from public databases and people-search sites.While no service can guarantee the complete removal of your data from the internet, a data removal service is really a smart choice. They arent cheap and neither is your privacy.These services do all the work for you by actively monitoring and systematically erasing your personal information from hundreds of websites.Its what gives me peace of mind and has proven to be the most effective way to erase your personal data from the internet.By limiting the information available, you reduce the risk of scammers cross-referencing data from breaches with information they might find on the dark web, making it harder for them to target you.Check out my top picks for data removal services here.3) Safeguard against identity theft and use identity theft protection:Hackers now have access to high-value information from the Ascension breach, including Social Security numbers and bank information. This makes you a prime target for identity theft. You might want to consider investing in identity theft protection, which can also assist you in freezing your bank and credit card accounts to prevent further unauthorized use by criminals. Signing up for identity theft protection gives you 24/7 monitoring, alerts for unusual activity and support if your identity is stolen.See my tips and best picks on how to protect yourself from identity theft.4) Set up fraud alerts: Requesting fraud alerts notifies creditors that they need extra verification before issuing credit in your name. You can request fraud alerts through any one of the three major credit bureaus; theyll notify the others. This adds another layer of protection without completely freezing access to credit.5) Monitor your credit reports: Regularly check your credit reports throughAnnualCreditReport.com, where you can access free reports from each bureau once per year or more frequently if youre concerned about fraud. Spotting unauthorized accounts early can prevent larger financial damage.6) Change passwords and use a password manager: Update passwords on any accounts tied to compromised data. Use unique passwords that are hard to guess and let a password manager do the heavy lifting by generating secure ones for you. Reused passwords are an easy target after breaches. Considerpassword managers for convenience and security. Get more details about mybest expert-reviewed password managers of 2025 here.7) Be wary of social engineering attacks: Hackers may use stolen details like names or birthdates from breaches in phone scams or fake customer service calls designed to trick you into revealing more sensitive info. Never share personal details over unsolicited calls or emails. Social engineering attacks rely on trust, and vigilance is key.HACKERS USING MALWARE TO STEAL DATA FROM USB FLASH DRIVESAttackers have frequently targeted Ascension, but the company does not seem to be learning its lesson. If it were a one-off incident, it might be understandable. But how do you fail to strengthen cybersecurity after experiencing a nationwide blackout? Rather than being an isolated event, this breach feels like part of a larger pattern. The industry relies on complex vendor networks and outdated IT systems, while cybercriminals continue to exploit emerging vulnerabilities.Should hospitals be penalized for neglecting basic cybersecurity practices?Let us know by writing us atCyberguy.com/Contact.For more of my tech tips and security alerts, subscribe to my free CyberGuy Report Newsletter by heading toCyberguy.com/Newsletter.Ask Kurt a question or let us know what stories you'd like us to cover.Follow Kurt on his social channels:Answers to the most-asked CyberGuy questions:New from Kurt:Copyright 2025 CyberGuy.com.All rights reserved.

MSNBC's Joe Scarborough was confronted with a viral clip of him deeming former President Joe Biden the "best Biden ever" in March 2024 on Tuesday, standing by his assessment of the former president, citing his personal interactions with him.Speaking to Mark Halperin during his show, "Next Up with Mark Halperin," Scarborough watched the clip of himself, where he argued that the former president was "far beyond cogent.""I've said it for years now, he's cogent. But I undersold it when I said he was cogent, he's far beyond cogent. In fact, I think he's better than he's ever been, intellectually, analytically, because he's been around for 50 years," Scarborough said during a March 2024 "Morning Joe" broadcast. "Start your tape right now because Im about to tell you the truth. And f-you if you cant handle the truth. This version of Biden, intellectually, analytically, is the best Biden ever."After noting that Biden had good days and bad days, Halperin asked Scarbrough, "Looking back at that, do you say, well, it was misleading to say best Biden ever without caveating it and saying, except on the days when hes not the best Biden ever?"BIDEN INTERVIEW AUDIO REVEALS WHO BROUGHT UP BEAU'S DEATH AND IT WASN'T HURScarborough insisted he never saw the bad days personally. Earlier in the conversation, Scarborough detailed multiple meetings he had with Biden, during which the MSNBC host argued that Biden had a better "analysis" of the situation, related to Ukraine and Russia, than he had heard from most people.Halperin pushed back and told Scarborough, "Well, you did! You did, because you saw him address a dead congresswoman, and you saw him in South Carolina."Halperin argued he could show Scarborough several clips of days when the former president was not the best Biden ever and Scarborough pivoted the conversation to Trump.Scarborough argued, "He stumbled and bumbled around, Mark. I mean, yeah, he certainly did. Donald Trump did, other politicians did,and its actually the same case as a lot of times when Ive gone in and talked to Donald Trump. We go on to Donald Trump, and Ive heard the media narrative around Donald Trump, and certainly Ive been very critical of Donald Trump, and when I leave, I have a better understanding, just like Jeffrey Goldberg did a couple of weeks ago, a better understanding of where Donald Trump is mentally, if Donald Trump is losing it, like people have said through the years or not."BIDEN STRUGGLES WITH WORDS, KEY MEMORIES IN LEAKED AUDIO FROM SPECIAL COUNSEL HUR INTERVIEW"And so again, am I going to look at a clip thats gone viral and pay more attention to that than two and a half, three hours I had with a guy one-on-one going around the world? No, Im just not going to," the MSNBC host said. "Are some of the clips bad? Yeah, they certainly are bad.""Put into proper context, I'm just not going to freak out and melt down on one or two clips here and there," the "Morning Joe" host added. "And again he bumbled around, and he stumbled around, but he has for quite some time. That didn't seem to me to get in the way of Joe Biden being able to analyze the most important issues."Scarborough went after former Special Counsel Robert Hur in February 2024 for his report on the former president related to the classified documents probe that showed Biden struggling with key memories, including when his son Beau died, when he left the vice presidency and why he was in possession of classified documents he shouldn't have had."I'm just saying this guy says such random s---!" Scarborough said at the time, demanding that Hur apologize for his report.CLICK HERE FOR MORE COVERAGE OF MEDIA AND CULTURE"Does he hope he gets a judgeship? I think he does. I think he hopes he gets a judgeship if Donald Trump gets elected again because he's trying out, because he humiliated himself with that display," Scarborough added.The audio of the Hur-Biden interview was released on Friday, and CNN's Abby Phillip suggested Hur undersold the extent of Biden's lapses during the interview.

"Cheers" star George Wendt has died, Fox News Digital confirmed.The actor died peacefully in his sleep on Tuesday morning, according to a statement from a family representative shared with Fox News Digital."George was a doting family man, a well-loved friend and confidant to all of those lucky enough to have known him," the statement read.STARS WHO DIED IN 2025: PHOTOS"He will be missed forever. The family has requested privacy during this time."In all 275 episodes of the beloved NBC sitcom, "Cheers," Wendt starred as Norm Peterson. Throughout the show's course, Wendt earned six consecutive Emmy nominations for his role.LIKE WHAT YOURE READING? CLICK HERE FOR MORE ENTERTAINMENT NEWSAfter "Cheers" went off-air in 1993, the actor pivoted to his own show, "The George Wendt Show."WATCH A HISTORY OF THE WORLD IN SIX GLASSESWendt also appeared on the big screen in movies like "Alice in Wonderland," "The Little Rascals," "Santa Buddies," "Airplane II: The Sequel," and more."Cheers" was a sitcom that originally aired from 1982 to 1993 and was set in a Boston bar "where everybody knows your name."CLICK HERE TO SIGN UP FOR THE ENTERTAINMENT NEWSLETTERThe cast of cheers evolved over the show's 11 seasons, but key members included Ted Danson, Shelley Long, Rhea Perlman, John Ratzenberger and Nicholas Colasanto.Later cast additions included Kelsey Grammer, Woody Harrelson, Kirstie Alley and Bebe Neuwirth."Cheers" was nominated for 117 Emmy Awards and took home 28. The show also won six out of its 31 Golden Globe nominations.

President Donald Trump's rallying speech to House Republicans Tuesday morning wasn't enough to convince some holdouts to unite behind his "big, beautiful bill" ahead of a planned vote this week.Trump urged Republicans to cease infighting on Medicaid reform and state and local tax (SALT) deduction caps at the House GOPs weekly conference meeting. Several Republicans who emerged said they were still concerned enough to oppose the bill, however.House Freedom Caucus Chair Andy Harris, Rep. Eric Burlison of Missouri, Rep. Thomas Massie of Kentucky and representatives Nick LaLota, Mike Lawler and Andrew Garbino of New York told Fox News Digital Tuesday they would vote against the bill if changes were not made.On the other hand, Trump did persuade some people. Rep. Ralph Norman of South Carolina, one of several Republicans to sink a committee vote on the bill Friday, told reporters he would review it and make a "judgment call" ahead of a 1 a.m. meeting to advance the bill through the House Rules Committee.INSIDE TRUMP'S URGENT MEETING WITH HOUSE GOP TO PASS THE 'BIG, BEAUTIFUL BILL'Norman said Trump did a "fantastic job" and delivered "one of the best speeches I've heard" at the House GOP meeting, and he urged his blue state colleagues to "take the words the president said to heart about SALT."CONSERVATIVE RIPS BLUE STATE REPUBLICAN'S PROPOSAL TO RAISE TAXES ON WEALTHY IN SALT DEBATENorman and Rep. Chip Roy, R-Texas, are both members of the powerful rules panel who have not been shy about their concerns with the current bill. The committee acts as the final gatekeeper before most legislation sees a full House vote.Roy did not appear to attend Trump's speech but told reporters Monday evening the 1 a.m. Wednesday vote should be postponed.But the New York Republicans weren't budging after Trump's "big, beautiful" speech, maintaining the bill doesn't go far enough to deliver for middle-class New Yorkers on the SALT deduction cap."This is the single biggest issue that I've talked about, and, with all due respect to the president, I'm not budging," Lawler said."Between property taxes and income taxes, it blows well past the $30,000 cap with the $400,000 income cap. So, as I've said repeatedly, that is insufficient. We will continue the dialogue with leadership, but as it stands right now, I do not support the bill," Lawler said.Lawler said SALT is one of the biggest issues affecting his district in New York and campaigned on never supporting a tax bill that doesn't "adequately lift the cap.""The president can say whatever he wants, and I respect him, but the fact is, I certainly understand my district. I'm one of only three Republican members that won in a district Kamala Harris won, and I did so for reasons," Lawler said."We need a little more SALT on the table to get to this," fellow New York Republican LaLota added. "I hope the president's presence motivates my leadership to give us a number that we can go sell back home."LaLota said while he is still a "no," he hopes "the president's presence here today motivates some folks in the Ways and Means Committee and my leadership to give us a number to which we can actually say yes."When asked if Trump did enough to ease concerns in Tuesday's meeting, Garbarino, another New York Republican, said, "No. There were no specifics. It was more of a rally. We need to get this done.""We share President Trump's call for unity within the House Republican Conference," Rep. Young Kim, R-Calif., said in a joint statement after Trump's visit to Capitol Hill."We hope his remarks today motivate the Speaker to advance a SALT proposal that delivers meaningful relief for our middle-class constituents, as we have worked in good faith with House Leadership for more than a year," the statement from Kim, Garbarino, Lawler, LaLota and Rep. Tom Kean, R-N.J., said.Meanwhile, Trump urged Republicans not to "f--- with" Medicaid in his speech, though different factions came to different conclusions about what he meant.Rep. Andy Ogles of Tennessee, who was not in the room for Trump's speech, called for more cuts to the entitlement program in an X post Tuesday afternoon but told Fox News Digital he was opposed to the legislation as written."I agree with President Trump we must crush the waste, fraud, and abuse. Liberal states like California and New York are abusing Medicaid and making you pay for it. Illegal aliens and freeloaders have no right to taxpayer-funded benefits," Ogles said on X.Other fiscal conservatives, like Ogles, who were in the room, said the bill does not go far enough to reform Medicaid and would also vote "no" in the bill's current form."I think it's inappropriate for us to say we're not going to touch it and then leave all of this fraud that's happening in the system," Burlison said.Harris, the House Freedom Caucus chair, said, "I can't support the bill. It does not eliminate waste, fraud and abuse in Medicaid. The president called for waste, fraud and abuse to be eliminated. I don't think that's where the bill sits."Massie, known for being a libertarian, was unconvinced by Trump's appearance, telling reporters that his constituents didn't "vote for increased deficits and Biden-level spending."He acknowledged that younger members or those who harbor ambitions for higher office would likely fall in line, however."I think he probably closed the deal in there," Massie said.SALT deduction caps and Medicaid remain two of the biggest sticking points in Republican negotiations. SALT deduction caps primarily benefit people living in high-cost-of-living areas like New York City, Los Angeles and their surrounding suburbs. Republicans representing those areas have argued that raising the SALT deduction cap is a critical issue and that a failure to address it could cost the GOP the House majority in the 2026 midterms.Republicans in redder, lower-tax areas have said in response that SALT deductions favor wealthy people living in Democrat-controlled states and that such deductions reward progressive high-tax policies.It was Trump's Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 that first instituted caps on SALT deductions, setting the maximum at $10,000 for both married couples and single filers.SALT Caucus members have rejected House Republican leaders' offer to increase that to $30,000.Members of the conservative House Freedom Caucus, meanwhile, are pushing for the bill to be more aggressive in cutting waste, fraud and abuse in the Medicaid system, including a faster timeline for implementing work requirements for able-bodied recipients. Currently, the legislation has work requirements kicking in 2029.They also want to restructure Medicaid cost-sharing to put a bigger burden on the states. Moderates, meanwhile, have been wary of making significant cuts to the program.House GOP leaders are hoping to hold a full House vote on the bill this week.

FIRST ON FOX: Government watchdog group Democracy Restored is calling on the Department of Justice (DOJ) to investigate U.S. attorneys in the Southern District of New York (SDNY), accusing them of potentially seeking to undermine Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy's efforts to end New York City's driving tax, also known as a congestion tax.New York City's congestion pricing program essentially assesses drivers a toll for driving on some streets in Manhattan, with the price varying depending on the time of day.Late in the night of April 23, SDNY attorneys representing Duffy and the Department of Transportation published an 11-page confidential memo in federal court in Manhattan, explaining that the Trump administration's argument to end the NYC driver's tax was weak and included "considerable litigation risk." The next day, the memo was taken down from the public case docket, and the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District said the filing was a mistake.In response, officials at the Transportation Department said they would be transferring the case to the DOJ's civil division, according to the New York Times. Fox News Digital reached out to the DOT to confirm the attorneys involved in the mistaken filing were off the case, but did not immediately receive a response.TRANSPORTATION SECRETARY SEAN DUFFY BLAMES BIDEN ADMIN FOR DATED AIR TRAFFIC CONTROL SYSTEM"It's imperative to know whether this filing was inadvertent, and incompetent, or something worse," Houston Keene, the director of Democracy Restored said. "The memo contains confidential legal advice that just happens to criticize the secretary and department's legal strategy quite an inconvenient document to have made public for lawyers doing their best for their client."Democracy Restored said in its letter that more fact-finding must take place, but indicated there are "a variety" of potential ethical and legal violations associated with the mistaken filing, particularly if the act was done on purpose.While it can not be concluded whether the act stemmed from incompetence, or whether it was purposeful, Democracy Restored points to the "partisan political activity" and involvement in political non-profits by the attorneys involved, suggesting it could shed light on the motivations behind the action.EXCLUSIVE: 'SHADY TRIAL LAWYER PIPELINE' FUNNELING MILLIONS TO DEMOCRATS, ACCORDING TO REPORTAccording to Democracy Restored, the attorneys involved were all registered Democrats and had a history of donating to Democratic political candidates and campaigns. The attorneys' public social media posts also showed them supporting left-wing political groups and acts of defiance against President Donald Trump's executive directives."US Attorneys must be nonpartisan and objective in their work and the partisan backgrounds of these attorneys add to the doubts," Keene said. "Far too many questions remain unanswered about this incident. The DOJ must investigate this matter immediately."In early January, NYC launched its congestion pricing program, or driver's tax, which imposed a $9 daytime toll on most individuals driving their cars into Manhattan's core, south of Central Park. A month later, the Trump administration issued a federal order meant to halt the program by March 21, but the tolls have continued as the result of a federal lawsuit filed by New York City's Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA), the state agency that runs New York City's public transit system.IF THESE STATES DONT COMPLY, WE WONT APPROVE THE FLOW OF THE BILLIONS GOING TO THEM: SEAN DUFFYThe Department of Transportation and the MTA subsequently reached an agreement extending the deadline to end the program until at least the fall. Earlier this month, as the legal battle over the matter has continued, New York City and the MTA requested a federal judge block the Trump administration's efforts to squash the program. City officials say the program has significantly reduced congestion, improving travel times due to reduced traffic.Because the program involves tolls on federal highways, it must have Department of Transportation approval.The Justice Department declined to comment for this article. Fox News Digital also reached out to the Department of Transportation and the office of the U.S. Attorney or the Southern District of New York, but did not hear back in advance of publication.

Before Jasper Troy received a contract for the WWE NXT brand, he had dreams of dominating in between the hashmarks instead of in between the ropes.Troy, whose real name is Antoine Frazer, played college football at Northern Iowa before he decided to start his journey into a WWE ring. He told Fox News Digital that getting into the company was always dream for him, even back when he was picking up the sticks with his friends.CLICK HERE FOR MORE SPORTS COVERAGE ON FOXNEWS.COM"For me, wrestling was always a dream. I know its so oversaid, but for me, I was really locked in every Monday, every Thursday. Sunday, I would watch the little preview pay-per-view channel just to get a glimpse of what the pay-per-view was going to be like," he said. "For me, it was begging for the newest SmackDown vs. Raw (video game). Going to my friends house, and thats what we would play all day and night."Troy said football wasnt fun anymore as he competed for the Panthers and finished his collegiate career.Eventually, he said there came a point in which football wasnt fun anymore. The sport he grew to love fell out of favor with him."Me and my brother, we would always talk about wrestling together," he said. "I was playing football, and I was lucky to be successful at playing football but, like (Tyra Mae Steele) said, it just got to a point where it wasnt fun anymore.WWE STAR ZELINA VEGA RECALLS WRESTLING IN NJ, MAKING HISTORY AS US CHAMP AND TOUTS SUMMERSLAM"It stopped being about the things that made me love the sport, especially at a college level, a D1 level. There were so many more factors that, coming where I come from, I was exposed to at the time, but I dont think I was mature enough to adapt to my surroundings as well as other guys on my team were."He said there was a time when he had to make a decision about what came next, and his heart was set on pro wrestling. He said he had the support from his trainers, but they implored him to finish school first."When COVID hit I just had a chance to look away from football for like a year and really figure out what I wanted to do with my life," he told Fox News Digital. "I love football and I could keep chasing this dream and see how far I could really make it and I just kept seeing more wrestling on my TV during COVID."It was all perfect timing for me. As soon as I did my pro day, I had a tryout with the WWE, and after that, I just fell in love, and that was it. It was that fire I had when I was a kid. It was a whole new experience for me, and after that, I said, Im done with football. Im a full-time WWE superstar."Troy will now get to make an impact on the NXT roster and join the rising stars in the mens division there.Follow Fox News Digitalssports coverage on X and subscribe to the Fox News Sports Huddle newsletter.

Dave Portnoy will not let anyone say he is a Caitlin Clark fan simply because she is White.In a recent edition of his podcast, ESPN analyst Ryan Clark name-dropped the Barstool Sports founder as someone on the "hate train" of Angel Reese following her spat with Clark over the weekend.Clark said Portnoy, Keith Olbermann and Robert Griffin III have made Reese the "villain" and Clark "heroic."CLICK HERE FOR MORE SPORTS COVERAGE ON FOXNEWS.COMPortnoy posted a video over six minutes long in which he said he "can't believe I'm ranting about this again," responding to Clark.Portnoy made it a point to mention that he is "sure there are some Black people who hate Caitlin just because she's White. I'm sure there are White people who hate Angel just because she's Black."But he is not one of those people, and he believed the Reese hate is warranted."Caitlin fans have every reason to hate Angel Reese. Fever fans, Caitlin fans should hate Angel Reese. Angel Reese has been nothing but an instigator, agitator and jacka-- basically for the last couple years," Portnoy said in his video."Angel Reese has doubled down, tripled down, quadrupled down and has built her persona as Caitlin's rival. It's one thing after another, after another. The jealousy that Angel Reese has towards her and has consistently shown makes Caitlin fans hate her. When you have one player that's constantly poking at you, constantly degrading you, yes, you're going to f---ing hate her.""I'm sick of ESPN making it a race issue," he continued. "You have a superior basketball player who constantly has someone below taking shots at them, won't shut up and then plays the victim. If [Angel] didn't have Caitlin, nobody would know who she is. If Caitlin didn't have Angel, it would be the same popularity for Caitlin."CAITLIN CLARK SPEAKS OUT ON WNBA'S PROBE INTO ALLEGED 'HATEFUL COMMENTS' TOWARD ANGEL REESEClark and Reese got into a mini-scuffle after Clark fouled Reese hard; it was ruled a flagrant. Clark later labeled the foul as a "good take foul," as she didn't want Reese to have a "free two points" underneath the basket. Reese later agreed despite her visible frustrations early on.Clark and Reese have major history going back to the 2023 NCAA womens basketball national championship. Both players downplayed the incident. Both have even said there's no rivalry between them and that it's been driven by the media.Portnoy attended the contest and said Reese "deserved to get booed" after getting upset with Clark. He was also upset with the WNBA's investigation into alleged hate comments directed toward Reese."Listen, I was at the game. If there was somebody being racist or saying s---, obviously boot them, never let them back," Portnoy said. "I would be stunned beyond belief if that was the case. The crowd at the Fever game? Little girls, families, ladies, nice crowd. Were we mad when Angel Reese attacked Cailtin Clark for no reason? Yeah. Did we boo her? Yeah. Is it sports? Yeah."For the WNBA and now the Indiana Fever to issue statements, Were investigating, unless something so preposterous happened that nobody in the stadium saw, theres not an ounce of proof, theres not a video of it, theres [no] camera phone of it, unless something happened, which I know it didnt. For them to acknowledge this and, again, kind of paint Indiana Fever fans, like, by just saying Were investigating the hate even though its 100% false, by acknowledging, We dont condone hate,' and not seeing that this was an internet rumor founded of complete bulls---, youre lending credence to this."Clark told ESPNs Holly Rowe after the third quarter that there had been "nothing malicious" behind the foul.Fox News' Chantz Martin contributed to this report.Follow Fox News Digitalssports coverage on X,and subscribe tothe Fox News Sports Huddle newsletter.

Senate Republicans indicated that they intend to vote this week on whether to nix California's emissions waiver from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), which has allowed the blue state to adopt stricter vehicle emissions standards than those imposed at the federal level, including a mandate that all vehicles sold in the state must be electric by 2035.The planned vote sets up a battle between Republicans and Democrats over whether the waiver is a government "rule" subject to the Congressional Review Act, which allows Congress to get rid of regulations with just a simple majority, as opposed to the typical 60-votes required to pass a bill. Democrats have described the GOP maneuvering as a "nuclear option" aimed at upending formal Senate rules."The administration says it's a rule. The GAO has said it's not. The United States Senate is going to be heard from on this issue tomorrow and do something that will avoid, again, what I think and what a lot of people across this country think, would be a catastrophic outcome and that is an EV mandate that would be imposed, across the United States," Senate Majority Leader Thune said during a press conference from the Capitol on Tuesday afternoon.35 DEMOCRATS VOTE WITH GOP TO BLOCK BIDEN RULE ALLOWING NEWSOM'S GAS CAR BANThe waiver, which gives California officials latitude to make their vehicle emissions standards stricter than those at the federal level, also allows other states to choose whether they want to follow federal standards or California's stricter ones."Obviously, the Democrats are going to make a lot of noise," Thune added during the Tuesday afternoon press conference, referring to the party's criticism of Republicans' procedural maneuvering."But the truth of the matter is, this has nothing to do with the legislative filibuster," Thune continued. "This is the Congress and the United States Senate submitting to the body the question of whether or not the Government Accountability Office, the GAO, ought to be able to determine for us what it is and isn't a rule."'FLOOD THE SYSTEM': US ATTORNEY UNLEASHES NEW TASK FORCE TO CRACK DOWN ON BLUE STATE'S SANCTUARY POLICIESElizabeth MacDonough, the Senate parliamentarian who interprets and advises on the congressional rules officials must follow, agreed with the Government Accountability Office's determination that California's EPA waiver is not considered a "rule." The discrepancy has led Democrats to claim Republicans are attempting to upend the Senate filibuster, an important tool for the minority party to gain leverage in the legislative process.However, during Tuesday's short press conference, Thune slammed Democrats for complaining about the GOP's maneuvering around the filibuster, pointing out they have tried to knock it down themselves in the past when convenient for their party's priorities."The only people that have attempted to get rid of a legislative filibuster, the Democrats, every single one of them up there that's popping off and spouting off, has voted, voted literally to get rid of the legislative filibuster," Thune said in response to a reporter's question about Democrats' criticism."This is a novel and narrow issue that deals with the Government Accountability Office and whether, or not, they ought to be able to determine what is a rule and what isn't, or whether the administration and the Congress ought to be able to make that decision."

There is now a heavy favorite in the flag football competition at the 2028 Summer Olympics.NFL owners unanimously approved a motion Tuesday that allows NFL players to participate in the summer games.Flag football is making its first appearance three years from now when the Olympics return to Los Angeles for the first time since 1984.CLICK HERE FOR MORE SPORTS COVERAGE ON FOXNEWS.COM"Players have expressed to us a great desire for the honor of competing in the Olympics, and we're excited that our members will be able to represent their country on the highest international stage," NFLPA executive director Lloyd Howell said in a statement. "We look forward to working with the league, IFAF and Olympic authorities on the terms of their participation to ensure players who compete will do so with protections to their health, safety and job."When he heard the news he'd be allowed to participate, Justin Jefferson said he was "at a loss for words.""To think about the chance of playing in the Olympics and getting a gold medal, its a dream," he said.The league has experimented with flag football, replacing its Pro Bowl with skill competitions, including a flag football game.NFL OWNERS TO DISCUSS REVISED TUSH PUSH BAN, PLAYOFF AND FLAG FOOTBALL PROPOSALSLast month, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell said interest in competing in the Summer Olympics has been a hot topic in the league, adding a resolution on the issue may be forthcoming."Well, Ive heard directly from a lot of players who want to participate and represent their country, whether its the United States or a country that they came from," Goodell said in April."I think that's something that we'll continue to discuss with, not just the union, but also the clubs. I think both of those are things that we'll probably resolve sometime in the next 60 days."Several players have shown interest, including Patrick Mahomes, Tyreek Hill, Aaron Jones, and Kyle Juszczyk. Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts, who won the Super Bowl in February, was also recently tabbed the flag football ambassador for the Games.Follow Fox News Digitalssports coverage on X,and subscribe tothe Fox News Sports Huddle newsletter.