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SEC, Big 12, Pac-12 see revenue drop in 2024 fiscal year

The final business year for the Power Five conferences, as college sports fans have come to know them, was not exactly business as usual. With schools’ affiliations already beginning to change, and various legal entanglements going on, three of the five conferences reported declines in total revenue on their federal tax records for their 2024 fiscal years – and the Power Five’s combined total revenue very narrowly declined.

That’s far from a cause for alarm, but it is the first such year-over-year decrease in a non-pandemic-affected year since USA TODAY Sports began compiling these records by obtaining data reaching back to fiscal 2011, when the Big East Conference still was playing football and there were six power conferences. In most years, the annual increase has been at least $150 million.

And that may well return to being the power-conference norm, as the Big Ten and Southeastern conferences appear headed toward revenue booms for their ongoing 2025 fiscal years that likely will take each to at least $1 billion, and the Pac-12’s demise and dispersal will help boost income for the Atlantic Coast Conference and the Big 12.

BEST OF BEST: Our ranking of college football’s top 25 coaches

But with the ACC, Big 12 and Pac-12 providing their new returns this week in response to requests from USA TODAY Sports, and the Big Ten and SEC having done so previously, the combined revenue tally for fiscal 2024 was nearly $3.54 billion, compared to a little more than $3.55 billion for fiscal 2023.

Here is conference-by-conference rundown for the three that released their tax records this week (IRS rules require revenue and expense data to be reported on a fiscal-year basis and pay data on a calendar-year basis):

Pac-12

Revenue: $566.6 million, fourth among Power Five.

Per-school payouts: $30.15 million for the 10 other than Oregon State and Washington State; $46.6 million for Oregon State and Washington State. Overall average for the 12 schools: $32.9 million, fifth among Power Five.

Commissioner’s pay: George Kliavkoff, who was ousted as of the end of February 2024, was credited with nearly $3.7 million in total compensation for the 2023 calendar year. That was about $300,000 less than his total for 2022. His base pay increased by more than $150,000 in 2023, but he received a $500,000 bonus in 2022 and no bonus in 2023.

Overview: The conference’s revenue fell by more the $37 million compared to fiscal 2023 as 10 schools were getting set to move, variously, to the ACC, Big Ten and Big 12. That hurt sponsorship and other revenue. Meanwhile, the conference-owned Pac-12 Networks operated at a $14 million loss for a variety of reasons, including some related to the conference’s impending shakeup. In addition, bowl revenue declined by a little over $19 million primarily because the Rose Bowl was a College Football Playoff semifinal rather than a game affiliated with the Pac-12, as has occurred every three years.

A legal dispute over the future of the conference and its assets that pitted Oregon State and Washington State against the 10 departing schools ended with a settlement under which each of the 10 agreed to a $6.5 million reduction in its distribution from the conference.

From that $65 million, Oregon State and Washington State — as the only remaining voting members of the conference — added $10 million to each of their distributions to help cover their costs of continuing as the Pac-12 Conference for at least the two-year interim period allowed under NCAA rules, a statement from the conference said.

This included costs “related to future non-conference scheduling, affiliate membership in other conferences across basketball and several Olympic sports and other financial considerations,” the statement said.

Separate from the annual revenues and expenses — which resulted in an annual surplus despite the revenue declined — the Pac-12 deducted about $58.4 million from its net assets to finally settle overpayments that Comcast made over a five-year period to the Pac-12 Networks.

ACC

Revenue: $711.4 million, third among Power Five.

Per-school payouts: Ranged from $43.1 million to $46.4 million, except for Notre Dame, which received $20.7 million. The average was third among Power Five.

Commissioner’s pay: Jim Phillips was credited with nearly $4.1 million in total compensation, including almost $3.95 million in base compensation. The base amount represents a roughly 50% increase over his total for the 2022 calendar year. This was “a compensation adjustment at the direction of the board” of directors of the conferences, which comprises school CEO’s, a conference spokesperson said.

Overview: The conference’s fiscal 2024 revenue was nearly identical to its 2023 revenue of $706.7 million. Its outside legal expenses jumped from $7.2 million to $12.3 million amid membership disputes with Clemson and Florida State, as well as the House-NCAA litigation.

Looking ahead, revenue for the ongoing 2025 fiscal year will increase due to the additions of California, Stanford and SMU, and this will be the first year in which the conference’s revenue-sharing arrangements will take into account incentive payments for team success in football, men’s basketball and women’s basketball.

Under a settlement of the disputes with Clemson and Florida State, during the fiscal year that begins July 1, 2025 – so, for the 2025-26 school year – the revenue-sharing arrangements also will take into account viewership for football and men’s basketball games covered by the ACC’s contract with ESPN and the ACC Network.

Big 12

Revenue: $493.8 million, fourth among Power Five.

Per-school payouts: Ranged from $37.8 million to $42.1 million for the schools other than newcomers BYU, Houston, Central Florida and Cincinnati, which averaged about $20 million apiece. The larger payouts were fourth among Power Five.

Commissioner’s pay: Brett Yormark was credited with a total of nearly $4.4 million, including just over $2.5 million categorized as base pay and $1.25 million in bonus pay.

Overview: The conference’s total revenue declined by about $17 million from the fiscal 2023 amount and the conference reported a nearly $37 million annual operating deficit.

While revenue in four areas covered by the tax records increased, its bowl revenue dropped from just over $157 million in fiscal 2023 to $110.6 million in 2024. In a statement, the conference said this was mainly due to the CFP semifinal rotation, which resulted in the Big 12 not being contracted to appear in the Sugar Bowl during this fiscal cycle.

As previously reported, Oklahoma and Texas received full revenue shares for their final year in the conference, even as the four new schools joined.

(This story was updated with new information.)

This post appeared first on USA TODAY
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Former FBI Director James Comey meets with Secret Service after controversial ’86 47′ post

Former FBI Director James Comey is expected to meet face to face with U.S. Secret Service officials in Washington, D.C. for an interview about his ’86 47′ post, two sources briefed on the meeting told Fox News.

Comey is under investigation for an Instagram post showing seashells arranged on a beach to read ’86 47.’

‘Cool shell formation on my beach walk,’ he wrote in the since-deleted post. Some have interpreted the post to mean ’86’ – get rid of –  ’47’ – Donald Trump, the 47th president.  

The U.S. Secret Service is leading the investigation at this point, but the FBI and Department of Justice could take a larger role if necessary, Fox News is told.

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UN said to be stalling reforms in hopes Democrats flip House in midterm elections

While the United Nations, through its UN80 Task Force, continues a public-facing attempt to slash its budget to manage a decline in external contributions and in recognition of overlapping mandates and duplicated efforts, a U.N. diplomatic source tells Fox News Digital that the effort is an attempt ‘to keep a mammoth organization untouched’ until 2026 midterm elections.

The source explained that the ‘zero-growth budget’ proposed for 2026 has already been prepared, and that ‘talk about how we’re going to get it leaner’ is only intended to ‘take [President] Trump for a sucker.’ The source said that the U.N. believes that the budget will tide the U.N. over until the House flips to Democratic control and Trump will no longer be able to ‘inflict damages to the U.N.’

The source claimed the effort is the ‘brain child’ of the U.N. Foundation, something the group refuted.

‘We have never proposed linking U.N. budgetary deliberations to the U.S. mid-term elections,’ a spokesperson from the U.N. Foundation told Fox News Digital.

‘The U.N. Foundation is an independent organization, separate from the U.N. itself. We are not involved in the U.N.’s budget process, which is decided by the U.N. General Assembly. We also share a widely held view that there is scope for efficiencies and innovations to strengthen delivery of the U.N.’s lifesaving work,’ the spokesperson added.

Fox News Digital viewed internal documents which show efforts by various U.N. entities to direct cost-cutting measures. The source says some show the disingenuous nature of the effort. 

A UN80 memo from the U.N. Resident Coordinators in Africa from April 2025 discusses how previous reforms have failed. It explains that they ‘did not fully address incentives for collaboration,’ which left U.N. entities to ‘too often prioritize their corporate obligations over system-wide coherence.’ Coordination, the memo reads, ‘is too easily viewed as additional work rather than a core responsibility,’ and ‘funding competition further compounds these issues.’

While the memo identifies two options for reorganization, it notes that ‘implementing such ambitious structural reforms, especially Option 1, will require a medium-term phased approach over a 5-10 year horizon,’ and notes that Option 2 ‘is not likely to be viable if no structural changes are made to [headquarters] level entities.’ 

The U.N. source says the memo ‘shows…the inability of the U.N. to reform itself.’ 

Another memo from the office of the Secretary-General sent on April 25 directs Secretariat entities to perform a ‘functional review for cost reductions and efficiencies.’ Among the directions provided is that personnel ‘identify which functions could be relocated,’ including ‘at a minimum the functions, organizational units, post numbers, and grade levels proposed for relocation.’ 

Numbers were to be sent to the Office of the Controller by May 16, noting that the ‘tight deadline’ is in line with the ‘very limited timeframe’ the U.N. has ‘to prepare and submit the revised estimates through [the Advisory Committee on Administrative and Budgetary Questions (ACABQ)]’ so they might be considered ‘within the overall context of the proposed programme budget for 2026.’

Fox News Digital’s source called foul on the earnestness of the endeavor. ‘This Secretary-General has to deal with bodies that, even though they are called the United Nations, they do not depend on him,’ they explained. ‘The document does not represent any value legally, because none of their boards have committed nor listened or reviewed’ the order. 

Fox News Digital asked Secretary-General Antonio Guterres’ spokesperson Stephane Dujarric whether Guterres could expect organizations with independent boards to enforce changes like those addressed in his memo. ‘We do not take such a pessimistic view. The Secretary-General and the heads of the U.N. Funds and Programmes will act in areas under their authority while, of course, keeping the governing bodies informed,’ Dujarric said.

Before the deadline for responses came due, Guterres delivered a May 12 briefing admitting that the proposal for the 2026 budget ‘was already given to ACABQ some time ago and it will be impossible to change it at the present moment.’ While Guterres said he would present revised proposals in September in time for budget approvals, he explained that ‘changes that require more detailed analysis will be presented in the proposal’ for the 2027 budget.

Fox News Digital’s source says the admission is proof that ‘this whole attempt is a lie to appease the Americans so they don’t go harsh enough and cut anything right now.’ 

On May 13, Guterres addressed a letter to all U.N. staff about the need for ‘bold, transformative thinking’ and extensive reforms to bring the U.N. out of its liquidity crisis. While expressing gratitude for employees’ ‘extraordinary dedication, expertise and creativity’ he warned ‘that ‘leaks’ and rumours may create unnecessary anxiety,’ Guterres said that ‘it will be inevitable that we cannot leave all posts untouched.’

After over three decades of working for the U.N., the source says they have ‘seen the U.N. attempt to change itself at least five times.’ Instead, they said that the U.N. only got ‘a larger footprint.’ They explained that other insiders ‘are fed up that the organization is not changing.’

‘You have…a super state that basically controls itself,’ the source explained. ‘And you should also trust them to reorganize themselves?’ they asked.

Whether the U.N. could hold out for promised change is unknown. The Economist reported in May that due to nonpayment of fees, the U.N. may run out of funds to pay its suppliers and employees by the General Assembly in September.

This post appeared first on FOX NEWS
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Nvidia says it is not sending GPU designs to China after reports of new Shanghai operation

Nvidia said it won’t be sending graphics processing unit plans to China following a report that the artificial intelligence chipmaker is working on a research and development center in Shanghai in light of recent U.S. export curbs.

“We are not sending any GPU designs to China to be modified to comply with export controls,” a spokesperson said in a statement to CNBC.

The Financial Times was the first to report the news, citing two sources familiar with the matter. CEO Jensen Huang discussed the potential new center with Shanghai’s mayor, Gong Zheng, during a visit last month, the FT reported.

The center will assess ways to meet U.S. restrictions while catering to the local market, although production and design will continue outside China, according to the report.

AI chipmakers such as Nvidia have been hit with major China roadblocks since 2022 as the U.S. began cracking down on sending advanced chips to China because of concerns of possible military use.

Last week, the Trump administration said it would replace restrictions put in place under President Joe Biden with a “much simpler rule that unleashes American innovation and ensures American AI dominance.” Nvidia said last month that it would take a $5.5 billion charge tied to selling its H20 GPUs in China and other countries.

Huang has previously commented on the significance of China, which is one of the company’s major market after the U.S., Singapore and Taiwan. He told CNBC this month that getting shut out of the world second-largest economy would be a “tremendous loss,” estimating that China’s AI market could hit $50 billion over the next two to three years.

“We just have to stay agile,” Huang told CNBC’s Jon Fortt, in an interview alongside ServiceNow CEO Bill McDermott. “Whatever the policies are of the government, whatever is in the best interest of our country, we’ll support,” he added.

This post appeared first on NBC NEWS
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Yankees player shares heartfelt post after gruesome injury

Days after a gruesome ankle injury, New York Yankees infielder Oswaldo Cabrera took to social media to announce that he had undergone surgery.

“Today, after a successful surgery with an excellent medical team and God, with my parents, my fiancée, and my agent, my heart full of love, I want to THANK YOU ALL,” Cabrera wrote on Instagram. “Thank you for worrying about me, thank you for every message, for keeping me in your prayers, for making me feel so supported. This is something my family and I will never forget!’

Trying to score on Aaron Judge’s sacrifice fly on May 12 in Seattle, Cabrera suffered a broken right ankle during sliding into home plate in the ninth inning. An ambulance came onto the field at T-Mobile Park to pick up the 26-year-old, who was taken to the hospital.

Cabrera also thanked Judge and shortstop Anthony Volpe for coming to visit him the night of the game.

‘My captain Aaron Judge and another one of my favorite people, Anthony Volpe, were there,’ Cabrera said. ‘They didn’t have to be there, but they still went without even having anything in their stomachs.’

Cabrera had started 30 of the Yankees’ first 41 games of the season at third base, batting .243 with one home run and 11 RBIs in 107 at-bats.

“My return to the field begins today,’ Cabrera wrote. ‘Thanks to you, I feel more motivated than ever. With the strength I’ve always had and all of this beautiful energy that all of you give me, I tell you that I will return, and I will return even stronger to continue giving my best every day.’

The USA TODAY app gets you to the heart of the news — fast. Download for award-winning coverage, crosswords, audio storytelling, the eNewspaper and more.

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Bill Belichick: Girlfriend handles ‘business things’ unrelated to UNC

On Friday, he was able to do something that, of late, has been just as impressive — discuss his personal life on television without someone interjecting off-camera.

The first-year North Carolina head coach sat down for an interview on “Good Morning America” with Michael Strahan in which he discussed his life in football, his newly released memoir and, yes, his relationship with his girlfriend, Jordon Hudson.

Strahan, the Pro Football Hall of Famer who was on the 2007 New York Giants team that denied Belichick’s New England Patriots a perfect season in Super Bowl XLII, asked Belichick about Hudson roughly eight minutes into their nearly 10-minute interview.

“She’s been terrific through the whole process,” Belichick said. “She’s been very helpful to me. She does the business things that don’t relate to North Carolina that come up in my life so I can concentrate on football. That’s really what I want to do.”

When asked later what Hudson means to him, Belichick was more succinct.

“We have a good personal relationship. You know I’m not talking about personal relationships, Michael,” Belichick said, with a smile. “You know that.”

While Belichick coaching at the college level for the first time in his distinguished career figured to be one of the most closely followed storylines of the upcoming 2025 college football season, his relationship with the 24-year-old Hudson has driven most of the discussion around North Carolina football the past several weeks.

In late April, while promoting his book, Belichick sat down for a disastrous interview with “CBS Sunday Morning” in which Hudson, sitting off-camera, butted in to tell interviewer Tony Dokoupil that the coach wouldn’t be answering a question about how the two met. According to multiple reports, Hudson interrupted the interview several times and at one point stormed off, delaying taping by 30 minutes.

Hudson, according to Strahan, was not present for Friday’s “Good Morning America” interview.

A report last Friday from journalist Pablo Torre, who spoke to 11 sources on the matter, noted that Hudson had been banned from North Carolina’s football facility and that members of the Belichick family have expressed “deep worry for how detrimental” Hudson can be for Belichick’s legacy and reputation.

In his book, The Art of Winning: Lessons from My Life in Football, the 73-year-old Belichick described Hudson as his “creative muse.”

Later in Friday’s interview, Belichick dove into something that has often been ignored over the past several months — his actual North Carolina team.

There have been questions about how an NFL stalwart will adjust to the college game, particularly with the advent of NIL deals and the transfer portal. Belichick alluded to the expected revenue-sharing model that will be coming to college sports in wake of the House settlement and said it could end up being similar to how roster management worked in the NFL with a salary cap. He also said that while there have been some adjustments and learning experiences, he hasn’t had to change the way he coaches in college.

“They’re so eager,” he said of his team. “They’re hungry. They have dreams. They want to be good. I want to help make them good. I want to help make them good on a good team. It’s really been exciting to work with these guys. Some of them don’t have bad habits, either. You can start to mold some of them. Now, some of them don’t have some of the good experience a great player has, but it’s great to work with them. They’ve been very enthusiastic and we’ve made a lot of progress. We’ve got a long way to go, of course.”

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Tick, tock: Time for Thunder to step up, help Shai Gilgeous-Alexander

OK, let’s see what the Oklahoma City Thunder have.

After winning a franchise-best 68 games and earning the top seed in the Western Conference this season with a team built to reach the NBA Finals, the Thunder are on the brink of … elimination or a trip to the conference finals.

The Denver Nuggets forced a Game 7 with a 119-107 victory in Game 6 on Thursday in the conference semifinals. Game 7 is Sunday (3:30 p.m. ET, ABC).

It’s Thunder-Nuggets with pressure-filled stakes. A team on the rise vs. the 2023 NBA champions. MVP finalists Shai Gilgeous-Alexander vs. Nikola Jokic.

Denver is no stranger to Game 7s. The Nuggets won a Game 7 twice in the 2020 bubble, lost a Game 7 last season and won one in the first round this season against the Los Angeles Clippers.

Can they go on the road and get one? Home teams win Game 7 of a best-of-seven series 73.9% of the time (113-40). But in the past few seasons, it’s common for a road team to win Game 7. Golden State did it in the first round against Houston this season, and it happened twice in 2024, 2023, 2022 and 2021.

Here are the Game 6 winners and losers from the Oklahoma City Thunder-Denver Nuggets:

Thunder-Nuggets Game 6 winners

Jamal Murray

The Nuggets guard didn’t feel well when he went to bed Wednesday and woke up Thursday feeling worse. He informed the team, and medical personnel gave him fluids and medicine. Listed as questionable, Murray started and delivered a much-needed performance, scoring 11 of his 25 points in the first quarter. He also had eight rebounds and seven assists.

Murray comes to play in elimination games. In 12 such games, Murray averages 27.6 points, 5.3 rebounds and 5.3 assists and shoots 49.2% from the field and 40.5% on 3-pointers.

Nikola Jokic

The Thunder have made offense difficult for Jokic, the NBA’s offensive jedi. His scoring and assists are down in this series, but he still makes winning plays. He did that in Game 6 with 29 points, 14 rebounds, eight assists and two steals, and he was 10-for-12 on free throws. Jokic had 17 points in the second half when the Nuggets outscored the Thunder 61-46 – and 11 in the fourth quarter.

Julian Strawther

Entering Game 6, Strawther, a second-year reserve guard-forward, had played in just seven of Denver’s 12 playoff games. He was scoreless in three of those, had no more than three points in three other games and had nine points in one game.

Needing some offensive help with Russell Westbrook struggling, Nuggets interim coach David Adelman turned to Strawther, who scored a playoff-career high 15 points – all in the second half.

His points were necessary. He scored eight points during a 10-0 run in the third quarter helping Denver to a 90-80 lead, and he had seven points during a 14-7 run in the fourth that extended Denver’s lead to 109-93.

Christian Braun

Braun had a fantastic regular season, one that made him part of the Most Improved Player of the Year discussion though he wasn’t a finalist for the award. He doubled his scoring average from 7.3 points to 15.4 points per game. His shooting percentage from the field increased from 46% to 58% and his free throw percentage from 69.4% to 82.7%. He shot 39.7% on 3-pointers.

He scored a playoff career-high 23 points on 8-for-14 shooting and had 11 rebounds, five assists and three steals.

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander

Gilgeous-Alexander had a game-high 32 points with six assists and was 11-for-16 from the field and 8-for-11 on free throws. He just didn’t have enough offensive help, especially in the second half.

Denver’s aggressiveness

The Nuggets outscored the Thunder 27-10 on free throws, and after Gilgeous-Alexander, just two other Thunder players attempted free throws. Six Nuggets went to the free throw line, making 84.4% to OKC’s 62.5%.

Thunder-Nuggets Game 6 losers

OKC’s second-half offense

The Thunder scored 46 points in the second half after putting up 61 in the first half. In the third and fourth quarters, they were 19-for-50 from the field and 4-for-23 on 3s – 2-for-12 from that range in the fourth quarter.

Jalen Williams’ shooting

Williams, an All-Star for the first time this season, had just six points on 3-for-16 shooting. He contributed in other ways (10 assists, seven rebounds, three steals), but the Thunder need his scoring. He was the team’s second-leading scorer this season at 21.6 points per game but in Oklahoma City’s past three games, he is just 10-for-43 from the field and 2-for-14 on 3s.

Thunder rebounding

Denver owned a 52-40 edge in rebounding, including a 41-33 advantage on defensive rebounds and 11-7 advantage on offensive rebounds. The Nuggets turned those offensive boards into 23 second-chance points while holding the Thunder to nine second-chance points.

Follow NBA reporter Jeff Zillgitt on social media @JeffZillgitt

This post appeared first on USA TODAY
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FLASHBACK: Comey had another anti-Trump seashell photo moment during 2024 election

Ex-FBI Director James Comey had another anti-Trump seashell moment prior to his Thursday Instagram post that showed seashells arranged to show the numbers ’86 47,’ a message that White House officials swiftly condemned as an attempt to incite a ‘hit’ against the 47th president.

Comey posted a photo of a single larger seashell that was painted blue with the words ‘Vote Harris’ on it in October 2024. ‘Saw this at the beach,’ the ex-FBI chief captioned the post. ‘Ariel understands the assignment,’ he added, apparently a reference to the main character of Disney’s ‘The Little Mermaid.’

Comey’s propensity to post images of political messages on the beach has gotten him into some hot water after the Secret Service said it was sending agents to investigate and interview Comey.

Shortly after posting the image, Comey took it down and subsequently put up a separate post acknowledging the matter. 

‘I posted earlier a picture of some shells I saw today on a beach walk, which I assumed were a political message,’ Comey said in his subsequent post. ‘I didn’t realize some folks associate those numbers with violence. It never occurred to me but I oppose violence of any kind so I took the post down.’

The FBI, where Comey used to work before he was fired by Trump during his first term, had no comment on the matter, but it was also apparent that people at the top levels of the agency were aware of the post. Trump’s new FBI director, Kash Patel, acknowledged on X that agency personnel were ‘aware’ of Comey’s post, in his own statement shared on X.

‘We are in communication with the Secret Service and Director Curran,’ Patel said. ‘Primary jurisdiction is with SS on these matters and we, the FBI, will provide all necessary support.’

Comey’s Thursday Instagram post was roundly criticized, including by the president, for working to stoke political violence.

‘There is no doubt that James Comey hated Donald Trump,’ Ted Cruz said. ‘There is also no doubt that the extreme rhetoric from the left contributes to an atmosphere of violence.’

‘If a right-winger posted this against a leftist, all hell would break loose. But because it’s James Comey—the man who weaponized the FBI against President Trump—the left is silent,’ Tennessee Republican Rep. Andy Ogles said. ‘That’s unacceptable. The Left invented the term ‘stochastic terrorism’ to go after conservatives anytime they voiced a strong opinion.’

The ex-FBI chief appears to have a propensity to post his political leanings on social media. An Instagram post, as recently as March 31, included an animated image stating, ‘TRANS PEOPLE BELONG,’ while in February Comey posted ‘a message from my former colleagues’ that could be considered to be aimed at Republicans and President Trump.

‘Know that these people – some evil, most just followers too weak to stand up – will fade, but the need for your work will remain,’ the post said in part. ‘Don’t let the darkness of bad people steal the joy of public service,’ it added. 

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New House GOP resolution eviscerates Comey over ’86 47′ Instagram post

House GOP allies of President Donald Trump are moving to use the power of Congress to punish former FBI Director James Comey for his now-deleted ’86 47′ Instagram post.

Rep. August Pfluger, R-Texas, chairman of the 189-member-strong Republican Study Committee (RSC), is introducing a resolution alongside Rep. Laurel Lee, R-Fla., to condemn Comey for ‘incitement of violence against President Donald J. Trump.’

Pfluger and Lee’s three-page resolution calls the post ‘disturbing’ and ‘urges the relevant authorities to take every relevant action to ensure that Mr. Comey is never again permitted to serve as an employee of the federal government.’

It also asked the Department of Justice (DOJ) to not only investigate the matter, but also make the findings of its investigation known to both the relevant House committee and the American public.

Comey posted a photo of seashells forming the numbers ’86 47′ on the beach on Thursday.

It ignited a social media firestorm, with Trump allies and other Republicans immediately accusing the former FBI director of calling for Trump to be killed.

Comey later deleted the post and followed it with a statement that he opposed all violence.

‘I posted earlier a picture of some shells I saw today on a beach walk, which I assumed were a political message. I didn’t realize some folks associate those numbers with violence,’ Comey said. ‘It never occurred to me but I oppose violence of any kind so I took the post down.’

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem told the Associated Press that Comey is now under investigation by the Trump administration.

Pfluger and Lee’s resolution noted that Comey had made the post while Trump was on a diplomatic visit to the Middle East, which they argue ran the risk of ‘jeopardizing the President’s security and invigorating our nation’s enemies abroad.’

They also pointed out that there had been two known attempts on Trump’s life last year during the 2024 election – including the Butler, Pennsylvania, rally, where the president was shot in the ear.

Lee, notably, was on the House task force investigating the Butler rally shooting.

‘Having failed in his attempts to take down President Trump as one of the main architects of the Russia collusion hoax, Comey has now resorted to the unthinkable: calling for violence against our Commander-in-Chief,’ the RSC chairman told Fox News Digital.

‘That someone who once held one of our nation’s most sacred positions of law enforcement would incite such dangerous rhetoric is not just alarming—it’s disqualifying and un-American. This resolution demands the accountability and transparency the American people deserve, ensuring Comey never again holds a position of public trust.’

Fox News Digital made multiple attempts to reach Comey and his representatives but did not hear back by press time.

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Trump-appointed federal judge rules against Biden-era sex-based employment discrimination guidance

A Trump-appointed federal judge slapped down portions of Biden-era Equal Employment Opportunity Commission guidance that claims Title VII protections against sex-based employment discrimination include the concepts of sexual orientation and gender identity.

The ruling, signed by Judge Matthew J. Kacsmaryk of the U.S. District Court for the Northwestern District of Texas, declares that language in the guidance that defines ‘sex’ in Title VII as encompassing sexual orientation and gender identity is ‘contrary to law.’ 

The ruling declares the same regarding ‘all language defining ‘sexual orientation’ and ‘gender identity’ as a protected class.’

‘Sex-based discrimination under Title VII includes employment discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity,’ part of the EEOC’s Enforcement Guidance on Harassment in the Workplace reads. ‘Accordingly, sex-based harassment includes harassment based on sexual orientation or gender identity, including how that identity is expressed.’

The guidance notes that, ‘The contents of this document do not have the force and effect of law, are not meant to bind the public in any way, and do not obviate the need for the EEOC and its staff to consider the facts of each case and applicable legal principles when exercising their enforcement discretion.’

The ruling comes in a legal challenge lodged by the Heritage Foundation — a conservative D.C. think tank — and the state of Texas.

‘The Biden EEOC tried to compel businesses – and the American people – to deny basic biological truth,’ Dr. Kevin Roberts, president of the Heritage Foundation and Heritage Action for America, said in a statement, noting that ‘thanks to the great state of Texas and the work of my Heritage colleagues, a federal judge said: not so fast. 

‘This ruling is more than a legal victory. It’s a cultural one,’ he added. ‘It says no – you don’t have to surrender common sense at the altar of leftist ideology. You don’t have to pretend men are women. And you don’t have to lie to keep your job. Heritage is doing exactly what the conservative movement needs to do: stop apologizing, start suing, and take back institutions.’

The White House called it a ‘major win for women and commonsense.’

The judge ‘confirmed what the Trump Administration consistently maintains: government-imposed DEI policies requiring bathroom, dress, and pronoun accommodations are illegal,’ White House spokesman Harrison Fields told Fox News Digital.

On Inauguration Day earlier this year, President Donald Trump issued an executive order declaring it U.S. policy ‘to recognize two sexes, male and female.’ 

That order called for rescinding guidance documents, or portions of documents, that clash with the order. The EEOC’s Enforcement Guidance on Harassment in the Workplace was specifically mentioned in the order.

However, after Trump issued the order, EEOC Commissioners Charlotte Burrows, Jocelyn Samuels and Kalpana Kotagal said in a joint statement that ‘like all workers, LGBTQI+ workers — including transgender workers — are protected by federal law and entitled to the full measure of America’s promise of equal opportunity in the workplace.’ 

Samuels and Burrows later said in January they had been informed by the White House that Trump was removing them from their roles as EEOC commissioners.

The EEOC notes on its website that it needs a quorum to vote on rescinding guidance documents.

‘As of January 28, 2025, the EEOC no longer has a quorum of its bipartisan leadership panel of Commissioners, following the departures of two Commissioners. The Commission panel currently is comprised of Republican Acting Chair Andrea Lucas (designated as Acting Chair by President Trump on January 20, 2025) and Democrat Commissioner Kalpana Kotagal,’ the website explains.

The Texas attorney general’s office and the EEOC did not immediately respond to requests for comment from Fox News Digital on Friday.

This post appeared first on FOX NEWS
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