CIA Director John Ratcliffe declared in an internal memo that China is the top priority for his agency, warning that ‘no adversary in the history of our Nation has presented a more formidable challenge or a more capable strategic competitor than the Chinese Communist Party.’ 

The internal CIA memo directed to the agency’s rank and file was provided to Fox News by a senior CIA official on Thursday.  

‘For CIA to continue successfully defending our Nation, we will build upon our strong foundation and pursue with laser-like focus the near-term priorities for CIA that our President and our country demand. China sits at the very top of that list,’ Ratcliffe wrote. 

‘No adversary in the history of our Nation has presented a more formidable challenge or a more capable strategic competitor than the Chinese Communist Party,’ he continued. ‘It is intent on dominating the world economically, militarily, and technologically, and it is aggressively trying to out-compete America in every corner of the globe.’ 

Ratcliffe said the CIA must continue to respond to the threats China poses ‘with urgency, creativity, and grit.’ 

‘I’ve emboldened CIA’s leadership team to take on more risks, smartly, and to aggressively seek out short- and long-term opportunities that give the United States the advantage it needs to keep China in our rear-view window. It won’t be easy, but I pledge to lead the charge in helping us do just that,’ he added. 

Ratcliffe said, ‘Technology is another top priority; one that is in many ways intertwined with the threat posed by the CCP.  

‘Emerging technologies like artificial intelligence and quantum computing will define the future of national security and geopolitical power,’ he wrote in the memo. 

‘Concurrently, our adversaries – China, Russia, and Iran – seek to gain footholds in countries in our near-abroad. We must continue to push back against these efforts,’ Ratcliffe also said. ‘To best position CIA in addressing this priority, we are taking a close look at how we can create a unified effort across the range of policy objectives in this region. The American people deserve our best.’ 

Rep. Don Bacon, R-Neb. – who has advocated for the U.S. and Europe to ‘arm Ukraine to the max’ – pointed to the American Revolutionary War to push back against the notion that Ukraine should surrender to Russia.

‘I’m glad General George Washington didn’t say ‘Let’s surrender because Great Britain is too powerful and defeating them is unlikely.’ But, that is what some of our leaders are saying to Ukraine, the victim of a Russian invasion. Surrendering to a tyrant is not peace,’ Bacon wrote in a post on X.

The congressman wants the U.S. to provide arms to help the embattled Eastern European nation repel Russia.

‘European Allies and U.S. should arm Ukraine to the max and help them defend their country against the Russians, and now the North Koreans and Chinese,’ Bacon declared in a post on X.

Some Americans oppose the prospect of providing additional aid to bolster Ukraine’s war effort.

But Bacon contends that backing Ukraine is in America’s interests.

‘Supporting Ukraine in its struggle against Russian aggression is not only morally right. It is also in our national interest, because the future cost of abandoning Ukraine would vastly outweigh the investment we have made in rejecting Russia’s aggression,’ he wrote in a New York Times piece.

‘In recent weeks, too many of my fellow Republicans – including Mr. Trump – have treated Russia with velvet gloves, shying away from calling out Mr. Putin’s flatly illegal war and even blaming Ukraine for starting it,’ Bacon declared in the piece.

Conservatives are speaking out against the Trump administration’s plans to finally enact long-expected REAL ID laws in a bid to crack down on illegal immigration.

‘If you think REAL ID is about election integrity, you’re going to be sorely disappointed. Someone has lied to you, or you’re engaged in wishful thinking. Please don’t shoot the messenger,’ Rep. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., wrote on X earlier this week.

Responding to Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Kristi Noem’s video announcing the May 7 REAL ID deadline, the former vice presidential candidate and Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin questioned in a lengthy post: ‘Or what?? Evidently, existing ID requirements for American citizens just aren’t adequate now, so Big Brother is forcing us through more hoops for the ‘right’ to travel within our own country.’

Palin continued: ‘Other administrations delayed this newfangled, burdensome REAL ID requirement. Are you curious why its implementation is imperative now?? And who came up with this?’

The REAL ID Act was passed in 2005, but the federal government has yet to implement it 20 years later. It requires all U.S. travelers to be REAL ID compliant when boarding domestic flights.

The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) announced last week that REAL ID would go into effect May 7, and that no other state-issued ID cards would be accepted for air travel.

TSA senior official Adam Stahl said in the announcement that REAL ID ‘bolsters safety by making fraudulent IDs harder to forge, thwarting criminals and terrorists.’

While an overwhelming majority of Republicans appear to have few issues with the change, some on the right have cried foul.

Massie argued in an X post, ‘As long as the pilot’s door is locked and no one has weapons, why do you care that someone who flies has government permission? REAL ID provides no benefit, yet presents a serious risk to freedom. If a person can’t be trusted to fly without weapons, why are they roaming free?’

Massie targeted President Donald Trump more directly in response to another X user who asked whether he was opposed simply because of his differences with the commander in chief. The Kentucky Republican has been known for multiple public spats with Trump. 

‘REAL ID is a 2005 George Bush-era Patriot Act overreach that went completely unenforced until Trump got into office. Let me guess: he’s playing 4D chess and I should just go along with it?’ Massie wrote.

Former presidential candidate and ex-House Rep. Ron Paul, R-Texas, wrote on X, ‘Homeland Security chief Kristi Noem announced Friday that the notorious PATRIOT Act-era REAL ID scheme would go into effect at the end of the month. REAL ID is one of the greatest threats to Americans’ civil liberties in decades.’

Kentucky state Rep. TJ Roberts, a Republican, agreed with Paul on social media, writing, ‘Repeal REAL ID!!’

New Hampshire state Rep. Joe Alexander, a Republican, added on the accusations, calling REAL ID a ‘violation of the 14th Amendment of the US Constitution,’ and writing, ‘the Federal Government should not be mandating ID for its citizens to travel between states. Just say NO.’

Cato Institute senior fellow Patrick Eddington told Fox News Digital, ‘I’m not aware of a single post-9/11 instance of an alleged or actual terrorist being apprehended, much less successfully boarding an airliner, with false ID credentials – which is the entire-stated rationale for REAL ID.’

Eddington argued it imposed unconstitutional burdens on people who are seeking to travel by air versus train.

‘If you got word that your mother had just had a stroke and her prognosis was uncertain, and you wanted to quickly fly home to be with her but couldn’t because you didn’t have a REAL ID-compliant ID card, that would be one very real-world example of a tangible harm this insane law could cause on literally a daily basis,’ he said.

‘The REAL ID Act effectively institutes a form of mass surveillance and verification that doesn’t discriminate between those who have given reason for suspicion and those who haven’t, which is why it should never have been enacted in the first place.’

Meanwhile, Trump ally Rep. Mark Alford, R-Mo., targeted critics in his own public statement. 

‘The REAL ID Act was passed way back in 2005, 20 years ago!!!! It’s about time everyone stop dragging their feet. Quit scrolling through social media, quit complaining, get your info together, and get down to the DMV to get your REAL ID,’ Alford said Wednesday. 

The DHS has argued that implementing REAL ID now will help the Trump administration further its goals in cracking down on illegal immigration.

A DHS memo obtained by Fox News Digital earlier this week argued in favor of its implementation, that REAL ID ‘closes the gaping vulnerabilities Biden’s policies created, preventing criminals and potential terrorists from exploiting our aviation system, as seen during 9/11 when fraudulent IDs enabled attacks.’

Trump administration allies have also pointed out that it is carrying out a directive by Congress that’s long been stalled, but that the current White House took no part in deciding.

Fox News Digital reached out to the White House and TSA for further comment. Massie’s spokesman said he was not available for an interview when reached by Fox News Digital.

Fox News Digital’s Cameron Arcand contributed to this report.

The Trump administration announced sanctions against the International Bank of Yemen Y.S.C. (IBY) on Thursday for its financial support of Houthi terrorists.

Along with the bank, the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) is sanctioning key leaders of IBY, like its Chairman of the Board of Directors Kamal Hussain Al Jebry; Executive General Manager Ahmed Thabit Noman Al-Absi and Deputy General Manager Abdulkader Ali Bazara. By sanctioning IBY, the U.S. hopes to stop Houthi attacks on commercial ships in the Red Sea.

‘Financial institutions like IBY are critical to the Houthis’ efforts to access the international financial system and threaten both the region and international commerce,’ Deputy Secretary of the Treasury Michael Faulkender said. ‘Treasury remains committed to working with the internationally recognized government of Yemen to disrupt the Houthis’ ability to secure funds and procure key components for their destabilizing attacks.’

Based in Sana’a, Yemen, the IBY is controlled by the Iran-backed Houthis and provides the group with access to the bank’s Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunications (SWIFT) network to make international financial transactions, the Treasury said.

The IBY, for instance, has allegedly aided Houthi businesses and officials to pursue oil on the SWIFT network, while also facilitating attempts by the terrorist group to evade sanctions oversight.

Under Thursday’s sanctions, all property and interests in property of the leaders named, that are in the United States or in the possession or control of U.S. persons are blocked and must be reported to OFAC. Additionally, any entities that are owned, directly or indirectly, individually or in the aggregate, 50 percent or more by one or more blocked persons are also blocked.

OFAC’s regulations generally prohibit all transactions by U.S. persons or within, or transiting, the United States that involve any property or interests in property of designated or otherwise blocked persons. 

U.S. State Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce spoke about the sanctions during a press briefing Thursday, sending a message to anyone who supports foreign terrorist organizations like the Houthis.

‘The United States is committed to disrupting the Houthi financial networks and banking access as part of our whole-of-government approach to eliminating Iran’s threat network,’ she said. ‘Moreover, we can confirm the reporting that Chang Guang Satellite Technology Company Limited (CGSTL) is directly supporting Iran-backed Houthi terrorist attacks on U.S. Interests. Their actions and Beijing’s support of the company, even after our private engagements with them, is yet another example of China’s empty claims to support peace.

She continued, urging partners of the U.S. to judge the Chinese Communist Party and Chinese companies on their actions, and not just their words.

‘Restoring freedom of navigation in the Red Sea is a priority to President Trump,’ Bruce said. ‘Beijing should take this priority seriously when considering any future support of CGSTL. The United States will not tolerate anyone providing support to foreign terrorist organizations such as the Houthis.’ 

President Donald Trump is the greatest challenge Canada is facing, Prime Minister Mark Carney said during a Wednesday night electoral debate with conservative challenger Pierre Poilievre.

‘This election [is about] the question of who will succeed, and who will face up to Trump,’ Carney said in French, according to a Reuters translation.

His comments came in retort to Poilievre, who moments prior, had accused him of being too similar to Justin Trudeau, who stepped down from the top job earlier this year following a rapid decline in approval ratings. 

‘We are in a crisis. The most serious crisis of our lives,’ Carney reportedly added. ‘We have to react with strength, which will allow us to succeed with Trump.’

Carney, who was voted into the role by the governing Liberal Party last month in a landslide win, is believed to be the favored candidate to win the prime minister’s seat in a nationwide election later this month, though recent polling suggests polling margins could be narrowing.

Just prior to Trudeau’s exit, the Liberal Party was expected to take a nosedive in the federal election against Poiliervre’s Conservative Party – but Trump appears to have changed all that. 

Immense concern over a trade war with the U.S. and Trump’s threats to annex Canada as the 51st state have rallied support once again for the Liberal Party under Carney. 

Reports suggest that Carney is now viewed as the candidate more equipped to take on the tough negotiations that Canada will face to ease the steep tariffs Trump implemented this year. 

Poilievre has also reportedly faced a drop in support for his Canada First message, which some reports suggest may be too similar a message to Trump’s America First agenda. 

The conservative candidate has also reportedly faced criticism within his own party for not responding fast enough to the threat posed by the U.S. president. 

Some reporting has suggested the race to be Canada’s next prime minister could be narrowing between Poilievre and Carney. 

Canadians concerned by cost-of-living tend to back Poilievere, according to a Politico report, while voters concerned with the economy and relations with the U.S. tend to back Carney.

Poilievere has been in the political sphere since 2004, when he entered Canada’s Parliament.

Carney’s background is in running first the Bank of Canada in 2008 and then the Bank of England in 2013 – prompting some to believe he may be best suited to take on the financial crisis looming over Canada amid Trump’s tariff war. 

President Donald Trump said the late President Jimmy Carter could die peacefully knowing he wasn’t the worst U.S. president because that title belongs to former President Joe Biden. 

Trump issued the remarks to reporters during a press conference with Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, who visited the White House on behalf of European nations to assist in brokering a trade deal between the U.S. and the European Union.

‘Worst administration in the history of our country,’ Trump said on Thursday. ‘Worse than Jimmy Carter. Jimmy Carter died a happy man. You know why? Because he wasn‘t the worst. President Joe Biden was.’

Trump has routinely railed against Biden and the former president’s mental fitness, and the remarks coincide with multiple books detailing Biden’s cognitive function while in office. One White House aide said that staff isolated Biden and allowed his faculties to ‘atrophy’ in the book, ‘Uncharted: How Trump Beat Biden, Harris, and the Odds in the Wildest Campaign in History.’ It was released on April 8. 

A spokesperson for Biden did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Fox News Digital. 

Trump’s comments come days after Biden slammed the Trump administration for creating so much ‘damage’ during the early days of the administration. 

‘Fewer than 100 days, this administration has done so much damage and so much destruction. It’s kind of breathtaking it could happen that soon,’ Biden said in his first public speech post-presidency on Tuesday. Biden delivered the speech during a disability advocacy conference in Chicago.

On Thursday, Trump and Meloni said they were confident the U.S. and Europe could hash out a trade deal. Trump unveiled 20% tariffs on European Union goods coming into the U.S. on April 2, but he announced on April 9 the tariffs would remain at 10% for 90 days to allow the U.S. and the EU to strike a deal.

‘There will be a trade deal, 100%,’ Trump told reporters. ‘Of course there will be a trade deal, they want to make one very much, and we’re going to make a trade deal. I fully expect it, but it’ll be a fair deal.’

President Donald Trump said Thursday that China has been reaching out ‘a lot’ ever since he nearly tripled U.S. tariffs on Chinese imports, and he suggested to reporters that the two nations could reach a deal in as soon as three to four weeks. 

During a gaggle with reporters after signing executive orders related to deregulating the seafood industry, Trump was asked about his ongoing negotiations with Chinese officials and, in particular, whether he has yet spoken to Chinese President Xi Jinping about the ongoing trade battle.

‘They have reached out a number of times,’ Trump said, referring to high-level Chinese officials. When asked how frequently they’ve been in touch since last week – after Trump tripled his Chinese tariff increase from 54% to 145% – the president responded, ‘A lot.’

His comments come amid media reports that Trump has indicated he is unwilling to reach out to China first amid the ongoing trade war. According to sources close to Trump, U.S. officials have been urging the Chinese to initiate a call between Xi and Trump, but so far they have not.    

When asked if he had spoken to Xi yet, Trump would not confirm one way or the other.

‘I’ve never said whether or not [it’s] happened, but I have a very good relationship with President Xi, and I think it’s going to continue. They have reached out a number of times,’ Trump told reporters. 

The press then quickly pounced on Trump’s response, requesting the president to clarify if he was referring to Xi or other Chinese officials when he said, ‘They have reached out a number of times.’

‘I view it very similar,’ Trump responded. ‘It would be top levels of China, and if you knew [Xi], you would know that if they reached out, he knew exactly – he knew everything about it. He runs it very tight, very strong, very smart. And, yeah, we’re talking to China.’

The president said that while some have urged him to fast-track his negotiations, he believes there is ‘plenty’ of time left to make a deal with China and expects it will eventually come to fruition.

‘I would think over the next three or four weeks, I think maybe the whole thing could be concluded,’ Trump told reporters Thursday. 

The president added that if a deal cannot be reached, things will ‘be fine.’

‘At a certain point, if we don’t make a deal, we’ll just set a limit. We’ll set a tariff. We’ll set some parameters, and we’ll say, ‘Come in and shop,” Trump said. ‘They always have a right not to do it, so they can say, ‘Well, we don’t want it, so we’re not going to shop there, we’re not going to shop in the store of America.’ We have something that nobody else has, and that’s the American consumer.’