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Developing now, Tuesday, June 19, 2018

  • In an exclusive interview with FOX News' Laura Ingraham, Attorney General Jeff Sessions fires back at critics who blame the Trump administration for the separation of illegal immigrant families at the border and faults former President Obama for the problems in immigration policy
  • The FBI's director and Justice Department's inspector general are expected to face another day on the hot seat on Capitol Hill Tuesday, this time in the House hearing on the explosive IG report on the handling of Hillary Clinton email case. On Monday, both were grilled about the report's findings and alleged political bias in the FBI.
  • President Trump threatens to impose new tariffs on $200 billion in Chinese imported goods
  • A federal judge strikes down Kansas' voter ID law, ruling it unconstitutional and orders the Kansas secretary of state to undergo additional legal training

THE LEAD STORY – EXCLUSIVE - 'FUNDAMENTALLY, WE'RE ENFORCING THE LAW': Attorney General Jeff Sessions slammed critics who fault the Trump administration for the separation of illegal immigrant families at the border, saying that the Obama administration's policies are partially to blame  ... Speaking to Fox News' "The Ingraham Angle" Monday night, Sessions said illegal immigrants have taken advantage of the U.S.  The attorney general denied that children are being abused or kept in inhumane conditions, saying that the Department of Health and Human Services spent approximately a billion dollars last year taking care of children caught crossing the border. In response to critics who have compared immigrant detention centers to Nazi Germany, Sessions said "we need to be rational and thoughtful" about the situation. "In Nazi Germany, they were keeping the Jews from leaving the country," Sessions said, drawing a contrast that was criticized on Twitter as being tone deaf. Sessions' comments came after an audio recording that appears to capture the voices of small children crying out for their parents at a U.S. immigration facility was leaked Monday and fueled growing outrage against the Trump administration.

DISSECTING THE IG REPORT - AND THE FBI - ON CAPITOL HILL: FBI Director Christopher Wray and Justice Department Inspector General Michael Horowitz return to Capitol Hill Tuesday to answer House lawmakers' questions about Horowitz's findings about the FBI's handling of the Hillary Clinton email case during the 2016 presidential and alleged political bias in the embattled agency ... Wray and Horowitz will appear before a joint hearing of the House Judiciary and Oversight committees in what will likely be a marathon hearing. They could face questions from as many as 74 committee members.

On Monday, before the Senate Judiciary Committee, Wray told lawmakers that the FBI accepted the findings of the inspector general's report, is determined not repeat past mistakes and has begun making changes, including about how it handles especially sensitive investigations. Meanwhile, a group of eight House Republicans has asked Horowitz to give them the names of FBI employees mentioned in last week's report, some of whom were portrayed as anti-Trump.

ROUND $200 BILLION IN NEW TRUMP TARIFFS: President Trump said his administration will pursue a new round of tariffs on $200 billion in Chinese goods, responding to retaliatory levies from Beijing ... Marking the latest salvo in a tit-for-tat dispute over trade, Trump directed U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer to identify $200 billion worth of Chinese goods that would be hit with a 10% tariff, according to a statement from the White House. Trump said the new tariffs will go into effect "if China refuses to change its practices, and also if it insists on going forward with the new tariffs that it has recently announced." Trump recently approved $50 billion in tariffs on Chinese imports, arguing that China has stolen U.S. technology and violated intellectual property rights. In retaliation, China proposed its own tariffs targeting $50 billion in U.S. goods, including pork, beef and cars.

A STUNNING REBUKE IN KANSAS: A federal judge has ruled that Kansas cannot require documentary proof of U.S. citizenship to register to vote, finding such laws violate the constitutional right to vote in a ruling with national implications ... In an extraordinary rebuke, U.S. District Judge Julie Robinson also ordered Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach to complete an additional six hours of legal education on top of other requirements before he can renew his law license for the upcoming year. She imposed the sanction for his numerous disclosure violations. The 118-page decision came in two consolidated cases challenging a Kansas voter registration law requiring people to provide documents such as a birth certificate, U.S. passport or naturalization papers. The decision strikes down the Kansas proof-of-citizenship registration law and makes permanent an earlier injunction that had temporarily blocked it.

AS SEEN ON FOX NEWS

PARENTS USING KIDS AS 'PAWNS': "As far as the separation of families are concerned, you'd have to put the blame on the parents. They are choosing to enter between the ports of entry, they know they will be separated."  – Acting ICE Director Thomas Homan, on "Tucker Carlson Tonight," ripping politicians and the media for "intentionally misleading the American people" on family separation of illegal immigrants at the border. WATCH

'FAUX LIBERAL OUTRAGE': "The American people are footing a really big bill for what is tantamount to a slow rolling invasion of the United States." – Laura Ingraham, in her monologue on "The Ingraham Angle," analyzing the "destruction of the rule of law" when it comes to immigration policy in the United States. WATCH

TRENDING

Trump orders establishment of 'space force' as 6th branch of military.

Trump challenges ‘rich guys’ Musk, Bezos to space race

Search for motive, suspects in shooting death of rapper XXXTentacion.

ER doctor caught on video cursing out patient is suspended.

Florida man wrangles alligator from 10-foot python's deadly grip in Everglades.

Child scales 'un-climbable' pool ladder in viral video.

THE SWAMP

Pentagon confirms halt of August war games with South Korea.

Ex-CIA engineer accused of leaking hacking docs to WikiLeaks charged in massive 'Vault 7' security breach.

Justice Department asks Supreme Court for help with sanctuary cities injunction.

ACROSS THE NATION

Army splits with cadet who posed in 'Communism Will Win' picture.

Restaurant sign declaring 'guns are welcome' sparks heated debate.

Principal who sparked backlash for inviting anti-police extremist to 'Career Day' suddenly retires.

MINDING YOUR BUSINESS

Subway is in trouble, looks to consulting firm for help.

OPEC may intervene, but oil will be above $80 this summer.

Social Security shortfall: Higher taxes, reduced benefits to come?

Trump pick for CFPB Kathy Kraninger: what to know

Elon Musk warns Tesla workers that employee committed 'sabotage': report.

FOX NEWS OPINION

Attorney General Sessions: President Trump knows religious freedom is a right, not a policy preference.

Rep. Marsha Blackburn: It's time to remind Silicon Valley that no one is 'too big to regulate.'

Kendra Arnold: Why is the Democrats' bizarre IT scandal being ignored?

HOLLYWOOD SQUARED

Chadwick Boseman gives 'Best Hero' award at 2018 MTV Awards to Waffle House hero James Shaw Jr.

Jerry Springer addresses reports that 'The Jerry Springer Show' is ending.

'Game of Thrones' star Emilia Clarke posts emotional farewell tribute to HBO show on Instagram.

DID YOU HEAR ABOUT THIS?

'King Arthur' castle discovery: Mysterious inscription intrigues experts.

Mysterious wolf-like creature killed in Montana ID'd through DNA test.

5,000 year-old stone balls continue to baffle archaeologists.

STAY TUNED

On FOX News: 

FOX & Friends, 6 a.m. ET: FOX News correspondent Griff Jenkins has the latest developments from the immigration battle at the border. Could Google tell you when you'll die? Dr. Nicole Saphier explains. And what Americans need to know about "Juneteenth."

On FOX Business:

Mornings with Maria, 6 a.m. ET: Guests include: Rudy Giuliani, President Trump's attorney; Beth Lindstrom, Republican Massachusetts Senate candidate; Andrew McCarthy, former federal prosecutors; Rep. Louie Gohmert; Gen. Jack Keane; Mohamed El-Erian, Allianz chief economic adviser.

Varney & Co., 9 a.m. ET: Martin Feldstein, former Council of Economic Advisers chairman; Rep. Andy Biggs; Arvind Krishna, senior vice president and director of IBM research.

The Intelligence Report, 2 pm ET: Robert Rubin, former treasury secretary; Rep. Matt Gaetz; Adam Johnson, "Bullseye Brief" founder and co-Author

On FOX News Radio:

The FOX News Rundown podcastAttorney General Jeff Sessions and Homeland Security Secretary Kirjsten Nielsen are defending a controversial policy that separates immigrant children from their parents at the Southern border.  Joel Pollak, editor-at-large for Breitbart News, and Ali Noorani, executive director of the National Immigration Forum, join the podcast to discuss. A news revolution is occurring in Colorado, as former Denver Post workers have banded together to create a new form of journalism. Plus, commentary by FOX News medical correspondent Dr. Marc Siegel.

Want the FOX News Rundown sent straight to your mobile device? Subscribe through Apple PodcastsGoogle Play, and Stitcher.

The Brian Kilmeade Show, 9 a.m. ET: Allen West on the IG report, the Pentagon confirming the halt of "war games' with South Korea in August and the quest to denuclearize North Korea; former FBI assistant director Ron Hosko and Alan Dershowitz on congressional testimony on the IG report; New York Red Bulls star Tyler Adams on the latest on the World Cup; Zachary Woods on his new book, "Uncensored: My Life and Uncomfortable Conversations at the Intersection of Black and White America."

#OnThisDay

2017: Otto Warmbier, a 22-year-old American college student released by North Korea in a coma after more than a year in captivity, dies in a Cincinnati hospital. 

2013: "Sopranos" star James Gandolfini, 51, dies while vacationing in Rome

1953: Julius Rosenberg, 35, and his wife, Ethel, 37, convicted of conspiring to pass U.S. atomic secrets to the Soviet Union, are executed at Sing Sing Prison in Ossining, N.Y.

Fox News First is compiled by Fox News' Bryan Robinson. Thank you for joining us! Enjoy your day! We'll see you in your inbox first thing Wednesday morning.