ICE confusion ignites MAGA backlash: ‘I would have called for impeachment’

Reported guidance directing some ICE offices to pull back on arrests of illegal immigrants without criminal histories triggered backlash from policy hawks, raising questions whether the Trump administration is sending conflicting signals on enforcement.

The guidance was rescinded within hours, and Trump told Fox News there had been no change in an enforcement posture that prioritizes — but is not limited to — the "worst first." The verbal guidance had been relayed to ICE field offices around the country, according to multiple sources familiar with the matter, though it remains unclear who initially issued the instruction.

Administration officials later characterized it as a misunderstanding rather than a formal policy change, and new guidance reaffirming there had been no change in enforcement policy was sent within hours. The episode nevertheless reinforced concerns among some immigration hawks who say recent public messaging from administration officials has suggested a narrower approach to interior enforcement than Trump campaigned on.

Mike Howell, a leader of the Mass Deportation Coalition and president of The Oversight Project, argued public criticism helped force the reversal but said the episode also fit what he views as a broader pattern of mixed messaging from DHS on interior immigration enforcement.

"[The guidance] was walked back, allegedly, which is great, and I think it was in large part walked back because people spoke out very, very loudly," Howell said, while adding there is a troubling undercurrent to some of DHS' messaging on the greater matter:

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As an example, Howell pointed to a tweet from DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin posted one day before the ICE guidance news broke, in which the secretary said the department was "not conducting worksite operations in Kansas" but was targeting criminal illegal immigrants and those facing removal.

The post followed ICE operations in Kansas that prompted complaints from Sen. Roger Marshall, R-Kan., who said DHS had failed to coordinate with local authorities during operations in cities including Liberal.

"I've never seen a secretary put anything like that in writing," Howell said. "[If it were] an Obama or Clinton or Biden DHS secretary, we would have called for impeachment if they said that."

'GONE TOO FAR:' GOP CANDIDATE RUNS TO TRUMP’S LEFT ON SIGNATURE ISSUE IN DEEP RED DISTRICT

Asked to put a finer point on it, Howell stated outright: "If Mayorkas tweeted that, I would have immediately called for his impeachment: for flagrant admission that they are not enforcing the laws and faithfully executing them -- It was amnesty by another means."

Howell emphasized that he was not calling for Mullin’s impeachment, but using the comparison to underscore how seriously he views any pullback from broad immigration enforcement.

He further argued that shifting signals are unfair to rank-and-file ICE agents who served during the Biden administration.

It remained unclear who originated the guidance, but Fox News was told it was a "misunderstanding" and that the person responsible would likely face reprimand.

A source told Fox News Digital on Sunday evening that the order "definitely went out" and that some immigrant-heavy Republican districts have seen anger over family members being caught up in worksite-enforcement removals. The source pointed to Kansas as an illustration.

"This type of ping-pong is deeply unfair to ICE, the men and women there tasked with actually deporting these people," he said. "They watch the news, they read X, they see these mixed signals and it's affected operations."

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White House spokeswoman Lauren Bis pushed back, saying Trump has been clear that "no one is off the table."

"DHS continues to deliver results for the American people including the most secure border in history and three straight months of a record number of ICE arrests," she said, citing more than 3 million deportations thus far.

An ICE report also put deportations-per-month at a record high of 51,000 in August, while a source familiar confirmed that ICE guidance that went out was a "miscommunication" and not from the top.

Mark Krikorian, executive director of the Center for Immigration Studies, which advocates for tighter immigration controls, said the situation is uniquely instructive because it comes at a time when factions of the Republican Party are at odds, whether silently or not, over the immigration enforcement issue.

"All of this comes on the backdrop of conflicting goals and messages within the administration on immigration," he said.

Krikorian said the administration may have contributed to that confusion by repeatedly emphasizing its focus on the "worst of the worst," even as officials including border czar Tom Homan have said immigrants without criminal records are not exempt from enforcement.

"The administration does need to get its story straight internally so that they can then present a consistent message externally," Krikorian said.

He argued the larger unresolved issue is worksite enforcement, which he said is critical to encouraging self-deportation but creates political tension between business interests seeking labor and working-class Republicans demanding tighter enforcement.

Republican donors who favor the "loose labor market" that low-wage migrants bring clash with the working-class Republican bloc demanding tighter labor markets and stricter enforcement, Krikorian said.

Krikorian said he had hoped Trump or Mullin would clarify after the Kansas controversy that the administration was not "randomly" cracking down on employers, but conducting worksite enforcement based on intelligence about businesses employing illegal immigrants.

Several Republicans, including Marshall and Rep. Maria Elvira Salazar, R-Fla., have criticized aspects of the administration’s immigration push ahead of the midterms. Krikorian argued that conflicting signals could also carry political consequences with Trump voters focused on enforcement – citing competing pressures between big-business and the base.

"You don’t tweet out that you’re not doing what voters want you to do," he said.

Krikorian praised the administration’s border policies but argued interior and worksite enforcement create more complicated political tradeoffs for the Trump coalition.

After the Wire report broke, DHS responded in part "this is false. No one is off the table."

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Fox News Digital reached out to Salazar and DHS for further comment.

Fox News' Bill Melugin contributed to this report.

source https://www.foxnews.com/politics/ice-confusion-ignites-maga-backlash-would-have-called-impeachment

FOX News Media expands podcast portfolio with new original show ‘the Girls’

FOX News Podcasts will bring together unique female voices and experiences across news, politics, sports, comedy and culture for a new original podcast, "the Girls," New Media President Porter Berry and EVP Megan Albano announced on Monday.

"the Girls" will debut on Thursday, Oct. 1, with a premiere episode featuring FOX News Media stars Rachel Campos-Duffy, Harris Faulkner and Kat Timpf, newly named FOX News contributor Melissa DeRosa and former ESPN host Samantha Ponder. The personality-driven conversation series will feature an array of leading female voices with new episodes dropping every Thursday.

"’the Girls’ is a natural addition to our growing podcast portfolio, and we’re thrilled to continue expanding our slate of distinctive shows that complement our existing lineup while creating new opportunities for our audience to engage with our content," Berry said.

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Albano added, "We’re excited to deliver a no-holds-barred format that captures the authenticity and perspectives of the many dynamic women of FOX News Media and beyond."

Each episode will include a rotating cast of co-hosts week to week, moving beyond the traditional news roundtable for a free-flowing conversation that can touch any subject.

FOX NEWS LEADS ALL NEWS BRANDS IN YOUTUBE VIDEO VIEWS AND SOCIAL ENGAGEMENT FOR SECOND QUARTER 2026

The podcast will offer distinct perspectives and revolve naturally around the issues impacting real life with undeniable chemistry, refreshing candor and no script. Nothing is off the table, from politics and pop culture to money, marriage, parenting, relationships and even careers. 

The new podcast is the latest addition to FOX News Media’s new media division, which features an established suite of podcasts including "Hang Out with Sean Hannity," "Ruthless," "Will Cain Country," "Planet Tyrus" and "The Riley Gaines Show."

‘the Girls’ is available across all podcast platforms, including FOX News Digital, YouTube, Spotify, and Apple Podcasts.

source https://www.foxnews.com/media/fox-news-media-expands-podcast-portfolio-new-original-show-girls

Texas voters have plenty to say about whether Lone Star State could turn blue

DALLAS — Everything is bigger in Texas, including the political stakes this November.

Texas voters head to the polls Nov. 3 in an election that could reshape the state's political landscape, with major battles for governor, U.S. Senate and seats in Congress and the state legislature. Republican Gov. Greg Abbott faces Democrat Gina Hinojosa, while Republican Ken Paxton squares off against Democrat James Talarico for a U.S. Senate seat.

At the State Fair of Texas in Dallas, voters told Fox News Digital that pocketbook pressures are shaping how they view the state's future, with some predicting the reliably red Lone Star State will stay that way while others see an opening for Democrats this fall.

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"I think we're going to struggle, but I think it will stay red," Briana of Garland, told Fox News Digital.

Mike and Cynthia, a couple from Houston, were more definitive.

"Red. It's going to stay red," they said.

Chris took that confidence a step further.

"Hell will freeze over before Texas flips blue," Chris told Fox News Digital.

Patrick and Jennifer, of Dallas, shared that confidence.

"Texas will always be a Republican state," Jennifer said, while acknowledging that Republican candidates will not win every race. "But we still think it will stay Republican," Patrick added.

Not everyone at the fair was betting on Texas staying firmly in Republican hands.

WE ASKED AMERICANS TO GRADE THE ECONOMY. THEN WE ASKED IF IT WOULD CHANGE THEIR VOTE.

Mary said she believes the Dallas-Fort Worth area is moving in the opposite direction.

"It's definitely leaning more blue. Texas as a whole, I'm not sure," she said. "I think if there would be an election that swings blue, it would be this one. So we'll see if it happens."

Party politics aside, several voters said the economy remains top of mind.

Cynthia, who moved to Texas from New York, said she is looking for policies that will grow the economy, support businesses and leave families with enough disposable income to enjoy outings like the State Fair.

FOX NEWS POLL: SQUEEZED BY COSTS, FRUSTRATED VOTERS TURN TO THE DEMOCRATS

"If you don't have enough disposable income, then you can't really enjoy something like this," she said. "It's pricey."

Jennifer also pointed to inflation and the prolonged strain of higher prices.

"I think people were expecting some sort of inflation," Jennifer said. "But I don't think we were prepared for it to last this long."

Meanwhile, Roxanne also expressed frustration with the country's current direction, saying dissatisfaction with the current administration is influencing her political outlook.

"I just don't agree with the current administration, so I really want to see somebody else come in and do a better job," she said.

From the midway to the ballot box, Texas voters offered competing views of where the Lone Star State is headed, but agreed the economy will be difficult to ignore as they prepare to cast their ballots Nov. 3.

source https://www.foxnews.com/politics/texas-voters-plenty-say-lone-star-state-turn-blue

The wildest things celebrity guest picker Johnny Knoxville said on College Gameday

It's been quite the scene in Knoxville, Tennessee, Saturday. President Donald Trump is in attendance, the No. 1 team in the country is in town, Holly Rowe and Texas head coach Steve Sarkisian had their first interview since he abruptly ended their interview following their upset win over Ohio State, and Johnny Knoxville was ESPN College Gameday's celebrity guest picker. While dressed in a complete Tennessee Volunteers football uniform, Knoxville made some statements that were just as outrageous as some of his stunts on MTV’s hit show "Jackass."

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When choosing the winner of the Missouri and Mississippi State, Knoxville hilariously took aim at McAfee's musical career. "I'm so sure about this game, that if Missouri loses, I will punish myself by listening to Pat McAfee's new album on repeat until Halloween." McAfee busted out a huge laugh immediately with Knoxville saying, "No offense."

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During the Georgia vs Oklahoma selection, Knoxville assigned some pretty gross medical ailments to the respective teams. "You know, I'm from Knoxville so this is like rooting for the gout versus the syphilis. I'm going with the gout. I'll take Georgia," Knoxville stated, while McAfee put his face in his hands and Herbstreit shook his head in disbelief. I hope your kids weren't watching this selection, folks.

LSU head coach Lane Kiffin is the butt of many jokes this season after his rough departure from Ole Miss in the offseason and the loss last Saturday against his former squad so the moment to choose LSU or Texas A&M was primed for Knoxville to lower the boom in his own, special, usually gross way. "I don't know how anyone can root for Lane "Left Out in the Parking Lot" Kiffin. He is to college football what toe fungus is to flip flops. I'm going with A&M."

THE CRAIG CARTON SHOW–UNFILTERED, UNAPOLOGETIC AND UNMISSABLE. DOWNLOAD HIS DAILY PODCAST NOW!

Now it was time for the Volunteers fans to pick the winner of Texas vs Tennessee. After discussing the Tennessee defensive questions, and taking a shot at Texas' offense, Knoxville made his pick. "After the game today, Tennessee will remain the real UT, and Texas will remain the real UTI." The reaction by Rece Davis and Desmond Howard was priceless. Both of them couldn't believe their ears, but it shouldn't have been a shocker after two-plus minutes of unhinged statements.

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Knoxville also jokingly tried slipping a referee a $20 bill pregame during an interview. He was truly a one-of-a-kind, PG-13-rated guest.

source https://www.foxnews.com/outkick-sports/wildest-things-celebrity-guest-picker-johnny-knoxville-said-college-gameday

Cruz says winning AI race against China is 'single most important economic question' for America

America's AI race against China, which has become a major point of debate as midterms approach, is a race filled with "coordinated" propaganda, warned Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas.

In recent months, data centers and AI policy have been debated in Congress and at the kitchen tables of American families. But Cruz, who chairs the Senate Commerce Committee, told Fox News Digital that much of the new opposition to data centers is being manipulated by a well-funded and coordinated campaign.

"It's the same reason we saw Middle Eastern countries paying for anti-fracking movements," Cruz said. "Because if they can convince America, 'Don't develop your oil and gas, just buy it from us,' well, that's great for them and terrible for us. The same is true on data centers. If they can convince Americans, 'You don't want data centers here, you want to just rely on the Chinese for AI,' that's great for China, and it's terrible for America."

CHINA EXPERT WARNS BEIJING WANTS AMERICANS — NOT THE CCP — TO SPREAD ITS MESSAGE

Direct funding from the Chinese government into the U.S. on data center policies has not been revealed. However, in June, OpenAI announced it had banned ChatGPT accounts believed to have originated in China, and said that the accounts were generating social media comments and images alleging that data centers are raising electricity costs for Americans.

OpenAI said in a statement that it shut down "two clusters of ChatGPT accounts likely originating from China that [OpenAI] banned after they used our models in support of apparent covert influence operations that promoted narratives in an attempt to manipulate a legitimate debate about American AI and wider tech policies."

Cruz called the effort to craft policy to ensure the U.S. wins the AI race is "the single most important economic question facing America today."

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"If China wins, AI will be focused on espionage and propaganda and control and surveillance, because that's the Chinese Communist Party," Cruz said. "It will be their values. They will use AI to try to control you. If America wins, I want American values to be reflected in AI. I want free speech and individualism and free enterprise and privacy to be reflected in AI, not control and power."

Cruz called opposition to AI advancement and data centers the "dominant position on the Democratic side." The third-term Republican said the Democrats' position is aligned with that of big industry players including Anthropic that he said want exemption from antitrust laws and to "get in bed with government" to control AI development.

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Cruz associated this position with leftist ideology and the emerging tech philosophy known as "effective altruism."

"These folks from effective altruism are all hardcore leftists, and they want to use AI to push their leftist ideology," Cruz said. "Part of what we're seeing is a money grab, where there's an old concept in economics called rent seeking, which is big companies typically go to government and say, 'Give me a benefit, entrench me.' We’re seeing the giant AI companies going to government saying, 'Hey, why don't you put us in charge of government and let's set the rules so no one could compete with us.'"

Parker Thayer, an investigative researcher at Capital Research Center in Washington, D.C., told Fox News Digital last week that effective altruism is associated with what he called the "AI doomerism movement."

Facebook co-founder and billionaire Democratic mega-donor Dustin Moskovitz and his wife Cari Tuna have been leading financial backers of organizations associated with the effective altruism movement. Moskovitz left Facebook in 2008.

The couple founded Coefficient Giving, formerly known as Open Philanthropy, and remains its "main funders," according to the organization. Tuna serves as its president.

Coefficient Giving says its artificial intelligence work has expanded rapidly, with $168 million committed to AI safety, security and field-building in 2024 and $351 million in 2025. The organization says it is on track to commit more than $1 billion to AI policy advocacy in 2026.

In a 2021 grant application description, the organization said it seeks "to fund programs and events in a variety of areas of interest to Coefficient Giving — including effective altruism, global catastrophic risks, biosecurity, AI for epistemics, forecasting, and other areas."

In 2015, Coefficient Giving launched "Project Tailwind," an initiative where the Moskovitz-funded organization issued a "call for founders to launch ambitious AI safety initiatives."

source https://www.foxnews.com/politics/cruz-winning-ai-race-against-china-single-most-important-economic-question-america

Trump's quiet China wins are more important than Xi's empty state visit

China’s President Xi Jinping, ruler for life, is not ready to make sweeping deals with the USA on soybeans, AI or anything else. This was a State Visit, not a summit, but even so, deliverables were light. China’s state-owned People’s Daily was so strapped for material that they ran a story titled: "Bonded by Ping-Pong: China-U.S. friendship writes a new chapter."

But don’t lose heart. The Trump Administration has scored some quiet wins and much better field position for the long haul. "The old adage of deliverables in a relationship that we have with China is really not measurable in many ways," said U.S. Ambassador to China David Perdue. It’s about "continuing the conversation."

What matters most to America in the long term is the trade deficit. Good news: it's falling. Already the gap between U.S. exports and imports from China is down from $297 billion in 2024 to $202 billion in 2025, and U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer says the deficit is on track to drop to $140 billion for 2026. If achieved, this is a historic reversal of globalization. The gap hasn’t been this low in over 20 years.

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Credit what Team Trump calls "managed" trade: specific, non-sensitive goods, such as agricultural products and medical devices. "All those export controls that are national security issues, we take those off the table," Greer told CNBC. Greer promised more trade details next week. However, China has bought only half the amount of soybeans agreed, according to American Soybean Association President Scott Metzger, so there’s still a ways to go on the trade balance.

This is not glamorous work. Secretary of the Treasury Scott Bessent held a 12-hour meeting on Sunday with Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng. In the end, all the two sides could do was extend the 2025 truce for two more months. You remember what happened last year: China stopped licensing rare earth material exports, and Trump slapped on massive tariffs. "I don’t know whether a bigger deal can be done. I don’t know whether we will just roll the current deal," Bessent said Wednesday.

The Bessent-He meeting was also supposed to tee up some kind of agreement on an artificial intelligence safety mechanism for Trump and Xi. Afterwards, Bessent kept to the optimistic line that China was eager to engage, and spoke about at least setting up a hot line to deal with incidents across borders. Don’t count on much more. China does not participate in nuclear arms control. Any AI accord will be all talk with no teeth, just like the U.S.-China fentanyl working group.

AMERICA AND CHINA ARE FIGHTING FOR THE FUTURE OF AI — CHIPS ARE THE BATTLEFIELD

What’s much more important is keeping the U.S. AI tech stack ahead of China. At the White House State Dinner on Thursday night, it was good to see Trump assemble the tech titans as he did on his visit to Beijing in May. These leaders from Nvidia, Apple, Microsoft, Google, Dell, OpenAI, Citigroup, etc. have the cash and the smarts to keep the U.S. in the lead in AI. SpaceX and Amazon Leo are launching satellites that will keep U.S. dominance over China in the low earth orbit market sector. Google has Project Suncatcher to try running its tensor processing units with solar power on orbit. Innovation is America’s edge over China. Yes, they'd like to book deals with China in areas such as chips and financial services, but China has been lagging. For example, Nvidia is cleared to sell its H200 chips to China (not its most advanced products) but only small batches of chips have been purchased by Tencent and ByteDance. The reality is that China is cutting imports under Xi’s policy of semi-conductor self-reliance. That’s a sign that China is girding for long-term conflict.

Fortunately, President Trump has taken many actions to strengthen America’s position. The Greenland agreement, investing in Venezuela’s oil, getting Chinese operators out of the Panama Canal Zone, a hefty defense budget aimed at countering China, expanding the Space Force, and yes, the U.S. Navy blockade of the Strait of Hormuz: all this has protected American interests. Boundaries are good for geopolitics.

CHINA IS TAKING THE FIGHT TO THE STARS. AMERICA MUST RECLAIM SPACE SUPREMACY

And what did Xi contribute? Xi Jinping announced China’s welcome loan of two pandas to the Atlanta Zoo, and a preposterous initiative for 100,000 Americans to study in China over the next five years. This, from a China ramping up nuclear weapons production, hassling U.S. satellites on orbit, backing Russia with oil purchases and defense electronics, and giving what Perdue termed "intel and parts" to Iran.

That offer was deeply cynical. Xi wants to show off Chinese culture, but in fact, there are fewer than 2,000 American students in China compared to 265,919 Chinese students in the USA. Last fall, Harvard enrolled 1,452 students from China, mostly graduate students. But if you want to go, Duke University has a joint venture in China which got a flattering and no doubt coincidental write-up in the state-owned China Daily on Friday.

source https://www.foxnews.com/opinion/trumps-quiet-china-wins-more-important-than-xis-empty-state-visit

Missouri's redistricting mess created an election problem Supreme Court has days to untangle

Missouri’s congressional map fight is hurtling toward another potential Supreme Court showdown, with courts at odds over which districts should govern the November election after more than 1.2 million Missourians voted in the August primary under a different map.

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit ruled Monday that Missouri must use its 2025 congressional map in November, finding that switching to the state’s 2022 districts after the primary would violate the U.S. Constitution. But the appeals court paused its order until Sept. 28, 2026, opening a narrow window for another visit to the U.S. Supreme Court.

Abhishek Kambli, a partner at Holtzman Vogel and former deputy associate attorney general at the Justice Department, told Fox News Digital the Supreme Court’s previous intervention does not necessarily signal how the justices will handle the latest ruling.

"It’s unpredictable how they’ll rule, mostly because we didn’t get their reasoning in the last order," Kambli said. "So, we don’t know the precise reason why they decided to stay at that time."

ELECTION CHAOS IN THIS RED STATE JUST GOT EVEN STRANGER FOR REPUBLICANS AFTER SUPREME COURT RULING

The Supreme Court previously stayed a federal district court's temporary restraining order requiring Missouri to use the 2025 map. The Eighth Circuit has now directed the lower court to enter a permanent injunction requiring the newer districts, putting the dispute in a different procedural posture.

"So unless the Supreme Court steps in again, the state will be required to use the seven-one map for this election," Kambli said.

Missouri held its Aug. 4, 2026, primary under the 2025 map. Roughly a month later, the Missouri Supreme Court ruled that voters could challenge the map through a referendum, leaving the 2022 districts in place for the November election.

Kambli said switching congressional maps between the primary and general election raises serious constitutional concerns.

"You would have had a large number of Missourians who would have been disenfranchised because they voted for one set of candidates in the primary and will be voting for another set in the general," Kambli said.

MISSOURI AG FILES PETITION ASKING SUPREME COURT TO REVIVE TRUMP-BACKED REDISTRICTING MAP

"And what's even more concerning is sometimes those candidates are unopposed so that they miss their only chance to vote as a result of what the Missouri Supreme Court did here," Kambli continued. "So that's what's really at issue — is whether everyone gets an equal voice in a situation where the primary election is integral to the electoral system of the state."

But Yale law professor Akhil Amar and University of California, Davis, law professor Vikram Amar have argued the opposite. After the Supreme Court’s earlier stay, Vikram wrote on SCOTUSblog that using the 2025 map in November would not protect anyone’s right to vote if those lines were never legally in effect. Akhil agreed with his analysis.

"HB1’s district lines lack the force of law, full stop," Vikram wrote. "These lines cannot be used wrongly in November just because they were previously used wrongly in the primary. Two wrongs do not make (or vindicate) a right (to vote)."

Meanwhile, Kambli placed much of the blame for the eleventh-hour legal scramble over which map to use on the Missouri Supreme Court, arguing the turmoil was "entirely preventable."

VIRGINIA GOP, DEMS BATTLE IT OUT OVER REDISTRICTING BEFORE STATE SUPREME COURT

Kambli argued that the Missouri Supreme Court could have resolved the map dispute earlier, noting that the issue remained unsettled even after the candidate filing deadline passed.

Alicia Bannon, senior director of the Judiciary Program at the Brennan Center for Justice, pointed instead to delays by Missouri Secretary of State Denny Hoskins as a key reason the dispute dragged on.

Opponents of the 2025 map submitted more than 300,000 signatures in December 2025, but Hoskins did not formally reject the referendum petition until Aug. 4, the day of the primary.

"Time passed. And passed further," Bannon wrote for State Court Report. "As early as December 2025, Hoskins asserted in separate federal litigation that a referendum on redistricting was not authorized by the state constitution. But he held off on issuing a certificate on that basis — which would have triggered judicial review — instead going through a lengthy process of verifying petition signatures."

Bannon wrote that the Missouri Supreme Court’s criticism of Hoskins’ delays stood out, particularly the court’s rejection of his argument that it had waited too long to intervene.

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The Missouri Supreme Court ultimately ruled that the referendum could proceed and faulted Hoskins for the delay, saying he had "created the confusion, expense, and practical difficulties of which he complains."

Kambli argued the Purcell principle, under which federal courts generally avoid changing election rules close to Election Day because of the potential for disruption, weighs in favor of keeping the 2025 map because Missouri already used it for the primary.

"The Eighth Circuit said that the Purcell principles support the injunction, not go against it," Kambli said.

Bannon also warned that courts being too cautious can create its own problems.

"It’s an approach that’s understandable in some circumstances but can also incentivize shenanigans to evade judicial review while harming voters’ rights," Bannon wrote.

Bannon suggested earlier court action in Missouri could have helped avoid the last-minute dispute, including by moving the primary or setting a firm deadline for the referendum petition.

But regardless of whether the Supreme Court decides to weigh in, the referendum will still be on the ballot.

"If the Supreme Court does not stay the Eighth Circuit injunction, there's no doubt that the 7-1 map is what will be in effect for this election. There's still going to be a referendum on the ballot deciding that issue for future elections, but for this one, that's how it'll be decided," Kambli said.

source https://www.foxnews.com/politics/missouris-redistricting-mess-created-election-problem-supreme-court-has-days-untangle