Republicans in California, a state that has increasingly become known for espousing left-wing ideals, are seeking to nix certain anti-abortion and same-sex marriage positions from the state party’s platform in an apparent move to resonate with more voters.

Adopted by a party committee in late July, the California GOP proposal that would distance itself from the national party’s position on the subjects has the potential to be voted on at the Golden State GOP’s fall convention in Anaheim, the Los Angeles Times reported Friday.

A draft of the proposal highlights support for ‘traditional family values’ and a ‘strong and healthy family unit,’ but language dictating that ‘it is important to define marriage as a union between one man and one woman’ was removed.

The draft also seeks to eliminate the state Republican Party’s opposition to abortion being a federally protected right, the outlet reported. Language promoting ‘adoption as an alternative to abortion’ remains, however.

Additionally, the outlet reported that the proposal, which reduces the state party’s platform from 11 pages to four, removed some ‘language about taxpayer protection for homeowners and a plank about opposing racism.’

‘It’s a seismic shift but it’s a shift born out of practical necessity. Look at what’s happening not just in California but in much more conservative states, realizing antiabortion, anti-same-sex marriage stances are no longer tenable,’ Jessica Levinson, an election law professor at Loyola Law School, told the outlet. ‘I think it shows their acknowledgment that the sand has shifted underneath their feet.’

Some, including Jon Fleischman, who served as executive director for the California GOP from 1999 to 2001, believe a debate over the proposal isn’t what the party currently needs.

‘This will be extremely controversial and will take a convention that is supposed to be about unifying the party and instead it ends up becoming a big feud,’ Fleischman said, according to the Times. ‘It’s the last thing the party needs.’

A vote to approve a draft of the proposal was reportedly held in Irvine on July 29 following a California GOP executive committee meeting to discuss how the state party’s presidential delegates will be awarded in the March primary.

If approved, the modifications outlined in the proposal could drastically shake up things ahead of the 2024 presidential election.

The draft is slated to be voted on at the state party’s fall convention, which stretches from Sept. 29 to Oct. 1 and includes appearances by several GOP presidential hopefuls, including former President Donald Trump, South Carolina Republican Sen. Tim Scott, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, and others.

The proposal also works to align the state party’s views with that of most California voters.

A 2021 poll from the Public Policy Institute of California found that 77% of adults in the Golden State did not want federal protections for abortion overturned. That figure included 59% of Republicans and 89% of Democrats.

A Gallup poll revealed in June that 71% of Americans believe same-sex marriage should be legal, up 44% from the same poll in March 1996.

The California GOP did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.

Customs and Border Protection (CBP) on Friday announced that there were 183,503 migrant encounters at the southern border in July — lower than the same period last year but significantly higher than June’s lower numbers, which the Biden administration had touted as a sign that its policies were working.

There were 183,503 encounters along the southern border in July, which marks a decrease from the 200,162 encountered last July, but an increase from the 144,566 seen in June. 

‘We remain vigilant and continue to adjust our operational plans to maximize enforcement efforts against those individuals who do not use lawful pathways or processes, knowing that smugglers continue to use disinformation to prey on vulnerable individuals,’ acting CBP Commissioner Troy Miller said in a statement. 

Numbers had dropped after the end of Title 42 on May 11, before which Border Patrol agents had been encountering record numbers of up to 10,000 a day. While there had been expectations of a new surge, numbers instead went down from May into June.

The Biden administration tied that drop to a slew of new policies, including expanded programs to parole migrants into the U.S. at ports of entry and elsewhere, efforts to tackle root causes in the Hemisphere, the restoration of punishments for illegal entry and a new asylum rule limiting asylum to some illegal entrants. That rule is currently facing multiple legal challenges, including from left-wing groups who say it limits a right to asylum. 

‘Our approach to managing the borders securely and humanely even within our fundamentally broken immigration system is working,’ Mayorkas said at a House hearing last month. ‘Unlawful entries between ports of entry along the southwest border have consistently decreased by more than half compared to the peak before the end of Title 42.’

In July, the number of those entering illegally between ports of entry also increased from 99,545 encounters in June to more than 132,000 in July. Officials noted, however, that the number is still 27% lower than July last year.

The latest release comes after numerous signs that numbers have surged at the border, in both July and August. Fox News reported last week that all four main Border Patrol sectors were either nearing full capacity or are already over capacity. Agents have encountered around 6,000 migrants a day.

Fox has also reported how DHS has put out requests for additional agency volunteers to potentially be deployed to the border, and has also increased the number of ICE special agents at the border.

The administration also included $4 billion for border processing and migration in its $40 billion supplemental budget request.

Republicans have hammered the administration for its handling of the crisis, blaming its rollback of Trump-era border security measures for the ongoing surge in migrants seeking entry to the U.S. Republican 2024 candidates have rallied around a number of stricter policies, including resuming wall construction, restoring the Migrant Protection Protocols and additional efforts to crack down on human smuggling. Recently, some Republicans have called for a freeze in DHS funding until efforts are made to secure the border.

The Biden administration has pushed back against the criticism, claiming that it is working within a ‘broken’ system that Congress has failed to fix — and has called for both additional funding and a comprehensive immigration-reform bill to be passed.

Fox News’ Griff Jenkins and Bill Melugin contributed to this report. 

EXCLUSIVE: A Democratic county official in Texas announced that she is switching to the GOP, citing support for law enforcement and border security policy as key reasons why.

Kleberg County Attorney Kira Talip Sanchez confirmed the political party switch Saturday in a release to Fox News Digital. She addressed the Hispanic Republicans of Texas PAC at their 2024 election season kickoff event.

Kleberg County is located in southern Texas and borders the Gulf of Mexico. While it has historically leaned blue, the county voted for former President George W. Bush in 2000 and 2004, and narrowly voted for former President Donald Trump in 2020.

Sanchez cited the ‘unprecedented’ border crisis as a main reason for her switch.

‘As County Attorney, I have been proud to work with law enforcement to ensure the safety of the citizens of Kleberg County,’ Sanchez said in a statement. ‘There is an unprecedented crisis at our southern border. I believe that the GOP’s policies of law and order protecting safety, and backing the blue best align with my values and the values of the citizens of Kleberg County.’

‘I look forward to working with my colleagues to keep South Texas safe,’ Sanchez added.

Many Texas Republicans have recently criticized the federal government’s response to the border crisis, arguing that President Joe Biden’s policies have been ineffective or negligent. Texas Gov. Greg Abbott has been fighting a lawsuit by the Department of Justice over Texas’s floating buoy barrier on the Rio Grande, which Abbott argues is necessary.

On Friday, Customs and Border Protection (CBP) reported that there were 183,503 migrant encounters at the southern border in July – a steep increase from the 144,566 seen in June.

In a statement obtained by Fox News Digital, Hispanic Republicans of Texas President Cassy Garcia said that she was ‘excited’ to continue her outreach to Democratic voters across the Lone Star State.

‘Every day, we are meeting with people who have voted for Democrats for decades but that this is no longer their Abuelos’ Democratic Party,’ Garcia argued. ‘It’s become too radical, elitist, and out of touch with our values.’ 

Fox News Digital’s Adam Shaw contributed to this report.

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MANCHESTER, N.H. – Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis says he’s ‘ready to do what we need to’ at Wednesday’s first Republican presidential nomination debate to deliver his message and defend himself from rival candidates.

The conservative governor also dismissed a leaked debate strategy memo from top advisors at the DeSantis-aligned super PAC, telling Fox News Digital on Saturday that ‘the memo is not mine. I haven’t read it.’

The apparent attempt by advisors at Never Back Down to float potential debate talking points to the governor grabbed plenty of headlines since the New York Times first reported on the documents a couple of days ago, and was viewed as another stumble for DeSantis world.

Among other things, the memo urged DeSantis to defend former President Donald Trump — the commanding front-runner for the GOP nomination — if, as expected, the former president comes under attack from other candidates. The document also urges DeSantis to ‘hammer’ Vivek Ramaswamy — another rival for the nomination whose standing is rising in numerous polls.

‘It’s just something we have put off to the side,’ DeSantis said in a brief Fox News Digital interview following a Never Back Down campaign event in Manchester, New Hampshire.

DeSantis is trying to change the narrative after a series of setbacks the past two months, which triggered weeks of negative stories spotlighting his campaign’s overspending, staff layoffs, change of leadership and other setbacks.

While Trump’s large lead over DeSantis has expanded this summer, the governor remains in second place in most surveys, ahead of the rest of the large field of Republican presidential contenders.

And his campaign argued earlier this week that ‘every candidate on and off the debate stage will have their knives out for Ron DeSantis’ at the first debate, a Fox News-hosted showdown in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, on Wednesday.

‘I know from the military, when you’re over the target, that’s when you’re taking flak. And if you look really in the last six to nine months, I’ve been more attacked than anybody else. Biden, Harris, the media, the left, other Republican candidates,’ DeSantis reiterated on Saturday. ‘And there’s a reason for that, because people know that I’m the biggest threat. So we view it as positive feedback. We’ll be ready to do what we need to do to deliver our message, but we absolutely expect that, and we’ll be ready for it.’

Asked whether his debate strategy includes punching back at rivals on the stage, DeSantis told Fox News, ‘Yes, that means defending ourselves but more importantly showing why we are the leader to get this country turned around.’

DeSantis said earlier this week in a local radio interview that retail-style politics — which have long been crucial in Iowa and New Hampshire, the two states that kick off the GOP nominating calendar — are a key for him to close the large gap with Trump.

On Saturday, DeSantis started his jam-packed day by marching in Londonderry, New Hampshire’s annual Old Home Day Parade, and shaking plenty of hands along the nearly one-mile route.

DeSantis also briefly met at the start of the parade with popular Republican governor Chris Sununu of New Hampshire. 

Sununu — a vocal GOP Trump critic — has been teaming up with many of the Republican White House contenders.

Sununu told Fox News that ‘of course, Gov. DeSantis can turn it around in New Hampshire. Look at the crowd he has here today . . . he’s working it on the ground, doing the retail politics.’ 

MANCHESTER, N.H. – With Hurricane Hilary forecast to strike Southern California this weekend, Florida Republican governor Ron DeSantis has offered to assist his Democratic rival Gov. Gavin Newsom with storm preparedness and relief efforts.

‘Hurricane Hilary is approaching Southern California and is projected to make landfall as a tropical storm,’ DeSantis posted on X on Saturday morning. ‘In Florida, we know how challenging storms can be and have significant experience responding in their wake — we stand ready to help the people of California in any way we can.’

There’s been no official reply from Newsom at time of publication. Fox News Digital has reached out to the governor’s press office for comment. 

‘We have a lot of experience in dealing with tropical weather events as I think people understand,’ DeSantis told Fox News Digital in an interview during a campaign stop in Manchester, New Hampshire. ‘And so, we’ve offered any assistance that they may need and look, we can have our political disagreements but when you have issues like that, we’ve got to band together as Americans and so we may not necessarily agree with California on policy but we understand if people need help, we want to be there to help.’

California is under its first-ever Tropical Storm Watch as state officials mobilize to prepare for the storm’s arrival. For the first time, more than 14 million Americans will experience catastrophic, life-threatening flooding as a year’s worth of rain is dumped on the state in just a few days. The warning stretches from Los Angeles to the U.S.-Mexico border and includes the coastal region of San Diego. 

The storm underwent rapid intensification in the Pacific Ocean, strengthening from a tropical storm to a large Category 4 hurricane in less than 48 hours, FOX Weather reported. Though it is expected to weaken once it makes landfall on the Mexican coast, California will feel the worst effects of torrential rain on Sunday and Monday.  

The FOX Forecast Center reports that the Southwest is being impacted by moisture from Hurricane Hilary, resulting in the issuance of flash flood warnings on Saturday.

‘You can see this visually on water vapor satellite (below),’ said FOX Forecast Center senior meteorologist Jordan Overton. ‘The greatest impacts will not be until tomorrow night, but impacts are already ongoing. Today is the final day for all preparations to be completed.’

Newsom is calling on California residents to remain vigilant and prepare for flooding and power outages and to listen to local authorities to keep safe. 

‘We should never underestimate the power of Mother Nature. California is coordinating with federal and local governments to support communities as they prepare for this unprecedented storm,’ Newsom said Friday in a news release. ‘Heed warnings from local authorities, be ready and stay informed.’

The governor left for southern California on Friday and is remaining there while the storm makes landfall, his office said.

At Newsom’s direction, the State Operations Center at the Governor’s Office of Emergency Services (Cal OES) is activated, and the state is closely monitoring incoming impacts from rain, wind and potential flash flooding and power outages, according to the news release.

The State Operations Center is coordinating with locals to set up swift water rescue teams, California National Guard teams and flood-fighting tools while partnering with community-based organizations to protect the homeless. California is also staffing highway maintenance crews around the clock to proactively maintain roadway safety. 

DeSantis and Newsom have traded jabs over social media in a rivalry that has grown more intense as each governor is frequently mentioned as a future presidential prospect. Though DeSantis is running for the Republican nomination this year, Newsom has declined to challenge President Biden, who is running for re-election in the 2024 Democratic primary. 

The two governors have independently accepted a debate challenge issued by Fox News host Sean Hannity, but a time and location have not been set.   

Fox Weather’s Chris Oberholtz contributed to this report. 

A Hawaiian company says that its efforts to divert water to fight a devastating wildfire last week were delayed for hours while a government agency, led by a man who has pushed for ‘water equity,’ consulted with local farmers. 

The West Maui Land Company, which manages several agricultural and residential subdivisions along with water jurisdictions, says that it requested water the day of the catastrophic wildfire in Maui from the Commission On Water Resource Management but was initially denied for several hours.

The company alleges the reason for that delay was that the commission had to clear the move with local farmers. By the time the request was granted, several hours later, the company says it was too late. 

‘We followed the process. The process failed us,’ Glenn Tremble, an executive with West Maui Land Co., told Hawaii Public Radio in an emailed statement. 

In an Aug. 10 letter to CWRM deputy director M. Kaleo Manuel, the company said, ‘No one is happy there was water in the streams while our homes, our businesses, our lands, and our lives were reduced to ash.’ 

Manuel has been quoted as calling for more ‘water equity’ on the island in the past. While no allegation has been made by the company or the government that ‘water equity’ was connected to the delay, many have criticized Manuel over his comments that resurfaced on social media.

‘My motto has always been: let water connect us, not divide us,’ Manuel says in the clip. ‘We can share it, but it requires true conversations about equity.’

‘Evolving from a land use focus, over the past 10 years, Kaleo has focused on bringing planning and indigenous knowledge to the fields of water advocacy and management in Hawai‘i,’ the state’s website says about Manuel. 

In a press release, the Hawaii Department of Land and Natural Resources announced that Manuel has since been reassigned. 

‘DLNR is re-deploying First Deputy of the Commission on Water Resource Management (CWRM), Kaleo Manuel, to a different DLNR division,’ the press release said. ‘The purpose of this deployment is to permit CWRM and the Department to focus on the necessary work to assist the people of Maui recover from the devastation of wildfires.’

‘This deployment does not suggest that First Deputy Manuel did anything wrong. DLNR encourages the media and the public to avoid making judgments until all the facts are known.’

At least 110 people were killed in the August 8 wildfire in Lahaina, Maui and that death toll is expected to rise which has led to finger pointing at what went wrong including why fire crews ran out of water and found countless dry hydrants. 

‘One thing that people need to understand especially those from far away is that there’s been a great deal of water conflict on Maui for many years,’ Hawaii Governor Josh Green said in a press conference. ‘It’s important that we’re honest about this. People have been fighting against the release of water to fight fires. I’ll leave that to you to explore.’

‘We have a difficult time on Maui and other rural areas getting enough water for houses, for our people, for any response,’ Green said. ‘But it’s important we start being honest. There are currently people still fighting in our state giving us water access to fight and prepare for fires even as more storms arise.’

The Department of Land and Natural Resources declined to comment. 

‘I’d like to see this broader issue discussed at another time,’ Tremble told Fox News Digital on Friday afternoon. 

‘Right now isn’t the time for him to point fingers.’

President Biden has taken fire this week for reportedly using aliases and ‘secret’ email addresses as vice president in messages to his son Hunter Biden, who had business in Ukraine at the time. Under former President Barack Obama’s administration, White House officials defended the use of alternate email addresses.

During a 2013 press briefing, the Obama-Biden White House, amid accusations that individuals within the administration had been using ‘secret’ email addresses for correspondence, highlighted its belief that using ‘alternate email addresses’ for high-ranking officials made ’eminent sense.’

While fielding questions from reporters at the briefing, Jay Carney, White House press secretary at the time, was asked about a story from The Associated Press that claimed a variety of senior administration officials possessed secret email addresses.

Additionally, Carney was asked by the same reporter what the protocol would be for the administration to release that correspondence via a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request, and whether the contents from both email addresses — or just the public one or the ‘secret’ one — would be released should there be a congressional inquiry about a given subject.

‘Let’s be clear — this is a practice consistent with prior administrations of both parties, and, as the story itself made clear, any FOIA request or congressional inquiry includes a search in all of the email accounts used by any political appointee,’ Carney responded.

‘So the answer is, all of this information is provided. Having alternate email addresses for cabinet secretaries and other high-profile officials makes eminent sense, much as it does for columnists, for example, of major publications who provide email addresses for their readers but have alternate work email addresses so that if they are inundated in one account with either public emails or spam or the like, that they can continue to use their other account for normal work,’ he added. 

‘And that is the case with officials of this administration, officials of the previous administrations who have had email addresses.

‘And the fundamental question here, in terms of FOIA requests and congressional inquiries, is that all of these email addresses are included.’

The decade-old acknowledgment by the Obama-Biden White House comes into play as Republicans in the House continue to investigate Biden’s involvement with his family’s overseas business dealings and request certain email communications he had during his time as vice president.

House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer, R-Ky., sent a letter to the National Archives Wednesday requesting unredacted emails from President Biden’s tenure as vice president, when Biden allegedly used a handful of pseudonyms to correspond with others.

Specifically, Comer is looking to review unredacted versions of emails released by the National Archives under ‘Case Number 2023-0022-F,’ titled on the agency’s website as ‘Email Messages To and/or From Vice President Biden and Hunter Biden related to Burisma and Ukraine.’

In the letter to archivist Colleen Shogan, Comer made a request for any ‘document or communication in which a pseudonym for Vice President Joe Biden was included either as a sender, recipient, copied or was included in the contents of the document or communication, including but not limited to Robert Peters, Robin Ware, and JRB Ware.’

Comer also seeks any ‘document or communication in which Hunter Biden, Eric Schwerin, or Devon Archer was included either as a sender, recipient, copied, or was included in the contents of the document or communication’ and all ‘drafts from November 1, 2015, to December 9, 2015, of then-Vice President Biden’s speech delivered to the Ukrainian Rada on December 9, 2015.’

‘Joe Biden has stated there was ‘an absolute wall’ between his family’s foreign business schemes and his duties as vice president, but evidence reveals that access was wide open for his family’s influence peddling,’ Comer said in a statement. 

‘We already have evidence of then-Vice President Biden speaking, dining and having coffee with his son’s foreign business associates,’ he added. ‘We also know that Hunter Biden and his associates were informed of then-Vice President Biden’s official government duties in countries where they had a financial interest. The National Archives must provide these unredacted records to further our investigation into the Biden family’s corruption.’

A 2021 report from the New York Post noted that Biden used the pseudonyms ‘Robin Ware,’ ‘Robert L. Peters’ and ‘JRB ware’ on e-mails that ‘mixed official and family business.’

Previous emails released by the agency showed that Biden used the email address ‘Robert.L.Peters@pci.gov’ during his time as vice president and that his aide, John Flynn, copied Hunter Biden on 10 emails containing the elder Biden’s daily schedule between May 18 and June 15, 2016, according to the Post.

FBI records made public in September 2016 revealed Obama also used a pseudonym in email correspondence with former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and others, according to Politico.

Congressional Democrats are pushing the federal government to make it easier for LGBTQ federal workers to access fertility treatments.

More than 30 House Democrats, plus Sen. Tammy Duckworth, D-Ill., wrote a letter to the Office of Personnel Management claiming the definition of ‘infertility’ in existing government employee health plans was ‘outdated and lacks inclusivity.’

‘By adopting an inclusive definition that recognizes the full spectrum of reproductive needs and removing unnecessary barriers to coverage, we can ensure that all federal employees, regardless of their sexual orientation, gender identity, or marital status, have access to the comprehensive reproductive health care they deserve,’ the lawmakers said. 

HOSPITAL INSIDER WARNS TRANS KIDS ON HORMONES FREQUENTING ER FOR HARMING THEMSELVES IN CRY FOR HELP 

The letter is also led by Rep. Gerry Connolly, D-Va., and Congressional Progressive Caucus Chair Pramila Jayapal, D-Wash., among others.

Meanwhile, Democrats have been attacking their GOP counterparts in Congress for passing bills they claim infringe on the LGBTQ community’s rights. 

Just last month, House Republicans added amendments to the annual National Defense Authorization Act that would stop military health care from covering surgeries and hormone treatments for transgender troops. Both sides of the aisle have also butted heads over taxpayer dollars being given to LGBTQ organizations.

‘We would like to highlight two specific concerns with the current definition of infertility used by OPM,’ the letter states. ‘First, the requirement of six cycles of Artificial Insemination or Intrauterine Insemination performed by a qualified specialist using normal quality donor sperm, while excluding other assisted reproductive technologies, is both arbitrary and unnecessarily restrictive.

‘The number of cycles required in the definition does not take into account an infertility diagnosis that may occur when a patient is evaluated, leading to inconsistent and unequal coverage for individuals seeking alternative methods of conception. Furthermore, this policy creates unnecessary barriers and costs for LGBTQ people by excluding consideration of at-home inseminations.’

The second concern, they said, was that ‘the definition fails to account for same-sex couples and single individuals.’

‘By limiting coverage to these individuals only after six cycles of insemination with donor sperm, we are effectively denying them access to necessary fertility treatments, placing an undue burden on their path to parenthood,’ the letter said. 

Fertility treatments like intrauterine insemination and in vitro fertilization typically cost thousands of dollars out of pocket and are not always covered by health insurance policies. 

As of June 2023, just 21 states have laws requiring insurance companies to provide some kind of fertility treatment, according to RESOLVE: The National Infertility Association.

A Biden administration crackdown has reportedly resulted in hundreds of gun dealers losing their licenses which has sparked anger and the belief by the dealers that they are being targeted.

During the last fiscal year that started in October, 122 gun dealers had their licenses revoked by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives which is up from 90 the year before and 27 in 2021, Wall Street Journal reported.

During the Trump and Obama presidencies, the number of licenses revoked never exceeded 81. 

Some in the gun industry are crying foul and suggesting that they are being unfairly targeted for political reasons over paperwork errors as part of an agenda to combat gun violence which President Biden has vocally pushed.

‘We were making $1 million a year, now it’s less than $100,000,’ Anthony Navarro, a gun dealer who lost his license last year after receiving three warnings for legal violations since 2009, told Wall Street Journal. ‘This policy is designed to be a backdoor violation of the Second Amendment.’ 

Navarro said he was issued warnings over mistakes gun purchasers made on paperwork but that they weren’t prohibited from buying guns.

Others have pointed out that gun dealers are typically strong allies of the federal government in terms of providing tips on suspicious gun buyers and that the working relationship could be harmed by the crackdown. 

‘The gun dealers were our first line of defense against gun trafficking,’ Peter Forcelli, a retired deputy assistant director, told Wall Street Journal. ‘Why are we now beating an ally into submission?’

In a statement to Fox News Digital, the ATF said it is following the law. 

‘Federal Firearms Licensees are often our first line of defense against gun crime and are often a source of critical enforcement information that helps law enforcement identify straw purchasers and disrupt firearms trafficking schemes,’ ATF Spokesperson Kristina Mastropasqua said. ‘FFLs that willfully violate the law, however, must be held accountable. ATF conducts inspections to ensure compliance with applicable local, state, and federal laws and regulations and to educate licensees on the specific requirements of those laws and regulations.’

The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Fox News Digital.