Demonstrators flocked to the streets of major cities across the country on Wednesday, in protest of President Donald Trump’s aggressive agenda on topics like the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), immigration, tariffs, gender, labor and more.

Since his return to the Oval Office on Jan. 20, Trump has pressed forward with an agenda that puts America first at all costs, whether it is deporting dangerous criminals living in the U.S. illegally or offering buyouts to federal employees with an ultimatum to either return to the office or search for work.

But with what critics say is a harsh approach to leading the country, Trump has ruffled a few feathers, causing people to protest around the country.

The Associated Press reported that the protests were the result of a movement that has organized online under the hashtags #buildtheresistance and #50501, which stands for 50 protests, 50 states, one day. Websites and accounts across social media called for action with messages like, "reject fascism" and "defend our democracy."

LA FREEWAY BLOCKED BY ANTI-DEPORTATION PROTESTERS IN RESPONSE TO TRUMP'S CRACKDOWN ON ILLEGAL IMMIGRATION

In Austin, Texas, hundreds of protesters took to the streets after protesting on the steps of the state Capitol building.

As the protesters marched, they held signs that read, "Fight, our lives depend on it," "Impeach the b- - - -," and "Texas deserves better," while donning an LGBTQ+ flag and chanting, "Si Se Puede," or in English, "Yes we can."

Protesters also held signs objecting to any influence billionaire Elon Musk may have on the presidency.

BORDER CZAR TOM HOMAN SENDS MESSAGE TO FAR-LEFT OFFICIALS PUSHING BACK AGAINST MASS DEPORTATIONS: 'GAME ON'

About 80 miles south in San Antonio, Texas, hundreds of students from the city’s independent school district walked out in protest of U.S. Immigrations and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and mass deportations.

Video posted to social media shows protesters holding signs that said, "This country was made by immigrants," and "The People United Will Defend Immigrant Families," and "The People will Defeat Trump’s Extreme-Right Agenda," while holding flags with Che Guevara, a Cuban revolutionary leader and Marxist who was born in Argentina and became a left-wing hero.

The scenes were similar around the country.

'DEPORTATION FLIGHTS HAVE BEGUN' AS TRUMP SENDS 'STRONG AND CLEAR MESSAGE,' WHITE HOUSE SAYS

In Los Angeles, students walked out of class and gathered in front of city hall to protest against ICE and for the rights of immigrants.

Protesters in Sacramento appeared in droves at the state capitol, shouting rhetoric against Trump and Musk.

And in Phoenix, people protested Trump’s agenda, particularly things like his stance on there only being two genders, as well as tariffs on Canada and Mexico.

TRUMP GOES TOE-TO-TOE WITH SANCTUARY CITIES OVER DEPORTATION AS ILLEGAL IMMIGRATION CRACKDOWN SET TO BEGIN

While protesters had their voices heard on similar topics at the U.S. Capitol Building in Washington, D.C., another group protested at the U.S. Department of Labor.

Those at the Department of Labor were heard chanting, "Workers United, We’ll Never Be Divided," in protest of the Trump administration’s push to get federal workers back in the office.

Last week, the Trump administration gave nearly 2 million federal employees the option of taking a buyout and getting paid through Sept. 30, but the deadline to take the deal expires on Feb. 6.

Multiple labor unions have filed a lawsuit against the Trump administration regarding the buyouts, mainly on the basis that the funds to continue to pay the employees should they take the offer have not been appropriated by Congress for that purpose.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

House Democrats and the family of a U.S. Capitol Police officer who died a day after confronting rioters during the Jan. 6 insurrection scolded President Donald Trump Wednesday over his actions related to the unrest since taking office. 

U.S. Reps. Bonnie Watson Coleman, D-N.J., Bennie Thompson, D-Miss., and Jamie Raskin, D-Md., and the family of Brian Sicknick gathered in front of the U.S. Capitol to push for a resolution condemning Trump over the blanket pardons for the Jan. 6 defendants and the firing of federal prosecutors on those cases. 

"They pardon criminals for violently assaulting cops, and they fire FBI agents and prosecutors for doing their jobs," Raskin said. "That's where we are in America today."

FBI AGENTS GROUP TELLS CONGRESS TO TAKE URGENT ACTION TO PROTECT AGAINST POLITICIZATION

He added that Trump initially denounced the actions of the rioters before the "process of trying to redefine the meaning of the events of January 6th, to whitewash the atrocities that took place that day, to cover up and to shroud in doubt the violent assaults that took place on the police officers to make people believe that it wasn't Donald Trump's mega mob that attacked us."

Last month, Trump granted clemency to those charged in the riot, even those accused of violently assaulting police officers. In an interview with Fox News, he said the prison sentences for the defendants were excessive.

"These people have served, horribly, a long time," he said.

Thompson said the prosecutors who worked on the Jan. 6 cases were being scapegoated by the Trump administration. 

"The people who did the hard work of tracking these 1,500 people down are now being told you didn't do your job," he said. "Now these people either pleaded guilty or they were found guilty, and so many of them assaulted law enforcement people and for now they are being rewarded and the people who are being patriots are being punished."

Ken Sicknick, brother of Capitol Police Officer Brian Sicknick, said Trump's pardons reopened wounds from his brother's death. 

FBI AGENTS DETAIL J6 ROLE IN EXHAUSTIVE QUESTIONNAIRE EMPLOYEES 'WERE INSTRUCTED TO FILL OUT'

"On January 20th, 2025, a convicted felon and twice-impeached politician pardoned approximately 1,600 criminals responsible for the destruction of property and the destruction of the lives of law enforcement and their families, such as mine," Sicknick said. "They were all convicted through due process. The investigations were thorough. The rule of law that the POTUS and the Republican cronies will tell you they stand for was smashed apart.

"It was smashed apart by the very same person who claimed that he is a friend of the police more than any president who's ever been in office." 

Brian Sicknick, 42, suffered two strokes and died of natural causes the day after he confronted rioters during the riot. A medical examiner's report showed that Sicknick was sprayed with a chemical substance around 2:20 p.m. on Jan. 6 and collapsed at the Capitol around 10 p.m. that evening. 

He died around 9:30 p.m. on Jan. 7, according to the examiner's office. Ken Sicknick noted that most of the defendants released have shown no remorse for their actions. 

"We do feel powerless in a lot of cases," he said. "What are we going to do? It's a tiny blue-collar family going against the president of the United States."

Coleman said a purge of Justice Department veteran prosecutors only benefits criminal groups that engage in drug trafficking and terrorism.

"If they were not suddenly the targets of a political takeover of the federal law enforcement, they would be working to stop terrorist attacks, stop drug trafficking and drug dealers, impede human traffickers and prosecute crime across this country if they were not targeted otherwise," she said. 

"Now, those efforts will be weakened."

January 6 defendants who received commutations from President Donald Trump are free to visit the U.S. Capitol without receiving prior permission, a federal judge ruled Monday.

District Judge Amit Mehta issued the order in response to a petition from Trump's Justice Department. Some of the January 6 defendants had included a restriction on visiting the capitol as part of their sentences, and the DOJ requested that those requirements be removed.

Mehta declined to remove the restrictions from their sentencing documents, but acknowledged that the commutation from Trump means those restrictions will not be enforced.

"The U.S. Department of Justice's motion is granted in part and denied in part," Mehta wrote. "The court will not ‘dismiss’ the non-custodial portion of defendants' sentences, but defendants are no longer bound by the judicially imposed conditions of supervised release."

COMMUTED JAN. 6 DEFENDANTS BARRED FROM DC, CAPITOL BUILDING BY FEDERAL JUDGE

The reversal comes days after Mehta imposed the restriction on "Defendants Stewart Rhodes, Kelly Meggs, Kenneth Harrelson, Jessica Watkins, Roberto Minuta, Edward Vallejo, David Moerchel, and Joseph Hacket," whose sentences were commuted. Those pardoned were not subject to the order.

The order stated, "You must not knowingly enter the District of Columbia without first obtaining the permission from the Court," adding, "You must not knowingly enter the United States Capitol Building or onto surrounding grounds known as Capitol Square."

NANCY PELOSI SLAMS TRUMP’S ‘SHAMEFUL’ PARDONS OF JAN. 6 DEFENDANTS

While pardons vacate a defendant's conviction, a commutation leaves the conviction in place while lessening the sentence. Mehta had argued that the language of Trump's pardon for the defendants in question had only applied to their terms of imprisonment, and not to the details of their supervised release.

DOJ CONSIDERS CHARGING 200 MORE PEOPLE 4 YEARS AFTER JAN. 6 CAPITOL ATTACK

Jonathan Turley, Fox News Media contributor and the Shapiro Professor of Public Interest Law at George Washington University, called the order "very unusual" when it came down last week.

"The judge is relying on the fact that the sentences were commuted, but the defendants did not receive full pardons," Turley told Fox News Digital.

Trump pardoned nearly all Jan. 6 defendants earlier this week after promising to do so at his inaugural parade.

The Justice Department filed a motion Friday asking to lift the order imposed on commuted Jan. 6 defendants barring them from entering Washington, D.C., and the Capitol building. The order was issued by a federal district judge earlier in the day. 

In that order, Judge Amit P. Mehta specified it applied to "Defendants Stewart Rhodes, Kelly Meggs, Kenneth Harrelson, Jessica Watkins, Roberto Minuta, Edward Vallejo, David Moerchel, and Joseph Hacket," whose sentences were commuted. 

Those pardoned are not subject to the order.

The order states, "You must not knowingly enter the District of Columbia without first obtaining the permission from the Court," and, "You must not knowingly enter the United States Capitol Building or onto surrounding grounds known as Capitol Square."

TRUMP PARDONS FORMER DC POLICE OFFICERS CONVICTED IN DEATH OF MAN DURING DEADLY PURSUIT

The filing says the order is effective as of Friday at noon. 

Rhodes, founder of Oath Keepers, was previously seen in the Capitol complex's Longworth House office building. He was convicted of seditious conspiracy.

Acting U.S. Attorney Edward Martin filed a motion later Friday to lift all release conditions on the defendants. 

"As the terms of supervised release and probation are included in the ‘sentences’ of the defendants, the Court may not modify the terms of supervised release," the filing reads.

President Donald Trump pardoned nearly all Jan. 6 defendants earlier this week, after promising to do so at his inaugural parade.

Trump signed off on releasing more than 1,500 charged with crimes stemming from the Jan. 6, 2021, attack at the U.S. Capitol on Monday. The order required the Federal Bureau of Prisons to act immediately on receipt of the pardons.

Those pardoned in his initial order included Enrique Tarrio, the former Proud Boys chairman, who faced a sentence of 22 years in prison for seditious conspiracy.

SCHUMER BLASTS TRUMP’S J6 PARDONS AS ‘UN-AMERICAN’

Several prominent figures on the Hill came after Trump and his decision to pardon the defendants. 

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., told reporters the pardons were "deeply un-American."

"There is no other way to describe President Trump's pardon of Jan. 6th defenders than un-American," Schumer said. "It is so deeply un-American to do that, to pardon. And let's be clear, President Trump didn't just pardon protesters. He pardoned individuals convicted of assaulting police officers. He pardoned individuals convicted of seditious conspiracy. And he pardoned those who attempted to undermine our democracy." 

TRUMP REVOKES SECURITY CLEARANCES OF 51 INTEL OFFICIALS WHO SIGNED DISCREDITED HUNTER BIDEN LAPTOP LETTER

Former Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., called Trump's pardon "shameful," and "a betrayal" to those police officers "who put their lives on the line to stop an attempt to subvert the peacefyl transfer of power."

"The President's actions are an outrageous insult to our justice system and the heroes who suffered physical scars and emotional trauma as they protected the Capitol, the Congress and the Constitution," Pelosi said in a statement posted to X, formerly known as Twitter.  

Fox News Digital's Diana Stancy and Jamie Joseph contributed to this report. 

A federal district judge issued an order Friday barring certain Jan. 6 defendants with commutations from entering Washington, D.C., or the U.S. Capitol building. 

In the filing, Judge Amit P. Mehta specified the order applied to "Defendants Stewart Rhodes, Kelly Meggs, Kenneth Harrelson, Jessica Watkins, Roberto Minuta, Edward Vallejo, David Moerchel, and Joseph Hacket," whose sentences were commuted. 

Those pardoned are not subject to the order.

The order states "You must not knowingly enter the District of Columbia without first obtaining the permission from the Court" and "You must not knowingly enter the United States Capitol Building or onto surrounding grounds known as Capitol Square."

TRUMP PARDONS FORMER DC POLICE OFFICERS CONVICTED IN DEATH OF MAN DURING DEADLY PURSUIT

The filing says the order is effective as of Friday at noon. 

Rhodes, founder of Oath Keepers, was previously seen in the Capitol complex's Longworth House office building. He was convicted of seditious conspiracy.

President Donald Trump pardoned nearly all Jan. 6 defendants earlier this week, after promising to do so at his inaugural parade.

Trump signed off on releasing more than 1,500 charged with crimes stemming from the Jan. 6, 2021, attack at the U.S. Capitol on Monday. The order required the Federal Bureau of Prisons to act immediately on receipt of the pardons.

Those pardoned in his initial order included Enrique Tarrio, the former Proud Boys chairman, who faced a sentence of 22 years in prison for seditious conspiracy.

SCHUMER BLASTS TRUMP’S J6 PARDONS AS ‘UN-AMERICAN’

Several prominent figures on the Hill came after Trump and his decision to pardon the defendants. 

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., told reporters the pardons were "deeply un-American."

"There is no other way to describe President Trump's pardon of Jan. 6th defenders than un-American," Schumer said. "It is so deeply un-American to do that, to pardon. And let's be clear, President Trump didn't just pardon protesters. He pardoned individuals convicted of assaulting police officers. He pardoned individuals convicted of seditious conspiracy. And he pardoned those who attempted to undermine our democracy." 

TRUMP REVOKES SECURITY CLEARANCES OF 51 INTEL OFFICIALS WHO SIGNED DISCREDITED HUNTER BIDEN LAPTOP LETTER

Former Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., called Trump's pardon "shameful," and "a betrayal" to those police officers "who put their lives on the line to stop an attempt to subvert the peacefyl transfer of power."

"The President's actions are an outrageous insult to our justice system and the heroes who suffered physical scars and emotional trauma as they protected the Capitol, the Congress and the Constitution," Pelosi said in a statement posted to X, formerly known as Twitter.  

Fox News Digital's Diana Stancy and Jamie Joseph contributed to this report. 

Soon after President Donald Trump took his oath of office across town at the U.S. Capitol, Johng Delacruz, 31, a local Filipino-American nurse, set out from another corner of the nation’s capital, on Meridian Hill off 16th Street NW, joining a cacophony of drums, chants, signs and conversations that left little ambiguity about the ideology bent of the gathering. 

A man hoisted a pre-made sign, "SOCIALISM BEATS FACISM!" Beneath the message, the name of the organization that paid for the sign’s production: Democratic Socialists of America.

WOKE ARMY RETREATS IN DC PROTEST, PIVOTS TO ‘FIGHT BACK’ FOR GAZA

A pre-made neon green placard read: "WORKERS RIGHTS & PEOPLES NEEDS. NOT WAR & GENOCIDE," stamped with "Peoples Power Assembly," 

Another slogan, "FIGHT TRUMP’S AGENDA," bore the smaller-print attribution to Freedom Road Socialist Organization. 

A pre-printed banner carried by a group of demonstrators read: "WORKERS SHOULD HAVE POWER, NOT BILLIONAIRES!" Below it, the Party for Socialism and Liberation took credit.

"I’m proud to identify as a socialist supporting socialist movements," Delacruz told me without hesitation. "I believe that is the future of humanity and the right side of history. Well, ‘left’ if you will," he added with a laugh.

But you wouldn’t know that from the media coverage of this so-called professional "resistance" to Trump, with the Guardian reporting only that "anti-Trump protests sweep the globe on inauguration day." Voice of America merely describing the demonstrators as "anti-Trump protesters" and NBC News writing that "progressive groups" held marches around the country –  not a word about the self-described socialist dreams for many of the groups. 

Nearby, three activists bundled in winter clothes carried a banner in the blue and red colors of Puerto Rico’s flag, also waving overhead. It bore the name, Diaspora Pa’lante Collective, advocating for Puerto Rico’s independence—and a socialist government to lead it.

A man and a woman dressed in black masks dramatically pushed a faux guillotine, emblazoned with the ominous message: "COME GET SUM."

These weren’t fringe gatherings of hobbyists. Among them was Medea Benjamin, the rich co-founder of Code Pink, marching with a cardboard heart-shaped sign painted hot pink.

"The media doesn’t give a full and honest reportage of movements like this," Delacruz told me. "It holds a purpose to uphold the status quo of the capitalist system, if you will. If we believe socialism to be the antithesis to capitalism, then of course, it’s not going to cover it. I think at best it’ll say anti-Trump protesters from various grassroots movements, if that. But I highly doubt they will go with the particular calls and demands that we have."

Understanding these demands is crucial. The groups here weren’t just protesting Trump—they were advancing socialism, Marxism and communism. Many of these organizations also have a pro-Russia stance, rooted in a propaganda tradition the Soviet Union pioneered: agitprop. Short for "agitation and propaganda," agitprop combines political messaging with provocative action to influence and mobilize. I call protests like this "agitprop actions."

The journalists I spoke to at the rally admitted they rarely identify the groups behind the protests. "Audiences don’t really understand socialism," one reporter told me. "They tune out when they hear the word." It’s easier to reduce the activists to concepts their readers can grasp.

On the eve of the protest, I stayed up until 3 a.m., researching the ideologies of the 205 groups involved nationwide in the January 20 protests, as part of reporting for the Pearl Project, a nonprofit investigative reporting project that I cofounded. My analysis: 27 were Palestinian, Muslim, Arab, or Islamist; 63 self-identified as socialist; and 115 fell into what I term "adjacent" categories.

The protest industry is a complex and often opaque network of organizations, funding streams and ideological agendas that work together to orchestrate demonstrations, shape public narratives and influence political outcomes, like an effective "agitprop" operation. Understanding this ecosystem is critical because it reveals the motivations, alliances, and strategies behind what often appears to be spontaneous grassroots activism.

Far from being isolated events, protests are frequently coordinated efforts involving global actors, local chapters, and significant financial backing. Through the Pearl Project, I aim to investigate and expose the mechanisms of this industry—identifying the players, tracing their funding and analyzing their impact. By shedding light on how protests are organized and sustained, positioning themselves now as the "resistance" to the Trump administration, I hope to provide transparency and equip the public with a deeper understanding of the forces shaping political discourse and activism.

Walking through Meridian Hill Park revealed these agendas more clearly. The groups’ slogans championed socialism and anti-imperialism in countries like the Philippines, South Korea, Venezuela, Cuba—and here in the U.S. Their endorsers didn’t hide their intentions.

CLICK HERE FOR MORE FOX NEWS OPINION

The groups’ 205 "endorsers" nationwide don’t hide their agendas. Based in Salt Lake City, "Mormons with Hope for a Better World" says it is "committed to anti-racism, intersectional feminism, Trans and Queer liberation, disability justice, individual bodily autonomy, reproductive justice, socialism, anti-imperialism, and decolonization." Leaders of Qiao Collective, a media outlet say they seek to "be a bridge between the U.S. left and China’s rich Marxist, anti-imperialist political work and thought." The "Project for a Revolutionary Marxist International" has its agenda in its name.

As the march turned from 16th Street NW onto Massachusetts Avenue NW, Lacy MacAuley, 46, became a focal point for cameras. Wearing a disco outfit for a nearby "dance-off protest," she donned a mask over her sunglasses that read: "TRUMP IS SO NOT THE VIBE."

"I am an anarchist," she said with a smile. "I self-identify as one. That means I question and oppose hierarchies and the rule of people over others." While MacAuley criticized socialism as often becoming "too centralized," she added, "It’s thinking in the right direction."

By the end of the day, the protest wound down at Dupont Circle. The scent of marijuana lingered in the air as demonstrators dispersed. One marcher shoved his sign into a trash can, its message peeking out: "WE FIGHT BACK NETWORK."

CLICK HERE FOR MORE FROM ASRA NOMANI

The focus on President-elect Donald Trump's vow to pardon Jan. 6 protesters is sharpening, with his return to the White House just eight days away. 

Vice President-elect JD Vance — who, like Trump, has been critical of a justice system allegedly weaponized against the protesters — laid out how their offenses might be weighed when considering the pardons.

"If you protested peacefully on January 6th, and you've had Merrick Garland's Department of Justice treat you like a gang member, you should be pardoned," Vance told Fox News' Shannon Bream during an exclusive one-on-one interview that aired Sunday. 

"If you committed violence on that day, obviously you shouldn't be pardoned, and there's a little bit of a gray area there, but we're very much committed to seeing the equal administration of law. And there are a lot of people, we think, in the wake of January the 6th who were prosecuted unfairly. We need to rectify that."

TRUMP ASKS ABOUT ‘J-6 HOSTAGES’ IN RESPONSE TO BIDEN'S PARDON OF HUNTER: ‘SUCH AN ABUSE’

Trump previously pledged to pardon Jan. 6 protesters on day one of his incoming administration, telling NBC's Kristen Welker last month that people on the Jan. 6 committee in Congress belonged in jail instead.

"I’m going to look at everything. We’ll look at individual cases," Trump told Welker as he spelled out his plans. "But I’m going to be acting very quickly."

CALIFORNIA WILDFIRES: ESSENTIAL PHONE NUMBERS FOR LOS ANGELES-AREA RESIDENTS AND HOW YOU CAN HELP THEM

The incoming administration faces a slew of challenges ranging from the border crisis to hostages in the Middle East to domestic disaster relief once all members are sworn in.

Relentless wildfires tearing through southern California are but one of the issues Trump's administration will have to address. With a rift growing between Trump and state Democratic officials, the intended path forward seems unclear.

"President Trump is committed to doing a better job when it comes to disaster relief. That's true for the hurricane victims and flood victims in North Carolina. It's true for the fire victims in California. We just have to do a better job. We need competent, good governance," Vance said. 

"That doesn't mean you can't criticize the governor of California for, I think, some very bad decisions over a very long period of time. Some of these reservoirs have been dry for 15, 20 years. The fire hydrants are being reported as going dry while the firefighters are trying to put out these fires. There is a serious lack of competent governance in California, and I think it's part of the reason why these fires have gotten so bad. We need to do a better job at both the state and federal level."

Newsom's press office, meanwhile, addressed Trump's previous remarks that criticized the governor for allegedly mismanaging the water supply, with an X post, stating, "LADWP said that because of the high water demand, pump stations at lower elevations did not have enough pressure refill tanks at higher elevations, and the ongoing fire hampered the ability of crews to access the pumps."

It added, "Broadly speaking, there is no water shortage in Southern California right now, despite Trump's claims that he would open some imaginary spigot."

Fox News' Hanna Panreck and Gabriel Hays contributed to this report.

President-elect Trump blasted special counsel Jack Smith as a "disgrace" to himself and the country following Smith's resignation from the Justice Department.

Smith's resignation was announced in a court filing Saturday.

"The Special Counsel completed his work and submitted his final confidential report on January 7, 2025, and separated from the Department on January 10," a footnote in the filing said.

Trump took to his social media platform Truth Social on Sunday to criticize Smith for his investigations into the incoming president.

SPECIAL COUNSEL JACK SMITH RESIGNS AFTER 2-YEAR STINT AT DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE

"Deranged Jack Smith was fired today by the DOJ. He is a disgrace to himself, his family, and his Country. After spending over $100,000,000 on the Witch Hunt against TRUMP, he left town empty handed!" Trump wrote.

Smith was appointed by Attorney General Merrick Garland in November 2022 to investigate Trump's role in the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol riot and his mishandling of classified documents.

Smith previously served as acting U.S. attorney for the Middle District of Tennessee in 2017 during Trump's first administration.

The resignation comes ahead of the release of Smith's report on the case related to Trump's role in the attack on the Capitol. A recent court filing revealed that Garland plans to release the report soon, possibly before Trump takes office next week.

"As I have made clear regarding every Special Counsel who has served since I took office, I am committed to making as much of the Special Counsel's report public as possible, consistent with legal requirements and Department policy," Garland wrote in a recent letter to House Judiciary Chairman Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, and ranking member Jamie Raskin, D-Md.

A judge from a federal appeals court ruled on Friday against blocking the release of Smith's report.

After Trump's presidential election victory in November, Smith filed motions to bring his cases against the president-elect to a close.

Smith asked a judge in late November to drop the charges against Trump in the case related to the Capitol riot. Prior to that request, Smith filed a motion to vacate all deadlines in that case, which was anticipated after Trump's electoral win.

TRUMP PRESSES GOP TO SWIFTLY SEND ‘ONE POWERFUL BILL’ FOR HIS SIGNATURE ASAP

Trump said after the cases were dropped that they "should never have been brought."

"These cases, like all of the other cases I have been forced to go through, are empty and lawless, and should never have been brought," Trump said in a post on Truth Social. "It was a political hijacking, and a low point in the History of our Country that such a thing could have happened, and yet, I persevered, against all odds, and WON. MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!"

Fox News' Andrea Margolis contributed to this report.

EXCLUSIVE: Senate Republicans are demanding answers on whether confidential human sources from Justice Department agencies beyond the FBI were used on Jan. 6, 2021, while also questioning whether Inspector General Michael Horowitz thoroughly reviewed classified and unclassified communications between handlers and their sources, warning that without that review, there may be a "major blind spot" in his findings. 

Horowitz last week released his highly anticipated report that there were more than two dozen FBI confidential human sources in the crowd outside the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, but only three were assigned by the bureau to be present for the event. Horowitz said none of the sources were authorized or directed by the FBI to "break the law" or "encourage others to commit illegal acts." 

But now, Sens. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, and Ron Johnson, R-Wis., are demanding further information from Horowitz, writing to him in a letter exclusively obtained by Fox News Digital that it is "unclear" if his office reviewed the use of confidential human sources by other DOJ components during the Capitol riot. 

DOJ IG REVEALS 26 FBI INFORMANTS WERE PRESENT ON JAN. 6

"This IG report was a step in the right direction, but Senator Johnson and I still have questions the Justice Department needs to account for," Grassley told Fox News Digital. "The American people deserve a full picture of whether Justice Department sources from its component agencies, in addition to the FBI, were present on January 6, what their role was, and whether DOJ had knowledge of their attendance." 

Grassley told Fox News Digital that Horowitz and his team "must redouble its efforts to make sure it has reviewed all relevant information and provide a sufficient response to our inquiry." 

Johnson told Fox News Digital he believes the report made public last week "may have only provided a fraction of the story regarding the presence and activities of confidential human sources or undercover federal agents in Washington, D.C. on Jan. 6, 2021." 

"I urge the Inspector General’s office to be fully transparent about their work to ensure that Congress and the public have an accurate and complete understanding about what it actually reviewed," Johnson said.

DOJ INSPECTOR GENERAL DOES NOT DENY FBI INFORMANTS WERE AMONG JAN 6 CROWD

In their letter to Horowitz, Grassley and Johnson noted that the inspector general’s office received more than 500,000 documents from the Justice Department and its components as part of its investigation. 

"According to the report, your office obtained: CHS reporting, thousands of tips provided to the FBI, investigative and intelligence records from the FBI case management system, emails, instant messages, and phone records; contemporaneous notes of meetings and telephone calls; chronologies concerning the lead-up of events to January 6; after-action assessments; training materials and policy guides; and preparatory materials for press conferences or congressional testimony as well as talking points," they wrote. 

Grassley and Johnson told Horowitz "it is vital" that his office "more precisely explain what records it sought and received from all DOJ component agencies." 

Grassley and Johnson are demanding answers on whether Horowitz obtained evidence on whether other DOJ component agencies had tasked or untasked undercover confidential human sources in the Washington, D.C., area or at the Capitol building on Jan. 6, 2021. 

TRUMP SAYS WRAY RESIGNATION 'GREAT DAY FOR AMERICA,' TOUTS KASH PATEL AS 'MOST QUALIFIED' TO LEAD FBI

They are also asking if all communications were obtained between DOJ component agency handlers and confidential human sources or undercover agents present in the D.C. area, and whether he has received classified and unclassified non-email communication platforms used by the FBI. 

Grassley and Johnson are also demanding Horowitz share all FD-1023 forms, or confidential human source reporting documents, used in the investigation with them. 

As for his initial report, Horowitz "determined that none of these FBI CHSs was authorized by the FBI to enter the Capitol or a restricted area or to otherwise break the law on January 6, nor was any CHS directed by the FBI to encourage others to commit illegal acts on January 6." 

The report revealed that the FBI had a minor supporting role in responding on Jan. 6, 2021 – largely because the event was not deemed at the highest security level by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). 

Horowitz, though, said the FBI took significant and appropriate steps to prepare for that role. 

According to the report, there were a total of 26 confidential human sources in the crowd that day, but only three of them were assigned by the bureau to be there. 

One of the three confidential human sources tasked by the FBI to attend the rally entered the Capitol building, while the other two entered the restricted area around the Capitol. 

If a confidential human source is directed to be at a certain event, they are paid by the FBI for their time.

Justice Department Inspector General Michael Horowitz said there were more than two dozen confidential human sources (CHSs) in the crowd outside the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, but only three were assigned by the FBI to be present for the event, while stressing that none of the sources was authorized or directed by the bureau to "break the law" or "encourage others to commit illegal acts," Fox News has learned. 

Horowitz on Thursday released his highly anticipated report on the FBI’s Handling of its Confidential Human Sources and Intelligence Collection Efforts in the Lead Up to the Jan. 6, 2021 Electoral Certification. 

DOJ INSPECTOR GENERAL DOES NOT DENY FBI INFORMANTS WERE AMONG JAN 6 CROWD

"Today’s report also details our findings regarding FBI CHSs who were in Washington, D.C., on January 6," the report states. "Our review determined that none of these FBI CHSs was authorized by the FBI to enter the Capitol or a restricted area or to otherwise break the law on January 6, nor was any CHS directed by the FBI to encourage others to commit illegal acts on January 6." 

The report revealed that the FBI had a minor supporting role in responding on Jan. 6, 2021 — largely because the event was not deemed at the highest security level by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). 

Horowitz, though, said the FBI took significant and appropriate steps to prepare for that role. 

According to the report, there were a total of 26 confidential human sources in the crowd that day, but only three of them were assigned by the bureau to be there. 

One of the three confidential human sources tasked by the FBI to attend the rally entered the Capitol building, while the other two entered the restricted area around the Capitol. 

If a confidential human source is directed to be at a certain event, they are paid by the FBI for their time.

"One FBI field office tasked a CHS to travel to DC to report on the activities of a predicated domestic terrorism subject who was separately planning to travel to DC for the January 6 Electoral Certification; a second FBI field office tasked a CHS to travel to DC to potentially report on two domestic terrorism (DT) subjects from another FBI field office who were planning to travel to DC for the events of January 6; and a third CHS, who had informed their handling agent that they intended to travel to DC on their own initiative for the events of January 6, was similarly tasked by their field office to potentially report on two DT subjects from other FBI field offices who were planning to travel to DC for the events of January 6," the report states.

SUPREME COURT RULES IN FAVOR OF JAN. 6 CAPITOL RIOT PARTICIPANT WHO CHALLENGED OBSTRUCTION CONVICTION

Horowitz stressed that no sources were encouraged or authorized by the FBI to enter the Capitol or any restricted area and stressed that they were not encouraged or authorized to commit any illegal acts. 

Twenty-three of the confidential human sources present on Jan. 6 came to Washington, D.C., to the Capitol on their own. Of that group, three entered the Capitol during the riot, and an additional 11 sources entered the restricted area around the Capitol. 

But Horowitz said that investigators "found no evidence in the materials we reviewed or the testimony we received showing or suggesting that the FBI had undercover employees in the various protest crowds, or at the Capitol, on January 6." 

As for reimbursements to confidential human sources, Horowitz stated that at least one was "reimbursed" for their travel, even though that CHS "was only tasked with attending the Inauguration and not the electoral certification on January 6." 

The FBI, reacting to Horowitz's report Thursday, said the bureau "did not have primary responsibility for intelligence collection or event security on January 6 but nonetheless ‘recognized the potential for violence and took significant and appropriate steps to prepare forthis supporting role.’ Further, the Report includes the OIG’s analysis regarding the FBI’s use of confidential human sources (CHSs), and concludes that no FBI CHSs ‘were authorized to enter the Capitol or a restricted area or to otherwise break the law on January 6, nor was any CHS directed by the FBI to encourage others to commit illegal acts on January 6.’" 

The FBI said it accepts Horowitz's recommendations moving forward, specifically for the FBI to "assess the processes and procedures it uses to prepare for events that it determines present potential domestic security issues — but have not been designated as NSSE or SEAR events by DHS — to ensure that its processes and procedures set forth with clarity the division of responsibilities between and within the relevant FBI field office and FBI Headquarters."

The FBI said that DHS has since designated the upcoming 2025 certification of the election a national special security event, and said the bureau "is coordinating closely with DHS, the U.S. Secret Service, the U.S. Capitol Police and other responsible agencies in preparation for the 2025 electoral certification and the subsequent Presidential Inauguration." 

"The FBI is nonetheless committed to assessing our policies and procedures for other, non-NSSE future events, as recommended, to ensure that they clearly set forth the division of labor among FBI field offices and divisions," the FBI said. 

Horowitz had testified on Capitol Hill earlier this year before the House Select Subcommittee on the Weaponization of the Federal Government, a subcommittee of the House Judiciary Committee. 

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During the hearing, Horowitz did not deny that federal government confidential human sources were in the crowd during the Capitol riot on Jan. 6, 2021.

"This report confirms what we suspected," House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, told Fox News Digital. "The FBI had encouraged and tasked confidential human sources to be at the capitol that day. There were 26 total present. Four entered the Capitol and weren’t charged, which is not the same treatment that other Americans received." 

Jordan added: "This has been our concern all along — agencies being weaponized against the American people. It’s not how our system is supposed to work." 

Jordan reminded that there were two inspector general reports released this week — this report focused on CHSs on Jan. 6, and one earlier in the week about the FBI spying on congressional staffers during its Trump-Russia probe, including President-elect Trump's nominee for FBI director, Kash Patel, while he was on the House Intelligence Committee. 

"There were two IG reports this week and I think they may have had something to do with Mr. Wray's announcement this week," Jordan said. 

FBI Director Christopher Wray on Wednesday announced he will resign next month before Trump takes office. 

"When Chris Wray first got there back in 2017, the FBI was spying on congressional hill staffers, including the guy who is slated to replace him, and then the day after he announces he's leaving, this report comes out and confirms what so many of us suspected, that there were these confidential human sources present on Jan. 6," Jordan said.