After meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Alaska last week, President Donald Trump touted that he had a ‘very good meeting’ with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and other European leaders at the White House on Monday.

Trump, who has voiced he would like to put an end to mass bloodshed in Eastern Europe, called the multilateral meetings on Monday ‘a very good, early step for a War that has been going on for almost four years.’

In a Truth Social post after the discussions, Trump wrote, ‘I had a very good meeting with distinguished guests,’ and that ‘everyone is very happy about the possibility of PEACE for Russia/Ukraine.’

Here are the top five takeaways from the president’s ‘big day’ with European leaders.

1. Smiles all around

Monday’s summit marked a dramatic and noticeable shift from Trump and Vice President JD Vance’s now-infamous Oval Office meeting with Zelenskyy in February.

During that meeting, the leaders were caught on camera getting into a heated argument over several topics, including Zelenskyy allegedly not being sufficiently grateful for U.S. support.

On Monday, all the tension seemed to have disappeared. Both Trump and Zelenskyy were all smiles throughout the day, and the Ukrainian leader received a warm welcome from Trump’s Cabinet, including Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth.

Both Zelenskyy and European leaders appeared more at ease with Trump throughout the day and took an optimistic tone. After the meetings, European Union President Ursula von der Leyen posted on X, ‘We are here, as allies and friends, for peace in Ukraine and in Europe. This is an important moment, as we continue to work on strong security guarantees for Ukraine and a lasting and durable peace.’

2. Wardrobe upgrade

Another marked shift from February was Zelenskyy breaking from his trademark jumpsuit attire to wear a suit, something he even joked with the press about while sitting in the Oval Office with Trump.

Zelenskyy, who has been criticized for wearing casual attire to meetings with world leaders, wore all-black attire, including a button-down shirt and jacket. 

‘First of all… President Zelenskyy, you look fabulous in that suit,’ a reporter told Zelenskyy after he sat down with Trump in the Oval Office. 

‘You look good,’ the reporter said before Trump added, ‘I said the same thing.’ 

At another point during the Zelenskyy-Trump bilateral press meeting, the Ukrainian president ribbed a reporter for wearing the same suit he had in February.

‘You’re in the same suit. You see, I changed, you’re not,’ Zelenskyy quipped as both he and Trump burst into laughter.

3. Ceasefire not needed

On a more substantive note, Trump doubled down on his position that a ceasefire is ‘not needed’ to broker a permanent peace between Ukraine and Russia. He cited his recent successes in negotiating peace agreements between other countries across the globe.

‘I don’t think you need ceasefire. You know, if you look at the six deals that I settled this year, they were all at war,’ Trump said during his press conference with Zelenskyy.

‘I didn’t do any ceasefires,’ he went on, adding, ‘And I know that it might be good to have, but I can also understand strategically why, you know, one country or the other wouldn’t want it.’ 

In a rare tense moment during the day, Trump clashed with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz over the need for a ceasefire.

Speaking with Trump and other leaders gathered around a large conference table in the White House, Merz said, ‘To be honest, we all would like to see a ceasefire at the latest from the next meeting on,’ adding, ‘I can’t imagine that the next meeting would take place without a ceasefire. So, let’s work on that.’

He urged the leaders, ‘Let’s try to put pressure on Russia, because the credibility of this effort, these efforts we are undertaking today are depending on, at least, a ceasefire from the beginning of the serious negotiations from the next step on. So, I would like to emphasize this aspect and would like to see a ceasefire from the next meeting, which should be a trilateral meeting wherever it takes place.’

In response, Trump shot back that he is determined ‘to go directly to a peace agreement’ without a ceasefire, saying, ‘Well, we’re going to let the president [Zelenskyy] go over and talk to the president [Putin], and we’ll see how that works out.’

4. United European front

In addition to Zelenskyy, seven major European leaders were present at the White House on Monday, a rare occurrence signaling a united European front and something Trump called an ‘honor’ for the U.S.

This follows Zelenskyy doubling down on Sunday that Ukraine will not agree to cede Crimea or any of its territory to Russia as part of a peace deal.  

‘Since the territorial issue is so important, it should be discussed only by the leaders of Ukraine and Russia at the trilateral [talks with] Ukraine, United States, Russia,’ Zelenskyy said.

Trump said that though the U.S. would be involved with providing Ukraine with security guarantees after the war’s end, he said going forward, Europe must take much of that ‘burden.’

‘I think that the European nations are going to take a lot of the burden,’ Trump said. ‘We’re going to help them, and we’re going to make it very secure. We also need to discuss the possible exchanges of territory, taking into consideration the current line of contact. That means the war zone, the war line center. Pretty obvious. Very sad, actually, to look at them and negotiating positions.’

Meanwhile, French President Emmanuel Macron said Europe is aware that it will shoulder much of the weight of responsibility tied to various security guarantees — and acknowledged it is necessary in order to preserve each respective country’s safety. 

‘In order to have such a long-standing peace for Ukraine and for the whole continent, we do need the security guarantees,’ Macron said. ‘And the first one is clearly a credible Ukrainian army. For the years and decades to come. And the second one is our own commitments. All of us… You can be sure that the Europeans are very lucid about the fact that they have their fair share in the security guarantees for Ukraine, but their own security is clearly at stake in this situation.’

5. Putin on the line

Trump shared that he called Putin after the meetings and that there is already movement on the next step, that is, scheduling a meeting between Zelenskyy and the Russian president. After that meeting, Trump said there would then be a trilateral meeting between Zelenskyy, Putin and himself.

‘At the conclusion of the meetings, I called President Putin, and began the arrangements for a meeting, at a location to be determined, between President Putin and President Zelenskyy. After that meeting takes place, we will have a Trilat, which would be the two Presidents, plus myself,’ wrote Trump.

In another post, Trump called the summit ‘a big day at the White House.’

‘We have never had so many European Leaders here at one time. A great honor for America!!!’ he wrote. ‘Lets see what the results will be???’ 

Fox News Digital’s Diana Stancy, Emma Colton and Amanda Macias contributed to this report.

President Donald Trump described his White House negotiations with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and European leaders as ‘a very good, early step’ toward ending the nearly four-year-old Russia-Ukraine war, announcing that he has already spoken with Russian President Vladimir Putin about arranging a direct meeting with Zelenskyy.

Trump said the group of world leaders held discussions on security guarantees for Ukraine, with commitments coming primarily from European nations ‘in coordination with the United States’ in a statement on Truth Social after the meetings.

‘Everyone is very happy about the possibility of PEACE for Russia/Ukraine,’ Trump said, adding that Vice President JD Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, and special envoy Steve Witkoff are now leading follow-up talks with Moscow and Kyiv.

Zelenskyy signaled he too was ready to meet directly with Putin. 

A Kremlin readout of the Trump-Putin call confirmed the pair ‘discussed the idea of raising the level of direct Russian-Ukrainian negotiations,’ but did not say whether Putin had agreed. 

Trump outlines next steps

Trump revealed that following the Oval Office meetings he phoned Putin to begin making ‘arrangements for a meeting, at a location to be determined, between President Putin and President Zelenskyy.’ If that takes place, he said, the next stage would be a ‘Trilat’ — a trilateral meeting involving himself, Putin, and Zelenskyy.

Zelenskyy said he would be open to a meeting with Trump and Putin or a meeting with just Putin next. 

‘We confirmed that we are ready for a trilateral meeting,’ the Ukrainian president told reporters after the meeting. ‘And if Russia proposed to the President of the United States bilateral, and then we will see the result of the bilateral, then it can be trilateral. So I said, always, Ukraine will never stop on the way to peace, and we are ready for any kind of format but on the level of leaders.’

While Trump has previously cast himself as a mediator rather than a dealmaker, the suggestion that Putin is open to meeting face-to-face with Zelenskyy marked the biggest breakthrough in peace negotiations yet. ‘Again, this was a very good, early step for a war that has been going on for almost four years,’ he said.

Security guarantees under discussion

The idea of ‘security guarantees’ has long been central to Ukraine’s demands. According to Trump, these would be provided primarily by European states, coordinated with Washington. Ahead of the meetings, Trump had not ruled out U.S. military involvement in the guarantees, but he has since stressed that Europe will bear the primary burden of defending Ukraine.

Trump also reiterated his view that U.S. support should come through arms sales rather than aid packages. ‘We’re not giving anything. We’re selling weapons,’ he said earlier this week. Ukraine has reportedly floated a proposal to buy as much as $100 billion in U.S.-made weapons with European financing, according to the Financial Times. 

Land swaps may be on the table 

During the meeting, Trump and Zelenskyy were pictured viewing a map outlining the front lines of the war and the Ukrainian territory currently occupied by Russia, about 20% of the country. Trump may have used the map to discuss with Zelenskyy which regions he could realistically part with in order to obtain peace. 

According to a source familiar with Zelenskyy’s visit planning, clarity on U.S. and European security guarantees could help the Ukrainian leader make the case domestically for any territorial concessions — a likely core element of talks with Russia. The question of which areas Ukraine could ‘let go’ and which it must retain remains deeply sensitive in Kyiv, where public opinion has hardened after years of fighting and heavy civilian losses.

Russia’s categorical rejection

Moscow strongly opposed the concept of NATO-style guarantees. The Russian foreign ministry released a statement during the White House talks warning that any arrangement involving NATO countries could trigger ‘uncontrolled escalation’ with ‘unpredictable consequences,’ according to state media outlet RIA. That categorical rejection underscores the difficulty of bridging the gap between Ukraine’s security needs and Russia’s demands.

European leaders weigh in

German Chancellor Merz stressed that no meaningful talks could occur without at least a temporary ceasefire.

‘I can’t imagine that the next meeting would take place without a ceasefire,’ Merz said. ‘So let’s work on that and put pressure on Russia, because the credibility of these efforts depends on at least a ceasefire.’

Fox News’ Jacqui Heinrich contributed to this report. 

I’m with President Trump: ‘There’s no deal until there’s a deal.’

And now that he has changed his stance and is openly siding with Vladimir Putin, despite vehement objections from Volodymyr Zelenskyy, who visited the White House yesterday, a deal seems rather elusive.

Putin’s interest in peace is underscored by his continued bombardment of Ukraine, the country he illegally invaded, with the latest round killing 10 people. Which is to say the Kremlin dictator has no conceivable interest in peace, except on his maximalist terms.

Look, I’m rooting for Trump. If he can somehow square the circle of this brutal and bloody war, and bring things to an end, he will deserve the Nobel Peace Prize. And Hillary said she’d nominate him.

But the negative reviews of the Alaska sitdown has rankled Trump and prompted him to lash out at Fake News on Truth Social:

‘If we had the Summit elsewhere, the Democrat run and controlled media would have said what a terrible thing THAT was. These people are sick!’

Okay, he doesn’t like the press. Except we now know, thanks to his in-flight comments to Fox’s Bret Baier, that he enjoys the sparring, likening it to a golf game. The reporters are all trying to get him to make a mistake. If he makes no breaking news, he wins. If he does say something that’s breaking news, he didn’t put the ball in the hole and they’ve got him. 

I watched Sunday morning as Zelenskyy and top European officials said only Russia can end the war and that Ukraine would not be surrendering the Donbas region, home to more than 200,000 people.  

As Gen. Wesley Clark told me on ‘Media Buzz,’ once you get past the Donbas region, it’s a ‘straight shot’ to Kyiv, so the brave Ukrainians, who have held off the far bigger Russian war machine, would be defenseless. 

It’s mildly encouraging that media reports say Putin has accepted the need for security forces to protect Ukraine, meaning the Europeans – and the U.S. – would send troops for a peacekeeping unit.

When special envoy Steve Witkoff, who was in the room during the Putin session, was asked about Trump’s change of position, I thought he’d deny it, but he didn’t. That confirms the stories are true, and certainly complicates matters.

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said over the weekend that Trump ‘said himself that a ceasefire was his absolute most important and highest priority. So, it was a joint demand, which isn’t happening now. We would have indeed hoped for a cease-fire first. The Russian side was obviously unwilling to do that.’

So what exactly is Putin giving up? Nothing, as far as I can see. Every day without a cease-fire is another day that the indicted war criminal gets to cement his battlefield gains.

And, under these circumstances, Trump expects Ukraine’s president to join in a trilateral meeting with him and Putin? 

Responding to Fox’s Peter Doocy, Trump said: ‘I think if everything works out well today, we’ll have a trilat and I think there will be a reasonable chance of ending the war when we do that.’ 

Zelenskyy, who repeatedly praised Trump–he wasn’t going to make the same mistake twice after getting kicked out of the White House following his meltdown back in February–reminded reporters that ‘we live under, each day, attacks. You know, that today have been a lot of attacks and a lot of wounded people. And the child was dead, small one, one year and half.

‘So we need to stop this war, to stop Russia. And we need to support American and European partners that will do our best, for this. So, and I think we show that we are strong people and we supported the idea of the united system of personnel, President Trump to stop this war, to make a diplomatic way of finishing this war. And we are ready for trilateral as presidents.’

Now that stunned me. He’s willing to sit down with Putin and Trump after insisting on a cease-fire first – which was also the president’s position until he flipped and abandoned it after the sitdown with the indicted war criminal?

So what was the mood afterward?

‘I’m optimistic that collectively we can reach an agreement that would deter any future aggression against Ukraine,’ Trump said. He added, ‘I have a feeling you and President Putin are going to work something out.’

Zelenskyy ‘praised the constructive specific meeting,’ adding: ‘There is a lot of people in prison. So we need them back and guarantees which will work for the years. We spoke about it and I showed president a lot of details on the battlefield, on the map.’ 

But will Putin, who views Zelenskyy as an illegitimate leader, attend?

All the chatter about the red carpet and other atmospherics is meaningless. Yes, Zelenskyy wore a suit, albeit a military-style one.

We should all be rooting for Trump. Even if he falls short, and the war drags on, it can only end with a negotiated settlement.

At one point, Trump broke away from the session and called Putin, rather than waiting till afterwards.

Trump posted that this was ‘a very good early step,’ and early may be the operative word. The war could certainly drag on. But it can’t end on the battlefield. We wouldn’t have gotten this far without Trump’s unique preference for leader-to-leader talks, even though he’s now openly siding with Vladimir Putin. Sometimes that produces results and sometimes it doesn’t, as with Kim Jong-un. But it’s given him – and us – a shot. 

President Donald Trump said he spoke with Russian President Vladimir Putin Monday, after meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and European leaders at the White House, to begin coordinating next steps in the peace process aimed at ending the war in Ukraine. 

The president posted on his Truth Social platform Monday evening saying that he had called Putin at the conclusion of a day of meetings to begin ‘the arrangements for a meeting’ between the Russian president and his Ukrainian counterpart. Trump’s call to Putin mirrored his decision to call Zelenskyy following Friday’s Alaska summit with Putin. 

‘At the conclusion of the meetings, I called President Putin, and began the arrangements for a meeting, at a location to be determined, between President Putin and President Zelenskyy,’ Trump confirmed, following media reports hinting at the call.

The president added that after the meeting between the two warring presidents, there would be a trilateral meeting with the United States as well. 

‘After that meeting takes place, we will have a Trilat, which would be the two Presidents, plus myself,’ the president continued. ‘Again, this was a very good, early step for a War that has been going on for almost four years.’

Yury Ushakov, a top aide to Russian President Vladimir Putin, said Trump and Putin were on the phone for about 40 minutes and held a ‘candid and very constructive’ dialogue, according to CNN.

Putin ‘expressed support for direct negotiations between the delegations of Russia and Ukraine,’ Ushakov reportedly added.

Officials familiar with Monday’s talks also reportedly said Trump’s call to Putin came in-between talks with the European leaders present at the White House. Meanwhile, one of those leaders, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, reportedly said Putin agreed in the call with Trump to meet Zelenskyy in two weeks. 

Earlier in the day, Trump was caught in a hot-mic moment telling French President Emmanuel Macron that Putin wants to find a resolution to bring the war in Ukraine to an end for him.

‘I think [Putin] wants to make a deal,’ Trump whispered to Macron in the East Room as they were preparing for Monday’s talks. ‘I think he wants to make a deal for me, you understand that? As crazy as it sounds.’

Following Monday’s talks, Zelenskyy thanked Trump and all the other leaders present in D.C. for their work in trying to bring peace to his country, noting that the talks were ‘long and detailed.’  

‘Today, important negotiations took place in Washington. We discussed many issues with President Trump. It was a long and detailed conversation, including discussions about the situation on the battlefield and our steps to bring peace closer,’ Zelenskyy said in a post on X Monday night.

‘We appreciate the important signal from the United States regarding its readiness to support and be part of these guarantees. A lot of attention today was given to the return of our children, to the release of prisoners of war and civilians held by Russia. We agreed to work on this,’ Zelenskyy continued. ‘The U.S. President also supported a meeting at the level of leaders. Such a meeting is necessary to resolve sensitive issues.’ 

Fox News Digital reached out to the White House for comment on this but did not receive a response.

President Donald Trump predicted Monday that European allies would bear the brunt of responsibility providing Ukraine certain security guarantees to prevent Russian aggression, but that the U.S. would also help them. 

Trump’s comments come as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, along with other European leaders, visited Washington, D.C., to advance peace talks to end the war in Ukraine just days after Trump met with Russian President Vladimir Putin. 

‘President Putin agreed that Russia would accept security guarantees for Ukraine. And this is one of the key points that we need to consider,’ Trump said Monday during a meeting with European leaders at the White House. ‘And, we’re going to be considering that at the table. Also, like who will do what? Essentially, I’m optimistic that collectively we can reach an agreement that would deter any future aggression against Ukraine.’ 

‘I think that the European nations are going to take a lot of the burden,’ Trump said. ‘We’re going to help them, and we’re going to make it very secure. We also need to discuss the possible exchanges of territory, taking into consideration the current line of contact. That means the war zone, the war line center. Pretty obvious. Very sad, actually, to look at them and negotiating positions.’

Trump said Sunday that Ukraine could end the war immediately if it agreed to cede Crimea to Russia, and abandon its bid for NATO membership. Meanwhile, U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff also said Sunday that Putin has agreed to allow the U.S. and other European allies to provide additional protection for Ukraine, similar to protections included in NATO’s Article 5 mutual defense clause.

Likewise, Trump said earlier Monday that he hadn’t ruled out the possibility that U.S. troops could be dispatched to Ukraine following a peace negotiation to deter Russian aggression to support other European allies bolstering security for Ukraine. Although he refrained from sharing specific details, Trump said that the U.S. is ‘going to help them out also. We’ll be involved.’ 

For his part, Zelenskyy said U.S. backing on security guarantees is critical to delivering stability to Ukraine. 

‘Security in Ukraine depends on the United States and on you and on those leaders who are with us in our hearts,’ Zelenskyy said Monday. 

‘We spoke about it and we will speak more about security guarantees,’ Zelenskyy said. ‘This is very important that the United States gives such strong signal and is ready for security guarantees.’ 

Meanwhile, French President Emmanuel Macron said that Europe is aware that it will shoulder much of the weight of responsibility tied to various security guarantees — and acknowledged it is necessary in order to preserve each respective country’s safety. 

‘In order to have such a long-standing peace for Ukraine and for the whole continent, we do need the security guarantees,’ Macron said. ‘And the first one is clearly a credible Ukrainian army. For the years and decades to come. And the second one is our own commitments. All of us… You can be sure that the Europeans are very lucid about the fact that they have their fair share in the security guarantees for Ukraine, but their own security is clearly at stake in this situation.’

Former Attorney General Bill Barr’s closed-door deposition before the House Oversight Committee wrapped after over four hours on Monday, and lawmakers on opposite sides of the aisle had very different interpretations of how it went.

Reps. Jasmine Crockett, D-Texas, and Suhas Subramanyam, D-Va., who represented committee Democrats during the staff-led sit-down, said they were left with ‘more questions now’ than before Barr’s deposition began.

House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer, R-Ky., the lone Republican present, said Barr ‘shed a lot of light’ on the Epstein case and said he ‘answered all the questions’ presented to him.

Both sides only spoke with reporters partway through Barr’s testimony, which began at 10 a.m. Monday. Fox News Digital witnessed him leaving roughly 30 minutes before 3 p.m.

‘I think the Democratic side is doing most of the heavy lifting, and I don’t think we’re learning much from the questioning from the House Republicans,’ Subramanyam said. 

‘It doesn’t seem like this is something where they are truly caring about the victims and about trying to get to the bottom of what’s happening.’

Crockett said, ‘It seems like they are going through the motions, and they want people to believe that they are digging in. But at the end of the day, I don’t think that we’ve learned anything through the Republican questioning that you couldn’t find in one of the articles that most likely your outlets have printed.’

Comer told reporters later by contrast, ‘Our goal with this investigation is to be transparent.’

He even lauded Democrats for taking the matter ‘seriously,’ adding, ‘This is a bipartisan investigation, and hopefully, we’ll be able to get the answers the American people want and deserve.’

When asked about the Democratic lawmakers’ attacks on Republicans’ line of questioning, however, Comer accused them of playing politics with the situation.

‘It’s unfortunate the Democrats are trying to, it seems to me, politicize this. When you look at the basis of this, horrific crimes against young girls, and, of course, the Democrats’ goal is to try to dig up some type of dirt on President Trump,’ Comer said.

He said Republican staff were ‘asking a lot of tough questions’ and accused Democrats of operating on a double standard.

‘I don’t ever remember the Democrats subpoenaing a former Democrat attorney general for anything,’ he said.

Comer accused Democrats of trying to create a ‘false narrative’ connecting Trump and Epstein, after Subramanyam floated the possibility of a ‘cover-up’ by Trump and his allies.

‘This is a serious investigation. This is a sincere investigation. I hope this will be a bipartisan investigation. I would encourage my Democrat colleagues not to politicize this,’ Comer said.

‘I think General Barr answered a lot of questions that probably burst their bubble with respect to, he had never communicated with President Trump on a potential Epstein list or anything else. And he had never seen anything that would implicate President Trump.’

Barr arrived on Capitol Hill nearly an hour before his scheduled deposition, only quipping that the ‘early bird gets the worm’ in response to a flurry of reporter questions.

He was similarly soft-spoken on his way out, even as Fox News Digital and others questioned what he told House investigators.

Barr only said ‘absolutely’ when asked if he had a good conversation Monday.

A source familiar with his deposition told Fox News Digital that Barr ‘made clear that President Trump never provided any views or instructions related to the criminal case against Jeffrey Epstein or his death, and that he never saw any evidence suggesting President Trump committed a crime.’

‘He further stated that he believed the Biden Department of Justice would have released any incriminating evidence against President Trump if such evidence existed,’ said the source, who described Barr as ‘cooperative.’

Barr is the first of several people who were subpoenaed to appear before the House Oversight Committee after Republicans and Democrats voted to direct Comer to open the probe last month.

Several other former attorneys general, ex-FBI directors, and even former First Couple Bill and Hillary Clinton were also subpoenaed.

Fox News Digital reached out to Barr’s lawyer for comment but did not immediately hear back.

Attorney General Pam Bondi and FBI Director Kash Patel are bringing on Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey as an additional deputy director of the bureau, Fox News Digital has learned.

Bailey will serve as a co-deputy director, alongside Deputy Director Dan Bongino, Fox News Digital has learned.

‘I am thrilled to welcome Andrew Bailey as Co-Deputy Director of the FBI,’ Bondi told Fox News Digital. ‘He has served as a distinguished state attorney general and is a decorated war veteran, bringing expertise and dedication to service. His leadership and commitment to country will be a tremendous asset as we work together to advance President Trump’s mission.’ 

‘The FBI, as the leading investigative body of the federal government under the Department of Justice, will always bring the greatest talent this country has to offer in order to accomplish the goals set forth when an overwhelming majority of American people elected President Donald J. Trump again,’ Patel told Fox News Digital, adding that Bailey will be an ‘integral part of this important mission’ and said he looks forward to ‘the continued fight to save America together.’

Bailey, as Missouri’s attorney general, launched an anti-human trafficking task force and addressed more than 1,100 reported incidents in Missouri. He also cleared the backlog of Sexual Assault Forensic Evidence (SAFE) kits to improve prosecution of sexual assault cases.

Bailey’s office also defended the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department in civil litigation and has consistently advocated for law enforcement. Bailey was endorsed by the Missouri Fraternal Order of Police.

Bailey’s office also reported a 133% increase in trial court-level criminal prosecutions.

Bailey also has held public officials accountable during his time as attorney general. He demanded the resignation of a sheriff for financial mismanagement and misconduct, and, separately, announced a grand jury indictment against a St. Louis county executive for stealing and election law violations.

‘I am eternally grateful for the opportunity to serve as the Co-Deputy Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation,’ Bailey told Fox News Digital. ‘I extend my deepest gratitude to President Trump, U.S. Attorney General Bondi and Director Patel for the privilege to join in their stated mission to Make America Safe Again.’ 

A senior administration official told Fox News Digital that President Donald Trump ‘wants to see bad guys prosecuted, illegals deported, and corrupt politicians held accountable.’

‘We need all hands on deck to accomplish all of these important goals,’ the official said. ‘Andrew Bailey will serve as another set of credible, experienced hands to help Attorney General Bondi and FBI Director Patel carry out the President’s mission.’

The FBI, under Patel’s leadership, already has seen 19,000 arrests nationwide — that’s double the arrests made in all of 2024.

Of those, 1,600 individuals have been arrested for violent crimes against children — including 270 arrests for human traffickers, according to the FBI. One thousand have been arrested from investigations of foreign terrorist organizations, and three of the ‘Top 10 Most Wanted’ have been arrested in 2025.

Patel’s FBI has rescued 4,000 child victims — a 33% increase from 2025; seized 1,500 kilos of fentanyl; and seized 6,300 kilos of methamphetamines.

A senior official told Fox News Digital that the murder rate is currently on track to be the lowest ever recorded in history. 

‘President Trump wants to see America quickly become the safest country in the world, and he has put together the best law and order focused team in the business to accomplish that goal,’ White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt told Fox News Digital.

The addition of Bailey comes amid the expanding nature of Trump’s law and order agenda. As for the federal takeover of Washington, D.C., Bondi is in charge, and the FBI is playing a large role. 

Bondi, on Friday, announced there have been nearly 200 arrests ‘and counting’ in the nation’s capital, including those of murder suspects and illegal gun offenders, since the Trump administration federalized the city to tackle crime.

Among those arrested were two homicide suspects, 17 suspected drug traffickers, 39 suspected illegal gun offenders and two sexual predators, according to Bondi.

Fox News Digital’s Alexandra Koch contributed to this report. 

President Donald Trump said that his meeting at the White House Monday with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy isn’t a last attempt to help Ukraine secure a peace deal ending its war with Russia. 

‘I can never say that. It’s never the end of the road,’ Trump told reporters in the Oval Office Monday. ‘People are being killed, and we want to stop that. So I would not say it’s the end of the road. No, I think we have a good chance of doing it now. It’s been almost four years now that, a lot of people were killed last week, a lot of people last week. I mean, millions of people killed, but a lot of people last week, for whatever reason, a big number, a lot of soldiers, both on both sides. And, I know the president. I know myself, and I believe Vladimir Putin wants to see it ended.’ 

Trump’s comments come days after he met with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Anchorage, Alaska, Friday. Trump also said Monday that he called Putin ahead of his meeting with Zelenskyy, and would call the Russian leader again after talks with Zelenskyy and other European leaders wrapped up. 

Zelenskyy, who hasn’t visited the White House since February, is joined by other European leaders who have supported Ukraine. Leaders also in Washington include British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, European Commission President Ursula Von der Leyen, French President Emmanuel Macron and NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte. 

Trump told reporters that he wouldn’t eliminate the possibility that U.S. troops could be deployed to Ukraine following a peace negotiation to ensure Russia upholds its end of the bargain. 

‘We will give them very good protection, very good security. That’s part of it,’ Trump told reporters Monday. 

Trump said more details would be forthcoming on what it would mean to deploy U.S. troops to Ukraine, and that he would be discussing the matter with other European leaders Monday. 

‘They’ll all be involved, but there’ll be a lot of help when it comes to security, there’s going to be a lot of help, it’s going to be good,’ Trump said. ‘They are first line of defense, because they’re there, they’re Europe, but we’re going to help them out also, we’ll be involved.’

Although Trump said Sunday that NATO membership for Ukraine was not an option for a potential peace deal, U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff said Sunday that Putin has agreed to allow the U.S. and other European allies to provide additional protection for Ukraine, similar to protections included in NATO’s Article 5 mutual defense clause. 

‘We were able to win the following concession that the United States could offer Article 5-like protection, which is one of the real reasons why Ukraine wants to be in NATO,’ Witkoff said in an interview with CNN. 

Former Attorney General Bill Barr told House investigators on Monday that he never saw anything that could tie President Donald Trump to Jeffrey Epstein’s sordid crimes, Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer, R-Ky., said.

‘He said that he had never seen anything that would implicate President Trump in any of this, and that he believed if there had been anything pertaining to President Trump with respect to the Epstein list, that he felt like the Biden administration would probably have leaked it out,’ Comer told reporters partway through Barr’s testimony.

The ex-Trump administration official is the first person to appear in the House Oversight Committee’s probe into the federal government’s handling of Epstein’s case.

Like others subpoenaed to testify after him, Barr’s deposition is being conducted behind closed doors.

Comer said Barr told investigators that he ‘didn’t know anything about a client list,’ and did not have conversations with Trump about such a list.

‘Barr said he’s never seen any information that showed that he was in the files, and that he would be shocked if there was anything pertaining to President Trump that was negative that the Biden administration wouldn’t have leaked out prior to the presidential election,’ Comer said.

Democrats who were in the room for the first two hours of Barr’s deposition were much more vague about what went on, but they accused Republicans of taking too soft an approach.

‘I have more questions now than I did before going in,’ Rep. Suhas Subramanyam, D-Va., told reporters before Comer’s remarks. ‘Just generally, though, I think the Democratic side is doing most of the heavy lifting. I don’t think we’re learning much from the questioning from the House Republicans.’

Comer said when asked about those comments, ‘I think it’s unfortunate that the Democrats are trying to, seems to me, politicize this.’

Barr served as attorney general from February 2019 through December 2020, during Trump’s first administration. It was his second stint leading the Department of Justice (DOJ) after first holding the job under former President George H.W. Bush.

Barr notably led the DOJ when Epstein died by suicide in August 2019 while awaiting trial in a New York City jail.

He said days later at aFraternal Order of Police event in New Orleans that he was ‘appalled’ and ‘angry’ at what he said was the facility’s ‘failure to adequately secure this prisoner.’

Barr told the Associated Press later that year that he was personally involved in investigating Epstein’s death, specifically that he reviewed security footage from that night that he said showed no one entering the cell the night the late pedophile died.

He eventually concluded Epstein did die by suicide, Barr told the outlet, owing to ‘a perfect storm of screw-ups’ at the jail.

When asked if Barr told as much to House investigators on Monday, Comer declined to ‘speak for’ the former attorney general but added he believed the ‘general consensus’ was that Epstein killed himself with no external foul play.

Barr’s testimony is part of a wider bipartisan investigation into the handling of Epstein’s case, which has also reached several former attorneys general, FBI directors, and former first couple Bill and Hillary Clinton.

The Trump administration will begin handing over documents related to Jeffrey Epstein’s case to the House Oversight Committee on Friday, Chair James Comer, R-Ky., said.

House investigators originally requested the Department of Justice (DOJ) produce a tranche of files pertaining to the late pedophile and his accomplice, Ghislaine Maxwell, by 12 p.m. on Tuesday, Aug. 19. 

It’s part of a wider bipartisan investigation into the handling of Epstein’s case, which has also reached several former attorneys general, FBI directors, and former first couple Bill and Hillary Clinton.

Comer announced Monday afternoon that he would delay the deadline until Friday in light of the DOJ’s cooperation.

‘Officials with the Department of Justice have informed us that the Department will begin to provide Epstein-related records to the Oversight Committee this week on Friday. There are many records in DOJ’s custody, and it will take the Department time to produce all the records and ensure the identification of victims and any child sexual abuse material are redacted,’ Comer said in a statement.

‘I appreciate the Trump administration’s commitment to transparency and efforts to provide the American people with information about this matter.’

Comer told reporters earlier Monday that his panel was having ‘good conversations’ with the DOJ related to document production but was noncommittal when asked if the Aug. 19 goal would be met.

‘You can imagine how many documents there are,’ Comer said. ‘I think we’ll receive the documents very soon. They’re compiling everything together.’

Comer said the DOJ was cooperating ‘in a good faith effort.’

Requested materials included all documents and communications in the DOJ’s possession relating to both Epstein and Maxwell, as well as files ‘further relating or referring to human trafficking, exploitation of minors, sexual abuse, or related activity.’

Documents relating specifically to the DOJ’s prosecutions of Epstein and Maxwell, Epstein’s 2007 non-prosecution agreement with federal prosecutors in Florida, and any materials related to Epstein’s death were requested.

The House Oversight Committee asked for the documents to be largely unredacted, according to a subpoena obtained by Fox News Digital, ‘except for redactions to protect the personally identifiable information of victims, for any child sex abuse material as defined by the Department of Justice Manual, and any other redactions required by law.’

The deadline comes a day after former Attorney General Bill Barr was deposed by the House Oversight Committee behind closed doors. Barr was the first person scheduled to appear in the committee’s probe under subpoena.

The Clintons both have separate deposition dates scheduled for October.

Comer was directed to send the flurry of subpoenas after a House Oversight Committee subcommittee panel voted in favor of them during an unrelated hearing in July.

Renewed furor over Epstein’s case engulfed Capitol Hill after intra-GOP fallout over the Trump administration’s handling of the matter.

The DOJ effectively declared the case closed after an ‘exhaustive review,’ revealing Epstein had no ‘client list,’ did not blackmail ‘prominent individuals,’ and confirmed he did die by suicide in a New York City jail while awaiting prosecution.

In response to the backlash by some on the right, Trump directed the DOJ to release grand jury testimony related to Epstein – a request that’s been tied up in courts since then – while Attorney General Pam Bondi had her deputy, Todd Blanche, interview Maxwell in person to uncover any possible new information.

Comer also subpoenaed Maxwell but agreed to defer her scheduled deposition until after the Supreme Court heard her appeal to overturn her conviction.

Fox News Digital reached out to the DOJ for comment but did not immediately hear back.