Fox News Highlights ICE Arresting 1,300 Illegals Around DC, MS NOW Ignores

On Tuesday morning, there was a stark contrast in the kind of coverage ICE received from Fox News compared to MS NOW as the two news networks, within half an hour of each other, focused on vastly different stories.

Fox & Friends covered the arrest of more than 1,300 illegal aliens in the D.C. area, listing out several violent criminals and their crimes, but Morning Joe featured an anti-ICE rant by co-host Mika Brzezinski over recent arrests of the father of a U.S. Navy sailor and also the arrest of a mother and daughter at a hospital after a car accident.

At 6:37 a.m., beginning three minutes of coverage, Fox co-host Brian Kilmeade recalled:

Markwayne Mullin's ... DHS has really kicked it into high gear when it comes to illegal immigrants. Yesterday, same thing. ICE arrested 1,328 people over the course of two weeks, mostly in the Virginia-Maryland area, and they said 400 of which had criminal records or charges pending.

Co-host Ainsley Earhardt soon listed several of those arrested and their crimes:

This is a lot. Why are they going there? According to reports, it's because both ... counties across Virginia and Maryland have sanctuary-type policies in place. And, of those arrests, almost 400 illegals had criminal convictions, and, as you said, Brian, or pending criminal charges.

Let's go through some of them. First guy, warrant for murder and use of a firearm. Next guy, arrested for attempted murder, two counts of assault, possession of a dangerous weapon with intent to injure and reckless endangerment. The list goes on and on -- convicted of felony hit and run, arrested for making a threat to bomb or burn, assault and battery on a family member, and violating a protective order. Some of these individuals were in gangs.

After co-host Lawrence Jones noted the importance of local police helping ICE to catch illegal aliens, Kilmeade brought up another of the criminals:

Yeah, so police in Loudoun County got one guy in particular -- this guy Isaac Melendez-Carranza. He's El Salvadorean in the U.S., but he's wanted on felony charges of distributing fentanyl within 1,000 feet of a school. But they have done one thing that is unsung about this administration especially, is what they've done to crack down on fentanyl, whether it's the cartels in Mexico, whether it's the boats off the shore, or whether it's the dealers right here in America.

He then read a statement on the arrests by DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin.

At 6:57 a.m. -- just 16 minutes after Fox's story concluded -- Brzezinski brought up the two cases she ranted about, as previously documented by NewsBusters.

It was just the latest in a long line of MS NOW hosts and analysts claiming that, under President Donald Trump, ICE is not going after "the worst of the worst." But the liberal news network routinely refuses to cover the cases of violent illegal aliens when they are arrested. They suggest that ICE agents are the real criminals, not the criminal illegal aliens.

Transcript follows:

Fox & Friends

August 25, 2026

6:37 a.m. Eastern

BRIAN KILMEADE: So, yeah, Markwayne Mullin's HHS, since he has taken over --

LAWRENCE JONES: DHS.

KILMEADE: -- DHS -- has really kicked it into high gear when it comes to illegal immigrants. Yesterday, same thing. ICE arrested 1,328 people over the course of two weeks, mostly in the Virginia-Maryland area, and they said 400 of which had criminal records or charges pending.

JONES: So one of the things that he's been able to do is get the focus back on what happens, Ainsley -- getting the criminals out of the country. I think most Americans agree with this, and they were quiet about it, but they were able to get some really bad people off the streets.

AINSLEY EARHARDT: Isn't it amazing that, I mean, almost 1,400 -- 1, 328 people. Like, you think, okay, maybe there are a few illegal immigrants in your community. This is a lot. Why are they going there? According to reports, it's because both of which counties are counties across Virginia and Maryland have sanctuary-type policies in place. And, of those arrests, almost 400 illegals had criminal convictions, and, as you said, Brian, or pending criminal charges.

Let's go through some of them. First guy, warrant for murder and use of a firearm. Next guy, arrested for attempted murder, two counts of assault, possession of a dangerous weapon with intent to injure and reckless endangerment. The list goes on and on -- convicted of felony hit and run, arrested for making a threat to bomb or burn, assault and battery on a family member, and violating a protective order. Some of these individuals were in gangs.

JONES: Most of the people that you're going to come into contact with are local criminals. So when you tell local cops that they can't work with ICE, you're never going to be able to find these guys. You're never going to be able to coordinate to get them off the street. They were quiet about it, Brian, and they got some dangerous people off the street.

KILMEADE: Yeah, so police in Loudon County got one guy in particular -- this guy Isaac Melendez-Carranza. He's El Salvadorean in the U.S., but he's wanted on felony charges of distributing fentanyl within 1,000 feet of a school. But they have done one thing that is unsung about this administration especially, is what they've done to crack down on fentanyl, whether it's the cartels in Mexico, whether it's the boats off the shore, or whether it's the dealers right here in America.

And (the) DHS secretary came out and said, "The brave men and women of ICE are hard at work every single day getting these dangerous illegal aliens out of the country. Over the course of the last two weeks in Virginia and Maryland, they arrested sexual assailants, kidnappers, drunk drivers, robbers and gang members. While sanctuary politicians in Virginia and Maryland keep putting the needs of illegal aliens over the safety of American people ... the Trump administration will always put American citizens first."