Democratic National Committee (DNC) Vice Chair David Hogg on Monday slammed the Credentials Committee's decision to elevate a procedural challenge to his leadership position as the "first steps to remove me from my position," amid an ongoing intraparty dispute. 

"While this vote was based on how the DNC conducted its officers’ elections, which I had nothing to do with, it is also impossible to ignore the broader context of my work to reform the party which loomed large over this vote," Hogg said, as he described a country "in crisis" and a Democratic Party "asleep at the wheel."

"I ran to be DNC Vice Chair to help make the Democratic Party better, not to defend an indefensible status quo that has caused voters in almost every demographic group to move away from us. The DNC has pledged to remove me, and this vote has provided an avenue to fast-track that effort," Hogg said after the DNC Credentials Committee voted on Monday to elevate a vote challenging the vice chairs' leadership positions. 

Kalyn Free, a longtime Democratic Party activist, submitted a complaint following the DNC's Feb. 1 officer elections, in which Hogg and Malcolm Kenyatta were elected vice chairs. Free alleged in her complaint that the DNC's tabulation method violated the charter's provision and parliamentary procedure and "discriminated against three women of color candidates."

DAVID HOGG FACES CHALLENGE TO DNC ROLE AS PARTY TENSIONS ESCALATE

"I am disappointed to learn that before I became Chair, there was a procedural error in the February Vice Chair elections. The Credentials Committee has issued their recommendation, and I trust that the DNC Members will carefully review the Committee’s resolution and resolve this matter fairly," DNC Chairman Ken Martin said in a statement following the credentials vote. 

DEMOCRATS' VICE CHAIR GETS ULTIMATUM: STAY NEUTRAL IN PRIMARIES OR STEP DOWN FROM PARTY LEADERSHIP

The Credentials Committee on Monday found the Feb. 1 election violated parliamentary procedure and voted to recommend the DNC conduct a new election for the two vice-chair positions currently held by Kenyatta and Hogg. The full DNC will now have an opportunity to vote, and if approved, will conduct a re-election. 

One vice-chair position may be filled by a male and one may be a candidate of any gender, according to the DNC. If the DNC goes through with a re-vote, only the candidates who were eligible for the third ballot during the Feb. 1 election will qualify, which includes Kenyatta, Hogg, Free, Jeanna Repass and Shasti Conrad. 

While Free's complaint was filed before Hogg stirred up DNC division for his brutal plan to primary incumbent Democrats in deep blue districts, the fallout is the latest blow to the young Democratic leader. Hogg pledged to donate $20 million through his political action committee, Leaders We Deserve, to primary challenge some older Democrats in blue districts.

Soon after, Martin affirmed that the DNC would stay neutral in intraparty primaries, giving Hogg the ultimatum to either rescind his vice-chair position or forego his political influence via his PAC. Now, Hogg is framing the DNC's vote as an expedited plan to remove him as vice chair. 

But DNC officials, past and present, said the procedural vote has nothing to do with Hogg personally. 

"This is not about David Hogg, despite what he’s saying. It is gender balance.... It’s in the rules that the officers need to be balanced between men and women. The full DNC now gets to vote again. If they like what Hogg is doing then that’s great, and he’ll be re-elected. It was disingenuous to not reveal his intentions the first time before they voted. While it has nothing to do with him, it’s an elected position so now we’ll find out if the party supports it or not, which they very well may," a former DNC official told Fox News Digital. 

An additional former DNC official added in a statement to Fox News Digital that "either Hogg is wrong and misled members or they think he’s doing the right thing. Either way, it’ll be settled. And he can’t complain. A re-vote is not forcing him out, there are other ways to do that if they chose to."

Kenyatta, in a series of social media posts, said "any reporter covering this as party retribution against David is full of s---. It is unfortunate as I believe we both won fairly & there is no charge that we acted improperly."

"However, any story about this that neatly places this into a narrative about David Hogg is wrong. I worked my a-- off to get this role and have done the job every day since I’ve held it. This story is complex, and I’m frustrated – but it’s not about @davidhogg111. Even though he clearly wants it to be," Kenyatta said in a jab to his fellow vice chair facing potential re-election. 

FIRST ON FOX: One branch of the U.S. military is boasting booming recruitment numbers and huge operational success in the infancy of President Donald Trump's second term in office, according to a Department of Homeland Security memo. 

According to the DHS memo obtained by Fox News Digital, the U.S. Coast Guard's recruitment numbers are thriving, allowing the military branch to maximize the use of assets that were underused or completely abandoned under the Biden administration.

DHS says the Biden administration failed to meet Coast Guard recruiting goals for three years straight. During that period, 10 cutters were taken out of service and almost 30 Coast Guard stations were temporarily abandoned.

VIRAL COAST GUARD VIDEO SHOWS DRAMATIC ARREST OF SUSPECTED SMUGGLERS IN OPEN OCEAN

"Under the Biden administration, the U.S. Coast Guard had its hands tied behind its back," the memo says. "Recruitment goals were not met, and our Coast Guardsmen were hamstrung and overwhelmed while cartels smuggled humans and illicit drugs through our maritime borders."

However, recruitment is now surging, allowing the Coast Guard to execute its mission at its full potential. In FY 2025, the Coast Guard has recruited more than 4,700 new members, which is 1,200 more than it had at this time last year. 

It is on pace to exceed its recruitment goal for this year. 

Now, the Coast Guard has "deployed a surge of cutters, aircraft, boats, and specialized forces to key areas surrounding the U.S. maritime border," adding that the assets are "now being used to their full effect."

COAST GUARD CATCHES 15 ALLEGED ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS OFF THE COAST OF SAN DIEGO

"President Trump and [DHS] Secretary [Kristi] Noem issued orders to the U.S. Coast Guard to surge assets to key areas, and the results speak for themselves," the memo says. "Billions’ worth of illicit drugs have been seized, human smuggling has ground to a halt, and recruitment is skyrocketing."

The memo says the Coast Guard has already seized 11% more cocaine in FY 2025 than it did in FY 2024, and that since Trump's inauguration, the military branch has interdicted 148,000 pounds of cocaine and marijuana, worth more than $1.5 billion in street value.

Not only have drugs been seized, but 870 illegal aliens allegedly responsible for trafficking the drugs have been taken into custody since Jan. 20. 

COAST GUARD COMMANDANT TERMINATED OVER BORDER LAPSES, RECRUITMENT, DEI FOCUS: OFFICIAL

Retired Lt. Col. Daniel Davis had four combat deployments during his 21 years in the Army, and is a two-time Bronze Star recipient. Now, he is a senior fellow at Defense Priorities, a foreign policy think tank.

He said people stopped joining the military during the Biden administration because it was viewed as "woke" and because the top military brass in Washington were more interested in playing politics than defending the country. 

"They're like, 'We just don't feel like we can trust these guys,' and so they're proving it by not joining up," Davis told Fox News Digital. "And one of the bigger things was, the guys who have been in, guys like me, for example – if someone asked us, ‘Do you think we should join up?’ I would have said ‘No.’ I didn't trust the military leaders and I didn't trust the administration."

But with Trump in office, Davis thinks the pendulum is swinging in the other direction. 

"Trump said he brought [Secretary of Defense Pete] Hegseth in to bring back the warrior culture, to bring back accountability and merit promotions, etc., as opposed to any quotas or criteria, and that really appealed to all those folks that were not signing up," David said, adding that Trump is viewed as more "pro-America" and more "pro-service member" than his predecessor. 

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

He also said Trump appeals to potential military members because of his promise not to enter the United States into what he calls "stupid wars."

READ THE FULL MEMO: 

"And he says he doesn't want to get into stupid wars. He wants to get the one in Russia over with," said Davis, cautioning that it is still too early in Trump's second term to know exactly how his foreign policy positions will play out. 

"But as long as Trump stays on this path of bringing peace and not sending people out to fight dumb wars, then I think you'll see the numbers keep rising."