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November 12, 2025

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Discovery of uranium mineralization in ideal geological setting, supported by regional radiometric anomaly, confirms large Rossing-style target

ReeXploration Inc. (TSXV: REE) (FSE: K2I0) (‘ReeXploration’ or the ‘Company’) is pleased to announce the identification of a significant new uranium exploration target at its Eureka Project (‘Eureka’ or the ‘Project’), located in the Erongo mining district, central Namibia. This new uranium target supports the Company’s broader focus on advancing critical-mineral opportunities in stable, mining-friendly jurisdictions.

HIGHLIGHTS:

  • New Large-Scale Uranium Target Identified: Immediately southwest of the Eureka Dome, which hosts the Company’s rare earth element (‘REE’) resource and numerous REE targets.
  • Strong Regional Radiometric Anomaly: Airborne data defines a 6.5 x 3.5 km zone characterized by high uranium and low thorium responses.
  • Evidence of Widespread Uranium Mineralization: Uranium reported in shallow overburden samples from historical exploration, verified by recent scintillometer readings up to 1,500 counts per second (‘cps’).
  • Uranium Discovered in Weathered Leucogranites: Field reconnaissance confirmed elevated uranium in occasionally outcropping leucogranites (‘alaskites’), with portable XRF semiquantitative values up to 853 ppm U.
  • Along Trend of Namibia’s ‘Alaskite Alley’: Lies within the same structural corridor that hosts major uranium deposits — Rössing, Husab, Etango, Omaholo, and Norasa — which collectively contain more than 1 billion pounds of U₃O₈.
  • Geological Setting Matches Rössing-Style Models: Key discovery criteria evident, including 1) proximity to the Welwitschia Lineament, 2) position on the flanks of a major basement dome, and 3) leucogranites intruded into reactive calc-silicate host rocks.

‘This uranium target, which is almost entirely covered by thin overburden, represents a promising exploration opportunity within one of the world’s most prolific uranium belts,’ commented Tolene Kruger, Senior Geologist for ReeXploration. ‘The geology, structural setting, and early results are consistent with the deposit models that led to the discovery of the major leucogranite-hosted uranium deposits within Namibia.’

Christopher Drysdale, Interim CEO for ReeXploration, added ‘The identification of this new target highlights the strong technical work completed by our exploration team and the expanded potential of the Eureka Project. As we continue to advance with our REE resource growth plan within the Eureka Dome, this extensive target immediately outside the Dome adds significant exploration upside and optionality for our shareholders, in one of the world’s most established critical minerals mining jurisdictions. We are looking forward to advancing exploration on our numerous REE targets and this newly identified uranium target, consistent with our strategy to discover significant critical mineral resources that contribute to secure, responsible supply chains.’

Expanded Discovery Potential – Large-Scale Rössing-Style Target

The identification of this target underscores the exceptional potential of the Eureka Project, which now includes a growing pipeline of REE targets alongside this newly recognized uranium opportunity. Review and field validation of government airborne radiometric data revealed extensive uranium anomalies situated off the southwestern margin of the Eureka Dome, which is host to the Company’s REE mineral resources and exploration targets. The government airborne radiometric data shows large-scale uranium anomalies 6.5 x 3.5 kilometres in extent with high uranium and low thorium – characteristic signature for Rössing-style targets (Figure 1).

Figure 1: Company license holding showing REE targets within the Eureka Dome, and high uranium anomalies outlined in red on uranium radiometric (government airborne radiometrics) backdrop. Insert: Thorium radiometric backdrop showing low thorium relative to the uranium anomalies.

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Located Along Trend of Namibia’s Renowned Alaskite Alley

The new uranium target at Eureka is situated along trend of Namibia’s ‘Alaskite Alley’, a structural corridor within Namibia’s Central Zone of the Damara Belt that hosts multiple giant uranium deposits hosted within leucogranites, including Rössing, Husab, Etango, Omaholo and Norasa (Figure 2).

Figure 2: Regional satellite view showing the position of the uranium anomalies southwest of the Eureka Dome, and their proximity to the Welwitschia Lineament and other large uranium deposits in Alaskite Alley.

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Key Geological Criteria Consistent with Major Uranium Deposits

The target exhibits all the key geological criteria consistent with the major uranium deposit models, including (Figure 3):

  • Proximity to the Welwitschia Lineament – a major crustal-scale structure, central to ‘Alaskite Alley’, interpreted to have played a key role in localizing uranium-bearing leucogranite intrusions throughout the district.
  • The Welwitschia Lineament is located immediately east of the new uranium target at Eureka.

  • An Older Basement Dome – that provides the structural architecture for the emplacement of uranium-rich leucogranites around dome margins.
  • The Eureka Dome is mapped as the same formation as the Rössing Dome (Etusis Formation).
  • Reactive Contact Rocks – typically calc-silicate lithologies (metasediments) which act as chemical traps promoting uranium precipitation.
  • Calc-silicates are mapped flanking the Eureka Dome (Arandis Formation).
  • The Presence of Leucogranites – late-stage magmatic intrusions which host uranium mineralization in Rössing-style deposits.
  • Significant leucogranites are interpreted to exist below the thin overburden at Eureka as sheeted dykes intercalated between calc-silicates, as evidenced by occasional weathered leucogranite outcrop.

Figure 3: Comparison between the major uranium deposits in Alaskite Alley and the airborne uranium anomalies southwest of the Eureka Dome.

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Initial Field Reconnaissance Supports Potential for Rössing-Style Deposit

Field spectrometer prospecting conducted by the Company has confirmed the regional scale of the airborne radiometric uranium anomalies. The anomalies relate to widespread uranium mineralization occurring within thin overburden, which is best visible where drainages have incised a regionally occurring gypcrete/calcrete horizon with anomalous values ranging from 300 to 1,500 counts per second (‘cps’) (Figure 4).

Figure 4: Photographs taken during reconnaissance field work and ground spectrometer survey within the anomalous areas.

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The uranium mineralization within the overburden is potentially indicative of extensive uranium mineralization within the underlying leucogranites, supported by (Figure 5):

  1. Discovery of secondary uranium mineralization (carnotite) within weathered/leached leucogranites— pXRF semiquantitative values of up to 853 ppm U.

  2. Abundant ‘smokey’ or irradiated quartz within the leucogranites.

  3. Spectrometer evidence of uranium enrichment of weathered leucogranites where in contact with chemically-reactive calc-silicates.

Figure 5: Mineralized leucogranite found during reconnaissance field work and the ground spectrometer survey.

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Historical Work Focused on Shallow Overburden Mineralization

Although the target is on trend with Namibia’s Alaskite Alley, its position farther north, together with the thin overburden and the presence of calc-silicates belonging to the Arandis rather than the Khan Formation, likely contributed to the lack of focused historical exploration. Despite the highly favorable geological setting, the target appears to remain largely untested.

Historical uranium exploration at Eureka—outside of the main Eureka Dome and then held under EPL 3637—was primarily directed toward near-surface secondary uranium (carnotite) mineralization hosted within calcrete and gypcrete horizons. While historical work confirmed the presence of leucogranites intruding calc-silicate rocks, these potential bedrock sources were evidently not systematically drill-tested at any depth.

The work completed in 2009 consisted mainly of shallow pitting and percussion drilling (<5 m depth) designed to evaluate surface uranium enrichment in the search for calcrete-hosted (paleochannel-type) uranium deposits such as Langer Heinrich, leaving the primary leucogranite targets effectively untested. Across the broader Eureka license area, historical work included 100 prospecting pits (to 1.8 m depth, averaging 1.3 m) and 139 rotary air-blast (RAB) drill holes totaling only 803 m (i.e. average depth of only 5.8 m). Visible carnotite mineralization was reported in several pits, with uranium values up to 192 ppm U₃O₈ over 1.18 m, confirming uranium enrichment within the overburden and weathered bedrock. Preliminary, non-NI 43-101-compliant historical estimates indicated approximately 600,000 lbs U₃O₈ at 70 ppm within the overburden gycretes and calcretes (see Technical Disclosure below in reference to this historical resource estimate).

Despite best efforts, the Company has been unable to locate additional drill data or records. The summary descriptions provided in the available report suggest that systematic testing of deeper bedrock targets was never completed. This provides a significant opportunity to evaluate the potential for Rössing-style, leucogranite-hosted uranium mineralization beneath the thin overburden.

Drill Testing Warranted Below the Weathering Profile

Given the apparent shallow nature of the historical drilling, any testing of the underlying leucogranite units would have been very limited or non-existent, with exploration evidently focused on surface and near-surface mineralization within the overburden. The highly weathered nature of the limited leucogranite outcrop indicates that leaching has occurred near-surface, and as a result, leucogranites found at surface would not be expected to be mineralized other than possible secondary mineralization (carnotite) — as discovered from initial field reconnaissance. Drilling below the weathering profile is required to test for primary leucogranite-hosted mineralization (uraninite), typical of Rössing-style deposits.

Technical Disclosure

The historical exploration results and historical resource estimate summarized herein are considered historical in nature and have not been verified by the Company’s Qualified Person as defined under National Instrument 43-101 – Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects (‘NI 43-101’). These results, including the historical resource estimate, are sourced from Wartha, R.R. (2009). 2009 Annual Technical Report – EPL 3637 (Ancash Investment (Pty) Ltd.), prepared for Valencia Uranium (Pty) Ltd., December 18, 2009. The approximate historical resource estimate was calculated using an area of 1.5 million m2 and an average mineralized thickness of 1 to 2 metres within the overburden gycretes and calcretes providing approximately 3.9 million tonnes of mineralization at 70 ppm, totaling in 600,000 lbs of U₃O₈. The historical resource categories used in the estimate do not conform to the current CIM Definition Standards and should not be compared directly to current mineral resource categories. The Company is not aware of any more recent mineral resource estimates for the Property. A Qualified Person has not completed sufficient work to verify the historical estimate or to classify it as a current mineral resource, and the Company is not treating the historical estimate as a current mineral resource. To verify and upgrade the historical estimate, additional work will be required, including data verification, review of historical drilling and sampling QA/QC, updated geological modeling, and completion of a new mineral resource estimate in accordance with NI 43-101 and CIM Definition Standards.

Field analysis of rock samples was carried out using a calibrated SciAps X-555 portable X-Ray Fluorescence (pXRF) analyzer. The instrument is capable of detecting uranium providing a rapid, preliminary, and semi-quantitative indication of uranium concentrations which is considered sufficiently reliable for initial reporting of initial field reconnaissance results. Samples are expected to be verified through uranium assay at an accredited laboratory.

Counts per second (‘cps’) results were collected using an RS-125 handheld gamma-ray spectrometer. The RS-125 measures natural radioactivity from potassium (K), uranium (U), and thorium (Th), providing real-time counts-per-second (cps) readings that assist in identifying zones of elevated radioactivity and guiding geological mapping and sampling programs. The cps measurements are qualitative in nature and should not be interpreted as equivalent to uranium concentrations obtained through laboratory analysis.

Qualified Person

Tolene Kruger, BSc. (Hons), M.Sc., is a consulting geologist and has reviewed and approved the scientific and technical information in this news release. Mrs. Kruger is registered as Professional Natural Scientist (Pr.Sci.Nat.) with the South African Council for Natural Science Professions (SACNASP, Reg. No.: 148182), and a Qualified Person for the purposes of National Instrument 43-101 – Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects. Ms. Kruger is not independent of the Company under NI 43-101.

About ReeXploration Inc.

ReeXploration (TSXV: REE) (FSE: K2I0) is a Canadian exploration company positioned to help meet surging global demand for secure, responsible supplies of critical minerals essential to the clean energy transition, advanced technologies and national defense. The company’s flagship Eureka Project in central Namibia hosts rare earth element (REE) mineralization in monazite, rich in NdPr magnet metals, with bench-scale testing confirming production of a clean, Western-standard concentrate. Supported by a Namibia-based technical team and guided by global critical minerals experts, ReeXploration is advancing discovery-led growth for rare earth elements (REEs) and other critical minerals, building a credible, ESG-aligned platform positioned to benefit from the global race to diversify and secure responsible supply chains.

Caution Regarding Forward-Looking Information

This press release may contain forward-looking information. This information is based on current expectations and assumptions (including assumptions relating to general economic and market conditions) that are subject to significant risks and uncertainties that are difficult to predict. Actual results may differ materially from results suggested in any forward-looking information. ReeXploration does not assume any obligation to update forward-looking information in this release, or to update the reasons why actual results could differ from those reflected in the forward-looking information unless and until required by securities laws applicable to ReeXploration. Additional information identifying risks and uncertainties is contained in the filings made by ReeXploration with Canadian securities regulators, which filings are available at www.sedarplus.ca.

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

Further details are available on the Corporation’s website at www.rareearthexploration.com or contact Christopher Drysdale, Interim CEO of ReeXploration Inc., at +1 902-334-1949, contact@rareearthexploration.com.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/274096

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Development-ready gold asset in premier mining jurisdiction with funded advancement plan; preparing to initiate project-development and exploration drill program

Fortune Bay Corp. (TSXV: FOR,OTC:FTBYF) (FWB: 5QN) (OTCQB: FTBYF) (‘Fortune Bay’ or the ‘Company’) is pleased to announce that, following the completion of its $8 million bought-deal financing, the Company has initiated key technical work streams to advance the Goldfields Project (‘Goldfields’ or the ‘Project’) toward a Pre-Feasibility Study (‘PFS’) in 2026. In parallel, permitting activities are progressing through ongoing baseline environmental studies and planned community consultation. Together, these initiatives build on the strong foundation established by the recently released Updated Preliminary Economic Assessment (‘Updated PEA’), which demonstrated exceptional economics, a streamlined permitting pathway, and a de-risked mineral resource with 97% of ounces in the Indicated category.

Updated PEA Economic Highlights:

  • Leverage to Gold Price: At a spot gold price of US$3,650 per ounce (as of September 19, 2025), the after-tax NPV (5%) increases to C$1.25 billion and the IRR to 74%, generating cumulative after-tax free cash flow of C$1.82 billion.

‘Goldfields stands out as a development-ready gold asset in a premier mining jurisdiction,’ stated Dale Verran, CEO of Fortune Bay. ‘With robust Updated PEA economics, a strong project foundation and now a fully funded advancement plan, we are positioned to unlock meaningful value on multiple fronts. As part of this, we are preparing to commence a drilling program in the coming weeks that will include both project-development drilling to support the PFS and exploration drilling to evaluate resource growth potential. We expect to announce the specific exploration drill targets shortly.’

Studies Toward Pre-Feasibility:

  • Project Development-Related Drilling: Planning of a comprehensive drilling program for Box and Athona is underway. This is being optimized to provide the required drill coverage and core samples to support a PFS for Goldfields. The program will integrate geotechnical study, metallurgical sampling, waste rock study and groundwater investigations, aimed to minimize the amount of drilling required to the extent possible. Project development-related drilling is expected to be run in conjunction with an exploration drilling program for efficiency and is expected to begin in the coming weeks.
  • Waste Rock Characterization: The Company has initiated an analytical testing program and a suite of samples, representing the dominant lithological units in the Box and Athona waste rock material, have been collected and are being exported from site for Acid Base Accounting, metal geochemistry and shake flask extraction testing. Results of this work will inform subsequent mineralogical and kinetic waste rock humidity cell testing. All analyses will be carried out by SGS Canada – Lakefield laboratory in Ontario. The results of this study will be used to inform forward planning and sampling during upcoming drilling and will also be used to develop waste rock and water management plans.
  • Metallurgical Testwork: A testwork program is currently underway at the SGS Canada – Lakefield laboratory in Ontario. A representative sample of mineralization from the Box deposit is being tested to supplement work carried out in 2015 and properly constrain what percentage gold can be recovered into a concentrate with the minimum possible mass draw through a combination of gravity and two-pass floatation. Results are expected in early December, and these will inform decision making about project scope and additional metallurgical testing for advancement through PFS.
  • High-Resolution Topographic Survey: A fixed-wing airborne LiDAR (Light Detection and Ranging) survey was carried out at Goldfields in October 2025 to generate high-resolution topographic data to support more detailed engineering studies during PFS. The survey, carried out over the entire project footprint area as proposed in the Updated PEA with additional buffer, was completed by KBM Geomatics of Thunder Bay, Ontario. Deliverables are expected in November 2025.

Permitting Activities, Community Consultation and Regulatory Engagement:

  • Aquatic Surveys: Completed in September 2025 by Ecometrix Inc. of Mississauga, Ontario. Initial reporting on aquatic habitat studies and fishing results is expected in December 2025, with full reporting including laboratory analysis expected in early 2026.
  • Terrestrial Surveys: Initiated in August 2025 by Omnia Ecological Services of Calgary, Alberta. This included ecological land classification studies and deployment of cameras and acoustic survey units. Follow up field work was completed in October 2025, collecting a first round of data from all survey equipment, which remain deployed in the field. Initial reporting on findings is expected in December 2025, with survey work ongoing in 2026.
  • Planned Regulatory Engagement: Results from baseline environmental studies and waste rock characterization work mentioned above will be integrated with feedback from early consultation and will be used as a basis for initiation of regulatory engagement and the submission of a Technical Proposal to the Saskatchewan Ministry of Environment in Q1 of 2026. This work will build upon the Provincially-approved 2008 Environmental Impact Statement for a 5,000 tpd open-pit operation.

Qualified Person & Technical Report

Details for the Updated PEA for Goldfields are provided in the technical report titled ‘Goldfields Project Updated NI 43-101 Technical Report & Preliminary Economic Assessment, Saskatchewan, Canada‘, dated October 20, 2025, prepared by Kevin Murray, P.Eng.; Scott C. Elfen, P.E.; James Millard, P.Geo.; Jonathan Cooper, P.Eng.; Marc Schulte, P.Eng.; Cliff Revering, P.Eng.; and Ron Uken, Pr.Sci.Nat. for Fortune Bay Corp. The technical report is available under the Company’s issuer profile on SEDAR+ (www.sedarplus.ca) and on the Company’s website at www.fortunebaycorp.com.

The technical and scientific information in this news release has been reviewed and approved by Gareth Garlick P.Geo., Vice-President Technical Services of the Company, who is a Qualified Person as defined by NI 43-101. Mr. Garlick is an employee of Fortune Bay and is not independent of the Company under NI 43‑101.

About Goldfields

The 100% owned Goldfields Project (‘Goldfields’ or the ‘Project’) is located approximately 13 kilometres south of Uranium City, Saskatchewan. Goldfields hosts the Box and Athona gold deposits, as well as additional gold showings within the prospective Goldfields Syncline. The Box deposit was historically mined underground between 1939 and 1942, producing 64,000 ounces of gold. The Project is located within a historical mining area and benefits from established infrastructure, including a road and hydro-powerline to the Box deposit. Nearby facilities and services in Uranium City include bulk fuel, civils contractors, and a commercial airport.

About Fortune Bay

Fortune Bay Corp. (TSXV:FOR,OTC:FTBYF; FWB:5QN; OTCQB:FTBYF) is a gold exploration and development company advancing high-potential assets in Canada and Mexico. With a strategy focused on discovery, resource growth and early-stage development, the Company targets value creation at the steepest part of the Value Creation Curve—prior to the capital-intensive build phase. Its portfolio includes the development-ready Goldfields Project in Saskatchewan, the resource-expansion Poma Rosa Project in Mexico, and two optioned Athabasca Basin uranium portfolios providing non-dilutive capital and upside exposure. Backed by a technically proven team and tight capital structure, Fortune Bay is positioned for multiple near-term catalysts. For more information, visit www.fortunebaycorp.com or contact info@fortunebaycorp.com.

On behalf of Fortune Bay Corp.

‘Dale Verran’
Chief Executive Officer
902-334-1919

Cautionary Statement

Information set forth in this news release contains forward-looking statements that are based on assumptions as of the date of this news release. These statements reflect management’s current estimates, beliefs, intentions, and expectations. They are not guarantees of future performance. Words such as ‘expects’, ‘aims’, ‘anticipates’, ‘targets’, ‘goals’, ‘projects’, ‘intends’, ‘plans’, ‘believes’, ‘seeks’, ‘estimates’, ‘continues’, ‘may’, variations of such words, and similar expressions and references to future periods, are intended to identify such forward-looking statements, and include, but are not limited to, statements with respect to: the results of the Updated PEA, including future Project opportunities, future operating and capital costs, closure costs, AISC, the projected NPV, IRR, timelines, permit timelines, and the ability to obtain the requisite permits, economics and associated returns of the Project, the technical viability of the Project, the market and future price of and demand for gold, the environmental impact of the Project, and the ongoing ability to work cooperatively with stakeholders, including Indigenous Nations, local Municipalities and local levels of government. Since forward-looking statements are based on assumptions and address future events and conditions, by their very nature they involve inherent risks and uncertainties. Although these statements are based on information currently available to the Company, the Company provides no assurance that actual results will meet management’s expectations. Risks, uncertainties and other factors involved with forward- looking information could cause actual events, results, performance, prospects and opportunities to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking information. Forward looking information in this news release includes, but is not limited to, the Company’s objectives, goals or future plans, statements, exploration results, potential mineralization, the estimation of mineral resources, exploration and mine development plans, timing of the commencement of operations and estimates of market conditions. Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from such forward-looking information include, but are not limited to failure to identify mineral resources, failure to convert estimated mineral resources to reserves, the inability to complete a feasibility study which recommends a production decision, the preliminary nature of metallurgical test results, delays in obtaining or failures to obtain required governmental, environmental or other project approvals, political risks, inability to fulfill the duty to accommodate Indigenous Nations and local Municipalities, uncertainties relating to the availability and costs of financing needed in the future, changes in equity markets, inflation, changes in exchange rates, fluctuations in commodity prices, delays in the development of projects, capital and operating costs varying significantly from estimates and the other risks involved in the mineral exploration and development industry, and those risks set out in the Company’s public documents filed on SEDAR. Although the Company believes that the assumptions and factors used in preparing the forward-looking information in this news release are reasonable, undue reliance should not be placed on such information, which only applies as of the date of this news release, and no assurance can be given that such events will occur in the disclosed time frames or at all. The Company disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking information, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, other than as required by law. For more information on Fortune Bay, readers should refer to Fortune Bay’s website at www.fortunebaycorp.com.

Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies of TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

SOURCE Fortune Bay Corp.

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Osisko Metals Incorporated (the ‘ Company or ‘ Osisko Metals ‘) ( TSX: OM,OTC:OMZNF ; OTCQX: OMZNF ; FRANKFURT: 0B51 ) is pleased to announce new drill results from the Gaspé Copper Project, located in the Gaspé Peninsula of Eastern Québec.

New analytical results are presented below (see Table 1), including 35 mineralized intercepts from ten new drill holes. Infill intercepts are located inside the 2024 MRE model ( see November 14, 2024 news release ), and are focused on upgrading inferred mineral resources to measured or indicated categories, as applicable. Expansion intercepts are located outside the 2024 MRE model and may potentially lead to additional resources that will be classified appropriately within the next MRE update. Some of the reported intercepts have contiguous shallower infill as well as deeper expansion (noted on Table 1 below as ‘Both’). Maps showing hole locations are available at www.osiskometals.com .

Highlights:

  • Drill hole 30-1128
    • 330.6 metres averaging 0.46% Cu (0.49% CuEq – expansion)
  • Drill hole 30-1115
    • 33.0 metres averaging 1.28% Cu (1.36% CuEq – expansion)
  • Drill hole 30-1117
    • 779.0 metres averaging 0.26% Cu (0.34% CuEq – infill and expansion)
  • Drill hole 30-1118
    • 555.9 metres averaging 0.20% Cu (0.26% CuEq – infill)
  • Drill hole 30-1123
    • 313.5 metres averaging 0.23% Cu (0.28% CuEq – infill and expansion)
    • 220.5 metres averaging 0.20% Cu (0.30% CuEq – expansion)
  • Drill hole 30-1125
    • 293.0 metres averaging 0.23% Cu (0.30% CuEq – expansion)
  • Drill hole 30-1126
    • 804.0 metres averaging 0.24% Cu (0.31% CuEq – infill and expansion)
  • Drill hole 30-1130
    • 347.7 metres averaging 0.24% Cu (0.29% CuEq – infill)
  • Drill hole 30-1131
    • 714.0 metres averaging 0.21% Cu (0.27% CuEq – both)

Table 1: Infill and Expansion Drilling Results

DDH No. From (m) To (m) Length (m) Cu % Ag g/t Mo % CuEq* Type**
30-1115 499.5 532.5 33.0 1.28 8.89 0.009 1.36 Expansion
And 661.5 717.6 56.1 0.59 3.52 <0.005 0.61 Expansion
30-1117 21.0 45.0 24.0 0.24 1.79 <0.005 0.25 Infill
And 149.0 161.0 12.0 0.17 1.84 0.016 0.24 Infill
And 212.5 991.5 779.0 0.26 1.68 0.019 0.34 Both
(including) 212.5 679.0 466.5 0.22 1.44 0.018 0.29 Infill
(including) 679.0 991.5 312.5 0.32 2.04 0.019 0.41 Expansion
30-1118 17.1 573.0 555.9 0.20 1.00 0.008 0.26 Infill
And 624.0 775.5 151.5 0.11 0.77 0.027 0.21 Expansion
30-1123 23.0 59.0 36.0 0.28 2.19 <0.005 0.30 Infill
And 72.0 107.0 35.0 0.19 1.93 <0.005 0.20 Infill
And 123.0 137.0 14.0 0.13 2.04 <0.005 0.14 Infill
And 213.0 526.5 313.5 0.23 1.84 0.012 0.28 Both
(including) 213.0 443.0 230.0 0.24 1.94 0.011 0.29 Infill
(including) 443.0 526.5 83.5 0.20 1.57 0.017 0.27 Expansion
And 553.5 774.0 220.5 0.20 1.63 0.024 0.30 Expansion
30-1125 15.3 199.5 184.2 0.20 0.97 <0.005 0.21 Infill
And 255.0 288.0 33.0 0.12 1.10 0.008 0.14 Infill
And 304.5 335.0 30.5 0.14 0.65 0.009 0.18 Infill
And 356.6 531.7 175.1 0.15 0.98 0.019 <0.005 Infill
And 643.0 936.0 293.0 0.23 1.26 0.019 0.30 Expansion
30-1126 72.0 204.0 132.0 0.13 1.05 0.005 0.15 Infill
And 229.5 1033.5 804.0 0.24 1.48 0.016 0.31 Both
(including) 229.5 634.1 404.6 0.24 1.81 0.017 0.32 Infill
(including) 634.1 1033.5 399.4 0.24 1.15 0.015 0.30 Expansion
30-1127 5.0 24.0 19.0 0.16 2.31 <0.005 0.18 Infill
And 107.0 124.0 17.0 0.30 3.53 0.005 0.33 Infill
And 255.0 284.2 29.2 0.28 2.66 0.012 0.34 Infill
And 328.5 370.5 42.0 0.21 1.84 0.008 0.25 Infill
And 476.5 493.5 17.0 0.19 1.46 <0.005 0.21 Infill
And 546.0 591.0 45.0 0.56 3.46 0.046 0.75 Infill
And 807.9 833.0 25.1 0.53 2.79 <0.005 0.56 Expansion
And 864.0 891.0 27.0 0.40 2.46 <0.005 0.42 Expansion
30-1128 8.0 32.0 24.0 0.18 2.48 <0.005 0.19 Expansion
And 44.0 58.0 14.0 0.21 2.01 <0.005 0.22 Expansion
And 78.0 193.5 115.5 0.44 3.67 0.008 0.49 Expansion
And 225.0 555.6 330.6 0.46 4.33 <0.005 0.49 Expansion
(including) 392.0 406.5 14.5 2.51 24.9 <0.005 2.66 Expansion
30-1130 5.0 18.0 13.0 0.19 2.09 <0.005 0.21 Infill
And 168.0 515.7 347.7 0.24 2.14 0.010 0.29 Infill
And 610.5 888.0 277.5 0.26 1.51 0.023 0.35 Infill
30-1131 27.0 741.0 714.0 0.21 1.11 0.015 0.27 Both

* See explanatory notes below on copper equivalent values and Quality Assurance/Quality Controls.
** ‘Both’ indicates drill holes that have contiguous shallower infill as well as deeper expansion intercepts.

Discussion

Drill hole 30-1115, located on the eastern margin of the 2024 MRE model, did not intersect significant mineralization to a depth of 499 metres, but cut relatively high grades of 33.0 metres averaging 1.28 % Cu, 8.89 g/t Ag within the C Zone skarn horizon (expansion), as well as 56.1 metres averaging 0.59 % Cu and 3.52 g/t Ag, above the E Zone skarn horizon. The hole ended in an E zone stope where massive sulfides and high-grade skarns were previously mined.

Drill hole 30-1117, located on the western flank of Copper Mountain, cut three mineralized intervals including 779.0 metres averaging 0.26 % Cu, 1.68 g/t Ag and 0.019% Mo (which includes 312.5 metres of depth expansion), extending mineralization in this area to a vertical depth of 991 metres.

Drill hole 30-1118, located near the southern lip of the Copper Mountain open pit, cut two mineralized intervals including 555.9 metres averaging 0.20 % Cu, 1.00 g/t Ag and 0.008% Mo (infill) as well as a deeper intersection of 151.5 metres averaging 0.11 % Cu, 0.77 g/t Ag and 0.027% Mo (expansion), extending mineralization in this area to a vertical depth of 776 metres.

Drill hole 30-1123, located on the southern flank of Copper Mountain, cut three mineralized intersections, 14 to 36 metres thick and distributed in ‘layer cake’ fashion from surface to a vertical depth of 137 metres, followed by 313.5 metres averaging 0.23 % Cu, 1.84 g/t Ag and 0.012% Mo (infill and expansion) and then by 220.5 metres averaging 0.20 % Cu, 1.63 g/t Ag and 0.024% Mo (expansion), extending mineralization in this area to a vertical depth of 774 metres.

Drill hole 30-1125, located approximately 200 metres south of 30-1118, near Copper Brook, cut five mineralized intersections, 30 to 293 metres thick and distributed in ‘layer cake’ fashion from surface to a vertical depth of 936 metres, including 184.2 metres averaging 0.20 % C and 0.97 g/t Ag (infill) as well as 293.0 metres averaging 0.23 % Cu, 1.26 g/t Ag and 0.019% Mo (expansion).

Drill hole 30-1126, located on the western flank of Copper Mountain, cut two mineralized intervals including 804.0 metres averaging 0.24 % Cu, 1.48 g/t Ag and 0.016% Mo (which includes 399.4 metres of depth expansion), extending mineralization in this area to a vertical depth of 1033 metres.

Drill hole 30-1127, located near the eastern margin of the 2024 MRE model, cut eight intersections of mineralization, 17 to 45 metres thick and distributed in ‘layer cake’ fashion from surface to a vertical depth of 891 metres, confirming the near limit of the 2024 MRE model at this location.

Drill hole 30-1128, located 100 metres south of the southern margin of the 2024 MRE model, cut four mineralized intersections, all expansion outside the current resource model, including 115.5 metres averaging 0.44 % Cu and 3.67 g/t Ag within (and above) the B Zone skarn horizon, as well as 330.6 metres averaging 0.46 % Cu and 4.33 g/t Ag from the top of the C Zone skarn to well below (120 metres) the E zone horizon. This latter intersection included a high-grade interval of 14.5 metres averaging 2.51 % Cu and 24.9 g/t Ag, located in a mineralized vein/massive sulfide zone about 20 metres above the E Zone horizon. This is a new mineralized zone not previously identified at Gaspé Copper and its extent is presently unknown.

Drill hole 30-1130, located on top of Copper Mountain near the center of the 2024 MRE model, cut two significant mineralized intervals including 347.7 metres averaging 0.24 % Cu, 2.14 g/t Ag and 0.010% Mo, followed by 277.5 metres averaging 0.26% Cu, 1.51 g/t Ag and 0.023% Mo, extending mineralization in this area to a vertical depth of 874 metres.

Drill hole 30-1131, located near the southern lip of the Copper Mountain open pit adjacent to 30-1118, was drilled at a 78-degree dip towards the north and it intersected 741 metres of continuous mineralization from surface, averaging 0.21 % Cu, 1.11 g/t Ag and 0.015% Mo (infill). This hole confirmed mineralization in this area to a vertical depth of 725 metres, ending in the porphyry intrusion core of the Copper Mountain deposit.

Mineralization at Gaspé Copper is of porphyry copper/skarn type and occurs as disseminations and stockworks of chalcopyrite with pyrite or pyrrhotite and minor bornite and molybdenite. One prograde and at least five retrograde vein/stockwork mineralizing events have been recognized at Copper Mountain, which overprint earlier, bedding replacement skarn and porcellanite-hosted mineralization throughout the Gaspé Copper system. Porcellanite is a historical mining term used to describe bleached, pale green to white potassic-altered hornfels. Subvertical stockwork mineralization dominates at Copper Mountain whereas prograde bedding-parallel mineralization, that is mostly stratigraphically controlled, dominates in the area of lower Copper Mountain, Needle Mountain, Needle East, and Copper Brook. High molybdenum grades (up to 0.5% Mo) were locally obtained in both the C Zone and E Zone skarns away from Copper Mountain.

The 2022 to 2024 Osisko Metals drill programs were focused on defining open-pit resources within the Copper Mountain stockwork mineralization ( see May 6, 2024 MRE press release ). Extending the resource model south of Copper Mountain into the poorly-drilled prograde skarn/porcellanite portion of the system subsequently led to a significantly increased resource, mostly in the Inferred category ( see November 14, 2024 MRE press release ).

The current drill program is designed to convert the November 2024 MRE to Measured and Indicated categories, as well as test the expansion of the system deeper into the stratigraphy and laterally to the south and southwest towards Needle East and Needle Mountain respectively. The November 2024 MRE was limited at depth to the base of the L1 skarn horizon (C Zone), and all mineralized intersections below this horizon represent potential depth extensions to the deposit, to be included in the next scheduled MRE update in Q1 2026.

Most holes are being drilled sub-vertically into the altered calcareous stratigraphy which dips 20 to 25 degrees to the north. The L1 (C Zone) the L2 (E Zone) skarn/marble horizons were intersected in most holes, as well as intervening porcellanites that host the bulk of the disseminated copper mineralization.

Table 2: Drill hole locations

DDH No. Azimuth (°) Dip (°) Length (m) UTM E UTM N Elevation
30-1115 0.0 -90.0 723.6 316600.0 5426109.0 612.4
30-1117 0.0 -90.0 1014.0 315811.0 5426424.0 695.7
30-1118 0.0 -90.0 780.0 315612.0 5426495.0 580.2
30-1123 0.0 -90.0 894.0 316136.0 5425972.8 621.3
30-1125 0.0 -90.0 972.0 315608.0 5426313.0 580.0
30-1126 0.0 -90.0 1080.9 315800.0 5426321.0 651.9
30-1127 0.0 -90.0 1029.0 316500.0 5426171.0 647.8
30-1128 90.0 -88.0 675.0 316277.0 5425557.0 566.5
30-1130 345.0 -80.0 888.0 316194.0 5426387.0 746.0
30-1131 355.0 -78.0 741.0 315612.0 5426495.0 583.0


Explanatory note regarding copper-equivalent grades

Copper Equivalent grades are expressed for purposes of simplicity and are calculated taking into account: 1) metal grades; 2) estimated long-term prices of metals: US$4.25/lb copper, $20.00/lb molybdenum, and US$24/oz silver; 3) estimated recoveries of 92%, 70%, and 70% for Cu, Mo, and Ag respectively; and 4) net smelter return value of metals as percentage of the price, estimated at 86.5%, 90.7%, and 75.0% for Cu, Mo, and Ag respectively.

Qualified Person

The scientific and technical content of this news release has been reviewed and approved by Mr. Bernard-Olivier Martel, P. Geo. (OGQ 492), an independent ‘qualified person’ as defined by National Instrument 43-101 – Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects (‘NI 43-101’).

Quality Assurance / Quality Control

Mineralized intervals reported herein are calculated using an average 0.12% CuEq lower cut-off over contiguous 20-metre intersections (shorter intervals as the case may be at the upper and lower limits of reported intervals). Intervals of 10 metres or less are not reported unless indicating significantly higher grades .   True widths are estimated at 90 – 92% of the reported core length intervals.

Osisko Metals adheres to a strict QA/QC program for core handling, sampling, sample transportation and analyses, including insertion of blanks and standards in the sample stream. Drill core is drilled in HQ or NQ diameter and securely transported to its core processing facility on site, where it is logged, cut and sampled. Samples selected for assay are sealed and shipped to ALS Canada Ltd.’s preparation facility in Sudbury. Sample preparation details (code PREP-31DH) are available on the ALS Canada website. Pulps are analyzed at the ALS Canada Ltd. facility in North Vancouver, BC. All samples are analyzed by four acid digestion followed by both ICP-AES and ICP-MS for Cu, Mo and Ag.

About Osisko Metals

Osisko Metals Incorporated is a Canadian exploration and development company creating value in the critical metals sector, with a focus on copper and zinc. The Company acquired a 100% interest in the past-producing Gaspé Copper mine from Glencore Canada Corporation in July 2023. The Gaspé Copper mine is located near Murdochville in Québec s Gaspé Peninsula. The Company is currently focused on resource expansion of the Gaspé Copper system, with current Indicated Mineral Resources of 824 Mt averaging 0.34% CuEq and Inferred Mineral Resources of 670 Mt averaging 0.38% CuEq (in compliance with NI 43-101). For more information, see Osisko Metals’ November 14, 2024 news release entitled ‘Osisko Metals Announces Significant Increase in Mineral Resource at Gaspé Copper’. Gaspé Copper hosts the largest undeveloped copper resource in eastern North America, strategically located near existing infrastructure in the mining-friendly province of Québec.

In addition to the Gaspé Copper project, the Company is working with Appian Capital Advisory LLP through the Pine Point Mining Limited joint venture to advance one of Canada s largest past-producing zinc mining camps, the Pine Point project, located in the Northwest Territories. The current mineral resource estimate for the Pine Point project consists of Indicated Mineral Resources of 49.5 Mt averaging 5.52% ZnEq and Inferred Mineral Resources of 8.3 Mt averaging 5.64% ZnEq (in compliance with NI 43-101). For more information, see Osisko Metals June 25, 2024 news release entitled ‘Osisko Metals releases Pine Point mineral resource estimate: 49.5 million tonnes of indicated resources at 5.52% ZnEq’. The Pine Point project is located on the south shore of Great Slave Lake, NWT, close to infrastructure, with paved road access, an electrical substation and 100 kilometres of viable haul roads.

For further information on this news release, visit www.osiskometals.com or contact:

Don Njegovan, President
Email: info@osiskometals.com
Phone: (416) 500-4129

Cautionary Statement on Forward-Looking Information

This news release contains ‘forward-looking information’ within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities legislation based on expectations, estimates and projections as at the date of this news release. Any statement that involves predictions, expectations, interpretations, beliefs, plans, projections, objectives, assumptions, future events or performance (often, but not always, using phrases such as ‘expects’, or ‘does not expect’, ‘is expected’, ‘interpreted’, ‘management’s view’, ‘anticipates’ or ‘does not anticipate’, ‘plans’, ‘budget’, ‘scheduled’, ‘forecasts’, ‘estimates’, ‘potential’, ‘feasibility’, ‘believes’ or ‘intends’ or variations of such words and phrases or stating that certain actions, events or results ‘may’ or ‘could’, ‘would’, ‘might’ or ‘will’ be taken, occur or be achieved) are not statements of historical fact and may be forward-looking information and are intended to identify forward-looking information. This news release contains forward-looking information pertaining to, among other things: the tax treatment of the FT Units; the timing of incurring the Qualifying Expenditures and the renunciation of the Qualifying Expenditures; the ability to advance Gaspé Copper to a construction decision (if at all); the ability to increase the Company’s trading liquidity and enhance its capital markets presence; the potential re-rating of the Company; the ability for the Company to unlock the full potential of its assets and achieve success; the ability for the Company to create value for its shareholders; the advancement of the Pine Point project; the anticipated resource expansion of the Gaspé Copper system and Gaspé Copper hosting the largest undeveloped copper resource in eastern North America.

Forward-looking information is not a guarantee of future performance and is based upon a number of estimates and assumptions of management, in light of management’s experience and perception of trends, current conditions and expected developments, as well as other factors that management believes to be relevant and reasonable in the circumstances, including, without limitation, assumptions about: the ability of exploration results, including drilling, to accurately predict mineralization; errors in geological modelling; insufficient data; equity and debt capital markets; future spot prices of copper and zinc; the timing and results of exploration and drilling programs; the accuracy of mineral resource estimates; production costs; political and regulatory stability; the receipt of governmental and third party approvals; licenses and permits being received on favourable terms; sustained labour stability; stability in financial and capital markets; availability of mining equipment and positive relations with local communities and groups. Forward-looking information involves risks, uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual events, results, performance, prospects and opportunities to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking information. Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from such forward-looking information are set out in the Company’s public disclosure record on SEDAR+ (www.sedarplus.ca) under Osisko Metals’ issuer profile. Although the Company believes that the assumptions and factors used in preparing the forward-looking information in this news release are reasonable, undue reliance should not be placed on such information, which only applies as of the date of this news release, and no assurance can be given that such events will occur in the disclosed time frames or at all. The Company disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward- looking information, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, other than as required by law.

Neither the TSX Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Exchange) accept responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this news release. No stock exchange, securities commission, or other regulatory authority has approved or disapproved the information contained herein.

Photos accompanying this announcement are available at:
https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/1363bf79-5e03-4101-a728-51e24d82c5b7
https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/3081ce36-9665-4fc1-95ee-eeef072ff25b

News Provided by GlobeNewswire via QuoteMedia

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Frustration is boiling over among Democratic ranks against Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., after walking away from the longest government shutdown on record largely empty-handed.

Some argue that Schumer squandered key leverage and failed to steer his caucus through the chaos to victory. 

‘I think that people did what they could to get us out of the shutdown, but what has worked in the past isn’t working now,’ Sen. Elissa Slotkin, D-Mich., said. ‘And so, we need to meet the moment, and we’re not doing that.’

Slotkin, like others in the Senate Democratic caucus, ‘wanted something deliverable on the price of healthcare.’ The core of their shutdown strategy was to force Republicans and President Donald Trump to make a deal on expiring Obamacare subsidies, but that didn’t happen. 

Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., argued that getting rid of Schumer would be difficult. 

‘Chuck Schumer is part of the establishment,’ Sanders told MSNBC. ‘You can argue, and I can make the case, that Chuck Schumer has done a lot of bad things, but getting rid of him — who’s going to replace him?’

Other Democrats weren’t so resigned.

Graham Platner, a Democratic Senate candidate running to replace Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, placed the collapse of Senate Democrats’ unified front squarely on leadership. 

‘The Democratic Party at the leadership level has become entirely feckless,’ Platner said in a video posted by Our Revolution, a political action organization started as an offshoot of Sanders’ presidential campaign. 

‘What happened last night is a failure of leadership in the most clear terms,’ he said after the Senate passed the bipartisan deal Monday, sending it to the House. ‘Sen. Schumer is the minority leader. It is his job to make sure his caucus is voting along the lines of what’s going to be good for the people of the United States. He could not maintain that.’ 

Schumer and congressional Democrats walked away from the shutdown stalemate in the Senate largely empty-handed, save for some victories on ensuring furloughed federal workers would receive back pay, the reversals of firings made by the Trump administration during the shutdown and future protections for workers.  

Still, they fell far short of their goal to extend the expiring subsidies, which are set to sunset at the end of this year. 

Those subsidies, initially passed as an emergency response to COVID-19 in 2021, were always supposed to be temporary. But Democrats fear that their sudden expiration could leave millions of policyholders with substantially higher premiums overnight if allowed to expire.

But as mounting pressure grew — and no sign of Republicans wavering on the subsidies — eight Democrats voted to put the government on the path to reopening. 

To some onlookers, Schumer had held the party line for as long as possible.

Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto, D-Nev., one of the eight Democrats who voted with Republicans to reopen the government, said she respected Schumer’s leadership.

‘He’s done a good job,’ Masto said. ‘He kept us in the loop and was open to our conversations.’

Sen. Chris Murphy, D-Conn., argued that the problem wasn’t Schumer, it was his colleagues. 

‘Sen. Schumer didn’t want this to be the outcome, and I pressed hard for it not to end like this,’ Murphy said. ‘He didn’t succeed, let’s not sugarcoat that. But the problem is, the problem exists, inside the caucus. The caucus has to solve it.’

Republicans, however, spent much of the shutdown arguing that Schumer had waged the shutdown to appease his base — a base that had wanted to see some sort of resistance to Trump.

‘This is how it always would end,’ Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, said on Monday evening. ‘Chuck Schumer has a political problem. He’s afraid of being primaried from the left. And so, the Democrats inflicted this shutdown on the American people in order to prove to their radical left-wing base that they hate Donald Trump.’

‘I think a lot of Americans have suffered as a result of this political stunt,’ Cruz added.

On the other hand, many Democrats made it clear they believed Schumer had failed to effectively mount resistance to Trump’s agenda on healthcare.

CNN data analyst Harry Enten compiled polls dating back to 1985 comparing the popularity of Democratic leaders among Democratic voters. Schumer, he found, was the least popular of them all. 

‘Chuck Schumer — his days are over. If he cannot keep his caucus together, he needs to go,’ Sunny Hostin, a co-host of ‘The View,’ told audiences on Monday.

‘Chuck Schumer has not met this moment, and Senate Democrats would be wise to move on from his leadership,’ Rep. Mike Levin, D-Calif., said.

California Gov. Gavin Newsom summed up his thoughts in a one-word post to X. 

‘Pathetic,’ Newsom said.

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Senators believe that after reaching a deal to end the longest shutdown on record, they won’t be in the same position early next year.

The bipartisan package that advanced from the Senate late Monday night would, if passed by the House this week, reopen the government until Jan. 30. Lawmakers believe that extension would give them enough time to fund the government the old-fashioned way, making another shutdown a moot point.

But that all depends on whether they can complete work on spending bills, find agreement with the House, and get them on President Donald Trump’s desk before the new deadline.

There’s also the possibility that if the guarantee for a vote on expiring Obamacare subsidies does not go how Senate Democrats want, that could significantly hamper Congress’ ability to avert yet another shutdown.

‘We’ll take them one day at a time,’ Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., said. ‘Obviously, it’s another deadline we have to deal with. But the immediate objective is to get the government open and enable those conversations to commence.’

‘There are Democrats and Republicans who are both interested in trying to do something in the healthcare space,’ he continued. ‘And clearly, there is a need. I mean, there is an affordability issue on healthcare that has to be addressed, and the current trajectory we’re on isn’t a sustainable path.’

Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., told Fox News Digital that Democrats needed to be united in their demand that ‘Republicans be held to their promise of having a vote on the healthcare subsidies in December.’

Thune reiterated his guarantee on Sunday and teed up the second week of December as the deadline for getting a Democratic proposal to the floor.

‘The future is unpredictable, but we need to continue our fight unequivocally, unyieldingly, for affordable healthcare insurance through extending the subsidies and other measures under the [Affordable Care Act],’ Blumenthal said. ‘Republicans have a reflexive obsession with repealing or destroying the ACA.’

The hope is that funding the government with appropriations bills will be the key to preventing another shutdown.

Senate Appropriations Chair Susan Collins, R-Maine, said that she anticipated Thune to tee up a new package of spending bills, this one combining the defense, labor, transportation and housing bills into one chunk.

‘The more appropriations bills that we’re able to pass, the better off we’re going to be, the better off the American people will be served,’ she said.

Sen. Mike Rounds, R-S.D., a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, was unsure if lawmakers would be in the same spot again come January.

But he believed that the desire to move forward with spending bills, spurred largely by the bipartisan deal struck to reopen the government, was a good start.

‘It makes it a whole lot easier not to have a shutdown again,’ he said.

Despite the rancor and frustration from the Democratic side of the aisle over the collapse of their healthcare demand, they also want to pass bipartisan funding bills, largely in a bid to push back against cuts made by the Trump administration.

However, Sen. Chris Murphy, D-Conn., predicted that it would be quite difficult to pass a long-term bipartisan budget.

‘We cannot sign on to a long-term budget that does nothing on healthcare and has nothing to stop the destruction of our democracy,’ he said. ‘You know, there are no real protections in the short-term spending bill against Trump’s illegality.’

For now, some see the January deadline as ‘light years away,’ like Sen. John Kennedy, R-La., while others aren’t ready to make a prediction about what comes next.

‘Just one step at a time,’ Sen. Chris Van Hollen, D-Md., told Fox News Digital.

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Tensions flared at a House hearing to advance legislation aimed at ending the government shutdown on Tuesday night, with two senior lawmakers on opposite sides of the aisle trading barbs over the fallout.

House Appropriations Committee Chairman Tom Cole, R-Okla., clashed with Rep. Jim McGovern, D-Mass., the top Democrat on the House Rules Committee repeatedly at the outset of the hearing. Cole accused Democrats of derailing the federal government, while McGovern railed against the GOP’s refusal to attach provisions extending expiring enhanced Obamacare subsidies to its funding bill.

‘This is the stuff you said you would never do. ‘We would never shut down the government. We would never do this.’ That’s exactly what you’ve done,’ House Appropriations Chairman Tom Cole, R-Okla., said a short while later. ‘You’re putting thousands of people out of work.’

McGovern, who said emphatically that his constituents were ‘getting screwed,’ said, ‘You tried over 50 times to repeal the Affordable Care Act,’ Obamacare’s formal name.

He said he was getting calls from constituents who were ‘out of their minds’ trying to figure out how to pay for healthcare without the subsidies.’

‘Well the most immediate crisis in my district are the thousands of workers that you and your colleagues have put out of work, that aren’t getting a paycheck,’ Cole said.

‘They’re the ones that keep the airplanes flying. They’re the ones that do the national weather center. They’re wondering why they’re not getting paid.’

McGovern shot back, ‘You get no calls about healthcare?’

‘We could have had these debates, we could have had these arguments. Why are they being held hostage?’ Cole continued.

‘The healthcare issue you’re talking about is a subsidy you passed on your own, you said it was COVID-related…The most immediate crisis in my district, you’ve created. My people aren’t getting paid thanks to you and your colleagues.’

McGovern, who tried to interject multiple times, said, ‘So nobody in your district is complaining about healthcare?’

Cole conceded, ‘People complain everywhere about everything, but you asked me what the most important calls I get —’

McGovern cut him off with, ‘—We have a chance to do something about this.’

‘— is, ‘Why am I not getting paid? Why am I being forcibly furloughed?’’ Cole continued.

‘We have a chance to do something to help millions of people afford their health insurance. And what you’re all telling me is you’re not interested,’ McGovern said.

House Rules Committee Chairwoman Virginia Foxx, R-N.C., was ignored as she banged her gavel multiple times in an attempt to call order.

Cole, meanwhile, said the subsidies ‘have nothing to do with the work of my committee.’

‘But you’re willing to hijack my committee,’ he continued, before McGovern cut him off again, accusing Republicans of voting to ‘cut taxes for millionaires and billionaires’ in the GOP’s ‘big, beautiful bill’ earlier this year.

‘But you could not extend these for people?’ McGovern asked.

The House Rules Committee is the final hurdle for most legislation before it sees House-wide votes. Lawmakers on the key panel vote to advance a bill while setting terms for its consideration, like possible amendment votes and timing for debate.

The funding bill at hand is expected to advance through the committee on party lines. Democrats on the panel are likely to oppose the measure in line with House Democratic leaders, while Republicans have signaled no meaningful opposition.

The vast majority of House Democrats have threatened to oppose the bill over its exclusion of the enhanced Obamacare credits, despite the legislation netting support from eight members of their own party in the Senate.

Republican leaders have signaled a willingness to discuss reforms to the system, which they have criticized as flawed. However, they’ve rejected any notion of pairing a healthcare extension with a federal funding bill that is otherwise largely free of partisan policy riders.

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The House will vote on reopening the federal government Wednesday after lawmakers’ funding bill survived a key hurdle earlier in the morning.

The bipartisan deal to end the 42-day government shutdown advanced through the House Rules Committee overnight Wednesday, with all Republicans supporting the measure and all Democrats against.

It now moves to the full House for consideration, where multiple people familiar with GOP leaders’ conversations told Fox News Digital they believe it will pass with nearly all Republicans on board.

Passage through the House Rules Committee is a meaningful step toward ending the shutdown, now the longest in U.S. history by roughly a week.

The panel’s hearing to advance the bill lasted more than six hours, kicking off Wednesday evening and ending shortly after 1 a.m. on Thursday.

Democrats attempted to force votes on amendments dealing with COVID-19-era enhanced Obamacare subsidies that are set to expire at the end of this year and other issues opposed by the GOP, though all failed.

House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., made a notable surprise appearance at one point, testifying in favor of his own amendment to extend those subsidies for another three years.

The lengthy hearing saw members on opposite sides of the aisle clash several times as well, with Democrats repeatedly accusing Republicans of robbing Americans of their healthcare and taking a ‘vacation’ for several weeks while remaining in their districts during the shutdown.

‘I am sick and tired of hearing you all say we had an eight-week vacation,’ House Rules Committee Chairwoman Virginia Foxx, R-N.C., said at one point. ‘I worked every day. I don’t know about you. I don’t want to hear another soul say that.’

Democrats and some Republicans also piled on a provision in the funding bill that would allow GOP senators to sue the federal government for $500,000 for secretly obtaining their phone records during ex-Special Counsel Jack Smith’s investigation.

‘I think there’s gonna be a lot of people, if they look and understand this, they’re going to see it as self-serving, self-dealing kind of stuff. And I don’t think that’s right,’ Rep. Chip Roy, R-Texas, said.

‘I’m trying to figure out what we can do to force the Senate’s hand to say, ‘You’re going to repeal this provision and fix it,’ without amending it here.’

The bill will now get a House-wide ‘rule vote,’ a procedural test that, if it passes, allows lawmakers to debate the legislation itself.

Lawmakers are expected to then hold a final vote sometime on Wednesday evening on sending the bill to President Donald Trump’s desk for his signature.

Trump signaled he was supportive of the legislation in comments to reporters on Monday.

‘We’ll be opening up our country very quickly,’ Trump said when asked if he backed the deal.

The Senate broke through weeks of gridlock on Monday night to pass the legislation in a 60-40 vote, with eight Democrats joining the GOP to reopen the government.

Meanwhile, travel disruptions have been causing chaos at U.S. airports, with air traffic controllers and Transportation Security Administration (TSA) officers being forced to work without pay since last month. Many of those employees had been forced to take on second jobs to make ends meet, fueling staffing shortages and flight delays that threatened to overshadow the Thanksgiving holiday.

Millions of Americans who rely on federal food benefits were also left in limbo amid a partisan fight over whether and how to fund those programs during the shutdown.

The bill would extend fiscal year (FY) 2025 federal funding levels through Jan. 30 to give negotiators more time to strike a longer-term deal for FY 2026.

It would also give lawmakers some headway with that mission, advancing legislation to fund the Department of Agriculture and the Food and Drug Administration; the Department of Veterans Affairs and military construction; and the legislative branch.

They are three of 12 individual bills that are meant to make up Congress’ annual appropriations, paired into a vehicle called a ‘minibus.’

In a victory for Democrats, the deal would also reverse federal layoffs conducted by the Trump administration in October, with those workers getting paid for the time they were off.

A side-deal struck in the Senate also guaranteed Senate Democrats a vote on legislation extending Obamacare subsidies that were enhanced during the COVID-19 pandemic, which are set to expire at the end of this year.

Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., however, has made no such promise in the House.

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A senior federal judge in Massachusetts who was appointed by former President Reagan announced he has resigned in protest against President Donald Trump, who he says has been ‘using the law for partisan purposes.’

U.S. District Judge Mark L. Wolf, 78, resigned on Friday and explained that the Trump administration’s actions that he described as threatening the rule of law compelled him to speak out.

In a piece for The Atlantic, Wolf wrote that he had looked forward to serving for the rest of his life when Reagan appointed him in 1985 but decided to step down last week because of Trump’s ‘assault on the rule of law’ that he finds ‘so deeply disturbing.’

‘I no longer can bear to be restrained by what judges can say publicly or do outside the courtroom,’ the former judge wrote. ‘President Donald Trump is using the law for partisan purposes, targeting his adversaries while sparing his friends and donors from investigation, prosecution, and possible punishment. This is contrary to everything that I have stood for in my more than 50 years in the Department of Justice and on the bench. The White House’s assault on the rule of law is so deeply disturbing to me that I feel compelled to speak out. Silence, for me, is now intolerable.’

‘When I accepted the nomination to serve on the U.S. District Court in Massachusetts, I took pride in becoming part of a federal judiciary that works to make our country’s ideal of equal justice under law a reality,’ he continued. ‘A judiciary that helps protect our democracy. That has the authority and responsibility to hold elected officials to the limits of the power delegated to them by the people. That strives to ensure that the rights of minority groups, no matter how they are viewed by others, are not violated. That can serve as a check on corruption to prevent public officials from unlawfully enriching themselves. Becoming a federal judge was an ideal opportunity to extend a noble tradition that I had been educated by experience to treasure.’

Wolf added that he now wants to do ‘everything in my power to combat today’s existential threat to democracy and the rule of law.’

The former judge noted that Trump cannot replace him with a nominee of his own, as former President Obama named Judge Indira Talwani as his successor in 2013.

Wolf criticized the Department of Justice’s prosecutions of former FBI Director James Comey and Democrat New York Attorney General Letitia James. The former judge also took issue with Trump’s social media post in which he asked Attorney General Pam Bondi to prosecute Comey, James and Sen. Adam Schiff, D-Calif.

He also said that even if a prosecution ends in an acquittal, it ‘can have devastating consequences for the defendant.’

Wolf also wrote that the DOJ must ensure prosecutors do not seek an indictment unless they have ‘sufficient admissible evidence to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.’

‘Trump has utterly ignored this principle,’ Wolf wrote.

Wolf blasted Trump’s ‘unconstitutional or otherwise illegal’ executive orders, criticized the president’s calls for judges to be impeached for ruling against him, said there was ‘corruption by [Trump] and those in his orbit’ and emphasized that attacks on the courts have led to actual threats against judges.

‘I resigned in order to speak out, support litigation, and work with other individuals and organizations dedicated to protecting the rule of law and American democracy,’ Wolf wrote. ‘I also intend to advocate for the judges who cannot speak publicly for themselves.’

‘I cannot be confident that I will make a difference,’ he added. ‘I am reminded, however, of what Senator Robert F. Kennedy said in 1966 about ending apartheid in South Africa: ‘Each time a man stands up for an ideal, or acts to improve the lot of others, or strikes out against injustice, he sends forth a tiny ripple of hope.’ Enough of these ripples can become a tidal wave.’

The U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts said Wolf’s ‘steadfast commitment to the rule of law, determination in wrestling with novel issues of fact and law, and dedication to making fair, equitable and legally sound decisions without fear or favor are the hallmarks of his time on the bench.’

‘His many opinions on complex issues of law in notable cases have had a great impact on jurisprudence,’ Chief Judge Denise J. Casper said in the statement. ‘In addition, his tenure as Chief Judge led to the increased engagement with the bar and community, including the initiation of the Court’s bench/bar conference and his continued support of the Court’s Fellowship Programs. I, along with my colleagues and this Court community, applaud his years of dedicated service.’

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