Trump Administration

Politico reports: The Trump administration is making an urgent push to end a court order barring top officials’ access to the federal government’s massive payment system operated by the Treasury Department, saying the “remarkable intrusion” is unconstitutional and should be “dissolved immediately.” “Basic democratic accountability requires that every executive agency’s work be supervised by politically accountable leadership, who ultimately answer …

The Associated Press reports: The Vatican’s charity voiced outrage Monday at what it called the “reckless” and “unhuman” U.S. plans to gut USAID, with Pope Francis’ point-man on development aid insisting that the Trump administration remember Christian principles about caring for others as it begins governing. Cardinal Michael Czerny, a Czech-born Canadian Jesuit, is one of the cardinals most closely …

Mamba Online reports: Delivering his State of the Nation Address, President Cyril Ramaphosa emphasised that South Africa must stay true to its values to navigate an increasingly uncertain world. Ramaphosa warned that “fundamental shifts are underway” that will affect every aspect of human life. “In the face of these challenges, we are witnessing the rise of nationalism and protectionism, the …

CNN reports: The United States Secret Service tapped blockbuster movie director Michael Bay to create a recruiting advertisement that aired during the Super Bowl Sunday. The ad cost an estimated $2 million for the Secret Service to produce – a hefty price tag that comes amid massive budget cuts and layoffs at other government agencies. The thrust of the ad …

NBC News reports: A union filed two lawsuits against the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s acting director, Russell Vought, on Sunday after Vought issued a series of directives halting much of the bureau’s activity. The lawsuits were filed by the National Treasury Employees Union, which represents employees in the CFPB. The filing that centered on Vought’s email argued that a judge …

CNN reports: Russell Vought, the newly installed acting director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, sent an email Saturday night ordering all employees at the consumer watchdog to stop virtually all work – including fighting financial abuse. “Effective immediately, unless expressly approved by the Acting Director or required by law, all employees, contractors and other personnel of the bureau shall…cease …

Bloomberg News reports: A group of 200 former national security officials urged congressional leaders to investigate the motive behind the Central Intelligence Agency’s buyout offers to staff, warning they were designed to “shape the workforce in a matter that prioritizes political loyalty.” In a letter sent Friday to the chair and ranking members of the Senate and House intelligence committees, …

Boston’s PBS affiliate reports: The annual State Department report documenting the severity of human trafficking around the world will not include a section on LGBTQ victims this year, one of its authors told GBH News. Each year the State Department publishes what it calls the Trafficking in Persons Report — also known as TIP — to gauge how individual countries …

NBC News reports: San Francisco officials filed a federal lawsuit on Friday against the Trump administration, arguing Trump’s executive orders that promise to withhold federal funding from sanctuary cities and prosecute local law enforcement officials who refuse to comply with federal immigration enforcement efforts are unconstitutional. The suit, co-led by San Francisco and Santa Clara County officials, comes as the …

CNN reports: The FBI is preparing to disband a team of specialists charged with combating foreign threats to US elections. The shuttering of the FBI Foreign Influence Task Force and planned reassigning of team members follows a directive from incoming and newly sworn in US Attorney General Pam Bondi dissolving the team. “To free resources to address more pressing priorities, …

Chicago’s ABC affiliate reports: The U.S. Department of Justice has filed a lawsuit against the state of Illinois and the city of Chicago claiming “sanctuary” policies interfere with federal immigration enforcement. The suit, listing Gov. JB Pritzker, Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson, Chicago Police Superintendent Larry Snelling, Cook County, Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle and Cook County Sheriff Tom Dart, …

The Associated Press reports: In her first hours after being sworn in Wednesday as nation’s top law enforcement official, Attorney General Pam Bondi issued a directive Wednesday establishing a “Weaponization Working Group” that she says will be tasked with reviewing “politicized” actions of officials who investigated President Donald Trump at both the state and federal levels. Bondi’s memo mandates that …

Wired reports: A number of federal employees at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), the US federal agency that monitors and models the oceans and atmosphere for the purpose of predicting changes in climate and weather, have received orders to temporarily cease communicating with foreign nationals, including those working directly with the US government, WIRED has learned. An internal …

Reuters reports: Secretary of State Marco Rubio said he won’t attend a Group of 20 summit in Johannesburg later this month, citing among his reasons South Africa’s efforts to address inequality. “South Africa is doing very bad things. Expropriating private property. Using G20 to promote ‘solidarity, equality, & sustainability.’ In other words: DEI and climate change,” Rubio said in a …

First, just a bit of the Musk-FAA history: In a Sept. 17, 2024, post on its website, the FAA said that in June 2023 SpaceX used a new launch control room for an uncrewed satellite mission that had not been approved by the FAA. It also failed to conduct a required and routine safety poll of flight controllers before the …

CNN reports: Authorities in at least three states have arrested individuals allegedly impersonating ICE officers at a time when real ICE agents have ramped up immigration enforcement efforts under the Trump administration, adding to existing fears of law enforcement among migrant communities. In South Carolina, Sean-Michael Johnson, 33, was charged with kidnapping and impersonating a police officer after allegedly detaining …

The Ohio Capital Journal reports: President Donald Trump comes into office vowing to ease environmental regulations on the utility industry. Now companies that own coal-burning plants in Ohio are asking the new administration to excuse them from cleaning up acres of toxic waste that is soaked in groundwater. They include the owners of what has been called the nation’s deadliest …

The Associated Press reports: The Trump administration said late Tuesday that it is pulling almost all U.S. Agency for International Development workers off the job and out of the field worldwide, moving to all but end a six-decade mission to shore up American security by fighting starvation, funding education and working to end epidemics. The administration notified USAID workers in …

NPR reports: The Senate has voted to confirm Pam Bondi to serve as attorney general, elevating a longtime defender of President Trump to lead the Justice Department and oversee the more than 100,000 who work for it and its component agencies — including the FBI. Bondi was confirmed Tuesday by a vote of 54 to 46. She enters the role …

NBC News reports: Thieves poached about 100,000 eggs from the back of a distribution trailer, authorities in Pennsylvania said. The theft occurred around 8:40 p.m. Saturday at Pete and Gerry’s Organics LLC in Greencastle, police said in a report. The eggs are worth about $40,000. State police did not have additional details Tuesday and said the incident was under investigation. …