Trump Corruption

Politico reports: President Donald Trump’s social media startup gifted more than $800,000 worth of stock each to Kash Patel, his nominee to run the FBI, and Linda McMahon, his pick to lead the Education Department, according to regulatory filings. Patel and McMahon — who both sit on the company’s board — were each awarded 25,946 shares in Trump Media & …

Axios reports: A new White House video features mothers whose children’s deaths were linked to undocumented immigrants rebuking actress Selena Gomez for her Instagram post in which she cried over President Trump’s plans for mass deportations. The video is the latest sign that Trump’s new administration will use campaign-like tactics — and the power of social media — to talk …

Politico reports: The Justice Department abruptly fired dozens of prosecutors who worked on criminal cases stemming from the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol, according to correspondence reviewed by POLITICO and an interview with one of the people who was terminated. Interim U.S. Attorney Ed Martin emailed the employees just before 5 p.m. Friday, appending a memo from acting …

The Washington Post reports: The highest-ranking career official at the Treasury Department is departing after a clash with allies of billionaire Elon Musk over access to sensitive payment systems, according to three people with knowledge of the matter, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to describe private talks. David A. Lebryk, who served in nonpolitical roles at Treasury for …

The Daily Beast reports: Air traffic controllers were emailed by the Trump administration urging them to quit their jobs and take mass “buyouts” just 24 hours after the D.C. plane crash. They were among hundreds of thousands of federal workers sent the email at 8.30 p.m. Thursday. The email dropped almost exactly 24 hours after an Army helicopter crashed into …

“Am I going to impose tariffs on the European Union? Do you want the truthful answer, or should I give you the political answer? Absolutely. Absolutely. The European Union has treated us so terribly. Let me just tell you, I got elected for a lot of reasons. Number one was the border, number two was inflation, because I had almost …

NBC News reports: The CDC on Friday is scrubbing a swath of HIV-related content from the agency’s website as a part of President Donald Trump’s broader effort to wipe out diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives across the federal government. CDC employees were told in a Jan 29. email from Charles Ezell, the acting director of the U.S. office of personnel …

ABC News reports: A federal judge in Rhode Island has formally blocked the Trump Administration’s spending freeze, saying in an order this afternoon that the funding freeze is likely a violation of the Constitution. “During the pendency of the Temporary Restraining Order, Defendants shall not pause, freeze, impede, block, cancel, or terminate Defendants’ compliance with awards and obligations to provide …

The New York Times reports: The Trump administration plans to scrutinize scores of F.B.I. agents involved in Trump-related investigations, setting the stage for a possible purge targeting not only the bureau’s leaders but also rank-and-file agents, according to people familiar with the matter. On Friday, interim leaders at the Justice Department instructed the F.B.I. to notify around a half-dozen high-ranking …

Reuters reports: Aides to Elon Musk charged with running the U.S. government human resources agency have locked career civil servants out of computer systems that contain the personal data of millions of federal employees, according to two agency officials. The systems include a vast database called Enterprise Human Resources Integration, which contains dates of birth, Social Security numbers, appraisals, home …

NewsNation reports: The White House on Friday called for House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) to apologize for remarks pledging to push back against the Trump administration’s agenda. “We are gonna fight it legislatively. We are gonna fight it in the courts. And we’re gonna fight it in the streets,” Jeffries said. A release from the White House communications office …

Axios reports: The White House said it will still roll out 25% tariffs on imports from Mexico and Canada, alongside 10% tariffs on China, on Feb. 1 — pushing back against a report that suggested tariffs wouldn’t be implemented until March 1. Reuters reported earlier on Friday that the White House would push off tariff implementation until March 1 — …

Business Insider reports: Joseph Bankman and Barbara Fried, the parents of disgraced FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF), are reportedly pursuing a presidential pardon from Donald Trump, according to Bloomberg. SBF was sentenced to 25 years in prison in March 2024 after being convicted of multiple fraud charges. Despite their son’s massive fall from grace, his parents have met with individuals …

Mother Jones reports: Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has admitted to the US Senate that he has reached at least one settlement agreement in which he was accused of misconduct or inappropriate behavior. During Kennedy’s second confirmation hearing Sen. Patty Murray (D-Wash.) raised the issue of personal misconduct. She referred to the allegation that Kennedy had once groped a babysitter. Kennedy …

Politico reports: Around the globe, when rulers consolidate power through a cult of personality, they do not tend to surrender it willingly, even in the face of constitutional limits. And Trump, of course, already has a track record of trying to remain in office beyond his lawful tenure.  If Trump decided he wanted to hold onto power past 2028, there …

Mediaite reports: A whopping 13,000 federal employees reportedly received an abusive email on Thursday after a new broadcast system was quickly exploited. In an email with the subject header, “Resign,” all 13,000 federal employees of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration reportedly received the abusive message, which read, “Aren’t you tired of working for a complete cunt?” “I’m sorry this …

ABC News reports: Workers for the U.S. government received another email Thursday night urging them to resign within one week, by Feb. 6. The memo was similar to the email government employees received on Tuesday. The email, obtained by ABC News, provided information in a Q&A format. It came from an email address reportedly associated with Elon Musk. As with …

“Trump has made clear he has less than zero evidence that the FAA’s hiring of people with disabilities contributed to yesterday’s crash, so this whole conversation is a non-sequitur. But since he has started the conversation, some facts. “The same FAA website language Trump blasted today, about hiring people with intellectual and psychiatric disabilities and other significant ‘targeted’ disabilities, was …

The New York Times reports: When Donald J. Trump sued CBS for $10 billion days before the 2024 election, accusing the company of deceptively editing a “60 Minutes” interview with Vice President Kamala Harris, many legal experts dismissed the litigation as a far-fetched attempt to punish an out-of-favor news outlet. Now Mr. Trump is back in the White House, and …

Axios reports: President Trump ordered a review of all federal aviation hiring and safety decisions in response to Wednesday night’s deadly air collision near Washington. The order shows Trump is doubling down on his claim, without evidence, that DEI policies were a factor in the crash. His memo explicitly mentions “diversity equity and inclusion,” and reflects how anti-DEI efforts are …