Things Musk (and Trump) Did... Day 27 | Blog#42
"And on the seventh day... He will betray." Yulya Navalnaya
And on the seventh day Musk didn’t end His work which He had done, and He toiled on the seventh day with all His work which He is doing. Then Trump cursed the seventh day and desecrated it, because in it He toiled on all His work which Musk had unraveled and destroyed.
GenesEx 2:1-3
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Yesterday’s post
‘He will betray’
POLITICO SCOOP: Officials here in Munich were absorbing the news last night that top Trump officials are heading to Saudi Arabia to start negotiations with Russia on a Ukraine peace deal. POLITICO’s Robbie Gramer and Paul McLeary reported last night that Secretary of State Marco Rubio, national security adviser Mike Waltz and Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff are leading the talks. There are “no plans” for representatives from European powers to attend. Rubio had a phone call with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov Saturday paving the way for the negotiations.
Remembering Navalny: Before diving into the latest from Munich, it’s worth taking a pause to note that today is the one-year anniversary of the death of Russian opposition figure Alexei Navalny. The news rocked the MSC last year, as confirmation that he had died in a Siberian prison filtered through on Feb. 16 2024.
His widow Yulia Navalnaya, who is here in Munich again this year, issued a warning to delegates gathering here this weekend: Don’t negotiate with Vladimir Putin.
“He will betray. He will change the rules at the last moment and force you to play his game.” Sobering words.
TRANSATLANTIC GAP WIDENS
FIGHTING BACK: German Chancellor Olaf Scholz kicked off proceedings Saturday with a direct rebuke of U.S. Vice President JD Vance, who used his Munich Security Conference speech to lambast Europe. Opening with a reference to the Dachau concentration camp just outside Munich, the chancellor invoked Germany’s Nazi past, as he blasted “outsiders” for interfering in “our democracy, in our elections and in the democratic formation of opinion” to support the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party.
Reminder: Vance met with AfD leader Alice Weidel on Friday before leaving for Washington aboard Air Force Two (he didn’t meet with Scholz).
Continue reading at Politico Global Playbook
Analysis by Nick Paton Walsh, CNN
Russia is relishing a series of contradictory White House messages on Ukraine
The split screen is horrifying. On one side, a White House whose policy is in turns strident, revisionist, and then – it seems, sometimes - in urgent need of clarification. On the other, Ukraine, where President Volodymyr Zelensky is outside, looking in, on peace talks, while hundreds die daily on frontlines where Moscow is winning, and children are frequently pulled from the rubble of Russian airstrikes.
As Ukraine’s brutal war nears its third year, the two visions risk becoming irreconcilable.
The White House’s contradictory positions will be partly to blame here. We have seen a startling week in which the US Secretary of Defence Peter Hegseth said Ukraine could not join NATO or get its pre-2014 borders back. He either broadcast a key plank of US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin’s secret peace deal inadvertently or gave away a key part of Ukraine’s diplomatic negotiating hand to the shock of Europe.
Ukraine’s allies may have all known that, in reality, it would not join NATO soon, or get its borders back to when the east and Crimea were in its hands, but had kept that as a concession to make to Russia during, not before, negotiations.
It keeps coming.
Continue reading this analysis at CNN
Europe quietly works on a plan to send troops to Ukraine for post-war security
BRUSSELS (AP) — Increasingly alarmed that U.S. security priorities lie elsewhere, a group of European countries has been quietly working on a plan to send troops into Ukraine to help enforce any future peace settlement with Russia.
Britain and France are at the forefront of the effort, though details remain scarce. The countries involved in the discussions are reluctant to tip their hand and give Russian President Vladimir Putin an edge should he agree to negotiate an end to the war he launched three years ago.
What is clear is that Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy needs a guarantee that his country’s security will be assured until peace takes hold. The best protection would be the NATO membership that Ukraine has long been promised, but the U.S. has taken that option off the table.
Continue reading at the Associated Press
Ukrainians are fearful any Trump-brokered ceasefire will be full of concessions and false promises
The view from Kyiv
Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky responded to the Trump-Putin call by saying his country would not accept a peace deal struck between the US and Russia without Kyiv’s involvement.
“As an independent country we simply cannot accept any agreements without us. And I articulate this very clearly to our partners. We will not accept any bilateral negotiations on Ukraine without us,” Zelensky said, adding that the fact that Trump spoke to Putin first was “not pleasant.”
And Ukrainians seem to agree with their leader. Speaking to CNN in Kyiv, student Nazar Voloshenko said that any talks that could lead to Ukraine losing further territory would be disastrous for the country.
“We may be left without the currently temporarily occupied territories, without parts of the Kherson region, Zaporizhzhia region and the long-suffering Crimea,” he said. “We must take back what is rightfully ours.”
Continue reading at CNN
US presented Ukraine with a document to access its minerals but offered almost nothing in return
MUNICH, Germany (AP) — Ukrainian officials were told not to sign an agreement with the U.S. on rare earth minerals because the document focused on U.S. interests, according to President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, and did not offer any specific security guarantees in return, said one current and one former senior official familiar with the talks.
The proposal focused on how the U.S. could use Kyiv’s rare earth minerals “as compensation” for support already given to Ukraine by the Biden administration and as payment for future aid, current and former senior Ukrainian officials said speaking anonymously so they could speak freely. A senior White House official said that Zelenskyy’s rejection was “short-sighted.”
Ukraine has vast reserves of critical minerals which are used in aerospace, defense and nuclear industries. The Trump administration has indicated it is interested in accessing them to reduce dependence on China but Zelenskyy said any exploitation would need to be tied to security guarantees for Ukraine that would deter future Russian aggression.
“I didn’t let the ministers sign a relevant agreement because in my view it is not ready to protect us, our interest,” Zelenskyy told The Associated Press on Saturday on the sidelines of the Munich Security Conference in Germany.
Continue reading at the Associated Press
Trump Official Destroying USAID Secretly Met With Christian Nationalists Abroad in Defiance of U.S. Policy
Now one of the most powerful people in the U.S. government, Peter Marocco’s turbulent tenure during the first Trump administration sheds light on his current efforts to dismantle the American foreign aid system from the inside out.
Before Peter Marocco was selected to dismantle America’s entire foreign aid sector on behalf of President Donald Trump, he was an official with the State Department on a diplomatic mission.
In 2018, during Trump’s first term, Marocco was a senior political appointee tasked with promoting stability in areas with armed conflict. That summer, he made a two-week trip to the Balkans, visiting several Eastern European countries in what was advertised as an effort to “counter violent extremism” and “strengthen inter-religious dialogue.”
At the time, the U.S. was trying to maintain a fragile peace agreement it had helped broker two decades earlier in the region. The Balkans are still living in the shadows of the Bosnian war, a 1990s conflict between the region’s disparate ethno-religious groups that led to the deaths of an estimated 100,000 people, including thousands of Muslim civilians who were massacred by Serb forces.
Continue reading at ProPublica
Border patrol to stop usage of body cameras in the field: Report
U.S. Border Patrol agents will stop using body cameras immediately in all field operations following social media posts that revealed how to identify Border Patrol and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents, NewsNation reported on Saturday.
“All U.S. Border Patrol Agents will cease the use of body-worn cameras (BWC) in all operational environments,” reads a statement to Border Patrol received by NewsNation.
The directive follows notification “regarding a potential security risk,” the statement said. “Pending completion of investigation and risk mitigation, all Agents will stand down the use of their BWCs [body worn cameras] until further notice. Additional guidance and information will be disseminated as it is received,” the statement added.
Continue reading at The Hill
Justice Department fires 20 immigration judges: Report
The Trump administration dismissed 20 immigration judges over the weekend without explanation, as it continues its efforts to reduce the size of the federal government, the Associated Press reports.
Matthew Biggs, the president of the International Federation of Professional & Technical Engineers, a union representing immigration judges, said that 13 judges who hadn’t been sworn in yet and five assistant chief immigration judges were fired on Friday without warning.
He added that two additional judges had been let go in the same manner last week.
Continue reading at The Hill
Trump administration fires new immigration judges
The country’s immigration courts have a seven-figure case backlog.
The Trump administration has fired a slew of immigration judges as part of the sweeping moves to cut thousands of government workers.
The Friday terminations affected five assistant chief immigration judges, as well as the entire December class of new judges who have yet to be sworn in, said a person familiar with the firings, granted anonymity to discuss private discussions. The Associated Press reported Saturday that it affected 20 judges in total across the Justice Department’s Executive Office for Immigration Review, which runs the courts and oversees 700 judges.
The firings come as the immigration courts have a 3.7 million case backlog, and President Donald Trump looks to fulfill his promise of deporting millions of undocumented immigrants. It’s unclear if the judges will be replaced, but the president’s team is looking to cut through the pileup — a major hurdle in the administration’s immigration agenda.
The EOIR did not immediately respond to POLITICO’s request for comment.
Continue reading at Politico
Axios to use ‘Gulf of America’ in compliance with Trump administration
Axios has announced it will comply with the Trump administration’s decision to rename the “Gulf of Mexico” the “Gulf of America” in its reporting, saying its audience is mostly U.S.-based compared to other media outlets.
“Our standard is to use ‘Gulf of America (renamed by U.S. from Gulf of Mexico)’ in our reporting because our audience is mostly U.S.-based compared to other publishers with international audiences,” said a statement from Axios released on the social platform X.
“At the same time, the government should never dictate how any news organization makes editorial decisions. The AP and all news organizations should be free to report as they see fit,” the statement added.
Continue reading on The Hill
Russian court orders US citizen suspected of drug smuggling held in custody
MOSCOW (AP) — A Moscow court has ordered a U.S. citizen suspected of drug smuggling held in pre-trial detention for 30 days, the Moscow courts press service said Saturday, days after a Moscow-Washington prisoner swap that the White House called a diplomatic thaw and a step toward ending the fighting in Ukraine.
The U.S. citizen, whom Saturday’s statement named as Kalob Wayne Byers, was detained after airport customs officials found cannabis-laced marmalade in his baggage.
Russian police said the 28-year-old American had attempted to smuggle a “significant amount” of drugs into the country, the Interfax agency reported, citing Russia’s Federal Customs Service. The agency said the American was detained at Moscow’s Vnukovo airport after flying in from Istanbul on Feb. 7.
Mash, a Russian Telegram channel with links to the security services, said the U.S. citizen faces up to seven years in prison if convicted.
Continue reading at the Associated Press
DOGE gets mixed reviews from conservatives who have long wanted major budget cuts
DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Conservatives who have spent decades promoting deep cuts to government are giving mixed reviews to the Department of Government Efficiency, the Elon Musk-led project to slash the federal workforce and reduce or end disfavored programs.
The Associated Press interviewed four veteran budget hawks, including some who have worked on Republican presidential campaigns predating Musk or President Donald Trump becoming dominant in GOP politics.
Some say Musk’s early targets demonstrate success and show more potential than previous efforts to downsize government due to his unique access and influence. Others say it’s too early to tell and argue that DOGE has stoked conservative outrage about specific agencies without going after much bigger pieces of the federal budget, like defense spending or programs with bipartisan support like Medicare and Social Security.
Continue reading at the Associated Press
Note from Rima: Over the past 2-3 days media outlets have reported on dissatisfaction, for various reasons, within the GOP.
Bondi orders federal inmate transferred to Oklahoma for execution
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — President Donald Trump’s newly installed attorney general, Pam Bondi, has ordered the transfer of a federal inmate to Oklahoma so he can be executed, following through on Trump’s sweeping executive order to more actively support the death penalty.
Bondi this week directed the Federal Bureau of Prisons to transfer inmate George John Hanson, 60, so that he can be executed for his role in the kidnapping and killing of a 77-year-old woman in Tulsa in 1999.
“The Department of Justice owes it to the victim and her family — as well as the public — to transfer inmate Hanson so that Oklahoma can carry out this just sentence,” Bondi wrote in a memo to the BOP’s director.
Continue reading at the Associated Press
Dangerous flooding hits US Southeast as snow and frigid cold forecast for Northeast and Plains
LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) — Heavy rains and dangerous flooding struck the Southeast U.S. as much of the East endured a renewed round of harsh, soggy weather Saturday, with at least one fatality reported in Kentucky.
A man was found dead in floodwaters in Clay County, Kentucky, WKYT-TV reported. Clay County Emergency Management officials did not immediately respond to a message from The Associated Press seeking additional information.
Water submerged cars and buildings in Kentucky and mudslides blocked roads in Virginia. Both of the states were under flood warnings, along with Tennessee and Arkansas. The National Weather Service warned residents to stay off the roads.
Forecasters also predicted weekend snowstorms in the Northeast and the threat of tornadoes for the Mississippi Valley.
Continue reading at the Associated Press
House GOP budget resolution in jeopardy amid concerns from moderates
The House GOP’s budget resolution could be in jeopardy of not clearing the full chamber amid concerns from moderates over likely cuts to social safety net programs — particularly Medicaid — with a handful undecided on whether they will support the key measure.
Reps. David Valadao (R-Calif.) and Nicole Malliotakis (R-N.Y.) — both of whom represent districts with a significant percentage of Medicaid recipients — told The Hill that they are withholding support from the budget resolution as they seek more information on the severity of the cuts and how they could impact their constituents.
And they are not alone.
Continue reading at The Hill
Vance’s week of waging war on EU tech law
The U.S. vice president attacked Europe’s regulations governing American Big Tech giants and online speech.
]…]
Tech face-off, round 11
Vance's Munich stop was just the latest case of the U.S. government pressuring the EU to tone down its enforcement of tech laws. In Paris on Tuesday, he insisted that Europe needs an approach that "fosters the creation of AI technology rather than strangles it.”
“To restrict it’s development now would not only unfairly benefit incumbents in the space, it would mean paralyzing one of the most promising technologies we have seen in generations,” Vance said in his first major trip overseas since taking office.
The EU's new law on social media, the Digital Services Act, comes with the threat of fines of up to 6 percent of global annual turnover — and Musk's social media platform X is expected to be slapped with a fine in the law's first investigation.
Continue reading at Politico Europe
Appeals court rejects Trump in showdown over firing of ethics watchdog
The D.C. Circuit panel voted, 2-1, against the president’s bid to immediately remove Hampton Dellinger.
A divided federal appeals court panel has again turned down President Donald Trump’s request to follow through with his effort to fire a federal official from a post overseeing enforcement of workplace protections for federal employees.
In an order released late Saturday night, a panel of the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals voted, 2-1, not to disturb a temporary restraining order a lower court judge issued preventing Trump from moving forward with the removal of Office of Special Counsel chief Hampton Dellinger, an appointee of President Joe Biden.
“I can and am continuing with my work as Special Counsel, and I am grateful for the opportunity to do so,” Dellinger said in a statement following the appeals court ruling.
Continue reading at Politico
France confirms emergency European summit Monday in Paris
The “main European countries” will discuss the continent’s security, French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot said.
French President Emmanuel Macron is inviting European leaders for a summit in Paris on Monday, French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot said Sunday.
The "main European countries" will meet Monday in the French capital to discuss European security, Barrot told France Inter. He insisted that such meetings are held frequently and that it should not be "dramatized."
Barrot didn't give details or say which leaders have been invited to the short-notice gathering.
It wasn't clear if the Paris meeting would involve all European Union leaders, or only a smaller group of countries, and if other European leaders would also be invited. Germany, Italy, Britain, Poland and Denmark appear to be invited.
Continue reading at Politico Europe
The US said Ukraine would meet with Russia to discuss peace. That was news to Kyiv.
“I do not know what it is,” said Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
Live coverage from Munich: POLITICO is on the ground at the Munich Security Conference, where we’re having conversations with top officials, lawmakers and experts at our POLITICO Pub. Follow our exclusive coverage here.
MUNICH — Ukrainian officials reacted with a mixture of shock and confusion to the news that top Trump administration officials are traveling to Saudi Arabia to kickstart peace talks with Russia in the coming days — and that Ukrainians were also apparently coming.
The American side said Ukrainians were invited, POLITICO first reported. But the Ukrainians said something different.
“I saw that someone said that there would be a meeting in Saudi Arabia. I do not know what it is,” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on the sidelines of the Munich Security Conference on Saturday.
Continue reading at Politico Europe
Trump administration firings hit key office handling bird flu response
The layoffs in USDA’s National Animal Health Laboratory Network program office come as egg prices reach record high amid worsening outbreak.
Laboratories in a national network of 58 facilities responding to the spread of bird flu were notified Friday that 25 percent of the staff in a central program office coordinating their work were fired in the Trump administration’s mass layoffs of federal employees.
USDA’s National Animal Health Laboratory Network program office has a staff of only 14 people, but it plays a major role in responding to animal disease outbreaks. It’s responsible for data management, ensuring that labs across the country are conducting the same tests and following similar protocols to accurately and effectively track animal diseases.
The labs that make up the American Association of Veterinary Laboratory Diagnosticians were informed that testing and other responses to the H5N1 outbreak would be slower after the layoff, said Keith Poulsen, director of the Wisconsin Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory.
“They’re the front line of surveillance for the entire outbreak,” Poulsen said. “They’re already underwater and they are constantly short-staffed, so if you take all the probationary staff out, you’ll take out the capacity to do the work.”
Continue reading at Politico
As US recedes, NATO scrambles to find a new leader
The Brits, French, and Germans all have their own ideas about how to defend the continent with America’s plans in flux.
MUNICH — European officials say they get Donald Trump’s point: They need to take care of their own defense — with less help from the Americans.
But on the sidelines of the Munich Security Conference this weekend, few European allies were raising their hands.
It was the central question swirling through the crowded halls at the Hotel Bayerischer Hof: Who will be the continent’s security provider if the U.S. military scales down its presence — or simply packs up and leaves.
“Who is that person?” said Giedrimas Jeglinskas, chair of the National Security and Defense Committee in Lithuania’s parliament and a former NATO official. “You need to have some sort of hard power behind you to be really sitting at the table now.”
Germany has the continent’s largest economy, but the jury is out on Berlin's latest defense plans until after this month’s election. The United Kingdom has taken over the Ukraine Defense Contact Group — at least for now. Poland now has the alliance’s third-largest military, behind only the mercurial Turks and the United States. Italy is leading NATO’s Allied Response Force.
The shifting relationship comes at an extraordinary moment for the continent. As Russia’s war in Ukraine grinds on, allies on NATO’s eastern front are watching in real-time as battlegroups swell to brigades.
Continue reading at Politico Europe
UK’s Starmer to attend emergency European summit in Paris
French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot said the “main European countries” would meet on Monday to discuss European security.
U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer is expected to attend an emergency summit of European leaders that is being organized for Monday in Paris.
French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot confirmed on Sunday that the "main European countries" would meet on Monday in the French capital to discuss European security. He didn't give details or say which leaders have been invited.
In confirming he would attend the Paris gathering, Starmer said Europe is at a "once-in-a-generation moment for our national security," according to media reports.
"It's clear Europe must take on a greater role in NATO as we work with the United States to secure Ukraine's future and face down the threat we face from Russia," Starmer said, according to the media reports.
Polish Foreign Minister Radosław Sikorski talked about the meeting at the Munich Security Conference on Saturday, saying his country’s Prime Minister Donald Tusk will be heading to Paris. Sikorski said he expects the emergency meeting to discuss the challenges posed by U.S. President Donald Trump.
Continue reading at Politico Europe
Polish leader says united European army ‘will not happen’
The foreign minister of Poland, Radosław Sikorski, said that a united European army “will not happen.”
“If you understand by … the unification of national armies, it will not happen,” Sikorski said. “But I have been an advocate for Europe, for the European Union, to develop its own defense capabilities.”
“And we are actually in the process of forming a reinforced brigade,” he added. “That’s not enough to deter Putin, but it’s enough to perhaps sort out some warlord in Libya.”
The TVP World comments by Sikorski came in a Saturday YouTube video.
Continue reading at The Hill
Politico
Senator Mark Warner Interview
Senator Warner: Democrats’ ‘brand is really bad’
Ideological purity and cultural disconnect cost the party the last election.
“I think the majority of the party realizes that the ideological purity of some of the groups is a recipe for disaster and that candidly the attack on over-the-top wokeism was a valid attack,” Warner said.
He expressed begrudging admiration for President Donald Trump’s ability to make outrageous statements without paying a political price and capture the attention of a public that largely ignores traditional media.
“President Trump can say virtually anything and it’s forgotten within the same 24-hour news period, so that is a whine and a complaint, but it’s the reality,” Warner said.
Continue reading at Politico
Note from Rima: Senator Warner is supposed to be a Democrat
Economics
Economist Dean Baker
Economist Paul Krugman
Economist Mike Konczal
How Trump is canceling cancel culture
CANCELING CANCEL CULTURE: Now, Trump isn’t just remaking government. He’s remaking the lives of politicians and people in his orbit who once found themselves cast out of polite society.
Trump is rolling back political cancel culture. As he does so, he is welcoming into his coalition people whose past partisan affiliations — and occasionally racist or criminal past acts — would mark them as persona non grata or perhaps even toxic in almost any other presidential administration.
Playbook spent the last few days asking folks about this trend. We learned there are two related forces at play.
“He’s transferring his popularity to his favorite elect,” Jeffrey Toobin, the veteran legal reporter who is out this week with “The Pardon,” a new book about presidential mercy.
POWER PLAY: At bottom, Toobin says, Trump relishes what is ultimately an exercise in blunt, unchecked force.
“Trump has discovered that there is no penalty for using the pardon power,” Toobin told Playbook. “Basically since the immediate aftermath of Ford’s pardon of Nixon, there was this kind of taint associated with pardons, and that’s why presidents sort of stuck them all to the ends of their term, so they couldn’t be held accountable for them. Trump realizes that, rather than be ashamed of pardons, he can use them as expressions of dominance and control.”
Sean Parnell, in an interview with Playbook, says he sees a different dynamic unfolding. Parnell, you’ll recall, suspended his Pennsylvania Senate campaign in 2021 after losing a fight for custody of his children to his estranged wife, who accused him of abuse in court testimony. Now he’s Trump’s chief Pentagon spokesperson.
Parnell’s case is different in degree and nature than someone like Blago: He faced no charges or prison time and won back custody of his kids. But Trump’s embrace of him shows a newly emboldened president who thinks differently about building a team, Parnell says.
Continue reading at Politico Playbook
Trump called Washington a city of ‘filth’ and ‘decay.’ He’s trying to remake it in his image.
Trump in his first weeks of his second term has targeted the city like few presidents before him.
Donald Trump isn’t just looking to remake the federal government. He has his sights set on the city of Washington, too.
In his first few weeks in office, the president has moved to drastically alter the fabric of the nation’s capital.
He ordered thousands of Washington-area federal workers to return to the office — some of whom his administration is moving to lay off. He injected himself and his allies onto the board of the John F. Kennedy Center to recast “woke” performing art culture. And the city’s mayor said she has been briefed on a pending executive order on topics like public safety and homeless encampments in the city.
The flurry of actions drives home that Trump has a dark view of his adopted, part-time home — possibly influenced by the fact that more than 90 percent of its residents supported his opponent in the 2024 election. He called the District a city of “filth” and “decay,” an insult reminiscent of ones he has hurled at other major cities he has feuded with like Baltimore or New York.
Continue reading at Politico
Justice Department’s independence is threatened as Trump’s team asserts power over cases and staff
WASHINGTON (AP) — Pam Bondi had insisted at her Senate confirmation hearing that as attorney general, her Justice Department would not “play politics.”
Yet in the month since the Trump administration took over the building, a succession of actions has raised concerns the department is doing exactly that.
Top officials have demanded the names of thousands of FBI agents who investigated the Capitol riot, sued a state attorney general who had won a massive fraud verdict against Donald Trump before the 2024 election, and ordered the dismissal of a criminal case against New York Mayor Eric Adams by saying the charges had handicapped the Democrat’s ability to partner in the Republican administration’s fight against illegal immigration.
Even for a department that has endured its share of scandals, the moves have produced upheaval not seen in decades, tested its independence and rattled the foundations of an institution that has long prided itself on being driven solely by facts, evidence and the law. As firings and resignations mount, the unrest raises the question of whether a president who raged against his own Justice Department during his first term can succeed in bending it to his will in his second.
Continue reading at the Associated Press
‘I think that’s ridiculous': Tom Homan on quid pro quo speculation over Eric Adams
“It was cop to cop, not border czar to mayor, cop to cop. And we talked about the public safety threats and how they should be removed from our communities,” Homan said on CNN.
White House border czar Tom Homan on Sunday rejected claims that the Trump Department of Justice dismissed a criminal bribery case against New York City Mayor Eric Adams in exchange for his cooperation over immigration.
The mayor on Thursday committed to allowing U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents back into the city’s Rikers Island jail complex.
“It was cop to cop, not border czar to mayor, cop to cop,” Homan told Dana Bash on CNN’s “State of the Union.” “And we talked about the public safety threats and how they should be removed from our communities. And that was the end of the conversation.”
Continue reading at Politico
Rubio in Israel says Hamas must be eradicated, casting further doubt on Gaza’s shaky ceasefire
JERUSALEM (AP) — U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Sunday fully endorsed Israel’s war aims in the Gaza Strip, saying Hamas “must be eradicated” and throwing the shaky ceasefire into further doubt.
Rubio met with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the start of a regional tour, where he is likely to face pushback from Arab leaders over U.S. President Donald Trump’s proposal to transfer the Palestinian population out of Gaza and redevelop it under U.S. ownership.
Continue reading at the Associated Press
Rep. Zinke defends DOJ order to drop Eric Adams charges: ‘Immigration’ is ‘priority’
Rep. Ryan Zinke (R-Mont.) on Sunday defended the Department of Justice’s (DOJ) order for federal prosecutors to drop corruption charges against New York City Mayor Eric Adams.
“Well, I think the priority would be immigration,” Zinke said in an interview on NewsNation’s “The Hill Sunday” when asked to explain why the order to drop charges is not an example of politicization at the DOJ in favor of President Trump.
Zinke noted that “the charges were many” against Adams, saying, “But I think the big thrust is immigration. New York is our largest city. It should be a shining city, and it’s not. And a lot of it is the immigration. And look, you can’t walk down the streets without being harassed, so something’s got to change.”
Continue reading at The Hill
News about Democrats
Dems are losing the online information battle to Trump and Musk
The Democratic response to Trump, one Texas lawmaker said, is “too slow and too tepid and not meeting the moment.”
The Department of Government Efficiency created its own account on X last November, amassing 4 million followers with a stream of news on contract cancellations and other cuts to the bureaucracy. Elon Musk has posted relentlessly on the social media platform he owns, promoting his own voice on an algorithm he controls.
The Democratic National Committee, meanwhile, started a rapid response account in January with about 121,000 followers, a fraction of DOGE’s reach. And Democrats held traditional rallies outside the USAID and Treasury buildings, where Chuck Schumer, the Senate minority leader, was mocked on late-night TV and by even some within his own party after leading a chant of “We will win!”
Continue reading at Politico
Democrats’ headaches multiply in battle for Senate
Minnesota Sen. Tina Smith’s (D) decision to not run for reelection in 2026 is adding another headache for Democrats trying to win back control of the Senate in two years.
Smith became the second Senate Democrat to announce their retirement in the past few weeks after Sen. Gary Peters (D-Mich.) also decided against seeking another term last month. Michigan is more solidly a battleground state than the Democratic-leaning Minnesota, which hasn’t elected a Republican senator in more than two decades.
But Smith’s retirement has offered Republicans a unique opening for the seat, likely requiring Democrats to put up some defense to keep it within the fold.
Continue reading at The Hill
Note from Rima: Use your browser’s search function to find Senator Mark Warner’s (D. Va) commentary about the Democratic party.
Auchincloss: Trump ‘replacing the rule of law with the law of the ruler’
In an interview on NewsNation’s “The Hill Sunday,” anchor Chris Stirewalt asked Auchincloss what he makes of top federal prosecutors resigning this past week instead of carrying out the order to drop the charges.
“What I say about it is that this president is replacing the rule of law with the law of the ruler,” Auchincloss said.
“He came into office, he pardoned violent criminals from Jan. 6 insurrection, including men who tased cops in the neck. Those people are now recommitting crimes back in their communities. He fired inspectors general and federal prosecutors without cause, and now he is directly bullying the Southern District of New York to act in a corrupt manner,” Auchincloss continued.
Continue reading at The Hill
Senate Democrats split over how to combat Trump’s USAID shutdown
On one side are Democrats trying to enlist Republican allies, who have historically been staunch supporters of foreign assistance as a key tool in competing with China for global influence and security. The other wing is banging the drum for action, obstruction and public opposition to the Republican triumvirate in Washington, arguing that bipartisanship is futile.
[…]
A senior Senate Democratic adviser said banking on these Republicans to influence the White House was futile.
“Even if the GOP are weighing in, it’s not helping,” they said.
Democrats advocating obstruction warn that Trump’s moves to overhaul USAID and fold it into the State Department — spearheaded by Elon Musk and his colleagues at the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) — is the first salvo from an administration that wants to run roughshod over Congress’s power of the purse.
Continue reading on The Hill
Shaheen says Trump administration gave ‘mixed message’ on Ukraine
Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.) said in an interview Sunday that the Trump administration has recently given a “mixed message” on Ukraine.
“Well, I think it was a mixed [message] coming from the administration,” Shaheen told CBS News’s Margaret Brennan on “Face the Nation.”
“On the one hand, you heard Secretary Hegseth saying they were gonna take NATO off the table, that Ukraine needed to give up territory, and on the other hand, you had Vice President Vance saying that everything should be on the table, including the possibility of putting boots on the ground in Ukraine,” she added. “So, it’s a mixed message.”
Continue reading on The Hill
Rep. Gillen on Vance’s censorship lecture: ‘Pure hypocrisy’
Gillen joined a CNN panel on Sunday, where she weighed in on Vance’s speech in Munich lambasting European officials and accusing them of censoring speech they disagreed with.
“It’s pure hypocrisy,” Gillen said. “What JD Vance is doing in Germany is really concerning.”
Gillen noted that since the start of the Israel-Hamas war, there has been a rise in antisemitism in her district and across the U.S.
“The Anti-Defamation League has called out [Alternative für Deutschland (AfD)], and JD Vance is embracing a group that flirts with Nazism,” the New York Democrat said. “It’s really, really disturbing.”
Continue reading on The Hill
Rep. Daniel Goldman on DOJ’s dismissal of Eric Adams case: ‘Outright extortion’
The New York Democrat shared concerns about the Justice Department’s future.
“It is an outright extortion. … This is way, way, way outside the bounds of the Department of Justice,” Goldman said on MSNBC’s “Inside with Jen Psaki” on Sunday.
“It’s the, I think, the most significant event since the ‘Saturday Night Massacre’ in the Department of Justice,” referencing the 1973 firing of special prosecutor Archibald Cox during the Watergate scandal.
Last week, acting Deputy Attorney General Emil Bove directed the Justice Department to drop the charges against Adams. In a memo about the situation, Bove wrote that the case “improperly interfered” with the mayor’s reelection campaign and could make it more difficult for him to help President Donald Trump execute his immigration crackdown. As with the ‘Saturday Night Massacre,’ multiple officials resigned in protest of this request before it was fulfilled.
Continue reading at Politico
Democrats play blame game with GOP on looming government shutdown
Democrats are signaling they won't bail out Republicans as yet another government funding deadline looms — and with a GOP trifecta in Washington, some say it won't be their fault if the government goes dark.
Why it matters: If past negotiations are an indicator of how the vote to stave off the March 14 shutdown deadline will go, the GOP will almost certainly need Democratic support.
The strategy some key Democrats have floated — and that is being encouraged by grassroots groups — is to let the GOP collapse if it can't reach an internal consensus.
"Republicans have consistently shut down the government in the past," House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) said Sunday on ABC's "This Week." "It would be no surprise if they do just that this time around."
Continue reading at Axios
Democratic governors diverge on how to handle Trump
Democratic governors are diverging in their approaches to President Trump amid mounting speculation that some of them are gunning for the White House in 2028.
Some are digging their heels into resistance efforts, as in Illinois, where Gov. JB Pritzker (D) this week trolled Trump’s plan to rename the Gulf of Mexico. Others are taking a softer approach, as in California, where Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) is working with Trump to help the Golden State recover from wildfires.
Pritzker and Newsom are among several Democratic governors — along with Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro, Maryland Gov. Wes Moore and others — who have generated early 2028 chatter. Their varied engagements with Trump underscore the complexities of navigating a Republican power trifecta in Washington, and the high stakes for Democrats as they look toward the next presidential election.
Continue reading at The Hill
Mullin says to ‘trust the process’ in Trump’s Russia-Ukraine peace talks
Sen. Markwayne Mullin (R-Okla.) says he thinks people need to “trust the process” in President Trump’s peace talks with Russian and Ukrainian leaders.
“Right now, people are dying every single day. We do know we have the best negotiator possible in the White House,” Mullin said Sunday on ABC News’s “This Week.” “I mean, literally, President Trump wrote ‘The Art of the Deal.’ He knows how to negotiate.”
“And I believe if we will trust the process, he will be able to negotiate a peace deal for both countries,” he added.
Continue reading at The Hill
Meanwhile…
Crenshaw says Europeans ‘should be threatening things to’ Putin that cause them discomfort
Rep. Dan Crenshaw (R-Texas) said Europeans “should be threatening things to” Russian President Vladimir Putin that cause them discomfort in an interview that aired Sunday.
“The Ukrainians clearly have a seat at the table, and then the United States will be the intermediary as we try to establish a peace deal. The Europeans need to demand a seat at the table by being uncomfortably aggressive, which is something they haven’t done,” Crenshaw told CBS News’s Margaret Brennan on “Face the Nation,” discussing the war in Ukraine.
“You should be threatening things to Putin that actually make you uncomfortable because that’s how — that’s the only language Putin speaks, is power,” the Texas Republican added.
Continue reading on The Hill
Trump administration asks Supreme Court to greenlight whistleblower office firing
The Justice Department is asking the Supreme Court to greenlight President Trump’s firing of the head of a federal whistleblower protection office, marking the new Trump administration’s first appeal to the high court.
Lower courts issued rulings temporarily reinstating Hampton Dellinger, whom former President Biden nominated to lead the Office of the Special Counsel (OSC), in his role after Trump fired him earlier this month.
“This case involves an unprecedented assault on the separation of powers that warrants immediate relief,” acting Solicitor General Sarah Harris wrote in the application to the high court, which was obtained by The Hill but has not yet been docketed.
Continue reading at The Hill
Trump administration wants the Supreme Court to let the firing of whistleblower agency head proceed
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Trump administration wants the Supreme Court to permit the firing of the head of the federal agency dedicated to protecting whistleblowers, according to documents obtained Sunday that would mark the first appeal to the justices since President Donald Trump took office.
The emergency appeal is the start of what probably will be a steady stream from lawyers for the Republican president and his administration seeking to undo lower court rulings that have slowed his second term agenda.
The Justice Department’s filing obtained by The Associated Press asks the conservative-majority court to lift a judge’s court order temporarily reinstating Hampton Dellinger as the leader of the Office of Special Counsel.
Dellinger has argued that the law says he can only be dismissed for problems with the performance of his job, none of which were cited in the email dismissing him.
Continue reading at the Associated Press
South Africans worry Trump’s aid freeze will cause HIV patients to default on treatment
“This is a matter of life and death.”
UMZIMKHULU, South Africa — At a rural village in South Africa’s KwaZulu-Natal province, unemployed 19-year-old Nozuko Majola is trying to figure out if she has enough money for the one-hour ride to collect her much-needed HIV medication, usually delivered to her home that can’t be easily reached due to rough, untarred roads.
Majola is one of millions of patients in South Africa affected by President Donald Trump’s global foreign aid freeze, raising worries about HIV patients defaulting on treatment, infection rates going up and eventually a rise in deaths.
In 2024, think tank Human Sciences Research Council released figures showing that Majola’s province recorded the second-highest HIV prevalence in the country, at 16%, with at least 1,300 young people estimated to contract the disease every week.
KwaZulu-Natal also had the highest number of people living with HIV in South Africa in 2022, about 1,980,000. The country counts more than 7.5 million people infected with the virus that causes AIDS — more than any other nation.
Continue reading at Politico
Mass firings continue across nation’s health agencies
The cuts have raised questions about the extent of the impact on public health.
The Trump administration carried out more mass firings across the Health and Human Services Department this weekend, continuing a chaotic purge of the federal workforce that career officials and lawmakers warned would hurt key programs and impair efforts to track threats to public health.
The cuts hit staffers at the Food and Drug Administration and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, several people with knowledge of the firings told POLITICO. The administration also terminated some staff at the office responsible for emergency preparedness and response.
The firings were part of a culling of roughly 3,600 probationary employees across the sprawling department that began earlier this week with terminations primarily at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and National Institutes of Health.
Trump officials on Friday cast the layoffs imposed by billionaire Elon Musk’s unofficial Department of Government Efficiency as methodical decisions meant to spare HHS’ core functions. Yet those inside the agencies disputed that portrayal over the weekend, describing deep cuts that at times seemed indiscriminate — with even some Trump political appointees unaware which of their employees were being fired or why.
Continue reading at Politico
He’s Spent Years Watching Silicon Valley Take Companies Apart. He Has a Warning for DC.
A tech insider speaks about Elon Musk’s playbook for DOGE.
Washington has been blown away by the speed with which Elon Musk and his team of engineers have swept across the executive branch — using the seemingly limited mandate of the new DOGE office to trigger mass layoffs, wipe out entire federal programs and strike fear into the employees of one of the world’s largest and most stable bureaucracies.
But what, really, does Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency want?
Washington insiders largely see it through the lens of policy, or ideology — it’s about “major reform,” or perhaps personal financial gain. Or dismantling the administrative state. It could be an attempt to concentrate power in the White House, or sweep away pesky investigations of Musk’s businesses.
To tech-world observers, that’s the wrong way to see what’s happening.
“It’s not a technical victory, but a cultural victory,” says Rohit Krishnan, a Bay Area-based engineer, economist and venture capitalist who has spent his life immersed in the business culture of Silicon Valley.
Continue reading at Politico Magazine
What changes to the CHIPS act could mean for AI growth and consumers
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Even as he’s vowed to push the United States ahead in artificial intelligence research, President Donald Trump’s threats to alter federal government contracts with chipmakers and slap new tariffs on the semiconductor industry may put new speed bumps in front of the tech industry.
Since taking office, Trump has said he would place tariffs on foreign production of computer chips and semiconductors in order to return chip manufacturing to the U.S. The president and Republican lawmakers have also threatened to end the CHIPS and Science Act, a sweeping Biden administration-era law that also sought to boost domestic production.
But economic experts have warned that Trump’s dual-pronged approach could slow, or potentially harm, the administration’s goal of ensuring that the U.S. maintains a competitive edge in artificial intelligence research.
Continue reading at the Associated Press
Israel’s Netanyahu signals he’s moving ahead with Trump’s idea to transfer Palestinians from Gaza
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday signaled that he was moving ahead with U.S. President Donald Trump’s proposal to transfer the Palestinian population out of Gaza, calling it “the only viable plan to enable a different future” for the region.
Netanyahu discussed the plan with U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who kicked off a Middle East visit by endorsing Israel’s war aims in Gaza, saying Hamas “must be eradicated.” That created further doubt around the shaky ceasefire as talks on its second phase are yet to begin.
Rubio, in his upcoming stops in Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, is likely to face more pushback from Arab leaders over Trump’s proposal, which includes redeveloping Gaza under U.S. ownership. Netanyahu has said all emigration from Gaza should be “voluntary,” but rights groups and other critics say that the plan amounts to coercion given the territory’s vast destruction.
Continue reading at the Associated Press
Trump administration cuts reach FDA employees in food safety, medical devices and tobacco products
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Trump administration’s effort to slash the size of the federal workforce reached the Food and Drug Administration this weekend, as recently hired employees who review the safety of food ingredients, medical devices and other products were fired.
Probationary employees across the FDA received notices Saturday evening that their jobs were being eliminated, according to three FDA staffers who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly.
The total number of positions eliminated was not clear Sunday, but the firings appeared to focus on employees in the agency’s centers for food, medical devices and tobacco products — which includes oversight of electronic cigarettes. It was not clear whether FDA employees who review drugs were exempted from the layoffs.
Continue reading at the Associated Press
Meta Says It’ll Tattle to Trump If EU Keeps Being Mean
Global Affairs lead Joel Kaplan suggested Meta is being discriminated against.
“Daaaaaaaaad, the Europeans are picking on me again!”
Alright, so that’s not a direct quote from Meta’s chief of global affairs Joel Kaplan, who spoke at the Munich Security Conference on Sunday, but it’s not far off.
According to Bloomberg, Kaplan popped over to Europe to let political leaders there know Meta “won’t shy away” from getting President Donald Trump involved if it continues to face crackdowns at the hands of the European Union. Kaplan reportedly told the audience that it’s up to the Trump administration to decide if EU penalties against American tech companies are unfair, but it won’t be afraid to squeal if needed.
“When companies are treated differently and in a way that is discriminatory against them, then that should be highlighted to that company’s home government,” Kaplan said during a panel at the conference, per Bloomberg. “While we want to work within the confines of the laws that Europe has passed, and we always will, we will point out when we think we’ve been treated unfairly.”
Continue reading at Gizmodo
Silicon Valley’s Macho Makeover Was a Warning, Not a Trend
A spate of tech-titan glow-ups has won plaudits from fashion pundits and trend-watchers, but everyone missed that they were dressing for the job they really wanted.
If the Silicon Valley of the 2000s and 2010s prided itself on an anti-fashion ethos—the hoodie, the New Balance trainer, the uniform of studied indifference to material possessions—then today’s tech billionaires have flipped the script.
These days, Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg is a jiujitsu-practicing, Richard Mille–wearing, powerlifting tycoon whose aesthetic suggests something between a Bond villain and a UFC champion. Elon Musk, the self-styled messiah of Mars and free-speech absolutism, oscillates between Belstaff leather flight jackets that scream “aging rock star managing his seventh divorce” and all-black Tom Ford suits that suggest “billionaire villain in a sci-fi movie who insists he’s the hero.”
Then there’s Amazon’s Jeff Bezos, once a dorky, fleece-vested book salesman, who has since undergone a biceps-first metamorphosis into a Vin Diesel–adjacent yacht lord. These days, he’s a fixture at Milan Fashion Week, turning up at Dolce & Gabbana shows in impeccably tailored trousers and a D&G leather bomber jacket. The New York Times has gone as far as to label him a style icon. It’s a stark contrast to 1999 when he revealed to WIRED his love for shirts with “hidden snaps” under the collar points for easy tie removal.
Continue reading at Wired
U.S.-Russia meeting on Ukraine war expected on Tuesday, sources say
The meeting between senior U.S. and Russia officials to discuss a possible agreement on ending the war in Ukraine and prepare for a Trump-Putin summit will take place on Tuesday in Saudi Arabia, two source with direct knowledge said.
Why it matters: The meeting will be another significant step in improving U.S.-Russia relations since the breakthrough that happened last week with the phone call between President Trump and his Russian leader Vladimir Putin.
The meeting created a lot of anxiety and frustration in the Ukrainian government, which is concerned about a U.S.-Russian deal behind Kyiv's back.
Driving the news: The U.S. delegation will include Secretary of State Marco Rubio, White House national security adviser Mike Waltz and Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff.
Continue reading at Axios
How Trump's dealmaker is shaping U.S. foreign policy
President Trump's Middle East envoy, Steve Witkoff, is the congenial dealmaker for the very brash dealmaker-in-chief.
Witkoff has an expanding portfolio that now includes Trump's biggest geopolitical challenge — negotiating a deal to end the war between Russia and Ukraine as part of a controversial reset of U.S. foreign policy.
Why it matters: Trump's cage-rattling agenda — which has shocked European allies — is a keystone of his second term. He'll rely heavily on Witkoff, a billionaire real estate investor and friend for 40 years, to make it happen.
Zoom in: Associates describe Witkoff, 67, as something of a velvet glove when it comes to negotiating — smooth and to the point.
Continue reading at Axios
Washington Post backs out of ‘Fire Elon Musk’ ad order
The Washington Post this week backed out of a “Fire Elon Musk” advertising order that was to run as a wrap on some of its Tuesday editions, according to the advocacy group Common Cause.
The group said it signed a $115,000 agreement with The Post to run the ad that would have covered the front and back page of the Tuesday paper as well as a full-page ad with the same theme inside the paper. It said it planned to purchase the ad in collaboration with the Southern Poverty Law Center Action Fund.
The ad’s design features a large picture of Musk with his head tilted back, laughing, along with a cutout image of the White House and large white text: “Who’s running this country: Donald Trump or Elon Musk?”
Continue reading at The Hill
Trump says Putin ‘wants to stop fighting’ in Ukraine
President Trump said Russian President Vladimir Putin “wants to stop fighting” and shot down a suggestion that Putin’s ambitions could extend beyond Ukraine’s borders.
“I think he wants to stop fighting. I see that. We spoke long and hard. [Middle East envoy] Steve Witkoff was with him for a very extended period, like about three hours. I think he wants to stop fighting,” Trump told reporters on Sunday when asked what he thinks Putin wants.
“They have a big, powerful machine. You understand that,” Trump continued. “And they defeated Hitler and they defeated Napoleon. You know, they’ve been fighting a long time. They’ve done it before … but I think he would like to stop fighting.”
Continue reading at The Hill
Musk’s DOGE seeks access to personal taxpayer data, raising alarm at IRS
Elon Musk’s U.S. DOGE Service is seeking access to a heavily-guarded Internal Revenue Service system that includes detailed financial information about every taxpayer, business and nonprofit in the country, according to two people familiar with the activities, sparking alarm within the tax agency.
Under pressure from the White House, the IRS is considering a memorandum of understanding that would give DOGE officials broad access to tax-agency systems, property and datasets. Among them is the Integrated Data Retrieval System, or IDRS, which enables tax agency employees to access IRS accounts — including personal identification numbers — and bank information. It also lets them enter and adjust transaction data and automatically generate notices, collection documents and other records.
Continue reading at the Washington Post
Legal reporter, Chris Geidner’s blog
UK PM says ready to send troops to Ukraine if needed as part of peace deal
UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer said Sunday he was "ready and willing" to put UK troops on the ground in Ukraine, as part of any postwar peacekeeping force, to ensure the security of Britain and Europe. Writing in the Daily Telegraph, the UK Prime Minister said it was "essential to deter Putin from further aggression in the future".
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said on Sunday he was ready to send British troops to Ukraine as part of any postwar peacekeeping force as talks aimed at ending the conflict were set to begin this week.
Starmer said he had not taken the decision to consider putting British servicemen and women "in harm's way" lightly, but securing a lasting peace in Ukraine was essential to deter Russian President Vladimir Putin from further aggression.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Sunday said Ukraine and Europe would be part of any "real negotiations" to end Moscow's war, signaling that US talks with Russia this week were a chance to see how serious Putin is about peace.
The end of Russia's war with Ukraine "when it comes, cannot merely become a temporary pause before Putin attacks again," Starmer wrote in the Daily Telegraph newspaper.
Continue reading at France 24
France 24 Live on YouTube
Trump names Jim Byron to senior archivist role
President Trump named Jim Byron, the president and CEO of the Richard Nixon Foundation, to a senior archivist role at the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA).
In a post Sunday on Truth Social, Trump said he was pleased to announce Byron would be serving as “Senior Advisor to our Acting Archivist, United States Secretary of State Marco Rubio, at the National Archives and Records Administration.”
“Jim will manage the National Archives on a day-to-day basis, while we continue our search for a full-time Archivist,” Trump posted. “Jim has worked with the National Archives for many years, and understands the great responsibility and duty we have to preserve the History of our Great Country.”
Continue reading at The Hill
Some in Hurricane Helene-ravaged North Carolina embrace Trump’s push to abolish FEMA
SWANNANOA, N.C. (AP) — Emily Russell remembers feeling hopeful after she managed to get an appointment with the Federal Emergency Management Agency not long after Hurricane Helene ripped though her home in Swannanoa, North Carolina.
But after several assistance requests were denied or left pending, Russell says the agency has been of “no help” to her family after the late September storm. Still reeling in a world turned upside-down by the most damaging storm in state history, she finds herself open to President Donald Trump’s suggestion about “getting rid of” FEMA.
That is a common sentiment in the mountains of western North Carolina, where living in a trailer with limited supplies for months can try anyone’s patience. Russell, who like many others did not have flood insurance, endured those stresses as she prepared for the birth of her son, but then volunteers stepped up to rebuild her home. Back there now, she can cradle her tiny infant in her arms on her newly constructed front porch — overlooking a heaping pile of rotting debris and two Trump-Vance signs posted to a pole in her yard.
Continue reading at the Associated Press
Ukraine’s President Zelenskyy travels to United Arab Emirates as momentum grows for war peace talks
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy traveled to the United Arab Emirates late Sunday as momentum grows for potential peace talks ending Moscow’s war on the country.
U.S. President Donald Trump last week suggested he would be meeting Russian President Vladimir Putin in Saudi Arabia. The UAE, home to Abu Dhabi and Dubai, long has been floated as a possible site for peace talks as well given the large population of Russian and Ukrainian expatriates who have flooded the country since the war began, and due to the Emirates’ work on prisoner exchanges in the past.
Zelenskyy arrived in Abu Dhabi after attending the Munich Security Conference in Germany. Footage released by his office showed him and his wife, Olena Zelenska, being greeted by an Emirati official and honor guard at the airport late Sunday night.
“Our top priority is bringing even more of our people home from captivity,” Zelenskyy’s office said in messages online. “We will also focus on investments and economic partnership, as well as a large-scale humanitarian program.”
Continue reading at the Associated Press
Trump administration tries to bring back fired nuclear weapons workers in DOGE reversal (updated)
The Trump administration has halted the firings of hundreds of federal employees who were tasked with working on the nation’s nuclear weapons programs, in an about-face that has left workers confused and experts cautioning that DOGE’s blind cost cutting will put communities at risk.
Three U.S. officials who spoke to The Associated Press said up to 350 employees at the National Nuclear Security Administration were abruptly laid off late Thursday, with some losing access to email before they’d learned they were fired, only to try to enter their offices on Friday morning to find they were locked out. The officials spoke on the condition of anonymity for fear of retaliation.
One of the hardest hit offices was the Pantex Plant near Amarillo, Texas, which saw about 30% of the cuts. Those employees work on reassembling warheads, one of the most sensitive jobs across the nuclear weapons enterprise, with the highest levels of clearance.
Continue reading at the Associated Press
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Musical Interlude
Roy Buchanan was a tragic musical figure from my hometown. As supremely talented as he was, he never gained the status his giftedness should have afforded him. This is one of the best quality video available of him.