Top Items:


Exclusive: Musk aides lock government workers out of computer systems at US agency, sources say — 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 …
Discussion:
Raw Story, NBC News and Rolling Stone


Senior U.S. official to exit after rift with Musk allies over payment system — A top Treasury career staffer is expected to depart. Surrogates of Musk's DOGE effort had sought access to sensitive payment systems. — The highest-ranking career official at the Treasury Department …
Discussion:
Salon, TechCrunch, The Hill, Digby's Hullabaloo, Slate, Daily Kos, Ars Technica, Raw Story, emptywheel, Rolling Stone and MeidasTouch News
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Elon Musk Is Trying to Get Control of Key Payment System—at Any Cost — A top-ranking official in the U.S. Department of the Treasury is resigning after a fight with Elon Musk over a sensitive payment system. — The Washington Post reports that David Lebryk, who has worked in the department …
Discussion:
Bloomberg, The Mahablog and alicublog


FBI agents who worked on January 6 and Trump investigations are expected to be fired Friday — The Trump administration is set to expand a purge of career law enforcement officials, with dozens of FBI agents who worked on January 6, 2021, US Capitol attack and Trump-related investigations …
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FBI considering mass purge of agents involved in Trump investigations — Leaders appointed by the Trump administration are identifying potentially hundreds of FBI agents for possible termination, said people familiar with the plan. — President Donald Trump's administration has launched …

Trump Administration Plans to Scrutinize F.B.I. Agents for Possible Purge — The move to enact the plan comes just one day after Kash Patel, President Trump's pick to lead the F.B.I., testified before Congress that the bureau would not be targeted for political reasons.
Discussion:
ABC News, American Greatness, The Daily Wire and The Hill


Federal employees told to remove pronouns from email signatures by end of day — The mandate is the latest effort in the Trump administration's push to end DEI. — President Donald Trump signs executive orders in the Oval Office at the White House in Washington, Jan. 30, 2025.
Discussion:
The Hill, Washington Examiner, New York Post, Associated Press, Breitbart, Daily Mail, UPI, Must Read Alaska, The Guardian, FedSmith.com, E&E News, Daily Caller News Foundation, Blaze Media, Townhall, The Gateway Pundit, Boston Herald, Baltimore Sun, RedState, Twitchy, Whiskey Riff, The Post Millennial and New Republic
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Official Email Urges Federal Workers to Find More Productive Jobs
Discussion:
Business Insider, Raw Story, The Independent, New York Post and Reuters

Clues From D.C. Plane Crash Suggest Multiple Failures in Aviation Safety
Discussion:
Washington Post, Telegraph, Fox News, Associated Press, Reuters, Global News, Reason, Orlando Sentinel, New York Magazine, Axios, Raw Story, Politico, CNN, New York Post, Baltimore Sun, Daily Caller News Foundation, Breitbart, PBS NewsHour, WUSA, The Post Millennial, Washington Examiner, Daily Mail, DNyuz, TMZ.com, Fox Business, Chicago Boyz, ABC7, Townhall, WAGA-TV, NPR, Ace of Spades HQ, NewsNation, The Guardian, Semafor, Whiskey Riff and New Republic


Exclusive: Trump set to impose tariffs on Mexico, Canada starting on March 1, sources say — U.S. President Donald Trump is expected to announce new tariffs against Canada and Mexico that will begin on March 1, but will include a process for the countries to seek specific exemptions for certain imports …
Discussion:
Axios, Townhall, Deseret News, New York Times, Politico, The Gateway Pundit and Raw Story
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The Treasury official who oversees payments resigns suddenly.
Discussion:
Lawyers, Guns & Money, Paul Krugman and Raw Story

White House says Trump tariffs on Canada, Mexico and China will come Saturday. No word on exemptions
Discussion:
Bloomberg, Reuters, Arizona Republic, NPR, NOTUS, Washington Examiner, CBS News, The National Pulse, The Daily Wire, New York Times, FOX 32 Chicago, The Guardian, ABC News, WAGA-TV, The Independent, The Daily Caller, Fox Business, USA Today, One America News Network, Mediaite, BBC, The Register, Associated Press, New York Post, Boston Herald, IJR, Global News, 19FortyFive, Forbes, Quartz, The Verge, Scripps News, DNyuz, Canadian Press, Business Insider, WTOP News, Must Read Alaska, Sun-Sentinel, Al Jazeera, Semafor, The Hill, RedState, The Post Millennial and Daily Mail


CDC site scrubs HIV content following Trump DEI policies — The federal health agency began removing all content related to gender identity on Friday. — The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Friday is scrubbing a swath of HIV-related content from the agency's website as a part …
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Trump administration purges websites across federal health agencies — At the direction of the Trump administration, the federal Department of Health and Human Services and its agencies are purging its websites of information and data on a broad array of topics — from adolescent health to LGBTQ+ rights to HIV.

CDC removal of databases on sexual orientation, gender identity sparks alarm
Discussion:
The Atlantic and New York Times


New York doctor indicted for prescribing abortion pill in Louisiana — A New York doctor was indicted by a Louisiana grand jury on Friday for allegedly prescribing an abortion pill online in the Deep South state, which has one of the strictest near-total abortion bans in the country.
Discussion:
WAFB-TV, Washington Examiner, Gothamist, The 19th and WTOP News


Decision to dump water from Tulare County lakes altered after sending locals into a mad scramble — Water managers were relieved Thursday evening after the Army Corps of Engineers agreed to back off of a sudden decision earlier in the day to dump massive amounts of water from Kaweah and Success lakes.
Discussion:
Los Angeles Times


Trump administration seeking access to database of immigrant minors — The Office of Refugee Resettlement, which is responsible for caring for unaccompanied minors, has long operated independently of ICE. — The Trump administration is seeking to grant U.S. immigration officers access …


CBS staff alarmed by reports of settlement talks with Trump over ‘60 Minutes’ Harris interview — Journalists, including some at CBS News, are expressing alarm at reports that CBS parent company Paramount Global is trying to settle a legally dubious lawsuit lodged by President Donald Trump last fall.
Discussion:
New York Times, Business Insider, HotAir, The Post Millennial, Status, Reason, Townhall, The Gateway Pundit, One America News Network, Ace of Spades HQ, Livemint, Adweek, The Independent, Fox News, Digby's Hullabaloo, The Daily Wire, Deadline, Daily Kos, Raw Story and Althouse, more at Mediagazer »
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Career prosecutors withdraw from federal criminal investigation of GOP Congressman Andy Ogles — Local prosecutors are not commenting, but move may signal plans to drop investigation of one of President Trump's Republican allies — NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — Federal prosecutors based …
Discussion:
Raw Story


Former ‘Meet the Press’ moderator Chuck Todd exits NBC News after nearly two decades — Former “Meet the Press” moderator Chuck Todd is leaving NBC News after nearly 18 years at the network. — Todd said in a memo to NBC News colleagues that Friday was his last day.
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Tennessee GOP passes immigration law to criminalize elected officials' votes — Tennessee Republicans finalized an immigration bill Thursday establishing a new enforcement office exempt from public records law and criminalizing local officials who support sanctuary policies for immigrants.
Discussion:
The Daily Wire, Tennessee Lookout and New York Times
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EPA workers receive emails warning their employment could be terminated — More than 1,100 employees at the Environmental Protection Agency received notice this week that they were deemed to be on probationary status and warning they could be fired immediately, according to an email obtained by CNN.
Discussion:
Townhall, Just Security and GovExec.com


Trump Admin Emails Air Traffic Controllers: Quit Your Jobs — REALLY?! — Federal employees were told they could use their paid time off to explore “dream destinations” before quitting.


“People Will Die”: The Trump Administration Said It Lifted Its Ban on Lifesaving Humanitarian Aid. That's Not True. — Organizations that provide vital care for desperate and vulnerable people around the world have been forced to halt operations, turn away patients and lay off staff.
Discussion:
New York Times, Atlantic Council, CNN, The Guardian, Axios, Washington Post and Semafor


Groyperfication — I'm working on something long-ish on the “vibe shift” discourse that I'm hoping will come in lieu of the Sunday Reading, Watching supplement. But I just wanted to quickly remark again on what I think is an underreported key to understanding contemporary politics …


SCOOP: Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Admits Settlement for “Misconduct” Accusation — 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. — After the Senate Finance Committee …
Discussion:
Mediaite and New Republic


We've Now Learned the Three Principles of Trumpism, and They're Ugly … We're nearing the end of week two of Trump 2.0, and several things are already manifestly clear. First and foremost, that the new Trump administration was more than ready to hit the ground running at noon on January 20.


USDA ordered to scrub climate change from websites — The directive could affect information across dozens of programs including climate-smart agriculture initiatives. — Agriculture Department employees have been ordered to delete landing pages discussing climate change across agency websites …
Discussion:
Washington Examiner, The Guardian and Twitchy


Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker blocks Jan. 6 rioters from state jobs after Trump pardons — In a written directive, the Democratic Illinois governor tells his hiring office that “no one who attempts to overthrow a government should serve in government.” — Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker is blocking …
Discussion:
Chicago Sun Times, Washington Examiner, Chicago Tribune, CBS News, The Gateway Pundit, Raw Story and New Republic


Trump Spending Freeze Temporarily Blocked by Federal Judge — A judge temporarily blocked the Trump administration from freezing an array of federal grants and loans, undercutting a White House effort to halt the flow of funds already approved by Congress. — The temporary restraining order …
Discussion:
Wall Street Journal and CBS News


The D.C. Air Disaster Is a Flashing Warning Sign About DOGE — From the moment he returned to the White House, Donald Trump launched a full-scale assault on the federal workforce. The president has fired or demoted an unprecedented number of senior officials and civil servants.
Discussion:
The Verge


Trump administration directs 70% cut to internal OPM staffing, programs — Trump administration officials are taking major steps to cut down the size of the workforce and federal programs at the Office of Personnel Management. — During an internal meeting Friday morning …
Discussion:
Talking Points Memo and Wall Street Journal


How Trump Could Snatch a Third Term — Despite the 22nd Amendment — Four ways Trump could stay in power beyond 2028. — Less than two weeks have passed since the last presidential inauguration, but try to imagine the next one. — It's Jan. 20, 2029. The nation has weathered another tumultuous four years under Donald Trump.
Discussion:
Raw Story


150,000 Koreans in U.S. subject to Trump's deportation order: Report — Some 150,000 Koreans living in the United States are reportedly subject to deportations ordered by U.S. President Donald Trump, according to a local news report. — Of around 14 million migrants who were ordered …
Discussion:
Raw Story