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9:55 PM ET, February 4, 2025

memeorandum

 Top Items: 
Josh Marshall / Talking Points Memo:
Musk Cronies Dive Into Treasury Dept Payments Code Base  —  Overnight, Wired reported that, contrary to published reports that DOGE operatives at the Treasury Department are limited to “read only” access to department payment systems, this is not true.  A 25-year-old DOGE operative named Marko Elez …
RELATED:
Dell Cameron / Wired:
Federal Workers Sue to Disconnect DOGE Server  —  Two federal workers, citing reports that Elon Musk's associates are operating an illegally connected email server at OPM, seek a restraining order.  —  Federal employees are seeking a temporary restraining order as part of a class action lawsuit accusing …
Discussion: Raw Story and FedScoop
Wired:
A 25-Year-Old With Elon Musk Ties Has Direct Access to the Federal Payment System
Michael Stratford / Politico:
Treasury defends DOGE's ‘read-only access’ to payments system
Rachael Bade / Politico:
Democrats Are Falling For Trump and Musk's Foreign Aid Trap  —  Three veteran strategists want their party to be more thoughtful about fighting Trump's anti-bureaucracy campaign.  —  After three months of soul-searching about how to revive their party, some Democrats this week believe …
Discussion: Raw Story, Bloomberg and The Bulwark
RELATED:
Andrew Solender / Axios:
Congressional Democrats denied entry to Treasury Department
Discussion: Roll Call and Public Citizen
Stephen Neukam / Axios:
Scoop: Senate Dems plot USAID revenge on Trump
Hailey Fuchs / Politico:   Grassley eyes next week to move FBI director pick
CNN:
FBI turns over names of 5,000 employees who worked on January 6 cases to Trump Justice Department, as agents sue  —  FBI officials have complied with demands to provide the Justice Department with a list of thousands of employees who worked on investigations related to the January 6, 2021 …
RELATED:
Adam Goldman / New York Times:
‘Accidental’ F.B.I. Chief Builds a Following as Agency's Defender
Discussion: Default and The Daily Beast
Politico:
FBI agents sue to block DOJ from compiling list of officials who worked on Jan. 6 or Trump cases
Will Weissert / Associated Press:
Live updates: Trump wants US to take ownership of Gaza Strip  —  President Donald Trump says he wants the U.S. to take ownership of the Gaza Strip and redevelop it after Palestinians are resettled elsewhere.  He made the remarks in a joint press conference with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
RELATED:
Washington Post:
Trump proposes U.S. control of Gaza, permanent displacement of residents  —  The idea, a first indicator of Trump's approach to the conflict, was sure to inflame the region given the history of Palestinians' displacement from their territory.
Discussion: HotAir, The Guardian, Raw Story and Grabien
Associated Press:
Trump suggests displaced Palestinians in Gaza be ‘permanently’ resettled outside war-torn territory  —  President Donald Trump said Tuesday he isn't ruling out deploying U.S. troops to support reconstruction of Gaza and he envisions “long-term” U.S. ownership of a redevelopment of the territory.
Michael Waldman / Brennan Center for Justice:
Breaking the Law  —  Just weeks in, the Trump administration has violated rules, laws, and the Constitution.  —  “In America,” Thomas Paine wrote at the founding, “the law is king.”  Amid today's governing and constitutional crisis, we are finding out whether that is still true.
RELATED:
Elizabeth Popp Berman / Liberal Currents:   Personal Discretion Over the Treasury's Payments System Means the End of Democracy
Washington Post:
U.S. government officials privately warn Musk's blitz appears illegal  —  The billionaire's DOGE team has launched an all-out assault on federal agencies, triggering numerous legal objections.  —  The chaotic blitz by Elon Musk's Department of Government Efficiency has triggered legal …
Marc Caputo / Axios:
About 20,000 federal workers took “buyout” so far, official says  —  About 20,000 federal workers have accepted the “buyout” offer put forward by the Trump administration last week, a senior administration official tells Axios. … - The offer is open through Thursday, meaning the total could rise …
RELATED:
Corbin Hiar / Politico:
Science funding agency threatened with mass layoffs
Discussion: Federal News Network
ABC News:
State Department moving to evacuate USAID staff worldwide: Sources  —  The State Department has begun working to assist in evacuating all USAID staff who are on foreign assignments worldwide, sources familiar with the effort told ABC News.  —  The Department is aiming to recall all USAID employees …
Associated Press:
Trump and Musk demand termination of federal office leases through General Services Administration  —  One of the next moves in President Donald Trump and Elon Musk's sweeping effort to fire government employees and curtail operations is using the agency that manages thousands …
NBC News:
White House preparing executive order to abolish the Department of Education  —  The planned order follows years of campaign promises from President Donald Trump to abolish the federal Education Department.  —  The White House is preparing an executive order to eliminate the Department of Education …
Wall Street Journal:
The CIA Is About to Get a Trump Makeover  —  Spy agency's workforce receives buyout-style offer  —  WASHINGTON—The Central Intelligence Agency offered buyouts to its entire workforce Tuesday, in what officials said is a bid to bring the agency in line with President Trump's priorities, including targeting drug cartels.
Discussion: New York Post and Grabien
Olivia Reingold / The Free Press:
EXCLUSIVE: Daniel Penny Gets Hired by Andreessen Horowitz  —  “Daniel acted with courage in a tough situation,” said partner David Ulevitch in a statement explaining the hire.  —  In less than two months, Daniel Penny has gone from facing a potential 20 years in prison to landing a role …
Cathy Gellis / Techdirt:
When It's Not Just A Coup But A CFAA Violation Too  —  The hazard with landing upon a legal solution that seems too good to be true is that it often is.  So as you read this post it is important to keep in mind that I may have overlooked something, and there can always be defenses.
Melissa Quinn / CBS News:
Pam Bondi confirmed as attorney general in 54-46 vote  —  Washington — The Senate on Tuesday confirmed Pam Bondi as attorney general, installing a key ally of President Trump's to take the helm of the Justice Department.  —  Bondi's nomination for attorney general was approved …
RELATED:
New York Times:
Trump Administration Live Updates: Committee Votes to Advance Tulsi Gabbard's Bid for Intelligence Post  —  Where Things Stand  — Nominees: The Senate Intelligence Committee voted on Tuesday to advance to nomination of one of President Trump's most contentious nominees, Tulsi Gabbard, as his director of national intelligence.
RELATED:
Washington Post:
RFK Jr. closes in on HHS Cabinet post after Senate panel vote
Kyle Cheney / Politico:
Judge blocks Trump's executive order on transgender prisoners  —  The judge blocked the government from enforcing the aspect of that order that could require transgender women to be transferred to men's prisons.  —  A federal judge has blocked the Trump administration from moving transgender women prisoners …
RELATED:
Wall Street Journal:
Trump Order Set to Ban Transgender Girls and Women From Female School Sports
Discussion: The Handbasket
Ross O'Keefe / Washington Examiner:
Biden signs with Hollywood agency  —  Former President Joe Biden is signing with a Hollywood agency in one of the first major indicators of what the 82-year-old will do after his presidency.  —  Biden previously signed with the Creative Artists Agency from 2017 to 2020 after leaving office as vice president.
Jason Koebler / 404 Media:
‘Things Are Going to Get Intense:’ How a Musk Ally Plans to Push AI on the Government  —  Thomas Shedd, a Musk-associate and now head of the General Services Administration's Technology Transformation Services (TTS), told government tech workers in a meeting this week that the administration plans …
Discussion: Politico, Raw Story and Wired
Greg Allen / NPR:
‘Beyond betrayal.’ Venezuelans in Florida are angry at Trump immigration policy  —  MIAMI — Venezuelan migrants in South Florida say they feel betrayed by a Trump administration decision to end legal protections for hundreds of thousands of people who fled dictatorships and sought refuge in the U.S.
Michael Silver / New York Times:
NFL to remove ‘End Racism’ messaging in end zone ahead of Super Bowl: Sources  —  NEW ORLEANS — At his annual news conference Monday, NFL commissioner Roger Goodell expressed strong support for the league's policies designed to promote diversity at the club-employment level and indicated that those endeavors will continue.
Wall Street Journal:
How Trump Gutted America's $40 Billion Aid Agency in Two Weeks  —  Dismantling of USAID appears to be a test case for new administration  —  WASHINGTON—The cuts came so fast that one dismissed employee had to be rehired to process other employees' time sheets.
Alan Feuer / New York Times:
Proud Boys Lose Control of Their Name to a Black Church They Vandalized  —  A judge awarded the trademarked name and symbols to a Washington church to help satisfy a $2.8 million judgment against the far-right group.  —  The Proud Boys no longer have control over their own name.
Daniel Gonzalez / Arizona Republic:
Family member condemns use of armored vehicle, stun grenades in Phoenix ICE arrest  —  A family member is speaking out against an ICE operation in northwest Phoenix on Sunday, calling it an unnecessary use of force that involved an armored vehicle, flash bang grenades and several dozen ICE agents …
Discussion: Daily Mail
Sahil Kapur / NBC News:
Negotiations stall ahead of shutdown deadline as Democrats slam Trump for subverting spending laws  —  Democrats are eying the March 14 deadline to push back on Trump's recent unilateral actions, saying he needs to follow the law on government funding.  —  WASHINGTON — Government funding negotiations …
Discussion: New York Times
 
 
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 More Items: 
Oriana Pawlyk / Politico:
Stop attending panels meant to improve air travel, FAA tells employees
Discussion: Raw Story
The Tico Times:
El Salvador Abandons Bitcoin as Legal Tender After Failed Experiment
The Bulwark:
Anne Applebaum: Outside the Rule of Law
Mike Brock / Techdirt:
To Stop The Coup, We Must Be Clear About The Truth: Two Plus Two Equals Four
Associated Press:
Trump will attend the Super Bowl in New Orleans. He'll be the first sitting president to go
 Earlier Items: 
Associated Press:
About 10 killed at adult education center in what officials say is Sweden's worst mass shooting
Steve Benen / MSNBC:
Trump makes a provocative choice for the National Counterterrorism Center
Ajit Niranjan / The Guardian:
Temperatures at north pole 20C above average and beyond ice melting point
Rolling Stone:
Inside Trump and Musk's Clumsy, ‘Exhausting’ Hunt for Leakers
Discussion: Raw Story and The Independent
 

 
From Mediagazer:

The Times:
An investigation into the unsolved 1977 murder of The Sunday Times foreign correspondent David Holden in Egypt suggests he doubled as a KGB spy and had CIA ties

Jackson Healy / Courthouse News Service:
Former Activision Blizzard CEO Bobby Kotick sues G/O Media over March 2024 articles in Gizmodo and Kotaku accusing him of workplace harassment, discrimination

Christopher Mims / Wall Street Journal:
Directors Anthony and Joe Russo say they're building a high-tech studio aiming to help artists use AI as a creative tool to make films, shows, and video games

 
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