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9:10 PM ET, February 25, 2025

memeorandum

 Top Items: 
New York Times:
DOGE Quietly Deletes the 5 Biggest Spending Cuts It Celebrated Last Week  —  The cuts, highlighted on an earlier version of the “wall of receipts” posted by Elon Musk's team, contained mistakes that vastly inflated the amount of money saved.  —  Last week, Elon Musk's government cost-slashing initiative …
Discussion: Raw Story, CBS News, New Republic and Forbes
RELATED:
Ryan J. Foley / Associated Press:
Nearly 40% of contracts canceled by Musk's DOGE are expected to produce no savings  —  Nearly 40% of the federal contracts that President Donald Trump's administration claims to have canceled as part of its signature cost-cutting program aren't expected to save the government any money, the administration's own data shows.
Politico:   The Musk Oval meeting you haven't read about
Associated Press:
Federal technology staffers resign rather than help Musk and DOGE  —  More than 20 civil service employees resigned Tuesday from billionaire Trump adviser Elon Musk's Department of Government Efficiency, saying they were refusing to use their technical expertise to “dismantle critical public services.”
RELATED:
The Hill:
House GOP, after pulling budget resolution, brings it back for a vote  —  House GOP leaders brought their budget resolution to the floor for the vote, just minutes after pulling it at the last minute Tuesday evening as they struggled to win over a handful of conservative fiscal hawks …
RELATED:
Andrew Solender / Axios:
House Republicans press ahead with budget vote amid revolt
NBC News:
Conservatives threaten to tank House budget vote needed to advance Trump agenda
Mychael Schnell / The Hill:
House GOP advances budget resolution as conservative opponents hold firm
Matt Shuham / HuffPost:
Republicans Are Already Sending Fundraising Pitches About Trump's ‘Third Term’
Discussion: The Texas Tribune
Eli Stokols / Politico:
White House seizes control of press pool, will decide which outlets cover events with president  —  The move reverses the long established precedent of journalists determining who participates in the press pool.  —  The White House announced on Tuesday that the administration …
RELATED:
Michael M. Grynbaum / New York Times:
White House Moves to Pick the Pool Reporters Who Cover Trump  —  In announcing plans to handpick the reporters who can ask the president questions, the White House is breaking decades of precedent.  —  The White House press secretary, Karoline Leavitt, said on Tuesday that the Trump administration …
Dominick Mastrangelo / The Hill:
White House to take over press pool amid ‘Gulf of America’ fight with AP
RELATED:
New York Times:
Trump Takes Aim at Law Firm Aiding Jack Smith  —  The move, signed by President Trump on Thursday, is a major escalation of his promise to pursue perceived foes.  —  President Trump plans to punish a prominent Washington law firm that has aided the former special counsel Jack Smith …
Financial Times:
Ukraine agrees minerals deal with US  —  Kyiv hopes agreement on jointly exploring resources will improve relations with Trump administration  —  Kyiv has agreed terms with Washington on a minerals deal that Ukrainian officials hope will improve relations with the Trump administration …
RELATED:
Barak Ravid / Axios:
Ukraine and U.S. agree to minerals deal: sources … - President Trump has said the agreement will yield billions of dollars in revenue for the U.S. and help to recoup costs related to U.S. support of Ukraine in the war.  — One source said Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky managed …
Bloomberg:
Ukraine to Agree With US on Terms for Minerals Deal
Makena Kelly / Wired:
DOGE Is Working on Software That Automates the Firing of Government Workers  —  Operatives working for Elon Musk's DOGE appear to be editing the code of AutoRIF—software designed by the Defense Department that could assist in mass firings of federal workers, sources tell WIRED.
Discussion: Raw Story, New Republic and CBS News
RELATED:
Eileen Sullivan / New York Times:
The Next Phase of Trump's Large-Scale Work Force Cuts Is Underway
Discussion: Federal News Network
Politico:
Trump allies circulate mass deportation plan calling for ‘processing camps’ and a private citizen ‘army’  —  The group, led by Blackwater veteran Erik Prince, has close Trump ties.  —  A group of prominent military contractors, including former Blackwater CEO Erik Prince …
RELATED:
Bloomberg:
Trump to Offer ‘Gold Card’ Visas for $5 Million to the Rich  — Initiative would replace the existing EB-5 visa program  — Trump, Lutnick tout move as draw for wealthy investors  —  President Donald Trump said he is starting a program to offer residency and a path to citizenship …
RELATED:
Ali Bianco / Politico:
Trump floats ‘gold card’ to grant US residency to wealthy foreigners
Josh Kovensky / Talking Points Memo:
DOJ Hires A State Judge Who Was Once Suspended To Advise The Deputy AG  —  Ex-Oregon Judge Vance Day was suspended by a state judicial ethics commission in 2018.  —  A new top Justice Department appointee brings a bizarre past to the job: he was a state judge in Oregon but was, in 2018 …
Demetri Sevastopulo / Financial Times:
White House official pushes to axe Canada from Five Eyes intelligence group  —  Peter Navarro wants to increase pressure on country that Donald Trump has threatened to annex  —  A top White House official has proposed expelling Canada from the Five Eyes intelligence-sharing network …
Kenneal Patterson / The Daily Beast:
French Resistance Steps in After AP Banned From Trump-Macron Presser  —  MERCI  —  The Paris Press Corps today ensured that an AP reporter could enter and ask a question.
Discussion: The Daily Wire
Josh Marshall / Talking Points Memo:
Big, Big Scandal Brewing at DC US Attys Office … There's a big, big scandal brewing beneath the already big scandal of the alleged assault by Florida congressman Corey Mills (R).  But as yet no one seems inclined to pull on the dangling thread.  As you've probably already seen …
Discussion: HuffPost and The Status Kuo
Devan Cole / CNN:
For Trump, 3 court losses in 90 minutes  —  Three different federal judges delivered legal setbacks and slap downs to President Donald Trump in the span of an hour and a half on Tuesday in a series of cases challenging controversial moves taken during the early days of his second term.
CBS News:
This is who the White House says is the DOGE acting administrator  —  A White House official says Amy Gleason is the acting administrator of the Department of Government Efficiency, after the White House struggled to answer who is technically at the top of the organizational chart.
Vivian Ho / Washington Post:
‘Unknown disease’ that can kill within days leaves 53 dead in Congo  —  World Health Organization officials said the outbreak appeared to originate from a village where three children died after reportedly eating a bat carcass.  —  An unknown illness has killed 53 people in a northwest region …
New York Times:
Apple's Dictation System Transcribes the Word ‘Racist’ as ‘Trump’  —  The company said it was working to fix the problem after iPhone users began reporting the issue.  —  While using Apple's automatic dictation feature to send messages on Tuesday, some iPhone users reported seeing a peculiar bug …
RELATED:
Michelle Hackman / Wall Street Journal:
Trump Proposes Fines, Prison Time for Migrants Who Don't Join Registry  —  Administration plans to establish registration website as soon as this week  —  WASHINGTON—The Trump administration plans to create a registry for immigrants in the U.S. illegally to submit their personal information …
James Carville / New York Times:
It's Time for a Daring Political Maneuver, Democrats  —  The Republican Party is all too often effective at campaigning and winning elections, but there's another fact about it that a lot of Americans forget: The Republican Party flat out sucks at governing.  Even Tucker Carlson agrees with this.
Parker Molloy / The Present Age:
“That Feels Indefensible”: MSNBC's New Direction Leads Rachel Maddow to Speak Out  —  As Joy Reid and Alex Wagner lose their shows, Rachel Maddow uses her platform to challenge management's decisions.  —  MSNBC's major programming overhaul has sparked a rare public rebuke from the network's biggest star …
Punchbowl News:
Thousands of veterans likely fired under DOGE  —  Democrats on the House Appropriations Committee estimate that nearly 6,000 veterans may have already been fired from their federal jobs as part of the DOGE initiative run by mega-billionaire Elon Musk, with a lot more veteran layoffs possible.
Joseph Gedeon / The Guardian:
US threatens permanent visa bans on trans athletes based on sex markers  —  Exclusive: State department memo directs officers to bar those deemed to misrepresent birth sex on applications  —  The US state department has ordered officials worldwide to deny visas to transgender athletes attempting …
Martin Wolf / Financial Times:
The US is now the enemy of the west  —  Washington has decided to abandon both Ukraine and its postwar role in the world  —  “Freedom and independence are today in jeopardy the world over.  If the forces of conquest are not successfully resisted and defeated there will be no freedom …
Discussion: Politico
Zach Everson / Forbes:
Trump Media Paid Donald Trump Jr. Nearly A Quarter Of Its Annual Revenue.  He Attended Just Two Board Meetings  —  Donald Trump Jr. made $813,000 in 2024 as a director of Trump Media & Technology Group—roughly a quarter of the company's annual revenue—despite attending …
Chris Isidore / CNN:
Musk's Starlink gets FAA contract, raising new conflict of interest concerns  —  New York CNN —  The Federal Aviation Administration has agreed to use SpaceX's Starlink internet system to upgrade the information technology networks it uses to manage US airspace, raising new concerns …
Greg Sargent / New Republic:
Musk Scandal at USAID Takes Ugly Turn, Putting Starving Kids at Risk  —  Ever since Donald Trump and Elon Musk began downsizing the U.S. Agency for International Development, the administration has claimed that aid for lifesaving humanitarian assistance would continue.
Washington Post:
DOGE's grab of personal data stokes privacy and security fears  —  Associates of Elon Musk have sought unfettered access to information that is typically guarded very closely.  —  Deputies of Elon Musk have sought access to massive amounts of information across the federal government …
 
 
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 More Items: 
Amanda Friedman / Politico:
Lawmakers pressure Bondi to release Epstein ‘client list’
Discussion: Fox News and The Gateway Pundit
YouTube:
Senate Banking Democrats Investigate Trump-Musk Attack on American Consumers
Discussion: CNN and Daily Kos
Politico:
First Senate Dem announces she will support Trump's Labor secretary nominee
Jessica Valenti / Abortion, Every Day:
Montana Bill Would Charge Women for ‘Trafficking’ Their Own Fetus
Discussion: MeidasTouch News and New Republic
Lisa Friedman / New York Times:
Hundreds in Park Service Have Opted to Quit, Agency Memo Says
 Earlier Items: 
Gene Johnson / Associated Press:
A federal judge in Seattle blocks Trump's effort to halt the refugee admissions system
Isabella Simonetti / Wall Street Journal:
He Left CNN to Start a Newsletter. It's Now a Must-Read.
William Kristol / The Bulwark:
DOGE's Latest Cut: Glenn Youngkin's Balls
 

 
From Mediagazer:

Nicole Sperling / New York Times:
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences says Conan O'Brien will reprise his Oscar hosting duties in 2026, one of the earliest renewals for an Oscar host

Kurt Schlosser / GeekWire:
Trump praises Jeff Bezos for changes at WaPo, says he doesn't think media's treatment of him has changed so far, but he sees a shift among tech giants

Steven J. Horowitz / Variety:
UMG files a motion to dismiss Drake's lawsuit, says he's suing because he “lost a rap battle” with Kendrick Lamar and took legal action to “salve his wounds”
 
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