2 h. ago ‘It’s bedlam’: Musk renews federal agencies showdown with ominous new firing ultimatum

The DOGE boss jumps past his midnight deadline to fight another day

Politics

3 h. ago Bedlam! Musk triggers new showdown with federal agencies with ominous new firing ultimatum

The DOGE boss jumps past his midnight deadline to fight another day

Politics

4 h. ago Bedlam: Musk in new showdown with federal agencies as he issues ominous new worker ultimatum

The DOGE boss jumps past his midnight deadline to fight another day

Politics

6 h. ago Trump administration briefing: chaos caused by Musk’s Doge; fears over far

From the latest in Musk’s fight to fire federal workers to concern over appointment of Dan Bongino – key US politics stories from Monday at a glanceConfusion continued on Monday over the demands made by Elon Musk of federal workers. Just hours after the US Office of Personnel Management (OPM) had directed agencies that responses to its email were optional, Musk again threatened federal workers. He wrote on X, the platform he owns: “Subject to the discretion of the president, they will be given another chance. Failure to respond a second time will result in termination.” President Donald Trump backed Musk earlier Monday, two days after OPM initially sent an email asking federal workers to list five things they accomplished last week. Several government agencies, including the FBI and state department, have told their employees not to respond.Here are the biggest stories in US politics on Monday, 24 February. Continue reading...

Politics

12 h. ago Federal workers return to offices amid threat from Elon Musk

Many federal employees across the country are back at agency offices under President Donald Trump's return-to-office mandate

Events

20 h. ago Elimination of federal climate tools, some used to inquire in to Musk’s firms, sparks alarm

Environment justice advocates say tools to study pollution in vulnerable communities by companies, including xAI and SpaceX, have disappearedAs Donald Trump’s administration continues its purge of federal agencies, environmental justice campaigners are alarmed by the disappearance of federal environmental and climate data tools – some of which have been used to identify pollution concerns about Elon Musk’s companies.Several federal agencies, including the EPA and CDC, previously published data regarding pollution levels across the country, as well as data about the vulnerability of each census tract, such as poverty rates and life expectancy. Several of the websites containing that data have gone dark in the weeks following Trump’s inauguration. Continue reading...

Events

21 h. ago Confusion at US agencies over whether to comply with Elon Musk email demanding workers justify their jobs – US politics live

Government agencies give conflicting advice after email from Elon Musk demanding employees list accomplishments from past weekThe Trump administration has blocked a crucial step in the National Institutes of Health (NIH) process for funding medical research, likely in violation of a federal judge’s temporary restraining order on federal funding freezes.The NIH has stopped submitting study sections – meetings in which scientists peer review NIH grant funding proposals – to the Federal Register after the Trump administration paused health agency communications. By law, study sections must appear on the register 15 days in advance of meetings.Those who ignored President Trump’s executive order to return to work have now received over a month’s warning.Starting this week, those who still fail to return to office will be placed on administrative leave. Continue reading...

Politics

29 h. ago Trump names conservative podcaster Dan Bongino as FBI deputy director

Selection of former Secret Service agent and author means two staunch Trump allies lead the principal federal law enforcement agencyDan Bongino, a former US Secret Service agent who has written bestselling books, run unsuccessfully for office and gained fame as a conservative pundit with TV shows and a popular podcast, has been chosen to serve as the FBI’s deputy director.President Donald Trump announced the appointment on Sunday night in a post on his Truth Social platform, praising Bongino as “a man of incredible love and passion for our country”. He called the announcement “great news for law enforcement and American justice”. Continue reading...

Politics

42 h. ago Trump halts medical research funding in apparent violation of judge’s order

Health department orders NIH to hold Federal Register submissions – critical step in process for funding studiesThe Trump administration has blocked a crucial step in the National Institutes of Health (NIH) process for funding medical research, likely in violation of a federal judge’s temporary restraining order on federal funding freezes.The NIH has stopped submitting study sections – meetings in which scientists peer review NIH grant funding proposals – to the Federal Register after the Trump administration paused health agency communications. By law, study sections must appear on the register 15 days in advance of meetings. Continue reading...

Politics

48 h. ago Musk tells US federal workers to explain what they achieved last week or be fired

‘Cruel and disrespectful’ request to employees sparks confusion across key government agenciesHundreds of thousands of federal workers have been given little more than 48 hours to explain what they accomplished over the past week, sparking confusion across key agencies as the tech billionaire Elon Musk expands his crusade to slash the size of government.Musk, who serves as President Donald Trump’s cost-cutting chief, telegraphed the extraordinary request on his social media network on Saturday. Continue reading...

Events

67 h. ago US supreme court temporarily blocks firing of head of federal whistleblower protection office

Trump administration is seeking to oust Hampton Dellinger, head of the office of special counselThe US supreme court on Friday temporarily kept on the job the head of the federal agency that protects government whistleblowers, in its first word on the many legal fights over the agenda of Donald Trump’s second presidency.The justices said in an unsigned order that Hampton Dellinger, head of the office of special counsel, could remain in his job at least until Wednesday. That’s when a lower-court order temporarily protecting him expires. Continue reading...

Events

68 h. ago Alarm as bird flu now ‘endemic in cows’ while Trump cuts staff and funding

Experts say current US outbreak is unlikely to end without intervention with further mutation of virus likelyA newer variant of H5N1 bird flu has spilled over into dairy cows separately in Nevada and Arizona, prompting new theories about how the virus is spread and leading to questions about containing the ongoing outbreaks.The news comes amid a purge of experts at federal agencies, including employees who were responding to the highly pathogenic avian influenza outbreak at the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the US Department of Agriculture. Continue reading...

Politics

3 d. ago Trump administration looks to slash HUD workers tackling the housing crisis

The Trump administration’s proposal to layoff half of federal workers at the nation’s housing agency is targeting employees who support disaster recovery, rental subsidies, discrimination investigations and first-time homebuyers, according to two documents obtained by The Associated Press

Politics

4 d. ago Trump fans chant ‘four more years’ as president bathes in praise and hypes Elon Musk’s DOGE at Black History Month event

The president’s anti-DEI crusade has thrown federal agencies, schools and institutions into chaos

Politics

4 d. ago Here’s how many billions Elon Musk’s companies are making from U.S. taxpayers

While their boss takes a sledgehammer to federal agencies, SpaceX and Tesla are earning big money from government contracts, writes Io Dodds

Economics

4 d. ago FDA scientists told ‘woman’ and ‘disabled’ are on Trump’s banned word list

A federal health agency was told to remove words such as gender, transgender, LGBT and nonbinary from communications

Politics

5 d. ago Trump signs executive order giving himself more power over independent federal agencies

Trump’s recent executive order adopts a fringe theory that conflicts with Congress’s power to fund independent federal agencies

Politics

7 d. ago Trump administration files first supreme court appeal over firing of government watchdog

Attempt to remove head of the office of special counsel is key test of executive branch’s battle with US judiciary to reshape federal governmentDonald Trump’s administration has asked the supreme court to approve the firing of the head of a federal agency dedicated to protecting whistleblowers in the first appeal of Trump’s new term and a key test of his battle with the judicial branch.Hampton Dellinger, the head of the office of the special counsel (OSC), is among the fired government watchdogs who have sued the Trump administration, arguing that their dismissals were illegal and that they should be reinstated. Continue reading...

Politics

7 d. ago Trump administration begins firings of FAA air traffic control staff just weeks after fatal Washington DC plane crash

Staff at the Federal Aviation Administration receive emails saying they have been fired, upending rotas during period of busy air travel A US judge has scheduled a rare holiday court hearing on Monday, in a case brought by Democratic state attorneys general seeking to protect major federal agencies from Elon Musk’s Doge team.US district judge Tanya Chutkan in Washington DC on Sunday called the hearing for Monday, the Presidents Day holiday when federal courts are closed. Continue reading...

Events

7 d. ago IRS reportedly preparing to give Musk’s Doge agency access to taxpayer data

US tax agency has received request for access to classified system containing personal financial records of US taxpayersThe US federal tax collection agency is reportedly preparing to give a team member of Elon Musk’s “department of government efficiency” (Doge), which has already gutted several federal agencies and sparked multiple lawsuits, access to personal taxpayer data.The New York Times and the Washington Post both reported early on Monday that the Internal Revenue Service had received a request for access to a classified system that contains sensitive personal financial records. Continue reading...

Economics