7 h. ago Judge temporarily blocks Trump’s mass firings at federal agencies

Judge says office of personnel management lacks power to order firings, including those of probationary employeesA federal judge in California has temporarily blocked the Trump administration from ordering the US defense department and other agencies to carry out the mass firings of some employees.The US district judge William Alsup said in San Francisco on Thursday that the US office of personnel management (OPM) lacked the power to order federal agencies to fire any workers, including probationary employees who typically have less than a year of experience. Continue reading...

Politics

9 h. ago Social Security Administration could lay off up to 50% of its workforce, source says – live

Social Security Administration expected to lay off at least 7,000 people, but a source tells Associated Press reduction could be as high as 50%As Donald Trump and tech billionaire Elon Musk work zealously to slash tens of billions in federal spending by axing thousands of jobs and gutting some government agencies, Musk faces mounting claims he has conflicts of interest and no oversight, legal and ethics experts say.Trump’s largest campaign donor and the world’s wealthiest man, Musk was tapped by the president to lead the so-called “department of government efficiency” (Doge) in a radical and opaque cost-cutting drive that allows him to keep control of SpaceX, Tesla and other huge companies with billions of dollars in federal contracts.We expect that today’s meeting will be the first in a series of such expert consultations that will bring us closer to overcoming the disagreements that have arisen with the American side, strengthening confidence-building measures. Continue reading...

Events

13 h. ago Democrat slams tariffs announcement: ‘Trump is driving the US economy straight into a wall’ – live

Ron Wyden, ranking member of Senate finance committee, says tariffs on neighboring countries will be felt by Americans and called it a betrayal to Trump’s votersTrump threatens China with additional 10% tariff in escalation of trade warAs Donald Trump and tech billionaire Elon Musk work zealously to slash tens of billions in federal spending by axing thousands of jobs and gutting some government agencies, Musk faces mounting claims he has conflicts of interest and no oversight, legal and ethics experts say.Trump’s largest campaign donor and the world’s wealthiest man, Musk was tapped by the president to lead the so-called “department of government efficiency” (Doge) in a radical and opaque cost-cutting drive that allows him to keep control of SpaceX, Tesla and other huge companies with billions of dollars in federal contracts.We expect that today’s meeting will be the first in a series of such expert consultations that will bring us closer to overcoming the disagreements that have a...

Politics

15 h. ago White House demands agencies identify hundreds of thousands of potential layoffs

A memo from the Trump administration gives federal officials until 13 March to submit plans for additional firingsUS politics live – latest updatesThe Trump administration is pushing for federal agencies to carry out a large-scale slashing of the federal workforce, demanding plans for hundreds of thousands of possible cuts within weeks.A White House memo gave officials until 13 March to submit a plan identifying “agency components and employees performing functions not mandated by statute or regulation who are not typically designated as essential” during government shutdowns. Continue reading...

Events

16 h. ago Trump says tariffs for Mexico, Canada, and China to go into effect next week – live

US president blames illegal drugs from Mexico and Canada as reason for tariffs going into effect on 4 March; China to be charged an additional 10% As Donald Trump and tech billionaire Elon Musk work zealously to slash tens of billions in federal spending by axing thousands of jobs and gutting some government agencies, Musk faces mounting claims he has conflicts of interest and no oversight, legal and ethics experts say.Trump’s largest campaign donor and the world’s wealthiest man, Musk was tapped by the president to lead the so-called “department of government efficiency” (Doge) in a radical and opaque cost-cutting drive that allows him to keep control of SpaceX, Tesla and other huge companies with billions of dollars in federal contracts.We expect that today’s meeting will be the first in a series of such expert consultations that will bring us closer to overcoming the disagreements that have arisen with the American side, strengthening confidence-building measures. Continue readin...

Politics

26 h. ago Getting out of DOGE? Federal agencies given deadline to come up with plans to leave DC

‘You go around Washington and see all these buildings with the Department of Education. We want to move education back to the states, where it belongs,’ Trump said at a Cabinet meeting

Events

28 h. ago Supreme Court pauses judge’s order for Trump to unfreeze USAID payments in first DOGE test for justices

High court temporarily blocks judge’s order just before midnight deadline to restart aid payments

Events

38 h. ago Elon Musk called Trump a ‘f***ing moron’ when the pair met at the White House during his first term: report

Trump has tasked Musk with finding ‘waste, fraud and abuse’ within federal government and agencies despite not being an official member of the administration

Politics

43 h. ago #AltGov: the secret network of federal workers resisting Doge from the inside

Government employees fight the Trump administration’s chaos by organizing and publishing information on BlueskyAfter seeing Elon Musk’s X post on Saturday afternoon about an email that would soon land in the inboxes of 2.3 million federal employees asking them to list five things they did the week before, a clandestine network of employees and contractors at dozens of federal agencies began talking on an encrypted app about how to respond.Employees on a four-day, 10-hours-a-day schedule wouldn’t even see the email until Tuesday – past the deadline for responding – some noted. There was also a bit of snark: “bonus points to anyone who responds that they spent their government subsidy on hookers and blow,” one worker said. Continue reading...

Politics

56 h. ago Who is Amy Gleason, the person named DOGE's acting leader by the White House?

The acting administrator of the organization that is pushing for sweeping budget cuts across federal agencies is a low-profile executive who has expertise in health care technology and worked in the first Trump administration

Politics

57 h. ago New York City is set to close a controversial migrant shelter at the Roosevelt Hotel

A controversial Manhattan hotel being used to shelter migrants is set to close

Events

64 h. ago ‘We’re being treated as grifters or terrorists’: US federal workers on the fear and chaos of their firings

An educator, archaeologist and scientist were among the thousands of government workers culled by Musk’s agencyThe Trump administration has fired at least 20,000 government employees in its first month, as Elon Musk’s so-called “department of government efficiency” (Doge) dramatically overhauls work at federal agencies. Some economists have speculated that these terminations, which could affect nearly 300,000 workers, will be the biggest job cuts in US history.Most of the workers cut were in probationary periods and lacked job protections that come with longer terms of employment. In social media spaces, especially the r/fednews subreddit, these workers described scenes of confusion and feelings of anger directed at Musk, an unelected billionaire dubbed a “special government employee” by the White House. Last week, unions for federal workers sued the Trump administration for unlawfully using probationary periods to cut staff. Continue reading...

Events

66 h. ago The Latest: Musk renews threat to fire federal workers despite pushback from various agencies

Elon Musk is vowing yet again to fire any federal workers who don’t respond to an email asking them to list five things they accomplished last week

Events

3 d. 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 d. 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

3 d. 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

3 d. 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

3 d. 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

3 d. 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

3 d. 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