Donald Trump has sweeping plans for a second administration. Here’s what he’s proposed

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🎨 New Air Force One paint job

Rendering: U.S. Air Force The U.S. Air Force is rolling out a new paint scheme across its executive airlift fleet, including the next-generation Air Force One aircraft, in a color palette of red, white, dark blue and gold. The redesign will be applied to the VC-25B — the military designation for the two Boeing 747-8 aircraft that will serve as Air Force One — as well as the Boeing 747 jetliner that Qatar gifted, Reuters reports. In addition, four modified Boeing 757-200s used to transport the vice president, Cabinet members, members of Congress and other senior government officials will carry the new livery. Go deeper.

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Governors arrive in Washington eager to push past Trump’s partisan grip The annual gathering has traditionally been a show of bipartisanship. But President Donald Trump has disrupted norms by not inviting all governors to meetings at the White House. Read more.

Why this matters: The break with tradition reflects Trump’s broader approach to his second term. He has taken a confrontational stance toward some states, withholding federal funds or deploying troops over the objections of local officials.   Governors struck an optimistic tone in panels and interviews Wednesday. Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt, a Republican, said the conference is “bigger than one dinner at the White House.” Maryland Gov. Wes Moore, a Democrat, predicted “this is going to be a very productive three days for the governors.”

RELATED COVERAGE ➤ Gov. Wes Moore on Trump: ‘I pray for him and I just feel bad for him’   Air Force One will be painted red, white and blue as Trump has hinted, US military says   Trump heads to Georgia, a target of his election falsehoods, as Republicans look for midterm boost   Trump, weeks after backlash over racist post, hosts Black History Month reception   US judge sets Friday deadline for Trump administration to restore slavery exhibit in Philadelphia   DC mayor declares emergency, asks President Trump for help on sewage spill on the Potomac   NIH’s Bhattacharya will also run the CDC while Trump administration looks for a permanent director   Fed minutes: Lower inflation needed before many officials will support rate cuts   Tariffs paid by midsized US firms tripled last year, new analysis from JPMorganChase Institute shows   As political pressure prompts exodus of Minnesota prosecutors, some defendants catch a break   A judge weighs extending protections for refugees in Minnesota facing arrest and deportation   Lawmaker says the US deported a sick baby, while authorities say the child was medically cleared   Democrats recruit popular content creators in new strategy to win back Latino voters   Mamdani reboots homeless encampment sweeps in New York City   US Southern Command chief meets Venezuela’s president weeks after Maduro’s capture   Public health and green groups sue EPA over repeal of rule supporting climate protections   Children of the late Rev. Jesse Jackson honor his legacy as memorial services set for next week   U2’s new music honors Renee Good

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Trump Goons’ Secret War Meeting Exposed as Tensions Spiral

The “fed up” president has been told the military is ready to launch a major new conflict within days.

President Donald Trump has warned that the U.S. could strike Iran within days—even as he talked up his war-ending efforts with his so-called “Board of Peace.”

Speaking at his first meeting with the board on Thursday, the president issued a new 10-day deadline to Iran, warning that they must make a deal on nuclear disarmament or “bad things will happen.”

“We may have to take it a step further, or we may not, maybe we’re going to make a deal,” he said.

“You’re going to be finding out over the next probably 10 days.”

The latest threat came after senior military officials met in the White House Situation Room on Wednesday to discuss Iran, CNN reported.

Trump had also been briefed by son-in-law Jared Kushner and special envoy Steve Witkoff, both of whom were at Thursday’s Board of Peace meeting after indirect talks with Iran on Tuesday.

CNN on Wednesday cited sources that Trump had privately argued for and against military action against Iran, but had yet to finalize his decision despite discussing America’s options with advisers and allies.

“He is spending a lot of time thinking about this,” a source said of Trump. There is no indication if he will make up his mind by the weekend. The sources noted that there had been a major boost in U.S. air and naval assets deployed in the Middle East in recent days in preparation for a possible attack.

The Daily Beast has contacted the White House and the Pentagon for comment.

Sources told CBS that conversations over action in Iran have been “fluid and ongoing”, with the White House balancing the potential risk of escalating military action.

The Pentagon is in the process of temporarily relocating staff in the Middle East to Europe or the U.S. in preparation for counterattacks by Iran if Trump decides to instigate a strike, which is standard practice if any potential attack on an area is being considered.

“We do have some work to do with Iran,” Trump said on Thursday.

“They can’t have nuclear weapons. Very simple. You can’t have peace in the Middle East if they have a nuclear weapon.”

White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said on Wednesday Iran was due to share information on their negotiating position “in the next couple of weeks,” but did not say whether Trump would postpone military action until those details were made available.

“I’m not going to set deadlines on behalf of the president of the United States,” Leavitt said, but insisted that while military action is a possibility, “diplomacy is always his first option.”

Leavitt added, “There’s many reasons and arguments that one could make for a strike against Iran,” but noted that the president was “first and foremost” relying on advice from his administration.

She said the administration had “a very successful operation in June that targeted Iran’s nuclear facilities.”

“Iran would be very wise to make a deal with President Trump and with his administration,” Leavitt said.

Claiming the two countries are “still very far apart” on some issues, Leavitt said “the Iranians are expected to come back to us with some more detail in the next couple of weeks, and so the president will continue to watch how this plays out.”

Secretary of State Marco Rubio is due to visit Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Feb. 28 to provide him with an update on discussions with Iran.

Israel would be expected to help any U.S. military action against Iran.

Potential action on Iran from Trump follows a report in Axios earlier this week that the 79-year-old was becoming bored with ongoing nuclear talks and was ready to launch military action.

“The boss is getting fed up. Some people around him warn him against going to war with Iran, but I think there is 90 percent chance we see kinetic action in the next few weeks,” one Trump adviser told Axios.

However launching a war in the Middle East could further enrage Trump’s supporter base who want him to focus on ‘America First’ policies, especially with the midterm elections in November on the horizon.

https://www.thedailybeast.com/trump-admins-secret-war-room-meeting-plot-exposed/?

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Trump gets pledges for Gaza reconstruction and troop commitments at inaugural Board of Peace talks

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump announced Thursday at the inaugural Board of Peace meeting that nine members have agreed to pledge $7 billion toward a Gaza relief package and five countries have agreed to deploy troops as part of an international stabilization force for the war-battered Palestinian territory.

https://apnews.com/article/trump-board-of-peace-first-meeting-22e587df67e27cd1e1d96e446cb88378?

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GOP White House Doctor Loses it at RFK Jr.’s ‘Bulls**t’

The health secretary isn’t always aligned with the science world.

A former White House doctor has lost it on Robert F. Kennedy Jr. for calling Americans the “sickest people in the world.”

Donald Trump’s health secretary appeared on podcaster Theo Vonn’s This Past Weekend last week and later posted a clip from the episode on X. “Americans didn’t become the sickest people in the world because they’re lazy,” he wrote in the caption. “We are sick because ultra-processed foods dominate our diets—and because the government misled the public about what drives disease.”

The messaging incensed Jonathan Reiner, former Vice President Dick Cheney’s longtime cardiologist, who cared for him during the George W. Bush administration. “Americans are not the sickest people in the world,” he said. “There’s a lot we can do to improve the health of our population, including eating better (and vaccinating our kids) but to call Americans the sickest people in the world, is just bulls--t.”

In the clip with Vonn, Kennedy pointed to a rise in obesity rates across the country, claiming it fell at the feet of ultra-processed foods and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

“When my uncle [John F. Kennedy] was president of this country, I was a 10-year-old kid. He spent zero on chronic disease in this country,” Kennedy said. “Zero.”

“Today we spend $4.3 trillion a year, and it’s about 40 cents out of every tax dollar that is paid by you, to the federal government, that is going towards treatment for chronic disease. It’s unsustainable, and it’s getting worse every year.”

Kennedy, who has developed a reputation for leaning into the conspiratorial, continued, “Individuals have a responsibility—when I was a kid, five percent of children were obese. Today… overweight is 40 percent, adults it’s even higher. Americans do not get obese because they’re invalids or lazy, or they don’t want to do exercise. They got that way because they are being mass poisoned.The CDC reports that “ninety percent of the nation’s $4.9 trillion in annual health care expenditures are for people with chronic and mental health conditions.”

It adds, “Only 2 in 5 young adults are weight-eligible and physically prepared for basic training in the U.S. military. Obesity costs the U.S. health care system nearly $173 billion a year.”

“They’re being mass poisoned because the government lied to them,” Kennedy continued. “And it lied about the food. Now, 70 percent of the food that our kids eat is ultra-processed food, and it’s just poison. It’s not food, it’s just poison.”

Asked what government agency was to blame, raw-milk enthusiast Kennedy said, without hesitation, “FDA.”

It comes days after the health secretary featured in a bizarre video with Trumpy musician Kid Rock. The baffling montage included the message “GET ACTIVE + EAT REAL FOOD,” but raised eyebrows when, at one point, the 72-year-old got into a tub wearing jeans and no T-shirt as Kid Rock flipped the bird.

In another part of the clip, a shirtless Kennedy peddled on an exercise bike in a steam room while Kid Rock, also shirtless, did push-ups.

The Daily Beast did not immediately receive a response from HHS.

https://www.thedailybeast.com/gop-white-house-doctor-loses-it-at-rfk-jrs-bullst/?

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Canadians Trash Trump’s America as a Bigger Threat Than Russia

Most Canadians believe the U.S. leader is stoking conflicts around the world for no good reason.

Donald Trump is now seen as a bigger threat to global peace than even Russia by some of America’s former allies.

A POLITICO Poll conducted Feb. 6–9 with over 2,000 respondents each from Canada, the U.K., France, and Germany, found Canadians are far more likely than Europeans to view the U.S. as a greater threat to global peace than Russia.

Nearly half of Canadians, 48 percent, ranked the United States as the biggest threat to world peace, compared with just 29 percent naming Russia. Sixty-nine percent of Canadian respondents said Trump is actively seeking conflict with other countries with no provocation.

The Daily Beast has contacted the White House for comment.

The survey results come as relations between the U.S. and Canada, historically close allies, have broken down since Trump began his second term.

Trump has floated the idea of annexing the country and making it the 51st U.S. state, and slapped tariffs on Canadian steel, aluminum, and automobiles.

The move sparked trade tensions, which Canada met with its own retaliation. Trump has most recently threatened to block the opening of a $4.6 billion bridge connecting Detroit, Michigan, with Windsor, Ontario, demanding the U.S. be given 50 percent ownership.

It is perhaps no surprise, then, that the poll shows a sharp decline in trust toward Washington, with 58 percent of Canadians saying the U.S. is not a reliable ally—the highest share among respondents in Canada, Germany, France, and the U.K.

Even more striking, 42 percent of Canadians said the U.S. is no longer an ally at all, while only 37 percent insisted the partnership remains intact.

The survey also highlights broader concerns about U.S. actions overseas following Trump’s operation in Venezuela and push to seize Greenland from Denmark, a NATO ally: 43 percent of Canadians see the U.S. as “mostly a threat” to global stability, while another 34 percent say America is “sometimes a force for stability, sometimes a threat.”

Almost half, 47 percent, said U.S. involvement abroad actually makes the world less safe.

In response to the poll, White House spokesperson Davis Ingle told the Daily Beast: “The ultimate poll was November 5, 2024 when nearly 80 million Americans overwhelmingly elected President Trump to deliver on his popular and commonsense agenda.

“The President has already made historic progress not only in America but around the world. It is not surprising that President Trump remains the most dominant figure in American politics.”

Other surveys confirm that the U.S. is increasingly seen as a threat in Canada and beyond.

A Kekst CNC poll conducted earlier this month of 11,099 people across G7 nations found Canadians are now nearly as likely as Chinese respondents to view the U.S. as a danger to their country’s security.

Among all countries surveyed, Canadians showed the largest jump in perceived threat from Washington, from 29 percent in November, to 44 percent this month.

Meanwhile, YouGov European tracker data monitoring attitudes in Britain, Denmark, France, Germany, Italy, and Spain from Jan. 9 to 27, showed that perceptions of the U.S. are the worst they have been since YouGov started tracking in 2016.

Despite these deep doubts, the POLITICO poll showed that Canadians remain cautiously optimistic about the post-Trump future.

About 49 percent said they expect U.S.-Canada relations to recover once a new administration takes office, though 29 percent remain convinced the damage is irreversible.

https://www.thedailybeast.com/canadians-trash-trumps-america-as-a-bigger-threat-than-russia/?

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Trump Hit With Bombshell Study Revealing Reason for Staggering Cost Rises

A JPMorganChase Institute report exposes the toll of the president’s tariffs on consumers and businesses.

Donald Trump’s sweeping tariffs forced mid-sized U.S. companies to pass on the costs to American consumers, according to a damning report.

Analysis from the JPMorganChase Institute found that the amount of tariffs paid by mid-sized businesses has more than tripled since early 2025.

As a result, midsized companies—who employ around 48 million workers in the U.S. and generate roughly one-third of private-sector gross domestic product (GDP)—have had to absorb the costs in other ways, such as raising prices or accepting lower profits, the Associated Press reported.

“That’s a big change in their cost of doing business,” said Chi Mac, executive director at the JPMorganChase Institute and one of the authors of the report. “We also see some indications that they may be shifting away from transacting with China and maybe toward some other regions in Asia.”

The JPMorganChase Institute said analyzing how middle-market businesses—which have annual revenues from $100 million to $1 billion and fewer than 500 employees—are affected by tariffs is vital. Even though these companies are “highly involved in trade,” they are often “underrepresented in policy discussions and aggregate statistics.”

As noted by the Financial Times, these companies, which often lack leverage over suppliers, were forced to continue buying foreign imports in 2025 even as duty payments rose 316 percent above their pre-election level.

“They may be large enough to be local or regional anchors but not so large that they can easily offset losses in one area with gains in another,” the report states. “When responding to changes in trade policy, they may be more agile than larger firms but lack the negotiating leverage of their larger counterparts. In this way, they may be more representative of the typical U.S. firm.”The findings are the latest blow to Trump’s claim that his “Liberation Day” tariffs will largely be absorbed by overseas companies rather than passed on to U.S. consumers. The report also highlights continuing concerns about how Trump’s tariffs are affecting the U.S. economy and Americans’ financial situations.

Last week, a report from the Federal Reserve Bank of New York estimated that roughly 90 percent of tariff costs are being passed on to U.S. consumers and businesses, rather than foreign exporters.

The finding prompted a sharp response from White House economic adviser Kevin Hassett, who claimed the paper was an “embarrassment.”

“It’s the worst paper I’ve ever seen in the history of the Federal Reserve System. The people associated with this paper should presumably be disciplined,” Hassett told CNBC’s Squawk Box. “Because what they’ve done is they’ve put out a conclusion which has created a lot of news that’s highly partisan based on analysis that wouldn’t be accepted in a first-semester econ class.”

Trump’s vow to lower the cost of food and everyday items was considered crucial to his 2024 election victory. The 79-year-old has recorded dire approval ratings for months, with his handling of the U.S. economy cited as a major concern among voters.

The Daily Beast has contacted the White House for comment.

https://www.thedailybeast.com/donald-trump-hith-with-bombshell-study-revealing-reason-for-staggering-cost-rises/?

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Republicans Freak Out After Getting MAGA Wipeout Warnings

The base is “sleepy” ahead of upcoming midterms.

Republicans are sounding the alarm over a series of crushing losses in recent elections.

“While it is tempting for many in our party to wish away these results, the pattern is clear that there is at least a current 10-point Democratic over-performance from Trump 2024 — and it’s built on a fired-up Democratic base and a sleepy GOP base,” one unnamed GOP operative told Axios.

Democrats are outperforming former Vice President Kamala Harris’ 2024 results by double digits in multiple state-level races, according to the report.

In 20 state legislative special elections this year, Democrats averaged 10.5 points ahead of Harris’ performance, while last year, in 67 state House and Senate races, they outpaced her by nearly 14 points, according to The Downballot.

That includes Democrat Taylor Rehmet’s 14-point victory in a North Texas state Senate seat Trump carried by 17 points in 2024, and Democrat Chasity Verret Martinez’s 24-point win in a Louisiana state House district President Trump had previously won by 13 points.

Even in safe GOP territory, Republicans are seeing smaller margins than Trump’s 2024 showing.

On Feb. 10, a Republican claimed victory in a conservative north-central Oklahoma state House seat by 28 points, far narrower than Trump’s 58-point margin there in 2024. Overall, since the start of the year, GOP candidates have fallen short of Trump’s 2024 performance by double digits in state legislative contests across Northern and Central Virginia, New York City, east-central Minnesota, and southeastern Connecticut.

Some Republicans are panicking over what they see as their dozing base.

But others have shrugged off the losses.

“Let’s not pretend a couple of low-turnout special elections suddenly signal a political earthquake,” Mason Di Palma of the Republican State Leadership Committee told Axios. “They are unique, low-turnout contests driven by highly localized factors.”

Polls show Trump’s popularity slipping in recent weeks, amid backlash over the administration’s aggressive immigration enforcement policies—including two fatal shootings of U.S. citizens in Minneapolis by federal immigration agents—as well as dissatisfaction with the economy.

YouGov/Economist polling shows that since the beginning of his second term, Trump’s net approval on immigration has dropped from +11 points to -11 points, while his rating on the economy has dropped from +12 points to -23.

Meanwhile, polls have shown Trump losing support among key voter groups that propelled him into the White House in 2024, like young men, Hispanics, and non-college-educated Americans.

A trio of surveys released last week showed that Americans think Biden did a better job in the White House than Trump has so far.

As a result, two Republican strategists told Axios earlier this month that they believe the Republican majority in the Senate may be difficult to hold on to in the midterms in November.

“A year ago, I would have told you we were almost guaranteed to win the Senate,” one of the GOP operatives said. “Today, I would have to tell you it’s far less certain.”

https://www.thedailybeast.com/republicans-freak-out-over-their-sleepy-base-after-string-of-stinging-defeats/?

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CNN Host Calls out RFK Jr. for Copying Michelle Obama

Abby Phillip said the campaign to get people to be active and “eat real food” sounds familiar for a reason.

CNN’s Abby Phillip has criticized Robert F. Kennedy Jr. for copying Michelle Obama’s health initiative, despite right-wingers ridiculing it at the time.

The NewsNight host played a clip of the health secretary’s embarrassing workout video featuring Kennedy and MAGA singer Kid Rock exercising shirtless, plunging into ice baths, and drinking whole milk in hot tubs, with Kennedy wearing jeans throughout.

“I’ve teamed up with Kid Rock to deliver two simple messages to the American people: GET ACTIVE + EAT REAL FOOD,” Kennedy posted on X while sharing the “Rock Out Workout.”

“But if that sounds very familiar to you, that’s because it is,” Phillip said after playing the video on Wednesday night. Phillip then referenced the former first lady’s “Let’s Move!” website from 2010, which also encouraged children to “get active and eat healthy.”

“Something Republicans, at least back then, took issue with,” Phillip added, before playing clips of high-profile conservative figures around 2010 mocking Obama for essentially the same initiative Kennedy is now pushing as part of his MAHA agenda.

“Why would you want to raise your own kids when Michelle Obama will do it for you?” Tucker Carlson said on Fox News. “In fact, she’ll do it at gunpoint.”

Conservative commentator Glenn Beck added: “When I heard this, I thought, get your damn hands off my fries, lady. If I want to be a fat, fat, fatty and shovel french fries all day long, that is my choice.”Another clip showed former Iowa Rep. Steve King saying he wanted the “nanny state out of my life, and I don’t want my body commandeered” by suggestions that people should keep an eye on their health.

“Look, they’re both right, but will conservatives and Republicans ever admit that they were wrong to lampoon Michelle Obama for basically common sense?” Phillip asked NewsNight panelist Xochitl Hinojosa.

“Absolutely not,” replied Hinojosa, who previously served as communications director for the Democratic National Committee.

“I think that Michelle Obama’s initiative was geared toward families and children, making sure people are active and eating healthy. This RFK video, or whatever this is, was a vanity project,” Hinojosa added.

“It wasn’t about anyone eating healthy. It was not even geared toward our kids. Honestly, I think it was geared toward Olivia Nuzzi at this point.”

Nuzzi, a former Daily Beast reporter, was fired from New York magazine after it was revealed she had a relationship with RFK Jr. during his 2024 presidential campaign, although it was “never physical.”

Nuzzi was also let go from her role as West Coast editor at Vanity Fair in December 2025 after further salacious details emerged about the professionally unethical relationship.

https://www.thedailybeast.com/cnn-abby-phillip-host-calls-out-rfk-jr-for-copying-michelle-obama/?

ps:Was just thinking about that the other day! All the outrage over Obama, but yet not one peep out of those same people now!!

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An “Enormous Burden”

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For several hours last week, Attorney General Pam Bondi sat before the House Judiciary Committee with one apparent mission: Don’t back down.

The oversight hearing focused on the recent actions of the Justice Department, which has been consumed with the release of the Epstein files, as well as ongoing investigations into the fatal shootings of two American citizens by federal agents in Minneapolis. At some points, the back-and-forth between Bondi and Congress devolved into a screaming match. Faced with questions about her department’s haphazard redaction of the files, she often went on the attack, calling Representative Jamie Raskin a “loser lawyer” and asking Representative Jerry Nadler whether he’d “apologized to President Trump” for participating in his impeachment hearings.

Bondi seemed more passionate about these deflections than she did about defending the department’s work, which has been hampered in recent months by understaffing and low morale. DOJ reportedly lost nearly 10,000 employees from November 2024 to November 2025. U.S. Attorney’s Offices (which are part of the department) shed 14 percent of their workforce, a one-year reduction that officials say is unlike anything they’ve seen in years. Some were fired, some took a buyout package, and others simply walked away. Last month, Bondi suggested in court filings that the department was struggling to keep up with its workload, having released only a fraction of the millions of Jeffrey Epstein–related files under review. Some attorneys were reportedly spending all or most of their days on the files. (Bondi said on Saturday that “all” of the files have been released, as mandated by the Epstein Files Transparency Act, but lawmakers have criticized the files’ heavy redactions.)

Add to that a backlog of federal immigration cases and the ongoing legal fallout from the administration’s mass-deportation push, and the result is an organization that is thoroughly overwhelmed. The U.S. attorney for Minnesota, who has been responsible for defending recent federal immigration-enforcement efforts, described the new influx of casework as an “enormous burden.” One ICE attorney who volunteered to work on Minnesota’s backlog was reportedly removed from her DOJ post after telling a judge that her job “sucks” because of the increased caseload and the administration’s failure to comply with immigration court orders. “I wish you would just hold me in contempt, your honor, so that I can have a full 24 hours of sleep. I work days and night,” she said.

Nationally, DOJ is making some progress—the Executive Office for Immigration Review announced in September that it had whittled its pending-case backlog down from more than 4.18 million to under 3.75 million—but the lack of staffing will only make it harder to tackle the remaining caseload. (A DOJ spokesperson told me in a statement that “after four years of bureaucratic weaponization under the Biden Administration, President Trump and Attorney General Bondi have created the most efficient Department of Justice in American history.”)

The mission and purpose of the department has also been overhauled—many of its core functions have been politicized since Trump’s return to office. The president has directed the department to pursue his personal enemies and has replaced career DOJ employees with inexperienced MAGA loyalists, sometimes to the detriment of his own agenda. Take the recent prosecution of two longtime Trump rivals, New York State Attorney General Letitia James and former FBI Director James Comey. In September, after an acting U.S. attorney reportedly decided that the case against Comey was too weak to pursue, the president pressured him to resign and replaced him with one of his former lawyers, Lindsey Halligan, who had never prosecuted a case before. Halligan appeared to make several fundamental errors in presenting Comey’s case, and her cases against James and Comey have since been thrown out. She resigned in January, a few months after a judge ruled that she had been illegally appointed.

The New York Times reported that Bondi’s former chief of staff put out an open call on social media for lawyers who “support President Trump and anti-crime agenda” to privately message him about jobs within the department. These were, until recently, some of the most prestigious positions in the American legal system—the “crème de la crème,” my colleague Quinta Jurecic, who covers politics and law, told me. Now the halls are empty enough that a department affiliate is seeking out applicants online.

At least the remaining employees know who’s in charge. This afternoon, a banner was hung on the DOJ building’s facade—on it, right above the slogan “Make America Safe Again,” was a picture of the president.

Related:

• What happened to Pam Bondi?
• Pam Bondi, loyal servant

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• 🌐 President Trump announced international pledges of money and troops for Gaza at the inaugural meeting of his Board of Peace, which key NATO allies declined to join. At the peace summit, he gave a 10-day timeline for his next steps on Iran. Go deeper ... Who's in and who's out.

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Board of Peace Convenes

President Donald Trump’s Board of Peace held its inaugural meeting yesterday in Washington, DC. The body is made up of more than 20 countries planning to oversee the reconstruction of Gaza, among other efforts. See the list of members here. The US and nine other countries will contribute $17B to the board and its Gaza relief plan. The funding falls below the projected $70B needed to rebuild after an estimated 80% of Gaza's buildings were damaged or destroyed in the war with Israel (see satellite images). Five countries will contribute troops to a stabilization force including 20,000 soldiers and 12,000 police officers. Trump has said he hopes the board will work to solve other conflicts, suggesting it could oversee the United Nations.  Separately, Trump said a decision on whether to attack Iran will come within the next 10-15 days. The US has built up the most air power in the Middle East since the 2003 Iraq War.

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Federal judge accuses Trump administration of ‘terror’ against immigrants in scathing ruling A federal judge accused the administration of recklessly violating the law in its efforts to deport millions of people living in the country illegally. Citing the deaths of Renee Good and Alex Pretti in Minnesota, the judge said that the White House had also “extended its violence on its own citizens.” Read more.

Why this matters: U.S. District Judge Sunshine Sykes said the administration had violated her December ruling that found it was illegally denying many detained immigrants a chance for release. She ordered the U.S. Department of Homeland Security to provide them with notice that they may be eligible for bond and then give them access to a phone to call an attorney within an hour.   Under past administrations, people with no criminal record could generally request a bond hearing before an immigration judge while their cases wound through immigration court unless they were stopped at the border. President Donald Trump’s White House reversed that practice.   The Homeland Security department said in a statement that the Supreme Court had “repeatedly overruled” lower courts on the issue of mandatory detention. “ICE has the law and the facts on its side, and it adheres to all court decisions until it ultimately gets them shot down by the highest court in the land,” the statement said.

RELATED COVERAGE ➤ Large banner featuring Trump’s face is displayed on Justice Department headquarters   Cherished teacher mourned following deadly crash with driver who was being pursued by ICE   Trump says he doesn’t know if aliens are real but directs government to release files on UFOs, more   WATCH: Trump’s take on aliens   Saudi Arabia may have uranium enrichment under proposed deal with US, arms control experts warn   Countries that attended Trump’s first Board of Peace meeting in Washington   Trump climate health rollback likely to hit poor, minority areas hardest, experts say   White House pressure leads universities to cut ties with nonprofit that helps racial minorities   Judge orders takeover of health care operations in Arizona prisons after years of poor care   Police in Idaho search for suspect who stole ambulance, drove into building that houses DHS offices   New Mexico’s promise of free child care comes with a fiscal escape hatch   Kentucky Supreme Court rules that charter schools law is unconstitutional

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GOP Rebel Says New Trump Bombshell Is a Desperate Distraction

He suggested there’s a nefarious reason for Trump officials suddenly hyping the new subject.

Rep. Thomas Massie has accused President Donald Trump of desperately trying to distract from the Jeffrey Epstein files by directing the government to release information about alien life.

The Kentucky Republican, who spearheaded efforts to force the Department of Justice to release all documents linked to the late pedophile, accused the administration of deploying the “ultimate weapon of mass distraction” with the announcement.

“But the Epstein files aren’t going away… even for aliens,” Massie posted on X.

The 79-year-old president posted on Truth Social late Thursday that he is directing Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, the Pentagon, and other relevant government agencies to release all files related to “alien and extraterrestrial life, unidentified aerial phenomena (UAP), and unidentified flying objects (UFOs).”

Trump said the announcement comes after “tremendous interest shown” in the question of whether extraterrestrial life exists. Last weekend, former President Barack Obama caused a stir after claiming on a podcast that aliens are “real,” but that he personally has not seen them.

“They’re not being kept in, what is it? Area 51. There’s no underground facility, unless there’s this enormous conspiracy and they hid it from the president of the United States,” he added.

Obama later clarified that he was suggesting that, “statistically,” it is likely that there is some form of life somewhere else in the universe, given how vast it is.“But the distances between solar systems are so great that the chances we’ve been visited by aliens are low, and I saw no evidence during my presidency that extraterrestrials have made contact with us,” Obama posted on Instagram. “Really!”

Trump accused Obama of disclosing “classified information” with his comments about the existence of aliens.

“I don’t know if they’re real or not,” Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One on Thursday. “I may get him out of trouble by declassifying.”

The Trump administration has been widely condemned for its handling of the Epstein files.

Massie’s and Democratic California Rep. Ro Khanna’s Epstein Files Transparency Act directed the Department of Justice to release all its files connected to Epstein, who died in 2019, by Dec. 19, 2025.

The DOJ has released more than 3 million files related to Epstein, while acknowledging that nearly 3 million more were being withheld for various reasons, including ongoing cases and the sensitive nature of some materials.

“The DOJ said it identified over 6m potentially responsive pages but is releasing only about 3.5m after review and redactions,” Khanna said in a January statement following the latest release. Khanna believes that “hundreds of thousands of emails and files” from Epstein’s computers are still to be made public.

In response to Massie’s attack, White House spokesperson Abigail Jackson told the Daily Beast: “Just as President Trump has said, he’s been totally exonerated on anything relating to Epstein. And by releasing thousands of pages of documents, cooperating with the House Oversight Committee’s subpoena request, signing the Epstein Files Transparency Act, and calling for more investigations into Epstein’s Democrat friends, President Trump has done more for Epstein’s victims than anyone before him.”

Several Trump officials cheered on his “weapon of mass distraction” after he ordered the release of files on aliens and UFOs.

In a post on X, Hegseth shared Trump’s social media announcement with alien and saluting-face emojis.

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt praised the move as “OUT OF THIS WORLD NEWS.”

https://www.thedailybeast.com/gop-rebel-accuses-trump-of-ultimate-weapon-of-mass-distraction/?

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Pentagon Pete Orders Elite Troops to Watch His Religious Rant

Hegseth railed against abortion and said he wants to ‘restore biological truth.’

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth slammed the “godless” left in a fiery anti-trans and anti-abortion speech in front of Christian broadcasters and an elite military band that was forced to watch his wild tirade.

Hegseth, 45, was keynote speaker at the National Religious Broadcasters Freedom 250 Celebration in Nashville on Thursday.

The ticketed event, which cost between $300 and $750 to attend, was not initially listed on Hegseth’s daily schedule, although the Department of Defense later shared the information.

The MAGAfication of the NRB event included Hegseth’s warm-up act: Alexis Wilkins, the country singer dating FBI Director Kash Patel, who sang the National Anthem before he took to the stage.

CNN reported that the NRB convention also included a ceremonial color guard from the band of the 101st Airborne Division. Ceremonial support by the military can be requested for civic, business, or community events, but some military groups say religious services or events are “detrimental to the interests or values of the armed forces” and are therefore not authorized for support.

The Daily Beast has contacted the Pentagon and the 101st Airborne Division for comment.

Hegseth began his speech by saying that he was bringing greetings from “a fighter for the people of faith, President Donald J. Trump.”

The twice-divorced former Fox News co-host was quick to brag about encouraging “spiritual health” in the military, which has included introducing monthly worship sessions, including one with his own controversial Christian nationalist pastor this week.

In his attack on diversity, equity and inclusion, Hegseth also claimed Trump was combating “anti-Christian bias” and “restoring biological truth” by rescinding “Biden era guidance on so-called gender-affirming care.”

“You see, we train our troops, we no longer trans our troops,” Hegseth said, the anti-trans statements being greeted by large applause at the Christian media convention.

One of Hegseth’s first actions as Pentagon chief last year was barring transgender troops from the military.

“Standing guard over our children rather than letting them be taught perverse sexual practices or sharing a locker room with men pretending to be women is not political, it’s biblical,” Hegseth said.

“Gone is godless and divisive DEI, gone is gender-bending equity and quotas, gone is climate change worship to a false god,” he added. “We are one military, one fighting force, one nation under God. We are not ‘In woke we trust,” we are ‘In God we trust.’”

As well as declaring that “protecting the life of an unborn baby is not political, it’s biblical,” Hegseth said Trump was “working every day to end taxpayer support of abortion” and that the president planned to end “abortion for illegal immigrants at Veterans’ Affairs hospitals and service member abortion-related travel expenses at the War Department.”

“No more of that,” Hegseth said, as the crowd applauded.

Hegseth’s speech saw him tell the audience “the other side is fueled by godless and toxic ideologies, foreign to the Western way of life, with tolerant hearts filled with rage and hate.”

Discussing his monthly prayer services, Hegseth said the “left wing shrieks, which means we’re right over the target.”

Christian nationalist Pastor Doug Wilson was invited by Hegseth to speak at the Pentagon on Tuesday.

Hegseth is a member of a church affiliated with Wilson’s Communion of Reformed Evangelical Churches (CREC).

Hegseth has made no secret of his support for Wilson and his extreme views. Last August, he shared a CNN profile on Wilson where he advocated for the return of laws against homosexuality and claimed that women’s priorities should be starting families and raising children.

“Women are the kind of people that people come out of,” Wilson said. “It doesn’t take any talent to simply reproduce biologically.”

The NRB’s website claims it is a “nonpartisan, international association of Christian communicators” who want to “protect the free speech rights” of their members to speak biblical truth by “advocating those rights” in governmental, corporate, and media sectors.

https://www.thedailybeast.com/pentagon-pete-makes-elite-troops-watch-his-religious-rant/?

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Fox News Host Gives Trump Epic Epstein Files Ultimatum

Jessica Tarlov had a short response to the president’s claim about the Epstein files.

A Fox News host had a blunt response to President Donald Trump’s claim that he was “exonerated” by the release of the Epstein files.

The Five co-host Jessica Tarlov, 41, issued a dare to Trump, 79, after he told reporters aboard Air Force One on Thursday that the files related to Jeffrey Epstein prove he had done nothing wrong.

“Well, you know, I’m the expert in a way, because I’ve been totally exonerated,” Trump said in response to news that Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, the former prince, had been arrested over his ties to the late sex offender. “It’s really interesting, because nobody used to speak about Epstein when he was alive, but now they speak, but I’m the one that can talk about it, because I’ve been totally exonerated. I did nothing.”

Tarlov kept her response short.

“Then release all the files,” she wrote in an X post.

The White House did not immediately return a request for comment.

Since Trump signed the Epstein Files Transparency Act into law in November, the Department of Justice has released millions of documents related to the shadowy and well-connected financier.

Attorney General Pam Bondi previously claimed that “all” files have been released, but Kentucky Republican Thomas Massie, who co-wrote the law forcing the release of the Epstein files, was not convinced.

Over the weekend, Bondi submitted a report to Congress to comply with the law’s requirement to furnish lawmakers with a summary of all redactions made and the legal basis for doing so, as well as a list of government officials named.

The attorney general cited “deliberative-process privilege” in justifying certain redactions, referring to a principle that allows agencies to withhold documents detailing internal decision-making.

“The problem with that is the bill that Ro Khanna and I wrote says that they must release internal memos and notes and emails about their decisions on whether to prosecute or not prosecute, whether to investigate or not investigate,” Massie said.

The release of the Epstein files has ignited a global firestorm, leading to Andrew, 66, losing his royal title and getting kicked out of Windsor mansion before his arrest on Thursday.

“I have learned with the deepest concern the news about Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor and suspicion of misconduct in public office,” King Charles said in a statement. “What now follows is the full, fair, and proper process by which this issue is investigated in the appropriate manner and by the appropriate authorities. In this, as I have said before, they have our full and wholehearted support and cooperation.”

https://www.thedailybeast.com/fox-news-host-gives-trump-epic-epstein-files-ultimatum/?

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MAGA Furiously Scrambles to Make ‘Alien Files’ the New Epstein Files

All it took was a 65-word post on Truth Social.

Donald Trump’s out-of-left-field announcement that he’s ordered the release of government files on alien life has set off a frenzied hype operation by his MAGA allies.

The president announced the move in a vague, 65-word post on Truth Social late Thursday, declaring that he’d ordered Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth to “begin the process of identifying and releasing” government files on extraterrestrial life along with other government agencies. He framed it as a brave move to bring transparency to “extremely interesting and important matters.”

His announcement sent some of his top supporters into an absolute frenzy. “OUT OF THIS WORLD NEWS from President Trump,” White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt wrote, sharing a screenshot of the president’s post.“

👽🫡,” Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth added.“Tonight, President Trump is directing a full disclosure of UAP and UFO files,” wrote Rep. Nancy Mace, who has otherwise been at the forefront of a push for the government to release more Epstein files. “In October, I wrote to DoD, CIA, NSA, and DNI demanding exactly that. The truth belongs to the people.”

Reps. Tim Burchett and Eric Burlinson both thanked the president, writing that “it’s time” and “the public has a right to know what their government knows.”

“Thank you POTUS!” Rep. Anna Paulina Luna added. “As the Chairwoman of the Task Force that investigates these subjects, we are incredibly grateful for you doing this! I look forward to going through all the footage, photos, and reports with the public!”

MAGA influencers also jumped in on social media to hype the promised release of what Benny Johnson dubbed the “Alien Files.”

Trump’s move seemed designed to seize on the momentum of viral comments made by former President Barack Obama last weekend, however. Obama sparked frantic speculation about the possibility of life on other planets during an appearance on the Brian Tyler Cohen podcast.

“They’re real, but I haven’t seen them,” he said. “And they’re not being kept in [...] Area 51. There’s no underground facility, unless there’s this enormous conspiracy and they hid it from the president of the United States.”

The possibility of extraterrestrial life in other corners of the known universe, and in particular encounters with those beings here on Earth, has long proven a subject of conspiracy theories ranging from the mundane to the bizarre and downright laughable.

Some believe the U.S. government has long held evidence of alien activity but chosen to quietly classify those discoveries to avoid global panic and geopolitical chaos.

Others, that ancient civilizations received technological guidance from otherworldly visitors regarded as gods by their human hosts, that the earth is in fact a single exhibit in a vast alien zoo, or that the world’s governments are in fact merely puppets to a malicious species of intergalactic reptilian beings.

The Daily Beast has contacted the White House for comment on this story.

https://www.thedailybeast.com/maga-furiously-scrambles-to-make-alien-files-the-new-epstein-files/?

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JD Vance Secretly Confesses to Smearing Catholic Bishops

The vice president talked tough in public but allegedly sought forgiveness privately for saying things that were “not true.”

JD Vance has reportedly admitted behind closed doors that one of his first official statements as vice president was “not true.”

Vance made headlines shortly after joining the White House in January 2025 by laying into the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops for their criticism of President Donald Trump’s executive order allowing immigration raids at schools and churches. Invoking his own conversion to Catholicism, he claimed at the time that the church was only speaking out against Trump’s policies because they were profiting off of immigrants.

According to Trump’s favorite Catholic cardinal, however, Vance later sought forgiveness for his remarks in private.

Cardinal Timothy Dolan, the former archbishop of New York who delivered the invocation at both of Trump’s inaugurations, told EWTN News in a new interview that Vance privately retracted his remarks. Dolan had blasted the comments as “scurrilous,” “very nasty,” and “inaccurate” at the time.

It appears Vance himself realized he’d gone too far.

“He and I had a little tete-a-tete, you probably know, when he suggested that bishops in the United States were pro-immigrant because we were making money,” Dolan said. “And he apologized. He said, ‘That was out of line and that’s not true.’”

The vice president, who converted to Catholicism in 2019 and calls himself a “baby Catholic,” had urged bishops to “look in the mirror a little bit and recognize that when they receive over $100 million to help resettle illegal immigrants, are they worried about humanitarian concerns? Or are they actually worried about their bottom line?” Looking back on that tense episode now, Dolan stressed that he thought Vance was a “very good guy” and that he agreed with him on issues including “the family,” “babies” and “patriotism,” but said he “wasn’t too happy” with the vice president’s failure to support Ukraine.

He also said he was “very upset” about Trump’s deportation agenda and accused ICE of “going into churches and harassing churches” when he was leading the archdiocese.

In December, Pope Leo XIV replaced Dolan, a prominent figure known for engaging in culture wars who serves on Trump’s Religious Liberty Commission, with a relatively unknown Illinois-based bishop, Ronald Hicks.

Dolan told EWTN that he used his role on the commission to help end ICE’s practice of showing up to Sunday mass in cars and trucks, which kept parishioners away.

He said he told his fellow commission member Franklin Graham, son of the late Billy Graham, “This is a violation of religious freedom. People have the right to worship on the Sabbath. The federal government cannot impede that or harass it.”

Graham, an Evangelical pastor who is head of the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association, suggested they go directly to the local ICE field office.

According to Dolan, the ICE director in New York said, “Thanks for bringing that to my attention. We’re not going to do that here.”

Since then, Dolan hasn’t heard from any pastors that agents were outside churches, he said.

The Daily Beast has reached out to DHS and the White House for comment.

https://www.thedailybeast.com/jd-vance-secretly-confesses-to-smearing-catholic-bishops/?

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Chief Justice Humiliates Trump With Stunning Tariffs Rebuke

The Supreme Court ruled that Trump’s tariffs are illegal.

The U.S. Supreme Court has delivered a brutal takedown of President Donald Trump’s signature economic policy, ruling that he overstepped his authority to impose widespread tariffs on countries around the globe.

In a major blow for the president—who called the case “literally, life of death for our country”—the conservative-dominated court, led by Chief Justice John Roberts, found that Trump’s use of emergency powers to impose tariffs on imports from more than 100 countries was unlawful.

The 6-3 ruling, with Roberts and fellow conservatives Neil Gorsuch and Amy Coney Barrett joining liberal justices, has undercut one of Trump’s biggest tools to reshape U.S. trade and exert pressure on other countries.

“The President asserts the extraordinary power to unilaterally impose tariffs of unlimited amount, duration, and scope. In light of the breadth, history, and constitutional context of that asserted authority, he must identify clear congressional authorization to exercise it,” Roberts wrote for the court.

The ruling on tariffs marks a major test for Trump’s presidential powers. But the court’s decision now places roughly $200 billion in tariffs collected so far under a cloud, as some companies move to seek refunds from the administration on duties already paid.

Three conservative justices dissented: Justices Clarence Thomas, Samuel Alito and Brett Kavanaugh. In his dissent, Kavanaugh warned of the potential mess ahead

“The Court says nothing today about whether, and if so how, the Government should go about returning the billions of dollars that it has collected from importers,” he said.

Trump has often boasted about using tariffs not just to boost revenue, but as leverage or punishment against America’s allies and enemies.

“If the Supreme Court rules against the United States of America on this National Security bonanza, WE’RE SCREWED!” he wrote on Truth Social.

The president was in a closed-door meeting with governors at the White House on Friday when the ruling was handed down. He reportedly told governors the decision was “a disgrace” and embarked on a profanity-laced rant against the court, but signaled that he had a back-up plan.

MAGA acolytes were also livid.

“Now globalists win, factories investments may reverse, and American workers lose again,” said Ohio Senator Bernie Moreno, who called the decision a “betrayal”.

Others, however, welcomed the decision. “One win for a constitutional republic over Trumpian authoritarianism,” said former Republican-turned-Midas Touch editor Ron Filipkowski.

The case stemmed from Trump’s “Liberation Day” decision last April to invoke the 1977 International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA)—a statute historically used for targeted sanctions and economic controls in crises.

It allowed the administration to declare a national emergency to justify a suite of “reciprocal” tariffs on goods from China, Mexico, Canada and dozens of other trading partners.

But during oral arguments in November, several justices expressed skepticism about the government’s position that the general statutory language allowing the president to “regulate importation” included the power to impose taxes.

For instance, Roberts was quick to bring up that the ability to impose taxes “has always been a core power of Congress.”

Justice Amy Coney Barrett, a Trump appointee, asked a series of pointed questions about whether there were statutes that bestow tariff authority and appeared unsatisfied with the answers of the government’s lawyer, U.S. Solicitor General D. John Sauer.

And Justice Neil Gorsuch, another Trump appointee, also grilled Sauer, demanding to know where the administration would draw the line on the president’s authority in foreign affairs and on Congress’ delegation of the power to act.

The U.S. brought in $264 billion in revenue in 2025 from both the new tariffs and pre-existing ones. That was up from the $79 billion in duties collected in 2024.

Friday’s decision could spark years of litigation and administrative processes if companies that have paid duties now seek refunds.

Dozens of companies, including Costco, Revlon, Bumble Bee and Kawasaki, had earlier filed preemptive lawsuits to seek refunds in the event that the Supreme Court found the tariffs illegal.

However, in an interview earlier this year, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said that if the court ruled against Trump, the U.S. Treasury had enough funds to cover the costs of any refunds. But he argued that businesses were not likely to pass those refunds back to consumers.

“It won’t be a problem if we have to do it, but ‍I can tell you that if it happens—which I don’t think it’s going to—it’s just a corporate boondoggle,” Bessent told Reuters.

“Costco, who’s suing the US government, are they going to give the money back to their clients?”

Last month, a study released by the Kiel Institute found despite the president’s repeated claims, American consumers paid 96 percent of the cost of Trump’s tariffs, not foreign exporters.

It found that in the long run, U.S. companies will see margins shrink while consumers face higher prices.

Those countries trading with the u.S. will face lower sales and face pressure to find new trade partners,

an outcome that has already been seen to some extent as countries like Canada engage in talks to promote more trade with China.

https://www.thedailybeast.com/supreme-court-chief-justice-john-roberts-humiliates-trump-with-brutal-tariffs-verdict/?

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Damning Poll Shows Anger Over Trump’s Signature Policy

Even Republicans are turning on the president over his handling of the hot topic issue.

A growing number of Americans are outraged at Donald Trump’s hardline immigration and mass deportation policies, a survey has found.

A Washington Post–ABC News–Ipsos poll of 2,589 U.S. adults reveals that 58 percent believe the president has gone “too far” with his plans to deport undocumented immigrants, up from 50 percent last October.

The poll also shows that more Republicans are turning on the president’s signature campaign policy, with 16 percent expressing concern that the 79-year-old’s deportation plans go too far, up from 13 percent in the previous survey.Trump’s overall approval rating on his handling of immigration, long considered one of the president’s strong points, is also slipping significantly. Just 40 percent now approve of Trump’s approach to immigration enforcement in the latest poll, down from 50 percent last year.

The issue of Trump’s mass deportation has been particularly salient in Minneapolis, where immigration agents shot and killed U.S. citizens Renee Good and Alex Pretti amid intense anti-ICE sentiment in the city.

A total of 62 percent say they oppose the aggressive tactics used by masked ICE goons while enforcing Trump’s hardline immigration policies.

Americans are also doubtful of the administration’s claims that they are only targeting the “worst of the worst” for deportation. The poll found that around seven out of 10 Americans believe that “less than half” or “hardly any” of the immigrants deported since January 2025 were violent criminals.Elsewhere, around one in three people say they worry that a family member or close friend could be swept up by federal immigration officers under Trump’s watch. Among Black Americans, this figure rises to 44 percent, as well as 49 percent of Asian Americans and 54 percent of Hispanics.

Minorities in the U.S. are also increasingly concerned that deportation policies are going too far. A total of 75 percent of Asian Americans believe the administration is going too far on deportations, up from 50 percent in the previous poll. A similar rise was recorded among Black Americans, from 62 percent in October to 76 percent in the latest poll.

The poll is also damaging for the under-fire Kristi “ICE Barbie” Noem, with 44 percent of respondents saying they support replacing her as Department of Homeland Security secretary, compared to just 23 percent who oppose such a move.

In response, White House spokesperson Abigail Jackson told the Daily Beast: “President Trump campaigned on and was elected on his promise to carry out the largest mass deportation operation in history.

“The entire Trump Administration is working to fulfill that promise despite the media’s and Democrats’ lies about ICE operations. ICE officers conduct themselves with the utmost professionalism and integrity to protect American citizens from criminal illegal aliens. It’s time for the media to start sharing the truth.”

https://www.thedailybeast.com/damning-poll-shows-anger-over-trumps-signature-policy/?

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Trump Accused of Epic Insult to Fallen Heroes With Tacky Vanity Project

The president’s planned monument to himself is under fire by veterans.

Veterans of the Vietnam War just slapped draft-dodging Donald Trump with a lawsuit over his latest vanity project.

White House plans to construct a D.C. arch dedicated to the MAGA leader will block “historically significant reciprocal views” of Arlington National Cemetery and Memorial Bridge, according to a complaint filed with the D.C. District Court on Thursday by a group of U.S. Army and Navy veterans.

They say that “by obstructing the symbolic and inspiring view from Arlington National Cemetery to the Lincoln Memorial,” the planned arch “would dishonor their military and foreign service and the legacy of their comrades and other veterans buried” at the site. The complaint notes it also “would degrade their personal experience when visiting.”

Trump famously avoided the draft during the Vietnam War on five occasions, the last of which owed to a bone spur diagnosis. It’s a condition that normally affects much older people. He was 22 at the time.

The MAGA president also has a long track record of disparaging veterans, once sparking an uproar after reportedly describing them as “losers” and “suckers” in private. He drew backlash for mocking the late Republican senator John McCain for being a prisoner of war, saying, “I like people who were not captured.”

His visit to Arlington National Cemetery in 2024 also infuriated veterans’ groups and families of veterans. Otherwise intended as a solemn tribute to servicemembers killed in a 2021 attack in Kabul, Trump marked the occasion by posing for graveside photos while grinning and giving the thumbs up. Critics said the stunt may have violated federal rules against political activity on cemetery grounds, though no charges were filed.

The lawsuit against Trump’s planned arch—modeled loosely on the “Arc de Triomphe” of Paris fame, which commemorates those who fought and died for France—also landed on the same day the president used a rally appearance in Georgia to propose changing the law to permit awarding himself the Congressional Medal of Honor.

“I’ve given out so many to guys that are seriously brave—I mean, they come in with—the arms are missing, the legs are missing, the stories are so unbelievable,“ Trump said, claiming he’d already once tried to give himself the medal after visiting Iraq during his first term, but was talked out of it by advisers.

”And I said: it’s a little stretch if I gave myself one of them,” he added. “But it’s one of those things—someday I’m going to try."

The Congressional Medal of Honor represents the United States’ highest military honor. Presidents have granted the medal to more than 3,500 people since it was first established in 1861. Every single last one of those recipients had at one time or another served in the U.S. Armed Forces.

Trump, who remained confined to a heavily fortified U.S. air base for the entirety of his 2019 trip to Iraq, told the crowds Thursday he had been “extremely brave” during that visit. “I’m going to test the law, I’m going to say… let’s give it a shot,” he went on. “Maybe I’ll win in court after everyone sues me.”

The Daily Beast has contacted the White House for comment on the complaint against its D.C. arch plans, which veterans behind Thursday’s lawsuit further allege are unfolding without due congressional and environmental approval.

The initiative represents only the latest installment in the president’s campaign to reshape the nation’s capital after his own image. Late last year, Trump demolished what was once the East Wing of the White House to make way for a glitzy new ballroom.

He has further renamed the Institute of Peace building as the “Donald J. Trump U.S. Institute of Peace,” and the storied Kennedy Center as the “Donald J. Trump and the John F. Kennedy Center Memorial Center for the Performing Arts.”

Critics have noted the latter’s new title implies the 79-year-old president is dead. It remains formally known by its historic name under federal law.

Trump’s wider efforts to enshrine his legacy in architecture now also appear to be expanding across the country. Florida state senators voted Thursday to formally rename Palm Beach Airport as President Donald J. Trump International. Gov. Ron DeSantis is expected to sign that change into law Friday.

Trump, whose family has now trademarked the new name along with others just like it, insists he does not stand to profit from any royalties over the rebrand, and has denied pressuring New York’s Penn State and Washington Dulles International Airport to make similar changes.

He nevertheless remains keenly enthused by a longstanding campaign to have his face added to Mount Rushmore, alongside those of Presidents George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Theodore Roosevelt and Abraham Lincoln.

Of those other leaders, three served in the military.

https://www.thedailybeast.com/president-donald-trump-accused-of-epic-insult-to-fallen-heroes-with-tacky-vanity-project/?

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Trump Leaks Disastrous Economic Figure in Typo-Filled Post

The figures showed growth slowed to an annual rate of 1.4 percent, well below expectations.

President Donald Trump leaked disastrous economic data in a typo-filled social media post on Friday.In a Truth Social tirade 40 minutes before his Commerce Department released the latest growth domestic product figures, Trump sought to deflect blame for the economy cooling.

“The Democrat Shutdown cost the U.S.A. at least two points in GDP. That’s why they are doing it, in mini form, again. No Shutdowns! Also, LOWER INTEREST RATES. “Two Late” Powell is the WORST!!“ he posted on his Truth Social platform, in a reference to Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell.

The latest figures showed that U.S. economic growth slowed to an annual rate of 1.4 percent—well below expectations and a significant drop from the previous quarter’s 4.4 percent pace.

The figures, based on the fourth quarter of 2025, mark a softer end to Trump’s first year in office, with growth weighed down by last fall’s record government shutdown and slower consumer spending.

Inflation has also accelerated, with the Personal Consumption Expenditures price index rising 2.9 percent over the year in December 2025, the highest level since March 2024.

The data is a blow for the president, who has made economic strength the central pillar of his second term, repeatedly promising a “booming” economy and rapid relief from high prices.

Slower growth undercuts that message ahead of this year’s midterm elections, where Trump is desperate for the GOP to retain control of Congress or face the prospect of congressional investigations and potential impeachment.

“You gotta win the midterms ‘cause, if we don’t win the midterms… they’ll find a reason to impeach me,” he told Republican lawmakers at a retreat in Washington earlier this year.

The latest figures came two days after Trump’s top White House aides held a strategy meeting, warning administration officials that the economy would be a top-tier issue for voters.

The meeting, hosted by chief of staff Susie Wiles, also warned officials to stay on message about affordability as the midterm approach in a bid to counter the president’s unpredictable behavior and tendency to go wildly off-script.

But a rally in Georgia on Thursday, Trump did exactly that, insisting cost of living pressures were no longer an issue.

“Do you notice what word haven’t you heard over the last two weeks? Affordability. Because I’ve won. I won affordability,” Trump said.

According to the department, the slower fourth-quarter growth “reflected downturns in government spending and exports and a deceleration in consumer spending.”

But the economic backdrop presents Trump with political headwinds beyond GDP numbers. Consumer confidence has dropped to levels not seen in years, and labor-market indicators—such as slower job growth—are also raising red flags in critical swing states.

Job creation stalled as businesses juggled uncertainty over Trump’s tariffs, AI, and the administration’s immigration policies.

Commerce Department data also shows prices rose 0.4 percent in December from the previous month, up from 0.2 percent in November—the highest monthly increase since last February.

Kevin Hassett, the director of Trump’s National Economic Council admitted that slowdown was disappointing but added, “if you look at the average of the three quarters since President Trump took over, then we’re looking at growth on average at 3.2 percent over the year.”

Some of Trump’s other allies, such as Fox News’ Maria Bartiromo, were less enthusiastic.

“I’m skeptical too, because you had close to a 5 percent number just a few months ago, and now you’re talking about 1.4 percent,” she said on her show on Friday.

“Markets are on the move and the Dow is down 115,” she added.

https://www.thedailybeast.com/trump-leaks-disastrous-economic-figure-in-typo-filled-post/?

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Supreme Court strikes down Trump’s sweeping tariffs, upending central plank of his economic agenda

The Supreme Court struck down President Donald Trump’s far-reaching global tariffs on Friday, handing him a stinging loss on an issue crucial to his economic agenda. Furious about the defeat, Trump said he will impose a global 10% tariff as an alternative while pressing his trade policies by other means. The new tariffs would come under a law that restricts them to 150 days. Read more.

RELATED COVERAGE ➤

Live updates: Trump says he’ll sign an executive order to enact a 10% global tariff Trump has other tariff options after Supreme Court strikes down his worldwide import taxes Trump’s made tariffs central to his presidency. Chaos may come next Live updates: Trump considers limited strikes on Iran even as diplomat says proposed deal is near Trump administration eases limits on coal plants for emitting mercury, other toxins All truckers and bus drivers will be required to take commercial driver’s license tests in English US economic growth weaker than thought in fourth quarter with government shutdown, consumer pullback Virginia Democrats pass map that could flip 4 US House seats, if courts and voters approve US House campaigns are underway. Yet a redistricting battle triggered by Trump rages in some states Wisconsin passes expanded Medicaid for moms, would leave Arkansas as only state without it Nevada pays $100K to woman convicted for miscarriage under 1911 law House Speaker Mike Johnson denies request for Rev. Jesse Jackson to lie in honor in US Capitol

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Trump calls SCOTUS "fools"

Photo illustration: Sarah Grillo/Axios. Photo: Joe Raedle/Getty Images The Supreme Court, in a 6-3 rebuke, upended President Trump's economic and geopolitical agenda, striking down a suite of his signature tariffs today. 🚨 It marked the first time the Supreme Court definitively shut down one of Trump's second-term policies with a merits ruling. It sets a new boundary for what policies presidents can impose without congressional approval, Axios Macro author Courtenay Brown reports. 😡 At the White House today, the president said he was "absolutely ashamed" of certain justices for "not having the courage to do what's right for our country." He slammed justices as "fools and lapdogs" and a "disgrace to our nation." The president blasted the court for not releasing a decision sooner, and he accused justices of being swayed by foreign interests. Trump immediately pivoted, announcing his administration will impose 10% tariffs on countries around the world under another section of trade law. But the authority he mentioned is limited to 150 days and would require Congress to keep the levies in place. President Trump arrives in the White House press room this afternoon. Photo: Mandel Ngan/AFP via Getty Images 🔎 Still murky: How other nations will respond to the striking of tariffs that underpinned a slew of global trade deals. Businesses seem to be the big winners, but they aren't out of the woods yet. What's next: This might be just the beginning of a patchwork of new tariffs imposed by the administration to remake the sweeping levies that were deemed illegal. 💥 It could also give way to a potentially chaotic refund process. But the high court's majority didn't address that question. Go deeper ... Trump's plans.

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Steve Bannon

The former chief strategist for President Trump pushed hard for the Epstein files to be released. When they were, his close relationship with the convicted sex offender was detailed in them. ps:Just like is comrade they never thought that the people would want those files really released!!!!!