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    Democrat Hits Musk With Graphic Insult In Viral Clip Before Facing Immediate Backlash

    By
    Madeleine Jackson
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    2

    Texas Rep. Jasmine Crockett (D) caused a social media firestorm after telling Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) chief Elon Musk to “f— off” in the latest example of her public opposition to the newly formed agency.

    “F— off,” Crockett told reporter Joe Gallina outside Capitol Hill on Tuesday when asked what she would tell Musk if she could tell him anything.

    Crockett’s reaction immediately drew blowback from conservatives on social media, who took issue with the liberal firebrand’s tone.

    “The face of the American left, ladies and gentlemen,” conservative account Johnny MAGA posted on X.

    Many Democrats in Congress have been highly critical of Musk and DOGE, arguing that the billions in cuts the agency has announced are slashing important government resources and being done too quickly.

    “DOGE is pretty cruel. Let’s be blunt about that,” Hawaii Democratic Gov. Josh Green said during a press conference last week with other Democratic governors. “These are people in our states that have worked long careers, very dedicated servants, and they’re getting kicked out of their lives.”

    A recent poll, amplified by Musk on social media, suggests that a majority of the American people support DOGE’s mission.

    The Harvard CAPS-Harris poll revealed a majority of Americans support reducing wasteful government spending. Most voters agree there should be a government agency dedicated to efficiency and that DOGE is helping to make major spending cuts, the nonprobability-based poll found. 

    Trump Names Former Fox Star As Deputy FBI Director

    By
    Madeleine Jackson
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    0
    Gage Skidmore Flickr

    Trump announced on Sunday that Dan Bongino will be the next deputy director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). Bongino is a former Secret Service agent and will serve under Kash Patel.

    Bongino is a former Fox News host and well-known conservative podcaster who supported Trump throughout the 2024 election. He is a close ally of Patel and will now serve directly under him at the FBI, according to a Sunday night post made by Trump on Truth Social.

    Bongino and Patel will report directly to Attorney General Pam Bondi.

    Dan Bongino via Gage Skidmore Flickr

    On Truth Social, Trump praised Bongino for his past service in the Secret Service and “as one of the most successful podcasters in the country.” The president also pointed to Bongino’s service in the New York Police Department.

    Great news for Law Enforcement and American Justice! Dan Bongino, a man of incredible love and passion for our Country, has just been named the next DEPUTY DIRECTOR OF THE FBI, by the man who will be the best ever Director, Kash Patel. Dan has a Masters Degree in Psychology from C.U.N.Y., and an MBA from Penn State. He was a member of the New York Police Department (New York’s Finest!), a highly respected Special Agent with the United States Secret Service, and is now one of the most successful Podcasters in the Country, something he is willing and prepared to give up in order to serve. Working with our great new United States Attorney General, Pam Bondi, and Director Patel, Fairness, Justice, Law and Order will be brought back to America, and quickly. Congratulations Dan!

    In a follow-up post, Trump said, “Another aspect of the life of Dan Bongino that I think is very important. He has a great wife, Paula, and two wonderful daughters who truly love their dad. What an incredible job Dan will do!!!”

    Last week, the Senate voted to confirm Patel along party lines.

    During his confirmation hearing, Patel pledged to depoliticize the FBI and restore accountability within the Bureau. However, Democrats continued to vigorously criticize his close ties to President Trump and questioned his qualifications and impartiality.

    Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) warned last week, “My prediction is if you vote for Kash Patel, more than any other confirmation vote you make, you will come to regret this one to your grave.” Other Democrats attacked Patel over his comments on the 2020 election, his defense of Jan. 6 defendants and concerns that he could lead a purge at the Bureau.

    As he begins his 10-year term, Patel faces major tasks ahead, having articulated a comprehensive agenda aimed at restructuring the FBI to enhance its efficiency and public trust.

    White House Issues Statement Clarifying Musk’s Role With DOGE

    By
    Madeleine Jackson
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    6
    UK Government, CC BY 2.0 , via Wikimedia Commons

    All eyes are on Elon Musk…

    The White House said Monday that Elon Musk is technically not part of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), even though the tech billionaire is said to be leading its sweeping cost-cutting efforts. 

    Musk is an employee of the “White House Office” and serves as senior advisor to the president, said Joshua Fisher, director of the White House Office of Administration, in a court filing. 

    The Tesla and SpaceX CEO is not an employee of the U.S. DOGE Service or the U.S. DOGE Service Temporary Organization, both of which are separate from the White House Office, according to Fisher. 

    He is also not the U.S. DOGE Service administrator, the head of DOGE as laid out in President Trump’s executive order last month establishing the service. 

    “In his role as a Senior Advisor to the President, Mr. Musk has no greater authority than other senior White House advisors,” Fisher said in his declaration to the court.  

    “Like other senior Whtie House advisors, Mr. Musk has no actual or formal authority to make government decisions himself,” he continued. “Mr. Musk can only advise the President and communicate the President’s directives.”

    Fisher compared Musk’s role to Anita Dunn, who served as a senior advisor to former President Biden. 

    The announcement comes as part of a lawsuit brought by 14 states against Musk, Trump and DOGE last week, arguing that the government role of the world’s richest man is unconstitutional because he has not been confirmed by the Senate.  

    “Mr. Musk’s seemingly limitless and unchecked power to strip the government of its workforce and eliminate entire departments with the stroke of a pen or click of a mouse would have been shocking to those who won this country’s independence,” the states wrote.  

    “There is no office of the United States, other than the President, with the full power of the Executive Branch, and the sweeping authority now vested in a single unelected and unconfirmed individual is antithetical to the nation’s entire constitutional structure,” they continued.   

    The states initially asked the court to bar Musk and the DOGE team from taking a wide range of actions, including making changes to government contracts, regulations, personnel or the disbursement of public funds, as well as receiving access to or altering data systems. 

    The Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) in a post on its website says it has found $55 billion in savings through a combination of efforts, including a reduction in the federal workforce.

    It said it estimated it had realized $55 billion in savings by canceling or renegotiating leases and contracts, selling assets, cancelling grants, finding regulatory savings, making programmatic changes to the government and reducing the workforce.

    Other top agencies that DOGE said it had cut contracts from include the Department of Health and Human Services, Department of Agriculture (USDA), Department of Homeland Security (DHS), General Services Administration (GSA), Department of Commerce, Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Department of Housing and Urban Development.

    On Tuesday, the Social Security Administration’s acting leader stepped down from her role over requests from the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) to access recipient data, according to The Hill.

    Acting Commissioner Michelle King departed from the agency over the weekend after more than 30 years of service. She allegedly refused to provide DOGE staffers with sensitive information.

    House Democrat Announces Abrupt Exit From DOGE

    By
    Madeleine Jackson
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    10

    Late Thursday, Rep. Val Hoyle (D-Ore.) announced her departure from the congressional Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) Caucus over Elon Musk’s cost-cutting measures in the executive branch.

    Hoyle made the announcement via a statement and said her intentions on the caucus were to serve as a good steward for her constituents’ tax dollars and to make the government more streamlined and efficient. 

    However, she said Musk’s actions, which are separate from the congressional caucus, have made that impossible, and she claimed DOGE’s work is to find funds to give tax breaks to billionaires at the expense of working people.

    “I joined to be a voice for working people and their interests. But it is impossible to fix the system when Elon Musk is actively breaking it, so I have made the decision to leave,” Hoyle wrote on X late Thursday. 

    “It is impossible for us to do that important work when unelected billionaire Elon Musk and his lackeys [insist] on burning down the government—and the law—to line his own pockets and rip off Americans across the country who depend on government services to live with dignity,” she wrote in an accompanying statement. 

    Hoyle said she was alarmed about Musk’s team accessing sensitive Department of Treasury payment systems. She also accused his team of using intimidation tactics to “terrorize the hard-working public servants” who deliver these services.

    On Thursday, a federal judge temporarily blocked the DOGE from obtaining access to any payment record or payment system of records maintained within the Treasury’s Bureau of Fiscal Service. (RELATED: Federal Judge Pauses Trump Federal Worker Buyouts)

    Hoyle said that if she thought that she, or Democrats or Republicans on the caucus had any influence, then she would stay. 

    “But, fundamentally, I don’t see how we can actually do this work when Elon Musk is blowing things up,” she told NewsNation Thursday. “It’s like trying to replace your roof when someone’s throwing dynamite through the window.

    “So I’m leaving the DOGE Caucus, I will continue to do the work to find efficiencies, but right now I just don’t think it’s possible with what’s happening.”

    DOGE has focused much of its initial work on canceling DEI programs, consulting contracts and lease terminations for federal buildings.

    The agency wrote on Tuesday that it canceled 12 contracts with the Government Services Administration and the Department of Education, resulting in a total savings of about $30 million. It also canceled 12 underused leases for savings of $3 million. On Monday, DOGE said it canceled 36 contracts, leading to savings of about $165 million across six agencies.

    Federal Judge Pauses Trump Federal Worker Buyouts

    By
    Madeleine Jackson
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    5

    A federal judge on Thursday extended the deadline for federal workers to accept the Trump administration’s sweeping buyout offer. 

    The move comes as the government had set a Thursday deadline for federal workers to determine whether they wanted to take the deal – something they could do by simply replying “resign.”

    Workers will now have until Monday to accept the deal, giving more time to weigh the unusual offer.

    The buyouts promise employees eight months of pay and benefits in exchange for leaving the federal workforce, telling workers they would be off the hook for showing up to work and would be free to get another job.

    “We are pleased the court temporarily paused this deadline while arguments are heard about the legality of the deferred resignation program. We continue to believe this program violates the law, and we will continue to aggressively defend our members’ rights,” American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) president Everett Kelley said in a statement.

    This is a breaking news story. Please check back for updates.

    Federal Judge Orders Limited DOGE Access To Treasury Payment System

    By
    Madeleine Jackson
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    3
    UK Government, CC BY 2.0 , via Wikimedia Commons

    On Thursday, a federal judge temporarily blocked the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) from obtaining access to certain Treasury Department payment records.

    Treasury officials “will not provide access to any payment record or payment system of records maintained within the [Treasury] Bureau of Fiscal Service,” Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly wrote in a temporary restraining order.

    That program handles an estimated 90% of federal payments. 

    The order comes after the Justice Department on Wednesday agreed in a proposed court order to limit access to the sensitive records to only two “special government employees” within DOGE, who will have read-only permission. Kollar-Kotelly approved the motion in a brief order Thursday.

    Several government employee unions brought suit over who could access the material as part of a government-wide evaluation of programs and systems, led by DOGE. 

    dcd-afra-v-bessentDownload

    The lawsuit claimed Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent allowed improper access to Elon Musk’s team, potentially exposing personal financial information to unauthorized individuals. 

    Under the order, only Musk ally Tom Krause, CEO of Cloud Software Group, and Marko Elez – an engineer and former Musk company employee — will continue to have access to Treasury’s Fiscal Service, but they will not be allowed to make any changes to the program. 

    Report: Trump Drafting Executive Order To Dismantle Dept. Of Education

    By
    Madeleine Jackson
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    5

    Top Trump officials are reportedly circulating a draft executive order to begin the process of dismantling the Department of Education.

    The draft order would be a step toward fulfilling a key campaign promise President Donald Trump made to return education policy back to the states. The order would not direct the dismantling of the department, but request a plan to do so from the Education secretary, according to ABC News.

    The order would also call on Congress to pass legislation striking the department from federal statute. Trump may sign the order soon, according to ABC News, however, no set date has been determined.

    The order, if signed, would likely be carried out by Trump’s nominee to head the Department of Education, Linda McMahon. Some officials in the Trump administration are pushing for the president to hold off signing the order until after McMahon’s confirmation, according to The Wall Street Journal, presumably to avoid hindering her nomination in the Senate.

    McMahon’s nomination is currently paused in the Senate as lawmakers wait to receive ethics paperwork. Her nomination hearing has not been scheduled.

    The Department of Government Efficiency, the government cost-cutting crusade led by Elon Musk, has begun to look at ways of trimming the Department of Education through executive action, according to The Washington Post.

    Trump could order cuts to certain areas of the Department of Education and roll back or stop some controversial actions the department took under former President Joe Biden, such as mass forgiveness of student loans. Deconstructing the department would take an act of Congress, however.

    This is a breaking news story. Please check back for updates.

    Report: USAID Closes HQ To Staffers Monday As Musk Says Trump Supports Shutting Agency Down

    By
    Madeleine Jackson
    -
    1
    UK Government, CC BY 2.0 , via Wikimedia Commons

    A significant development…

    U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) staffers said that they tracked over 600 workers who reported getting locked out of the USAID computer systems overnight, according to the Associated Press. People who remained in the system got emails stating that “at the direction of Agency leadership” the headquarters facility “will be closed to Agency personnel on Monday, Feb. 3.”

    Elon Musk, who is spearheading the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) effort, had said during an X spaces conversation that President Donald Trump agreed that the USAID should be shut down.

    Musk indicated that the shut-down process is underway. 

    He said that unlike an apple contaminated by a worm, the agency is “a bowl of worms.”

    This is a breaking news story. Please check back for updates.

    White House Budget Office Rescinds Federal Funding Freeze

    By
    Madeleine Jackson
    -
    3
    Photo via Gage Skidmore Flickr

    Just in…

    The Trump’s administration’s Office of Management and Budget released a memo Wednesday rescinding a controversial order that froze a wide swath of federal financial assistance, which had paralyzed many federal programs and caused a huge uproar on Capitol Hill.

    The decision came amid strong behind-the-scenes pushback from Republican lawmakers on Capitol Hill, according to a GOP senator who was apprised of the decision to reverse the policy order.

    The reversal was signed by Matthew Vaeth, the acting director of the White House budget office.

    The order, issued Monday evening from Matthew Vaeth, the acting director of the Office of Management and Budget, sent shockwaves across the country and drew outrage from politicians

    The funding freeze was originally scheduled to kick in at 5:00 pm ET on Tuesday and expected to remain in place through at least mid-February, The New York Times reported. Vaeth’s memo ordered that all federal agencies “must temporarily pause all activities related to obligation or disbursement of all Federal financial assistance, and other relevant agency activities that may be implicated by the executive orders, including, but not limited to, financial assistance for foreign aid, nongovernmental organizations, DEI, woke gender ideology, and the green new deal.”

    The memo swiftly drew a legal challenge filed by several nonprofit groups, arguing that it violated both the First Amendment and federal law on how executive orders can be implemented, and the plaintiffs secured an emergency hearing that took place just minutes before the funding freeze was set to go into effect.

    This is a breaking news story. Please check back for updates.

    Judge Temporarily Blocks Trump’s Order Pausing Federal Aid Funding

    By
    Madeleine Jackson
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    0

    A federal judge has temporarily blocked President Donald Trump’s effort to freeze all federal aid funding.

    The order, issued Monday evening from Matthew Vaeth, the acting director of the Office of Management and Budget, sent shockwaves across the country and drew outrage from politicians

    The funding freeze was originally scheduled to kick in at 5:00 pm ET on Tuesday and expected to remain in place through at least mid-February, The New York Times reported. Vaeth’s memo ordered that all federal agencies “must temporarily pause all activities related to obligation or disbursement of all Federal financial assistance, and other relevant agency activities that may be implicated by the executive orders, including, but not limited to, financial assistance for foreign aid, nongovernmental organizations, DEI, woke gender ideology, and the green new deal.”

    The memo swiftly drew a legal challenge filed by several nonprofit groups, arguing that it violated both the First Amendment and federal law on how executive orders can be implemented, and the plaintiffs secured an emergency hearing that took place just minutes before the funding freeze was set to go into effect.

    US District Judge Loren L. AliKhan issued a ruling imposing a temporary hold, saying it would be “a way of preserving the status quo” and give the court time to consider the challenge more fully and issue a permanent ruling by Feb. 3.

    This administrative stay was “really for the court’s benefit,” said the judge. “It’s really for the court to have full briefing” and properly consider the arguments from the plaintiffs and the Trump administration.

    The funding that appeared to be affected by the memo involved “programs that affect people’s lives,” said CNN reporter JeffZeleny, including Head Start, Meals on Wheels, and various Medicaid programs. The White House had insisted there would be no pause on spending that affected people directly, but there was still “so much confusion,” he added, and multiple states reported their Medicaid website portals — the way people get Medicaid reimbursements — were “simply not working.”

    This order paused the funding freeze until next Monday, Feb. 3, Zeleny concluded, “and then there will be more court cases to come, obviously. But it is just the latest example of the president and the Trump administration’s exertion of their executive authority.”

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