Donald Trump is being sued by unions representing United States Agency for International Development (USAID) workers, following an unprecedented attack against the humanitarian agency, which supports dozens of life-saving missions in more than 100 countries.
Thousands of USAID employees are imminently expected to lose their jobs as Trump’s administration, under Elon Musk’s guidance, makes visceral cuts across government agencies.
Meanwhile, Trump’s government buyout offer has been temporarily blocked, giving hundreds of thousands of federal workers more time to decide to take eight months of pay in exchange for their resignation or early retirement.
Elsewhere, the president has signed an executive order issuing sanctions against the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague.
Trump’s order accuses the ICC of “illegitimate and baseless actions targeting America and our close ally Israel” and imposes visa and financial sanctions on anyone working on court probes of U.S. citizens or allies.
Another key development on Thursday was the Senate’s move to confirm Project 2025 architect Russell Vought to lead the powerful Office of Management and Budget, welcoming an official who has plotted the massive expansion of Trump’s power into one of the most influential positions in government.
Key Points
- Donald Trump sued by USAID workers union for shutting down global aid agency
- Trump imposes sanctions on International Criminal Court
- Judge temporarily blocks Trump 'deferred resignation' plan for federal workers
- Justice accuses Trump of ‘ignoring’ law in stunning rebuke of birthright citizenship order
- Trump delivers meandering remarks at National Prayer Breakfast
Donald Trump sued by USAID workers union for shutting down global aid agency
08:50
Good morning!
Donald Trump is being sued by unions representing United States Agency for International Development (USAID) workers, following an unprecedented attack against the humanitarian agency, which supports dozens of life-saving missions in more than 100 countries.
Thousands of USAID employees are imminently expected to lose their jobs as Trump’s administration, under Elon Musk’s guidance, makes visceral cuts across government agencies.
Here’s Alex Woodward’s report.
Americans stockpile eggs as stores are left with empty shelves amid bird flu outbreaks
08:30
,
Oliver O'Connell
With fewer shells on shelves, customers are scrambling for new ways to get their egg fix.
Due to the bird flu outbreak, there are millions fewer hens, meaning way fewer eggs. Frustrated shoppers across the country have even started posting videos of empty shelves where eggs once lay.
Kelly Rissman reports.
Indiana looks to add 33 counties from Illinois that voted to leave the state
08:00
,
Oliver O'Connell
Indiana has looked at adding 33 counties from Illinois that signaled they want to leave the state - which could lead to whole new maps of the U.S.
Indiana House Republicans have listed embracing the counties from neighboring Illinois as one of their top 2025 legislative session priorities. House Speaker Todd Huston said Thursday that Republicans are considering the proposal after roughly a third of counties in the Prairie state voted to break away.
If successful, it will drastically alter the map for Illinoisans.
Rhian Lubin reports.
Staffer for Musk’s DOGE resigns over racist social media posts
07:30
,
Oliver O'Connell
One of the two staffers for Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency who was granted access to the US Treasury’s sensitive payment system has resigned from his post after the White House was asked about his history of racist social media posts, including advocating for repealing of the 1964 Civil Rights Act.
The Wall Street Journal reported on Thursday that Marko Elez, a 25-year-old programmer who was brought into government service by the world’s wealthiest man, had a profile on X (formerly Twitter), the social media site owned by Musk, featuring posts in which he said he supported a “eugenic immigration policy” and made other racist statements.
Andrew Feinberg has the latest from Washington, D.C.
Report: USAID to be hacked from 14,000 workers to just 294 as Trump team shreds humanitarian agency
06:30
,
Oliver O'Connell
Only 294 employees with the United States Agency for International Development have been deemed essential among 14,000 global staff members, according to CBS News.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio has reportedly said that crucial health and humanitarian aid will continue, following threats from Donald Trump and Elon Musk to dissolve the entire agency, but the administration intends to decimate its size, including limiting staff to only 12 people in Africa.
Alex Woodward reports.
ICYMI: Trump says he’s ordering attorney general to target ‘anti-Christian bias’
05:30
,
Oliver O'Connell
President Donald Trump on Thursday said he’s ordering Attorney General Pam Bondi to stand up a “task force” to “eradicate anti-Christian bias” within the United States and prosecute instances of “anti-Christian violence and vandalism.”
Speaking at a bipartisan National Prayer Breakfast at the Washington, DC Hilton hotel, Trump said the task force will be ordered to “immediately halt all forms of anti-Christian targeting and discrimination within the federal government,” including at the Department of Justice, the Internal Revenue Service and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
Andrew Feinberg reports from Washington, D.C.
Democrats lost the optics war with Joe Biden. They’re making the same mistakes all over again
05:00
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Andrew Feinberg
When the complete history of Donald Trump’s return to power from political exile is written, one of the most important players in the four-year drama that began with his 2020 election loss to Joe Biden and ended with his defeat of Biden’s handpicked successor may be a recalcitrant German Shepherd.
On November 28, 2020, then-President-elect Biden injured himself while playing with his dog, Major, at his Delaware home. According to statements issued to the press pool traveling with him at the time, Biden was taken for a CT scan that showed hairline fractures in his foot, an injury that required the use of a walking boot.
Whether it was out of vanity or stubbornness, Biden didn’t wear the boot for long, so the fracture never healed properly, leaving him with a shuffling, arthritic gait that made him look exactly like the oldest president ever to serve in the nation’s highest office.
Read more:
Pam Bondi uses her first day in office to ban federal funds from heading to 'Sanctuary Cities‘
04:30
,
Oliver O'Connell
Hours after she was sworn in, Attorney General Pam Bondi directed the Justice Department to pause all federal funding for sanctuary cities, according to a report.
Among several directives issued Wednesday, Bondi charged the DOJ with identifying and evaluating funding agreements with nongovernmental organizations that provide support to undocumented immigrants, Fox News Digital first reported.
She also tasked the department with investigating instances of sanctuary jurisdictions obstructing law enforcement and “directing they be prosecuted, when necessary,” the outlet wrote.
Kelly Rissman has the details.
Texas lawmaker explains why he’s trying to impeach Trump – even if fellow Democrats aren’t backing him
04:00
,
Katie Hawkinson
Representative Al Green announced this week he wants to introduce impeachment articles against President Donald Trump — and now, the lawmaker says he won’t lobby a single person to push it through.
Green, a firebrand Democrat from Texas, spoke on the House floor Wednesday announcing he plans to “bring articles of impeachment against the president for dastardly deeds proposed, and dastardly deeds done.” If successful, Trump would be the first president to be impeached three times — after he already became the first president to be impeached twice during his first term.
In the House speech, Green condemned Trump’s call for the U.S. to “take over” Gaza. Trump said that the U.S. would “own it” and “level the site” to “create economic development” as he met with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who later praised the idea.
Read more:
Money for projects will go to communities with high birth rates, says Trump transport sec
03:30
,
Oliver O'Connell
Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy has instructed his agency to focus their work and programming on communities with higher birth and marriage rates.
Duffy, who was confirmed by the Senate last week in a 77-22 vote, is a former Wisconsin congressperson, reality TV star and father to nine. Now, he has issued a memo ordering that all “DOT-supported or -assisted programs and activities…give preference to communities with marriage and birth rates higher than the national average.”
Katie Hawkinson reports from Washington, D.C.
Trump’s resignation offers blocked by judge hours before buyouts set to expire
03:00
,
Oliver O'Connell
A federal judge temporarily blocked President Donald Trump’s government buyout offer, giving hundreds of thousands of federal workers more time to decide to take eight months of pay in exchange for their resignation or early retirement.
Hoping to reduce the workforce by 5 to 10 percent, the Office of Personnel Management sent an email, entitled “Fork in the Road,” to much of the federal workforce – with some exceptions – last week offering to pay them through September 30 if they agreed to resign by Thursday.
However, hours before the original deadline was set to expire, District Judge George O'Toole Jr. temporarily blocked it, saying the court needed time to review the legality offer.
Ariana Baio reports.
Liz Cheney takes a swipe at Elon Musk's citizenship in online feud
02:30
,
Oliver O'Connell
Former congresswoman Liz Cheney took a jab at billionaire political adviser Elon Musk after he amplified a post on X that correlated Cheney’s disdain for President Donald Trump to her time working in the U.S. Agency for International Development.
Ariana Baio reports.
Trump sued by USAID workers union for shutting down global aid agency: ‘Profound moral stain’
02:21
,
Alex Woodward
Unions representing United States Agency for International Development workers are suing Donald Trump and his administration following an unprecedented attack against the global aid agency, which supports dozens of life-saving missions in more than 100 countries.
Thousands of USAID employees are imminently expected to lose their jobs as Trump’s administration, with Elon Musk’s guidance, makes visceral cuts across government agencies.
A lawsuit filed by government employee unions on Thursday seeks to block Trump’s “unconstitutional and illegal actions” that “have systematically dismantled” the agency, creating a “humanitarian crisis” and imperiling national security while jeopardizing thousands of jobs.
Read more:
Judge accuses Trump of ‘ignoring’ law in stunning rebuke of birthright citizenship order
02:00
,
Oliver O'Connell
A federal judge has once again blocked Donald Trump’s executive order seeking to redefine the constitution’s birthright citizenship clause, delivering a powerful rebuke from the bench to accuse the president of treating the rule of law as “impediment to his policy goals.”
District Judge John C. Coughenour, who was appointed by Ronald Reagan, issued a preliminary injunction on Thursday that blocks the order from taking effect nationally while the legal case plays out in Washington state.
Alex Woodward reports on the latest developments.
Two universities face probes in Trump crackdown on transgender athletes
01:30
,
AP
The Trump administration is investigating potential civil rights violations at two universities and a high school sports league that allowed transgender athletes to compete on women's teams, the Education Department said Thursday.
The agency is opening reviews at San Jose State University, the University of Pennsylvania and the Massachusetts Interscholastic Athletic Association.
Read on...
Indiana looks to add 33 counties from Illinois that voted to leave the state
01:00
,
Oliver O'Connell
Indiana has looked at adding 33 counties from Illinois that signaled they want to leave the state - which could lead to whole new maps of the U.S.
Indiana House Republicans have listed embracing the counties from neighboring Illinois as one of their top 2025 legislative session priorities. House Speaker Todd Huston said Thursday that Republicans are considering the proposal after roughly a third of counties in the Prairie state voted to break away.
If successful, it will drastically alter the map for Illinoisans.
Rhian Lubin reports.
Senate confirms Russell Vought as White House budget director
00:43
,
Gustaf Kilander
The Senate has confirmed Russell Vought as the next head of the Office of Management and Budget after a vote along party lines.
Democrats were unified in their opposition to Vought, noting his connections to Project 2025.
They have also criticized his willingness to cut programs that help the middle class and his rejection of the 2020 election results.
AOC claps back after MAGAworld runs wild with claims she is worth $30 million
00:30
,
Oliver O'Connell
Democratic Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez fiercely pushed back on allegations that she uses her political position for monetary gain as well as a longtime false accusation that she is a multimillionaire.
MAGA-backers on the internet have been going wild with claims the New York rep for parts of Queens and the Bronx is worth $30 million despite being paid a congressional salary of just $174,000 per year.
Ariana Baio has the story.
Trump announces sanctions on International Criminal Court for ‘targeting’ U.S. and Israel
00:07
,
Gustaf Kilander
President Donald Trump has announced sanctions against the International Criminal Court (ICC) for its supposed “targeting” of the U.S. and Israel.
Trump signed an executive order on Thursday, accusing the ICC of "illegitimate and baseless actions targeting America and our close ally Israel.”
The order puts visa and financial sanctions on people working on ICC probes of U.S. citizens or allies.
ICYMI: Google becomes the latest tech giant to fall in line with Trump
00:00
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Oliver O'Connell
Google has ditched its diverse hiring targets in the wake of President Donald Trump’s order to put an end to diversity, equity, and inclusion policies.
On his first day in office, Trump signed an executive order directing the termination of all “radical and wasteful government DEI programs and preferencing” in the federal government. Google, a federal contractor, has now become the latest tech company to change its practices, joining the likes of Meta and Amazon.
Kelly Rissman has the story.
NCAA changes transgender policy
Thursday 6 February 2025 23:30
,
AP
The NCAA changed its participation policy for transgender athletes on Thursday, limiting competition in women's sports to athletes assigned female at birth only.
The move came one day after President Donald Trump signed an executive order intended to ban transgender athletes from participating in girls’ and women’s sports. The order gives federal agencies latitude to withhold federal funding from entities that do not abide by Title IX in alignment with the Trump administration’s view, which interprets “sex” as the gender someone was assigned at birth.
Read on...
DOGE subcommittee announces first hearing
Thursday 6 February 2025 23:10
,
Oliver O'Connell
The House Subcommittee on Delivering on Government Efficiency (DOGE) will hold its first hearing on February 12 at 10 a.m.
THE WAR ON WASTE @DOGECommittee is leading the charge to root out fraud and waste in the federal government. Billions of YOUR money lost with improper payments.
— DOGE Subcommittee (@DOGECommittee) February 6, 2025
FIRST HEARING. 2.12.25. 10:00 AM pic.twitter.com/sYrNkD2wCM
Environmentalists sue after feds allows new drilling permits in San Joaquin Valley
Thursday 6 February 2025 23:00
,
Oliver O'Connell
A slew of health and environmental groups are suing the Bureau of Land Management over its approval of permits for new oil and gas drilling on Central California’s public lands - which is home to some of the country’s most polluted cities.
A complaint filed in the U.S. Eastern District Court of California claims that the federal agency’s decision is at the expense of public health, the environment and the law. It adds that the bureau had never analyzed the harms of its good approvals on nearby communities.
Julia Musto reports.
Republican’s wild claim that US spent ‘$15 million for condoms for the Taliban’ stuns CNN anchor
Thursday 6 February 2025 22:50
,
Oliver O'Connell
CNN anchor Boris Sanchez was left flabbergasted when a Republican member of the Congressional DOGE Caucus repeatedly insisted that the United States had set aside millions of dollars in foreign aid to purchase condoms for the Taliban.
Justin Baragona has the story.
Trump imposes sanctions on International Criminal Court
Thursday 6 February 2025 22:43
,
Oliver O'Connell
President Donald Trump on Thursday authorized economic and travel sanctions against individuals involved in International Criminal Court investigations of U.S. citizens or U.S. allies, including Israel, reiterating an action he took during his first term.
The move coincides with a visit to Washington by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who, along with his former defense minister and a leader of the Palestinian militant group Hamas, is wanted by the ICC for the war in the Gaza Strip.
It remains unclear how quickly the U.S. will announce the names of those sanctioned. During the first Trump administration in 2020, Washington imposed sanctions on then-prosecutor Fatou Bensouda and one of her top aides in response to the ICC's investigation into alleged war crimes by American troops in Afghanistan.
The ICC did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Reuters. The sanctions include freezing any U.S. assets of the designated individuals and prohibiting them and their families from entering the United States.
With reporting from Reuters
Watch: Trump mocks Biden for signing with Hollywood talent agency
Thursday 6 February 2025 22:40
,
Oliver O'Connell
Americans stockpile eggs as stores are left with empty shelves amid bird flu outbreaks
Thursday 6 February 2025 22:30
,
Oliver O'Connell
With fewer shells on shelves, customers are scrambling for new ways to get their egg fix.
Due to the bird flu outbreak, there are millions fewer hens, meaning way fewer eggs. Frustrated shoppers across the country have even started posting videos of empty shelves where eggs once lay.
Kelly Rissman reports.
Trump's view on transgender athletes resonates among some candidates running for IOC president
Thursday 6 February 2025 22:20
,
AP
Whether to allow transgender athletes to compete in women’s sports already was a key debate among Olympic leaders before U.S. President Donald Trump signed an executive order that puts pressure on them before the 2028 Summer Games in Los Angeles.
In a speech before signing the document on Wednesday, Trump said he wants the International Olympic Committee to change everything “having to do with this absolutely ridiculous subject.”
Outgoing IOC President Thomas Bach, who had a tense meeting with Trump during his first term in the White House, has avoided taking a strong stance on the subject, but many of the seven candidates running to replace him this year have.
Continue reading...
Full story: Staffer for Musk’s DOGE resigns over racist social media posts
Thursday 6 February 2025 22:05
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Oliver O'Connell