Monday, February 3, 2025

February 3, 2024

Good morning,

Welcome to the news for independent thinkers

Leading the News . . .

Musk Moves With Lightning Speed to Exert Control Over the Government . . . Elon Musk's allies are moving swiftly to exert control over vast swaths of the U.S. government, as they demand access to sensitive information at federal agencies and lay out plans to block spending they deem excessive. Musk oversaw a successful effort by his representatives to get direct access to a payment system that distributes trillions of dollars to Americans each year. And individuals working for DOGE accessed the U.S. Agency for International Development following a clash with security officials. Wall Street Journal

Musk calls USAID a 'criminal organization' that should 'die' . . . Tech billionaire Elon Musk said he believes the U.S. Agency for International Development is a "criminal organization" that should "die." "USAID is a criminal organization. Time for it to die," Musk posted to the social platform X, which he owns. Musk was responding to the news that senior officials at USAID physically attempted to block people from Musk's new advisory board, the "Department of Government Efficiency," from having access to secure systems, NBC News reported. The Hill

USAID security leaders on leave after denying DOGE access to classified documents . . . Two senior security officials with the United States Agency for International Development were placed on leave by the Trump administration after refusing to hand over classified documents to a Department of Government Efficiency inspection team, according to a report. The two USAID security officials were legally required to deny Elon Musk's government inspection teams access to the documents since they did not have the proper security clearances to access the documents, a current and former U.S. official told the Associated Press. Washington Examiner

Politics

Vatican vs Trump? Francis appoints as Washington archbishop one of Church's most progressive voices . . . Exactly two weeks before Donald Trump began his second term as president, Pope Francis appointed one of the Catholic Church's most progressive voices as the new Archbishop of Washington. Was it a provocation? Absolutely not, say Vatican insiders. But that doesn't mean there won't be fireworks in the future. A Trump critic, Cardinal Robert McElroy, 70, was formally introduced in St. Matthew's Cathedral as Washington's new archbishop on Jan. 6. Just the News

Biden Quietly Funneled $3 Mil to Palestinian Government 'Security Forces' for Weapons Training . . . The Biden administration, weeks before leaving power, funneled more than $3 million in taxpayer cash to the Palestinian Authority Security Forces (PASF), according to a nonpublic notice transmitted to Congress that was reviewed by the Washington Free Beacon. Those funds allowed the PASF to conduct "firearms and ammunition" training—and came after its members carried out scores of attacks against Israelis. Washington Free Beacon

Automatic voter registration let non-citizens in South Dakota, Oregon onto voter rolls, report says . . . A new election integrity report examining how non-citizens have been registered to vote in South Dakota and Oregon warns that automatic voter registration is the culprit. A report released by the Public Interest Legal Foundation last week shows that both South Dakota and Oregon, which have automatic voter registration, found non-citizens on their respective voter rolls last year. The report explains that this occurs easily and warns states about using automatic voter registration. Just the News

Driscoll refuses order to list FBI employees involved in Jan. 6 cases amid ouster of agency leaders . . . Acting FBI Director Brian Driscoll is on shaky ground with Department of Justice leaders for refusing to deliver the names of bureau employees involved in Jan. 6 cases and other Trump investigations. President Trump tapped Mr. Driscoll, an FBI veteran, to lead the bureau temporarily while his nominee for director, Kash Patel, goes through the Senate confirmation process. But questions remain over whether Mr. Driscoll can stay in the job before Mr. Patel is confirmed and sworn in. Washington Times

Lee Zeldin Hits the Ground Running at EPA . . . Two years after a train derailment exposed residents of East Palestine, Ohio, to hazardous chemicals, the new leader of the Environmental Protection Agency is making the village his first official visit Monday. Lee Zeldin, a former New York congressman from Long Island, won his Senate confirmation vote Wednesday afternoon, spent Thursday and Friday meeting with agency employees, and now heads with Vice President JD Vance to the Ohio community still reeling from the catastrophic train crash on Feb. 3, 2023. Daily Signal

Culture

Buttigieg Axes Pronouns on Social Media Amid Michigan Senate Speculation . . . Recent developments suggest Buttigieg is already positioning himself for higher office. Online sleuths noticed that Buttigieg recently removed the "he/him" pronouns from his social media bios, following in the footsteps of other prominent Democrats, including Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Elizabeth Warren, in a largely futile effort to appear less crazy to normal voters. Washington Free Beacon

Pronouns are becoming uncool, a sign that Trump is actually changing the culture. Apparently there is a limit to the amount of nuttiness Americans will tolerate.

'Indigenous Knowledge' Pseudoscience Thrives in Newsom's Government . . . Since Newsom entered office six years ago, the California state government has allocated hundreds of millions of dollars on programs promoting the idea, which the state also refers to as "traditional ecological knowledge," and has leveraged it across several government functions, including wildfire mitigation, energy development, wildlife recovery, and land conservation, the documents show. The Newsom administration has made indigenous knowledge a central pillar of its climate agenda in particular. Washington Free Beacon

National Security

Russia Is Winning the Race to Dominate the Arctic . . . Things in the Arctic have never been hotter. In the past year, Russian nuclear submarines have practiced firing cruise missiles near NATO members Norway, Finland and Sweden. When Russian and Chinese bombers flew together north of Alaska in August, Republican Sen. Lisa Murkowski described the move as an "unprecedented provocation by our adversaries." The following month, Russia and China sent patrol boats through icy waters of the high north. Wall Street Journal

Panama pledges to end key canal deal with China, work with US after Rubio visit . . . Panama's president vowed Sunday to end a key development deal with China after meeting with Secretary of State Marco Rubio and after complaints from President Donald Trump that the Latin American country had ceded control over its critical shipping canal to Beijing. José Raúl Mulino, Panama's president, said he would not renew a 2017 memorandum of understanding to join China's Belt and Road global development initiative and that Panama would instead look to work more closely with the U.S. Fox News

Art of the Deal: Trump threatens to take over the canal, but then negotiates down for something he wants.

The role of US Military at Southern Border

Anti-Trump Deportation Protesters Wave Mexican Flags Across U.S. . . . Hundreds of protesters marched in streets across the U.S. on Sunday to protest President Donald Trump's deportation policies. Protesters in Dallas shouted "Mexico, Mexico, Mexico" while carrying Mexican flags. A video posted on X by Keep Dallas Safe shows dozens of protesters marching in the streets while carrying Mexican flags. In Los Angeles, hundreds of protesters shut down the 101 Freeway in both directions. Breitbart

Homan says border crossings down 93% under Trump: 'We've got more work to do'

Trans, vegan terror cult tied to recent murder of Border Patrol agent and at least three others . . . The "Ziz Cult" has been blamed for a string of brutal slayings and mayhem across the United States, including the fatal shooting of a Border Patrol agent in Vermont. A nationwide manhunt is underway for Michelle Zajko, a transgender, nonbinary person who police believe bought the semiautomatic weapons used by two other transgender people who fatally shot Border Patrol agent David Maland on Jan. 20 during a traffic stop in Coventry, Vermont. Washington Times

International

Canadian fans boo US anthem as tariffs spur 'buy local' pledge . . . A few hours after President Donald Trump announced that he would impose steep tariffs on Canada, hockey fans in the capital Ottawa booed the Star-Spangled Banner during a National Hockey League game against a visiting US team. On Sunday, during a National Basketball Association game between the Toronto Raptors and the Los Angeles Clippers, it happened again, continuing throughout the song and almost drowning out the 15-year-old singer's arena performance. BBC

Trump Cuts Off Funding to South Africa over Racial Land Confiscation . . . President Donald Trump announced Sunday that he is suspending all U.S. aid to South Africa after the latter passed a law on land expropriation, which many fear could lead to Zimbabwe-style seizures of land owned by white citizens. South Africa received $273 million from the U.S. in 2023, according to ForeignAssistance.gov. (Reuters puts the sum at $440 million). That includes funding for the President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR). South Africa also has key trade deals with the U.S. Breitbart

Wonder who convinced him to do that?

Money

Trump fires CFPB chief Rohit Chopra after push from Wall Street . . . President Donald Trump has removed Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Director Rohit Chopra from office as calls intensified for the CFPB chief to be fired. Chopra, a protege of Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), was a surprising holdover from the Biden administration, given that many appointees resigned as Trump entered office. Chopra, 42, announced his departure in a Saturday post on social media. Washington Examiner

Now eliminate the agency.

EU tariffs 'pretty soon,' but UK can be worked out, Trump says . . . President Donald Trump has hinted the European Union could be next to face tariffs, after he slapped 25% levies on goods from Mexico and Canada along with an additional 10% tax on imports from China. While arriving into Maryland from Florida, Trump told the BBC that tariffs on EU goods imported into the US could happen "pretty soon". BBC

Canada's tariff list targets GOP states, Trump allies . . . There are 1,256 items in the first tranche of tariffs that will come into force on Tuesday. The list includes oranges and fruit from Florida, home to Trump's Mar-a-Lago resort; household appliances from South Carolina and Ohio, states to Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) and Vice President J.D. Vance; and motorcycles and coffee from southern Pennsylvania, which helped return Trump to the White House. The full list, which you can read here, contains food and agriculture products, textiles and furniture.You should also know. Politico

You should also know . . .

Trevor Noah leads anti-Trump roast at the Grammys . . . A-list celebs and musicians used their night in Hollywood to stand up for DEI policies, transgender rights and take a swipe at President Donald Trump's looming tariffs. Artists from Shakira to Lady Gaga, and host Trevor Noah, spoke out on the state of affairs in the United States throughout the hours-long broadcast of the 67th annual Grammy Awards in Los Angeles. 'We're going to be honoring the best in music as voted on by the 13,000 members of the Recording Academy... and 20 million illegal immigrants,' Trevor said. Daily Mail

Nobody cares what Hollywood thinks anymore.

Defense Department Orders 'Unique' Move Against Media Establishment . . . CNN's Pentagon producer, Haley Britzky, shared an internal memo by acting Pentagon spokesman John Ullyot to the Pentagon Press Association announcing the "annual media rotation program." The program will see One America News Network replace NBC News, Breitbart replace National Public Radio (NPR), the New York Post replace The New York Times and HuffPost replace Politico in the coveted "Correspondents' Corridor" effective Feb. 14, 2025. Daily Caller

Jimmy Carter awarded posthumous Grammy . . . Prior to his passing, Carter was nominated in the audio book, narration, and storytelling recording category at the 2025 Grammys for "Last Sundays in Plains: A Centennial Celebration," recordings from his final Sunday School lessons delivered at Maranatha Baptist Church in Georgia. Musicians Darius Rucker, Lee Ann Rimes and Jon Batiste are featured on the record. It's Carter's fourth Grammy. Politic0

At what point do we stop celebrating the worst president of the 20th Century, who in his widely-lauded post-presidency gave us a nuclear North Korea?

List of Grammys 2025 winners: Beyonce finally wins best album after Jay-Z tantrum; Taylor Swift gets snubbed

Guilty Pleasures

Kanye West and girlfriend escorted out of Grammys by polices after she arrives naked . . . Kanye West and Bianca Censori were hit by rumors they were 'escorted out' of the 2025 Grammys Sunday 'by police' after her naked red carpet stunt shocked the world. The designer, 30, who has previously shocked with risque displays , bared it all in a completely see-through nude mesh dress, worn without underwear. She turned around to show off her topless chest and lack of underwear while West - nominated in the Best Rap Song category - leered at her nude body. Daily Mail

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