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11:30 AM ET, February 7, 2025

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 Top Items: 
The Atlantic:
The Government's Computing Experts Say They Are Terrified … Elon musk's unceasing attempts to access the data and information systems of the federal government range so widely, and are so unprecedented and unpredictable, that government computing experts believe the effort has spun out of control.
RELATED:
Katherine Long / Wall Street Journal:
Exclusive |  DOGE Staffer Resigns Over Racist Posts  —  A staffer for Elon Musk's Department of Government Efficiency whose access to U.S. Treasury payment systems was approved by a federal judge on Thursday has links to a deleted social-media account that advocated for racism and eugenics.
ProPublica:
Elon Musk's Demolition Crew  —  On President Donald Trump's authority alone, Elon Musk, the world's richest man, has been unleashed on federal agencies.  Employees from Musk's companies and those of his allies, as well as young staffers he's recruited, are wresting authority from career workers and commandeering computer systems.
Shelby Talcott / Semafor:
DOGE follows longtime Musk pattern — and turns attention to Social Security Administration  —  The News  —  Elon Musk's DOGE shuttered USAID.  It has searched Medicare payments and gained access to a sensitive Treasury Department payment system.  Its initial Labor Department presence prompted a lawsuit.
Dominick Mastrangelo / The Hill:   New Time cover features Musk behind Resolute Desk
Ella Nilsen / CNN:   Trump energy secretary allowed 23-year-old DOGE rep to access IT systems over objections from general counsel
Gordon Brown / The Guardian:
Be clear about what Trump and Musk's aid axe will do: people will face terror and starve, many will die  —  The decimation of USAid is already having a terrible effect in some of the poorest places on the planet.  It damages America: it will harm us all  —  An earthquake of magnitude 7.0 or above could not have caused more carnage.
Discussion: New York Times
RELATED:
Samantha Power / New York Times:
I Ran U.S.A.I.D. Killing It Is a Win for Autocrats Everywhere.  —  We are witnessing one of the worst and most costly foreign policy blunders in U.S. history.  Less than three weeks into Donald Trump's second term, he, Elon Musk and Secretary of State Marco Rubio have halted the U.S. Agency …
New Republic:
Transcript: Trump's Angry USAID Rant Undercut by Surprise Rubio Video
NPR:
USAID unions sue Trump administration to halt ‘unconstitutional and illegal’ cuts
Juan Carlos Lara / KQED:
FCC Investigates SF Radio Station for ICE Reporting, Sparking Press Freedom Fears  —  The Federal Communications Commission is investigating San Francisco-based KCBS for its coverage of immigration enforcement actions in San José last month, sparking concerns from press freedom advocates …
German Lopez / New York Times:
A Constitutional Crisis?  —  We're covering an imbalance of power in the government.  —  In the United States, Congress, the president and the courts are supposed to keep an eye on one another — to stop any one branch of government from becoming too powerful.
Discussion: Unfogged
RELATED:
Isaac Chotiner / New Yorker:
Do Democrats Have a Plan?  —  Senator Brian Schatz on how the Party should be responding to Donald Trump's breakneck assault on the government.  —  Three weeks into office, President Trump has issued a slew of controversial executive orders, fired officials across government agencies …
Matthew Continetti / freebeacon.com:
Trump's Youth Revolution
Discussion: American Thinker
Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget:
Trump Tax Priorities Total $5 to $11 Trillion  —  In a closed-door meeting with House Leadership today President Trump reportedly outlined his tax priorities.  According to press reports, they included extending the expiring pieces of the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA); …
RELATED:
Jarrell Dillard / Bloomberg:
Trump's Threatened Tariffs Fall Far Short of Paying for Tax Cuts
Discussion: DNyuz
Riley Rogerson / NOTUS:
‘The Clock Is Ticking’: Republicans Are Unexpectedly Careening Toward a Government Shutdown  —  “We're doing the best we can with the cards we have and the players we have around the table,” House Appropriations Chair Tom Cole said.  — Copy  —  Republicans are already staring …
Discussion: Raw Story
RELATED:
Adam Nagourney / New York Times:
Trump's Power Grab Defies G.O.P. Orthodoxy on Local Control
Discussion: Washington Post
Newsweek:
DOGE Emails Went Out to Federal Judges by Mistake  —  One of the people who received an email from allies of  —  was a federal judge overseeing a lawsuit aimed at blocking these messages.  —  “I, like probably every other judge in the country, also received the [Office of Personnel Management] …
Roy Canivel / The Daily Dot:
Conservative film critic who called child trafficking movie a ‘call to action’ arrested for child molestation  —  In 2023, Aaron Craig Gleason wrote a review for the conservative publication the Federalist about The Sound of Freedom, an indie hit and a favorite among right-wing circles.
Discussion: Mediaite and Raw Story
Public Notice:
The “cognitively irresponsible” presidency  —  “It's a giveaway that a leader is an authoritarian,” Jen Mercieca tells us.  —  ∙ Paid … 🗣️ 🎤 🤯  —  The volume of BS that Donald Trump blasts into the public sphere on a daily basis is flabbergasting.
Robert Downen / The Texas Tribune:
Houston man pardoned by Trump arrested on child sex charge  —  Andrew Taake received a six-year sentence for assaulting officers on Jan. 6.  He was arrested Thursday on an outstanding charge of soliciting a minor.  —  A Houston man who was recently pardoned by President Donald Trump for his role …
Bill Allison / Bloomberg:
Trump Fires Head of Federal Election Panel, But She Won't Leave  — Commissioner Ellen Weintraub says procedures weren't followed  — Weintraub, a frequent Trump antagonist, joined the FEC in 2002  —  The chairwoman of the Federal Election Commission posted a letter from President Donald …
RELATED:
Chris Cameron / New York Times:
Federal Election Commission Chair Says Trump Has Moved to Fire Her
Annie Porter / Slate:
I Work in the Office Carrying Out the Government Purge.  Here's What I Want You to Know.  —  We're as freaked out and angry as everyone else.  —  I'm a career civil servant at the federal government's Office of Personnel Management, and I'm sorry.  Normally, the only time anyone hears …
Discussion: Washington Post, Steady and Raw Story
Russell Contreras / Axios:
Exclusive: Jewish groups rebuke Trump on immigration, Musk moves … - The groups emphasize that legitimate policy debates and disagreements are fine — and note that there are disputes among the letter's signees — but say Trump's recent actions go far beyond that.
Discussion: Sun-Sentinel
Adi Robertson / The Verge:
Mentions of trans kids scrubbed from national child safety clearinghouse website  —  Reports say the government ordered NCMEC to remove LGBTQ+ references or lose funding.  —  Reports say the government ordered NCMEC to remove LGBTQ+ references or lose funding.
New York Times:
C.D.C. Posts, Then Deletes, Data on Bird Flu Spread Between Cats and People  —  The data, which appeared fleetingly online on Wednesday, confirmed transmission in two households.  Scientists called on the agency to release the full report.  —  Cats that became infected with bird flu might …
Eric Berger / Ars Technica:
White House budget proposal could shatter the National Science Foundation … Sometime during the next several weeks, the directors of federal agencies will receive a draft version of President Trump's budget request for the coming fiscal year, which begins on October 1.
The White House:
Eradicating Anti-Christian Bias  —  By the authority vested in me as President by the Constitution and the laws of the United States of America, it is hereby ordered:  —  Section 1.  Purpose and Policy.  It is the policy of the United States, and the purpose of this order …
Punchbowl News:
2/7/25 ☀️ AM:  —  House Republicans race to show budget progress amid Senate pressure  —  Witkoff's Gaza pitch confuses GOP senators  —  Carr will lead global policy for Palantir  —  Vance gets the TikTok portfolio … Vance is in charge of “quarterbacking a deal to save TikTok …
Gerald F. Seib / Wall Street Journal:
Will the Other Two Branches Dare to Push Back Against Trump?  —  The president's blizzard of executive orders is a bold challenge to the powers of Congress and the courts.  The Constitution expects them to check and balance.  —  The noise coming out of the White House right now is loud—earsplitting, really.
Jessica Riedl:
Yes, My Name has Changed...  ...but my focus on center-right economic policy will continue  —  Hi everyone, well, this is awkward.  I have always been comfortable presenting my economic research in meetings, speeches, national TV interviews, and Congressional testimony.
 
 
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 More Items: 
Atlanta Journal-Constitution:
Marjorie Taylor Greene doesn't rule out run for governor or U.S. Senate
Discussion: Fox News
Jennifer Pahlka / New York Times:
This Is How Democrats Can Counter Elon Musk
Mona Charen / The Bulwark:
Trump and Musk Take a Hammer to America's Reputation
Discussion: Raw Story
Quinta Jurecic / Default:
Justice Dept. Releases Slate of Memos from Attorney General Bondi
Discussion: The Daily Caller
Patrick Marley / Washington Post:
In setback for GOP, top Wisconsin court lets elections director keep job
Discussion: WPR and WTOP News
Peter Stone / The Guardian:
Trump's blitz to expand his power is direct threat to democracy, experts say
 Earlier Items: 
Shoon Naing / Reuters:
Burmese refugee dies after discharge from shut US-funded clinic, says family
Josh Marshall / Talking Points Memo:
Where's the Real Power Nexus? How Does the Opposition Get To It?
Discussion: Punchbowl News
Alan Rappeport / New York Times:
Senate Confirms Russell Vought as Office of Management and Budget Director
Axios:
Scoop: Trump orders key government agency to cancel all media contracts
 

 
From Mediagazer:

Daniel Thomas / Financial Times:
Netflix agrees to acquire WBD's studios and streaming business in an $82.7B cash-and-stock deal, including debt, to close after WBD splits in two in Q3 2026

Alexandra Steigrad / New York Post:
Sources: Forbes has cut ties with dozens of contributing writers; one exec said Forbes needs to ensure the contributor model is “financially sound”

Liam Scott / Columbia Journalism Review:
A look at the First Amendment Watch's SLAPP Back Initiative, a US SLAPP tracker; in 2024, 69 of 500 cases involved the media, of which 46 were dismissed
 
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