Trump maintains funding freeze at NIH, defying court order  —  The Trump administration is still prohibiting National Institutes of Health (NIH) staff from issuing virtually all grant funding, an NIH official tells Popular Information.  The ongoing funding freeze is also reflected …

The big question looming over Trump's executive orders  —  Donald Trump and Elon Musk's efforts to transform federal spending and the federal workforce are crashing up against judges who've temporarily blocked several of their policies.  —  Judges have frozen Trump's “spending freeze” …

DOGE Teen Ran Image-Sharing Site Linked to URLs Referencing Pedophilia and the KKK  —  Edward Coristine, a 19-year-old member of Elon Musk's Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), launched an image-sharing website in 2021 that featured custom “shitposting” web addresses that redirected to content hosted on his site.

Senator Accuses F.B.I. Nominee of Covertly Directing Dismissals  —  A top Democrat demanded an investigation and suggested that the nominee, Kash Patel, may have lied under oath, citing what he described as multiple sources.  —  The top Democrat on the Senate Judiciary Committee …

Pope rebukes Trump administration over migrant deportations, and appears to take direct aim at Vance  —  Pope Francis issued a major rebuke Tuesday to the Trump administration's mass deportation of migrants, warning that the forceful removal of people purely because of their illegal status deprives …

Elon Musk's Business Empire Scores Benefits Under Trump Shake-Up … Elon Musk controls six companies, including Tesla.  Mr. Musk's companies secured $13 billion in federal contracts over the past five years.Carly Zavala for The New York Times  —  President Trump has been in office less than a month …

Judge orders CDC, FDA to restore websites taken down after Trump gender order  —  U.S. District Judge John D. Bates granted a restraining order temporarily reversing the Trump administration's moves to remove scientific data.  —  A federal judge on Tuesday ordered the nation's premier health agencies …

Trump won't block immigration arrests in houses of worship.  Now these 27 religious groups are suing  —  More than two-dozen Christian and Jewish groups representing millions of Americans — ranging from the Episcopal Church and the Union for Reform Judaism to the Mennonites and Unitarian Universalists …

Defense Secretary Hegseth booed and heckled by military families protesting against DEI push  —  Last week, Hegseth wrote a memo in which he banned transgender people from joining the military and restricted the use of some learning materials in Defense Department schools.

The Truth About Trump's Steel Tariffs  —  His first-term levies hurt consumers and U.S. manufacturers.  —  President Trump gave the economy another jolt of uncertainty on Monday when he signed executive orders imposing 25% tariffs on all steel and aluminum imports.

Vance to meet with Zelenskyy Friday  —  The vice president and Ukrainian president will be in Munich for a security conference stacked with world leaders.  —  Vice President JD Vance will meet Friday with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, according to a person familiar with his plans …

LETTER OF THE HOLY FATHER FRANCIS TO THE BISHOPS OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA  —  I am writing today to address a few words to you in these delicate moments that you are living as Pastors of the People of God who walk together in the United States of America.

Jordan's King Abdullah II signals openness to Trump's plan to move Palestinians out of Gaza  —  Trump called the offer a “beautiful gesture” and said he believed something could be worked out with Egypt, another ally that had bristled at the president's surprise plan.

Google Calendar removes Black History Month, Pride and other cultural events  —  Company says listed holidays were not ‘sustainable’ for their model in latest move to roll back diversity efforts  —  Google's online and mobile calendars are no longer including references to Black History Month …

White House orders Federal Executive Institute to shut down  — The Federal Executive Institute is closing down.  President Trump signed an executive order yesterday instructing the Office of Personnel Management to take all necessary steps to eliminate FEI.

The Right to be Woke  —  Two programming notes for today: At 1 p.m. ET today, JVL will go live on the site with Jim Acosta in the first chat for our pop-up series, WTF 2.0.  Jim recently left CNN and has joined the ranks of independent media here on Substack.

Elon Musk's Financial Disclosure Will Not Be Made Public  —  The billionaire, who is serving President Trump as an unpaid “special government employee,” will file a confidential report on his financial interests, according to a White House official.  —  Elon Musk plans to file …

Donald Trump and Elon Musk are not tiptoeing toward autocracy  —  We cannot afford to wait any longer.  The immediate clear and present danger to the fabric of our democracy, the headlong rush to a police state, cannot be ignored.  And unprecedented times demand unprecedented approaches …

Trump administration removes acting head of DOJ's National Security Division: Sources  —  Devin DeBacker, a career DOJ official, served in the role for only a few weeks.  —  The seal of the U.S. Justice Department is seen on the podium in the Department's headquarters briefing room …

Pausing Foreign Corrupt Practices Act Enforcement to Further American Economic and National Security  —  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.

Obama Best Liked Among Living Presidents; Biden, Least  —  Obama, Bush, Clinton are viewed more positively than negatively  —  WASHINGTON, D.C. — Of the five living men who have served as U.S. president, Barack Obama receives the highest favorable rating (59%) and Joe Biden the lowest (39%).

Why the Attack On This Agency Is Trump/Muskism In a Nutshell  —  Thank you for reading The Cross Section, and if you find my work valuable and would like it to continue, consider becoming a paid subscriber.  This site has no paywall, so I depend on the generosity of readers to sustain the work I present here.

Carter introduces bill renaming Greenland  —  WASHINGTON, D.C. - Rep. Earl L.  “Buddy” Carter (R-GA) released the following statement today after introducing a bill authorizing President Trump to acquire Greenland and renaming it Red, White, and Blueland:  —  “America is back and will soon …

Democrats are divided on government shutdown threats  —  With just over a month until government funding expires, Democrats remain divided on whether they should use the threat of a government shutdown as a political cudgel as they try to push back on President Donald Trump and billionaire ally Elon Musk.

Springtime for Scammers  —  Financial predation now has friends in high places  —  Just over two years ago Wells Fargo agreed to pay $3.7 billion — $1.7 billion in penalties and $2 billion in damages — to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.  As the New York Times report put it, the payments were

House and Senate GOP go to war over reconciliation … - The Senate wants two bills, handling border security, energy and defense first. … - House Budget Chair Jodey Arrington (R-Texas) plans to start marking up a House bill on Thursday or Friday, he told reporters on Tuesday.

Trump's biggest corruption yet  —  Connect the dots.  —  Last week, Trump's social media corporation — Trump Media and Technology Group, in which Trump personally owns a majority of shares — announced plans to sell financial products, including a Bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF), aimed at what Trump calls the “patriotic economy.”

1 dead, 4 hospitalized after two planes crash on runway at Scottsdale Airport  —  The incident happened around 2:30 p.m. Monday  —  SCOTTSDALE, AZ — Officials confirm at least one person has died after an aircraft crash on the runway Monday at the Scottsdale Airport.

US cyber agency puts election security staffers who worked with the states on leave  —  Staffers at the nation's cybersecurity agency whose job is to ensure the security of U.S. elections have been placed on administrative leave, jeopardizing critical support provided to state and local election offices across the country.

Insider threats loom as Elon Musk's team gains swift government access … - Rapid firings and hirings across agencies may create uncertainty about who is authorized to access key systems.  — New DOGE employees — cleared through an expedited vetting process — may not fully understand …

House Freedom Caucus plans to throw another tax plan into the mix  —  House Freedom Caucus Chair Andy Harris (R-Md.) said Tuesday that the group would be releasing its own plan this week for achieving President Donald Trump's tax priorities.  The plan, which the hard-right HFC wants …

Trump White House will not release visitor logs  —  EXCLUSIVE — The White House will not release visitor logs during President Donald Trump's second term, a move that aligns with the policy of his first administration, according to a White House official.  —  For months, transparency advocates …

Texas bills would allow Ten Commandments and Bible reading in public schools  —  Other states, including Georgia, Kentucky and Ohio, have seen similar legislation in recent weeks as Louisiana's Ten Commandments law remains under legal scrutiny.  —  Bills introduced by Republicans …

Deb Haaland announces run for New Mexico governor … - Haaland, who served in the Biden administration, was the first Native American to lead a Cabinet agency.  — She has been taking steps for some time to consolidate support in the state and assemble a team of political operatives …