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12:30 PM ET, February 12, 2025

memeorandum

 Top Items: 
New York Times:
Trump Softens Tone on Inflation After Pledging to Lower Prices  —  President Trump pledged to lower costs on “Day 1” as a candidate.  His administration now acknowledges it will take more time.  —  President Trump promised voters that, if elected, he would enact policies that would bring prices down on “Day 1” in office.
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Colby Smith / New York Times:
CPI Report: Inflation Rose Unexpectedly in January  —  The Consumer Price Index rose 3.0 percent from a year earlier as food and energy prices picked up.  —  U.S. inflation rose to 3 percent in January, strengthening the case for the Federal Reserve to extend a pause on interest rate cuts.
Callum Jones / The Guardian:
Inflation picks up speed after Trump promised to ‘rapidly’ bring down prices
Discussion: ZeroHedge News
Lisa Rein / Washington Post:
Ousted federal watchdogs sue Trump, saying they were fired illegally  —  Eight inspectors general fired by the White House last month have sued the administration, arguing President Donald Trump broke the law.  —  A group of federal inspectors general ousted by the White House last month sued …
Discussion: CNN, Scripps News and The Guardian
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NBC News:
Senate votes to confirm Tulsi Gabbard as top U.S. intelligence official  —  Gabbard overcame initial skepticism from some Republican senators about her nomination, underscoring Trump's grip on the party.  —  WASHINGTON — The GOP-controlled Senate early Wednesday morning voted …
Abigail Hauslohner / Washington Post:
Tulsi Gabbard confirmed as Trump's director of national intelligence
USA Today:
Tulsi Gabbard confirmed by Senate as Trump's national intelligence director
Wired:
Dozens of CFPB Workers Fired in After-Hours Blitz  —  Some affected employees of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau were notified with an email that addressed them as [EmployeeFirstName][EmployeeLastName], [Job Title], [Division].  —  Dozens of Consumer Finance Protection Bureau employees …
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Liz Dye / Public Notice:
Trump burns down financial watchdog agency to spite Liz Warren  —  🗣️ 🎤 🤯 With corporate outlets obeying in advance, supporting independent political media is more important right now than ever.  Public Notice is possible thanks to paid subscribers.
Bobby Allyn / NPR:
Elon Musk's DOGE takes aim at agency that had plans of regulating X  —  Elon Musk made a big leap late last month toward his long-shot goal of turning X into an “everything app,” a service that could encompass a broad range of services, including the ability to transfer money, similar to Venmo or PayPal.
Amanda Marcotte / Salon:
“Let the scams roll”: Elon Musk exploits culture wars to turn MAGA against consumer protections
Steven Erlanger / New York Times:
Hegseth Says Return to Ukraine's Pre-2014 Borders Is ‘Unrealistic’  —  In his first trip abroad, the new U.S. defense secretary told Ukrainian and NATO officials that a durable peace could only come ‘with a realistic assessment of the battlefield.’  —  A return to Ukraine's pre-2014 borders is …
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CNN:
Hegseth rules out NATO membership for Ukraine and says Europe must be responsible for country's security
Josh Marshall / Talking Points Memo:
Not Hyperbole Anymore: Musk Is In Charge of the US Government  —  These are wild times at TPM because they're wild times in the American government.  It's hard to keep up with everything happening from one moment to the next.  I had not had a chance to look at the new DOGE executive order President signed …
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The White House:
Implementing The President's “Department of Government Efficiency” Workforce Optimization Initiative  —  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.
emptywheel:
“The Fraudsters Complain the Loudest and the Fastest:” Legacy Media Ignores Import of Gaza Condom Fact Check
Discussion: CNN, New York Times and Raw Story
Janna Brancolini / The Daily Beast:
Trump Humiliated in the ‘Most Powerless Image Ever’ of a U.S. President: O'Donnell  —  Trump has always craved is the attention of the “truly rich,” and how he finally has it, MSNBC's Lawrence O'Donnell said.
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Lee Moran / HuffPost:
Donald Trump Taunted Over ‘Most Powerless Image Of A President’ Ever
Discussion: New Republic and Raw Story
Wall Street Journal:
How Mexico's Leader Is Writing the Playbook for Handling Trump
Discussion: Associated Press
New York Times:
Family of Venezuelan Migrant Sent to Guantánamo: ‘My Brother Is Not a Criminal.’ … Luis Alberto Castillo, a father of one from Venezuela, entered the United States on Jan. 19, one day before Donald Trump became president for a second term — swept into office on a promise to treat undocumented migrants with a heavy hand.
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Politico:
Treasury officials: Musk ally ‘mistakenly’ had power to alter payments system  —  The incident prompted an internal forensic investigation that remains ongoing.  —  Treasury Department officials said Tuesday that the agency last week “mistakenly” and “briefly” gave a member of Elon Musk's team …
RELATED:
William Kristol / The Bulwark:
When President Musk Speaks, Donald Trump Listens
Discussion: CNN
New York Times:
Live Updates: Musk Asserts Without Proof That He's Fixing a Bureaucracy Rife With Fraud
David Zipper / Slate:
Americans Are Actually in a Position to Make Elon Musk Feel Our Rage  —  The company is in a precarious position.  This is a case where buying choices can effectively communicate rage.  —  There are myriad reasons to loathe Elon Musk, the CEO of Tesla, who has become a top ally of Donald Trump.
Discussion: Raw Story and Forbes
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Associated Press:
Her parents were injured in a Tesla crash.  She ended up having to pay Tesla damages  —  Zhang Yazhou was sitting in the passenger seat of her Tesla Model 3 when she said she heard her father's panicked voice: The brakes don't work!  Approaching a red light, her father swerved around two cars …
Discussion: Electrek and TechCrunch
Lawrence Hurley / NBC News:
This obscure law is one reason Trump's agenda keeps losing in court  —  Lawsuits challenging Trump policies raise big constitutional questions, but they also rely on a law that requires the government to follow the correct procedures when changing course.  —  WASHINGTON — Lawyers challenging …
Discussion: Raw Story
Axios:
Scoop: Dems “pissed” at liberal groups MoveOn, Indivisible … - “People are pissed,” a senior House Democrat who was at the meeting said of lawmakers' reaction to the calls.  — The Democrat said Jeffries himself is “very frustrated” at the groups, who are trying to stir up a more confrontational opposition to Trump.
Lauren Easton / The Associated Press:
AP statement on Oval Office access  —  The Associated Press issued this statement on Tuesday from Executive Editor Julie Pace:  —  As a global news organization, The Associated Press informs billions of people around the world every day with factual, nonpartisan journalism.
RELATED:
Oliver Darcy / Status:   Soon-Shiong's La-La Land
Washington Post:
Trump fires USAID inspector general one day after blistering report  —  Paul K. Martin, appointed by President Joe Biden, was dismissed a day after issuing a report assessing the Trump administration implemented its aid freeze and stop-work order.  —  February 11, 2025
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Greg Sargent / New Republic:
Pope Francis's Stunning Rebuke of JD Vance Exposes MAGA's Dark Soul  —  The other day, JD Vance sought to reconcile President Donald Trump's “America First” vision with the tenets of Christianity.  Vance argued for a “Christian concept” that orders our ethical obligations in a series of concentric circles …
Julia Métraux / Mother Jones:
Project 2025 Is Gutting Medical Funding That Helped Russell Vought's Own Kid  —  The National Institutes of Health, the federal government's leading medical research agency, came under attack by Project 2025 well before its architect, Russell Vought, was confirmed to Donald Trump's second-term cabinet …
Discussion: STAT and Raw Story
Joyce Vance / Civil Discourse with Joyce Vance:
Cutting Cancer Research  —  Sometimes, it gets personal.  —  My daughter is finishing up a master's degree.  Her work is completely over my head, but it involves the intersection of nutrition, agriculture, and climate change. … In other words, she's doing important work, real work that could help make many lives better.
Sue Allan / Politico:
Canada's defense minister calls 51st state taunts ‘offensive’  —  “Canadians will always stand up for our nation, our country,” Bill Blair said Wednesday in Brussels.  “We're prepared to defend ourselves as required.”  —  Defense Minister Bill Blair said on Wednesday that while President …
Atlantic Council:
What the world could look like in ten years, according to more than 350 experts  —  Explore findings on...  1. The specter of world war  —  2. Conflict with China and Russia  —  3. The China-Russia-Iran-North Korea axis  —  4. Nuclear proliferation and use  —  5. The future of US power
Discussion: The Hill, The Forward and Semafor
 
 
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 More Items: 
Frank Andrews / CBS News:
Ukraine detains top intelligence official, accuses “the rat” of working for Russia
Discussion: Politico and Bloomberg
Max Read / Read Max:
Soy Right ascendant
Christopher Cadelago / Politico:
Pro-Trump sheriff to run for governor in deep blue California
Discussion: Whittier Daily News
Jamelle Bouie / New York Times:
Trump's War on D.E.I. Is Really a War on Civil Rights
Discussion: USA Today and Los Angeles Times
Tressie McMillan Cottom / New York Times:
Look Past Elon Musk's Chaos. There's Something More Sinister at Work.
 Earlier Items: 
David Frum / The Atlantic:
Why the COVID Deniers Won
Discussion: The Democracy Labs
Bill Scher / Washington Monthly:
It's a Good Thing Democrats Didn't Pack the Courts
Discussion: The Gateway Pundit
Will Selber / The Bulwark:
USAID Kept My Troops Safe in Afghanistan
Josh Eidelson / Bloomberg:
Federal Agency Fires Staff, Calls It an Error, Fires Them Again
Eugene Ludwig / Politico:
Voters Were Right About the Economy. The Data Was Wrong.
Discussion: HotAir