Top Items:
CNN:
Republicans push Musk to let Congress vote on DOGE cuts — Republicans pushed Elon Musk on Wednesday in a pair of private meetings to move his efforts to slash federal spending and the federal workforce through Congress, as lawmakers vie for a seat at the table in the sweeping effort to overhaul government.
Discussion:
The Hill, Washington Times and HuffPost
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Washington Post:
Musk promises better communication between Republican lawmakers, DOGE — “With all due respect to Mr. Musk, he doesn't have a vote up here,” one lawmaker said. — Billionaire Trump adviser Elon Musk stepped up his congressional outreach on Wednesday, taking questions from Republican lawmakers …
Discussion:
The Hill, Raw Story, NBC News, Reuters, emptywheel, New York Times, Boston.com, Washington Examiner, Fox News and Politico
Washington Post:
DOGE is driving Social Security cuts and will make mistakes, acting head says privately — The Social Security Administration's acting commissioner said members of Elon Musk's cost-cutting team are outsiders who are unfamiliar with the nuances of the agency's programs. — Just now
Discussion:
Congressman John Larson
Reuters:
US plans to fire 80,000 Veterans Affairs workers as part of Trump cuts, sparking backlash — The Department of Veterans Affairs is planning to cut more than 80,000 workers from the agency, according to an internal memo seen by Reuters, drawing condemnation from military veteran groups and Democrats.
Discussion:
Associated Press, New York Magazine and The Independent
Jacob Bogage / Washington Post:
GOP must cut Medicaid or Medicare to achieve budget goals, CBO finds — The nonpartisan bookkeeper said there's no other way to cut $1.5 trillion from the budget over the next decade. — Just now — Republicans in Congress cannot reach their goal of cutting at least $1.5 trillion …
The Hill:
House Republicans gush over DOGE in meeting with Musk
Discussion:
Washington Examiner, Raw Story, Washington Times and The Daily Signal
Stephen Groves / Associated Press:
Trump administration plans to cut 80,000 employees from Veterans Affairs, according to internal memo
Trump administration plans to cut 80,000 employees from Veterans Affairs, according to internal memo
Discussion:
Washington Post, The Free Press, Military.com, Wall Street Journal, New York Magazine, Salon, Associated Press, Chicago Tribune, WTOP News, One America News Network, Daily Kos, Senator Patty Murray, New York Times, Washington Examiner, Roll Call, Townhall, Democrats, CBS News, Bloomberg, WNYW-TV, The Hill, Raw Story, MeidasTouch News, Baltimore Sun, Forbes, Daily Caller News Foundation, CNN, Scripps News, New Republic and Nextgov/FCW
Bloomberg:
Republicans Warn Musk DOGE Cuts at Risk Without Congress
Republicans Warn Musk DOGE Cuts at Risk Without Congress
Discussion:
New York Times, NPR, Politico, E&E News, HuffPost, NOTUS, The Hill, Grabien and Washington Examiner
Matthew Chapman / Raw Story:
‘Follow the money’: Ex-GOP rep warns media to pay attention to ‘second-tier’ DOGE lackeys
‘Follow the money’: Ex-GOP rep warns media to pay attention to ‘second-tier’ DOGE lackeys
Discussion:
Washington Examiner
Tim Alberta / The Atlantic:
The Advice Elissa Slotkin Didn't Take — The Michigan senator wants to set a new tone for the Democratic resistance. — Right around the time that Donald Trump was arriving at the U.S. Capitol to address a joint session of Congress—the longest such speech, it would turn out …
Discussion:
RedState, Deseret News, Baltimore Sun, Crooks and Liars and CBS News
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Kevin Freking / Associated Press:
Texas Rep. Al Green unrepentant as he faces censure vote in House for disrupting Trump speech
Discussion:
Associated Press, The Hill, Washington Times, Oregonian, USA Today, NBC News, Daily Kos, Fox News, The Root, CBS News, Mediaite, Washington Examiner and PoliticusUSA
Washington Post:
House tees up vote on censuring Rep. Al Green for disrupting Trump's speech
House tees up vote on censuring Rep. Al Green for disrupting Trump's speech
Discussion:
Axios, CNN, The Independent, The Hill, Reuters, PoliticusUSA, Fox News, New York Times, The Guardian, NPR, Washington Examiner, NOTUS and CBS News
Politico:
Most voters think Dems don't have their act together, insider poll shows
Most voters think Dems don't have their act together, insider poll shows
Discussion:
Blueprint, Convulsions, The Hill, Breitbart, Blaze Media, Twitchy and RedState
Molly Hennessy-Fiske / Washington Post:
Along the Texas border, elected officials ditch the Democrats to go red
NBC News:
House Speaker Mike Johnson's chief of staff arrested on DUI charge after Trump speech — Hayden Haynes is a longtime top aide to Mike Johnson, both in the speaker's office and his personal office. — WASHINGTON — Hayden Haynes, the chief of staff to House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La. …
Wall Street Journal:
Draft of Trump Executive Order Aims to Eliminate Education Department — Secretary Linda McMahon would be directed to ‘take all necessary steps to facilitate the closure’ — President Trump is expected to issue an executive order as soon as Thursday aimed at abolishing the Education Department …
Discussion:
The Hill, Jewish Insider, Missouri Scout, New York Post, Raw Story, Townhall, MPR News, Daily Mail, Fox News, The Post Millennial, The Gateway Pundit and CT Mirror
RELATED:
Laura Meckler / Washington Post:
Draft executive order set for Thursday calls for closing Education Dept.
Draft executive order set for Thursday calls for closing Education Dept.
Discussion:
UPI, The Guardian, NewsNation, The Week and Forbes
Matthew Kassel / Jewish Insider:
Pentagon deputy press secretary Kingsley Wilson is a prolific purveyor of antisemitic conspiracy theories — Kingsley Wilson, the Pentagon's new deputy press secretary, is facing backlash over a series of recent social media comments in which she has promoted antisemitic conspiracy theories …
Discussion:
The Guardian, Raw Story, The Daily Wire and Washington Examiner
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Miles Klee / Rolling Stone:
Trump Decried Millions Spent ‘Making Mice Transgender.’ It Was Cancer and Asthma Research — The president's State of the Union address included a line designed to go viral in the right-wing misinformation machine … The chief executive of the United States told the country …
Discussion:
The White House, CNN, Townhall, Raw Story, LateNighter, The Gateway Pundit, RedState, The Daily Caller, Mother Jones, HuffPost, Blaze Media, The Daily Wire, Twitchy, Breitbart, PinkNews, Fox Business and The Post Millennial
Reuters:
Exclusive: Trump plans to revoke legal status of Ukrainians who fled to US, sources say — U.S. President Donald Trump's administration is planning to revoke temporary legal status for some 240,000 Ukrainians who fled the conflict with Russia, a senior Trump official and three sources familiar …
Discussion:
Daily Mail, The Kyiv Independent and New York Post
Isaac Arnsdorf / Washington Post:
White House mum on price relief measures as inflation stings Trump's ratings — “The president knows his plans,” a White House official said, while Trump presses ahead with tariffs that economists warn will push prices higher. — Just now — On his first day in office …
Discussion:
Fox Business
RELATED:
New York Times:
Trump to Pause Auto Tariffs for One Month as Other Levies Continue
Trump to Pause Auto Tariffs for One Month as Other Levies Continue
Discussion:
Wall Street Journal, The Hill, Politico, Voice of America, Associated Press, CNN, EE Times, Daily Mail, Reuters, CBS News, TechCrunch, Raw Story, Washington Post, Al Jazeera, Le·gal In·sur·rec·tion, Global News, The Hollywood Reporter, Semafor, Florida Politics, Bloomberg, Forbes, WTOP News and The Independent
Adam Serwer / The Atlantic:
Why Trump Thanked John Roberts — The conservative justices are frequently accomplices to Trump's assault on democracy. — The exchange was so awkward, it should have been followed by the Curb Your Enthusiasm theme song. While President Donald Trump was shaking hands down the aisle …
Discussion:
Raw Story, New York Times, New York Post, Daily Mail, National Review, Ace of Spades HQ, CNN and Mother Jones
RELATED:
Paul Blumenthal / HuffPost:
Donald Trump Rips The Mask Off Of John Roberts' Court In One Sentence
Donald Trump Rips The Mask Off Of John Roberts' Court In One Sentence
Discussion:
The Daily Wire
Jamie Dettmer / Politico:
Top Trump allies hold secret talks with Zelenskyy's Ukrainian opponents — As Washington ramps up its pressure on Zelenskyy to step aside, his rivals are talking to Trump's team. — KYIV — Four senior members of Donald Trump's entourage have held secret discussions with some of Kyiv's …
Discussion:
Reuters, The Kyiv Independent and The Hill
RELATED:
Nicole Narea / Vox:
What Americans really think of Trump's Ukraine policy
What Americans really think of Trump's Ukraine policy
Discussion:
Blueprint, Fox News and New Jersey Online
Stephanie Saul / New York Times:
As Trump Goes After Universities, Students Are Now on the Chopping Block — Uncertainty about how much money colleges and universities stand to lose has led some schools to reduce the number of doctoral students, in some cases reneging on offers. — In the early weeks of the Trump administration's push …
Discussion:
Salt Lake Tribune
RELATED:
NBC News:
As Trump pivots to Russia, allies weigh sharing less intel with U.S. — Members of the so-called Five Eyes spy alliance, as well as Israeli and Saudi officials, fear the identities of foreign assets could inadvertently be shared with Moscow. — Some U.S. allies are considering scaling …
Discussion:
Reuters, New York Times, Metro.co.uk, Politico, CNN, Wall Street Journal, The Kyiv Independent, WUSA, MeidasTouch News, Bloomberg and Daily Mail
Associated Press:
Trump administration can remove head of federal watchdog agency, appeals court rules — WASHINGTON — An appeals court in Washington on Wednesday removed the head of a federal watchdog agency in the latest twist in a legal fight over Republican President Donald Trump's authority to fire the special counsel.
Discussion:
Fox News, Washington Post, CNBC, Associated Press, CNN, Politico, Washington Times, New York Post, Washington Examiner, The Hill, RedState, NBC News, WUSA, Roll Call, Bloomberg, Axios, GovExec.com and The Gateway Pundit
RELATED:
Savyata Mishra / Reuters:
Jack Daniel's maker says Canada pulling US alcohol off shelves ‘worse than tariff’ — Jack Daniel's maker Brown-Forman's (BFb.N) CEO Lawson Whiting said on Wednesday Canadian provinces taking American liquor off store shelves was “worse than a tariff” and a “disproportionate response” to levies imposed by the Trump administration.
Discussion:
NBC News, The Independent and Oregonian
RELATED:
Savyata Mishra / Reuters:
Jack Daniel's maker says Canada pulling U.S. alcohol off store shelves is ‘worse than a tariff’
Jack Daniel's maker says Canada pulling U.S. alcohol off store shelves is ‘worse than a tariff’
Discussion:
Raw Story
Frank S. Zhou / The Harvard Crimson:
Harvard Must Take a Stand for Democracy — Democracy is in greater peril today than at any time in modern U.S. history. President Donald Trump ran an openly authoritarian campaign in 2024, pledging to prosecute his rivals, punish media critics, and deploy the military to repress protest.
Jeff Cox / CNBC:
Layoff announcements soar to the highest since 2020 as DOGE slashes federal staff … President Donald Trump's efforts to pare down the federal government workforce left a mark in the labor market in February, with announced job cuts at their highest level in nearly five years …
New York Times:
ActBlue, the Democratic Fund-Raising Powerhouse, Faces Internal Chaos — At least seven senior officials have left the group, setting off deep concerns about its future as it confronts scrutiny from congressional Republicans. — ActBlue, the online fund-raising organization …
Discussion:
Frontpage Mag and Raw Story
Heather Hunter / Washington Examiner:
MSNBC host laments Democrats' ‘visuals’ at Trump speech: ‘Not taking back the House in 2026’ — MSNBC host Symone Sanders-Townsend criticized Democrats who protested at President Donald Trump's joint address to Congress by suggesting their antics Tuesday night were not helping their reelection efforts in 2026.
Discussion:
The Guardian, HuffPost, New Republic, RedState, New York Post, The Hill, IJR, Mediaite and The Washington Free Beacon
Wired:
Here's a Map of the For-Sale Government Properties the GSA Pulled From Its Website — The General Services Administration plans to sell hundreds of government buildings, including FBI headquarters. Use our interactive tools to see where they are—and the congressional districts they're in.
Discussion:
Washington Post, New York Times, Baltimore Sun, WNYW-TV, Blaze Media, Bridge Michigan, Reuters, Washington Examiner, israelhayom.com, Washington Times, Deseret News, Bangor Daily News, USA Today, UPI, Daily Press, The Hill, St. Louis Business Journal, Bloomberg, U.S. General Services …, Associated Press and Federal News Network
Ken Bensinger / New York Times:
Who Paid for Trump's Transition to Power? The Donors Are Still Unknown. — President Trump has not made good on a promise to disclose who contributed to his transition effort. — After six weeks in office, President Trump has not disclosed the names of the donors who paid for his transition planning …
Zach Everson / Forbes:
Trading Volume In This Nasdaq-Listed Firm Soared Before Don Jr. And Eric Trump Were Announced As Board Members—'Suspicious,' Experts Say — Trading in Dominari Holdings Inc. soared ahead of the February announcement that Donald Trump Jr. and Eric Trump had taken stakes in the company …

