General Politics

Attorneys for the Justice Department have agreed to temporarily restrict staffers from Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency from accessing information in the Treasury Department’s payment system.

The agreement comes after a group of union members and retirees filed a lawsuit against the Treasury Department alleging that providing DOGE access to the federal government’s massive payment and collections system — and the personal data housed in it — violated federal privacy laws.

The Trump administration filed a motion Wednesday night...

The CIA confirmed Wednesday that it offered buyouts to employees who volunteer to resign, the latest group of federal workers to receive such a proposal as President Trump pushes to transform the federal government.

A CIA spokesperson declined to say how many people received the offers or whether they face any deadline to decide.

However, the buyout offered to CIA employees differs from the "fork in the road" offer extended to other federal employees and includes Voluntary Early Retirement Authority, known as VERA, and resignation options. And it...

More employees of the Environmental Protection Agency were informed Wednesday that their jobs appear in doubt. Senior leadership at the EPA held an all-staff meeting to tell individuals that President Trump's executive order, "Ending Radical and Wasteful Government DEI Programs and Preferencing," which was responsible for the closure of the agency's Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion office, will likely lead to the shuttering of the Office of Environmental Justice and External Civil Rights as well.

Employees of the EPA's DEI office were placed on...

The former chief of staff to U.S. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., announced Wednesday his intention to run against Rep. Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., calling the Democratic Party "paralyzed and unprepared" for President Donald Trump's second term in office.

In a lengthy message on X, Saikat Chakrabarti said he decided to run against the former House speaker, who is seeking a 21st term, after "watching Trump and Elon (Musk) freely unleash chaos in their illegal seizure of government."

"It’s become clear to me that the Democratic Party needs new...

Secretary of State Marco Rubio is refusing to attend the Group of 20 (G-20) summit in Johannesburg this year, in protest of the South African government's controversial land seizure bill.

The bill, which was signed last week, permits South African authorities to expropriate land "for a public purpose or in the public interest," promising "just and equitable compensation" to those impacted by the bill. Although the majority of South African citizens are Black, most landowners are White — and this disparity has been a topic in South Africa for years...

The U.S. State Department on Wednesday announced a new deal with the government of Panama that will eliminate charge fees for U.S. government vessels.

"The government of Panama has agreed to no longer charge fees for U.S. government vessels to transit the Panama Canal," the State Department wrote in an X post Wednesday night.

The new agreement will save the U.S. government millions of dollars a year, officials noted.

CHINA’S INFLUENCE ON PANAMA CANAL POSES ‘ACUTE RISKS TO US NATIONAL SECURITY,’ SEN CRUZ WARNS

Panama President José Raúl Mulino...

He says the move, which covers non-elite levels, restores fairness but human rights advocates have condemned it.

Top officials at the Department of Education told staff Wednesday that if they accept the Trump administration’s deferred resignation package, the education secretary may later cancel it and employees would not have any recourse, potentially leaving them without promised pay.

The Office of Personnel Management sent notices last week to federal employees that if they resign by Feb. 6, they could continue receiving pay and benefits until the end of September. The Trump administration is hoping to get as many as 10% of the workforce to quit as part of...

A line of Mexican National Guard and Army trucks rumbled along the border separating Ciudad Juárez and El Paso, Texas Wednesday, among the first of 10,000 officers Mexico has sent to its northern frontier following tariff threats by President Donald Trump.

Masked and armed National Guard members picked through brush running along the border barrier on the outskirts of Ciudad Juárez, pulling out makeshift ladders and ropes tucked away in the trenches, and pulling them onto trucks. Patrols were also seen on other parts of the border near Tijuana.

It...

Democrats on Capitol Hill, and sources familiar with the situation, said the White House's Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE, has been inside the offices of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

The White House DOGE team is a cost-cutting initiative created by President Trump to find ways to trim federal spending. Billionaire Elon Musk is in charge of it, categorized as a "special government employee."

Former NOAA officials told CBS News that current employees have been told to expect a 50% reduction in staff and budget...

During an Oval Office meeting with President Donald Trump on Wednesday, California Gov. Gavin Newsom spoke on the critical need for federal assistance as Los Angeles County recovers from a series of devastating wildfires in January.

"As we approach one month since the devastating wildfires across Southern California, we continue to cut red tape to speed up recovery and clean up efforts as well as ensure rebuilding efforts are swift," Gov. Newsom said in a statement. "We're working across the aisle, as we always have, to ensure survivors have the...

The Trump administration's plan to detain some of the most dangerous illegal immigrants arrested in the United States in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, could raise legal concerns and challenges, which could slow efforts to deport them to their home countries, experts say.

President Donald Trump has instructed the Pentagon to prepare the facility to house up to 30,000 "criminal illegal aliens" at the U.S. military base. Flights to the facility began this week.

Around 150 Marines are at the Naval Station and have set up tents for around 1,000 migrants in...

U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi is seeking to reverse the last-hour commutations for death row murderers last month by former President Joe Biden, directing state officials to pursue the death penalty against the inmates.

Bondi, who was confirmed Wednesday, sent out a letter about the commutations to Department of Justice (DOJ) employees Wednesday, accusing Biden of "undermin[ing] our justice system and subvert[ing] the rule of law" by granting the commutations.

"The commutations also robbed the victims' families of the justice promised — and...

FIRST ON FOX: Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., came out in support of a GOP effort in the upper chamber to get moving on legislation to advance President Donald Trump's agenda.

It would be a significant departure from current plans for the House to pass a bill first, amid infighting by House Republicans over spending levels.

"I appreciate Chairman Graham’s leadership in crafting a budget resolution that will unlock the ability to pass a reconciliation bill to secure the border, rebuild our military, and deliver a much-needed down payment...

More than 11,000 people have already left the island of Santorini in recent days.