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Today's Political News Compilation - Thursday, February. 20, 2025

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Below are some of the top political news stories of the day:

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Trump loyalist Kash Patel is confirmed as FBI director by the Senate despite deep Democratic doubts

By ERIC TUCKER
Updated 3:25 PM CST, February 20, 2025

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Senate on Thursday narrowly voted to confirm Kash Patel as director of the FBI, moving to place him atop the nation’s premier federal law enforcement agency despite doubts from Democrats about his qualifications and concerns he will do Donald Trump’s bidding and go after the Republican president’s adversaries.

“I cannot imagine a worse choice,” Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., told colleagues before the 51-49 vote by the GOP-controlled Senate. Sens. Susan Collins of Maine and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska were the lone Republican holdouts.

A Trump loyalist who has fiercely criticized the agency he will now lead, Patel will inherit an FBI gripped by turmoil as the Justice Department over the past month has forced out a group of senior bureau officials and made a highly unusual demand for the names of thousands of agents who participated in investigations related to the Jan. 6, 2021, riot at the U.S. Capitol.

Patel has spoken of his desire to implement major changes at the FBI, including a reduced footprint in Washington and a renewed emphasis on the bureau’s traditional crime-fighting duties rather than the intelligence-gathering work that has come to define its mandate over the past two decades as national security threats have proliferated. ...

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Kash Patel sworn in as ninth FBI director

  • News source: FOX News
  • Replies: 0
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Kash Patel, President Donald Trump's pick to head the FBI, was sworn in on Friday after a narrow Senate confirmation vote Thursday.

Patel was sworn in at the Eisenshower Executive Office Building by U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi after being confirmed by the U.S. Senate as the ninth FBI director, succeeding Christopher Wray. Patel, who is Indian American, is the first person of color to become FBI director.

"I am living the American dream," Patel said after taking his oath of office. "And anyone that thinks the American dream is dead, just look...
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Man offers to split winnings after thieves win jackpot with his credit card

  • News source: BBC News - World
  • Replies: 0
  • Views: 0
The Frenchman has called on the thieves to strike a deal with him to split the €500,000 (£413,664) prize.
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Ros Atkins on... why this week matters for Europe and the US

  • News source: BBC News - World
  • Replies: 0
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The BBC's Analysis editor takes a look back at this week - and what it tells us about how the US sees Europe.
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'The smallest coffins are the heaviest': Israel grieves youngest hostages

  • News source: BBC News - World
  • Replies: 0
  • Views: 0
The return of the children in coffins, and their mother's absence, is being painfully felt across the country.
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Woman in court over McCann family stalking charges

  • News source: BBC News - World
  • Replies: 0
  • Views: 0
Julia Wandel, 23, had claimed she was the missing child prior to her arrest at Bristol Airport.
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Planes diverted as China conducts rare military drill near Australia

  • News source: BBC News - World
  • Replies: 0
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China's naval exercise in the Tasman Sea has put Australia and New Zealand on alert, with Canberra calling it "unusual".
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Ros Atkins on... why this week matters for Europe and the US

  • News source: BBC News - World
  • Replies: 0
  • Views: 0
The BBC's Analysis editor takes a look back at this week - and what it tells us about how the US sees Europe.
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‘O Canada' singer confirms she changed lyrics to protest Trump's 51st state remarks

  • News source: David K. Li | NBC News
  • Replies: 0
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The singer who defiantly told President Donald Trump that Canada has no interest joining the United States thanked her supporters on Friday and dismissed critics as "haters" and "bots."

Canadian singer-songwriter Chantal Kreviazuk performed "O Canada" in Boston on Thursday night ahead of the 4 Nations Face-Off final between Canada and the United States, making a poignant change in the lyrics.

The third line is normally performed: "True patriot love, in all of us command." Kreviazuk tweaked it to "that only us command.”

She later confirmed that the...
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Judge clears way for Trump admin to pull thousands of USAID staffers off the job

  • News source: Ellen Knickmeyer and Lindsay Whitehurst | The
  • Replies: 0
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A federal judge on Friday cleared the way for the Trump administration to pull thousands of U.S. Agency for International Development staffers off the job in the United States and around the world.

U.S. District Judge Carl Nichols declined to keep in place his temporary block on the effort to remove all but a small fraction of USAID staffers from their posts, as part of an administration plan that would also give those abroad a 30-day deadline to move back to the U.S. at government expense.

His ruling comes in a broad lawsuit filed by unions on...
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Fact check: No basis for corruption accusations about USAID administrator

  • News source: Saranac Hale Spencer
  • Replies: 0
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President Donald Trump and billionaire Elon Musk have suggested without evidence that officials at the U.S. Agency for International Development may have siphoned off taxpayer money for themselves, echoing false social media claims about the former administrator’s net worth.

The Trump administration — largely through the new Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE — has targeted USAID for closure, and we’ve written about several false or misleading claims from the administration aimed at discrediting the agency or foreign aid.

On Feb. 11...
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DOGE won't get broad access to IRS personal taxpayer info, agreement states

  • News source: ABC News: Top Stories
  • Replies: 0
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A member of the DOGE team assigned to work at the IRS will not be granted broad access to Americans' personal tax information, according to a memo obtained ABC News.
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Associated Press sues three top Trump officials over access restrictions

  • News source: Politics - CBSNews.com
  • Replies: 0
  • Views: 3
The Associated Press sued three Trump administration officials Friday over access to presidential events, citing freedom of speech in asking a federal judge to stop the 10-day blocking of its journalists.

The lawsuit was filed Friday afternoon in U.S. District Court in Washington, D.C.

The AP says its case is about an unconstitutional effort by the White House to control speech — in this case refusing to change its style from the Gulf of Mexico to the "Gulf of America," as President Trump did last month with an executive order.

"The press and all...
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Ex-Proud Boys leader Enrique Tarrio arrested near U.S. Capitol

  • News source: Politics - CBSNews.com
  • Replies: 0
  • Views: 3
Former Proud Boys national leader Enrique Tarrio was arrested Friday near the U.S. Capitol on a charge that he assaulted a woman protesting a gathering attended by Tarrio and others who received presidential pardons for crimes stemming from the Jan. 6, 2021, riot in the nation's capital.

Capitol police said officers saw Tarrio strike the protester's cellphone and arm after the woman placed the phone close to his face as they walked near the Capitol. Tarrio had just left a news conference that had ended "without incident," police said.

"The woman...
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GOP lawmakers confronted by constituents angry about Trump-Musk cuts

  • News source: Politics - CBSNews.com
  • Replies: 0
  • Views: 3
Several Republican lawmakers have faced backlash from constituents in recent days over President Trump's sweeping cuts to the federal government, which have been spearheaded by the Department of Government Efficiency, a task force led by Elon Musk.

With the House in recess, many members of Congress have held town halls and attended other events in their districts this week, giving their constituents a chance to confront lawmakers in person to express their discontent about budget cuts and the layoffs of federal workers by DOGE.

Rep. Rich...
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Some Republicans hammered at home by constituents about DOGE, Ukraine

  • News source: ABC News: Top Stories
  • Replies: 0
  • Views: 5
Some Republicans are facing pushback in their hometowns as President Donald Trump and DOGE makes severe cuts across the federal government.
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