Senate Confirms Linda McMahon as Education Secretary
By Walter Hudson The U.S. Senate confirmed Linda McMahon on Monday to lead the Department of Education with a vote of 51-45, placing the former World Wrestling Entertainment executive at the helm of an agency that President Donald J. Trump has repeatedly pledged to eliminate. McMahon, who previously served as head of the Small Business Administration during Trump’s first term, steps into her new role as the department has already begun offering buyouts to staff, signaling the administration’s determination to dramatically reduce the agency’s footprint. “I am deeply grateful to President Trump for his trust in me to serve in
CNN Poll: Majority Disapprove of Trump’s Leadership
By Jennifer Agiesta The American public’s view of Donald Trump’s presidency and the direction he’s leading the country is more negative than positive just ahead of his first formal address to Congress since returning to office, according to a new CNN poll conducted by SSRS. The survey finds that across three basic measures of Trump’s performance on the job – his approval rating, whether he has the right priorities and whether his policies are taking the country in the right direction – the negative side outpaces the positive. Overall, 52% disapprove of Trump’s performance in office, with 48% approving, about the same
HBCU Go Makes History with All-Female Sports Broadcast
Curtis Symonds, President and Co-Founder of HBCU Go, recently sat down with Juandolyn Stokes, host of On Point with Juandolyn Stokes, to celebrate Black excellence and discuss an upcoming groundbreaking event for Women’s History Month. On March 8th, HBCU Go will make history with a special game day broadcast featuring an all-female commentary team—an inspiring milestone for both sports and media representation. As the leading media platform for Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), HBCU Go has long been committed to uplifting Black culture, talent, and institutions. This Women’s History Month, the network is taking another bold step by showcasing an all-female broadcast team, a
Judge Blocks Trump-Era Firings of Federal Workers
By Kayle Jimenez A Northern California federal judge has temporarily blocked the Trump administration from its mass firing of probationary federal employees, a group of workers that represent some of the newest hires. On Thursday, Judge William Alsup of the U.S. District Court for the Northern California District said the mass firings were likely unlawful and ordered that the Office of Personnel Management halt the firings. In a San Francisco court, Alsup said the Office of Personnel Management acted out of bounds by telling other agencies – including the Department of Education, Small Business Administration and the Energy Department – to
Judge Blocks Data Sharing With DOGE Affiliates
By Walter Hudson A Maryland federal judge has issued a temporary restraining order preventing the Department of Education and Office of Personnel Management from sharing sensitive personal information with affiliates of the newly formed Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE). U.S. District Judge Deborah L. Boardman ruled on Monday that the plaintiffs—including military veterans and unions representing millions of teachers, federal employees, scientists, and engineers—demonstrated they would likely suffer “irreparable harm” without injunctive relief. In her 33-page ruling, Judge Boardman found that the plaintiffs had shown the Education Department and OPM “likely violated the Privacy Act by disclosing their personal information
Trump, Musk Push Massive Federal Job Cuts in Overhaul
By Trevor Hunnicut U.S. President Donald Trump’s administration on Wednesday ordered federal agencies to undertake more large-scale layoffs of workers, while the president let downsizing czar Elon Musk take a star role at his first cabinet meeting and discuss his ambitious budget-cutting targets. A new memo instructed agencies to submit plans by March 13 for a “significant reduction” in staffing to a federal workforce already reeling from waves of layoffs and program cuts by Musk’s so-called Department of Government Efficiency. It did not specify the number of new layoffs. The memo represents a major escalation in Trump and Musk’s campaign to slash the size
Trump Eyes Eliminating Education Department, States Unready
By Adam Edelman and Tyler Kingkade President Donald Trump has set his sights on abolishing the U.S. Education Department and has said he’d prefer to put education policy in the hands of the states. But that may not be so simple, with state officials and lawmakers saying they’re wildly unprepared for such a huge undertaking. NBC News reported this month that the White House is preparing an executive order to eliminate the agency, though the details of how that would work remain unclear. Trump cannot unilaterally get rid of a federal agency without congressional approval, and his nominee for education secretary, Linda McMahon, agreed at her recent
USDA Suspends HBCU Scholarship, Impacting Ag Students
By Williesha Morris The federal government has suspended a scholarship program that gave $19 million to historically Black colleges and universities in 2024, including two Alabama land-grant universities, according to a news report. Alabama A&M and Tuskegee University are two of the 19 recipients of the 1890 Scholars program, which provides full tuition, room and board for students studying “food, agriculture, natural resource and other related sciences.” As land-grant universities, they are federally funded colleges with major agricultural programs. There are 35 AAMU scholars, according to Shannon Frank Reeves, vice president of government affairs. “These students are in high workforce demand majors such
Trump Admin Slashes 92% of USAID Grants, Sparking Uproar
By Fatma Tanis, Frank Langfitt The Trump administration is terminating thousands of USAID foreign assistance grants and awards, according to the State Department. The move effectively guts the six-decade-old agency. The announcement came just hours before a federal district court deadline for the Trump administration to restart payments on those grants. The government still owes more than $1 billion for work done before Trump’s foreign aid freeze. But late Wednesday the Trump administration asked the Supreme Court to vacate the lower court order to start funding those programs again, saying that it could not make the payments on the deadline set by
House Passes GOP Budget with $4.5T Tax Cuts, $2T Cuts
By Catie Edmondson, Andrew Duehren, Maya C. Miller and Robert Jimison The House on Tuesday narrowly passed a Republican budget resolution that calls for $4.5 trillion in tax cuts and a $2 trillion reduction in federal spending over a decade, clearing the way for major elements of President Trump’s domestic agenda. The nearly party-line vote of 217 to 215 teed up a bitter fight within the G.O.P. over which federal programs to slash to partially finance a huge tax cut that would provide its biggest benefits to rich Americans. It came after a head-spinning hour in which Republican leaders tried to put down
