Government efficiency goals are great â but not at the expense of the American people
By William S. Becker Donald Trump will not be the first elected leader who wants to fix inefficiencies and waste in government. But will he do it to benefit the American people or the authors of Project 2025? The two motives would produce vastly different outcomes. Waste and inefficiency are present in any large organization, and the U.S. government is one of the biggest. Its 2024 budget was $6.75 trillion; it spends over $760 billion annually on goods and services, making it the worldâs largest single consumer. Other national leaders have attempted to ferret out waste. In 1975, Sen. William Proxmire (D-Wisc.) introduced his monthly Golden Fleece
Biden just gave Trump a new pardon playbook
By Kyle Cheney In his sweeping pardon of Hunter Biden, President Joe Biden did not just protect his son. He also handed President-elect Donald Trump a template to shield his own allies and stretch the pardon power even further. Legal experts say Trump now has fresh precedent â and political cover â to issue expansive pardons absolving his allies not only of specific offenses, but even any undetermined crimes they may have committed. With the singular exception of Gerald Fordâs pardon of Richard Nixon, no modern American president had ever issued such a broad grant of clemency until Joe Bidenâs âfull and
We havenât seen a pardon as sweeping as Hunter Bidenâs in generations
By Betsy Woodruff Swan Hunter Bidenâs pardon looks a lot like Richard Nixonâs. President Joe Bidenâs grant of clemency on Sunday night â an extraordinary political act with extraordinary legal breadth â insulates his son from ever facing federal charges over any crimes he possibly could have committed over the past decade. Experts on pardons said they could think of only one other person who has received a presidential pardon so sweeping in generations: Nixon, who was given a blanket pardon by Gerald Ford in 1974. âI have never seen language like this in a pardon document that purports to pardon offenses that
3 Reasons Why Trump Ditching the Department of Education Will Especially Hurt Black Students
By Phenix S. Halley President-elect Donald Trump has outlined plans for his second term in scary detail: using military force to execute mass deportations, clearing out DEI (diversity, equity, and inclusion) policies, and, shockingly, even eliminating the Department of Education (DOE). In preparation for four more MAGA years, Trump announced Linda McMahon, the former wrestling executive, will head the DOE he vows to abolish, yes. With Americans everywhere still reeling from the Nov. 5 results, itâs time we truly understand whatâs at stake if the 44-year-old DOE is abolished â especially for Black students. Billions of Dollars Wonât Be Federally Regulated Itâs important
Trump shake-up spurs optimism and anxiety among key US allies
By Laura Kelly Some of Americaâs key security allies are hopeful President-elect Trumpâs impetuous streak might spur resolution to drawn-out conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East, but thereâs also deep anxiety about the âAmerica Firstâ agenda, compounded this week by Trumpâs tariff threats. These competing sentiments were on display over the weekend at the Halifax International Security Forum, where top diplomats, defense ministers, U.S. lawmakers, foreign politicians, military brass, and democracy activists scoured for any clues on where Trump can be convinced to stand with allies, and where he is intent on going rogue. Rosa Brooks, a law professor
Republicans fume after President Joe Biden pardons his son Hunter
By Megan Lebowitz  GOP lawmakers began publicly fuming shortly after President Joe Biden announced that he was pardoning his son Hunter Biden. President-elect Donald Trump’s communications director, Steven Cheung, reacted to the announcement without naming the president or his son. “The failed witch hunts against President Trump have proven that the Democrat-controlled DOJ and other radical prosecutors are guilty of weaponizing the justice system,” Cheung said in a statement. “That system of justice must be fixed and due process must be restored for all Americans, which is exactly what President Trump will do as he returns to the White House with an
Trump team eyes quick rollback of Biden student debt relief
By Michael Stratford President-elect Donald Trump is poised to pull the plug on President Joe Bidenâs yearslong push to cancel student debt for tens of millions of people as Republicans sweep into power in the coming months. Trump transition advisers and outside allies have been discussing ways to quickly unwind the various Biden-era initiatives that offered new or easier paths to loan forgiveness for borrowers, according to two people familiar with the discussions. The move would be the culmination of nearly four years of attacks by GOP lawmakers and attorneys general on Bidenâs student debt relief policies. On the campaign
Special counsel Jack Smith moves to drop both federal criminal cases against Trump
By Kyle Cheney Special counsel Jack Smith on Monday dropped one of his criminal cases against President-elect Donald Trump and was on the verge of dropping the other â a termination that is required, Smith said, by Justice Department policy that bars continuing the prosecutions once Trump is inaugurated. In a pair of court filings, Smith said he consulted with Justice Department officials about whether an ongoing prosecution against a person elected president might proceed. Officials in the departmentâs Office of Legal Counsel, Smith said, concluded that a longstanding prohibition on prosecuting a sitting president applied to the two cases against Trump.
Red States Back Trumpâs Plan to Abolish Education Department
Written By Jessica Blake An increasing number of Republican state officials are supporting President-elect Donald Trumpâs plans to dismantle the federal Department of Education. One even formed an advisory committee to prepare for any new responsibilities the state may take on as a result. âWhat we want to make sure that weâre able to do is implement big changes in the fastest way possible,â Oklahoma State Superintendent Ryan Walters said Nov. 11 as he announced the formation of a Trump Education Advisory Committee. âWeâve been at the tip of the spear for the most aggressive, conservative education agenda already, and now with President
Congress will have a record-setting number of Black members in its ranks next year
By Curtis Bunn The Congressional Black Caucus will boast a record 62 members for the next session of Congress, contributing toward the highest number of Black federal lawmakers in history, according to the organization. In all, 67 Black people will serve in Congress. Five Republican members are not listed as members of the CBC. While the caucus’s members had planned to uphold a policy agenda for Black and marginalized people under a Kamala Harris administration, instead Rep. Gregory Meeks, D-N.Y., said the CBC’s role will be to hold President-elect Donald Trump and his congressional supporters accountable. Both the House and Senate