Federal Judge Blocks Sharing of Personal Data with DOGE Initiative
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 orders more layoffs, Musk touts cuts at cabinet meeting
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
‘We’re not prepared’: States brace for Trump’s plans to dismantle the Education Department
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
$19 million in HBCU funding suspended after Trump diversity ban: ‘Not looking too good’
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
The Trump administration kills nearly all USAID programs
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 G.O.P. Budget Teeing Up Enormous Tax and Spending 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
As G.O.P. Eyes Medicaid Cuts, States Could be Left With Vast Shortfalls
By Noah Weiland and Sarah Kliff House Republicans hunting for ways to pay for President Trump’s tax cuts have called for cutting the federal government’s share of Medicaid spending, including a proposal that would effectively gut the Affordable Care Act’s 2014 expansion of the program. Cutting Medicaid spending, which is expected to be central to fulfilling the budget plan that House Republicans adopted Tuesday night, could result in millions of Americans across the country losing health coverage unless states decide to play a bigger role in its funding. Federal and state governments share the costs of Medicaid, which is a public health insurance program
Black History Month Forum: “The Story of Mrs. Recy Taylor, a Working-Class Black Woman’s Fight for Justice and Accountability!”
Courtesy of Alabama State University Alabama State University’s National Center for the Study of Civil Rights and African American Culture (National Center) will host a special Black History Month forum, featuring a panel discussion of an infamous case involving a sexual assault against a South Alabama Black woman, Mrs. Recy Taylor. A number of Mrs. Taylor’s family members will be in attendance. The case involved the 1944 rape of Mrs. Recy Taylor, a 24-year-old wife, mother and sharecropper. The attack took place in Abbeville, Alabama, by a gang of six white males. The forum is based on this year’s national Black History
Black Lawmakers Blast USDA For Cancelling HBCU Scholarship Via Trump’s Anti-DEI Executive Order
By Sherelle Burt Reps. Alma Adams (D-NC) and Jonathan L. Jackson (D-IL) are calling out the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) for abruptly canceling the 1890 Scholars Program, a key initiative that supported HBCU students in the agricultural fields since the early 90s. After the agency eliminated the program due to the anti-DEI executive order signed by President Donald Trump, Adams, a North Carolina A&T State University alumnus, released a statement condemning the decision. “It is infuriating that the U.S. Department of Agriculture has suspended the 1890 Scholars Program ‘pending further review,” Adams said. “This is a clear attack on an
Musk gives all federal workers 48 hours to explain what they did last week or face consequences
By Steve Peoples Hundreds of thousands of federal workers have been given little more than 48 hours to explain what they accomplished over the last week, sparking confusion across key agencies as billionaire Elon Musk expands his drive to slash the size of federal government. Musk, who serves as President Donald Trump’s cost-cutting chief, telegraphed the extraordinary request Saturday on his social media network. “Consistent with President @realDonaldTrump’s instructions, all federal employees will shortly receive an email requesting to understand what they got done last week,” Musk posted on X, which he owns. “Failure to respond will be taken as a resignation.” Shortly afterward,