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  • Trump and DOGE Create Anxiety but Opportunity for Federal Contractors – The New York Times

    Trump and DOGE Create Anxiety but Opportunity for Federal Contractors – The New York Times

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    By cutting federal employees, the Trump administration may increase its reliance on firms that take in billions through government contracts.

    President Trump sits at a desk in the Oval Office as Elon Musk stands to his side, his arms crossed, and Mr. Musk’s young son stands in front of him.
    The share prices of publicly traded contractors fell in the months after the election as it became clear that President Trump and Elon Musk would rein in federal agencies.Credit…Eric Lee/The New York Times

    A contracting firm called Leidos took in more than $16 billion in revenue last year, most of it through contracts with federal agencies like the Department of Veterans Affairs.

    So when the Trump administration’s budget cutters took aim at the V.A. last month, it seemed like bad news not just for the department’s employees but also for Leidos and dozens of other private-sector firms.

    “No more paying consultants to do things like make Power Point slides and write meeting minutes!” the department’s secretary, Doug Collins, wrote on X. Overall, the department indicated that it was canceling more than 850 contracts worth nearly $2 billion.

    But shortly after Mr. Collins’s announcement, the outlook for some of the V.A.’s contractors seemed to brighten. The department put the cancellations on pause, saying it needed to review the contracts to avoid “eliminating any benefits or services” to veterans or V.A. beneficiaries. It later narrowed the list of canceled contracts by a few hundred.

    And experts on government contracting said cuts to the agency, which announced last week that it was seeking to trim 80,000 of its roughly 480,000 employees, could even lead to increased spending on federal contracts.

    These experts noted that cutting employees without reining in a government function — like providing health care and benefits to veterans, work in which Leidos plays a key role — typically means the job will fall more heavily on contractors.

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  • Trump calls for imprisoning his opponents in bellicose speech at Justice Department – POLITICO

    Trump calls for imprisoning his opponents in bellicose speech at Justice Department – POLITICO

    Trump calls for imprisoning his opponents in bellicose speech at Justice Department  POLITICO

  • MIT among universities facing DEI investigations under Trump’s DOE – WCVB Boston

    MIT among universities facing DEI investigations under Trump’s DOE – WCVB Boston

    Several universities across Massachusetts and New England are the subject of new investigations launched under President Donald Trump’s effort to end diversity, equity and inclusion programs.According to a statement from the department, each of the universities partnered with The PhD Project, a nonprofit that helps students from underrepresented groups get degrees in business with the goal of diversifying the business world. The DOE alleges that the organization limits eligibility based on the race of participants and that colleges that partner with it are “engaging in race-exclusionary practices in their graduate programs.”The group of 45 universities facing investigation over ties to the PhD Project includes the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Yale University and the University of Rhode Island. The Associated Press attempted to contact the PhD Project but the inquiry was not immediately answered. “Students must be assessed according to merit and accomplishment, not prejudged by the color of their skin,” Education Secretary Linda McMahon said in a statement. “We will not yield on this commitment.”Seven other schools, including the New England College of Optometry, are also facing investigation for the alleged use of “impermissible race-based scholarships and race-based segregation,” the DOE said.The announcement comes one month after DOE sent a memo to all educational institutions receiving federal funding, which warned that the U.S. Supreme Court’s 2023 decision in Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard does not permit the consideration of race in college admissions. That decision focused on admissions policies at Harvard and the University of North Carolina, but the Education Department said it will interpret the decision to forbid race-based policies in any aspect of education, both in K-12 schools and higher education.”Educational institutions have toxically indoctrinated students with the false premise that the United States is built upon ‘systemic and structural racism’ and advanced discriminatory policies and practices. Proponents of these discriminatory practices have attempted to further justify them—particularly during the last four years—under the banner of ‘diversity, equity, and inclusion’ (‘DEI’), smuggling racial stereotypes and explicit race-consciousness into everyday training, programming, and discipline,” the memo states. The memo is being challenged in federal lawsuits from the nation’s two largest teachers unions. The suits say the memo is too vague and violates the free speech rights of educators.Earlier this week, DOE notified 60 schools — including Boston University, Emerson College, Harvard University, Tufts University, University of Massachusetts Amherst, and Wellesley College — of an investigation into alleged “antisemitic discrimination and harassment” on the schools’ campuses.Also, this week, the department announced more than 1,300 job cuts and the termination of office leases in six cities, including Boston.Full list of universities under investigation for allegedly engaging in race-exclusionary practices in their graduate programs include:Arizona State University – Main Campus Boise State University Cal Poly Humboldt California State University – San Bernadino Carnegie Mellon University Clemson University Cornell University Duke University Emory University George Mason University Georgetown University Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) Montana State University-Bozeman New York University (NYU) Rice University Rutgers University The Ohio State University – Main Campus Towson University Tulane University University of Arkansas – Fayetteville University of California-Berkeley University of Chicago University of Cincinnati – Main Campus University of Colorado at Colorado University of Delaware University of Kansas University of Kentucky University of Michigan-Ann Arbor University of Minnesota-Twin Cities University of Nebraska at Omaha University of New Mexico – Main Campus University of North Dakota – Main Campus University of North Texas – Denton University of Notre Dame University of NV – Las Vegas University of Oregon University of Rhode Island University of Utah University of Washington-Seattle University of Wisconsin-Madison University of Wyoming Vanderbilt University Washington State University Washington University in St. Louis Yale University Full list of schools under investigation for alleged impermissible race-based scholarships and race-based segregation: Grand Valley State University Ithaca College New England College of Optometry University of Alabama University of Minnesota, Twin Cities University of South Florida University of Tulsa School of MedicineThe Associated Press contributed to this report

    CAMBRIDGE, Mass. —

    Several universities across Massachusetts and New England are the subject of new investigations launched under President Donald Trump’s effort to end diversity, equity and inclusion programs.

    According to a statement from the department, each of the universities partnered with The PhD Project, a nonprofit that helps students from underrepresented groups get degrees in business with the goal of diversifying the business world. The DOE alleges that the organization limits eligibility based on the race of participants and that colleges that partner with it are “engaging in race-exclusionary practices in their graduate programs.”

    The group of 45 universities facing investigation over ties to the PhD Project includes the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Yale University and the University of Rhode Island.

    The Associated Press attempted to contact the PhD Project but the inquiry was not immediately answered.

    “Students must be assessed according to merit and accomplishment, not prejudged by the color of their skin,” Education Secretary Linda McMahon said in a statement. “We will not yield on this commitment.”

    Seven other schools, including the New England College of Optometry, are also facing investigation for the alleged use of “impermissible race-based scholarships and race-based segregation,” the DOE said.

    The announcement comes one month after DOE sent a memo to all educational institutions receiving federal funding, which warned that the U.S. Supreme Court’s 2023 decision in Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard does not permit the consideration of race in college admissions.

    That decision focused on admissions policies at Harvard and the University of North Carolina, but the Education Department said it will interpret the decision to forbid race-based policies in any aspect of education, both in K-12 schools and higher education.

    “Educational institutions have toxically indoctrinated students with the false premise that the United States is built upon ‘systemic and structural racism’ and advanced discriminatory policies and practices. Proponents of these discriminatory practices have attempted to further justify them—particularly during the last four years—under the banner of ‘diversity, equity, and inclusion’ (‘DEI’), smuggling racial stereotypes and explicit race-consciousness into everyday training, programming, and discipline,” the memo states.

    The memo is being challenged in federal lawsuits from the nation’s two largest teachers unions. The suits say the memo is too vague and violates the free speech rights of educators.

    Earlier this week, DOE notified 60 schools — including Boston University, Emerson College, Harvard University, Tufts University, University of Massachusetts Amherst, and Wellesley College — of an investigation into alleged “antisemitic discrimination and harassment” on the schools’ campuses.

    Also, this week, the department announced more than 1,300 job cuts and the termination of office leases in six cities, including Boston.

    Full list of universities under investigation for allegedly engaging in race-exclusionary practices in their graduate programs include:

    • Arizona State University – Main Campus
    • Boise State University
    • Cal Poly Humboldt
    • California State University – San Bernadino
    • Carnegie Mellon University
    • Clemson University
    • Cornell University
    • Duke University
    • Emory University
    • George Mason University
    • Georgetown University
    • Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)
    • Montana State University-Bozeman
    • New York University (NYU)
    • Rice University
    • Rutgers University
    • The Ohio State University – Main Campus
    • Towson University
    • Tulane University
    • University of Arkansas – Fayetteville
    • University of California-Berkeley
    • University of Chicago
    • University of Cincinnati – Main Campus
    • University of Colorado at Colorado
    • University of Delaware
    • University of Kansas
    • University of Kentucky
    • University of Michigan-Ann Arbor
    • University of Minnesota-Twin Cities
    • University of Nebraska at Omaha
    • University of New Mexico – Main Campus
    • University of North Dakota – Main Campus
    • University of North Texas – Denton
    • University of Notre Dame
    • University of NV – Las Vegas
    • University of Oregon
    • University of Rhode Island
    • University of Utah
    • University of Washington-Seattle
    • University of Wisconsin-Madison
    • University of Wyoming
    • Vanderbilt University
    • Washington State University
    • Washington University in St. Louis
    • Yale University

    Full list of schools under investigation for alleged impermissible race-based scholarships and race-based segregation:

    • Grand Valley State University
    • Ithaca College
    • New England College of Optometry
    • University of Alabama
    • University of Minnesota, Twin Cities
    • University of South Florida
    • University of Tulsa School of Medicine

    The Associated Press contributed to this report

  • Over 50 universities are under investigation as part of Trump’s anti-DEI crackdown – NPR

    Over 50 universities are under investigation as part of Trump’s anti-DEI crackdown – NPR

    Secretary of Education Linda McMahon arrives to President Trump's joint address to Congress on March 4 in Washington, D.C.

    Secretary of Education Linda McMahon arrives to President Trump’s joint address to Congress on March 4 in Washington, D.C. Tierney L. Cross/Getty Images hide caption

    toggle caption

    Tierney L. Cross/Getty Images

    The U.S. Department of Education has launched investigations into 52 universities in 41 states, accusing the schools of using “racial preferences and stereotypes in education programs and activities.”

    On Friday, the department’s Office of Civil Rights said that 45 schools, particularly their graduate programs, violated the 1964 Civil Rights Act by partnering with The PhD Project, a nonprofit that helps students from underrepresented groups earn doctoral degrees in business. The program focuses on supporting Black, Latino and Native American students.

    The Education Department alleges that The PhD Project limits eligibility based on the race of participants, and therefore, universities involved with the organization are engaging in “race-exclusionary practices.”

    “Students must be assessed according to merit and accomplishment, not prejudged by the color of their skin. We will not yield on this commitment,” Education Secretary Linda McMahon said in a statement.

    In response to the allegations, The PhD Project told NPR, “Our vision is to create a broader talent pipeline of current and future business leaders…” The organization added, “This year, we have opened our membership application to anyone who shares that vision.”

    The schools under investigation include dozens of state schools and two Ivy Leagues, namely Cornell and Yale. A number of private schools are also facing scrutiny, include Duke, Emory, Georgetown, Vanderbilt, Rice, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and New York University. The full list of schools is here.

    Six additional institutions of higher education are being probed for awarding alleged “impermissible race-based scholarships.” Another one has been accused of “administering a program that segregates students on the basis of race.”

    The seven schools affected are: Grand Valley State University; Ithaca College; New England College of Optometry; University of Alabama; University of Minnesota, Twin Cities; University of South Florida; and University of Oklahoma, Tulsa School of Medicine. The Department of Education did not respond to NPR’s request to clarify which school is being accused of segregation.

    Lynn Pasquerella, the president of the American Association of Colleges and Universities, told NPR that she has been talking to administrators from schools named in the inquiry.

    “They’re feeling beleaguered. They’re feeling overwhelmed,” she said. “There’s a deep sense of moral distress.”

    Pasquerella said the Education Department is conflating efforts to provide an inclusive learning environment with violating civil rights obligations. “ It’s another example of governmental overreach into institutional autonomy, into academic freedom, in ways that go against what’s already established legal precedent,” she added.

    The department’s inquiries come a month after it issued a letter warning institutions to stop using “race-based preferences” in admissions, financial aid, hiring, training and other areas or risk losing federal funding. The directive specifically accused American educational institutions of discriminating against white and Asian students.

    Two of the country’s largest teacher unions — the National Education Association and the American Federation of Teachers — have filed separate federal lawsuits against the Education Department memo, arguing that it was unfounded and vague.

    The letter and the onslaught of investigations are all part of the Trump administration’s aim to ban diversity, equity and inclusion programs in the name of fighting “wokeness.”

    The Education Department has also been investigating 60 universities over allegations of antisemitic discrimination. A handful of schools are involved in both sets of investigations, including Cornell, George Mason, Rutgers, Yale, University of Wisconsin, Madison, and University of Washington-Seattle.

    Earlier this week, the department warned that universities could face “potential enforcement actions” if officials determine that schools failed to protect Jewish students on campus.

    The growing number of investigations against higher education institutions also comes as the Education Department faces drastic cuts in staff. This week, at least 240 employees in the department’s Office for Civil Rights were laid off, many of whom were attorneys who investigate complaints from families who believe a school has discriminated against their child.

    In a recent op-ed published to Higher Ed Dive, Marjorie Hass, the president of the Council of Independent Colleges, said “hundreds — maybe thousands — of college leaders have been on Capitol Hill in the last few weeks” in an effort to fight the threats facing higher education.

    “College presidents are not a monolith,” Hass wrote. “But the ones I know care deeply about protecting the things that are essential for student success: financial aid, a climate of free inquiry, support for students of all identities, and free speech.”

  • Live updates: Senate plans vote on Trump-backed bill to avert government shutdown – The Washington Post

    Live updates: Senate plans vote on Trump-backed bill to avert government shutdown  The Washington Post

  • Watch Live: In address about vision for Justice Dept., Trump airs grievances about prior investigations into him – CBS News

    Watch Live: In address about vision for Justice Dept., Trump airs grievances about prior investigations into him – CBS News

    Trump is visiting the Justice Department

    Why Trump is visiting the Justice Department 03:14

    President Trump delivered a rambling campaign-style speech at the Justice Department on Friday to lay out his vision for the department, in which he aired his grievances over the federal investigations into him and vowed retribution against his political foes. 

    Mr. Trump referred to a “corrupt group of hacks and radicals within the ranks of the American government” who he said had “obliterated” trust and goodwill over generations, but promised “those days are over” and are “never coming back.” Opening his remarks, he said the Justice Department is starting a “proud new chapter in the chronicles of American justice.” 

    “We’re turning the page on four long years of corruption, weaponization and surrender to violent criminals,” Mr. Trump claimed. “And we’re restoring fair, equal and impartial justice under the constitutional rule of law.” 

    Mr. Trump has been a regular critic of the Justice Department for years, even before special counsel Jack Smith indicted him in two criminal cases after he left office. The president praised one of the judges in those cases during his remarks. Mr. Trump said federal judge Aileen Cannon, who he appointed during his first term and who ultimately dismissed the classified documents case against him, as “the absolute model of what a judge should be.” 

    In January, about a dozen Justice Department employees who worked for Smith on the investigation and prosecution of Mr. Trump were fired. The federal prosecutors were informed of the decision to terminate their positions by email after department leadership determined they were unable to carry out Mr. Trump’s agenda. 

    Earlier this month, the president moved to suspend the security clearances of attorneys at Perkins Coie, a law firm linked to Democratic-funded opposition research during the 2016 presidential campaign into any ties between Mr. Trump and Russia. Mr. Trump’s order also instructs agency heads to restrict access to government buildings by the firm’s attorneys “when such access would threaten the national security of or otherwise be inconsistent with the interests of the United States” and to identify, and cancel, contracts they have with the firm.

    His appearance at the department was notable given that no president has appeared there in a decade. In 2015, President Barack Obama made the last known public appearance by a sitting U.S. president at the Justice Department, when he paid tribute to departing attorney general Eric Holder. Before that, President George W. Bush in 2001 visited the department in order to formally change the name of the building to honor Robert F. Kennedy, who served as attorney general under the administration of his brother, President John F. Kennedy.

    The Justice Department, in order to protect its independence and integrity in law enforcement decisions, traditionally doesn’t advise the White House about pending or possible criminal or civil investigations or cases, unless it’s important to the president’s duties, according to the Justice Manual.

    Mr. Trump also spoke of his vision for Washington as a capital that is “the talk of the world,” then trailed off about men’s college basketball coach Bobby Knight, inflation, the Russia-Ukraine war, the Israel-Hamas war and the 2020 election. He rounded out his lengthy remarks by putting drug cartels on notice and acknowledging family members of Americans who died from fentanyl. 

    The president was introduced by Attorney General Pam Bondi, and FBI Director Kash Patel was also in attendance.

    Ahead of the president’s remarks, some Democrats criticized Mr. Trump and alleged he has broken the law since he took office.

    “President Trump began breaking the law on day one of his term, and immediately pardoned hundreds of violent criminals upon taking office,” said House Appropriations Committee Ranking Member Rosa DeLauro, a Connecticut Democrat. “The Trump administration is breaking the law and undermining the Constitution every day by illegally stealing funds for the programs that help American families and businesses, firing career civil servants without cause, and dismantling agencies created by acts of Congress.”

    “Restoring law and order starts with respecting the Rule of Law itself and the sacredness of our Constitution,” Democratic Rep. Grace Meng of New York said in a statement. “This administration has failed to do so since day one.”

    Caitlin Yilek

    Caitlin Yilek is a politics reporter at CBSNews.com, based in Washington, D.C. She previously worked for the Washington Examiner and The Hill, and was a member of the 2022 Paul Miller Washington Reporting Fellowship with the National Press Foundation.

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  • US arrests second student, imposes ‘receivership’ on Columbia University – Al Jazeera English

    US arrests second student, imposes ‘receivership’ on Columbia University – Al Jazeera English

    The administration of President Donald Trump has arrested a second student protester and set a deadline for Columbia University, one of the most prestigious campuses in the United States, to cede control of one of its academic departments.

    In a news release on Friday, the Department of Homeland Security accused Leqaa Kordia, a Palestinian student at Columbia, of overstaying her F-1 student visa.

    The statement explained that agents from Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detained her for deportation. Another foreign student, Ranjani Srinivasan of India, had her student visa revoked for participating “in activities supporting Hammas”, a misspelling of the Palestinian armed group Hamas.

    The Trump administration has repeatedly conflated participation in protests against Israel’s war in Gaza with support for Hamas. It has also accused demonstrators of supporting “terrorists”.

    Kordia’s arrest marks the second time in less than a week that a Palestinian student at Columbia University has been taken into ICE custody for deportation. On Saturday, protest spokesperson Mahmoud Khalil likewise was arrested and placed in immigration detention, first in New Jersey and later in Louisiana.

    Civil liberty advocates say the arrests are meant to stifle free speech rights, and Khalil’s lawyer this week argued he has not been able to contact his client privately, in violation of his right to legal counsel.

    Khalil is a permanent resident of the US, with a green card, and his American wife is eight months pregnant. The Trump administration, however, says it plans to strip him of his green card.

    “It is a privilege to be granted a visa to live and study in the United States of America. When you advocate for violence and terrorism that privilege should be revoked, and you should not be in this country,” Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said in the news release.

    But the arrests and student visa revocation were not the only strong-armed actions the Trump administration took against Columbia in the last 24 hours.

    In a letter issued late on Thursday night, the administration demanded that Columbia’s Department of Middle Eastern, South Asian and African Studies (MESAAS) be placed in an “academic receivership” wherein an outside authority takes control, often as punishment for mismanagement.

    The letter specified that the university must come up with a plan to create the academic receivership role no later than March 20.

    Failure to comply, the letter warned, would negatively affect “Columbia University’s continued financial relationship with the United States government”.

    Setting up a receivership was just one in a list of demands, which included abolishing the university’s judicial board for hearing disciplinary matters, banning masks on campus and adopting a controversial definition of anti-Semitism that some fear could limit legitimate criticisms of Israel.

    Columbia University is a private school, one of eight campuses that makes up the much-vaunted Ivy League in the northeast region.

    But Trump and other Republicans have repeatedly attacked the university since it became the epicentre of pro-Palestinian protests in 2023 and 2024 as students rallied against the devastation wrought by Israel’s war, which United Nations experts compared to a genocide.

    How did we get here?

    The protests hit a peak last April, after a contentious hearing on Capitol Hill. The university president at the time, Minouche Shafik, appeared before a congressional panel to face scrutiny over allegations that Columbia and other schools had failed to address anti-Semitism on campus.

    The very next day, Shafik authorised New York City police to enter an encampment that student protesters had set up on Columbia’s East Lawn, leading to mass arrests.

    Tensions escalated from there. Student protesters argued that their free speech rights were being curtailed, and that officials were conflating criticisms of Israel’s war with anti-Semitism. Some occupied a school building, Hamilton Hall, to show defiance against attempts to dismantle the protest movement.

    But what happened at Columbia kicked off a series of similar measures across the country, as police were called onto campuses to arrest peaceful protesters. More than 3,000 protesters are estimated to have been arrested between April and July.

    Trump campaigned for re-election on the platform that he would seek out and deport foreign students who participated in the protests.

    His allies even codified the threats into last year’s Republican Party platform, making it one of 20 pledges: to “deport pro-Hamas radicals and make our college campuses safe and patriotic again”.

    Upon taking office for a second term on January 20, Trump immediately issued an executive order calling for the removal of foreigners who bear “hostile attitudes” to US “citizens, culture, government, institutions, or founding principles” or who support “threats to our national security”.

    The US has long been an ally of Israel and has supported its campaign in Gaza, which has killed at least 48,524 Palestinians.

    In the months since taking office, Trump has directed the Justice Department to “investigate and punish anti-Jewish racism in leftist, anti-American colleges and universities”.

    And on social media this month, he warned he would take heavy-handed action against any campus that hosts what he called “illegal protests” — although he failed to define what that category might entail.

    “All Federal Funding will STOP for any College, School, or University that allows illegal protests,” Trump wrote. “Agitators will be imprisoned/or permanently sent back to the country from which they came. American students will be permanently expelled or, depending on on [sic] the crime, arrested.”

    Already, on March 7, the Trump administration announced the immediate cancellation of $400m in federal grants and contracts to Columbia University, in what was considered a warning shot against all institutions of higher education to conform with the president’s demands.

    Secretary of Education Linda McMahon pointed to increases in reported acts of anti-Semitism after the Hamas-led attacks on southern Israel in October 2023 as a reason for the cancellation.

    “Since October 7, Jewish students have faced relentless violence, intimidation, and anti-Semitic harassment on their campuses — only to be ignored by those who are supposed to protect them,” McMahon said in an accompanying news release.

    “Universities must comply with all federal antidiscrimination laws if they are going to receive federal funding.”

    According to the Department of Education, Columbia currently receives approximately $5bn in federal grants and contracts. Earlier this week, the school moved to expel or suspend students involved in the antiwar protests.

    Trump efforts face backlash

    But some activists have questioned whether the Trump administration is truly motivated to combat hate crimes — or whether anti-Semitism is being used as a smokescreen to further other political aims.

    On Thursday, activists with Jewish Voice for Peace and other groups gathered in Trump Tower in New York City to protest Khalil’s arrest, wearing red T-shirts emblazoned with the slogan “Not in our name”.

    As reports emerge of Homeland Security officials searching Columbia University dorm rooms, critics fear students’ civil rights may be violated.

    “We do believe that if you are here, you shouldn’t get arrested, dragged away, and deported for engaging in protests that all of your classmates were perfectly within their rights to engage in,” Greg Lukianoff, the CEO of the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE), wrote on social media on Friday.

    The Trump administration has cited a little-used section of the Immigration and Nationality Act as justification for the planned deportations.

    It says the secretary of state has the right to exclude, “under certain circumstances”, foreign nationals whose entry into the US “would have potentially serious adverse foreign policy consequences for the United States”.

    But lawyers and advocates point out that the Supreme Court has repeatedly upheld the constitutional right to free speech for immigrants in the US.

    “What happened to Mahmoud is nothing short of extraordinary, shocking, and outrageous,” Khalil’s lawyer Ramzi Kassem said in a recent statement with the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU). “It should outrage anyone who believes that speech should be free in the United States of America.”

  • Elon Musk’s SpaceX, Tesla lobby Trump trade rep on tariffs – CNBC

    Elon Musk’s SpaceX, Tesla lobby Trump trade rep on tariffs – CNBC

    Tesla CEO Elon Musk watches as President Donald Trump talks to the media, outside the White House in Washington, D.C., March 11, 2025.

    Kevin Lamarque | Reuters

    Two companies led by billionaire DOGE chief Elon Musk — SpaceX and Tesla — have submitted letters lobbying the U.S. trade representative on Trump administration tariff policies.

    But the two companies had different messages for U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer.

    The electric vehicle maker Tesla warned of the negative effect on its bottom line from tariffs and from duties imposed by other countries on U.S.-made products in retaliation for those tariffs.

    SpaceX complained that operating costs for its Starlink internet satellite service are increased by trade barriers abroad, while foreign competitors face no such costs in the United States.

    The letters come as Musk oversees the so-called Department of Government Efficiency, an effort to slash federal government spending and employee headcount at the behest of President Donald Trump.

    At the same time, Trump is imposing stiff tariffs on China, Mexico and Canada, with China and Canada firing back with retaliatory tariffs.

    The letters are two of more than 700 received so far by the trade representative’s office in response to an invitation for public comment on “unfair trade practices by other countries.”

    Jamieson Greer, President Donald Trump’s nominee to be U.S. trade representative, testifies during his Senate Finance Committee confirmation hearing, in the Dirksen Senate Office Building, Feb. 6, 2025.

    Tom Williams | CQ-Roll Call, Inc. | Getty Images

    Tesla, in its unsigned letter to Greer, encouraged him “to consider the downstream impacts of certain proposed actions taken to address unfair trade practices.”

    “While Tesla recognizes and supports the importance of fair trade, the assessment undertaken by USTR of
    potential actions to rectify unfair trade should also take into account exports from the United States,” said the letter, which was submitted by Tesla’s associate general counsel Miriam Eqab.

    “U.S. exporters are inherently exposed to disproportionate impacts when other countries respond to U.S. trade actions.”

    Tesla noted that, “Past U.S. special tariff actions have thus (1) increased costs to Tesla for vehicles manufactured in the United States, and (2) increased costs for those same vehicles when exported from the United States, resulting in less competitive international marketplace for U.S. manufacturers.”

    “USTR should investigate ways to avoid these pitfalls in future action,” the letter said.

    SpaceX, in its letter to Greer, said that it “faces a range of regulatory complexities and trade barriers in every country that the U.S. Government should seek to address in order to support continued U.S. leadership in the space domain.”

    The letter noted that the company must pay foreign governments for access to spectrum and import duties for its Starlink satellite internet equipment, and other fees that “substantially increase the cost of operating in these countries — artificially.”

    “The import duties paid in a handful of countries represent a significant cost increase for Starlink products in those countries, despite the United States having essentially no duties on similar foreign products that are imported into the United States to serve customers here,” wrote Mat Dunn, SpaceX’s senior director of global business and government affairs, in the letter.

    “As President Trump has noted with other sectors, this is a significant disadvantage to U.S. companies,” Dunn wrote.

     Tesla and SpaceX did not immediately respond to a request for comment from CNBC about their letters.

  • Trump lauds Schumer’s ‘guts’ in backing bill to avoid shutdown – POLITICO

    Trump lauds Schumer’s ‘guts’ in backing bill to avoid shutdown  POLITICO

  • US updates: Trump administration seeks eggs from Denmark – DW (English)

    US updates: Trump administration seeks eggs from Denmark – DW (English)

    Skip next section New Canadian PM: Canada ‘will never, ever, in any way shape or form, be part of the United States’

    March 14, 2025

    New Canadian PM: Canada ‘will never, ever, in any way shape or form, be part of the United States’

    Canada’s new prime minister, Mark Carney, stated that his country would not be taken by its southern neighbor.

    “We will never, ever, in any way, shape or form, be part of the United States,” Carney said Friday at his inauguration in Ottawa.

    Carney: ‘We’ll never be part of the US’

    To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video

    Carney takes over for Justin Trudeau, who stepped down in January after almost a decade in power.

    This week saw major escalations between Canada and the United States as provincial leaders in Canada sought to levy their own tariffs.

    Trump has offered to trade tariffs for annexation, saying, “The only thing that makes sense is for Canada to become our cherished Fifty First State. This would make all tariffs, and everything eles, totally disappear.”

    Trump’s statements and the trade tariffs have sparked a backlash against US goods in Canada and elsewhere in the world. 

    https://p.dw.com/p/4rnwf

    Skip next section Voice of America to end contracts with AP, Reuters, AFP

    March 14, 2025

    Voice of America to end contracts with AP, Reuters, AFP

    The US Agency for Global Media, wich oversees public broadcasters such as Voice of America and Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, will cut its partnership with leading news agencies such as the Associated Press (AP), Reuters and Agence France-Presse (AFP).

    “We should not be paying outside news companies to tell us what the news is,” said Kari Lake, special advisor to the agency.

    “We should be producing news ourselves. And if that’s not possible, the American taxpayer should demand to know why.”

    According to Lake, the cuts will save the government $53 million (€48.7 million).

    The move comes as the Trump administration continues to spar with media. In January, the White House banned the Associated Press from its reporting pool after the agency refused to refer to the Gulf of Mexico as the “Gulf of America.”

    AP has since filed suit.

    https://p.dw.com/p/4rnr0

    Skip next section Trump’s trade war is ‘a wake-up call for Europe,’ says ECB chief

    March 14, 2025

    Trump’s trade war is ‘a wake-up call for Europe,’ says ECB chief

    Christine Lagarde, the president of the European Central Bank, has sounded the alarm on Trump’s trade war with Europe.

    “It’s a big wake-up call for Europe. Maybe this is a European moment, yet again,” she told the BBC.

    She also expressed concerns for global consumers should the situation escalate futher.

    “If we were to go to a real trade war, where trade would be dampened significantly, that would have severe consequences… for growth around the world and for prices around the world, but particularly in the United States.”

    The US had announced 25% tariffs on European steel and aluminum imports, which the EU countered with tariffs of their own starting on April 1st.

    Trump then threatened to counter those tariffs himself with a 200% tax on wine and other alcohol from Europe.

    https://p.dw.com/p/4rnsA

    Skip next section Rubio: ‘More visas will be revoked’ from college students

    March 14, 2025

    Rubio: ‘More visas will be revoked’ from college students

    Secretary of State Marco Rubio doubled down on his administration’s aggressive rhetoric towards students in the United States.

    “In the days to come, you should expect more visas will be revoked as we identify people that we should have never allowed in,” he told reporters.

    The statement comes after the sudden arrest and attempted deportation of Mahmoud Khalil, a student at Columbia University. 

    Khalil was a known pro-Palestinian activist who was taken from his home last Saturday and set to be deported. On Monday, his lawyers temporarily blocked the deportation, challenging the legality of his arrest.

    But Khalil was not in the United States on a student visa. He is a permanent resident and holds a Green Card.

    Earlier today, federal agents raided two more Columbia students just hours after Donald Trump demanded changes to the university’s curriculum. No arrests were made. 

    https://p.dw.com/p/4rnh1

    Skip next section Trump Administration tells Columbia Univeristy to change policies or lose funding

    March 14, 2025

    Trump Administration tells Columbia Univeristy to change policies or lose funding

    President Donald Trump’s administration has threatened to revoke federal funding from Columbia University unless it gives up control of its international studies department and makes significant policy changes.

    In a letter sent from the Department of Education, General Services Administration and Department of Health and Human Services, federal officials said the university must immediately place its Middle Eastern, South Asian, and African Studies Department under “academic receivership for a minimum of five years.”

    Columbia must also ban masks on campus that are meant to conceal the wearer’s identity or intimidate others, adopt a new definition of antisemitism, and abolish its current process for administering discipline to students.

    “We expect your immediate compliance with these critical next steps,” officials wrote.

    Last week, the government said it was canceling $400 million (€367 million) in federal grants.and contracts to the school.

    The university has a 30-day period in which it can try to address the government’s concerns.

    The Trump administration is exerting growing pressure on the university, which was the epicenter of pro-Palestinian protests at dozens of US college campuses last spring.

    At the same time the Department of Education said it was investigating 45 universities, citing complaints that the schools engaged with a program that set eligibility based on race.

    “Today’s announcement expands our efforts to ensure universities are not discriminating against their students based on race and race stereotypes,” US Secretary of Education Linda McMahon said in the statement.

    Trump administration seeks to deport Palestinian activist

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    https://p.dw.com/p/4rn9Y

    Skip next section US asks Denmark and others how many eggs they can send

    March 14, 2025

    US asks Denmark and others how many eggs they can send

    The United States has requested that Denmark and other European countries send it eggs, according to the Nordic country’s egg association.

    This request comes as egg prices in the US continue to rise.

    The Reuters news agency has seen the letter from the US Department of Agriculture in Europe seeking information on their ability and willingness to export eggs to the American market.

    “We’re still waiting to get more guidance from Washington on next steps, but do you have an estimate of the number of eggs that could be supplied to the United States (assuming they meet all the import requirements),” a follow-up letter to the Danish egg association in early March said.

    During the election Donald Trump promissed to bring costs down. Instead, but the price has increased by 59% on a year-on-year basis since he came to power.

    The Danish Egg Association said they would look into it but that there is no surplus of eggs in Europe.

    The request comes as the Trump said he wants to control of Greenland, which is part of Denmark.

    Greenland: The natural resources that Donald Trump wants

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    https://p.dw.com/p/4rnEg

    Skip next section Welcome to our coverage

    March 14, 2025

    Welcome to our coverage

    Louis Oelofse | Jenipher Camino Gonzalez

    President Donald Trump says there is “very good chance” the war between Russia and Ukraine could end.

    Trump described discussion his special envoy, Steve Witkoff, had with Vladimir Putin at the Kremlin as “very good and productive.”

    On the domestic front, Trump is due to speak at the US Justice Department as his administration moves to shake up the nation’s law enforcement system quickly. 

    Later, he will travel to Mar-a-Lago for the weekend.

    https://p.dw.com/p/4rn6T