• Thu, February 20, 2025

by: WAtoday

Nationals to break ranks with Liberal colleagues and get election promises costed by treasury

The country party confirmed to WAtoday it would submit its costings to the Treasury next week, marking an embarrassing deviation from alliance partner the WA Liberal's defiant stance against using the agency to cost its commitments.

by: MSN

Request to block mass firing of probationary employees denied by judge

A judge has denied labor unions' request to temporarily block the administration from carrying out mass firing of probationary employees and deferred resignation offers.

by: ABC

Trump 2nd term live updates: Attorney General Pam Bondi fires chief counsel of ATF

The chief counsel of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives was fired and escorted out of her office, sources familiar with the matter told ABC News.

by: MSN

IRS fires 6,000 employees as Trump slashes US government

A tearful executive at the U.S. Internal Revenue Service told staffers on Thursday that about 6,000 employees would be fired, a person familiar with the matter said, in a move that would eliminate roughly 6% of the agency's workforce in the midst of the busy tax-filing season.

by: MSN

Minnesota bird flu, wolf tracking programs clouded in uncertainty amid Trump's federal funding freeze

Minnesota farmers say they are in a valley of uncertainty amid the layoffs and cost-cutting measures of the first few weeks of President Trump's second term. "It's really ... a day-to-day, hour-to-hour situation,
  • Fri, February 21, 2025

by: CounterPunch

The Great Trump Media Robbery

After a month in which President Donald J. Trump allowed Elon Musk to launch a hostile takeover of the U.S. government, dispatched his talking dummy J.D.

by: Onefootball

SC Freiburg prepare for kickoff on German Federal Election Weekend: "More important than football." | OneFootball

In the always intertwined world of politics and Bundesliga football, SC Freiburg head coach Julian Schuster took an opportunity on Thursday to prove himself Christian Streich's true successor. Streich - actually one of the figures on the board responsible for electing Germany's (largely ceremonial) President - never missed an opportunity to weigh in on the state of German politics.

by: cnbctv18

Delhi BJP government scraps all co-terminus appointments in ex-CM, ministers' offices

According to the official order, all officers, officials, and staff assigned from various departments, organisations, boards, and hospitals in a "diverted capacity" must immediately return to their parent departments.

by: Tennessean

The week in politics: Why Tennessee lawmakers formed a bipartisan Israel caucus

An Tennessee-Israel legislative caucus gets formed. The group is bipartisan. A new bill would make it a crime to block the movement of the security detail of the House and Senate speakers. The Senate passes a bill requiring tattoo artists to undergo anti-trafficking training.

by: LocalSYR

Democrats channel their outrage over DOGE, Ukraine and more in marathon Senate session

The budget resolution from Republicans was on the agenda in the Senate, but the late-night debate encompassed so much more. Democrats used the overnight session that ended early

by: Alternet

DOGE's millions: As Musk and Trump gut government, their ax-cutting agency gets cash infusion

While Elon Musk and his underlings demand budget cuts and layoffs across the federal government, funding for their agency — the Department of Government Efficiency — has soared to nearly $40 million,

by: Mint

Delhi CM Rekha Gupta Oath Ceremony LIVE: Rekha Gupta tables 14 CAG reports; Parvesh Verma allotted PWD and flood control

Rekha Gupta announces to table 14 CAG reports in first House meeting of Delhi Assembly. Parvesh Verma has been allotted PWD, legislative affairs, water, and flood control.

by: Politico

Long-distance relationship

— Like-minded: The friendship is rooted in the shared history of Canada and Ukraine. Under former Prime Minister BRIAN MULRONEY, Canada was the first Western country to recognize Ukraine's independence, and it is home to one of the largest Ukrainian diaspora communities in the world.

by: BBC

Senedd election could be 'most difficult' for Labour

The next Senedd election could be one of the most difficult Labour has faced in Wales, a senior politician from the party has said. Mick Antoniw told Walescast Labour needed to show things would improve in Wales ahead of the vote in May 2026.

by: Salon

MAGA's not-so-secret weapon: "Major media are a key tool for Trump's destruction of the government"

"The takeover is easy when journalism and massive news orgs. stay the course and pretend everything is normal"

by: RealClearPolitics

Dem Rep. Crockett on Says "No" To DOGE Dividend Checks: "We Are Not In The Business Of Giving Out Money"

Texas, says she "wants some analysis" from Elon Musk about how he's advising President Trump on government efficiency. ABC NEWS HOST: Now, President Trump says he likes the idea of giving some of the savings from Doge back to Americans as kind of a dividend.

by: Slate

One Judge Is About to Go Toe-to-Toe With Trump Over His Executive Order Spree

There are so many moving parts to this rampage, yet lawsuits, by their nature, can focus on only one piece of it.

by: Newsweek

SNAP Benefits Face Cuts as RFK Jr. Goes After Junk Food

The recently appointed Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has signaled his intention to cut "junk" food purchases from being purchased using SNAP benefits.

by: Slate

Trump Issued Perhaps His Most Terrifying Executive Order on Tuesday

Having already subdued Congress, Trump has now openly announced that the Führerprinzip governs the executive branch.

by: Reuters

Trump is firing federal workers who are not funded by taxpayers

Elon Musk's DOGE team has slashed hundreds of jobs paid for by fees from banks, medical device companies and other forms of funding rather than taxpayer dollars, raising the question of whether the cuts will render hoped for savings.

by: Newsweek

Airbnb Faces Boycott Calls

The calls come after Airbnb's billionaire co-founder, Joe Gebbia has reportedly joined Elon Musk's Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE).

by: RealClearPolitics

DOGE Bros: Trump and Musk Tell Hannity the 'Bromance' Endures

What would you say you do here, Sean Hannity asked in so many words, and the world’s richest man replied, “Tech support.” The answer was quite

by: ABC

Trump 2nd term live updates: Trump touts work of 1st month, praises Musk and DOGE

The chief counsel of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives was fired and escorted out of her office, sources familiar with the matter told ABC News.

by: Slate

This Might Be the Fastest Way to Get Elon Musk Out of the White House

These suits will no doubt proceed in the weeks and months ahead, as it falls to the courts to hold Musk accountable for his blatant indifference to the law. But beyond his individual actions, Musk's role raises more fundamental questions.

by: MSN

Jasmine Crockett Tells Charlamagne She Doesn't Believe There Is 'A Lot' Of Fraud And Abuse In Federal Gov't

Democratic Texas Rep. Jasmine Crockett told radio host Charlamagne Tha God on Friday that she does not believe there is widespread waste, fraud and abuse in the federal government. The Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) has cut an estimated $55 billion in government spending,

by: CNN

Trump to sign more executive orders as government overhaul moves forward

President Donald Trump and his administration are continuing to try and implement his agenda amid multiple legal challenges. Follow for live updates.

by: CNN

How DOGE cracked Washington: A focus on arcane agencies gave Musk and his allies swift control of government nerve centers

Political appointees with deep ties to Musk now sit in key leadership positions across agencies that comprise the federal government's personnel, technology, property and acquisition operations.

by: MSN

Elon Musk and DOGE promised up to $2 trillion in government savings. How much have they actually saved so far?

As the head of President Trump's new Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), Tesla CEO Elon Musk has vowed to cut between $1 trillion and $2 trillion from the annual federal budget by 2026. "I think we can do at least $2 trillion,

by: MSN

Trump deletes nationwide database on police misconduct founded after George Floyd murder

The database covered all 90 executive branch agencies with law enforcement officers and contained nearly 150,000 officers disciplinary records dating back to 2017

by: CNN

Hegseth could fire some senior generals and admirals soon, sources say

Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth could soon move to fire more than half a dozen generals and flag officers, according to two sources familiar with the matter, part of an effort to purge the department of senior leaders perceived as either too political or too close to former Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin.

by: CNN

Latest on Trump's presidency: Government overhaul, Patel confirmed and tensions with Ukraine

President Donald Trump and his administration continue with their government overhaul efforts and foreign policy agenda. Follow for live updates.

by: MSN

What Could DOGE Do With Federal Data?

When the Department of Government Efficiency stormed the federal government, it had a clear objective—to remake the government, one must remake the civil service. And in particular, the team of Elon Musk acolytes "focused on accessing the terminals,

by: MSN

18 things Trump and his team did this week

The Financial Times newspaper first reported that US officials had brought up the case with the Romanian government last week, and it was then followed up by Trump's envoy Richard Grenell at the weekend. One source told the paper that a request had been ...

by: MSN

Trump 2nd term live updates: Poll finds only a third approve of Musk's role

President Donald Trump's administration is continuing its radical effort to cut much of the federal government.

by: MSN

Elon Musk has created a new 'political problem' for Trump and Republicans: MSNBC panelist

Reacting to Elon Musk being the focus of voter anger at a Georgia town hall that had Rep. Rich McCormick (R-GA) being shouted down by voters from his district, longtime political observer Elisabeth Bumiller claimed the billionaire made matters worse for Donald Trump and Republicans with his appearance at CPAC on Thursday night.

by: MSN

Archbishop Muheria blasts Ruto, asks him to end rhetoric and work: "Stop advertising what we'll do"

Archbishop Anthony Muheria has delivered a scathing critique of President William Ruto's leadership, urging him to shift focus from rhetoric to tangible action.

by: MSN

Maddow Blog | Pam Bondi brings partisan politics back to the attorney general's office

Attorney General Pam Bondi thought it'd be a good idea to attend CPAC and record a podcast with Sen. Ted Cruz. It was a partisan mess.

by: MSN

Contempt ruling sought against Marco Rubio and others in foreign aid freeze litigation

Use precise geolocation data and actively scan device characteristics for identification. This is done to store and access information on a device and to provide personalised ads and content, ad and content measurement, audience insights and product development. List of Partners (vendors)

by: MSN

Chinese and European shares rise, data, politics and geopolitics all in focus

European shares rose on Friday, following peers in Asia, which hit a three-month high on AI optimism, though gains were tempered by uncertainty over developments in Ukraine and the upcoming German elections.

by: MSN

Drone flights and terrorist labels could signal coming U.S. strikes on Mexican cartels

In recent days, the Trump administration has ramped up CIA surveillance drone flights over Mexico, formally designated drug cartels as "foreign terrorist" groups and floated the possibility of deploying troops there to fight organized crime.

by: MSN

Inequity concerns prompt calls to restructure Arlington government

A bill that passed the Virginia legislature would allow Arlington County to restructure its government, addressing concerns that its current form created racial and social inequalities. Arlington is the only county in Virginia that uses a county manager form of government,

by: MSN

Trump is one month in and Americans are already mad at him about inflation

On the campaign trail, President Donald Trump vowed repeatedly that he'd bring prices down "starting on Day One" if elected. It's been a month since he took office and he has yet to deliver.

by: MSN

How Clinton's "reinventing government" compares to DOGE's cost-cutting effort

The "reinventing government" program cut over 480,000 federal jobs and thousands of regulations. The woman who ran the program says any similarities to DOGE end there.

by: MSN

Analysis of DOGE's layoffs and cuts so far

Thousands of federal government employees have been laid off in the first month of President Donald Trump's administration, as the White House and its Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) dismiss both new hires and career bureaucrats,

by: MSN

'I feel totally and utterly lied to!' Pensioner unleashes furious rant as Labour 'BREAKS promises'

A pensioner has slammed the Labour Government for "utterly lying" about energy bill support, as millions of retirees face mounting financial pressures. William Pickup expressed his frustration over broken promises regarding energy costs as he blasted Keir Starmer's Government.

by: MSN

Donna Gaffney and Teri Mills: Trump's plans for Medicaid will harm 3.1 million Pennsylvanians

The Republican-led House Budget Committee has announced details of its 2025 Budget Reconciliation bill. Surprisingly, their proposal doesn't focus on the waste and fraud you might expect. It calls for slashing Medicaid funding by $880 billion in the next 10 years.

by: MSN

German politicians and chancellor candidates face off for one last debate ahead of Sunday's vote

Top German politicians and chancellor candidates faced off one last time in a debate on local broadcaster ZDF ahead of Sunday's federal elections. The war in Ukraine dominated an agenda packed with contentious topics which included immigration and the economy.

by: MSN

Trump's new ban makes scientists shudder

Doesn't signing executive orders give Donald Trump hand cramps? Since his return to the White House, he hasn't stopped. And this time, it's an executive order concerning the dismantling of the federal government's diversity and inclusion (DEI) programs that's causing concern.

Nationals to break ranks with Liberal colleagues and get election promises costed by treasury

The country party confirmed to WAtoday it would submit its costings to the Treasury next week, marking an embarrassing deviation from alliance partner the WA Liberal's defiant stance against using the agency to cost its commitments.
The Nationals in Western Australia have decided to break ranks with their Liberal colleagues by requesting the state Treasury to cost their election promises independently. This move comes ahead of the upcoming state election, highlighting a strategic divergence between the two parties that have traditionally campaigned together. The Nationals' decision to seek independent costing is seen as an attempt to assert their autonomy and ensure transparency in their financial commitments to the electorate. This development could potentially strain the relationship between the Liberals and Nationals, who have been coalition partners, as it underscores differing approaches to fiscal responsibility and campaign strategy.

Read the Full WAtoday Article at:
https://www.watoday.com.au/politics/western-australia/nationals-to-break-ranks-with-liberal-colleagues-and-get-election-promises-costed-by-treasury-20250220-p5ldvx.html

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