Wed, March 26, 2025

by: WCAX

Schumer says job cuts and office closures will impact Social Security

New York Senator Chuck Schumer says New Yorker seniors will soon feel the impacts of cuts to the Social Security Administration by the Trump administration.

by: PoliticsHome

Welfare Cuts Will Push 250,000 People Into Poverty, Says Government Impact Assessment

Labour's welfare reforms will see an additional 250,000 people - including 50,000 children - pushed into relative poverty, government analysis has

by: Healthbeat

Federal government rescinds more than $100 million from NYC Health Department

The Department of Health and Human Services abruptly terminated grants for infectious disease prevention and surveillance work in New York City. The grant terminations come as the agency faces pressing public health threats,

by: Slate

Congress Isn't Just Standing By As Trump Abuses His Power. It's Doing Something Far Worse.

As Donald Trump breaks the bounds of his legal authority and collapses the constitutional separation of powers between ostensibly co-equal branches of government, time after time it is the judges who've stepped in to impose limits.

by: KLCC

Waldport area fire district says it will need to lay off three firefighters and one administrator if levy fails May 20

Union firefighters at Central Oregon Coast Fire & Rescue were given notice last week that potential layoffs loom for the cash-strapped agency.

by: MSNBC

Maddow Blog | HHS makes an unfortunate choice to oversee unnecessary study on vaccines and autism

The Trump administration could've chosen anyone to conduct its study on vaccines and autism. It settled on someone who's apparently already made up his mind.

by: Deadline

GOP Lawmakers Warn PBS And NPR CEOs They Want To Defund Public Media - Update

NPR and PBS were in the spotlight at a House hearing this morning before the Delivering on Government Efficiency subcommittee, as Republican grilled the CEOs of the public broadcasting outlets over alleged biases.

by: LAist

What immigration enforcement at Columbia and other universities means for SoCal campuses

A recent string of high-profile immigration enforcement actions at Columbia and other universities has sparked fear and caution among some students and faculty in Southern California — especially those who aren't U.

by: HuffPost

DOGE's Pursuit Of Sensitive Unemployment Data Sparks Alarm

Experts fear the Trump administration will wield the information - including workers' addresses and Social Security numbers - in its immigration crackdown.

by: eNCA

Government to lift ban on cannabis and hemp products

JOHANNESBURG - Government plans to withdraw its ban on the sale of cannabis and hemp products. President Cyril Ramaphosa announced this on Tuesday after consultation with Health Minister Aaron Motsoaledi.

by: NDTV

NDTV Yuva Conclave: Raghav Chadha On Harvard, Politics, And Life With Parineeti Chopra

Rajya Sabha member Raghav Chadha, who recently attended a leadership programme at Harvard Kennedy School (HKS) in Cambridge, described the experience as a "once-in-a-lifetime opportunity" that rekindled his passion for learning.

by: MSN

Florida's Mike Waltz and Marco Rubio on text chain that included journalist. What we know

The app also allows users to automatically blur faces of people in photos to protect identities. The app was intended to defend users against government and corporate surveillance. You have to sign up with a phone number to create an account, but can hide ...

by: Euronews

Tiktok, Meta, Google and X invited to Romanian election stress test

The November presidential vote has been annulled due to attempts to influence votes through social media. View on euronews

by: KPBS

Federal workers ordered back to office find shortages of desks, Wi-Fi and toilet paper

by: Zawya

Justice Malala to unpack South Africa's economic and political future

Beyond domestic policy, South Africa's global positioning and trade relationships remain vital to its industrial future

by: CNN

Loathing for Europe, love for emoji and other things we learned from the Signal snafu

The most important part of the Signal snafu remains the fact that the secretary of defense posted sensitive information about a forthcoming strike in a Signal chat organized by the national security adviser that inadvertently included The Atlantic's Jeffrey Goldberg.

by: Reuters

Explainer-Russia gets US to agree to help lift curbs on food, fertiliser and shipping

By Guy Faulconbridge MOSCOW (Reuters) -Russia said on Tuesday the United States had agreed to help it lift a series of Western sanctions and restrictions on food, fertiliser and shipping companies as preconditions for a maritime security deal in the Black Sea.

by: ANI

BRS MLC K Kavitha K Kavitha demands Sonia Gandhi fulfill Congress' gold and cash promise in Telangana

The Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) MLCs today staged a protest at the Telangana Legislative Council to highlight unfulfilled promises made by the Congress Government--like providing 10 grams of gold to eligible women for their marriage.

by: Politico

What the Bernie Sanders and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez mega-rallies are really about

The two progressives are bringing energy to a party that has been exhausted and furious in the second Trump era.

by: Alternet

'I am going through hell': Job loss, mental health and the fate of federal workers

The National Institutes of Health employee said she knew things would be difficult for federal workers after Donald Trump was elected. But she never imagined it would be like this. Focused on Alzheimer's and other dementia research,

by: Metro

What time is Rachel Reeves' spring statement and how can I watch it live?

Rachel Reeves is preparing to make her spring statement in the House of Commons later today. This is the second-most important economic announcement from the government of the year, behind only the budget in autumn.

by: Audacy

Canadians Say Tariffs Cause 'Chaos and Confusion' on Both Sides of the Border

Canadians say tariffs cause chaos and confusion on both sides of the border. WBEN spoke to Fort Erie residents to get reaction to the trade war

by: SFGate

'Fear and anger': California town halls are not going well for Democrats, either

While Democrats host events, California Republicans have largely avoided facing their constituents. The town hall furor comes as Musk, an unelected campaign donor to Trump, moves to fire hundreds of thousands of public workers and cut funding to federal agencies like the National Park Service and the National Weather Service.

by: Bizcommunity

Justice Malala to unpack South Africa's economic and political future at exclusive AATF breakfast event

South Africa's economic recovery and industrial growth depend on both policy reform and business innovation. Few commentators are better placed to explore these challenges than Justice Malala. The award-winning author,

by: Governing

Medicaid Cuts Could Cost States Billions in Tax Revenue and a Million Jobs

Much has been said about the health consequences of severe Medicaid cuts. A new analysis from the Commonwealth Fund considers the jobs and revenue that states could lose.

by: Cryptopolitan

Trump demands that the Treasury Department 'modernize and centralize' its payment system

by: Axios

Social Security: How it works, and why it's the "third rail" of U.S. politics

The Department of Governmental Efficiency (DOGE)'s incursion into the Social Security Administration is threatening to slow or even unravel the system that provided income to about 73 million Americans last month.

by: Washingtonian

Government Efficiency Apparently Involves Texting Your War Plans to the Press, a Lobbyist Bought JD Vance's House, and Our Food Critic Says It's Fine to Order the Butter ...

Good morning. Cloudy and perhaps gusty (yes, again) with a high around 63 today, and a low around 40 tonight with a chance of showers. Some of the trees around the Tidal Basin are "showing lots of open blossoms,

by: BBC

Trump has blown up the world order - and left Europe's leaders scrabbling

This is the gravest crisis for Western security since the end of World War Two. So which nations will step forward as the new world order emerges?

by: IOL

Government backs off from banning cannabis edibles

After initial confusion over the government's ban on cannabis and hemp-derived foodstuffs, President Cyril Ramaphosa has announced a withdrawal of the ban, offering hope to entrepreneurs and businesses in the sector.

by: OurQuadCities

Iowa bill to remove DEI programs in government moves forward

A plan to remove diversity, equity and inclusion programs in Iowa government cleared the State Senate. Senators voted 34-15 in favor of Senate File 507. The move would prohibit cities and counties from establishing or maintaining a diversity,
Tue, March 25, 2025

by: who13

Iowa bill prohibiting diversity, equity and inclusion advanced by Senate Republican majority

The Iowa Senate took up a bill on Tuesday that aims to get rid of diversity, equity and inclusion offices or hirings in local government in the state. The bill says that a

by: Mediaite

New Trump Order Targets Firm That Once Employed 'Unethical' MSNBC Pundit: 'Career Has Been Rooted in Weaponized Government'

President Donald Trump fired off another executive order targeting a law firm on Tuesday, this time taking aim at Jenner & Block because it once employed MSNBC legal analyst Andrew Weissmann. Weissmann first came to public prominence as a member of Special Counsel Robert Mueller's team,

by: ITV

Reeves set to announce spending cuts in Spring Statement, promising 'security and national renewal'

The chancellor will deliver a speech in Parliament on Wednesday, in which she's expected to outline spending cuts in order to stick to her fiscal rules. | ITV National News

by: AOL

Republicans escalate their efforts to rein in judges: From the Politics Desk

Republican lawmakers are ramping up their attacks on the judiciary — and rushing to demonstrate they are in lockstep with President Donald Trump — amid court rulings that have blocked his agenda.

by: rnz

Politics: Papua New Guinea PM and Christopher Luxon hold media conference after meeting

The prime ministers of New Zealand and Papua New Guinea have signed a new statement of partnership marking 50 years of bilateral relations between the two countries.

by: HuffPost

He Served His Country And Voted For Trump. Then He Was Fired.

Anthony Muro helped other vets through his dream job at the VA. Now he frets over the future of veteran health care as Trump cuts government agencies.

by: Fortune

Trump will be 'pretty much satisfied' with Elon Musk's DOGE cuts in a few months, he tells Cabinet: 'Our country was riddled with fat, and we're getting rid of the fat'

"It's not necessarily a very popular thing to do… but it's something that has to be done," Trump said in a meeting with Cabinet members and Elon Musk on Monday.

by: dw

German government building meets obstacles

The parties seeking to build a new coalition government under Friedrich Merz are making slow progress in their negotiations. Immigration and taxes are the main sticking points.

by: KGOU

How a journalist was sent the U.S. war plans. And, challenging the Alien Enemies Act

by: CNN

Trump administration highlights drug cartels as major national security threat but omits climate change

The US intelligence community's annual threat assessment led with the threat from drug cartels for apparently the first time in the report's nearly 20-year history, according to Senate Intelligence Chairman Tom Cotton and a CNN review of previous assessments,

by: WBUR

Professor groups sue feds, claim Khalil arrest and visa actions created 'climate of fear' on campuses

In a lawsuit filed in federal district court in Boston Tuesday morning, the professor associations, including at Harvard, argue the government's policies have chilled speech at higher education institutions across the country.

by: RealClearPolitics

Sen. Ernst, Don't Stop Making 'Em Squeal

Sen. Joni Ernst has a ten-year record of identifying waste, fraud, and abuse in government projects and came into office with the tagline “Make

by: Euronews

South African President Cyril Ramaphosa rejects Trump and Musk's claims of Afrikaner persecution

Donald Trump previously signed an executive order to cut funding to South Africa and offer refugee status to Afrikaners, claiming the government was enabling farm attacks and land dispossession. View

by: CalMatters

Rural California schools and roads lose millions in federal funding after latest cuts

For the last century, the money has gone to counties with large amounts of federal land that can't be taxed. Congress failed to include it in the upcoming budget.

by: MSN

Can Trump's $100 billion 'Golden Dome' shield the US from nuclear and hypersonic missile threats?

Still, with political will, industrial backing, and billions in defence spending, the US government is moving full speed ahead. The key question remains: will the Golden Dome provide the security its proponents promise, or will it become another expensive ...

by: Reuters

Fight or cut a deal? Law firms face stark choice under Trump

By Mike Scarcella, Sara Merken and David Thomas (Reuters) -Paul Weiss Chairman Brad Karp's deal with U.S. President Donald Trump to escape an executive order that threatened the firm's business has sparked broad condemnation in the legal industry,

by: Metro

Ukraine and Russia agree to Black Sea ceasefire deal after Saudi talks

The White House has seemingly brokered a deal between Russia and Ukraine for a ceasefire in the Black Sea. Peace talks have been ongoing in Saudi Arabia today, and the White House just announced that Russia agreed to 'ensure safe navigation,

Social Security: How it works, and why it's the "third rail" of U.S. politics

The Department of Governmental Efficiency (DOGE)'s incursion into the Social Security Administration is threatening to slow or even unravel the system that provided income to about 73 million Americans last month.

The article from MSN discusses Social Security, a pivotal U.S. government program established in 1935 to provide financial support to retirees, the disabled, and survivors of deceased workers. It explains how Social Security functions through payroll taxes, with workers contributing a portion of their earnings, matched by their employers, into the system. The funds are then redistributed as benefits based on an individual's earnings history and the age at which they retire. The article highlights why Social Security is often referred to as the "third rail" of American politics due to its immense popularity and the political risk associated with any attempts to reform or cut it. It notes that while the program faces future funding challenges due to demographic shifts like an aging population and lower birth rates, any changes to Social Security are politically sensitive, as evidenced by past political campaigns where candidates who proposed changes faced significant backlash. The piece also touches on the ongoing debate about the program's sustainability, with suggestions for solutions ranging from increasing the retirement age to adjusting benefits or payroll taxes.

Read the Full Axios Article at:
https://www.msn.com/en-us/politics/government/social-security-how-it-works-and-why-it-s-the-third-rail-of-u-s-politics/ar-AA1BDKEo