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President clarifies responsibility for mass firings and cost-cutting lies with department leadership with DOGE in advisory role
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Donald Trump has postponed 25% tariffs on most goods from Mexico and Canada for a month after speaking with the leaders of both nations.
Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum called their call “excellent and respectful”, while Prime Minister Justin Trudeau of Canada described a conversation yesterday between him and Trump as “colorful” and said he expects the two countries to be in a trade war for the foreseeable future.
Trump earlier agreed to grant the U.S. auto sector a one-month exemption from levies on Canadian and Mexican goods after he came under pressure from the CEOs of America’s carmakers. This is the latest twist in fast-shifting trade policy rattling financial markets and business leaders.
The president abruptly called a Cabinet meeting on Thursday to clarify the role of Elon Musk and the Department of Government Efficiency after they faced significant pushback from courts regarding the authority to order mass firings of federal government workers.
Trump instructed Cabinet secretaries to work with DOGE on cost-cutting measures, but the department will act in an advisory capacity, and Musk has no authority to order layoffs — that responsibility lies with department leadership.
Trump characterized it as using a “scalpel” rather than wielding a “hatchet.”
President Donald Trump on Thursday said he was granting a month-long reprieve on unilaterally ordering tax increases on some goods imported from Mexico and Canada that will expire on April 2, when he is set to order reciprocal tariffs on imports from a broad range of countries.
After a telephone call with Mexican president Claudia Sheinbaum earlier in the day, Trump said he was granting an exemption on any goods imported into the U.S. that are compliant with the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Trade Agreement that he negotiated during his first term.
Andrew Feinberg reports from the White House.
A detention center in Texas is reopening after the Trump administration prepares to restart the detention of migrant families and kids — a move that advocates worry could usher in another “dark chapter” in America’s treatment of immigrants.
CoreCivic, a company that manages the South Texas Family Residential Center in Dilley, Texas, announced Wednesday that it reached an agreement with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement to reactivate the facility.
Kelly Rissman reports.
A federal judge in Minnesota is holding MyPillow founder and MAGA election-denier Mike Lindell in contempt of court for failing to hand over financial documents and other discovery material in the defamation lawsuit brought by voting software firm Smartmatic.
Justin Baragona reports on this developing story.
President Donald Trump on Thursday exempted goods from both Canada and Mexico under a North American trade pact for a month from the 25% tariffs that he had imposed earlier this week, the latest twist in fast-shifting trade policy that has whipsawed financial markets and business leaders.
The exemption, which will expire on April 2, covers both of the two largest U.S. trading partners. Trump had earlier only mentioned an extension for Mexico, but the amended tariffs order — initially issued on Tuesday — covers Canada as well.
Donald Trump is planning to revoke temporary legal status for some 240,000 Ukrainians who fled the conflict with Russia, according to a senior administration official.
The move, confirmed to Reuters by the official and three other sources, potentially leaves the refugees open to being swiftly deported back home amid the ongoing war.
According to the outlet, the revocations could begin as early as April and come in stark contrast to the welcome to those escaping the conflict that was rolled out by the Biden administration.
Mike Bedigan reports.
In a post on Truth Social, President Donald Trump confirmed reports that he abruptly called a Cabinet meeting to clarify the role of Elon Musk and the Department of Government Efficiency in relation to the actual appointed heads of federal government departments.
The president wrote:
The Golden Age of America has just begun! Over the past six weeks, our Administration has delivered on promises like no Administration before it, always putting America First! DOGE has been an incredible success, and now that we have my Cabinet in place, I have instructed the Secretaries and Leadership to work with DOGE on Cost Cutting measures and Staffing. As the Secretaries learn about, and understand, the people working for the various Departments, they can be very precise as to who will remain, and who will go. We say the “scalpel” rather than the “hatchet.” The combination of them, Elon, DOGE, and other great people will be able to do things at a historic level.
We just had a meeting with most of the Secretaries, Elon, and others, and it was a very positive one. It’s very important that we cut levels down to where they should be, but it’s also important to keep the best and most productive people. We’re going to have these meetings every two weeks until that aspect of this very necessary job is done. The relationships between everybody in that room are extraordinary. They all want to get to the exact same place, which is, simply, to MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!
CNN’s Boris Sanchez challenged Republican Rep. Brandon Gill about the supposed transparency of Elon Musk and the work of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE).
Gill contended: “Musk has been very public about what he’s doing. He posts about it on his X feed almost every single day.”
Sanchez responded: “I do wonder about some of what has been posted because a lot of it has been proven to be completely inaccurate. This wall of receipts that Doge has on its website has been riddled with errors, many of which they’ve corrected themselves, confusing billions with millions, triple counting contracts that they’ve eliminated. They’ve taken credit for ending programs that were ended in November when Joe Biden was president, even going back as far as 2005 when George W Bush was president. So it goes back to the question of transparency. You’re arguing that Musk is being transparent, but a lot of what’s come out is wrong or false.
Awkward.
Politico reports that President Donald Trump convened his Cabinet in person today to make something clear to those present — that they are each in charge of their departments, not Elon Musk.
Two administration officials told the outlet that Trump clarified to top members of his administration that Musk was empowered to make recommendations to the departments but not to issue unilateral decisions on staffing and policy.
Musk, who supposedly heads the Department of Government Efficiency except apparently in legal documents, was also present at the meeting.
Mass firings enacted by DOGE have faced numerous court challenges and thrown much of the federal government into a state of uncertainty.
Per Politico:
The president’s message represents the first significant move to narrow Musk’s mandate. According to Trump’s new guidance, DOGE and its staff should play an advisory role — but Cabinet secretaries should make final decisions on personnel, policy and the pacing of implementation.
Musk joined the conversation and indicated he was on board with Trump’s directive. According to one person familiar with the meeting, Musk acknowledged that DOGE had made some missteps — a message he shared earlier this week with members of Congress.
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