Trump revokes executive order banning discrimination in federal contracting
Trump this week revoked an executive order aimed at banning discrimination by federal contractors and subcontractors as part of his sweeping effort to crack down on federal diversity programs.
The White House said in a memo today that the order signed a day earlier “protects the civil rights of all Americans and expands individual opportunity by terminating radical DEI preferencing in federal contracting and directing federal agencies to relentlessly combat private sector discrimination.”
The revoked order had required “affirmative action and prohibits federal contractors from discriminating on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, or national origin,” according to a summary by the Department of Labor. It was first signed by Democratic President Lyndon B. Johnson and initially covered government employees but was later narrowed to contractors.
The 1,500 additional troops set to the border would bring the total to roughly 4,000
There are currently approximately 2,500 U.S. troops assigned to the border mission on Title 10 orders (activated on federal active duty). The announcement that 1,500 troops — roughly 1,000 Army soldiers and 500 Marines — will be sent brings that total to about 4,000. They will all be on Title 10 status.
There will be about 100 more supporting the aircraft supporting the two C-17s and two C-130 aircraft assigned to deportation flights. Those have not begun yet, and the State Department is still working on clearances in the countries, but officials will deport the roughly 5,400 migrants in detention now, according to a defense official.
The 500 Marines, part of an engineering unit, were waiting to see whether FEMA needed them to support fires in California, but they were never activated by FEMA and they were released from the mission over the weekend.
There will also be intelligence assets and Lakota helicopters (UH-72). The helicopters flew six sorties already today.
Menendez is denied a new trial
Former Sen. Bob Menendez's request for a new trial has been denied.
He requested the new trial in November after the government discovered that several improperly redacted exhibits had been loaded onto the laptop that had been provided to the jury during its deliberations.
In a filing detailing his decision, Judge Sidney Stein said that both the defense and the prosecution shared the responsibility for ensuring that the "proper exhibits" were sent to the jury. He also wrote that if the jury saw the material, jurors likely would not have understood the exhibits nor considered them significant.
"Even in the infinitesimal chance that the jury happened upon this evidence, there is similarly a miniscule likelihood that the jury would have understood it, much less attribute the significance to these exhibits that the defendants now do," he wrote.
Menendez in a statement said that his team disagrees with the judge's ruling and suggested it would appeal the decision.
"To think that prosecutors can put unconstitutional and inadmissible evidence in front of the jury, assure the defense they only provided the jury with admitted exhibits, and escape any consequences, is outrageous," the statement said.
Prosecutors are requesting a sentence of at least 15 years for Menendez.
NBC News has previously reported that Menendez has expressed interested in trying to secure clemency from Trump.
Senate Finance Committee to hold RFK Jr.'s confirmation hearing on Jan. 29
The Senate Finance Committee said it would hold a confirmation hearing for Trump's health secretary pick, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. on Wednesday, Jan. 29 at 10 a.m. ET.
The Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee is expected tomorrow to notice scheduling for a confirmation hearing for Kennedy on Jan. 30.
The HELP committee will hold a courtesy hearing for Kennedy, but the Finance Committee will be tasked with voting on and reporting his nomination to the full Senate.
Trump pardons D.C. officer convicted in man's death
Trump has pardoned a D.C. police officer who was convicted in connection to a man's 2020 death, the White House announced today.
Andrew Zabavsky, a lieutenant with the Metro Police Department, was sentenced to 48 months in prison in connection with "an unauthorized police pursuit that ended in a collision on Oct. 23, 2020, that caused the death of Karon Hylton-Brown, 20, in Northwest Washington D.C.," according to a statement released by the Department of Justice in September 2024.
Trump had alluded to the pardon at a newss conference yesterday, saying he was a "friend of the police."
"I'm going to be letting two officers from Washington police, D.C. — I believe they're from D.C. — but I just approved it. They were arrested, put in jail for five years because they went after an illegal. And I guess something happened where something went wrong, and they arrested the two officers to put him in jail for going after a criminal," he said yesterday.
Cheryl Hines to stop sales of her cosmetics line if RFK Jr. is confirmed
Less than two months ago, actor Cheryl Hines posted a provocative video of her husband Robert F. Kennedy Jr. showering behind her as she hawked products from her cosmetics line.
Today, Hines, of “Curb Your Enthusiasm” fame, has agreed to cease sales of the company’s inventory if her husband becomes the next secretary of Health and Human Services, according to a new financial disclosure.
“My spouse has agreed that Hines & Young, LLC, will stop sales of the company’s cosmetic inventory no later than 90 days from the date of my appointment,” the disclosure reads.
Steve Bannon bashes Elon Musk after criminal trial delayed again
Former Trump White House political strategist Steve Bannon’s criminal trial in connection with defrauding contributors who gave him money for the construction of a Southern border wall has been delayed until March 4.
The new date follows a series of earlier delays. Judge April Newbauer, who is overseeing the case, said she would not postpone it again but would allow a one-week delay from the previous Feb. 25 start date so the defense can “have a better opportunity to prepare for trial.”
Bannon’s new attorney, Arthur Aidala, had asked to delay the trial because he is representing Harvey Weinstein in a trial that's scheduled for the spring.
Prosecutors had opposed the effort to further delay the trial.
Defending his decision to hire a new attorney with a busy trial schedule, Bannon said he "was looking for a more aggressive attorney, I wanted to use every tool in my toolbox,” when asked in court today to explain the move which could cause a delay.
On his way out of court today, Bannon also took a jab at tech billionaire Elon Musk and his push for selective immigration, saying, “He should not reverse what the president has already talked about, you’ll see how out of control he is.”
Trump, who had previously pardoned his former strategist who is credited with helping him win the 2016 presidential election, cannot pardon Bannon's state-level charges.
Defense Department to send 1,500 personnel to the southern border, acting secretary says
The Defense Department is sending about 1,500 additional personnel to the southern border "to support increased detection and monitoring efforts," according to a statement from acting Defense Secretary Robert Salesses.
The Defense Department will also start helping to build border walls and "provide military airlift" to assist the Department of Homeland Security's deportation flights of more than 5,000 people, according to the statement.
"This is just the beginning," Salesses added. "In short order, the Department will develop and execute additional missions in cooperation with DHS, federal agencies, and state partners to address the full range of threats outlined by the President at our nation’s borders."
House passes Laken Riley Act, sending the first bill to Trump to sign into law
The Republican-led House voted today to give final passage to the Laken Riley Act, a strict immigration detention measure named for a 22-year-old Georgia nursing school student who was murdered last year by an undocumented immigrant.
The legislation, aimed at clamping down on people in the U.S. illegally who commit nonviolent crimes like theft, is expected to be the first bill Trump signs into law after returning to the White House this week.
The House vote was 263-156, with 46 Democrats joining all Republicans in support of the measure. The bill passed the Senate on Monday by a vote of 64-35, winning 12 Democratic votes. Among them were Sens. Gary Peters, D-Mich., Jon Ossoff, D-Ga., Jeanne Shaheen, D-N.H., and Mark Warner, D-Va., all of whom face re-election in 2026.
Trump says it's 'sad' that Biden did not pardon himself
In the first sit-down interview of his second term, Trump told Fox News host Sean Hannity it was “sad” that President Joe Biden issued preemptive pardons for his family but not for himself before leaving office Monday.
“This guy went around giving everybody pardons. And you know, the funny thing, maybe the sad thing, is, he didn’t give himself a pardon. And if you look at it, it all had to do with him,” Trump said, sitting across from Hannity in the Oval Office, in a clip of the full interview that's expected to air at 9 p.m. ET.