Steve Bannon says he doesn't think DOGE can cut $1 trillion in spending
Trump ally Steve Bannon said on California Gov. Gavin Newsom's new podcast that he doesn't think Elon Musk's Department of Government Efficiency will be able to cut $1 trillion in government spending.
"I hope it gets to $1 trillion. I'm his biggest supporter of that," Bannon said, referring to Musk. "I don't think we're going to get there."
Bannon, a MAGA populist, has staunchly criticized Musk in the past, including over visa programs that the billionaire tech mogul supported.
Bannon acknowledged his criticisms of Musk during his podcast appearance with the Democratic governor without going into details.
Former education secretary says gutting the department will hurt vulnerable students the most
Former Education Secretary Miguel Cardona warned in a letter today of the consequences of the Trump administration's move to drastically slash staffing at the Department of Education.
The letter addressed to the department's career employees and other public servants said the administration's effort is "just one of the strategies aimed at disrupting public education and privatizing a public good."
"The significant reductions in force at the Department will affect the distribution of Title I funding for students from disadvantaged backgrounds and reduce much-needed resources for our students with disabilities," Cardona said. "Accountability for predatory institutions in higher education will be diminished. Our most vulnerable students in our country will feel the impacts the greatest. It will also affect the distribution of federal PELL grants which help millions of students have access to college."
The former secretary, who served under Joe Biden, said that these actions will "undoubtedly hurt students" and said that it's up to people in his profession to protect public education.
Zelenskyy says a 30-day ceasefire with Russia could be used to draft peace plan
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said today that the ball is in Russia's court to agree to a 30-day ceasefire and reiterated that he wants an end to the war.
"For me, it is important to end the war," said Zelenskyy at a news conference, after Trump recently criticized him and asserted that Zelenskyy doesn’t want to end the war. "And I want the president of the United States of America to see this, for the Americans to see and feel this. And for Europe to all be in alliance, namely in alliance with the fact that everything must be done to force Russia to end this war."
If Russia agrees to the short-term ceasefire that Ukraine agreed to yesterday, Zelenskyy said the next step would be "cessation of the war."
Zelenskyy didn't specify exactly when that could happen when asked for a time frame but indicated that allies need to agree to "certain security guarantees that will be in Ukraine after the end of this war."
"Today, it all depends on whether Russia wants a ceasefire and silence or whether it wants to continue killing people," he said. "Today, it depends on this country ... because America has demonstrated its steps and its position. Ukraine has demonstrated, responded without any different interpretations, its position very directly. And today, Russia will have to respond to this."
Zelenskyy said that Ukraine is still ready to sign a framework agreement as a first step that would allow the U.S. access to the country's rare minerals.
What's next for the government funding bill
The House has passed the Republican bill to fund the government through Sept. 30, but it’s not clear exactly when the Senate will vote on it.
The Senate will not hold any votes today related to the bill, barring an agreement among all 100 senators.
That’s simply because procedurally they are not able to consider the bill until the day after it is passed in the House, and the first step in that procedure would be Senate Majority Leader John Thune filing cloture on the motion to proceed to the bill, which would happen later today.
Without an agreement of all 100 Senators, consideration of the bill would slide days past the deadline at the end of Friday.
Price growth cooled more than expected in February, before Trump ramped up tariffs nd
Price growth cooled more than expected in February, a welcome sign for markets that have become spooked by the specter of persistent inflation, though evolving U.S. trade policies complicate the outlook.
The consumer price index rose 2.8% in February from the year before, less than forecast and slower than the 3% annual rate in January, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today.
USDA suspends Maine university funding after Trump row over transgender athletes
The U.S. Department of Agriculture has suspended funding for research and programs at the University of Maine, the school said yesterday, after Trump clashed with Gov. Janet Mills over the state’s refusal to ban transgender athletes from girls’ sports.
In an email received by the University of Maine, the USDA’s chief financial officer ordered all payments paused while the department “evaluates if it should take any follow-on actions” related to possible civil rights violations at the school.
The school said in a press release that it had received $30 million in USDA funding in fiscal year 2024. The USDA did not immediately respond to a request for comment late yesterday.
A Trump critic just won Greenland’s election. But that could benefit the White House.
A party that has sharply criticized Trump’s threat to take over Greenland secured a surprise election victory on yesterday in the Danish territory, but it may have to govern with a partner with a far warmer view of the U.S. president.
The center-right, pro-business Demokraatit party, which favors a gradual move towards independence from Denmark and won 30% of the total vote share, will need to work with other parties to govern the Arctic territory.
Canadian officials to visit D.C. tomorrow
Two Canadian ministers and Ontario Premier Doug Ford will travel to D.C. tomorrow to discuss tariffs with Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, the ministers announced today at a press conference.
Canadian Ministers Dominic LeBlanc and François-Philippe Champagne and Ontario Premier Doug Ford would convey a message about the tariffs "as forcefully as Canadians can do," Champagne said.
LeBlanc said that tomorrow's conversation would be about "what can we do to deal with this completely unjustified application of tariffs to steel and aluminum from Canada that came into effect today," as well as other tariffs on Canada.
"The conversation tomorrow will be around lowering the temperature and focusing on the process that President Trump set up where Secretary Lutnick has up to April 2 to determine a series of global tariff decisions," LeBlanc added, referring to Trump's promise for reciprocal tariffs.
Canadian foreign affairs minister: Sovereignty is 'nonnegotiable'
Canadian Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly criticized Trump's comments about wanting Canada to become the U.S.'s 51st state during a press conference announcing new tariffs on the U.S.
"This is much more than about our economy. It is about the future of our country. Canadian sovereignty and identity are nonnegotiable. Canadians have had enough, and we are a strong country."
Trump referred to the U.S.-Canada border yesterday as an "artificial line of separation."
"The only thing that makes sense is for Canada to become our cherished Fifty First State," he said in a Truth Social post.
Jeanne Shaheen won’t run for re-election, opening another Democratic Senate seat in 2026
Sen. Jeanne Shaheen, D-N.H., announced today that she will not seek re-election in 2026, kicking off a competitive race to fill her seat.
In a video, Shaheen told her constituents, “Today, I am announcing that I have made the difficult decision not to seek re-election to the Senate in 2026.”
“It’s just time,” she added.
While she plans not to run in two years, Shaheen, 78, added that she would not be leaving her seat early and that, “Believe me, I am not retiring. I am determined to work every day over the next two years and beyond to continue to try to make a difference for the people of New Hampshire and this country.”
It’s the third Democratic Senate retirement in a potentially competitive midterm race so far this election cycle.