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Trump Official Makes Humiliating Social Security U-Turn Trump Official Makes Humiliating Social Security U-Turn A Trump official has been forced into a humiliating climb-down after trying to make life more difficult for the parents of newborns in a state whose governor is feuding with the president. The acting Social Security commissioner on Thursday announced that Maine parents would not be able to register their newborns for a social security number at the hospital, sparking an immediate backlash. But less than 24 hours later, Lee Dudek reversed course and apologized. “In retrospect, I realize that ending these contracts created an undue burden on the people of Maine, which was not the intent. For that, I apologize,” Lee Dudek said in a statement. Dudek offered no explanation for his move, but Trump recently attacked Maine Governor Janet Mills for refusing to comply with his order banning transgender women from competing in women’s sports. “See you in court‚” Mills said in response to Trump’s threat to strip the state of its federal funding. Acting SSA Commissioner Leland Dudek / Social Security Administration It’s unclear why the Enumeration at Birth (EAB) program, available in all states since 1997, was halted, although it may have been targeted by Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency, with Musk himself calling Social Security a “Ponzi scheme.” Dudek, a mid-level employee at the Social Security Administration until three weeks ago, was elevated to acting commissioner by Trump after he was initially placed on leave for helping DOGE infiltrate the administration. In a now deleted LinkedIn post, he wrote, “I confess. I bullied agency executives, shared executive contact information, and circumvented the chain of command to connect DOGE with the people who get stuff done.” The post apparently caught Trump’s eye, who then appointed Dudek as acting commissioner, putting him in charge of overseeing the monthly benefits for more than 70 million people. Martin O’Malley, who headed the Social Security Administration from 2023 to 2024, recently warned that social security checks could stop going out within 30 to 90 days. Democrat Sen. Elizabeth Warren criticized Dudek’s appointment to the post in a scathing letter to him. “The circumstances of your appointment raise questions about the truthfulness of President Trump’s assertion that ‘Social Security will not be touched [by DOGE],” she wrote. Thursday’s decision to cancel the EAB program was widely criticized, with advocates for pediatrics in Maine calling the move as unnecessary, unfair and burdensome. The Electronic Death Registry program (EDR), which automatically shares death records with Social Security, was also canceled before being reinstated on Friday. When the Daily Beast reached out to Dudek’s press office for comment, it referred the Beast back to the press release without offering any further explanation for the move. Source link #Trump #Official #Humiliating #Social #Security #UTurn Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Mortgage rates just saw their largest weekly decline since mid-September. We asked 5 pros whether now is the time to buy – MarketWatch Mortgage rates just saw their largest weekly decline since mid-September. We asked 5 pros whether now is the time to buy – MarketWatch Mortgage rates just saw their largest weekly decline since mid-September. We asked 5 pros whether now is the time to buy MarketWatchMortgage Rates Fall Again in Good News for Homebuyers as Spring Begins Realtor.com NewsMortgage rates fall again as economy cools further USA TODAYMortgage rates have declined but could stay at a level that makes it tough to afford a home The Associated Press Source link #Mortgage #rates #largest #weekly #decline #midSeptember #asked #pros #time #buy #MarketWatch Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Face the Nation: Fitzpatrick, Suozzi, Hill Face the Nation: Fitzpatrick, Suozzi, Hill Face the Nation: Fitzpatrick, Suozzi, Hill – CBS News Watch CBS News Missed the second half of the show? The latest on…Democratic Rep. Tom Suozzi, who is one of the bipartisan co-chairs of the House Problem Solvers Caucus, tells “Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan” that he will be voting against the continuing resolution to avoid a shutdown because there has been “no outreach on a bipartisan basis.” His GOP counterpart, Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick of Pennsylvania, says he is undecided, and it “remains to be seen” if his party has the votes, and Fiona Hill, who served as a top National Security Council official in the first Trump administration, tells “Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan” that the White House’s decision to stop sharing intelligence with Ukraine has “emboldened Russia to really step up the attacks”. Be the first to know Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting. Not Now Turn On Source link #Face #Nation #Fitzpatrick #Suozzi #Hill Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Xbox Series X|S vs Xbox One Sales Comparison – January 2025 Xbox Series X|S vs Xbox One Sales Comparison – January 2025 January 2025 is the 51st month the Xbox Series X|S has been available for. In the latest month, the gap grew in favor of the Xbox One when compared to the aligned launch of the Xbox Series X|S by 0.27 million units. In the last 12 months, the Xbox One has outsold the Xbox Series X|S by 4.55 million units. The Xbox Series X|S is currently behind the Xbox One by 6.84 million units. Source link #Xbox #Series #Xbox #Sales #Comparison #January Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Full transcript of “Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan,” March 9, 2025 Full transcript of “Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan,” March 9, 2025 On this “Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan” broadcast, moderated by Margaret Brennan: Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem Kirsten Hillman, ********* ambassador to the U.S. Reps. Brian Fitzpatrick, Republican of Pennsylvania, and Tom Suozzi, Democrat of New York Fiona Hill, former White House Russia expert Click here to browse full transcripts from 2025 of “Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan.” MARGARET BRENNAN: I’m Margaret Brennan in Washington. And this week on Face the Nation: President Trump’s tariff threats rattle allies and adversaries alike, plus the latest on the administration’s immigration crackdown. After a whiplash week of on-again/off-again tariffs, the Trump trade war is entering a new phase, as the president steps up his threats against America’s neighbors. (Begin VT) DONALD TRUMP (President of the United States): We don’t need trees from Canada. We don’t need cars from Canada. We don’t need energy from Canada. We don’t need anything from Canada. (End VT) MARGARET BRENNAN: And acknowledges the possibility of economic disruption. (Begin VT) PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP: There could be some disturbance, a little bit of disturbance. (End VT) MARGARET BRENNAN: The administration says it hopes the tariffs will pressure Canada and Mexico to stop the flow of fentanyl and ******** migrants into the U.S. We will ask Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem if it’s working and we will get the latest on the president’s mass deportation mission. Canada’s ambassador to the U.S., Kirsten Hillman, will also be here. We will ask her about the costs and consequences of the growing trade war. Plus, with just days to go before a possible government shutdown, lawmakers unveil a new bill to avoid it. We will hear from the co-chairs of the congressional Problem Solvers Caucus, Pennsylvania Republican Brian Fitzpatrick and New York Democrat Tom Suozzi. Finally, Russia expert Fiona Hill, who served as a top National Security Council official during the first Trump administration, joins us to discuss Trump’s diplomatic pivot on Ukraine. It’s all just ahead on Face the Nation. Good morning, and welcome to Face the Nation. We begin this morning with the secretary of homeland security, Kristi Noem. Madam Secretary, good to have you in person. Thank you for joining us. KRISTI NOEM (U.S. Homeland Security Secretary): Yes, good morning. Thank you for having me. MARGARET BRENNAN: I want to dive right into this trade war. The justification President Trump invoked these tariffs under had to do with fentanyl. Mexico’s president said Thursday that Customs and Border Protection figures show seizures of fentanyl on the southern border have dropped over the past year. She claimed they plummeted 75 percent in the past six months. Doesn’t that show the existing system is working? SECRETARY KRISTI NOEM: We’ve seen incredible progress as far as what we’ve been able to stop at the southern border since President Trump has taken office. And I think that progress can be built on. These partnerships that we have in going after traffickers, cartels, the drug trade, and also human trafficking can be even stronger and built on in the future. That’s one of the things we’ve been asking for, in specific to the ******** government, is, how can we work better together to make sure we not only have the enforcement mission at the border, but south of the border and make sure we’re going after these cartels? You’ve seen the president name them as terrorist organizations. And Canada just recently is starting to allow us to access some of their criminal background histories that we need in order to know who’s coming across our border and what they’re bringing. So, because of his strong stance on tariffs, we’re seeing them wanting to be better partners with us to keep our people safe. MARGARET BRENNAN: So Canada’s Prime Minister said it’s totally false to claim Canada is unwilling to fight fentanyl. You just indicated they’re willing to do more here. He pointed to CBP data that showed a 97 percent drop in fentanyl seizures from January compared to December, a near zero low, he said. SECRETARY KRISTI NOEM: Yes, we’re… MARGARET BRENNAN: Is the data accurate? SECRETARY KRISTI NOEM: The data is getting better. And I would say, in the conversations that I have had this week with ********* officials, they were hoping to avoid the tariffs, and had a lot of conversations, but not a lot of action. So this is the hope, is that the fact that President Trump has said something and now has enforced consequences, we really are hoping for even better partnerships. We need access to their criminal background system, so that we know, when someone crosses that northern border, who they are, why they’re in our country, and who they may be partnering with. We also need them to work with us on identifying packages, technology investments. Canada has said they will do that. We just want to see them actually do it. In the past, promises have been made by both Mexico and Canada that they didn’t follow through on. Their naming of a fentanyl czar in Canada is important. That’s great. Now let’s see really what happens. President Trump has been strong, and I think that’s why you’ve seen the data going our direction. But, boy, every day, people in this country are dying of overdoses. And I don’t want any more families to have to deal with that tragedy if we can be – if it can be avoided and we can have a stronger relationship. MARGARET BRENNAN: So you just gave specific examples of what Canada and Mexico can do presumably to avoid the tariffs that are now being pushed off until April 2. SECRETARY KRISTI NOEM: Correct. MARGARET BRENNAN: The commerce secretary said on another network: “If fentanyl ends, I think these will come off, but if fentanyl does not end, or he’s uncertain about it,” meaning the president, “they will stay on until he’s comfortable. Is it that general, or are these very specific things that you can kind of go through and check to avoid these tariffs? SECRETARY KRISTI NOEM: Yes, I have had very specific conversations with ********* officials and ******** officials on what they can do. So they know what they can do to help avoid tariffs in the future, and what we’re expecting of them. If they do it, we shall see. We all recognize that each one of these leaders has political environments in their home countries as well, but President Trump means business. And he meant it when he ran to be president of the United States again and since he’s taken office that he will put America first. And every day in this country, we have seen over the last several years violence and unsafe streets and cities and people lose their children and grandchildren, and he’s taking action to make sure that we’re cleaning up the mess that Joe Biden left behind, and that we have a much safer country, and where Americans can look forward to the future. MARGARET BRENNAN: So this is not just leverage to get a better free trade deal? This is not just because President Trump truly believes that tariffs are the heart of his economic policy? SECRETARY KRISTI NOEM: Right. MARGARET BRENNAN: You’re saying this really is about fentanyl? SECRETARY KRISTI NOEM: It really is about fentanyl. It really is. And I think the president obviously wants a strong economy, obviously wants better trade deals as well. But this is about fentanyl and what we can do to stop the cartels from partnering with ******** officials, laundering money and bringing a poison into our country that is specifically designed to kill the next generation. I think a lot of people don’t understand the strategy… MARGARET BRENNAN: Yes. SECRETARY KRISTI NOEM: … of these enemies of the United States and what they’re utilizing. They are bringing this in, not just to make money. They’re bringing it in here to kill Americans. And it’s time that we stand up for the people that live here and make sure that we’re stopping this war against our children. MARGARET BRENNAN: I want to ask you.Border crossings, they’re at a 25-year low. SECRETARY KRISTI NOEM: They are. It’s fantastic. MARGARET BRENNAN: There are 6,000 U.S. military personnel working at the border now. That number could go up to 9,000 by the end of the month. How long do you have to keep them there if the numbers are already dropping like this? SECRETARY KRISTI NOEM: You know, we’ll continue the partnership with the Department of Defense. But, also, we’ve got partnerships with Commerce, with the attorney general’s office. You know, we’re working every day with the secretary of state. We’ll keep them there until that border is completely secure. And we see all-time record lows of encounters. Our Border Patrol is doing fantastic work. But we’re going to keep them there until the whole world gets the message that this isn’t Joe Biden’s world anymore. This is President Donald Trump’s country, where we have a border, where we have laws, and it applies equally to everybody. I think that is what is so refreshing, is that we’re not picking and choosing winners and losers anymore. Americans have to live by the law. So do those who come to this country. You have to come here legally, or there will be consequences. MARGARET BRENNAN: Let me ask you about what’s happening internally when it comes to – excuse me – migration. The administration has revived this policy of detaining migrant families, parents with children, in ICE detention centers. Bush did it. Obama did it. Biden did not. Have you seen these Texas facilities where children are being held with their parents? Are you comfortable with it personally? SECRETARY KRISTI NOEM: We’ve got detention facilities across the country, and there’s specific ones that are built specifically for families if they are detained. But, remember, everybody has an option. They have an option to be here legally or illegally, and they can self-deport as well. We’ve set up a system and a Web site where people who are here illegally right now can register, and they can choose to go home on their own and keep their families united. MARGARET BRENNAN: The kids don’t have a choice in this. You know that. SECRETARY KRISTI NOEM: Well, the kids do have a choice. If they have parents, they make a choice to keep their families together, if they want to or not. They – if parents make a decision to leave their children behind, then that’s a choice that they made as a family. And we need to remember that when Americans break the law, and they have consequences or face a situation, they’re separated from their families too. I don’t believe we should prioritize people from other countries above Americans. MARGARET BRENNAN: But when it comes to reviving the policy of separating families from their children at the border… SECRETARY KRISTI NOEM: I don’t know that we’re actually reviving it. MARGARET BRENNAN: That’s what I want to ask you. SECRETARY KRISTI NOEM: It’s that President Biden didn’t follow the law. MARGARET BRENNAN: You won’t… SECRETARY KRISTI NOEM: He didn’t follow the law, in the fact that it’s always been equally applied until his administration, and then he made decisions to ignore federal law in how he handled immigration and enforcement within our borders. And so, today, we’re – we’re expanding our team at ICE, and we’re going to have an acting director in Todd Lyons, who has a long history with Tom Homan. They have worked together to build on these enforcement operations. We’re also naming a deputy secretary in Madison Sheahan. That was going to be another expansion of this team. They have done incredible work cleaning up our communities and making them safer. Adding more people to the team, with Todd and with Madison, is going to allow us to partner with local law enforcement officials to make sure that we truly are following through on enforcing the law. And, if you break our law, then there’s going to be consequences. MARGARET BRENNAN: al Qaeda you want the number of deportations to tick up? (CROSSTALK) SECRETARY KRISTI NOEM: I do, absolutely. MARGARET BRENNAN: So… SECRETARY KRISTI NOEM: People, remember, they have an option to go home on their own. MARGARET BRENNAN: Yes. SECRETARY KRISTI NOEM: We are giving them that opportunity to do that, and we will help facilitate that. And if they don’t, and they end up coming into our enforcement opportunities that we have in front of us, you know, they may never get the chance to come back. So people need to remember, if they self-deport, they will have an opportunity to come back to this country legally. MARGARET BRENNAN: But you have a capacity issue right now in terms of just beds to put people in when you detain them. Are you going to open up military facilities like Fort Bliss? SECRETARY KRISTI NOEM: There is, yes, a plan to use the facilities at Fort Bliss for detention facilities. But, also, we need to remember to ask – Congress needs to continue through with funding that this administration has asked for. You know, we clearly have a C.R. discussion in front of us this week. We have a reconciliation discussion. That reconciliation bill needs to happen. We have just weeks before we are out of the funds to continue the operations that – that we have. And even – everywhere I have been in this country out there, looking at what President Trump has done on immigration and border enforcement, the people that I meet are saying, thank you. Thank you for getting these terrorists out of the country. He has deported… MARGARET BRENNAN: Terrorists? SECRETARY KRISTI NOEM: … in just one month… MARGARET BRENNAN: Have you deported terrorists? SECRETARY KRISTI NOEM: … 22 known and – terrorists on the terrorist watch list are out of this country now. We have almost 700 gang members that have been deported out of the country in just a month, and… (CROSSTALK) MARGARET BRENNAN: … which have been redefined as foreign terrorist organizations by the Trump administration. SECRETARY KRISTI NOEM: Well, 281 specific TDA members, which we know are the worst of the worst, have been taken out of this country. So, everyone that has a story like Laken Riley’s family or Jocelyn’s family, they’re extremely grateful that that won’t be perpetuated amongst other families in other states. MARGARET BRENNAN: I want to ask you. You said that you have found leakers within DHS and you’re going to prosecute them. Back on February 9, you tweeted: “The FBI is so corrupt.We will work with any and every agency to stop leaks.” Were you wrong then to blame the FBI if the leaks were from within DHS? SECRETARY KRISTI NOEM: No, I think there’s leakers all over throughout this government. I think that everybody needs to be… MARGARET BRENNAN: What did they leak? SECRETARY KRISTI NOEM: I think these – in DHS specifically, these two were leaking our enforcement operations that we had planned and were going to conduct in several cities and exposed law enforcement to vulnerabilities, to those ops being jeopardized, to where their lives would be in danger. So they will be prosecuted, and they could face up to 10 years in federal prison because they did that. Anyone who is leaking information outside of – of how something is planned for the safety of those law enforcement officers needs to be held accountable for that. MARGARET BRENNAN: And you’re going to continue these polygraphing… SECRETARY KRISTI NOEM: Absolutely. MARGARET BRENNAN: … of employees? SECRETARY KRISTI NOEM: The authorities that I have under the Department of Homeland Security are broad and extensive. And I plan to use every single one of them to make sure that we’re following the law, that we are following the procedures in place to keep people safe, and that we’re making sure we’re following through on what President Trump has promised, that he’s going to make America safe again. MARGARET BRENNAN: Madam Secretary, thank you for your time today. SECRETARY KRISTI NOEM: Thank you for having me. (ANNOUNCEMENTS) MARGARET BRENNAN: ********* officials are warning of retaliation against the U.S. over President Trump’s tariff threats. Senior White House and political correspondent Ed O’Keefe has the latest from Ottawa. ED O’KEEFE: Well, Margaret, President Trump is now threatening tariffs on ********* dairy and lumber exports, even as he holds off on the broader tariffs on goods covered by the U.S.-Mexico-Canada trade agreement until at least early April. This has mostly been a war of words so far, rather than a war over the wallet, but that’s going to change in the coming day, as Ontario is now threatening to tariff electricity it wires to Minnesota, Michigan and New York. (Begin VT) DOUG FORD (Premier of Ontario, Canada): I’m going to put a 25 percent tariff on the electricity, the 1.5 million homes and businesses, as of Monday, until President Trump drops these tariffs. He has to understand that he can’t attack our country economically and expect us to roll over. (End VT) ED O’KEEFE: It’s not entirely clear how the cost of those tariffs would be passed on to American households. Now, we’re here in Ottawa today because, amid the tariff war, there’s also a ********* transfer of power under way. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced in January he would be stepping down after nearly a decade. His ruling Liberal Party today anoints his successor. It’s a race between Mark Carney, an economist and the former head of the Banks of Canada and Britain, and Chrystia Freeland, a former Trudeau deputy. Whoever wins the race, Margaret, becomes prime minister and has to deal with President Trump and the tariff war. MARGARET BRENNAN: That was our Ed O’Keefe in Ottawa. We’re joined now by Canada’s ambassador to the United States, Kirsten Hillman. Ambassador, it’s good to have you here. KIRSTEN HILLMAN (********* Ambassador to the United States): Thanks for having me, Margaret. MARGARET BRENNAN: You just heard the homeland security secretary say there are conversations with your government. She seemed optimistic that there would be follow-through on fentanyl. Does that make you think the threat of tariffs on April 2 is something that can be managed and avoided? AMBASSADOR KIRSTEN HILLMAN: Well, I hope so. I mean, it – I think that we are in a very good place in our discussions with the U.S. administration on fentanyl. We have invested a lot of new resources. We have given our law enforcement new powers. And we have responded to the requests of the Trump administration with respect to cooperative effects in getting at the sources, so the organized crime, the precursors coming from China. We’ve had some really, really good discussions. So we’re optimistic. And, you know, I just would say, and I think it’s important for your viewers to know, fentanyl is a very serious problem in Canada too. On some days, we have more deaths per capita than you have here in the United States. So we take this very seriously. It is not a big issue between our two countries. Less than 1 percent of the fentanyl that is seized in the United States is coming from Canada, but every ounce can kill families and people. So we’re taking it very seriously. MARGARET BRENNAN: But you are indulging the premise that that is the actual motivation for the tariffs, rather than leverage for a free trade deal or just because President Trump believes in them? AMBASSADOR KIRSTEN HILLMAN: Well, I think that this set of tariffs, the 25 and 10 percent set of tariffs, are – we have been told repeatedly that it is about fentanyl and security at the border. There are other tariffs that have been discussed, and the president has raised other issues as motivations for other tariffs, reciprocity and fairness, and, you know, maybe some changes that he’d like to see to our USMCA, our trade agreement. So those conversations are going to have to happen as well. MARGARET BRENNAN: So, President Trump said Friday he may put tariffs on ********* lumber and dairy Monday or Tuesday. Here’s what he said. Take a listen: (Begin VT) DONALD TRUMP (President of the United States): Canada has been ripping us off for years on tariffs for lumber and for dairy products, 250 percent. Nobody ever talks about that, 250 percent tariff, which is taking advantage of our farmers. So that’s not going to happen anymore. We’re going to be – they’ll be met with the exact same tariff unless they drop it. And that’s what reciprocal means. (End VT) MARGARET BRENNAN: On another network, the commerce secretary said, no, that’s actually on hold until April 2. It’s confusing for us to follow this along. Is the clarity with the two governments any better? AMBASSADOR KIRSTEN HILLMAN: You know, we are in active discussions with Secretary Lutnick. And those discussions are heading towards April 2. And that, I think, is – we are putting our energy in the substantive discussions that we are having with the secretary, with USTR, with the White House. And, you know, that is, I guess, how I can answer that question. The president – the president does have a variety of concerns and I think also sees tariffs as a tool for a variety of policy objectives. But, really, all we can do is focus on the real work at hand, which is to get at these issues, like, for example, lumber. Canada doesn’t have a tariff on lumber. It’s zero. U.S. lumber can come into Canada duty-free. On dairy, the U.S. sells three times as much dairy into Canada as we sell into the United States. So, what’s more, I think, productive for us is to talk about the facts around the actual trading relationship and try and get at where the concerns are. MARGARET BRENNAN: But Canada does put a tariff as high as 241 percent on dairy imports, but it’s a sliding scale that only kicks in at a certain level, and that’s under the free trade deal. AMBASSADOR KIRSTEN HILLMAN: That’s right. MARGARET BRENNAN: So… AMBASSADOR KIRSTEN HILLMAN: And it’s like the United States. In agriculture, the United States is the same. MARGARET BRENNAN: Yes. AMBASSADOR KIRSTEN HILLMAN: In sugar and dairy, you allow a certain amount of product in, and then, after that level is hit, you put restraints in on imports. And we do the same to protect our farmers and families and, you know, small family farms that – that need to be sure that they can have a bit of the market. MARGARET BRENNAN: So, there was this 50-minute phone call Wednesday with the vice president, the commerce secretary and President Trump with your prime minister, Justin Trudeau. Afterwards, the president posted that Trudeau was unable to tell him when the election was taking place, which made him curious, like – quote – “What’s going on here? I then realized he’s trying to use this issue to stay in power.” Do you think this is, like, a personal issue here? Do you think it’ll change when your leadership changes? AMBASSADOR KIRSTEN HILLMAN: It’s hard for me to – hard for me to say. I think that the prime minister and the president, Prime Minister Trudeau and the president, they’ve done big things together, right? They did renegotiate NAFTA together. MARGARET BRENNAN: They have a history together. AMBASSADOR KIRSTEN HILLMAN: Right. They have a long history. They did good things together. They managed our 6,000 – practically 6,000-mile border during COVID very successfully, in my opinion. So it’s a long relationship, and has many – has had many phases to it. We will have a new prime minister this week. Today, the Liberal Party will elect a new leader. That new leader will be sworn in, in the coming days, and that person will become Canada’s prime minister. Those are facts that are not going to change. MARGARET BRENNAN: Do you think it will stop the vows from the president to talk about threatening to annex Canada? AMBASSADOR KIRSTEN HILLMAN: You know, I guess what I can… MARGARET BRENNAN: What is that? AMBASSADOR KIRSTEN HILLMAN: I – I – yes, I – I’m – I’m not sure what that is. What I can say is that Canadians don’t really appreciate it. They’re getting a little bit frustrated with that kind of rhetoric. But, more importantly, Canadians are frustrated with our neighbors, you know, the country that we feel closest to, the country that is partners, allies, often family that we’ve gone to war with, that we’ve died with, that we come to each other’s aid, most recently in L.A., but obviously 9/11. You’ve come to our aid over the years so many times. And we feel – Canadians feel under attack, under economic attack. And that is causing some challenges, for sure, across ********* society. I think our new prime minister, when that person comes in, will prioritize trying to have a good and – and healthy and productive relationship with the president. I am sure that that’s going to be possible. Relationships go both ways, but I know that, on our side, that’s going to be a priority. MARGARET BRENNAN: Ambassador, thank you for joining us. AMBASSADOR KIRSTEN HILLMAN: Thanks. MARGARET BRENNAN: And we’ll be right back with a lot more Face the Nation. Stay with us. (ANNOUNCEMENTS) MARGARET BRENNAN: We turn now to another front in President Trump’s trade war, and that’s China. Foreign correspondent Anna Coren is in Beijing with the latest. ANNA COREN: A tone of defiance from Beijing this week, with China preparing for a protracted trade war with the United States, which it maintains will have no winners. It announced retaliatory tariffs on U.S. agricultural products and targeted 25 American companies in response to the now 20 percent blanket tariffs President Trump placed on all ******** goods. In a press conference on the sidelines of the National People’s Congress, China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi said the country would fight back, despite economic challenges at home. And without naming President Trump, he accused the U.S. of being duplicitous in its relationship with China, saying: (Begin VT) (FOREIGN MINISTER WANG YI SPEAKING IN FOREIGN LANGUAGE) (End VT) ANNA COREN: “No country should expect to suppress and contain China on one hand while maintaining good relations with China on the other.” Well, earlier this week, his ministry used particularly aggressive language, stating: “If war is what the U.S. wants, be it a tariff war, a trade war or any other type of war, we’re ready to fight until the end.” While there’s no doubt a trade war will hurt China’s economy, it’s had six years to prepare for this since a trade war began in 2018. And, Margaret, despite being open to negotiations, its decision to opt for defiance, rather than flattery, is a sign China won’t back down. MARGARET BRENNAN: Anna Coren in Beijing. We will be right back. (ANNOUNCEMENTS) MARGARET BRENNAN: We will be right back with a lot more Face the Nation, including an interview with the bipartisan co-chairs of the Congressional Problem Solvers Caucus, Pennsylvania Republican Brian Fitzpatrick and New York Democrat Tom Suozzi, plus the latest on President Trump’s push for peace talks between Ukraine and Russia. Stay with us. (ANNOUNCEMENTS) MARGARET BRENNAN: Welcome back to FACE THE NATION. We’re joined now by the co-chairs of the bipartisan Problem Solvers Caucus, Pennsylvania Republican Brian Fitzpatrick, represents a district that was narrowly carried by Kamala Harris, and New York Democrat Tom Suozzi, represents a district that went for President Trump. So, you all have to find the middle. And that brings you together and brings you here today. It’s good to see, in a bipartisan fashion, this conversation take place. But I want to start with you, Congressman Fitzpatrick. There is this potential government shutdown looming March the 14th. Speaker Johnson says there’s going to be a vote on Tuesday. Will Republicans be able to pass this on party lines or do you need Democratic votes? REPRESENTATIVE BRIAN FITZPATRICK (R-PA): Well, that remains to be seen. You know, the text was just released yesterday compliant with the 72-hour rule before a vote. We’re still digging through it, like most bills. There’s some good in there. There’s some not so good in there. And we’ve got to make an accurate decision. I will say, you know, Tom and I are friends. We came in together. We obviously co-chair this bipartisan group together. And we do lament the fact of any single party bill. The construct in this country is, if you get 218 votes, you get everything. If you get 217 votes, you get nothing. And that doesn’t make a whole lot of sense. So, the reason that we do what we do is we want two-party solutions, including on the CR. So, it remains to be seen whether the votes are there or not, but I think we’re really going to be learning, over the next 24 hours, what’s in it and what’s not in it. MARGARET BRENNAN: So, you haven’t decided your vote? REPRESENTATIVE BRIAN FITZPATRICK: Correct. MARGARET BRENNAN: What about you, Congressman Suozzi, because Leader Jeffries initially said in a letter that Democrats cannot back it. You have the text. Are you a no? REPRESENTATIVE TOM SUOZZI (D-NY): Right now, I’m a no. I mean, there’s been no outreach on a bipartisan basis. What Brian and I are trying to do in this environment, you can imagine, is not too easy. MARGARET BRENNAN: Yes. REPRESENTATIVE TOM SUOZZI: Everything’s very fractured. Everything’s very divisive. And to overcome that requires trust building and requires people to work together. In the case of this CR, there’s been offers to negotiate, and there’s been very little negotiation. It’s kind of been a my way or the highway type of thing. And I think that’s going to go on for a while. I think that the leadership is going to try and do my way or the highway for a while and then at some point they’re going to need Democratic votes and then people start negotiating. MARGARET BRENNAN: Awhile, meaning we could be staring down a shutdown March 14th? REPRESENTATIVE BRIAN FITZPATRICK: Well, we’ll find out on Tuesday or Wednesday. I believe the government funding runs out at the end of the week. MARGARET BRENNAN: Yes. REPRESENTATIVE BRIAN FITZPATRICK: We’re scheduled to end votes on Wednesday. Oftentimes, that does not happen during weeks like this. But it’s incumbent upon every legislator to read the text and to make an aggregate decision. Does the good outweigh the bad? MARGARET BRENNAN: Yes. REPRESENTATIVE BRIAN FITZPATRICK: We never want to shut the government down. It’s why I think we need no budget, no pay. If you cut legislator’s funding off if they don’t pass a CR or a budget, I think you’ll have a much different outcome. So, people need to put their money where their mouth is. REPRESENTATIVE TOM SUOZZI: Right now, the Republicans are counting on all the Republicans in the House to stick together to pass this through the House with no Democratic votes. That’s what they’re counting on. That’s why they’ve conducted themselves this way. Then it goes to the Senate. In the Senate, you need 60 votes. You don’t have 60 votes with the Senate Republicans. So, it’s going to become a challenge for the Senate Republicans and the Senate Democrats to decide, who’s going to get blamed for this thing? MARGARET BRENNAN: Right. REPRESENTATIVE TOM SUOZZI: And wouldn’t it be better if we all just worked together to try and find common ground the way we – MARGARET BRENNAN: Exactly. REPRESENTATIVE TOM SUOZZI: This is not normal what we’re doing. The idea of a full year continuing resolution is not the normal process. MARGARET BRENNAN: Right. REPRESENTATIVE TOM SUOZZI: And there’s a lot of bad stuff that I see in this bill that I don’t like. REPRESENTATIVE BRIAN FITZPATRICK: And I will add, Margaret, I’ve lived through government shutdowns as an FBI agent, and it’s horrific. Title Three wire taps get shut down, surveillance teams get shut down. It is massive implications that most people don’t realize. You never ever want to shut the government down. It should never happen. And it’s a symptom of a broken system that we’re even talking about this. MARGARET BRENNAN: Let me follow up with you on that. You are the only FBI agent who – now a congressman. On Monday, the top agent at the New York office, James Dennehy, said he was forced out of his job due to clashes with Justice Department officials over directives. He had been supportive of bureau leaders who resisted turning over the nations of those agents assigned to carry out investigations related to January the 6th, 2021. Are you concerned about all this political pressure? REPRESENTATIVE BRIAN FITZPATRICK: I’m very concerned. I’m a huge defender and supporter of the bureau. It was the best job I ever had in my life, and most honorable job I’ve ever had in my life, keeping America safe. And I care very much about the agent population and the professional support staff that worked there. They’re a tremendous people. They are completely nonpartisan. At 14 years in the FBI, I never heard any political talk whatsoever, which is pretty remarkable. So – MARGARET BRENNAN: That directly contradicts what the Homeland Security secretary said at the top of this program when she talked – she went at the FBI. The FBI director was – REPRESENTATIVE BRIAN FITZPATRICK: Well, there have been conflicts at the top. I want – I want to differentiate. So, there have been problems on the seventh floor of the J. Edgar Hoover Building that they did politicize things, things like – people like Jim Comey, for example, who tweet out, you know, to vote single party during an election. You can’t do that as an FBI director. That’s terrible. He did it as a former director, but it undermines everything he did leading up to that point. The FBI needs to be completely nonpartisan, completely apolitical. Personally, I think that part of the polygraph testing that comes in, so when you’re an agent coming through the process, you get tested on drug history, foreign contacts, financial vulnerabilities. They also ought to test political bias as well, just to give the public the assurance that people are coming into the bureau, checking their politics at the door. REPRESENTATIVE TOM SUOZZI: This all comes down to a busting of norms. And things that we’ve been used to for years are all trying to be disrupted, and I think, in some ways, very dangerously. We can’t see this politization of the FBI. It’s a dangerous thing for our country. MARGARET BRENNAN: Are you going to talk to the FBI director about any of this? REPRESENTATIVE BRIAN FITZPATRICK: Absolutely. Absolutely. MARGARET BRENNAN: About the firing for the political (INAUDIBLE)? REPRESENTATIVE BRIAN FITZPATRICK: On past – Director – Director Patel worked on our committee. MARGARET BRENNAN: Yes. REPRESENTATIVE BRIAN FITZPATRICK: He was a staffer on the House Intelligence Committee, which I sit. And I look forward to having a conversation with him. MARGARET BRENNAN: Congressman Suozzi, ******** border crossings, as we just discussed, they are at a historic low. President Trump made that point when he was addressing Congress this week. Was he right that – that he didn’t need to wait for Congress, that it was really messaging from the White House beyond? REPRESENTATIVE TOM SUOZZI: Well, obviously, we’ve seen a reduction in crossings. We saw it under the end of the Biden administration as well after he did his executive order to say, no, asylum applications are between the ports of entry. But we need to make it permanent law. And Congress has not done its job for 30 years. So, we need to secure the border, we need to fix the broken asylum system and we need to treat people like human beings by fixing our legal immigration system. MARGARET BRENNAN: Do you have an opening to do any of that, though? REPRESENTATIVE TOM SUOZZI: I – MARGARET BRENNAN: The two of you together? REPRESENTATIVE TOM SUOZZI: I – I was working on this before I became the co-chair of the Problem Solvers Caucus for about a year with a guy named Morgan Lutrell (ph) from Texas, very conservative, former Navy SEAL guy, talking about the details, trying to build a coalition of business, badges and the ****** to work together to support an effort like this. Now Brian and I, as co-chairs of the Problem Solvers Caucus are taking those efforts and others and trying – and we have a working group as well to say, as soon as that opening arises, we’re ready to make a deal. MARGARET BRENNAN: I know, but you guys are talking about, you can’t even agree to keep the lights on, right? REPRESENTATIVE TOM SUOZZI: OK, but we – MARGARET BRENNAN: Like, you’re talking about really hard, substantive things. REPRESENTATIVE TOM SUOZZI: Well, what’s going to happen is the – Homeland Security is going to need money. MARGARET BRENNAN: Yes. REPRESENTATIVE TOM SUOZZI: They’re – they’re spending money like crazy and the CR is not going to fix the problem. And at some – MARGARET BRENNAN: That’s going to go to reconciliation, party line vote, right? REPRESENTATIVE TOM SUOZZI: If – you can’t fix everything through reconciliation. And you’re going to need – and you can’t – certainly can’t fix asylum and you certainly can’t fix the dreamers and a whole bunch of other stuff through reconciliation. There is going to be an opening that’s going to come when they need Democratic votes. And my argument to my Democratic colleagues is, we should be looking to finally fix this broken immigration system once and for all. Secure the border, fix asylum, dreamers, farm workers, essential workers and other people that we need to keep our economy open. REPRESENTATIVE BRIAN FITZPATRICK: And if I may add, one of the reasons why I’m so excited about Tom being the co-chair is he shares my passion and the passion of so many people about this issue that there is a border security piece and there is an immigration piece. And we’re a country of immigrants. All of our families came into this country through other places, Italy, Ireland. REPRESENTATIVE TOM SUOZZI: My father was born in Italy. REPRESENTATIVE BRIAN FITZPATRICK: Yes. REPRESENTATIVE TOM SUOZZI: And for Brian (ph) Fitzpatrick, Irish as well. REPRESENTATIVE BRIAN FITZPATRICK: And, you know, that’s the – that’s the huge advantage that we have over our adversaries, is, we have an endless supply of brilliant people coming into this country. Nobody wants to move to Russia or China or North Korea or Iran. Everybody wants to come here. That’s a huge economic advantage. It’s a huge national security advantage. So, we can combine border security and the rule of law with being – bringing the best and brightest people into this country and also people that are truly fleeing oppression. And that’s what America is about. REPRESENTATIVE TOM SUOZZI: Margaret, every problem we face in our country is complicated. You know this as well as anybody. Everything’s complicated. You can’t, why don’t you just? MARGARET BRENNAN: Right. REPRESENTATIVE TOM SUOZZI: There’s no, why don’t you just anything. Anybody who says that doesn’t know what they’re talking about. MARGARET BRENNAN: That’s an entire political campaign, why don’t you just. REPRESENTATIVE TOM SUOZZI: Right. Right. Which doesn’t make sense. And so what you need is people who may disagree with each other on certain issues – MARGARET BRENNAN: Yes. REPRESENTATIVE TOM SUOZZI: Just sit across from each other and say, well, I think this, well I think that, well how about this, well how about that, and you try and find a compromise somewhere in the middle. MARGARET BRENNAN: Yes. REPRESENTATIVE TOM SUOZZI: Compromise is not a dirty word. And we have got to figure out how to start moving our country forward, not with this all my way or the highway, you guys are no good because you’re one of those – no, you’re on of those. MARGARET BRENNAN: Right. REPRESENTATIVE TOM SUOZZI: It’s not working for our country. People want us to work together to solve problems. MARGARET BRENNAN: Let me ask you, Congressman Fitzpatrick, I know you feel very strongly about supporting Ukraine and its fight against Russia. Ben Hodges, who’s a retired general who commanded U.S. Army Europe, said he’s having a hard time understanding how withholding intelligence, and military support from Ukraine, advances strategic interests or helps make America great. Can you explain that? REPRESENTATIVE BRIAN FITZPATRICK: Well, I will say this, we’re going to get a briefing – a full briefing on this, this coming week. But I will say this, key in on what’s not being said here. What kind of intelligence and who can’t share it, right? So, what I suspect, and I will get confirmation of this next week, is that it’s the over the horizon intelligence striking into Russian territory. MARGARET BRENNAN: It’s also satellite. REPRESENTATIVE BRIAN FITZPATRICK: Possibly. But, second, we – MARGARET BRENNAN: Maxar technologies cannot (INAUDIBLE). REPRESENTATIVE BRIAN FITZPATRICK: We have seamless intelligence sharing with the U.K., to give you one example. There’s no restriction on the U.K. sharing that intelligence with Ukraine. So, what I suspect is happening here, and I could be proven wrong, this that this an escalate to de- escalate tactic by the administration to bring these parties to the table and to come to a conclusion, a just conclusion, which means success and victory for Ukraine. And I want to emphasize that. And I get asked, well, what does that mean? MARGARET BRENNAN: Yes. REPRESENTATIVE BRIAN FITZPATRICK: Vladimir – what victory means for me is Vladimir Putin regrets his decision to invade Ukraine. That he wishes he did not do that. And that’s really going to be the test here, right, because if we reward dictators from invading sovereign, freedom-loving democracies, we are sending a message to every other dictator and aspiring dictator across this plant that, if you do do that, you will be rewarded. That cannot be the message coming out of this. REPRESENTATIVE TOM SUOZZI: Trump has been wrong in the way he’s handled this. I want to give Brian credit as co-chair of the Ukrainian Caucus, for standing up and saying, you cannot reward a dictator. Zelenskyy was elected by 73 percent of the Ukrainian population in a free and fair election as dictated by the European Commission that oversees free and fair elections. Putin is the dictator. Putin invaded. Zelenskyy is democratically elected. We cannot reward the guy responsible for murdering, for kidnapping, for raping, for all the awful things that have happened to the Ukrainian people. We all need to stand up for the Ukrainian people. MARGARET BRENNAN: Well, we know that the secretary of state, the national security adviser and President Trump’s envoy are all meeting with Ukrainian officials Tuesday. One of the things that I took note of, Congressman Fitzpatrick, you tweeted that you have an outcome determinative number of members of the U.S. Congress who ready, willing and able to do whatever it takes to prevent Putin from being rewarded. That sounds like you are threatening leverage with votes. How would you use it? REPRESENTATIVE BRIAN FITZPATRICK: It’s not – it’s not a threat. What this is, is us making very clear that we view this issue to be existential to world peace. These are the lessons of World War II. When we had – when Germany invaded Poland in 1939 and you had leaders, including Neville Chamberlain and many other leaders around the world saying it’s not our problem, we don’t want to provoke, we don’t want to escalate. And a problem that could have been nipped in the bud early, because it was not, turned out to be the costliest and deadliest war in world history where we had to send our young – our youth in our country to fight on Omaha beach. We should never get to that point. We should learn from the lessons of history. These dictators want to relitigate the outcome of World War II. And World War II, freedom won over dictatorship. They want to relitigate that. So, we just have to be mindful of history and how we approach this. REPRESENTATIVE TOM SUOZZI: And if Putin gets away with this, just because Ukraine is a smaller country, think about Latvia and Lithuania and Estonia and Moldova and think about Poland. MARGARET BRENNAN: Right. REPRESENTATIVE TOM SUOZZI: They’re all next. And we have to stand up against this. REPRESENTATIVE BRIAN FITZPATRICK: And Putin has said that. He’s telegraphed this punch. MARGARET BRENNAN: Right. Well, President Trump says, oh, it’s all different when he’s in charge. But, Congressman, I need to ask you, before you go, because of the districts and the unique characteristics of it, the one you represent, earlier this week we saw guidance from the chair of the National Republican Congressional Committee urging members to hold virtual town halls, suggesting that holding them in person was not a good idea. Will you still hold town halls with your constituents? REPRESENTATIVE BRIAN FITZPATRICK: Yes. We – we communicate – MARGARET BRENNAN: Because some have gotten quite heated recently. REPRESENTATIVE BRIAN FITZPATRICK: Oh, I know. No, I think every member needs to find the best way to communicate with their constituents. And there’s a number of ways to do that. I think what Chairman Hudson is referring to are the – what’s turning out to be a circus, a three-ring circus, where you go to a high school gymnasium, the protesters shows up, they hold signs up, and you have legitimate concerns from some other people that are never heard because they’re getting shouted down by people that are there to make a spectacle, oftentimes that are funded by some of these dark money groups. So, there’s – it’s about communicating to your constituents in a way that you can get your message out, that you can hear their concerns. And every single district does it different depending on – on where they’re at. MARGARET BRENNAN: You, Congressman Suozzi, during the address to Congress this week, you did see Texas Democrat Congressman Green be disruptive. He was pulled out of the chamber because of that. Later censured with the votes of nine Democrats, including yourself, and 214 Republicans. Why did you take that vote against a fellow Democrat? REPRESENTATIVE TOM SUOZZI: Because if it was a Republican doing the same thing to a Democratic president, I would have voted for that as well. And the bottom line is, it was a strategic mistake on the part – on our behalf as well because instead of talking about Social Security cuts, and talking about Medicaid cuts and talking about Medicare cuts, and talking about the things that the president said in his speech that we disagree with, especially things like Ukraine or firing people in these different departments that makes no sense whatsoever, we, instead, focus too much time on disruptive behavior. MARGARET BRENNAN: Yes. REPRESENTATIVE TOM SUOZZI: And the conduct of the Democrats. That was a strategic mistake, as well as something that just is not appropriate for the decorum of the U.S. House of Representatives. MARGARET BRENNAN: Was – was that message from Democratic leadership not clear then? REPRESENTATIVE TOM SUOZZI: I think that it was pretty clear. I understood a clear message. MARGARET BRENNAN: OK. REPRESENTATIVE TOM SUOZZI: Let’s not make the story about us, let’s make the story about what President Trump says and how we disagree with it. MARGARET BRENNAN: Yes. REPRESENTATIVE TOM SUOZZI: And we squandered that opportunity. MARGARET BRENNAN: All right, thank you, gentlemen – REPRESENTATIVE BRIAN FITZPATRICK: Thank you. MARGARET BRENNAN: For doing this in a bipartisan fashion as well. REPRESENTATIVE BRIAN FITZPATRICK: You bet. MARGARET BRENNAN: We’ll be right back. (ANNOUNCEMENTS) MARGARET BRENNAN: Russia stepped up its aerial attacks on Ukraine following the Trump administration’s suspension of intelligence sharing and military equipment. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Moscow has carried out hundreds of attacks using ballistic missiles and drones. For more now, we’re joined by Fiona Hill. She is a senior fellow at Brookings and during the first Trump administration she was the senior director for European and Russian affairs on the National Security Council. Good to have you back. FIONA HILL (Senior Fellow, Brookings and Fromer National Security Council Senior Director for European and Russian Affairs): Yes, thanks, Margaret. MARGARET BRENNAN: So, the U.S. pauses of lethal intelligence sharing, including targeting data for U.S.-provided weapons like HIMARS. We also know it extends to satellite imagery, which is no longer being shared with Ukraine. What’s the practical impact of that and the military freeze? FIONA HILL: Well, I think we can see the impact. It’s certainly, on the one hand, emboldened Russia to really step up the attacks, and it’s also not just blindsided but also partially blinded Ukraine. I mean, we heard from the previous segment that there’s still some sharing with allies, like the United Kingdom, of course, which is part of the Five Eyes sharing with the United States. But frankly, none of the other allies, including the U.K., have the same access to satellite imagery as the United States does. So, even if there is, you know, some sharing, not much restrictions, there certainly has an impact. And, frankly, I think it’s going to be an impetus to other allies to start stepping up their own capabilities and questioning themselves about the virtues of sharing with the United States. I mean, this is a two-way street. We have to remember that other countries also share pretty vital information with the United States, even if the scale is not quite the same. MARGARET BRENNAN: Canada, the U.K., Australia, among those who do so. You think they will essentially punish the U.S. by not sharing intelligence freely? FIONA HILL: I’m not sure whether it’s punishment, but it will be a lot of questioning about what actually happens with this. Because if you’re bundling together intelligence, then effectively the United States is putting restrictions on that. Was that pre-discussed with our five eyes allies, for example, or with other allies, particularly in the midst of basically a conflict that is, as we’ve heard, you know, over and over again, the largest land war in Europe since World War II. I mean, this is really unprecedented in terms of the actions of the United States in this regard because he’s not just affecting Ukraine, again, it’s having knock-on effects for all of our other allies who are directly affected, all of our European allies that are directly affected by this conflict. MARGARET BRENNAN: So, President Trump said on Friday when he was asked if this uptick in Putin’s bombing was directly related to the U.S. halt. Here’s what he said. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I actually think he’s doing what anybody else would do. I think he’s – I think he wants to get it stopped and settled, and I think he’s hitting them harder than – than he’s been hitting them. And I think probably anybody in that position would be doing that right now. (END VIDEO CLIP) MARGARET BRENNAN: Yet earlier in the day, the president had posted on social media he was considering possibly putting sanctions on Russia. That’s a contradiction. What do you make of what he said? FIONA HILL: I make of it exactly what he said. I mean, he’s actually, obviously, putting himself in the shoes of Vladimir Putin and saying that if I were the aggressor, that’s exactly what I would be doing if I wanted to make Ukraine capitulate. So, I mean, yes, he called it as it is. I don’t believe what he said for a second about the sanctions. I believe more what he just said there in the Oval Office, sitting behind, you know, the Resolute Desk. I mean,n I think that’s what you can take away from this. He accurately – MARGARET BRENNAN: Believe the president and when he says things? FIONA HILL: That’s – I think you should. Yes. I mean, he’s the president of the United States. And he made it crystal clear, I think. And he sees, you know, obviously, the Ukraine – the Ukrainians, and he said that in the Oval Office during the meeting with President Zelenskyy, that he sees them on the back foot as losing, and he’s basically telling them that they have to capitulate. Very clear. MARGARET BRENNAN: You don’t have the cards was the line. He kept using that. FIONA HILL: That’s right. MARGARET BRENNAN: So, I know you were at the Council on Foreign Relations this week, as was I. I had an interview with Trump’s envoy to Ukraine, Keith Kellogg. And when we were discussing the president’s decision to cut off Ukraine, he said, Ukrainians brought it on themselves, and the decision was, like, quote, “hitting a mule with a two by four across the nose, you got their attention.” It’s quite a statement, comparing our ally to a farm animal here that needed to be beaten. Do you think it was right to say the Ukrainian government, though, was just not getting it? FIONA HILL: Well, what they weren’t getting is really what President Trump wanted directly from them, which was obviously to have President Zelenskyy make a personal agreement with him in the Oval Office in front of all the cameras to thank him profusely for all the aid that was already provided to Ukraine over, you know, successive administrations now, and basically to sign a deal on rare earths minerals and then basically leave immediately after that. And clearly, President Zelenskyy didn’t really get that message. And I think there’s a very important element here. In diplomacy, you really should not only be speaking in your native language. And I think that a lot of this was lost in translation. First of all, President Zelenskyy didn’t fully understand that this agreement was just purely with President Trump. And you may remember, if we all go back and watch that – I watched it many times just to try to figure out exactly where things had gone wrong, and there were multiple points. But there’s one point when President Zelenskyy basically said, look, you know, we had deals with your – your previous presidents, basically with Obama and Biden. And President Trump immediately dismissed all of that and basically said those deals were not worth the paper they were written on, or the commitments that were made because they were weak and it wasn’t me. MARGARET BRENNAN: Because it was not me. FIONA HILL: And President Zelenskyy didn’t quite follow all of this because, like the rest of our allies, he actually thinks that commitments made by the United States are supposed to hold over successive administrations. And what we learned there, what he learned there, was that is not the case. You’re essentially going to have to make a new commitment with President Trump. It’s a personal commitment. And that was what he was being told, and he didn’t fully understand. And I think in the future, when the Ukrainians are meeting with the Americans, they ought to have translators with them because as good as President Zelenskyy’s English is, there’s two things that he’s missing there. He doesn’t quite understand the way that President Trump operates – MARGARET BRENNAN: Yes. FIONA HILL: Although I think he’s probably got the message now, but he doesn’t always understand the nuances. And I would also think that our side on the United States side could do with some interpretation as well, coming also from President Zelenskyy. MARGARET BRENNAN: Yes. FIONA HILL: So, my advice to President Zelenskyy and to the team around President Trump is, use interpreters, that’s what they’re there for. MARGARET BRENNAN: And your own government’s interpreters? FIONA HILL: That’s absolutely right, your own government’s interpreters, no (ph), because you actually asked that question, who’s interpreters were used and General Kellogg couldn’t answer the question. MARGARET BRENNAN: Right, for Steve Witkoff, who met with Putin for three and a half hours. FIONA HILL: Correct. MARGARET BRENNAN: Europe seems to be taking these threats seriously and looking at an alternative to the American nuclear deterrent. An umbrella. That’s – does that mean the transatlantic alliance is gone? FIONA HILL: Well, it doesn’t mean that it’s gone, but there’s a bit of a kind of a one-sided attempt to rupture it here on the part of the United States. I was also at the Munich Security Conference. I heard Vice President Vance’s speech. I was standing next to a couple of very prominent Europeans who were completely in shock. MARGARET BRENNAN: Yes. FIONA HILL: And immediately after that, as you well know, there were many statements coming out of Germany, as well as countries like Sweden, basically asking whether the United States could be trusted on nuclear weapons. MARGARET BRENNAN: Yes. OK. FIONA HILL: But we have to remember that Ukraine had nuclear weapons that it gave. MARGARET BRENNAN: And they gave them up. FIONA HILL: That’s correct. MARGARET BRENNAN: With the promise of a security guarantee that was not delivered on. FIONA HILL: Correct. MARGARET BRENNAN: Fiona Hill, thank you. We’ll be back. FIONA HILL: Thanks. (ANNOUNCEMENTS) MARGARET BRENNAN: That’s it for today. Thank you for watching. Until next week. For FACE THE NATION, I’m Margaret Brennan. (ANNOUNCEMENTS) Face The Nation Transcripts More More Source link #Full #transcript #Face #Nation #Margaret #Brennan #March Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content] For verified travel tips and real support, visit: [Hidden Content]

England crush Italy to keep Six Nations hopes alive England crush Italy to keep Six Nations hopes alive England have kept alive their Six Nations rugby title hopes by running in seven tries in a bonus-point 47-24 win over Italy at Twickenham, a win that extended their perfect all-time Test record against the Azzurri. Going into the tournament’s final round next Saturday, England are now second, a point behind France. It still looks a long shot for England, who face Wales in Cardiff, while France have a home fixture in Paris against Scotland and will be guaranteed the title with a bonus-point victory. England can keep dreaming, though, after securing a third straight win in this year’s Six Nations on Sunday — and this time by a landslide after one-point nailbiters against France and Scotland. With the score at 14-14 just after the half-hour mark, a 32nd straight victory over the Italians wasn’t guaranteed — but England were ruthless in the second half. Left winger Ollie Sleightholme finished with two tries — one in each half — while Tom Willis, Tommy Freeman, replacement Marcus Smith, Tom Curry and Ben Earl also went over. Fly-half Fin Smith nailed six of his conversions. A negative for the home team was the sight of centre Ollie Lawrence coming off in the eighth minute with an apparent knee injury. Later in the game, he emerged wearing a protective boot to sit on the bench. England’s only loss so far has been the 27-22 defeat at Ireland in the opening round, so the outlook is positive for coach Steve Borthwick and his players after consecutive losses to New Zealand, Australia and South Africa in the autumn had put the team under pressure. All England can do now is beat Wales — rivals on a record 16-game losing run — and hope for a favour from Scotland. Italy had three tries, the best coming from Ross Vintcent when the No. 8 galloped clear after running onto an inside pass from livewire fullback Ange Capuozzo. That converted score brought the teams level at 14-14 after 32 minutes. Capuozzo and Tommaso Menoncello grabbed the other tries for the Azzurri, who couldn’t manage a fourth try for a losing bonus point. They stayed in fifth place on four points, one more than Wales in the battle to avoid the wooden spoon. Italy close with a home match against third-place Ireland, who are two points behind France and one behind England. Italy against Ireland kicks off “Super Saturday” before Wales take on England and then France, minus injured star player Antoine Dupont, tackle Scotland. Source link #England #crush #Italy #Nations #hopes #alive Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Images Show Entire “Universe” of Circular Structure That Can Only Be Seen as Radio Signals Images Show Entire “Universe” of Circular Structure That Can Only Be Seen as Radio Signals The vast realm probed by radio astronomers is one invisible to the naked eye, and even most kinds of telescopes. Now, thanks to the latest advances in radio observatories, scientists are uncovering an entire “low surface brightness universe” teeming with circular curiosities, according to a team of researchers from Australia — including an entirely new class of cosmic object. “It’s comprised of radio sources so faint they have never been seen before, each with their own unique physical properties,” writes Miroslav Filipovic, an astronomer at Western Sydney University, and his colleagues in an essay for The Conversation. “As we study the sky with telescopes that record radio signals rather than light, we end up seeing a lot of circles.” Allowing astronomers to delve into this uncharted realm include the *********** Square Kilometer Array Pathfinder (ASKAP), which is made up of 36 powerful antennas, and the South African MeerKAT radio telescope, comprising 64 antennas. Both are continuously involved in performing surveys of the night sky, but ASKAP in particular is leading one called the Evolutionary Map of the Universe (EMU) launched in 2022, which seeks to account for every radio source imaginable in the Southern sky. In their essay, Filopovic and his colleagues document some of the most interesting objects this new generation of radio telescopes have found so far. Two of them are stellar oddities known as a Wolf-Rayet star. Dubbed Kýklos and WR16, these are massive celestial bodies, perhaps 25 times heavier than the Sun, near the end of their relatively brief lifespans. At this moribund stage, Wolf-Rayets rapidly shed mass, forming extremely luminous shells that, at their source, outshine our Sun by millions of times. That light is extremely faint by the time it reaches our planet, however, and since they only stick around for a few million years, spotting them is rare. “In these objects, a previous outflow of material has cleared the space around the star, allowing the current outburst to expand symmetrically in all directions,” wrote the astronomers. “This sphere of stellar detritus shows itself as a circle.” Radio imagery has also revealed a number of supernova remnants, or the sphere of gases and other material left behind after a massive star burns through its fuel, collapses under its own gravity, and epically explodes. “The supernova remnant will be deformed by its environment over time. If one side of the explosion slams into an interstellar cloud, we’ll see a squashed shape,” explained Filipovic and company. “So, a near-perfect circle in a messy universe is a special find.” Lo and behold, ASKAP managed to spot one: a remnant named Teleios. And it’s so perfect that nothing like it has ever been seen, according to the astronomers. “This presents us with an opportunity to make inferences about the initial supernova explosion, providing rare insight into one of the most energetic events in the universe,” the scientists wrote. Most mysterious of all is the latest instance (viewable here, on the right) of a new class of cosmic objects called Odd Radio Circles (ORCs), which, as the name suggests, are a phenomenon exclusively visible to the wavelength. ORCs are unfathomably large — large enough that they often imprison entire galaxies at their centers, with some being ten times as wide as the Milky Way. Tantalizingly, this is just the beginning of our exploration of the “low-surface brightness universe,” according to Filopovic, because the ASKAP and MeerKAT are just the prelude to the mother of all telescopes: the Square Kilometer Array, which, once completed, will be the biggest radio observatory in history. More on space: James Webb Spots Mysterious Object Crossing Space Between Stars Source link #Images #Show #Entire #Universe #Circular #Structure #Radio #Signals Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Baldoni Vs. Lively Feud Explained: Lively Attends ‘Another Simple Favor’ Premiere—Her First Film Since ‘It Ends With Us’ – Forbes Baldoni Vs. Lively Feud Explained: Lively Attends ‘Another Simple Favor’ Premiere—Her First Film Since ‘It Ends With Us’ – Forbes Baldoni Vs. Lively Feud Explained: Lively Attends ‘Another Simple Favor’ Premiere—Her First Film Since ‘It Ends With Us’ ForbesBlake Lively steps out for ‘Another Simple Favor’ premiere at SXSW amid competing lawsuits USA TODAYBlake Lively Appears At ‘Another Simple Favor’ Premiere As Baldoni Legal Feud Looms ForbesBlake Lively, Ryan Reynolds Fear Justin Baldoni Will Leak Private Texts with Celebs PEOPLEBlake Lively’s Lawyer Cites Fear of Press Leaks in Push for Privacy Order Variety Source link #Baldoni #Lively #Feud #Explained #Lively #Attends #Simple #Favor #PremiereHer #Film #Ends #Forbes Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

U.S. Secret Service shot armed man near White House while Trump out of town – National U.S. Secret Service shot armed man near White House while Trump out of town – National By The Staff The Associated Press Posted March 9, 2025 1:11 pm 1 min read Descrease article font size Increase article font size WASHINGTON — An armed man believed to be traveling from Indiana was shot by U.S. Secret Service agents near the White House after a confrontation early Sunday, according to authorities. No one else was injured in the shooting that happened around midnight about a block from the White House, according to a Secret Service statement. Get daily National news Get the day’s top news, political, economic, and current affairs headlines, delivered to your inbox once a day. President Donald Trump was in Florida at the time of the shooting. The Secret Service received information from local police about an alleged “suicidal individual” who was traveling from Indiana and found the man’s car and a person matching his description nearby. “As officers approached, the individual brandished a firearm and an armed confrontation ensued, during which shots were fired by our personnel,” the Secret Service said in a statement. Trending Now Famous ********* author Louise Penny axes U.S. book tour over Trump threats Did you know you can claim all of these medical expenses on your taxes? The man was hospitalized. The Secret Service said his condition was “unknown.” Story continues below advertisement The Metropolitan Police Department will investigate because the shooting involved law enforcement officers. The police department declined to provide more details. More on World More videos &copy 2025 The ********* Press Source link #U.S #Secret #Service #shot #armed #man #White #House #Trump #town #National Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content] For verified travel tips and real support, visit: [Hidden Content]

Australia well placed to lure US clean tech investment Australia well placed to lure US clean tech investment A less-favourable climate for clean technology capital elsewhere in the world might work to Australia’s advantage, according to a director at the green bank. Source link #Australia #lure #clean #tech #investment Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

What to Expect from Minecraft Live 2025 What to Expect from Minecraft Live 2025 -Foxtrot1h ago Here’s the next big update A new mob A reskin of another mob for a different biome A new block that doesn’t have much use yet A new wood type that only has the basic things you can craft with others coming later in a future update Possible a new biome if we’re feeling adventurous that is pretty basic, not a lot going on in it and won’t have a unique village with a theme that resembles the biome as we’re too busy trying to get one done for the last one or two biomes we add a while back (Cherry, Swamp, Mushroom, Birch, Pale). However all the main work will be for a new Minecraft spin off which they will kill off within 4-5 years. Source link #Expect #Minecraft #Live Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Transcript: Reps. Brian Fitzpatrick and Tom Suozzi on “Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan,” March 9, 2025 Transcript: Reps. Brian Fitzpatrick and Tom Suozzi on “Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan,” March 9, 2025 The following is the transcript of an interview with Reps. Brian Fitzpatrick, Republican of Pennsylvania, and Tom Suozzi, Democrat of New York, that aired on “Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan” on March 9, 2025. MARGARET BRENNAN: Welcome back to Face the Nation. We’re joined now by the co-chairs of the bipartisan Problem Solvers Caucus. Pennsylvania Republican Brian Fitzpatrick represents a district that was narrowly carried by Kamala Harris, and New York Democrat Tom Suozzi represents a district that went for President Trump. So you all have to find the middle and that brings you together and brings you here today. It’s good to see, in a bipartisan fashion, this conversation take place. But I want to start with you, Congressman Fitzpatrick, there is this potential government shutdown looming March 14th. Speaker Johnson says there’s going to be a vote on Tuesday. Will Republicans be able to pass this on party lines, or do you need Democratic votes? REP. BRIAN FITZPATRICK (R-PA): Well, that remains to be seen. You know, the text was just released yesterday, compliant with the 72-hour rule before a vote. We’re still digging through it. Like most bills, there’s some good in there. There’s some not so good in there. And we got to make an aggregated decision. I will say, you know, Tom and I are friends, we came in together. We obviously co-chair this bipartisan group together. And we do lament the fact of any single party bill- the construct in this country is if you get 218 votes, you get everything, and if you get 217 votes you get nothing. And that doesn’t make a whole lot of sense. So the reason that we do what we do is we want two party solutions, including on the CR. So, it remains to be seen whether the votes are there or not, but I think we’re really going to be learning over the next 24 hours what’s in it and what’s not in it. MARGARET BRENNAN: So, you haven’t decided your vote? REP. FITZPATRICK: Correct. MARGARET BRENNAN: What about you, Congressman Suozzi? Because Leader Jeffries initially said in a letter, Democrats cannot back it. You have the text. Are you a no? REP. TOM SUOZZI (D-NY): Right now, I’m a no. I mean, there’s been no outreach on a bipartisan basis. What Brian and I are trying to do in this environment, you can imagine, is not too easy. Everything’s very fractured, everything’s very divisive, and to overcome that requires trust building and requires people to work together. In the case of the CR there’s been offers to negotiate, and there’s been very little negotiated. It’s kind of been a my way or the highway type of thing. And I think that’s going to go on for a while. I think that the leadership is going to try and do my way or the highway for a while, and then at some point they’re going to need Democratic votes. And then people start negotiating. MARGARET BRENNAN: A while, meaning we could be staring down to shut down March 14? REP. FITZPATRICK: Well, we’ll find out on Tuesday or Wednesday. I believe the government funding runs out at the end of the week. We’re scheduled to end votes on Wednesday. Oftentimes, that does not happen during weeks like this, but it’s- it’s incumbent upon every legislator to read the text and to make an aggregate decision. Does the good outweigh the bad? We never want to shut the government down. That’s why I think we need no budget, no pay. If you cut legislators’ funding off, if they don’t pass a CR or a budget, I think you’ll have a much different outcome. So people need to put their money where their mouth is. REP. SUOZZI: Right now, the Republicans are counting on all the Republicans in the House to stick together to pass this through the House with no Democratic votes. That’s what they’re counting on. That’s why they’ve conducted themselves this way. Then it goes to the Senate. In the Senate, you need 60 votes. You don’t have 60 votes with the Senate Republicans. So it’s going to become a challenge for the Senate Republicans and the Senate Democrats to decide who’s going to get blamed for this thing. And wouldn’t it be better if we all just work together to try and find common ground the way- this is not normal what we’re doing. The idea of a full year continuing resolution is not the normal process. And there’s a lot of bad stuff that I see in this bill that I don’t like. REP. FITZPATRICK: And I will add Margaret, I’ve lived through government shutdowns as an FBI agent, and it’s horrific. Title Three wire taps get shut down. Surveillance teams get shut down. It has massive implications that most people don’t realize. You never, ever want to shut the government down. It should never happen, and it’s a symptom of a broken system that we’re even talking about this. MARGARET BRENNAN: Let me follow up with you on that. You are the only FBI agent who- now turned Congressman. On Monday, the top agent at the New York office, James Dennehy, said he was forced out of his job due to clashes with Justice Department officials over a directive. He had been supportive of Bureau leaders who resisted turning over the names of those agents assigned to carry out investigations related to January 6, 2021. Are you concerned about all this political pressure? REP. FITZPATRICK: I’m very concerned. I’m a huge defender and supporter of the Bureau. It’s the best job I ever had in my life, and the most honorable job I’ve ever had in my life, keeping America safe. And I care very much about the agent population and the professional support staff that work there. They are tremendous people. They are completely nonpartisan. In 14 years in the FBI, I never heard any political talk whatsoever, which is pretty remarkable, so– MARGARET BRENNAN: — directly contradicts what the Homeland Security secretary said at the top of this program when she talked- she went at the FBI- the FBI director– REP. FITZPATRICK: — Well, there are problems at the top. I want to differentiate. So there have been problems on the seventh floor of the J Edgar Hoover Building that they did politicize things, things like- people like Jim Comey, for example, who tweet out, you know, to vote single party during an election. You can’t do that as an FBI director. That’s terrible. He did it as a former director, but it undermines everything he did leading up to that point. The FBI needs to be completely non-partisan, completely apolitical. Personally, I think that part of the polygraph testing that comes in- so when you’re an agent coming through the process, you get tested on drug history, foreign contacts, financial vulnerabilities. They also ought to test political bias as well, just to give the public the assurance that people are coming into the bureau, checking their politics at the door. REP. TOM SUOZZI: This all comes down to a busting of norms and things that we’ve been used to for years are all trying to be disrupted. And I think in some ways, very dangerously. We can’t see this politicization of the FBI. It’s a dangerous thing for our country. MARGARET BRENNAN: Are you going to talk to the FBI director about any of this? REP. FITZPATRICK: — Absolutely, absolutely– MARGARET BRENNAN: — About the firings of the– REP. FITZPATRICK: — Director Patel he worked on our committee. He was a staffer on the House Intelligence Committee, which I sit. And I look forward to having a conversation with him. MARGARET BRENNAN: Congressman Suozzi, ******** border crossings, as we just discussed, they are at a historic low. President Trump made that point when he was addressing Congress this week. Was he right that- that he didn’t need to wait for Congress, that it was really messaging from the White House beyond? REP. SUOZZI: Well, obviously we’ve seen a reduction in crossings. We saw it under the end of the Biden administration as well, after he did his executive order to say no asylum applications in between the ports of entry. But we need to make a permanent law, and Congress has not done its job for 30 years. So we need to secure the border. We need to fix the broken asylum system, and we need to treat people like human beings by fixing our legal immigration system. MARGARET BRENNAN: Do you have an opening to do any of that, though? The two of you together? REP. SUOZZI: I was working on this before I became the co-chair of the Problem Solvers Caucus for about a year with a guy named Morgan Luttrell from Texas. Very conservative, former Navy SEAL guy, talking about the details, trying to build a coalition of business, badges, and the ****** to work together to support an effort like this. Now, Brian and I, as co-chairs of the Problem Solvers Caucus, are taking those efforts and others and trying- and we have a working group as well to say, as soon as that opening arises, we’re ready to make a deal. MARGARET BRENNAN: I know, but you guys are talking about- you can’t even agree to keep the lights on, right?– REP. SUOZZI: — Okay, but we– MARGARET BRENNAN:– you’re talking about really hard, substantive thing– REP. SUOZZI: Well what’s going to happen is the Homeland Security is going to need money. They’re spending money like crazy, and the CR is not going to fix the problem and– MARGARET BRENNAN: But that’s going to go to reconciliation, a party line vote, right? REP. SUOZZI: You can’t fix everything through reconciliation, and you’re going to need- and you can’t- certainly can’t fix asylum, and you can’t- certainly can’t fix the Dreamers and a whole bunch of other stuff through reconciliation. There’s going to be an opening that’s going to come when they need Democratic votes. And my argument to my Democratic colleagues is we should be looking to finally fix this broken immigration system once and for all. Secure the border, fix asylum, Dreamers, farm workers, essential workers and other people that we need to keep our economy open. REP. FITZPATRICK: If I may add, one of the reasons why I’m so excited about Tom being the co-chair is he shares my passion and the passion of so many people about this issue that there is a border security piece and there is an immigration piece. And we’re a country of immigrants. All of our families came in to this country through other places, Italy, Ireland– REP. SUOZZI: — My father was born in Italy. And for Brennan and Fitzpatrick I got Irish as well. REP. FITZPATRICK : You know, that’s the- that’s the huge advantage that we have over our adversaries. It’s- we have an endless supply of brilliant people coming into this country. Nobody wants to move to Russia or China or North Korea or Iran, everybody wants to come here. That’s a huge economic advantage. It’s a huge national security advantage. So we can combine border security and the rule of law with being- bringing the best and brightest people into this country, and also people that are truly fleeing oppression. That’s what America is about. REP. SUOZZI: Margaret, every problem we face in our country is complicated. You know this as well as anybody, everything’s complicated. You can’t, why don’t you just? There’s no why don’t you just anything. Anybody who says that– MARGARET BRENNAN: –That’s an entire political campaign– REP. SUOZZI: –Right MARGARET BRENNAN: Why don’t you just REP. SUOZZI: Which doesn’t make sense. And so what you need is people who may disagree with each other on certain issues, to sit across from each other say, well, I think this, well, I think that. Well, how about this? Well, how about that? And you try and find a compromise somewhere in the middle. Compromise is not a dirty word, and we have got to figure out how to start moving our country forward, not with this all my way or the highway. You guys are no good because you’re one of those. No you’re one of those. That’s not working for our country. People want us to work together to solve problems. MARGARET BRENNAN: Let me ask you, Congressman Fitzpatrick, I know you feel very strongly about supporting Ukraine in its fight against Russia. Ben Hodges, who’s a retired general who commanded US Army Europe, said he’s having a hard time understanding how withholding intelligence and military support from Ukraine advances strategic interests or helps make America great. Can you explain that? REP. FITZPATRICK: Well, I will say this. We’re going to get a briefing, a full briefing, on this, this coming week, but I will say this key in on what’s not being said here, what kind of intelligence and who can’t share it, right? So what I suspect, and I will get confirmation of this next week, is that it’s the over-the-horizon intelligence striking into Russian territory. MARGARET BRENNAN: It’s also satellite. REP. FITZPATRICK: Possibly, but second– MARGARET BRENNAN: –Maxar technology– REP. FITZPATRICK: We have seamless intelligence sharing with the ***. To give you one example, there’s no restriction on the *** sharing that intelligence with Ukraine. So what I suspect is happening here, and I could be proven wrong, is that this is an escalate to de-escalate tactic by the administration, to bring these parties to the table and to come to a conclusion, a just conclusion, which means success and victory for Ukraine. And I want to emphasize that, and I get asked, well, what does that mean? Yep. Vladimir. What victory means for me is Vladimir Putin regrets his decision to invade Ukraine, that he wishes he did not do that, and that’s really going to be the test here, right? Because if we reward dictators for invading sovereign, freedom loving democracies, we are sending a message to every other dictator and aspiring dictator across this planet that if you do do that, you will be rewarded. That cannot be the message coming out of this REP. SUOZZI: Trump has been wrong in the way he’s handled this. I want to give Brian credit, as co-chair of the Ukrainian caucus, for standing up and saying, you cannot reward a dictator. Zelensky was elected by 73% of the Ukrainian population in a free and fair election that’s dictated by the European Commission that oversees free and fair elections. Putin is the dictator. Putin invaded. Zelensky is democratically elected. We cannot reward the guy responsible for murdering, for kidnapping, for raping, for all the awful things that have happened to the Ukrainian people. We all need to stand up for the Ukrainian people. MARGARET BRENNAN: Well, we know that the Secretary of State, the national security adviser and President Trump’s envoy are all meeting with Ukrainian officials Tuesday. One of the things that I took note of Congressman Fitzpatrick, you tweeted that you have an outcome determinative number of members of the US Congress who are ready, willing and able to do whatever it takes to prevent Putin from being rewarded. That sounds like you are threatening leverage with votes. How would you use it? REP. FITZPATRICK: It’s not a threat. What this is is us making very clear that we view this issue to be existential to world peace. These are the lessons of World War II, when we had- when Germany invaded Poland in 1939 and you had leaders, including Neville Chamberlain and many other leaders around the world, saying it’s not our problem. We don’t want to provoke. We don’t want to escalate, and a problem that could have been could have been nipped in the bud early, because it was not, turned out to be the costliest and deadliest war in world history, where we had to send our young, our youth in our country, to fight on Omaha Beach. We should never get to that point. We should learn from the lessons of history. These dictators want to relitigate the outcome of World War II. In World War II freedom won over dictatorships. They want to relitigate that. So we just have to be mindful of history and how we approach this. REP. SUOZZI: And if Putin gets away with this just because Ukraine is a smaller country, think about Latvia and Lithuania and Estonia and Moldova, and think about Poland, right? They’re all next, and we have to stand up against this. REP. FITZPATRICK: And Putin has said that he’s telegraphed this punch. MARGARET BRENNAN Right, well, President Trump says that it’s all different when he’s in charge, but Congressman, I need to ask you before you go because of the district and the unique characteristics of it, the one you represent. Earlier this week, we saw guidance from the chair of the National Republican Congressional Committee urging members to hold virtual town halls, suggesting that holding them in person was not a good idea. Will you still hold town halls with your constituents? REP. FITZPATRICK: Yeah, we, we– MARGARET BRENNAN: –Because some of them have gotten quite heated recently. REP. FITZPATRICK: Oh, I know. No. I think every member needs to find the best way to communicate with our constituents, and there’s a number of ways to do that. I think what Chairman Hudson is referring to are the what’s turning out to be a circus, a three-ring circus, where you go to a high school gymnasium. The protesters show up. They hold signs up, and you have legitimate concerns from some other people that are never heard because they’re getting shouted down by people that are there to make a spectacle, oftentimes that are funded by some of these dark money groups. So there’s- it’s about communicating to your constituents in a way that you can get your message out, that you can hear their concerns. And every single district does it different, depending on- on where they’re at. MARGARET BRENNAN: You, Congressman Suozzi, during the address to Congress this week, you did see Texas Democrat Congressman Green be disruptive. He was pulled out of the chamber because of that later censured with the votes of nine Democrats, including yourself, and 214 Republicans. Why did you take that vote against a fellow Democrat? REP. SUOZZI: Because if it was a Republican doing the same thing to a Democratic president, I would have voted for that as well. And the bottom line is it was a strategic mistake on the on our behalf as well. Because instead of talking about Social Security cuts and talking about Medicaid cuts and talking about Medicare cuts and talking about the things that the President said in his speech that we disagree with, especially things like Ukraine or firing people in these different departments that make no sense whatsoever. We instead focus too much time on disruptive behavior and the conduct of the Democrats. That was a strategic mistake, as well as something that just is not appropriate for the decorum of the US House of Representatives– MARGARET BRENNAN: –Was the message from Democratic leadership not clear, then? REP. SUOZZI: –I think that it was pretty clear. I understood a clear message, let’s not make the story about us. Let’s make the story about what President Trump says and how we disagree with it. And we squandered that opportunity. All right. MARGARET BRENNAN: Thank you, gentlemen for doing this in a bipartisan fashion as well. Face The Nation Transcripts More More Source link #Transcript #Reps #Brian #Fitzpatrick #Tom #Suozzi #Face #Nation #Margaret #Brennan #March Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content] For verified travel tips and real support, visit: [Hidden Content]

Donald Trump’s Only Been President For Six Weeks, And He’s Already Reposted An Article Called “Shut Up About Egg Prices” Donald Trump’s Only Been President For Six Weeks, And He’s Already Reposted An Article Called “Shut Up About Egg Prices” If you’re on Truth Social, then you know Donald Trump is constantly posting AND reposting bizarre things. A person in a suit is speaking in an office setting with a flag visible in the background Like this face mashup of him and Elvis Presley… Hybrid face image combining features of Elvis Presley on the left and another man on the right Or this weird golden statue of himself that was featured in his AI video of Gaza: A large golden statue of a man in a suit stands on a busy city street, surrounded by cars and palm trees Well, it’s been approximately six weeks since Trump took office, and he’s most recently gone to Truth Social to seemingly tell Americans to stop complaining about the price of eggs. Trump reposted an article on his Truth Social account called “Shut Up About Egg Prices — Trump Is Saving Consumers Millions.” Tweet from Donald J. Trump shares a link and screen-capture of article on egg prices by Charlie Kirk; caption notes Democrats are happy about egg costs The article, written by conservative activist Charlie Kirk, puts the blame for high egg prices on the Biden administration and the bird flu outbreak, promising that Trump’s team is actively working to fix the problem, but “raising more chickens to lay more eggs takes time.” “Reversing four years of economic malpractice will take time to reverse, but the building blocks of America’s next great low-inflation, high-wage growth ***** have already been laid — and soon enough, so too will the eggs,” Kirk wrote. Of course, back on the campaign trail, Trump said: “When I win, I will immediately bring prices down, starting on day one.” Person speaking at a podium with text “TRUMP VANCE” and “TEXT TRUMP TO 88022,” surrounded by flag imagery and displayed products And after he became the president-elect, he said: “When you buy eggs, they would double and triple the price over a short ******* of time, and I won an election based on that. We’re going to bring those prices way down.” A person in a suit and tie speaks during a “Meet the Press” interview. American flags are in the background But as we all know, that promise has not come to fruition. Egg cartons are stacked with three different prices visible: $19.99, $16.99, and $17.69. A wet floor caution sign is on the right Here’s what people are saying about Trump’s latest “Shut up about egg prices” repost: “From ‘I’m going to make eggs cheaper’ to ‘Shut up about egg prices’ in six ******** weeks,” this person said. Tweet by Noah Smith: “From ‘I’m going to make eggs cheaper’ to ‘Shut up about egg prices’ in six ******** weeks.” “Dude is telling Americans to shut up about food prices while spending another weekend playing golf. Amazing.” Tweet criticizing someone for telling Americans to stop complaining about food prices while they play golf on weekends “If Biden had retweeted something that said ‘shut up about egg prices’, every Twitter server would melt within minutes.” this person said. Tweet joking that if Biden retweeted, “shut up about egg prices,” Twitter servers would overload I’m never shutting up about egg prices, and neither should you! Source link #Donald #Trumps #President #Weeks #Hes #Reposted #Article #Called #Shut #Egg #Prices Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Why Monster Hunter Wilds is a ‘Full Circle’ Moment for the Franchise Why Monster Hunter Wilds is a ‘Full Circle’ Moment for the Franchise Capcom: “A look at concept art for the firey fanged beast, Ajarakan! The monster’s silhoutte was inspired by an ape’s long, massive forelegs and huge body. The design motif is based on a spirit of legend often seen in Japan, with the rock-like shell and strong features in the front giving it a powerful look.” Source link #Monster #Hunter #Wilds #Full #Circle #Moment #Franchise Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Tesla sales plummet in Portugal – The Portugal News Tesla sales plummet in Portugal – The Portugal News Tesla sales plummet in Portugal The Portugal NewsTesla for *****: Buyer’s Remorse Sinks In for Elon Musk’s E.V.-Owning Critics The New York TimesTesla sales plunged 76% in February in Germany, Reuters reports Yahoo FinanceTesla makes a desperate attempt to escape its sales nightmare TheStreet Source link #Tesla #sales #plummet #Portugal #Portugal #News Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

If Atomfall's 'Experimental' Mechanics Are a Hit, Fallout May Want to Keep a Close Eye on Them If Atomfall's 'Experimental' Mechanics Are a Hit, Fallout May Want to Keep a Close Eye on Them Atomfall is taking a new approach to a post-apocalyptic story, and if one bold mechanic works well, Fallout may want to follow. Source link #Atomfall039s #039Experimental039 #Mechanics #Hit #Fallout #Close #Eye Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

England 47-24 Italy: England up to second in Six Nations England 47-24 Italy: England up to second in Six Nations England: Daly, Freeman, Lawrence, Dingwall, Sleightholme; F Smith, Mitchell; Genge, George, Stuart, Itoje (capt), Chessum, T Curry, Earl, T Willis. Replacements: Cowan-Dickie, Baxter, Heyes, T Hill, Cunningham-South, B Curry, Van Poortvliet, M Smith Italy: Capuozzo, Ioane, Brex, Menoncello, Gallagher; P Garbisi, Varney; Fischetti, Nicotera, Riccioni, N Cannone, Ruzza, Negri, Lamaro (capt) Vintcent Replacements: Lucchesi, Spagnolo, Ferrari, Favretto, Zuliani, L Cannone, Page-Relo, Allan Source link #England #Italy #England #Nations Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Russian troops ‘enter pipeline’ to hit Ukraine forces Russian troops ‘enter pipeline’ to hit Ukraine forces Russian special forces have crept kilometres through a gas pipeline near the town of Sudzha in an attempt to surprise Ukrainian forces as part of an offensive to eject Ukrainian soldiers from the western Russian region of Kursk, pro-Russian war bloggers say. The ruse was among moves aimed at cutting off thousands of Ukrainian soldiers in the region ahead of Ukrainian talks with the United States on a possible peace deal to end the war. Ukrainian troops seized about 1300 square km of Russia’s Kursk region in August last year in what Ukraine said was an attempt to gain a bargaining chip in future negotiations and to force Russia to shift forces from eastern Ukraine. Russia has been pressing its push to regain control of the region with some success in recent days. Open source maps on Friday showed Ukraine’s contingent in Kursk nearly surrounded after rapid Russian advances. “The lid of the smoking cauldron is almost closed,” former Russian president Dmitry Medvedev said on Telegram. “The offensive continues.” Yuri Podolyaka, a Ukrainian-born pro-Russian military blogger, said Russian special forces crept nearly 16km along the inside of the 1.5 metre wide gas pipeline and spent several days in the pipe before surprising Ukrainian forces from the rear near Sudzha. Pro-Russian war blogger Two Majors said a major battle was under way for Sudzha and that Russian forces had surprised Ukrainian soldiers by entering the area via a major gas pipeline. A statement from Ukraine’s airborne assault forces said that Russian soldiers had used the pipeline in an attempt to gain a foothold but the Russian troops were promptly detected and attacked with rockets, artillery and drones. Russian advances in 2024 and US President Donald Trump’s upending of US policy on Ukraine and Russia have raised fears among European leaders that Ukraine will lose the war and that Trump is turning his back on the continent. The United States paused military aid and the sharing of intelligence with Ukraine this month after a meeting between Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy on February 28 descended into acrimony in front of the world’s media. In its daily update on the situation in Kursk, Russia’s defence ministry said its forces had retaken the village of Lebedevka, as well as seizing Novenke, a hamlet across the border in Ukraine’s neighbouring Sumy region. Russia made no official mention of the pipeline operation but Major General Apti Alaudinov, commander of Chechnya’s Akhmat special forces, reposted pictures on Telegram of special forces inside a gas pipeline. “I am surprised by people who really think that Russia could lose,” Alaudinov said. “It is a good day.” Russian Telegram channels showed pictures of special forces in gas masks and lights, some using colourful colloquial Russian curses, as they made their way along the inside of what looked like a large pipe. Owing to battlefield reporting restrictions on both sides, Reuters was unable to verify the reports. The Soviet-era Urengoy-Pomary-Uzhgorod pipeline used to bring gas from western Siberia via Sudzha to Ukraine but Ukraine terminated all Russian gas transit through its territory from January 1. Ukraine’s invasion of Kursk last August was the most serious attack on Russian territory since the Nazi incursion of the Soviet Union in 1941. Another war blogger, Yuri Kotenok, said that Ukrainian forces have been moving equipment away from Sudzha, closer to the border. The Russian offensive raises a serious tactical conundrum for Ukraine just as the spring thaw turns roads to mud tracks: should it withdraw from Kursk, and if so, can it do so without a disorderly rush to the border under intense Russian fire. In the eastern Donetsk region, where Russian forces have made slow but steady progress during gruelling fighting in what was once Ukraine’s industrial heartland, Russia said on Sunday that its forces had taken the village of Konstyantynopil. Source link #Russian #troops #enter #pipeline #hit #Ukraine #forces Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content] For verified travel tips and real support, visit: [Hidden Content]

Noem taps new immigration enforcement leaders and moves to identify leakers Noem taps new immigration enforcement leaders and moves to identify leakers Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem on Sunday announced new leadership at the agency tasked with immigration enforcement as she also pledged to step up lie detector tests on employees to identify those who may be leaking information about operations to the media. “The authorities that I have under the Department of Homeland Security are broad and extensive and I plan to use every single one of them to make sure that we’re following the law, that we are following the procedures in place to keep people safe and that we’re making sure we’re following through on what President Trump has promised,” Noem told CBS’ “Face the Nation.” While these polygraph exams are typically not admissible in court proceedings, they are frequently used by federal law enforcement agencies and for national security clearances. Trusted news and daily delights, right in your inbox See for yourself — The Yodel is the go-to source for daily news, entertainment and feel-good stories. White House officials have previously expressed frustration with the pace of deportations, blaming it in part on recent leaks revealing cities where authorities planned to conduct operations. Noem announcement of two new leadership appointments within the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement comes less than two months into the Trump administration and demonstrates the importance that the administration places on carrying out the president’s deportation agenda. Todd Lyons, the former assistant director of field operations for the agency’s enforcement arm, will serve as acting ICE director. Madison Sheahan, secretary of the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries and Noem’s former aide when she was governor of South Dakota, has been tapped to be the agency’s deputy director. The leadership changes come after ICE’s acting director was reassigned on Feb. 21. Two other top immigration enforcement officials were reassigned Feb. 11. Those staffing changes came amid frustrations in the Trump administration about the pace of immigration arrests. Noem also announced on Friday that the agency has identified and planned to prosecute two “leakers of information.” On Sunday, she said these two people “were leaking our enforcement operations that we had planned and were going to conduct in several cities and exposed vulnerabilities.” She said they could face up to 10 years in federal prison. A DHS spokesperson did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Source link #Noem #taps #immigration #enforcement #leaders #moves #identify #leakers Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Here’s Where Trump’s Government Layoffs Are Targeted—As NOAA Reportedly Set To Cut 20% Of Staff – Forbes Here’s Where Trump’s Government Layoffs Are Targeted—As NOAA Reportedly Set To Cut 20% Of Staff – Forbes Here’s Where Trump’s Government Layoffs Are Targeted—As NOAA Reportedly Set To Cut 20% Of Staff ForbesC.I.A. Begins Firing Recently Hired Officers The New York TimesInside U.S. spy agencies, workers fear a cataclysmic Trump cull The Washington PostCIA is terminating some probationary employees Nextgov/FCWCIA lays off some recently hired officers as Trump shakes up intelligence community The Associated Press Source link #Heres #Trumps #Government #Layoffs #TargetedAs #NOAA #Reportedly #Set #Cut #Staff #Forbes Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Kristi Noem says she plans to use “every single one” of “broad and extensive” authorities as DHS secretary Kristi Noem says she plans to use “every single one” of “broad and extensive” authorities as DHS secretary Washington — Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said Sunday that she plans to use the “broad and extensive” authorities of her role to follow through on President Trump’s promises. “I plan to use every single one of them to make sure that we’re following the law, that we are following the procedures in place to keep people safe, and that we’re making sure we’re following through on what President Trump has promised — that he’s going to make America safe again,” Noem said on “Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan.” The comments came as DHS has been administering polygraph tests to its personnel to determine who may be leaking information to the media about its ongoing immigration raids, an agency spokesperson confirmed to CBS News Saturday. Noem said on Sunday that the tests will continue, while pledging that the leakers will be prosecuted — and could face up to 10 years in federal prison. “Anyone who is leaking information outside of how something is planned for the safety of those law enforcement officers needs to be held accountable for that,” Noem said. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem on “Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan,” March 9, 2025. CBS News Noem, who was confirmed and sworn in as DHS secretary in late January, touted the administration’s work on the border so far, saying “we’ve seen incredible progress” since Mr. Trump took office. She noted that the progress can be built upon, including by working with the ******** government to “make sure we not only have the enforcement mission at the border, but south of the border, and make sure we’re going after these cartels.” The DHS secretary argued that due to the Trump administration’s tariffs, imposed last week and later delayed on Canada and Mexico, “we’re seeing them wanting to be better partners with us to keep our people safe.” Noem stressed that the tariffs are about stopping fentanyl from entering the country, saying Mr. Trump is committed to making the country safer. “The president obviously wants a strong economy, obviously wants better trade deals as well, but this is about fentanyl and what we can do to stop the cartels from partnering with ******** officials laundering money and bringing a poison into our country that is specifically designed to kill the next generation,” Noem said. Noem also announced Sunday that Todd Lyons will be serving as acting director of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, who she said has a long history with border czar Tom Homan. Madison Sheahan will serve deputy secretary, she said. Amid the administration’s effort to crackdown on ******** immigration and pledge to conduct the largest deportation operation in American history, ******** border crossings fell to a 25-year low last month. Asked whether she plans to keep the 6,000 military personnel at the southern border, Noem said they’ll remain “until that border is completely secure, and we see all time record lows of encounters.” “Our border patrol is doing fantastic work, but we’re going to keep them there until the whole world gets the message that this isn’t Joe Biden’s world anymore,” Noem said. “This is President Donald Trump’s country where we have a border, where we have laws and it applies equally to everybody.” Still, the administration faces a capacity issue, with a limited number of beds for detainees. Noem said there is a plan to use a military facility at Fort Bliss in Texas for detentions, while urging that the administration needs Congress to approve more funding for the operations. “We have just weeks before we are out of the funds to continue the operations that we have,” Noem said. More Kaia Hubbard Kaia Hubbard is a politics reporter for CBS News Digital, based in Washington, D.C. Source link #Kristi #Noem #plans #single #broad #extensive #authorities #DHS #secretary Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content] For verified travel tips and real support, visit: [Hidden Content]

State Reforms + the State of Reform State Reforms + the State of Reform We look at plans for a civil service shake-up and at division in Reform ***. Source link #State #Reforms #State #Reform Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Flooding threat for region after cyclone packs punch Flooding threat for region after cyclone packs punch A cyclone has been downgraded to a tropical low but its impact is still being felt with a region reeling from major flooding with more wild weather forecast. Source link #Flooding #threat #region #cyclone #packs #punch Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content]

Karen Bass’ text messages about Palisades Fire were deleted: Report Karen Bass’ text messages about Palisades Fire were deleted: Report The Brief Mayor Karen Bass’ text messages from the first days of the January wildfires were deleted, according to a Los Angeles Times report. After a public records request for Bass’ text messages from Jan. 7 and 8 related to the fires, the Times said the city had “no responsive records.” City lawyer David Michaelson said Bass’ phone is set to auto-delete messages. Michaelson argued state public record laws don’t apply to text messages. LOS ANGELES – Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass‘ text messages from the early days of the Palisades Fire were deleted, according to a new report from the Los Angeles Times. Deleted text messages What we know Bass was in Ghana when the Palisades and Eaton fires broke out on Jan. 7, and spent much of the next day traveling the more than 7,500 miles back to Los Angeles. She and her office said she was in communication with city officials while she was traveling back to LA. In a March 7 report from the LA Times, the newspaper said it had filed a public records request to find out just what Bass and city officials were saying about the situation. SUGGESTED: Palisades, Eaton fires could cost local economy up to $9 billion, new report says Specifically, the Times said it had requested all text messages two and from the mayor about the fires and her travel plans, while she was traveling on Jan. 7 and 8. On Thursday, Bass’ office told the Times that they had “no responsive records” to fulfill their request. What is a public record? Dig deeper The California Public Records Act allows any member of the public to request a public record. State law defines a public record as “any writing containing information relating to the conduct of the public’s business prepared, owned, used or retained by any state or local agency regardless of physical form or characteristics.” There are exemptions to records requests, which are usually centered around privacy. Government agencies can deny requests for things like personnel and investigative records. Another big exception is “whenever the public interest in nondisclosure clearly outweighs the public interest in disclosure.” SUGGESTED: Mayor Bass opens up about trip to Ghana during LA fires: ‘I felt absolutely terrible’ But the law also says that when agencies deny requests, they have to say why. Agencies can also redact any exempt information from whatever records they deliver. In the case of Bass’ text messages, however, the Times said that Bass’ office didn’t give them a reason, or say whether they were withholding any records. Why is Karen Bass deleting her text messages? What they’re saying David Michaelson, an attorney for the city, claims that these laws do not apply to text messages, telling City News Service that “the Mayor’s phone is set to not save text messages — it auto deletes.” Michaelson added that the CPRA is “not a record-retaining statute. There is no requirement that a city official or employee save text messages.” Michaelson went on to cite an Attorney General ruling from 1981, that says for any public record to be kept, “it must have been made or retained by the public officer for the purpose of preserving its informational content for future reference.” Bass receives backlash for Ghana trip The backstory The Palisades Fire broke out in the Pacific Palisades on Jan. 7. As firefighters were fighting the rapidly-spreading flames amid deadly winds, Bass was halfway around the world in Ghana. Bass was there as part of a four-member U.S. delegation sent by President Joe Biden to attend the inauguration of President John Dramani Mahama. Bass returned to Los Angeles once she heard about the fires, getting back on Jan. 8. But, City Council President Marqueece Harris-Dawson, acting as mayor, had to sign the proclamation of a local emergency issued by Bass. PREVIOUS COVERAGE: Mayor Bass removes Kristin Crowley as LAFD Chief Bass has faced loads of criticism for the trip, which she later admitted was a mistake. In an interview with FOX 11’s Elex Michaelson, Bass said she wasn’t aware before leaving for the trip that the fire forecast was so dire, and that she would not have left if she had known how bad it was. She partially blamed former LAFD Chief Kristin Crowley, saying Crowley never contacted her before she left for Ghana to warn her. Bass later fired Crowley over her fire response. The Source Information in this story is from a March 7, 2025, Los Angeles Times report, an interview with Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass on Feb. 18, 2025, the state of California’s website on the California Public Records Act, the California Attorney General’s Office and previous FOX 11 reports. Source link #Karen #Bass #text #messages #Palisades #Fire #deleted #Report Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content] For verified travel tips and real support, visit: [Hidden Content]

DOGE acting administrator Amy Gleason surrounded in mystery DOGE acting administrator Amy Gleason surrounded in mystery Many are wondering whether DOGE is being run by Elon Musk or acting administrator Amy Gleason, seen in a still image from an interview with YouTube channel “What’s the Fix?!” What’s the Fix?! / Youtube Amy Gleason, a former emergency room nurse turned health care technologist, was scared. It was 2010 and no doctor could figure out what was behind her daughter Morgan’s strange constellation of symptoms, including rashes and muscle weakness so severe that she could no longer walk upstairs. When Morgan was finally diagnosed with a rare and potentially life-threatening autoimmune disorder after more than a year, Gleason became determined to empower other patients so they didn’t face similar delays in diagnosis. “If a doctor had seen all of these visits and activity on one single screen put together, they probably would have wondered why this 10- or 11-year-old is going to the doctor all the time,” Gleason said in a 2020 TEDx talk. “And maybe that would have sparked a faster diagnosis.” Until recently, Gleason, 53, had been a relatively low-profile health care data cruncher with a passion for simplifying access to electronic medical records. Then, at the end of February, the White House announced Gleason had been named the acting administrator for the Department of Government Efficiency, elevating her to a prominent position in the Trump administration. Gleason previously worked on projects related to health data at the U.S. Digital Service, DOGE’s predecessor, overlapping with Trump’s first term and the Biden administration. However, the White House has not provided details about why, exactly, it selected Gleason to lead DOGE — a task force unit at the center of the administration’s efforts to streamline the federal government. The move has led many to question whether Gleason is truly in charge or if the power resides with Elon Musk, the world’s richest man and a special government employee who has been the face of DOGE. For weeks, the administration evaded questions about who was actually at the helm; the White House said Gleason was the acting administrator only after administration lawyers were unable to answer who was in charge of the agency when questioned in court. Gleason does not appear to have made any public comments since the White House announced that she was DOGE’s top official. The administration has also revealed very little about who else works for DOGE and what they do, despite Musk’s claims of transparency. Even with Gleason’s title, Musk still seems to hold sway. As recently as Tuesday, Trump referred to DOGE as “headed by Elon Musk,” setting off fresh legal questions about the group’s operations. The working relationship between Musk and Gleason is unclear, and a DOGE spokesperson did not respond Friday to questions from NBC News about Gleason’s job responsibilities. Gleason also did not respond to a request for comment for this story. In interviews, former colleagues described her as highly intelligent and the most valuable asset wherever she works. “It’s exactly the kind of person you need in a role like this,” said Dr. Gregg Alexander, a pediatrician in London, Ohio, who has known her for about 20 years. “She’s always tried to do the right thing.” Still, some former colleagues worry that in her DOGE role, Gleason will be inadvertently complicit in cuts to programs that have personal significance to her — including research for rare disease funding. DOGE has threatened dramatic budget cuts to federal health agencies such as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the National Institutes of Health. The condition that Gleason’s daughter, who is now in her mid-20s, was diagnosed with is called juvenile dermatomyositis. The extremely rare disease is a form of juvenile myositis, in which a child’s immune system attacks its own cells and tissues. Therapies discovered over the years thanks to partnerships with NIH have improved the prognosis for juvenile myositis, said James Minow, executive director at the advocacy organization Cure JM Foundation, where Gleason served as a board member and vice president for research from 2014 to 2018, according to her LinkedIn profile. But with the Trump administration trying to cut NIH grant funding, Minow said he worried that DOGE could hamper the rare disease research that Gleason’s family and so many others depend on. “Amy is a very thorough thinker, and I think that she’ll be one who will make very solid, reasoned recommendations to the president as he looks at fulfilling what he sees as his mission to reduce the size of government,” Minow said. “Obviously, Cure JM is wanting to do everything we can to protect NIH’s investment.” Gleason’s friends and former colleagues describe her as apolitical. From 2018 to 2021, she worked for the U.S. Digital Service, an agency created by the Obama administration after its chaotic rollout of HealthCare.gov. Much of her stint was dedicated to partnering with the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services to improve patient access to health care records, she said in her 2020 TEDx Talk. During the latter part of her time there, she worked on the data team for the White House Coronavirus Task Force, creating databases from hospitals and labs that governors and the public relied on to track the virus. Her LinkedIn profile says she rejoined the U.S. Digital Service in January of this year as a senior adviser, though The New York Times reported she was reintroduced at the agency in late December, ahead of Trump’s inauguration. A long history in the private sector Gleason has also worked in the private sector at various health care management companies and startups. She held vice president positions at Allscripts, which provided software for electronic medical records, and worked from 2011 to 2018 at CareSync, a Florida-based medical technology startup that she co-founded, according to LinkedIn. Her LinkedIn profile adds that from 2021 to 2024, she was vice president of product at Main Street Health, which provides care for people in rural areas, and at Russell Street Ventures, a firm dedicated to launching innovative health care. Both Main Street Health and Russell Street Ventures were founded by entrepreneur Brad Smith, an early senior DOGE member who was previously named as head of the Center for Medicare & Medicaid Innovation in 2020 during Trump’s first administration. Smith did not respond to a request for comment; according to anonymous sources who spoke to The New York Times, Smith began advising on Musk’s cost-cutting moves late last year and brought Gleason in on the talks. NBC News has not confirmed the report. Tom Cooke, a retired health care executive who worked closely with Gleason more than 15 years ago, said her position at DOGE was “kind of a curveball.” “I’ll put my politics on my sleeve: I don’t trust Elon Musk at all in this role. I trust her completely,” he said. “I am confident that she will use her voice strongly and that she’s a straight shooter, whether it’s news that people above her want to hear or not.” Cooke described Gleason as having an effervescent personality and an unflappable work mentality. “Professionally, I put a lot on her plate to get done in a very short ******* of time, and was amazed by her ability to achieve that,” he said. And on a personal level, “I’ve seen her be really thoughtful with folks that she may have had just a little bit of interaction with,” he said. “She just has a way with people.” Others were also surprised by her DOGE title. One former health care IT colleague told NBC News via a LinkedIn message that “it did seem to come out of nowhere.” “I was shocked to hear of her appointment to DOGE, having been a fierce and committed patient advocate,” wrote the former colleague, who has known Gleason for 15 years and spoke on condition of anonymity because she was concerned speaking out against the Trump administration could have career repercussions. “To go from such a position of kindness, to a position that eliminates jobs for thousands of working parents, seems like such a dichotomy in values.” A graduate of the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, Gleason is an avid football fan who likes to needle friends who root for anyone other than the Tennessee Volunteers, said Alexander, the pediatrician. He added that she has a “tremendous sense of humor” and loves to travel. Gleason’s interest in streamlined medical records and other improvements for patients dates back decades. In 2021, she told the “Tell Me Where IT Hurts” podcast, which examines the intersection between health care and technology, that she started out as an emergency room nurse and “quickly realized how powerful health care technology could be.” Gleason has said the best career advice she has received was from her parents. She told another health care podcast in 2023 that her dad taught her mistakes are a learning opportunity, and her mom encouraged her to follow her dreams. “I’ve had a pretty great career trying a lot of new things and following my passions as I develop new ones as well,” she told the podcast. Source link #DOGE #acting #administrator #Amy #Gleason #surrounded #mystery Pelican News View the full article at [Hidden Content] For verified travel tips and real support, visit: [Hidden Content]