WASHINGTON (AP) — Although some parts of President Donald Trump’s agenda are getting bogged down by litigation, Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency is having better luck in the courtroom. Labor unions, Democrats and federal employees have filed several lawsuits arguing that DOGE is running roughshod over privacy protections or usurping power from other branches of government. But judges appointed by Democratic and Republican presidents haven’t always gone along with those arguments, at least so far. Most notably, DOGE critics are failing to obtain temporary restraining orders that would prevent Musk’s team from accessing sensitive government databases.… Continue Reading

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Trump administration has begun firing several hundred Federal Aviation Administration employees, upending staff on a busy air travel weekend and just weeks after a fatal midair collision near Washington. Probationary workers were targeted in late-night emails Friday notifying them they had been fired. That’s according to David Spero, president of the Professional Aviation Safety Specialists union. One air traffic controller told The Associated Press the fired workers include personnel hired for FAA radar, landing and navigational aid maintenance. A Transportation Department official tells the AP that no air traffic controllers were affected by the cuts, and that the agency has “retained employees who perform critical safety functions.”… Continue Reading

WASHINGTON (AP) — A federal judge has found the Trump administration hasn’t fully followed his order to unfreeze federal spending and has ordered the White House to release all money. U.S. District Court Judge John McConnell on Monday found there’s evidence that some federal grants and loans are still not going out to the recipients and ordered that the cash be released. McConnell earlier ordered a halt to Trump administration plans for a sweeping freeze federal funding. The Republican administration has said the pause was necessary to ensure federal spending fits with the president’s agenda. The order comes in a lawsuit filed by nearly two dozen states.… Continue Reading