Elect a Clown, Expect the Circus

"Senior DOJ officials are seeking to extend the terms of the interim federal prosecutors in Southern California and Nevada in an apparent bid to circumvent the stalled Senate confirmation process and the role of judges in filling those vacancies, according to the DOJ website. The DOJ and Trump previously used a similar maneuver while attempting to extend the service of Trump’s pick for U.S. Attorney for New Jersey, Alina Habba. Devlin Barrett and Danny Hakim report for the New York Times; Ry Rivard and Kyle Cheney report for POLITICO.

The Food and Drug Administration's chief medical and science officer, Vinay Prasad, left the agency yesterday, sources say. The Health and Human Services Department confirmed Prasad’s departure, without explaining his reasons for leaving. Prasad had recently come under fire from some Republicans and conservative activists, including far-right activist Laura Loomer. Rachel Roubein and Lena H. Sun report for the Washington Post.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has introduced a requirement for nominees for four-star general positions to meet with Trump before their nominations are finalized, current and former officials say. The move is a departure from previous practice and has raised concerns about the possible politicization of the military’s top ranks. Greg Jaffe and Maggie Haberman report for the New York Times.

Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lee Zeldin yesterday said he is issuing draft plans to overturn the agency's 2009 “endangerment finding” that greenhouse gases threaten human health and welfare. The finding is a key legal underpinning for the federal government’s ability to take action on climate change. Ben Geman reports for Axios.

The Justice Department yesterday announced it found UCLA to be in violation of federal civil rights law by “acting with deliberate indifference in creating a hostile educational environment for Jewish and Israeli students.” Sareen Habeshian reports for Axios.

The Trump administration yesterday temporarily halted, and later released all funding for science research issued by the National Institutes of Health, according to emails seen by the Washington Post and several officials. The halt stemmed from confusion over how to interpret a footnote in an Office of Management and Budget document, an email sent to NIH staff shows. Hannah Natanson, Dan Diamond, Carolyn Y. Johnson, and Jeff Stein report for the Washington Post.

Defense Secretary Hegseth has privately discussed running for the office of Tennessee governor next year, according to people who participated in the conversations. As the DOD bars civilian employees from running for political office, Hegseth would have to resign from his current position to do so. A Pentagon spokesperson said that “Hegseth’s focus remains solely on serving under President Trump.” Gordon Lubold, Courtney Kube, Bridget Bowman, and Julie Tsirkin report for NBC News.

A Pentagon spokesperson yesterday denounced the Defense Department’s internal review of whether Hegseth and his team followed DOD policy while using unclassified, commercial messaging applications for official business, describing the independent inquiry as “clearly a political witch hunt” the details of which were leaked to the media by “Biden administration holdovers.” Dan Lamothe reports for the Washington Post.

The Trump administration has frozen $108 million in federal funds for Duke University’s medical school and health care system, two administration officials say, days after accusing the school of violating federal antidiscrimination laws. Chris Cameron, Michael C. Bender, and Zolan Kanno-Youngs report for the New York Times."

The federal government is currently paying more than 154,000 employees not to work as part of the Trump administration’s deferred resignation program, according to two Office of Personnel Management officials. The officials could not provide an estimate of how much the government is spending on the departing employees’ salaries. Meryl Kornfield, Hannah Natanson, and Laura Meckler report for the Washington Post.

For more than two months, the Justice Department Inspector General’s Office did not act on an early May whistleblower complaint accusing top DOJ officials, including Emil Bove, of overseeing an effort to mislead judges and skirt or ignore court orders, sources say. The Office’s inaction has raised serious concerns from current and former department lawyers that the unit responsible for overseeing the DOJ, the FBI, and the DEA may have gone largely dormant. Devlin Barrett reports for the New York Times.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has ordered the end of the deployment of all but 250 National Guard troops the Defense Department sent to Los Angeles in response to protests over the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown. According to a Pentagon spokesperson, the remaining troops will protect federal personnel and property. Jaimie Ding and David Klepper report for AP News.

The Department of Health and Human Services’ Office for Civil Rights on Wednesday told Harvard University that it has referred it to the Justice Department over allegations of “antisemitic discrimination.” Kanishka Singh reports for Reuters.

The White House in recent days detailed nine employees from the Office of Management and Budget and the Office of Personnel Management to the General Services Administration, according to internal agency records and a source. The move is an apparent attempt by the White House to water down the influence of DOGE staffers at agencies like the GSA. Sophia Cai and Ben Johansen report for POLITICO.

The Energy Department on Tuesday released a report contending that the mainstream scientific view on climate change is too dire and does not acknowledge the positive effects of a warming planet. Climate scientists say the report, authored by five climate skeptics, misrepresents or cherry-picks the existing research on global warming. The Environmental Protection Agency this week cited the report in its proposal to repeal a landmark 2009 finding that greenhouse gases pose a public health threat. Maxine Joselow and Brad Plumer report for the New York Times."

"Attorney General Pam Bondi has ordered a grand jury probe into allegations that Obama administration officials violated federal laws with respect to the investigation of Russia’s involvement in the 2016 election, a source says. The Justice Department did not comment on whether prosecutors had settled on specific individuals or on crimes they believe occurred. Jeremy Roebuck, Perry Stein, and Gaya Gupta report for the Washington Post. 

The White House is preparing an executive order that threatens to fine lenders that purportedly drop customers for political reasons, stepping up pressure on big banks over perceived discrimination against conservatives and crypto companies, according to a draft of the executive order viewed by the Wall Street Journal. Dylan Tokar and Alexander Saeedy report.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s acting chief of staff, Ricky Buria, tried and failed to oust Matthew McNitt, a senior White House liaison assigned to the Defense Department, sources say. Buria’s attempt to push McNitt out coincided with the White House’s refusal to let Buria serve as chief of staff on a permanent basis and was effectively blocked by White House officials, the sources add. It is unclear whether Hegseth supported, or was aware of, Buria’s actions. Dan Lamothe reports for the Washington Post.

The Homeland Security Department appears to have updated a policy document that linked the grant of FEMA disaster grants to states and cities to “limiting commercial relations specifically with Israeli companies,” according to an August notice outlining the terms and conditions of FEMA assistance. A DHS spokesperson said that “FEMA grants remain governed by existing law and policy and not political litmus tests” and denied that any requirements tied to Israel were present in the grant conditions. April Rubin reports for Axios; Maxine Joselow reports for the New York Times.

The Trump administration has asked NASA to create plans to end at least two major satellite missions that collect data on carbon dioxide and plant growth around the globe, a move that would destroy one of the satellites, according to current and former NASA staffers. It is unclear why the Trump administration seeks to end the missions. Rebecca Hersher reports for NPR.

Transportation Secretary and interim NASA administrator Sean Duffy will announce a directive to expedite plans to build a nuclear reactor on the moon this week, according to documents obtained by POLITICO. Duffy will also issue a directive to more quickly replace the aging International Space Station. Sam Skove report for POLITICO.

The Justice Department has requested copies of voter registration lists from state election administrators in at least 15 states, according to an AP News tally. In Colorado, the DOJ also demanded “all records” relating to the 2024 election and any records retained from the 2020 election. Ali Swenson and Gary Fields report.

The Trump administration will restore and reinstall the Washington D.C. statue of Albert Pike, a Confederate diplomat and general, which was toppled by demonstrators during the Black Lives Matter protests in 2020, the National Park Service announced yesterday. Pike worked closely with Native Americans from slave-owning tribes that sided with the Confederacy during the Civil War and fought to protect slavery as an institution. Chris Cameron reports for the New York Times."

"With Trump’s consent, National Intelligence Director Tulsi Gabbard overrode concerns from the CIA and other intelligence agencies when releasing a minimally redacted version of a highly classified report on Russia’s interference in the 2016 election, according to several sources. The intelligence agents were concerned that more of the document should remain classified to protect CIA human sources reporting on Putin’s plans and their methods, the sources say. Warren P. Strobel reports for the Washington Post.

The Justice Department has asked a federal judge to impose “substantial monetary sanctions” on a California attorney who argued that his client, an immigrant from Laos who pleaded guilty to attempted murder in the 1990s, might be unlawfully ensnared in the Trump administration’s aggressive effort to expel foreigners under the Alien Enemies Act. Legal experts describe the sanctions motion as highly unusual. In March, Trump signed a memorandum instructing Attorney General Pam Bondi “to seek sanctions against attorneys and law firms who engage in frivolous, unreasonable, and vexatious litigation against the United States.” Josh Gerstein reports for POLITICO.

The Trump administration is moving forward with its plan to end collective bargaining with federal employees’ unions, with the Veterans Affairs Department yesterday announcing it had moved to strip labor protections for more than 400,000 of its workers. The administration previously told a court that it would not end the agreements until a court dispute challenging the plan was resolved. Chris Cameron reports for the New York Times.

The Trump administration is drawing up plans to increase the federal law enforcement presence in Washington, D.C., with ICE, FBI, National Guard, and local DHS agents set to be part of the deployment. A senior White House official said that the move was a follow-up on Trump’s executive order concerning D.C. and only in part related to last weekend’s assault on a well-known DOGE staffer. Kristen Holmes and Holmes Lybrand report for CNN.

The Trump administration has frozen $584 million in federal research funds for UCLA, the school said in the first official tally of the cuts threatened by the federal government. The DOJ last week announced it was investigating whether the school violated civil rights laws by failing to protect Jewish students and faculty from antisemitism. Nicole Norman reports for POLITICO."

"The FBI has started sending agents on overnight shifts to assist local law enforcement in preventing carjackings and violent crime in Washington, as Trump continues his threats of a federal takeover of the city and weighs deploying the National Guard. A decision on the Guard deployment could come as soon as today, when Trump is scheduled to hold a White House news conference on D.C. crime, according to a U.S. official. Yesterday, Trump compared his planned crackdown on crime in D.C. to his aggressive immigration enforcement at the southern border, promising to “immediately clear out the city’s homeless population and take swift action against crime.” Perry Stein, Olivia George, Ellen Nakashima, and Dan Lamothe report for the Washington Post.

FBI Director Kash Patel removed another group of agents who had been involved in investigations against the president and his allies. Patel and his deputy have also recently required agents to undergo polygraph tests to determine whether they had leaked negative information about FBI leadership, sources say. Patel has also recently fired, demoted, or reassigned dozens of employees tied to work criticized by Republicans. Sadie Gurman reports for the Wall Street Journal. 

Hours before IRS Commissioner Billy Long was forced out by Trump administration officials on Friday, the Internal Revenue Service clashed with the White House over using tax data to track and locate suspected undocumented migrants, sources say. Following Long’s departure, Treasury Security Scott Bessent will step in as the agency’s acting head. Jacob Bogage and Kadia Goba report for the Washington Post; Avery Lotz reports for Axios.

Less than two weeks after being removed at the White House’s direction, a senior Food and Drug Administration official is being reinstated, a health agency spokesperson said Saturday. Vinay Prasad will return as head of the senior regulator overseeing vaccines and complex treatments for disease, a role he lost following a right-wing pressure campaign. Lauren Weber and Rachel Rouebein report for the Washington Post. 

Trump is preparing to tap David Rosner to be chair of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, a decision that would put a Democrat at the head of an agency central to Trump’s agenda on pushing U.S. oil, gas, and coal, according to a White House official. Jennifer A. Dlouhy and Nuareen S. Malik report for Bloomberg Law. 

Trump on Saturday said he was nominating Tammy Bruce, spokesperson for the State Department and longtime political commentator at Fox News, as the next deputy representative of the United States to the U.N. Ashley Ahn reports for the New York Times.

The Trump administration on Friday threatened to seize hundreds of millions of dollars’ worth of patents from Harvard University, accusing the college of failing to comply with the law on federal research grants. Liam Knox and Hadriana Lowenkron report for Bloomberg Law. "

"The National Guard began to appear in Washington D.C. yesterday, a day after Trump also placed the nation’s capital’s police department “under direct federal control.” Criticizing the deployment of 800 Guard members and 500 federal agents to fight what Trump calls “out of control” crime, Mayor Muriel Bowser has called the decision an “authoritarian push” and an “intrusion on our autonomy.” Maureen Chowdhury, Adita Sangal, and Tori B. Powell report for CNN; the New York Times reports. 

The Trump administration is weighing plans that would create a “Domestic Civil Disturbance Quick Reaction Force,” composed of National Guard troops tasked with being ready around-the-clock to be deployed into U.S. cities facing protests or unrest, according to Pentagon documents reviewed by the Washington Post. The proposal calls for 600 troops, stationed across military bases in Alabama and Arizona, to be on constant standby so they can be deployed in as little as one hour. Alex Horton and David Ovalle report. 

The Justice Department yesterday found that George Washington University was “deliberately indifferent to antisemitic discrimination” on its campus, marking the latest Trump administration claim regarding a college’s handling of discrimination against Jewish students and faculty. In a letter to the University’s president, the administration has provided a deadline of August 22 to say whether it was open to a voluntary resolution or instead face “enforcement” measures. Dan Rosenzweig-Ziff reports for the Washington Post.

The White House plans a comprehensive review of Smithsonian museums, their exhibits, materials, and operations, ahead of America’s 250th anniversary to ensure alignment with Trump’s interpretation of U.S. history. In a letter to Smithsonian Secretary Lonnie Bunch, three White House officials said, “This initiative aims to ensure alignment with the president’s directive to celebrate American exceptionalism, remove divisive or partisan narratives, and restore confidence in our shared cultural institutions.” Meredith McGraw and Jasmine Li report for the Wall Street Journal. 

Trump is considering suing Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said yesterday. The legal escalation comes as the Federal Reserve continues to resist his demands to cut interest rates, with Trump previously threatening to fire Powell over the issue. Removing Powell would be legally complex, as Senate-confirmed Fed board members can only be fired “for cause.” Elisabeth Buchwald reports for CNN."

"Attorney General Pam Bondi late yesterday declared Terry Cole, the head of the Drug Enforcement Administration overseeing the federal takeover of Washington D.C.’s police department, as the city’s emergency police commissioner.” Bondi ordered an end to D.C.’s sanctuary policies, her spokesperson said. In a legal opinion, the D.C. Attorney General, Brian Schwalb, told D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser that the 1973 Home Rule Act does not give the president the authority to “alter the chain of command” in the city, and that she is not legally obligated to follow Bondi’s “unlawful” directive removing power from the police chief. Devlin Barrett and Karoun Demirjian report for the New York Times; Rebecca Falconer and Russell Contreras report for Axios.

All 800 National Guard troops Trump ordered to support Washington D.C. police and federal law enforcement officers have mobilized for duty, the Pentagon said yesterday. According to a Defense Department press secretary, the Guard will protect monuments and federal buildings, conduct “community safety patrols” and carry out “area beautification.” Eric Schmitt reports for the New York Times.

Federal agents from the FBI and the Secret Service last evening began a push to clear homeless encampments in northwestern Washington, D.C. It was unclear how widespread or effective the raids were, with at least one unhoused woman presenting agents with a city-issued notice saying she had until Monday to leave. Campbell Robertson and Nicholas Bogel-Burroughs report for the New York Times.

The Health and Human Services Department yesterday announced it is reviving a federal task force created to improve the safety of childhood vaccines. An anti-vaccine group founded by Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. in May backed a lawsuit seeking to reestablish the task force, which has been inactive since 1998. Tina Reed reports for Axios; Reuters reports.

Trump administration officials suspect that Corey Lewandowski, a longtime adviser to Trump who acts as Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem’s de facto chief of staff, is avoiding clocking into work to not meet the 130-day limit of his term of employment as a Special Government Employee, Axios has learned. According to Axios, White House officials began monitoring Lewandowski's time at work in recent weeks. Brittany Gibson and Marc Caputo report.

PBS is reducing its budget by 21% to deal with Congress’s recent decision to eliminate roughly $500 million in federal funding from public TV and radio, according to a Wednesday memo from the PBS Chief Executive, Paula Kerger. Benjamin Mullin reports for the New York Times.

An intervention by the White House Chief of Staff, Susie Wiles, was the cause of Trump’s decision to rehire Vinay Prasad as a top vaccine regulator, senior administration officials say. Wiles helped Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. make the case for Prasad following pleas from Kennedy and Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Marty Makary, the sources add. David Lim, Dasha Burns, and Tim Röhn report for POLITICO."

"Gen. David Allvin will retire this autumn after serving two years as Air Force chief of staff, midway through his term as the service’s highest-ranking officer, Air Force announced yesterday. Allvin, set to become the fourth U.S. military service chief to depart since Trump took office, did not provide a specific reason for his decision. Audrey Decker reports for Defense One; Jack Detsch, Paul McLeary, and Connor O’Brien report for POLITICO.

Attorney General Pam Bondi and FBI Director Kash Patel yesterday announced the appointment of Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey as a second FBI Deputy Director. Bailey will serve as co-Deputy Director with Dan Bongino, who last month clashed with Bondi over the administration’s handling of the Epstein files. Holmes Lybrand reports for CNN.

In a speech, the DOJ Antitrust Division’s former Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General, Roger Alford, yesterday accused two senior aides to Attorney General Pam Bondi of corrupting the DOJ’s law-enforcement process, including by dealing with antitrust lawsuits in relation to the Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE)/Juniper Networks merger. Alford alleged that Bondi’s chief of staff, Chad Mizelle, favored “MAGA friends” in the merger control process, and, together with Stanley Woodward, another aide, played a significant role in how the DOJ settled with HPE. A DOJ spokesperson said that Alford is “pursuing blind self-promotion and ego, while ignoring reality.” Woodward has been nominated to serve as the Justice Department’s third-ranking official. Dave Michaels reports for the Wall Street Journal.

The Education Department’s Office for Civil Rights has a backlog of about 25,000 unresolved cases and is prioritizing cases that allege transgender students and students of color are getting unfair advantages, with staff cuts leaving thousands of other cases unresolved, according to current and former employees. Laura Meckler reports for the Washington Post."

"Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard yesterday announced plans to cut her office staffing levels by nearly 50% and reduce its annual budget by $700 million. The plans would consolidate teams across the agency and eliminate the Foreign Malign Influence Center, which monitors foreign efforts to undermine U.S. elections, as well as the Cyber Threat Intelligence Integration Center. According to a fact sheet released by ODNI, Gabbard has already reduced the office’s size by 30% since assuming office in February. A former senior CIA intelligence executive and former NSA analyst told POLITICO they think the cuts could hurt coordination between U.S. intelligence agencies. Maggie Miller and Dana Nickel report; Kwasi Gyamfi Asiedu reports for BBC News.

Paul, Weiss and Kirkland & Ellis law firms are working for free on a range of matters, including trade deals, for the Commerce Department, according to sources. Both firms have previously struck deals with the Trump administration in order to avoid punitive executive orders. Michael S. Schmidt, Matthew Goldstein, and Maggie Haberman report for the New York Times.

The resources of the U.S. Army’s Criminal Investigation Division (CID) are strained by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s unusually large personal security requirements, the Washington Post reports, citing documents and interviews with officials familiar with the operation. According to the sources, the CID had to pull agents from criminal investigations to safeguard the residences of Hegseth’s family and former spouses. The CID’s main responsibility is to investigate serious crimes within the Army. The chief Pentagon spokesperson said that all actions in relation to Hegseth’s security have been taken “in response to the threat environment and at the full recommendation” of the CID. Tara Copp, Alex Horton, and Dan Lamothe report; Ellen Mitchell reports for the Hill.

The Justice Department has subpoenaed hospitals seeking a wide range of sensitive information related to medical care for young transgender patients, according to a copy of a subpoena sent to a Philadelphia children’s hospital made public in a court filing this week. The document shows the DOJ demanded information that included patient data as well as encrypted communications and “every writing or record of whatever type” doctors have made dating back to January 2020. Sources say the subpoenas were sent to providers both in states that prohibit gender care for minors and those that allow it. Casey Parks and David Ovalle report for the Washington Post.

The federal government’s health insurance plans for federal employees will no longer cover hormone treatment or gender transition surgery from 2026 onwards, the Trump administration said in a letter to insurance carriers dated Aug. 15. According to the letter, counseling services for possible or diagnosed “gender dysphoria” would still be covered. Eileen Sullivan reports for the New York Times.

In a social media post, Trump yesterday demanded the resignation of Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook, citing unconfirmed allegations that she may have engaged in mortgage fraud. Trump’s demand came shortly after Federal Housing Finance Agency Director Bill Pulte said on social media that his office had investigated Cook and found that she appeared to have falsified bank documents. Tony Romm, Ben Casselman, and Colby Smith report for the New York Times.

Trump has purchased more than $100 million worth of bonds since taking office in January, according to Office of Government Ethics filings released late on Tuesday. A senior White House official said that the investments are managed by a third-party financial institution and neither Trump nor any member of his family have direct input into the investments. Alex Gangitano reports for the Hill."

"Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on Friday fired the head of the Defense Intelligence Agency, Air Force Lt. Gen. Jeffrey Kruse, Vice Adm. Nancy Lacore, who was chief of the Navy Reserve, and Rear Adm. Jamie Sands, who oversaw Naval Special Warfare Command, according to Pentagon officials and a senator. Lawmakers were told that Hegseth fired Gen. Kruse over a “loss of confidence” in the senior officer, two congressional officials said. The Pentagon has not provided an explanation for Lacore and Sands’ firings. The Defense Intelligence Agency in June drafted a preliminary report that contradicted Trump’s claim that U.S. strikes “obliterated” Iran’s nuclear sites. Julian E. Barnes and Eric Schmitt report for the New York Times.

Deputy Treasury Secretary Michael Faulkender left the Trump administration last week after frustrating Trump and feuding with then-IRS commissioner Billy Long, sources say. According to the sources, Trump became convinced that Faulkender was too aligned with the views of former Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and insufficiently aligned with Trump’s vision. Brian Schwartz, Alexander Ward, and Richard Rubin report for the Wall Street Journal.

The Homeland Security Department told a nonprofit watchdog group it has not maintained text message data among top officials since April 9 in response to public records requests, the American Oversight nonprofit said. A senior DHS official yesterday said the agency maintains a record of text messages, without commenting on why the department told the nonprofit otherwise while denying the records requests. Minho Kim reports for the New York Times.

The Justice Department last month told Congress it would not defend a legal challenge to a decades-old grant program for colleges with large numbers of Hispanic students, according to a letter released on Friday. The notice claims that the program provides an “unconstitutional” advantage based on race or ethnicity, citing a 2023 Supreme Court decision which said that “outright racial balancing” is “patently unconstitutional.” Collin Binkley and Jocelyn Gecker report for AP News.

The IRS is reversing its layoff plans and offering jobs back to some of its employees who took DOGE’s “fork in the road” deferred resignation offer ahead of the tax season, according to an IRS employee. In an email to IRS managers, the agency’s human capital officers cited “potential gap in mission critical expertise” as the rationale for the move. Natalie Alms and Eric Katz report for the Government Executive; Emily Peck reports for Axios.

Health and Human Services Department officials on Friday confirmed the agency is ending its recognition of unions for thousands of its employees,and is reclaiming office space and equipment previously used for union activities. Mike Stobbe reports for AP News."

"In a letter published on social media, Trump yesterday said he is firing Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook. Trump claimed that the Justice Department’s probe into whether Cook lied on mortgage applications amounted to “sufficient cause” to give him the power to remove her from the Federal Reserve board. In a statement, Cook told POLITICO that she would not resign, arguing “no cause exists under the law” for Trump to remove her. Aaron Pellish, Kyle Cheney, and Sam Sutton report. 

The Pentagon’s Defense Innovation Unit head Doug Beck resigned yesterday, according to sources. Beck, a former Apple vice president who led the Defense Department’s tech incubator, was the last high-profile Biden administration holdover at the DOD. He reportedly did not provide a reason for his departure. Daniel Lippman, Felicia Schwartz, and Jack Detsch report for POLITICO.

More than 180 FEMA employees yesterday warned members of Congress that the agency’s direction and current leaders’ inexperience harm FEMA’s disaster prevention and management readiness. The employees’ letterwarns that the Trump administration’s actions are sending the agency back to where it was before Hurricane Katrina, one of the worst disasters in U.S. history that prompted Congress to give FEMA more power and responsibility. Brianna Sacks reports for the Washington Post. 

Late on Sunday, Trump suggested that the Federal Communications Commission should revoke ABC and NBC News’ broadcast licenses for how they cover Republicans and conservative politicians or make them pay “big” for broadcasting. Earlier in the day, the networks’ programming included criticism of the FBI's search of the home of Trump's former national security adviser John Bolton. David Folkenflik reports for NPR.

Trump yesterday signed an executive order threatening to cut federal funding from jurisdictions that allow defendants not to post a cash bail when they face lesser charges. Luke Broadwater reports for the New York Times.

Trump yesterday told reporters he could soon move to rename the Department of Defense as the Department of War. Brett Samuels reports for the Hill."

"The White House has fired the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Director, Susan Monarez, a spokesperson confirmed yesterday, stating that she was “not aligned with the President’s agenda.” Prior to the White House’s announcement, Monarez’s lawyers said that she was being targeted for refusing to “rubber-stamp unscientific, reckless directives and fire dedicated health experts.” A Health and Human Services Department official said that Monarez was called into a meeting on Monday with HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and a top aide, Stefanie Spear, who pressured her to resign and fire several senior CDC staff. Sophie Gardner, David Lim, and Megan Messerly report for POLITICO; Nadine Yousif reports for BBC News.

Multiple top CDC officials resigned shortly after Monarez’s ouster, citing recent vaccine policy changes and the “weaponizing of public health.” According to emails seen by the Hill, the officials who resigned include Chief Medical Officer Debra Houry, National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases Director Demetre Daskalakis, and National Center for Emerging and Zoonotic Infectious Diseases Director Daniel Jernigan. NBC News reports that Jen Layden, the director of the Office of Public Health Data, Surveillance and Technology, has also resigned. HHS did not address the resignations. Joseph Choi and Nathaniel Weixel report; Erika Edwards and Berkeley Lovelace Jr. report.

Trump yesterday fired Robert Primus, a Democratic member of the Surface Transportation Board, a railroad regulator that is currently weighing a proposed merger between Union Pacific and Norfolk Southern. Primus told the Wall Street Journal he plans to continue fulfilling his duties and challenge the termination, which he described as “deeply troubling and legally invalid.” Esther Fung reports.

The investigation into Trump’s former national security adviser John Bolton began during the Biden administration, when U.S. intelligence officials collected information from an adversarial country’s spy service that appeared to show that Bolton had mishandled classified information,sources say. The information suggested that Bolton appeared to have sent emails with sensitive information to people close to him using an unclassified system during the first Trump administration, the sources add. It is not clear which country intercepted Bolton’s private emails. Devlin Barrett, Julian E. Barnes, Michael S. Schmidt, Glenn Thrush, and Maggie Haberman report for the New York Times.

The State Department’s Policy Planning Director, Michael Anton, is set to leave his role this fall, the department confirmed. According to a senior Trump administration official, Anton is expected to leave once the administration finishes drafting its national security strategy, of which he is a lead author. A Senate aide and another source suggested that Anton had already tried to quit this spring amid frustration with the Trump administration’s foreign policy processes. Felicia Schwartz, Daniel Lippman, and Jack Detsch report for POLITICO.

The Justice Department yesterday announced it is investigating the California Environmental Protection Agency over its policies on racial equity in hiring practices. Rachel Frazin reports for the Hill.

The U.S. Air Force will provide Jan. 6 rioter Ashli Babbitt with military funeral honors, according to a letter from Air Force Under Secretary Matthew Lohmeier published by the legal group representing Babbitt’s family. The Biden administration previously denied military honors for her funeral “due to the circumstances preceding her death.” Ella Lee reports for the Hill."