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Injunction lifted on Trump executive orders slashing federal DEI support

Injunction lifted on Trump executive orders slashing federal DEI support

An appeals court on Friday lifted a block on President Donald Trump‘s executive orders ending federal support for diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) programs. A panel of three judges ruled the orders can be enforced during a pending lawsuit, reversing a nationwide injunction from U.S. District Judge Adam Abelson in Baltimore, the Associated Press reported. Two of the judges on the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals said the orders “could raise concerns” about First Amendment rights, but found Abelson’s “sweeping block went too far,” according to the report. FEDERAL JUDGE TEMPORARILY STOPS TRUMP ADMIN FROM FIRING 11 INTELLIGENCE OFFICERS ASSIGNED TO DEI PROGRAMS Abelson, a Biden nominee, previously ruled the orders violated the First Amendment right to free speech and were unconstitutionally “vague,” as they did not define DEI. The ruling followed a lawsuit filed by the City of Baltimore, the National Association of Diversity Officers in Higher Education, the American Association of University Professors and the Restaurant Opportunities Centers United, which alleged the executive orders were presidential overreach and anti-free speech.  They argued the president’s power “is not limitless.” TRUMP SCORES BIG LEGAL WIN AGAINST PULITZER PRIZE BOARD MEMBERS AS LAWSUIT MOVES TO DISCOVERY Trump’s orders directed federal agencies to terminate all “equity-related” grants or contracts, and required federal contractors to certify that they don’t promote DEI.  The administration argued in court that the ban only affected DEI programs violating federal civil rights laws.  “What’s happening is an overcorrection and pulling back on DEI statements,” attorney Aleshadye Getachew said in a hearing.  While the president secured a win with the latest injunction, a similar federal lawsuit was filed in D.C. U.S. District Court on Wednesday challenging DEI executive orders including: “Ending Radical and Wasteful DEI Programs and Preferencing;” “Defending Women From Gender Ideology Extremism and Restoring Biological Truth to the Federal Government;” and “Ending Illegal Discrimination and Restoring Merit-Based Opportunity.”  CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP The second complaint was filed by NAACP Legal Defense Fund and Lambda Legal on behalf of nonprofit advocacy organizations.  White House spokesman Harrison Fields told the New York Times that “the radical leftists can either choose to swim against the tide and reject the overwhelming will of the people, or they can get on board and work with President Trump to advance his wildly popular agenda.” Fox News Digital’s Brie Stimson, Danielle Wallace, and The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Trump, Kathy Hochul had ‘productive’ White House meeting after governor said she would lead Dem ‘resistance’

Trump, Kathy Hochul had ‘productive’ White House meeting after governor said she would lead Dem ‘resistance’

New York Gov. Kathy Hochul’s office said Friday she and President Trump had a “productive” meeting at the White House while discussing several topics, such as tariffs and energy.  “Gov. Hochul and President Trump covered a broad range of topics in today’s meeting, including the redevelopment of Penn Station, congestion pricing, tariffs and energy policy,” a spokesperson for her office shared with Fox News Digital.  “While no formal agreements or decisions were reached, it was a productive conversation, and we look forward to continuing the dialogue in the coming weeks.” The White House also confirmed the meeting to Fox News Digital but said it was off the record and there would be no readout.  NY GOV HOCHUL NOW SAYS SHE WILL LEAD ‘RESISTANCE’ AGAINST TRUMP AFTER SAYING OPPOSITE WEEKS AGO  Trump told reporters Thursday, “Kathy Hochul, very nice woman; she’s coming in tomorrow morning at 9 o’clock to meet me.” He added they would be discussing reviving the Constitution natural gas pipeline from Pennsylvania to New York, among other topics.  They met amid tensions between the two, including over congestion pricing. The Trump administration has ordered the termination of congestion pricing by next Friday.  In February, Trump posted from the White House X account, “CONGESTION PRICING IS DEAD. Manhattan, and all of New York, is SAVED. LONG LIVE THE KING!” HOCHUL SLAMS TRUMP’S ‘KING’ REMARK AFTER PRESIDENT’S MOVE TO BLOCK CONGESTION PRICING TOLL IN NYC Hochul responded by saying in a press conference, “I’m here to say New York hasn’t labored under a king in over 250 years. We sure as hell are not gonna start now,” FOX 5 reported.  “There is a huge disconnect between the reality we know that New Yorkers are facing and the perception of reality out of the White House,” she added at a New York Department of Transportation board meeting this week. “I guarantee that the president has never had to endure missing a child’s sporting event because he was stuck on a delayed train.”  Earlier this month, the Democratic governor said she will be “leading the resistance” against Trump.  Hochul said she would “fight back hard” during an interview with NPR’s “Morning Edition” Monday when asked about New York City’s congestion pricing toll that the Trump administration moved to block last month. “We offered up an olive branch. [We said] ‘We’ll work with you on infrastructure. Let’s redo Penn Station’,” Hochul said. “Those areas were common ground. But once you draw first blood on us, we’re coming back hard. And I will be leading the resistance on policies like these where you’re hurting New Yorkers directly. This is our decision, not yours.” Two weeks before that, however, Hochul said she didn’t plan to lead the resistance. CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP “I’m governing the great state of New York,” she told reporters. 

Trump undoes stack of ‘harmful’ Biden executive orders, shrinks multiple agencies

Trump undoes stack of ‘harmful’ Biden executive orders, shrinks multiple agencies

President Donald Trump announced Friday the rollback of 19 “harmful” Biden-era executive orders, including some related to gender ideology and “radical” labor policies. Trump also reduced the functions of a number of government agencies as part of widespread cost-cutting measures.  Some of the rescinded Biden executive orders include eliminating the Defense Production Act to push the “Green New Scam,” including mandates for electric heat pumps and solar panels, and an order that elevated alleged radical gender ideology in U.S. diplomacy and foreign aid, Trump said. DOGE SAYS 239 CONTRACTS CANCELED OVER 2 DAYS, INCLUDING A GRANT TO TEACH TRANS FARMERS ABOUT ‘FOOD JUSTICE’ Another Biden order that prioritized union-driven policies was rescinded, and Trump terminated proclamations that declared nearly a million acres for new national monuments, which the Trump administration said shielded large amounts of land from economic development and energy production. Since taking office, Trump has rescinded more executive orders than the total number of orders signed by Biden during the first year of his presidency, a White House fact sheet states.  “President Trump is committed to continuing the review and repeal of harmful Biden administration policies to usher in a new golden age for America,” the fact sheet said. HOUSE DEM GOES ON SCREAMING RANT AGAINST ELON MUSK, DOGE: ‘SHAME!’ In addition, Trump pared down the functions of multiple agencies as he continues to downsize the federal government.  A White House official told Fox News Trump’s actions eliminate non-statutory functions and reduce the statutory functions of unnecessary governmental entities to what is required by law.  The entities affected include the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service, United States Agency for Global Media, Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars, Institute of Museum and Library Services, United States Interagency Council on Homelessness, Community Development Financial Institutions Fund, Minority Business Development Agency and Arctic Research Commission.  “Cutting these governmental entities will save taxpayer dollars, reduce unnecessary government spending and streamline government priorities,” the White House said. “Through these actions, President Trump is keeping his promise to restore efficiency and accountability in the federal government.” The moves are part of the Trump administration’s effort to scale down the size of government through the Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE. The Elon Musk-led group has overseen the cancellation of billions of dollars in government contracts and grants and layoffs within multiple agencies. 

In Justice Department speech, Donald Trump threatens opponents with jail

In Justice Department speech, Donald Trump threatens opponents with jail

“This is a storied hall, if there ever was one.” That is how President Donald Trump opened his remarks to the United States Department of Justice, before he launched into a speech that denounced judges, prosecutors and members of his predecessor’s government as corrupt. It was an extraordinary moment that hinted at potential legal action against political rivals. Trump went on to argue that the 2024 election had granted him a mandate to investigate those he felt had committed “abuses” under the presidency of former President Joe Biden. “I will insist upon and demand full and complete accountability for the wrongs and abuses that have occurred,” Trump said. “ The American people have given us a mandate, and really, just a far-reaching investigation is what they are demanding into the corruption of our system.” Critics have long feared that Trump would seek retribution against his political rivals if he returned to power. While on the campaign trail in 2024, he repeatedly referred to Democrats as “the enemy from within”, calling them “evil” and more dangerous than the threats posed by China and Russia. He also threatened critics, like Republican Liz Cheney, with jail and said he would appoint a special prosecutor to go after Biden. Advertisement But Friday’s speech to the Justice Department was a platform for Trump to renew those threats — and continue to spread false claims that cast doubt on his defeat to Biden in the 2020 presidential election. “I think it was the most humiliating time in the history of our country,” Trump said of Biden’s term. “What a difference a rigged and crooked election had on our country. When you think about it, the people who did this to us should go to jail. They should go to jail.” President Donald Trump speaks at the Justice Department in Washington, DC, on March 14 [Pool via AP] Trump justifies department firings Trump even took aim at prosecutors who worked in the Justice Department, particularly those who participated in criminal investigations against him. Since taking office for a second term on January 20, the president has led a campaign against what he considers “Biden bureaucrats“, though critics point out that many are nonpartisan civil service members. Among the thousands of federal employees terminated in the last two months were career prosecutors who participated in the two federal probes into Trump’s behaviour: one for alleged mishandling of classified documents, and the other for attempting to subvert the 2020 election. Both cases were ultimately dropped after Trump won re-election on November 5. The Justice Department has a policy of not prosecuting sitting presidents. But while career prosecutors are tasked with serving whichever president is in office, Trump has sought to ensure their removal. Advertisement He has also accused the Biden administration of “weaponising” the Justice Department in an effort to derail his re-election campaign. “As we begin a proud new chapter in the chronicles of American justice, this really is something we’re turning the page on: four long years of corruption, weaponisation and surrender to violent criminals,” Trump said on Friday. “ But first, we must be honest about the lies and abuses that have occurred within these walls.  Unfortunately, in recent years, a corrupt group of hacks and radicals within the ranks of the American government obliterated the trust and goodwill built up over generations. They weaponised the vast powers of our intelligence and law enforcement agencies to try and thwart the will of the American people.” Trump touted the firing of Justice Department prosecutors from the stage, describing them as “Marxist”, though he did acknowledge he may have fired some loyal public servants. “Last month, I fired all the radical left pro-crime US attorneys appointed by Joe Biden. There were so many that were bad, and I know there were some that were probably very good. But there were so many that were so bad and so evil, so corrupt,” he said. His speech appeared to signal more firings to come, as Trump continues his campaign against officials associated with Biden. “We will expel the rogue actors and corrupt forces from our government. We will expose and very much expose their egregious crimes and severe misconduct of which was levels — you’ve never seen anything like it,” Trump said. Advertisement “It’s going to be legendary. It’s going to also be legendary for the people that are able to seek it out and bring justice.” Demonstrators protest against the Trump administration near the White House on March 14 [Jacquelyn Martin/AP Photo] Trump calls coverage of court cases ‘illegal’ Before his election, Trump faced a total  of four criminal indictments: the two federal cases, plus a state-level case in Georgia about alleged election interference and another in New York for falsifying business records. That case pertained to alleged efforts to cover up a hush-money payment to an adult film actress, Stormy Daniels, who claimed they had an affair. While Trump denied any sexual relationship with Daniels and refuted the allegations of wrongdoing, he was nevertheless found guilty of 34 felony counts in the New York case. In the weeks before his January inauguration, he was sentenced to an unconditional discharge, which did not involve any punishment. “The case against me was bull****,” Trump said bluntly at one point on Friday. He was the first president — past or present — to face criminal charges, much less be convicted. Trump re-litigated those cases, however, in front of the Justice Department audience on Friday and even issued vague threats to journalists for their coverage of the cases. He accused members of the media of attempting to illegally sway the judges presiding over his criminal cases. “They take tremendous abuse in The New York Times and The Washington Post,” Trump said of the judges. Advertisement “They take such abuse. And honestly, very simply, they’re afraid of bad publicity. They don’t want bad publicity, and it’s truly interference in my opinion. And it should be illegal, and it probably is illegal in some form.”

US says South African ambassador ‘no longer welcome’

US says South African ambassador ‘no longer welcome’

The Trump administration has frequently sparred with South Africa over the legacy of apartheid and criticism of Israel. The administration of President Donald Trump has declared South African Ambassador Ebrahim Rasool a persona non grata in the United States. In a social media post on Friday, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said that Rasool was “no longer welcome in our great country”. “Ebrahim Rasool is a race-baiting politician who hates America and hates POTUS,” Rubio wrote, using the acronym for President of the United States. “We have nothing to discuss with him and so he is considered PERSONA NON GRATA.” Rubio linked his remarks to an article by the right-wing media outlet Breitbart, wherein Rasool is quoted as saying Trump mobilised a “supremacist instinct” and “white victimhood” as a “dog whistle” during the 2024 elections. Rasool’s expulsion is the latest in a series of moves by the Trump administration castigating South Africa, a country that has supported Palestinian rights and helped spearhead a case at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) accusing Israel, a US ally, of genocidal acts in Gaza. Advertisement Earlier this week, the news outlet Semafor reported that Rasool, a veteran diplomat, has been denied what are typically routine opportunities to speak with officials at the US State Department, as well as with high-level Republicans, since Trump’s inauguration. Rasool returned to his post as South Africa’s ambassador to the US in January. He previously served in the role from 2010 to 2015, during the presidency of Barack Obama. South Africa is governed by the African National Congress (ANC), a party that emerged out of the anti-apartheid struggle that ended white minority rule in that country. But its government has been a target of particular ire for the Trump administration and allies like right-wing billionaire Elon Musk, who is of South African origin. Trump’s government has accused the ANC government of discriminating against its white population. Trump has nixed aid to South Africa and, in February – at a time when the White House had almost entirely shuttered refugee admissions for people fleeing violence and repression around the world – Trump offered expedited citizenship for white Afrikaners “escaping government-sponsored race-based discrimination”. The announcement was a response to a land distribution law meant to address inequalities that have continued since the apartheid era. The South African government says that Trump is misinformed about the law, which has not been used to confiscate any land. Vincent Magwenya, a spokesperson for South African President Cyril Ramaphosa,  told the Reuters news agency that his country was “not going to partake in a counterproductive megaphone diplomacy” – referring to Trump’s propensity for issuing missives about South Africa on social media. Advertisement Despite Trump’s portrayal of Afrikaners as a besieged minority, South African authorities say that the economic legacy of apartheid, during which white South Africans exercised near-total control over the economy, persists in continued levels of economic inequality between Black and white residents. A 2017 government audit found that while Black people make up 80 percent of the population of South Africa, they own just 4 percent of privately held farmland. The white Afrikaners who own the vast majority of South Africa’s farmland comprise a mere 8 percent of the population. Rasool and his family were themselves expelled from their home in Cape Town during the apartheid period, when Black people were forcibly relocated to designated non-white areas with almost no resources or economic opportunities. Adblock test (Why?)