Trump shifts into high gear as he races toward enacting major change in Washington

WH reporters share the major difference between Biden and Trump’s leadership

Politico’s White House reporters wrote on Saturday about the stark contrast between the “invisible” and “shielded” former President Biden and the “omnipresent” President Donald Trump.

Since Trump’s inauguration last week, White House correspondent Eli Stokols and White House Bureau Chief Dasha Burns reported how Trump has given multiple speeches, made several policy announcements and has spoken to reporters at length.

Trump’s huge media presence is a change compared to the more muted Biden years.

“Yes, Trump was eager to sign all those executive orders reversing Biden’s policies,” they wrote. “But the bigger flex for Trump, 78, was to contrast his accessibility, aptitude and activity with his predecessor, who was so often shielded from public view by aides wary of showcasing the 82-year-old’s growing limitations.”

POLITICO EDITOR-IN-CHIEF CALLS TRUMP ‘GREATEST AMERICAN FIGURE OF HIS ERA’ DUE TO HIS INFLUENCE

“As fast as the movers changed out the White House furniture, the country went from an invisible president, unable to command the spotlight, to an omnipresent one who wants the public’s attention at all times,” they continued. 

One reporter referred to Trump’s pressers as a “free-for-all” for journalists after “four years of begging for access to the more cloistered Biden.” 

“Although Biden did take questions from reporters here and there, his more informal exchanges with the press were sporadic and rarely lasted more than a few minutes. More often than not, he was out of view,” Politico reported.

One downside the article considered, however, was whether constant access to Trump and his thoughts would almost be “too much for the media and public to absorb.”

WHITE HOUSE REPORTERS REFLECT ON COVERING RECLUSIVE BIDEN, WHAT THEY HOPE FOR IN COVERING TRUMP

“Within the press corps, there is some ambivalence about Trump’s firehose on blast,” they wrote. “The excitement about being able to ask the president about why he pardoned people convicted of vandalism, trespassing and violently attacking police officers, not to mention questions about everything from tariffs to TikTok, is tempered by the awareness that it is all, once again, too much. Too much to process and capture in real-time. Too much for the country to digest.”

On Sunday, Trump held a 20-minute gaggle with reporters on Air Force One where he discussed a variety of topics like TikTok, and Greenland. He also took a dig at his predecessor by telling reporters they have “a little bit more access” than they did with Biden by like “5,000%.” 

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Vance clashes with CBS anchor over unvetted refugees: ‘I don’t want that person in my country’

Vice President JD Vance sparred with CBS anchor Margaret Brennan on unvetted illegal immigrants and refugees during a “Face the Nation” interview Sunday.

Brennan asked Vance for his thoughts on President Donald Trump, through executive order, putting a pause on refugee resettlement operations while demanding enhanced vetting for visa applications. 

She specifically asked whether he stood by his past comments that the U.S. should not “abandon anybody who’s been properly vetted.”

“Well, Margaret, I don’t agree that all these immigrants, or all these refugees have been properly vetted,” Vance said. “In fact, we know that there are cases of people who allegedly were properly vetted and then were literally planning terrorist attacks in our country. That happened during the campaign, if you may remember. So, clearly, not all of these foreign nationals have been properly vetted.”

VICE PRESIDENT JD VANCE REVEALS BIG TECH ‘VERY MUCH ON NOTICE’ AFTER CEO’S INAUGURAL DONATIONS

Brennan pressed Vance on whether he stands by his comments while tens of thousands of Afghan refugees’ resettlement processes remain in limbo due to the executive order.

Vance responded, “My primary concern as the vice president, Margaret, is to look after the American people…” 

“So, no,” Brennan said.

“…And now that we know that we have vetting problems with a lot of these refugee programs, we absolutely cannot unleash thousands of unvetted people into our country. It’s not good,” Vance continued.

“These people are vetted. These people are vetted,” Brennan insisted.

Vance referenced a recent example of an Afghan national in Oklahoma who was accused of planning a terrorist attack in October. He originally came to the country in Sept. 2021 after the United States withdrawal from Afghanistan and went through multiple vetting processes. 

“I don’t want my children to share a neighborhood with people who are not properly vetted. And because I don’t want it for my kids, I’m not going to force any other American citizens’ kids to do that either,” Vance said.

“No. And that was a very particular case,” Brennan said. “It wasn’t clear if he was radicalized when he got here or while he was living here, but…”

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“I don’t really care, Margaret,” Vance replied. “I don’t want that person in my country, and I think most Americans agree with me.”

Vance also defended Trump’s executive order to end birthright citizenship for children of illegal immigrants as Brennan argued “this is a country founded by immigrants.”

“This is a very unique country, and it was founded by some immigrants and some settlers,” Vance said. “But just because we were founded by immigrants doesn’t mean that, 240 years later, that we have to have the dumbest immigration policy in the world. No country says that temporary visitors, their children will be given complete access to the benefits and blessings of American citizenship.”

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READ IT: Defense Secretary Hegseth sends clear message about DEI at the Pentagon

The Department of Defense (DoD) is the latest agency that is disbanding all diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) programs following President Donald Trump’s executive order terminating all federal DEI programs.

“The President’s guidance (lawful orders) is clear: No more DEI at Dept. of Defense,” Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth wrote in a post on X.

In a handwritten note shared along with the post on X, Hegseth wrote: “The Pentagon will comply, immediately. No exceptions, name-changes, or delays.”

Hegseth added that “those who do not comply will no longer work here.” 

WHITE HOUSE OPM ORDERS ALL DEI OFFICES TO BEGIN CLOSING BY END OF DAY WEDNESDAY

Sen. John Kennedy, R-La., echoed Hegseth, writing: “The best way to stop discriminating against people on the basis of race or gender is to stop discriminating against people on the basis of race or gender,” Kennedy wrote in a post on X. “Let DEI die.” 

Hegseth, 44, was sworn in on Saturday morning after he secured his confirmation to lead the Pentagon on Friday after weeks of intense political drama surrounding his nomination and public scrutiny into his personal life. 

“All praise and glory to God. His will be done and we’re grateful to be here,” Hegseth said after taking the oath of office, surrounded by his wife and children.

Hegseth is a former Minnesota National Guard officer who served in Iraq and Afghanistan and a former Fox News host. 

Trump’s newly created Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), headed up by Elon Musk, reported that approximately $420 million in current/impending contracts, mainly focused on DEI initiatives, had also been canceled. 

On Inauguration Day, Trump signed an executive order that forced all DEI offices to close and placed all government workers in those offices on paid leave.

TRUMP’S FEDERAL DEI PURGE PUTS HUNDREDS ON LEAVE, NIXES $420M IN CONTRACTS

Acting Director of the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) Charles Ezell sent a memo to heads and acting heads of departments and agencies directing them that by the end of business on Jan. 22, they were to inform all agency employees of the DEI shutdown. In addition, they were instructed to tell workers directly involved in DEI to take down all DEI-related websites and social media accounts, cancel any related contracts or training, and ask employees to report any efforts to disguise DEI programs by using coded or imprecise language.

The memo also directed the heads of agencies and departments that by noon on Jan. 23, they were to provide OPM with lists of all DEI offices, employees, and related contracts in effect as of Nov. 5, 2024.

By Friday, Jan. 24, at 5 p.m., agency heads were required to submit to OPM a written plan for executing a reduction-in-force action regarding DEI employees and a list of all contract descriptions or personnel position descriptions that were changed since Nov. 5, 2024, to obscure their connection to DEI programs.

The president also signed an order making it “the official policy of the U.S. government to only recognize two genders: male and female.”

3 IN 10 VOTERS THINK ENDING DEI PROGRAMS IS EXTREMELY IMPORTANT, POLL SHOWS, AS FEDERAL DEADLINE LOOMS

Trump issued two other executive actions targeting DEI — an executive order to end discrimination in the workplace and higher education through race- and sex-based preferences under the guise of DEI and a memo to eliminate a Biden administration policy that prioritized DEI hiring at the Federal Aviation Administration.

In his executive order, Trump wrote that he sought to protect Americans from discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex or national origin. He said these civil-rights protections “serve as a bedrock supporting equality of opportunity for all Americans” and that he “has a solemn duty to ensure that these laws are enforced for the benefit of all Americans.”

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“Yet today, roughly 60 years after the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, critical and influential institutions of American society, including the Federal Government, major corporations, financial institutions, the medical industry, large commercial airlines, law enforcement agencies, and institutions of higher education have adopted and actively use dangerous, demeaning, and immoral race- and sex-based preferences under the guise of so-called ‘diversity, equity, and inclusion’ (DEI) or ‘diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility’ (DEIA) that can violate the civil-rights laws of this Nation,” the order reads.

It adds that these “illegal DEI and DEIA policies also threaten the safety of American men, women, and children across the Nation by diminishing the importance of individual merit, aptitude, hard work, and determination when selecting people for jobs and services in key sectors of American society, including all levels of government, and the medical, aviation, and law-enforcement communities.

Prior to Trump’s order, the FBI closed its DEI office in December. 

Kansas City holds off Buffalo to secure shot at history in Super Bowl LIX

Did we expect anything less than a thriller in this AFC Championship between these bitter rivals? 

The Kansas City Chiefs held off the Buffalo Bills to win the AFC Championship Game, 32-29, in an absolute thriller at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium on Sunday night. 

The Chiefs will now have a shot at NFL history, as they can become the first team to ever win three straight Super Bowls if they can defeat the Philadelphia Eagles again. 

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The Chiefs won Super Bowl LVII over the Eagles in Arizona, 38-35, during the 2022 season.  

Meanwhile, Josh Allen and the Bills are now 0-4 against the Chiefs in the postseason despite giving them one of their two losses during the 2024 regular season.

But Buffalo’s offense found themselves where they wanted to in this game: late in the fourth quarter with the ball in their hands. The defense got a stop on Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs’ offense, forcing a field goal that Harrison Butker split the uprights with to take a 32-29 lead. 

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Allen, who has been clutch all season long, had a chance to at least tie the ball game, or better yet, have a game-winning touchdown drive with 3:33 left in the fourth quarter. 

However, Chiefs defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo dialed up the perfect play call on back-to-back plays, starting with a third-and-10 from the Buffalo 42-yard line where he sent an all-out blitz. It led to a five-yard gain for Amari Cooper, leaving Allen and the Bills with a fourth-and-5. 

Then, another blitz was called, but it was a cornerback being sent to the pocket after the Chiefs disguised it with both linebackers at the line of scrimmage and dropping back into coverage instead. 

Allen heaved a prayer to the middle of the field, and tight end Dalton Kincaid had a chance to make a chance, but it bounced off his chest and hit the turf. 

That came after the two-minute warning, and Mahomes and the entire Chiefs sideline knew they needed a couple first downs to ice the game. In typical Chiefs fashion, they got what they needed as Isiah Pacheco picked up a first down on a 10-yard catch and Samaje Perine, on his only touch of the game, went for 17 yards with 1:35 left and no Bills timeouts to seal the victory. 

The celebrating begun after a hard-fought Chiefs win that was a thriller right from the start. 

Mahomes and the Chiefs were dialed from the first possession of the game, going 90 yards on just nine plays to see Kareem Hunt score on the ground from 12 yards out to take the early lead. 

But this game went back and forth throughout, as Allen was able to take the lead early in the second quarter after orchestrating a 72-yard drive on 10 plays, capped by a James Cook six-yard rush. 

The Chiefs, however, took their largest lead of the game after responding with 14 unanswered points as they scored back-to-back touchdown drives to end the first half. It was rookie Xavier Worthy once again finding the end zone from 11 yards away, while Mahomes himself scrambled from one yard out to make it 21-10. 

Buffalo, however, wasn’t going away without a fight, cutting the lead to 21-16 before the end of the half after Mack Hollins hauled in a beautifully thrown deep ball from Allen for a 34-yard touchdown. 

The Bills would eventually get their lead back in the second half after Cook scored his second touchdown of the game, and it came on fourth-and-goal and required him to leap over Chiefs defenders and stick his arm across the goal line to make it a 22-21 contest. 

Perhaps the biggest turning point in this game, though, came on the next Bills drive after they forced a punt on the Chiefs. On fourth-and-1 from the Kansas City 41-yard line, the Bills elected to go for it with 13:01 left in the fourth quarter. Allen had a quarterback sneak, but after replay review, he was ruled short of the line to gain, giving the Chiefs the ball with great field position to get the ball back. 

Mahomes wasted no time with the opportunity, needing just five plays to get downfield and finish off his drive with yet another rushing score for himself to make it 29-22. 

If the suspense wasn’t enough, the Bills found themselves on the Chiefs’ four-yard line after Allen shot a pass to Hollins again deep downfield for 32 yards on third-and-8 on the ensuing drive. On fourth-and-goal, Curtis Samuel slipped free from coverage and kept two feet in the end zone as he hauled in the touchdown to tie it once again. 

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These two AFC juggernauts traded blows, but the victor remained the same and a rematch will be seen in New Orleans on Feb. 9 on Fox and streaming exclusively on Tubi for free. 

Will it be the Chiefs making NFL history? Or will the Eagles get their Super Bowl revenge with Saquon Barkley leading the way in the backfield alongside Jalen Hurts & Co.? 

Football fans go wild for stirring rendition of national anthem at NFC championship game

The Philadelphia Eagles and Washington Commanders were more than just division rivals on Sunday at Lincoln Financial Field as they played for a spot in Super Bowl LIX. 

But one thing both fan bases could agree on was how great the national anthem performance was before the game. 

Fans took to social media to voice their love for the patriotic scene that involved an actual Eagle, a brilliant rendition by Mary Kate Morrissey, who plays Elphaba in Broadway’s “Wicked,” and fighter jets doing a flyover. 

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“I’m not an Eagles fan but their national anthem is the absolute best with the bald eagle flying in the stadium,” one X user wrote. “It can’t get any better.”

“Absolutely beautiful!” another one added. 

An American flag the size of the football field was displayed by numerous fans, creating a perfect wide shot of the whole scene before the two teams got to work on the gridiron. 

But the live eagle flying around the stadium from one trainer to another while Morrissey reached the climax of “The Star-Spangled Banner” was talked about the most on social media.

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“Not an Eagles fan but DAMN…that Bald Eagle flying during the singing of the National Anthem brought tears of pride to my eyes,” another X user said. 

As Morrissey finished singing, four F-16s from the 177th Fighter Wing flew over the stadium, putting the cherry on top of the patriotic scene. 

Things got off to a hot start for the Eagles faithful in this game, too, as the home team saw star running back Saquon Barkley score two touchdowns in the first quarter, including one on the Eagles’ first offensive snap of the game to take a commanding lead from the start.

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Many teams pull out all the stops for their national anthems during the season, but fans believe the Eagles are the cream of the crop after what transpired in this conference championship game. 

New CIA chief releases Biden-era report agency kept hidden from Americans

The CIA’s decision to release a Biden-era assessment favoring the once widely-dismissed COVID-19 lab-leak origin story marks a step toward transparency with the American people, newly-confirmed CIA Director John Ratcliffe told Fox News on Sunday.

Speaking in his first interview since being confirmed as the agency’s director last Thursday, Ratcliffe spelled out the insights he made public shortly after taking over the post and affirmed the importance of restoring trust in American institutions.

“I had the opportunity on my first day to make public an assessment that actually took place in the Biden administration, so it can’t be accused of being political, and the CIA has assessed that the most likely cause of this pandemic that has wrought so much devastation around the world was because of a lab-related incident in Wuhan, so we’ll continue to investigate that moving forward,” he told “Sunday Morning Futures” host Maria Bartiromo. 

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“I think it was important for the American people to see an institution like the CIA get off the sidelines and be truthful about what our intelligence shows and, at the same time, protect us from adversaries like China if they caused or contributed to this,” he added.

The CIA now appears to slightly favor the lab-leak theory that suggests gain-of-function research at the Wuhan Institute of Virology in Wuhan, China may have directly contributed to the virus.

A CIA spokesperson told Fox News that the agency “assesses with low confidence that a research-related origin of the COVID-19 pandemic is more likely than a natural origin based on the available body of reporting. CIA continues to assess that both research-related and natural origin scenarios of the COVID-19 pandemic remain plausible.”

“We have low confidence in this judgment and will continue to evaluate any available credible new intelligence reporting or open-source information that could change CIA’s assessment.”

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As the virus spread across the globe in 2020, top health officials widely argued that COVID-19 was a naturally occurring pathogen, despite many speculating otherwise.

Ratcliffe said releasing the CIA analysis is one of the ways to support President Trump’s push to restore Americans’ trust in intel agencies and law enforcement.

“That includes the CIA,” Ratcliffe said. 

“The purpose of the CIA is to protect Americans, to keep us safe from foreign threats and foreign adversaries, but we also need to be truthful with Americans, and he [President Trump] has stressed to me and others that these aren’t mutually exclusive missions. We can do both.” 

“In the case of the CIA, which is the best foreign intelligence service in the world, after five years, [they did not] not have a public assessment, to be honest with the American people about where the likely source of a pandemic that killed millions around the world, including a million Americans, and really impacted all 345 million Americans in some way. People lost jobs. They lost houses. They lost their health, they lost their businesses, all of that…”

Trump makes moves to overhaul FEMA with signing of latest executive order

President Donald Trump put the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) under review on Sunday after signing an executive order aimed at “drastically” improving the agency’s efficacy, priorities and competence.

Trump’s executive order establishes the FEMA Review Council, which will be composed of no more than 20 members and co-chaired by the secretaries of Homeland Security and Defense.

The council is being formed after FEMA’s response to Hurricane Helene and other recent disasters showed the need to improve “efficacy, priorities, and competence, including evaluating whether FEMA’s bureaucracy in disaster response” hinders its ability to respond successfully.

“Despite obligating nearly $30 billion in disaster aid each of the past three years, FEMA has managed to leave vulnerable Americans without the resources or support they need when they need it most,” the executive order reads. “There are serious concerns of political bias in FEMA. Indeed, at least one former FEMA responder has stated that FEMA managers directed her to avoid homes of individuals supporting the campaign of Donald J. Trump for President.”

‘FEMA IS NOT GOOD:’ TRUMP ANNOUNCES AGENCY OVERHAUL DURING VISIT TO NORTH CAROLINA

Trump also said FEMA has lost mission focus, diverting limited resources and staff to support missions outside its scope and authority. The president particularly highlighted that FEMA has spent over a billion dollars welcoming illegal immigrants.

“Americans deserve an immediate, effective, and impartial response to and recovery from disasters,” the order continued. “FEMA therefore requires a full-scale review, by individuals highly experienced at effective disaster response and recovery, who shall recommend to the President improvements or structural changes to promote the national interest and enable national resilience.”

TRUMP SAYS NEWSOM IS TO ‘BLAME’ FOR ‘APOCALYPTIC’ WILDFIRES

Trump announced Friday that he plans to overhaul FEMA as North Carolina is still recovering from Hurricane Helene more than 120 days after the storm devastated the state.

“I’ll also be signing an executive order to begin the process of fundamentally reforming and overhauling FEMA, or maybe getting rid of FEMA,” Trump told reporters in North Carolina on Friday morning. “I think, frankly, FEMA is not good.”

FAST-MOVING HUGHES FIRE ERUPTS IN LOS ANGELES COUNTY AS CALIFORNIA OFFICIALS ORDER EVACUATIONS

Trump promised his administration would step in and assist North Carolina to fix the damage quickly, vowing to “do a good job” for the state. 

The president also said he would like to see the states assume more responsibility when disaster strikes, arguing those familiar with the state are better equipped to provide disaster response and relief. 

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So far, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers claim that only half of the debris recovery from Hurricane Helene is complete. Additionally, thousands of families in North Carolina remain in hotels that FEMA is footing the bill for through its Transitional Housing Assistance program.