Politics

By Joan Biskupic, CNN Chief Supreme Court Analyst (CNN) — President Donald Trump named three justices in his first term, establishing a conservative supermajority on the Supreme Court. And now, even without an imminent vacancy, Trump is positioned to push the court farther to the right. He has begun turning the top appellate litigator at the

By Avery Schmitz, Katie Bo Lillis, Priscilla Alvarez and Natasha Bertrand, CNN (CNN) — The US military has significantly increased its surveillance of Mexican drug cartels over the past two weeks, with sophisticated spy planes flying at least 18 missions over the southwestern US and in international airspace around the Baja peninsula, according to open-source

By Jeff Zeleny, Alayna Treene and Kevin Liptak, CNN Washington (CNN) — Nearly every day since President Donald Trump entered office three weeks ago, he has convened a huddle in the West Wing with two of his senior-most aides to plot out the next steps dramatically reshaping the federal government. One is his chief of

By Betsy Klein and Irene Nasser, CNN (CNN) — President Donald Trump on Sunday doubled down on his plans for the US to redevelop Gaza, saying that he viewed the war-torn enclave as a “big real estate site.” “I think that it’s a big mistake to allow people — the Palestinians, or the people living

By Aileen Graef and Veronica Stracqualursi, CNN (CNN) — Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem on Sunday acknowledged that Elon Musk’s government efficiency team, which has been tasked with slashing federal spending, has access to her agency’s data, including that of federal disaster aid recipients’ personal information, as part of an “audit” she welcomes. Appearing on

CNN By Aileen Graef and Veronica Stracqualursi, CNN (CNN) — Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem on Sunday acknowledged that Elon Musk’s government efficiency team, which has been tasked with slashing federal spending, has access to her agency’s data, including that of federal disaster aid recipients’ personal information, as part of an “audit” she welcomes. Appearing

CNN By Aileen Graef and Veronica Stracqualursi, CNN (CNN) — Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem on Sunday acknowledged that Elon Musk’s government efficiency team, which has been tasked with slashing federal spending, has access to her agency’s data, including that of federal disaster aid recipients’ personal information, as part of an “audit” she welcomes. Appearing

CNN By Sarah Ferris, Manu Raju and Lauren Fox, CNN Washington (CNN) — Democrats have been powerless as they’ve watched President Donald Trump systematically move to dismantle federal agencies and push the bounds of his office with little concern about the fallout. But they do have one looming piece of leverage: the March 14 deadline

By Betsy Klein, CNN West Palm Beach, Florida (CNN) — Nearly three weeks into Donald Trump’s second term in office, the president is continuing to dramatically reimagine and expand his use of executive authority — and to use that authority to carry out retribution against his perceived political enemies. The president spent his first days

By Sarah Ferris, Manu Raju and Lauren Fox, CNN Washington (CNN) — Democrats have been powerless as they’ve watched President Donald Trump systematically move to dismantle federal agencies and push the bounds of his office with little concern about the fallout. But they do have one looming piece of leverage: the March 14 deadline to

By Betsy Klein and Samantha Waldenberg, CNN (CNN) — President Donald Trump announced in an interview published Saturday that he has spoken with Russian President Vladimir Putin. “He wants to see people stop dying,” Trump told the New York Post. It was not immediately clear when the leaders spoke or if they had spoken since

By Whitney Wild, Jamie Gangel and Elizabeth Wagmeister, CNN (CNN) — The United States Secret Service tapped blockbuster movie director Michael Bay to create a recruiting advertisement that is expected to be unveiled in the stadium on Super Bowl Sunday, according to multiple NFL and Secret Service sources. The ad cost an estimated $2 million

By Ray Sanchez, CNN (CNN) — A federal judge, citing a risk of “irreparable harm,” has temporarily restricted Elon Musk’s government efficiency team from accessing a critical Treasury Department payment system. The judge’s order, issued early Saturday, temporarily halts access to a sensitive payment system that distributes Americans’ tax returns, Social Security benefits, disability payments

CNN By Betsy Klein and Steve Contorno, CNN (CNN) — President Donald Trump is eagerly dismantling an agency that was once championed by his daughter and senior adviser, Ivanka Trump. The work of the US Agency for International Development was important enough to the president that during his 2019 State of the Union address, he

By Betsy Klein and Steve Contorno, CNN (CNN) — President Donald Trump is eagerly dismantling an agency that was once championed by his daughter and senior adviser, Ivanka Trump. The work of the US Agency for International Development was important enough to the president that during his 2019 State of the Union address, he unveiled

By Donald Judd, Betsy Klein and Jamie Gangel, CNN (CNN) — President Donald Trump’s administration announced it had dismissed Archivist of the United States Colleen Shogan in a surprise move Friday evening. “At the direction of @realDonaldTrump the Archivist of the United States has been dismissed tonight,” White House Director of Presidential Personnel Sergio Gor

By Alejandra Jaramillo and Jeff Zeleny, CNN (CNN) — President Donald Trump on Friday said he was removing former President Joe Biden’s access to classified information by revoking his security clearance and stopping his daily intelligence briefings. “There is no need for Joe Biden to continue receiving access to classified information, Trump said in a

By Oren Liebermann and Natasha Bertrand, CNN (CNN) — The State Department on Friday announced a $7 billion arms sale to Israel, circumventing the congressional review process, according to Rep. Gregory Meeks, the top Democrat on the House Foreign Affairs Committee. The announcement, which includes thousands of Hellfire missiles and bombs, comes days after Israeli

By Betsy Klein, CNN (CNN) — President Donald Trump announced an aggressive plan Friday evening to gut the existing board of trustees at the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts and oust its chairman, billionaire philanthropist David Rubenstein, a remarkable move aimed at remaking the nation’s cultural center. Trump said he would be appointing himself