Vice President Vance and wife Usha head to Greenland amid US takeover controversy

(WASHINGTON) — The White House has quietly directed the FBI to halt the background check process for dozens of President Donald Trump’s top staffers, and has transferred the process to the Pentagon, sources familiar with the matter told ABC News.

The directive came last month after agents tasked with completing the background investigations had conducted interviews with a handful of top White House aides — a standard part of the background check process.

White House officials took the unusual step of ordering a stop to the background check investigations after they deemed the process too intrusive, sources said.

The procedure typically involves extensive interviews as well as a review of financial records, foreign contacts, past employment, and any potential security risks.

The White House instead decided to transfer the background check process for White House personnel to the Department of Defense for them to complete the checks, the sources said.

A former FBI official told ABC News the approach was “highly unusual.”

“If any of this is true, and if you apply it to whatever has been historically in the remit of the FBI, then it would be breaking that historic, long-standing precedent, and highly unusual,” a former FBI official told ABC News. “It would be highly unusual if that was taken away from the FBI now, for whatever reason, and given over to the DOD or another agency.”

Newly installed FBI Director Kash Patel told ABC News in a statement, “The FBI is relentlessly focused on our mission to rebuild trust, restore law and order and let good agents be good agents — and we have full confidence DOD can address any needs in the clearance process.”

Pentagon representatives referred questions on the matter to the White House.

The background check process was halted just days before Patel was confirmed by the Senate on Feb. 20, the sources said. The FBI is still conducting background investigations for positions requiring Senate confirmation, said the sources.

The Pentagon’s Defense Counterintelligence and Security Agency (DCSA) carries out the bulk of background investigations for the federal government. The FBI carries out investigations for presidential appointees that require Senate confirmation as well as some other presidential appointees, including White House staff.

Historically, administrations have relied on the FBI background check process to ensure that the personnel they are hiring meet stringent ethical standards and don’t risk compromising national security.

“Background investigations for national security positions are conducted to gather information to determine whether you are reliable, trustworthy, of good conduct and character, and loyal to the U.S.,” states the SF-86 form filled out by federal employees seeking security clearances and used for background investigations.

However Trump and many of his allies entered the White House with a bitter distrust of the bureau over what they argued was its “weaponization” through the prosecutions brought against him by former special counsel Jack Smith. His top political appointees in the opening month of the administration quickly moved to purge senior ranks of the FBI and DOJ from anyone tied to the Smith prosecutions and those they believed wouldn’t be politically loyal to Trump.

Among Trump’s first presidential actions was issuing a memorandum granting the highest level of security clearance to top White House officials who had not been fully vetted through the background check process.

That list of officials, while not publicly disclosed, included dozens of high-level White House staffers, according to sources familiar with the matter.

In that memorandum, Trump claimed there was a “backlog” in the security clearance process — an issue he blamed on President Joe Biden’s administration.

However, Trump’s transition team had refused for months to enter into an agreement with the Department of Justice under Biden to begin the background check process for individuals who would staff Trump’s incoming administration, which has contributed in part to the staffing issues they now face.

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(WASHINGTON) — President Donald Trump is addressing a joint session of Congress on Tuesday night, six weeks into his historic return to the White House.

The speech comes after markets tumbled following Trump’s steep tariffs on key U.S. trading partners. Meanwhile, his administration could sign a mineral deal with Ukraine as soon as today after a tumultuous Oval Office meeting last week between Trump, Vice President JD Vance and Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

Here’s how the news is developing.

More Democrats leave as speech continues

More Democrats are trickling out of the chamber including Reps. Pramila Jayapal, Ilhan Omar, Jardee Huffman and Nydia Velazquez around 10:40 p.m.

Reps. Mark Takano and Joaquin Castro left when Trump brought up Sen. Elizabeth Warren.

Reps. Judy Chu and Mark Pocan left at approximately 10:48 p.m.

-ABC News’ Lauren Peller

More Democrats leave as speech continues

More Democrats are trickling out of the chamber including Reps. Pramila Jayapal, Ilhan Omar, Jardee Huffman and Nydia Velazquez around 10:40 p.m.

Reps. Mark Takano and Joaquin Castro left when Trump brought up Sen. Elizabeth Warren.

Reps. Judy Chu and Mark Pocan left at approximately 10:48 p.m.

-ABC News’ Lauren Peller

 

Trump talks about Butler assassination attempt

Trump, who survived two assassination attempts during the 2024 campaign, talked about the shooting at his Butler, Pennsylvania, rally.

“A sick and deranged assassin unloaded eight bullets from his sniper’s perch into a crowd of many. My life was saved by a fraction of an inch. But some were not so lucky,” he said. He then shared a few words about Corey Comperatore, whose family is in the room for the speech.

 

Marc Fogel, American teacher released from Russian prison, attends speech

Marc Fogel, an American history teacher who was released from a Russian prison last month after four years detainment, is in attendance at tonight’s speech.

Trump said he promised Fogel’s mother “that we would bring her boy safely back home.”

“After 22 days in office, I did just that,” he said.

 

Trump brings back ‘Pocahontas’ taunt against Elizabeth Warren

As Trump finally turned to talking about Russia and Ukraine, Democrats clapped when he said the U.S. has sent billions of dollars to support Ukraine’s defense.

“Do you want to keep it going for another five years? Yeah, yeah, you would say, Pocahontas says ‘yes,'” he said. The reference is a callback to his 2018 taunt of Sen. Elizabeth Warren as she ran for president.

The camera then panned to Warren, who was wearing her signature blue suit. Warren clapped throughout Trump’s jab.

 

Trump claims Zelenskyy wrote him a letter agreeing to sign minerals deal

Ukraine came up 90 minutes into the speech and Trump provided an update following last week’s blow up in the Oval Office.

He claimed Zelenskyy sent him a letter today indicating that he was ready to come back to the negotiating table and was willing to sign the agreement to give the U.S. Ukraine’s rare materials.

“Wouldn’t that be beautiful? Wouldn’t that be beautiful? It’s time to stop this madness,” Trump said.

 

Trump misleads about autism statistics

Trump said “not long ago, and you can’t even believe these numbers, one in 10,000 children had autism, one in 10,000 and now it’s one in 36.”

He is correct about the current rate being one in 36, per the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

It’s not clear what year Trump was referencing for his “one in 10,000” statement, but in 2000 it was one in 150, according to the CDC.

There are reasonable explanations for why the rate is higher now than decades ago. The autism criteria shifted in 2013 when three diagnoses — autistic disorder; Asperger’s syndrome; and pervasive developmental disorder, not otherwise specified — were merged into a singular autism spectrum disorder diagnosis, Evan H. Dart, University of South Florida associate professor in the school psychology program, previously told PolitiFact.

“This alone could explain large increases in medical diagnoses of autism since the 2000s, even more so compared to the 1980s,” when autism first appeared in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Dart said.

— Amy Sherman, PolitiFact

 

Trump vows to rename Panama Canal

Trump continued his push to rename landmarks and vowed to rename the Panama Canal.

He repeated several false claims about its ownership and told Secretary of State Marco Rubio “good luck.”

“We know who to blame if anything goes wrong,” Trump said.

 

Mother of Jocelyn Nungaray attends speech

The mother of Jocelyn Nungaray — a 12-year-old Houston girl who was sexually assaulted and killed last summer — is in attendance at tonight’s speech.

The two men accused in her assault and death are undocumented immigrants from Venezuela, who Trump called “two illegal alien monsters.”

Trump accused former President Joe Biden of allowing the suspects to enter the U.S. through what he slammed as a “ridiculous open border” policy.

During his speech, Trump announced that a wildlife refuge near the victim’s home would be renamed the “Jocelyn Nungaray National Wildlife Refuge” in her honor.

 

Trump pushes for ‘golden dome’ over US

Trump asked Congress to help fund “golden dome” over the U.S. akin to Israel’s Iron Dome defense system.

But experts told ABC News it wouldn’t make much sense for the nation’s national security, with allies located to the north and south and oceans on both sides.

 

Trump surpasses some of his previous addresses in length

Surpassing the one hour mark, Trump’s address is now longer than his first joint session of Congress in 2017, which lasted about one hour.

His 2019 State of the Union speech was one hour and 22 minutes long, which marked the third longest address.

Former President Bill Clinton’s 2000 speech was the longest, sitting at just over one hour and 28 minutes.

 

Trump calls for 13-year-old’s dream of being a police officer to come true

Trump called attention to 13-year-old DJ Daniel, who aspires to become a police officer but was diagnosed with brain cancer in 2018.

“The doctors gave him five months at most to live. That was more than six years ago,” Trump said. “Since that time, DJ and his dad have been on a quest to make his dream come true.”

“And tonight, DJ, we’re going to do you the biggest honor of them all. I am asking our new Secret Service Director Sean Curran to officially make you an agent of the United States.”

Trump called attention to 13-year-old DJ Daniel, who aspires to become a police officer but was diagnosed with brain cancer in 2018.

Daniel reacted with a face of shock, before his dad lifted up to the crowd. DJ proudly raised a certificate and was met with claps, chants and cheers.

In one of the rare moments, a Democrat stood in support. Rep. Laura Gillen, rose up and applauded for Daniel.

 

Claim: There will be a little disturbance for Americans because of tariffs

FACT CHECK: This is lacking context.

The Yale Budget Lab estimates that the tariffs could cost the average household up to $2,000 annually. Cars and car parts are big exports from Canada and Mexico, and tariffs could increase the cost of a new car by over $3,000 per vehicle on top of last year’s average new car price of $44,811, according to JP Morgan Research.

Most economists predict that prices, and therefore, inflation will go up, with consumers seeing higher prices for food, gasoline, clothes, shoes, toys and other household items.

-ABC News’ Soo Youn

 

Democrats yell ‘January 6th’ as Trump talks law enforcement

Several Democrats including Rep. Veronica Escobar yelled “January 6th” as Trump discussed law enforcement and protecting police officers.

Trump pardoned all of the defendants charged with the riot.

 

Trump tells his FBI director, attorney general: ‘Good luck’

Trump railed against what he claims is a justice system weaponized by Democrats to go after political opponents, including him. Democrats audibly grumbled at the comments.

Trump then wished FBI Director Kash Patel and Attorney General Pam Bondi “good luck” and the pair received standing ovations. Patel and Bondi narrowly survived their confirmation votes. In fact, Patel’s was one of the most partisan and divided confirmation votes for an FBI director in history at 51-49.

 

Claim: ‘Hundreds of billions of dollars of fraud’ found by DOGE

FACT CHECK: This is unverifiable.

This claim is unverifiable because DOGE has yet to release the entirety of its work or specify which cuts have been “fraud” as opposed to “waste.” DOGE has claimed to have saved $106 billion in total savings, not “hundreds of billions” in fraud, and even Elon Musk himself has said they have mostly found “waste” and “mostly not fraud.”

DOGE has claimed it has saved a total of $106 billion in federal money from a “combination of asset sales, contract/lease cancellations and renegotiations, fraud and improper payment deletion, grant cancellations, interest savings, programmatic changes, regulatory savings, and workforce reductions.” The figure remains unverifiable and DOGE’s website claims to have posted only 30% of the receipts supporting this total.

Even Musk himself said on Joe Rogan’s podcast last week that most of what DOGE is finding is “waste,” rather than outright fraud. “Only the federal government could get away with this level of waste. It’s mostly waste. It’s mostly not fraud, it’s mostly waste. It’s mostly just ridiculous things happening,” Musk said.

-ABC News’ Soo Rin Kim and Will Steakin

 

Trump crosses the 1-hour mark

Trump has been speaking for one hour. His remarks so far resemble the tone of his 2024 campaign speeches, as he weaves from one topic to another. He is currently railing against illegal immigration, the southern border and criminal cartels, which were some of his favorite topics to talk about on the trail.

 

Democrats speak out after leaving speech

Democratic Reps. Sydney Kamlager-Dove and Maxwell Frost released statements after they left the speech.

“Through walking out, my message to Donald Trump is simple: stop the lies, stop the cheating, and stop the stealing — enough is enough. The American people deserve better,” Kamlager-Dove said.

“Donald Trump is many things — a liar, a grifter, a wanna-be-dictator — but no matter how hard he tries and how many Republicans in Congress bend the knee and kiss the ring: he will never be king,” Frost said.

-ABC News’ John Parkinson

 

Trump argues that ‘all we really needed’ was a new president to fix the border

Trump once again bashed former President Joe Biden for his immigration policy, arguing that a new president was needed to resolve the issue of illegal border crossings.

“Friends in the Democrat Party kept saying we needed new legislation, we must have legislation to secure the border,” Trump said, before arguing that “turns out, all we really needed” was a new president.

 

Trump highlights Laken Riley case as he pushes his border policies

Trump highlighted the tragic killing of nursing student Laken Riley. Her case reignited the national debate over immigration and crime during the 2024 election. The Laken Riley Act, series of initiatives meant to tackle his key goal of curbing illegal immigration, was symbolically the first law Trump signed of his second administration.

Laken Riley’s mother and sister are guests of first lady Melania Trump and stood as Trump spoke. Her mother, Allyson Phillips, appeared emotional as the two received applause from Republicans in the chamber.

Trump highlights Laken Riley case as he pushes his border policiesLaken Riley’s mother and sister are guests of Melania Trump and Laken’s mother, Allyson Phillips, appeared emotional as the two received applause from Republicans in the chamber.

 

Claim: Encounters drop at the border

FACT CHECK: This is missing context.

Illegal immigration at the U.S. southern border has dropped since Trump entered office Jan. 20, and it’s likely that Trump’s hard-on-immigration approach has played a role. From former President Joe Biden’s last week in office to Trump’s first week in office, border officials’ daily encounters with immigrants illegally entering the U.S. dropped 60%. There’s been a 94% drop in encounters with Border Patrol agents at the U.S. southern border over a seven-day period in February and the same time last year.

But looking at a small period of time ignores longer-term trends, and there are multiple ways to examine the data. Illegal immigration has been dropping since March 2024, during Biden’s administration.

Immigration experts have told PolitiFact that weather patterns, such as extremely cold or hot conditions, changes in administration and policies or political shifts in people’s home countries can affect whether someone migrates. So it’s uncertain what causes a drop or how long it will last.

— Aaron Sharockman, PolitiFact

 

Trump highlights first lady for her work with foster care, ‘Take It Down’ Act

Trump called attention to first lady Melania Trump and praised her work protecting children.

Melania Trump was flanked by Haley Ferguson, a recipient of the first lady’s Fostering the Future initiative and Ellison Berry, a victim of AI-generated pornography.

Trump highlights first lady for her work with foster care, ‘Take It Down’ ActMelania Trump was flanked by Haley Ferguson, a recipient of the first lady’s Fostering the Future initiative and Ellison Berry, a victim of AI-generated pornography.

Berry was present at Melania Trump’s roundtable event Monday advocating for the passage of the “Take It Down” Act, which aims to criminalize deepfake and revenge pornography.

“And I’m going to use that bill for myself, too, if you don’t mind. There’s nobody gets treated worse than I do online. Nobody,” Trump said.

 

Trump calls for a balanced budget while promising revenue cuts

Trump has spent most of the last 20 minutes talking about out-of-control government spending, ranging from cuts of foreign aid to repeating falsehoods about Social Security payments to dead people. He went so far as to promise the government will balance the budget — something it hasn’t done since the 90s.

 

Now he’s a few paragraphs in to a preview of tax cut legislation. Trump says he will extend his 2017 tax cuts and further cut the rate for wealthy Americans while eliminating the tax on tips. It’s worth noting that these goals are not compatible without cuts to government entitlement programs, since cutting taxes also cuts revenues that pay for spending. A budget bill which recently passed the Republican-controlled House would add nearly $3 trillion to the deficit over the next decade.

—G. Elliott Morris, 538

 

Understanding all those 100-plus-year-olds on the Social Security rolls

In detailing the waste and fraud his administration has discovered, Trump used the example of the country’s Social Security rolls, saying millions of people listed at ages 100 and older are still on active Social Security lists. Why?

Social media commenters came up with one possible explanation for the 150-year age, and experts who have worked closely with the Social Security Administration told PolitiFact it was plausible.

Under an international standard called ISO 8601, a missing value for a date is coded as May 20, 1875, because that was the date of an international standards-setting conference held in Paris, known as the “Convention du Mètre.”

For that reason, under some coding systems, a missing value for a date will default to 1875 — which in the year 2025 produces a round figure of 150.

Social Security Administration Acting Commissioner Lee Dudek said in a Feb. 19 statement that people older than 100 in the Social Security database “are not necessarily receiving benefits.”

That doesn’t mean payments aren’t sent out improperly, however.

Between fiscal years 2015 and 2022, which includes Trump’s first presidency, the Social Security Administration sent almost $71.8 billion in improper payments, according to a July 2024 agency inspector general report. The inspector general’s office called improper payments “a longstanding challenge.”

A November 2021 inspector general’s report found $298 million in payments after death to some 24,000 beneficiaries. (About $84 million was returned, the report said.)

— Aaron Sharockman, PolitiFact

 

‘At some point, we’re all going to have to stand up’: Al Green

Rep. Al Green spoke with ABC News after he was escorted out of the chamber and said he’d welcome any consequences that come from his disruption.

“I was following the wishes of conscious, there are times when it is better to stand alone than not stand at all,” he said.

 

‘At some point, we’re all going to have to stand up’: Al GreenRep. Al Green spoke with ABC News after he was escorted out of the chamber and said he’d welcome any consequences that come from his disruption.

ABCNews.com

Green added that he believes Trump is “disrupting the healthcare system” and “all but defying court orders.”

“At some point, we’re all going to have to stand up,” the congressman said.

-ABC News’ Jay O’Brien

 

Fact-checking Trump’s claim on egg prices

Though egg prices did increase under President Joe Biden, they have recently surged under Trump too — and that’s because of bird flu, which has led to the deaths of 136 million birds since 2022, according to the American Farm Bureau Federation.

While the price of eggs was consistently rising due to inflation under Biden’s administration, the first significant price hike occurred in 2022, when bird flu began infecting flocks of birds in the U.S. Egg prices rose from $1.93 per dozen to $4.82 per dozen over the course of just that one year, according to data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

The prices moderated again, back down to the $2-$3 range during the rest of Biden’s presidency — but have shot back up to a record-high $4.95 this January, again due to bird flu.

 

A disjointed response from the Democrats

An incredibly disjointed response from the Democratic party.

Is the plan to protest in silence? Walk out of the speech? Or cause a massive disruption?

If you’re watching, it’s all of the above.

It didn’t take 10 minutes for Rep. Al Green to cause so much of a disruption, the president was forced to stop his speech. Green was escorted out.

Several minutes later, we saw a handful of Democrats stand up, remove their blazers and turn their backs toward the president. Some of their shirts reading “RESIST” and “NO MORE KINGS.”

But for the most part, all other Democrats are sitting silently and using their paddles to protest, trying to fact check the president in real time and holding up signs that read “FALSE.”

Rep. Rashida Tlaib has a whiteboard with her writing, “LIES” and “THAT’S A LIE” as the president moves through his speech, then holding it up.

Not so long ago, it was Democrats who were condemning outbursts from Republicans who interrupted President Joe Biden. The lack of decorum is now becoming part of the norm here on Capitol Hill.

-ABC News’ Rachel Scott

 

Trump defends his new tariffs and says more are coming

Trump defended his the tariffs against China, Canada and Mexico that went into effect earlier today — despite the negative fallout, including U.S. stocks tumbling. He said on April 2, he’ll go further and implement “reciprocal tariffs.”

Trump defended his the tariffs against China, Canada and Mexico that went into effect earlier today. He said on April 2, he’ll go further and implement “reciprocal tariffs.”

 

Claim: ‘Gold cards’ don’t need congressional approval

FACT CHECK: Misleading.

Immigration experts say Trump can neither create a new green card program nor shut down an existing one without congressional action.

Trump announced a plan to give people legal permanent residency in the U.S. if they pay $5 million. The so-called “gold card” would be similar to a green card in that it would let people live and work in the U.S. permanently and provide a pathway to citizenship.

Trump has described the program as a way to cut the U.S. deficit and has said it would replace the EB-5 immigrant investor visa program. But he hasn’t provided an official document creating the program.

— Aaron Sharockman, PolitiFact

 

Trump repeats pledge to eliminate taxes on Social Security benefit package

In touting his plans for tax cuts, Trump emphasizes his desire for “permanent income tax cuts all across the board” and repeats his promise to eliminate taxes on Social Security benefits.

“I’m calling for no tax on tips, no tax on overtime, and no tax on Social Security benefits for our great seniors,” he said.

 

Trump pressures Congress to extend his tax cuts

Trump called on Congress to make his 2017 tax cuts permanent. “I’m sure you’re going to vote for those tax cuts, because otherwise I don’t believe the people will ever vote you in to office,” he told members.

Trump called on Congress to make his 2017 tax cuts permanent. “I’m sure you’re going to vote for those tax cuts, because otherwise I don’t believe the people will ever vote you in to office,” he said.

 

‘Bureaucracy has crushed our freedoms’: Trump

Trump again talked about government inefficiency and waste and claimed that “bureaucracy has crushed our freedoms.”

“My administration will reclaim power from this unaccountable bureaucracy, and we will restore true democracy to America again,” he said. “And any federal bureaucrat who resists this change will be removed from office immediately.”

 

Trump claims ‘gold card’ for immigrants will be ready soon

Trump touted his “gold card” immigration plan, which would give citizenship status to foreign applicants who pay $5 million.

He claimed it will be available “soon.”

“These people will have to pay tax in our country,” he said.

 

There are two audiences tonight

I’m sitting in the House chamber right above Trump, and the split screen in front of me is remarkable. On the Republican side, the audience is sitting in rapt attention, laughing at Trump’s jokes and encouraging him with applause. The energy on the Democratic side, meanwhile, is cold and often actively hostile, with several half-shouted cries of protest.

Saul Loeb/AFP via Getty Images

—Nathaniel Rakich, 538

 

Claim: Elon Musk found people in the Social Security system as old as 369

FACT CHECK: This is misleading.

Elon Musk shared a chart on X and said he found millions of people in a Social Security database over the age of 110, including 1 who was in the 360-369 age bracket.

The acting Social Security commissioner said that people older than 100 who do not have a date of death associated with their Social Security record “are not necessarily receiving benefits.” Recent Social Security Administration data shows that about 89,000 people aged 99 and older receive Social Security payments.

Government databases may classify someone as 150 years old for reasons peculiar to the complex Social Security database or because of missing data, but that doesn’t mean that millions of payments are delivered fraudulently to people with implausible ages.

— Aaron Sharockman, PolitiFact

 

Economic anxiety has been growing

Trump just promised to “reverse the damage” of the Biden economic agenda and “make America affordable again,” and blames the former president for letting the prices of eggs “get out of control.” But if that will take time to accomplish, political damage for Trump may set in first. Last month the University of Michigan released new data from its popular Index of Consumer Sentiment, which measures how optimistic Americans are feeling about the economy. The estimate was lower than any ICS score during the 2024 election.

—G. Elliott Morris, 538

 

Republicans laugh, boo as Trump reads list of alleged ‘waste’ found by DOGE

Trump is reading from a list of what he alleges is “waste, fraud and abuse” identified by DOGE so far. He claimed millions were being spent on “making mice transgender” or for the “Arab Sesame Street” in the Middle East. Republicans either laughed or booed at some of the items he listed. Trump and Elon Musk have at times exaggerated or misrepresenting government programs.

 

Trump touts ban on transgender athletes

Trump touted his executive order banning transgender athletes from women’s sports.

Attending the speech was Peyton McNabb, who Trump said was a former high school athlete.

“But when her girls’ volleyball match was invaded by a male, he smashed the ball so hard in Peyton’s face, causing a traumatic brain injury, partially paralyzing her right side and ending her athletic career,” Trump said.

 

Trump says he will expand production of minerals and rare earths

“And later this week, I will also take historic action to dramatically expand production of critical minerals and rare earths here in the USA,” Trump said, though he did not mention any particular deal or plan.

 

Trump touts DOGE, calls out Musk by name

As Trump turned to talking about the Department of Government Efficiency, the camera panned to Elon Musk standing in the House gallery. Trump then called him out by name and praised his work so far. Republicans gave Musk a hefty round of applause.

As Trump turned to talking about the Department of Government Efficiency, the camera panned to Elon Musk standing in the House gallery. Trump then called him out by name and praised his work so far.

 

Some members leave address in protest

Some members exit the chamber while Trump is speaking. One sported a black t-shirt reading “RESIST” on the back.

 

Claim: The Paris climate accord was costing the U.S. ‘trillions.’

FACT CHECK: False

Trump defended his decision to pull out of the Paris climate agreement, saying the pact was costing the U.S. “trillions of dollars.”

That’s untrue.

The Trump administration defended the decision to withdraw from the climate agreement, in part, based on projections by consultant NERA Economic Consulting. It concluded that restrictions on fossil fuel emissions would result in higher cost of production, and a higher cost of production would translate into the closure of uncompetitive manufacturing businesses. Those closures, in turn, would mean fewer manufacturing jobs.

The consultant estimated that these losses and their knock-on effects beyond the manufacturing sector would amount to 1.1 million jobs lost by 2025 and 6.5 million by 2040. The loss of jobs results in a corresponding decline in gross domestic product, with a loss of $250 billion by 2025 that accelerates to $3 trillion by 2040.

So the climate agreement wasn’t costing the U.S. trillions of dollars. It hypothetically could.

But even if it did, the study’s say that the long-term projections did not factor in all of the offsetting job gains and GDP growth associated with a clean tech transition.

— Aaron Sharockman, PolitiFact

 

Trump puts blame on Biden over egg prices

Trump brought up rising egg prices, promising to tackle the issue, but didn’t give any details on a plan.

Instead he continued to blame Biden over the rising prices.

Trump puts blame on Biden over egg pricesTrump blamed President Joe Biden for persistent inflation, saying he will bring prices down. But his new tariffs against China, Canada and Mexico could raise prices even more, economists have said.

 

 

Trump says he’ll tackle inflation after slapping tariffs on key partners

Trump blamed President Joe Biden for persistent inflation, saying he will bring prices down. But his new tariffs against China, Canada and Mexico could raise prices even more, economists have said.

 

Trump says he ended ‘weaponized government’

In listing off the accomplishments of his second presidency, Trump took credit for ending weaponized government.

“And we’ve ended weaponized government where, as an example, a sitting president is allowed to viciously prosecute his political opponent. Like me,” he said.

“How did that work out?” he asked, receiving standing applause in return.

 

Trump boasts about making country ‘woke no longer’

Trump boasted ending DEI programs in the federal government vowing that “our country will be woke no longer.”

He also got cheers from Republicans in the chamber when he championed his executive order that recognized only two genders and banning transgender athletes in school sports.

 

Democrats stay seated as Trump lists executive actions

As Trump lists the executive orders he’s signed, many of which focused on culture war issues that defined the 2024 election, Democrats remain seated while Republicans routinely stand for applause.

 

Two polls show America is on the ‘right track,’ 17 others say we’re still on the ‘wrong track’

Fighting through the protests of Democrats, Trump tried to say the country believes it is on the right track for the first time in modern history.

“Now, for the first time in modern history, more Americans believe that our country is headed in the right direction than the wrong direction,” he said.

That’s cherry picking two poll results out of 18.

According to an archive of “right track/wrong track” polling maintained by RealClearPolitics, two polls since Trump took office have found more respondents saying the country was on the right track than on the wrong track. One of those polls, by Rasmussen Reports, found a 1-point edge for “right track,” while one by Emerson College found a 4-point edge.

However, all 17 other polls since Trump took office show “wrong track” leading “right track,” some by double-digit margins. RealClearPolitics’ average is “wrong track” leading by just shy of 9 points.

— Louis Jacobson, PolitiFact

 

Trump touts end of electric vehicle mandate

In his speech, Trump touted an end to what he called former President Joe Biden’s “insane electric vehicle mandate.”

 

Democrats are already protesting

 

Democrats in the audience are not hiding their displeasure with Trump. Several of them are holding up black circular signs that say “False,” “Save Medicaid,” “Protect veterans,” and “Musk steals.” One Democrat was audibly calling Trump’s speech “lie after lie after lie after lie.” And Rep. Al Green of Texas repeatedly interrupted Trump by saying, “You have no mandate to cut Medicaid.” After a few such interruptions, the sergeant-at-arms escorted him out of the chamber.

—Nathaniel Rakich, 538

 

Much of Trump’s agenda is not popular

Trump is starting his speech claiming he was elected with a “mandate” for change in America. But as we have written, explicit support for his agenda is much lower than the vote share he won in the 2024 presidential race. According to our analysis of 50 political polls released since the start of Trump’s second term, much of the president’s agenda is not supported by a majority of U.S. adults. Across nearly 300 questions asked in these polls, the average policy proposal or other official action by Trump is supported by just 38% of Americans, with 46% opposed to them.

The administration’s most popular policies (and some of the few with positive approval ratings) have been those targeting transgender Americans — such as those updating federal documents to only include two genders — and the most unpopular moves are on health care, Trump’s pardons of Americans convicted of crimes related to Jan. 6, 2021, foreign policy, and the “Department of Government Efficiency.” When asked specifically about DOGE-related cuts to federal programs, most Americans opposed Trump’s actions.

As of 1 p.m. Eastern, 47.8% of Americans approve of the job Trump is doing as president, according to 538’s average, whereas 47.7% disapprove. His net approval rating is much lower than every other president’s at this point in their term.

—G. Elliott Morris, 538

 

Trump takes aim at Democrats

Trump took aim at Democrats after they booed and interrupted his speech, saying “there is absolutely nothing I can say to make them happy or to make them stand or smile or applaud.”

He then made a weak attempt at pitching unity, asking them for “just one night, why not join us in celebrating so many incredible wins for America.” As Trump said the words, Vice President JD Vance was seen laughing behind him.

 

Trump touts immigration policies and deportation efforts

“Within hours of taking the oath of office, I declared a national emergency on our southern border, and I deployed the U.S. military and border,” Trump touted. “And what a job they’ve done as a result.”

He added that “illegal border crossings last month were by far the lowest ever recorded ever,” before criticizing former President Joe Biden for his immigration record and calling him “the worst president in American history.”

 

Claim: Trump won a mandate in the election

FACT CHECK: This is in the eye of the beholder.

Trump’s victory was clear, but by historical standards, it was no landslide.

Trump has reason to celebrate winning both the Electoral College and the popular vote. In fact, he became only the second Republican to win the popular vote since 1988, after George W. Bush in his 2004 reelection win. Trump won each of the seven battleground states that political analysts said would decide the election.

In addition, the vast majority of U.S. counties saw their margins shift in Trump’s direction, both in places where Republicans historically do well and places where Democrats generally have an edge.

On the other hand, Trump’s margins of victory — both in raw votes and in percentages — were small by historical standards, even for the past quarter century, when close elections have been the rule, including the 2000 Florida recount election and Trump’s previous two races in 2016 and 2020.

Trump’s victory also came without a big boost for downballot Republicans. Republicans lost a little ground in the House, which was already narrowly divided, and while Republicans flipped the Senate, Democrats won four Senate races in key battleground states even as former Vice President Kamala Harris was losing those states to Trump.

— Aaron Sharockman, PolitiFact

 

Republican takes sign ‘This is not normal’ out of Democrat’s hands

New Mexico Democratic Rep. Madeleine Stansbury, who was sitting on the aisle, held up a sign that said, “THIS IS NOT NORMAL.” GOP Rep. Lance Gooden of Texas then appeared to rip it out of her hands and threw it on the floor of the chamber.

Republican takes ‘This is not normal’ sign out of Democrat’s handsNew Mexico Democratic Rep. Madeleine Stansbury, who was sitting on the aisle, held up a sign that said, “THIS IS NOT NORMAL.” GOP Rep. Lance Gooden of Texas then appeared to rip it out of her hands.

 

Johnson tries to bring chamber to order, has Democrat removed

Speaker Mike Johnson is standing up, slamming his gavel and trying to restore order and “decorum.”

As he did, he had the sergeant at arms remove Democratic Rep. Al Green of Texas.

Speaker Mike Johnson is standing up, slamming his gavel and tried to restore order and “decorum.” As he did, he had the sergeant at arms remove Democratic Rep. Al Green of Texas.

 

Dems, GOP members push back with chants

Democrats were heard booing and jeering as Trump listed his accomplishments and the election, however, Republicans pushed back with chants of “USA.”

 

Trump says he’s ‘just getting started’ after quick start to administration

Trump claimed they “accomplished more in 43 days than most administrations accomplished in four years or eight years and we are just getting started.” To date, he’s signed 76 executive orders — though several are being challenged in the courts.

 

Trump: ‘America is back’

After a brief introduction thanking Vance and Johnson, Trump emphatically proclaimed “America is back” to start his remarks.

 

Trump shakes hands with Vance and Johnson

As President Donald Trump stepped up to the podium, he shook hands with Vice President J.D. Vance and House Speaker Mike Johnson.

 

Chamber rings with ‘USA’ chant

With loud cheers and applause, chants of “USA” are heard throughout the chamber as Trump makes his way to the dais.

 

Trump enters to boisterous cheers

Trump is now in the chamber, shaking hands and talking to members as he makes his way to the dais. At times, he’s raising his fists in the air, reminiscent of the moment he stood after being shot at a campaign rally last summer.

 

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(WASHINGTON) — The Pentagon is attempting to reduce the size of its civilian workforce by between 50,000 to 60,000 employees through voluntary workforce reductions, though it remains unclear if it will be able to meet that goal without possibly having to carry out forced reductions in the civilian workforce.

The Defense Department is currently carrying out a voluntary process to reach its goal of a 5% to 8% reduction of its 878,000 civilian employees — a number that equates to 50,000 to 60,000 employees, a senior defense official told reporters on Tuesday.

“The number sounds high, but I would focus on the percentage, a 5% to 8% reduction is not a drastic one,” said the official, who added that the percentage is one that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth “is confident can be done without negatively impacting readiness in order to make sure that our resources are allocated in the right direction.”

The voluntary process includes employees who have chosen to resign through what is known as the “Fork in the Road,” a freeze on hiring new employees to replace those who are departing and the dismissal of 5,400 probationary employees who have less than one or two years’ experience in their current jobs.

About 21,000 civilian employees have had their voluntary resignation requests approved under what the Pentagon calls the Deferred Resignation Program (DRP), which allows employees to resign but continue to be paid through the end of the fiscal year, which ends Sept. 30.

The senior defense official declined to disclose how many civilian employees in total had sought to opt into the Deferred Resignation Program.

ABC News has previously reported that 31,000 civilian employees had offered to resign under the Trump administration initiative with some of the requests being denied.

The hiring freeze means that the average 6,000 employees who join the Pentagon every month are also not coming into the workforce as other employees leave.

The Defense Department had also begun the termination of 5,400 probationary civilian employees — which has now been paused by a temporary restraining order imposed by a federal judge.

The official stressed that the 5,400 probationary employees had not been selected for termination “blindly based on the time they had been hired.” The Department has 54,000 total probationary employees, a term that refers to employees who have less than one or two years’ experience in their current jobs.

Instead, the official said the 5,400 were employees who “were documented as significantly underperforming in their job functions and or had misconduct on the record.” It is unclear if all of the 5,400 probationary employees targeted for termination fell into those categories.

“The fact that someone was a probationary employee did not directly mean that they were going to be subject to removal,” said the official.

The official declined to offer what “reduction in force” steps the Pentagon might undertake should the voluntary efforts not reach the goal of reducing the workforce by 50,000 to 60,000 employees.

“I won’t get ahead of the Secretary,” the official said. “It’ll be the Secretary’s prerogative to designate how and when he might use any of the other tools that would be available to him to achieve the stated reduction targets.”

There has been speculation that military service members may be asked to fill in for some of the civilian jobs that are being vacated or will not be filled by the hiring freeze, but the official said the goal is not to affect military readiness.

“We are confident we could absorb those removals without detriment to our ability to continue the mission, and so that’s how we can be confident that we don’t need to worry about any resulting impact on the uniformed force,” the official said.

The official acknowledged that some military veterans would be among the civilians who would be leaving the department, but did not provide an estimate of how many.

“Some of those people will be veterans that served in uniform previously, we’re certainly again looking at case by case as we plan workforce reduction,” said the official. “There are so many critical skills and experience that veterans have to offer, and that’s part of the analysis when we consider who is contributing to the core mission functions and who should be retained.”

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