Trump-Zelensky meeting: Follow live updates

By the Associated Press

The White House says the FBI is returning property to Trump that was taken during a search for classified records at his Mar-a-Lago estate in 2022.

It was not immediately clear exactly what materials were being returned to him.

FBI agents seized documents with top-secret information during that search, and Trump was ultimately indicted on charges of hoarding classified records and obstructing the FBI’s efforts to recover files that he took with him after he left the White House at the end of his first term.

The case was dismissed last summer by a Trump-appointed judge who concluded that special counsel Jack Smith’s appointment was illegal. It was later withdrawn by Smith following Trump’s election win in November.

Spokesperson Steven Cheung says the White House is “taking possession of the boxes today and loading them onto Air Force One.”

By the Associated Press

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer spoke with both Trump and Zelenskyy after their meeting and maintained his strong support for Ukraine, his office said in a statement.

“He retains unwavering support for Ukraine, and is doing all he can to find a path forward to a lasting peace based on sovereignty and security for Ukraine,” the statement said.

Starmer, who had a good rapport with Trump during a meeting at the White House on Thursday, is hosting a summit of European leaders Sunday in London to discuss support for Ukraine and the security of the continent.

He plans to meet with Zelenskyy in advance of the meeting.

By the Associated Press

The statement was signed by more than half of the party’s 23 governors. In it, they said Trump and Vance used the Oval Office to “berate” Zelensky “for not trusting Vladimir Putin’s word.”

“Americans must protect our strong democratic values on the world stage instead of undermining President Zelensky’s work to fight for his nation and the freedom of his people after being invaded by Russia,” they said.

The governor’s who signed the statement were: Andy Beshear of Kentucky, Tony Evers of Wisconsin, Bob Ferguson of Washington, Maura Healey of Massachusetts, Kathy Hochul of New York, Laura Kelly of Kansas, Michelle Lujan Grisham of New Mexico, Janet Mills of Maine, Phil Murphy of New Jersey, JB Pritzker of Illinois, Josh Shapiro of Pennsylvania, Josh Stein of North Carolina, Tim Walz of Minnesota and Gretchen Whitmer of Michigan.

By the Associated Press

Kennedy laid out the US Department of Health and Human Services’ response to a West Texas outbreak that’s infected 146 people and killed a child, two days after he dismissed the epidemic as “not unusual.”

“My heart goes out to the families impacted by the current measles outbreak in TX,” Kennedy said in a post on X. “I recognize the serious impact of this outbreak on families, children, and healthcare workers.”

Kennedy, a vaccine critic, said the federal agency has helped dispense 2,000 doses of the MMR vaccine and will “continue to fund” the state’s immunization program.

By Edward Fitzpatrick, Globe Staff

US Senator Jack Reed, the ranking Democrat on the Senate Armed Services Committee, blasted President Trump and Vice President Vance for berating Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky Friday at the White House.

“Today’s spectacle in the Oval Office was a political ambush and a shameful failure of American leadership,” Reed said in a statement.

Reed, a former paratrooper from Rhode Island, said that unlike Trump and Vance, he has traveled to Ukraine and seen “the death and destruction wrought by Vladimir Putin against innocent people.”

“To mock Ukraine and our allies is a travesty that only benefits Putin,” he said. “Today’s cruel and callous display does great harm to US standing in the world.”

Reed asked Republican senators why they are not speaking out. “We are watching America’s leaders surrender to Russia, forfeit our leadership in the world, and do strategic harm to our country — and for what?” he said. “This is not who we are, and silence is complicity.”

By the Associated Press

The fallout from a heated Oval Office exchange between Trump, Zelensky, and Vance has many Republicans — even those who previously backed Ukraine — scolding Zelensky. For other GOP lawmakers who have long criticized US support for Ukraine, the exchange was an opportunity to laud Trump for berating Ukraine’s leader. And for Democrats, it was proof that Trump is playing into the hands of Russian President Vladimir Putin.

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By the Associated Press

“We believe in supporting Ukraine,” Mélanie Joly said. “Clearly the Russians are noting the interaction that happened today. Our goal is to make sure we can continue to support Ukrainians and keep strong G-7 unity amidst all this unpredictability and sometimes even chaos.”

By the Associated Press

Viktor Orbán also cast Zelensky as working against peace in his own country.

“Strong men make peace, weak men make war,” Orbán wrote on X. “Today President Donald Trump stood bravely for peace. Even if it was difficult for many to digest. Thank you, Mr. President!”

Orbán is a consistent backer of the Kremlin and has been outspokenly antagonistic against neighboring Ukraine. After winning the last Hungarian elections in 2022, less than six weeks after Russia’s full-scale invasion, he cited Zelensky as one of the opponents he had defeated in the campaign.

By the Associated Press

Zelensky canceled a planned appearance at a Washington think tank after his tumultuous meeting with Trump.

An audience of diplomats, journalists and others already had filed in at the Hudson Institute when the research center’s executive vice president, Joel Scanlon, announced that Ukrainian officials were cancelling. Scanlon soon after took a call on speaker saying the Ukrainians were “wavering” about appearing after all, but announced a half-hour later Zelensky’s appearance was definitely off.

Placards on the seats indicated Trump’s envoy to Ukraine, retired Gen. Keith Kellogg, was among those expected to attend.

By the Associated Press

Speaking to Bloomberg, Scott Bessent, who took a lead role in negotiating the critical minerals deal the two leaders were set to sign before Trump directed Zelensky to be shown the door early, claimed Zelensky showed “disrespect of the American people.”

“You don’t do a negotiation with the President of the United States in public like this,” Bessent said, saying Zelensky could have raised issues of disagreement in private with Trump over a planned lunch. “He chose to let things go into a downward spiral on worldwide television.”

“We’ll see if there’s any coming back” for Zelensky, Bessent added.

By the Associated Press

“Today, Donald Trump and JD Vance attacked Zelenskyy and pressured him to surrender the freedom of his people to the KGB war criminal who invaded Ukraine,” former US Representative Liz Cheney wrote on X, referencing Putin’s early career as a Soviet intelligence officer. “History will remember this day— when an American President and Vice President abandoned all we stand for.”

Cheney famously lost her seat in Congress to a Trump-backed challenger after she was fiercely critical of his role in the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the US Capitol.

By Marianne Mizera and Chris Gloninger, Globe Staff

It was a great start to the New Year. Francis Tarasiewicz had landed his dream job as a meteorologist at the National Weather Service in Norton, Mass., covering a good portion of New England – where he grew up.

The year 2025 looked promising for the young meteorologist.

Then, on Thursday, an email arrived and up ended his life. Tarasiewicz was one of 880 employees fired from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration – which oversees the National Weather Service – the latest Trump administration push to slash the federal workforce. The total number of layoffs was confirmed by a former NOAA staffer and congressional staff.

It was a gut punch for Tarasiewicz and his colleagues across the country.

“At my one-month check-in, my managers were applauding me,” he said. “They said, ‘Keep going, you’re doing great.’ There was excitement about getting me on the severe weather desk in the spring and summer. And now, it’s all gone.”

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By the Associated Press

Representative Gregory Meeks of New York also said the president was “an existential danger” following his testy exchange with Zelenskyy in the White House.

“He is both a petulant child that demands displays of loyalty in court, and a tyrant with sympathies for autocrats and dictators, so long as they stroke his ego or enrich him and his family,” Meeks said in a statement.

“Trump’s actions today undermined US leadership, emboldened our adversaries, humiliated both himself and his Republican Party, and insulted the generations of Americans who fought and died to build America’s standing in the world,” he said.

By the Associated Press

Longtime Russian lawmaker Andrei Klishas hailed the outcome of the contentious Oval Office meeting as “a brilliant result” in a social media post on Friday.

Klishas called Zelensky a “clown” in the post on the messaging app Telegram, a derogatory term Russian officials often use in regards to Ukraine’s president, and said he “played his role of a ‘president’ poorly in the White House and was thrown out for bad behavior and disrespect towards the US.”

Another lawmaker, Alexei Zhuravlev, told Russian state news agency RIA Novosti that while Zelensky “may have lost the trust of the United States completely, … this doesn’t mean that the war will end.”

By the Associated Press

Ukraine’s head of the President’s Office who is part of the Ukrainian delegation in the US said that “security is more than just a word — without real guarantees, war will return.”

“Security is not just a word. It means life, a future without sirens, without losses, without fear for our loved ones,” Andriy Yermak wrote on Telegram.

He added that President Volodymyr Zelensky continues to fight for those defending a just and lasting peace. Yermak also thanked those who recognize that Ukraine is more than just a point on the map.

“We are deeply grateful to the American people for their support. It brings us closer to the day when war will be just a memory,” he wrote.

By the Associated Press

Russian strikes continue across Ukraine, with multiple regions affected.

Ukraine’s Air Force has warned of a Russian strike drone operating over the country’s northern, eastern, and southern regions. In Mykolaiv, local officials reported explosions in the city, while in Odesa, the mayor urged residents to take shelter.

Russian drones attack Ukrainian cities every night, hitting areas across the country.

By the Associated Press

Prime ministers, presidents and foreign ministers across the continent issued statements or took to social platform X to express their support for Zelensky and Ukraine.

The strongest comments so far have come from French President Emmanuel Macron, Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson and the foreign minister from Estonia, which borders Russia.

“The only obstacle to peace is the decision by Russian dictator Vladimir Putin to continue his war of aggression,” Foreign Minister Margus Tsahkna said in a statement. “If Ukraine stops fighting, there will be no Ukraine. Estonia’s support for Ukraine remains unwavering. It is time for Europe to step up. We do not need to wait for something else to happen; Europe has enough resources, including Russia’s frozen assets, to enable Ukraine to continue fighting.”

Officials from Spain, Latvia, Lithuania, Germany and Poland also offered their support to Ukraine.

By the Associated Press

Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha posted on X that “President Volodymyr Zelensky has the bravery and strength to stand up for what is right.”

“He stands up for Ukraine and the goal of a just and lasting peace. We have always been and will continue to be grateful to America for its support,” he wrote.

By the Associated Press

“What I saw in the Oval office was disrespectful and I don’t know if we can ever do business with Zelensky again,” Graham told reporters outside the West Wing.

He said Zelensky has “made it almost impossible to sell to the American people that he’s a good investment.”

Graham called the meeting a “complete, utter disaster” and said he’s “never been more proud” of Trump.

Asked whether Zelensky should step aside, Graham responded: “He either needs to resign or send somebody over that we can do business with, or he needs to change.”

By the Associated Press

Senator Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., who was among about 10 senators meeting with Zelensky earlier Friday morning, remained hopeful the situation at the White House wouldn’t derail US support for the ally as it battles the Russian invasion.

“My strong and passionate hope is that the talks can be resumed or restored, and this event won’t derail continued support,” the senator told The Associated Press.

The morning meeting with Republican and Democratic senators, including Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., and Senator Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, was “enthusiastically positive and upbeat,” he said. They even spoke about a potential US treaty or memorandum of understanding of US support for Ukraine, he said.

“I have very strong hopes that the coalition we have in Congress — and it is a very strong bipartisan coalition — will be persuasive to the administration and others that we have a long-term national security interest in Ukraine prevailing over Putin’s brazen aggression.”

By the Associated Press

After the contentious meeting, Zelensky and his delegation moved to a different room and the Ukrainian leader made an effort to try to reset and get the visit back on track, according to a White House official.

The official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss the private conversations, said National Security Adviser Mike Waltz and Secretary of State Marco Rubio communicated to the Ukrainians that Trump wanted Zelensky to leave the White House immediately.

By the Associated Press

In a statement, Rep. Don Bacon, R-Neb., said it was “A bad day for America’s foreign policy.”

“Ukraine wants independence, free markets and rule of law. It wants to be part of the West. Russia hates us and our Western values. We should be clear that we stand for freedom,” Bacon said.

Rep. Mike Lawler, R-N.Y., called the meeting “a missed opportunity for both the United States and Ukraine” on X and added that “Having this spill out into public view was a disaster — especially for Ukraine.”

Zelensky had met with a bipartisan group of senators before his White House meeting, including GOP Sens. Roger Wicker, R-Miss., and Lindsey Graham, R-S.C. Neither immediately commented on the Oval Office meeting.

By the Associated Press

Zelensky expressed gratitude to the American people but did not directly address his meeting with Trump and Vance in a post on X.

“Thank you America, thank you for your support, thank you for this visit. Thank you @POTUS, Congress, and the American people,” Zelensky wrote. “Ukraine needs just and lasting peace, and we are working exactly for that.”

By the Associated Press

The deputy chairman of Russia’s Security Council, Dmitry Medvedev, said Zelensky got a “fierce scolding” in the Oval Office, adding that Russia “must stop military aid” being given to Ukraine.

Journalists for Russian state television appeared shocked by the breakdown in diplomacy between Trump and Zelensky but pleased with Trump’s comments. The meeting between Zelensky, Trump and Vance “stopped observing the limits of decency” and will “probably go down in history,” Russian state news anchor Alexander Kareevsky said on evening broadcasts, adding nothing similar has been seen in “diplomatic history.”

A correspondent for the Russia 24 state news channel said after the meeting that “it is clear that there can be no talk of any deliveries or further weapons,” to Ukraine and Zelensky “is leaving with nothing.” Kareevsky responded by saying Zelensky “went to buy himself a jacket after all,” referring to Trump’s comment where he asked the Ukrainian leader why he wasn’t wearing a suit.

By the Associated Press

Senator Mike Lee, R-Utah, thanked Trump for “standing up for OUR COUNTRY and putting America first” in a post on X.

Other GOP senators who voiced clear support for Trump shortly after the interaction on social media include Florida Senator Rick Scott, Kansas Senator Roger Marshall, Missouri Senators Josh Hawley and Eric Schmitt, Ohio Senator Bernie Moreno, Oklahoma Senator Markwayne Mullin, Tennessee Senator Bill Hagerty and West Virginia Senator Jim Justice.

By the Associated Press

Musk was weighing in on X about the contentious White House meeting with Trump.

Starlink, the satellite communications network owned by Musk-led SpaceX, has been crucial to Ukraine’s defense. Musk has also been in regular contact with Putin.

By the Associated Press

Macron said he believes “we all were right to have helped Ukraine and sanctioned Russia three years ago, and to continue to do so.”

“There’s an aggressor, which is Russia, and a people attacked, which is Ukraine,” Macron told reporters as he was on a state visit to Portugal.

He added: “We must thank all those who helped and respect those who have been fighting since the beginning.”

By the Associated Press

“Unwavering commitment to Ukraine’s interests and devotion to his country. This is what we saw today in the United States. Support for the President of Ukraine,” Vice Prime Minister for the Reconstruction of Ukraine and the Minister for Communities and Territories Development of Ukraine, Oleksii Kuleba, wrote on Telegram on Friday.

Leaders of regions across the country also took to social media to back Zelensky.

“In the fight for the fate of the country — fundamentally unshakable. Unquestioning support for Volodymyr Zelensky. Endurance to our leader. We believe in the President! We believe in Ukraine,” Serhii Lysak, head of Ukraine’s eastern Dnipropetrovsk region, which sits approximately 3 miles from where Russian forces are currently advancing on the battlefield.

By the Associated Press

The Trump administration is abandoning its new requirement that lawyers in the Department of Transportation’s Washington office must sign off whenever states want to make even minor changes to their transportation plans.

States learned of the new requirement last week, and there was widespread concern the extra review step could delay some payments for roads, bridges and transit.

The American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials said Friday that the administration had decided to drop the requirement.

Most federal transportation money has traditionally gone to states through a formula. They get it almost automatically after a brief review, usually at the regional level.

By the Associated Press

A bipartisan group of senators had a “really good” morning meeting with Zelensky earlier in the morning, before he went to the White House, Klobuchar, D-Minn. posted earlier in the day.

Later, she responded directly to the White House, and specifically “Answer to Vance: Zelensky has thanked our country over and over again both privately and publicly.”

“And our country thanks HIM and the Ukrainian patriots who have stood up to a dictator, buried their own & stopped Putin from marching right into the rest of Europe.”

She wrote: “Shame on you.”

By the Associated Press

Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk vowed to stand by Ukraine following the contentious Trump-Zelensky meeting in the Oval Office.

“Dear @ZelenskyyUa, dear Ukrainian friends, you are not alone,” Tusk wrote on X late Friday.

By the Associated Press

Zelensky and his delegation were told to leave the White House early after the testy meeting with Trump in the Oval Office, according to a White House official who was not authorized to speak publicly.

By the Associated Press

Trump suggested the deal was a condition for future support for Ukraine.

The landmark economic agreement aimed at financing the reconstruction of war-damaged Ukraine and would have closely tied the two countries together for years to come.

By the Associated Press

Zelensky walked briskly to his armored vehicle and quickly climbed in, escorted by a protocol officer who saw him off.

A planned news conference and ceremony to sign a US -Ukraine minerals deal were canceled.

By the Associated Press

Posting on X, Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer was reacting to the fallout of the tense meeting between Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.

The New York Democrat pledged his party would “never stop fighting for freedom and democracy.”

The rapid fallout from the meeting showed just how politically divided Washington is on continuing to support Ukraine in its defense against Russia’s invasion. Just Friday morning, Zelensky had met with a bipartisan group of senators and several Republicans in attendance had left praising the deal he had been readying to sign with Trump.

“This is a huge step forward in securing mutual prosperity and peace for Americans and Ukrainians,” Sen. Roger Wicker, the Republican chair of the Senate Armed Services Committee, had said in a statement shortly before Trump and Zelensky’s Oval Office meeting.

Instead, the meeting ended with Trump cutting off talks with Zelensky.

Sen. Chris Murphy, a Connecticut Democrat, posted on X, “What an utter embarrassment for America. This whole sad scene.”

By the Associated Press

In a post on Truth Social, Trump repeated that Zelensky was “disrespectful.”

“I have determined that President Zelensky is not ready for Peace if America is involved, because he feels our involvement gives him a big advantage in negotiations,” Trump wrote. “I don’t want advantage, I want PEACE.”

“He can come back when he is ready for Peace,” he added.

Zelenskyy had been scheduled to have lunch with Trump and both leaders were going to sign a minerals deal during a joint news conference. Instead, Zelensky’s armored SUV abruptly pulled up to the door of the West Wing moments after Trump’s post.

By the Associated Press

“This is going to be great television, I will say,” Trump said as the meeting broke up.

The White House communications team quickly clipped videos of the exchange and shared them on social media. Several Trump aides did so as well.

“President Trump and Vice President Vance will always stand for America and those who respect our position in the world. America will never be taken advantage of,” said Margo Martin, a special assistant to the president who shared one of the videos.

“Thank you @POTUS for standing up not only for America, but for the American warfighter,” the Defense Department’s rapid response account posted on X.

By the Associated Press

The last 10 minutes of the nearly 45-minute engagement turned into a tense back and forth between Trump, Vance and Zelensky — who had urged skepticism about Russia’s commitment to diplomacy, citing Moscow’s years of broken commitments on the global stage.

It began with Vance telling Zelensky, “Mr. President, with respect. I think it’s disrespectful for you to come to the Oval Office to try to litigate this in front of the American media.”

Zelensky tried to object, prompting Trump to eventually raise his voice and say, “You’re gambling with the lives of millions of people.”

“You’re gambling with World War III, and what you’re doing is very disrespectful to the country, this country that’s backed you far more than a lot of people say they should have,” Trump said.

It was an astonishing display of open antagonism in the Oval Office, a setting better known for somber diplomacy. Trump laid bare his efforts to coerce Zelensky to reach an agreement giving the US an interest in his country’s valuable minerals and to push him toward a diplomatic resolution to the war on the American leader’s terms.

By the Associated Press

They should expect it Saturday. It’s a renewed attempt by President Trump and billionaire entrepreneur Elon Musk to demand answers from the government workforce.

The plan was disclosed by a person with knowledge of the situation who requested anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss it publicly.

The first email, which was distributed a week ago, asked employees “what did you do last week?” and prompted them to list five tasks that they completed. Musk, who empowered by Trump is aiming to downsize agencies and eliminate thousands of federal jobs, said anyone who didn’t respond would be fired. Many agencies, meanwhile, told their workforces not to respond or issued conflicting guidance.

By the Associated Press

Zelensky told Trump that promises of peace from Vladimir Putin can’t be trusted, noting the Russian leader’s history of broken promises. Trump said Putin hasn’t broken agreements with him.

“You’ve got to be more thankful,” Trump told Zelensky. He said the Ukrainian leader is “gambling with World War III.”

Trump chided Zelensky after Vice President JD Vance, one of the administration’s most skeptical voices on Ukraine, said Zelensky was being disrespectful for debating Trump in the Oval Office in front of the American media.

“Have you said ‘thank you’ once?” Vance asked Zelensky.

By the Associated Press

It happened as Trump was meeting with Zelensky.

TASS was not on the approved media list, according to the White House, and when the press office learned the reporter was in the Oval Office, he was escorted out by Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt.

By the Associated Press

Trump told Zelensky that Ukrainian soldiers have been unbelievably brave and talked up an economic agreement between their two countries during their Oval Office meeting.

“It is a big commitment from the United States,” Trump said. He added that the United States has little of the rare earth minerals that are abundant in Ukraine, and says those resources will support uses in the US including artificial intelligence and military weapons.

Zelensky talked up the prospect for liquid natural gas exports to Europe, but gently disagreed when Trump repeated his claim that Europe “did much less” than the United States to support Ukraine against Russia.

Zelensky called Putin a killer and a terrorist and told Trump there should be “no compromises with a killer.” He brought along printed photos to show Trump, but journalists in the room could not see them.

By the Associated Press

Vance’s acknowledgment of the criticism came without responding to any of its specifics or to the pontiff’s apparent criticism of Vance’s own deployment of Catholic tradition to justify such policies.

Vance, a Catholic convert, spoke Friday at the National Catholic Prayer Breakfast in Washington. He sought to downplay the controversy and said he and his family pray daily for Pope Francis during the 88-year-old pontiff’s hospitalization for pneumonia and other health troubles.

Vance told the gathering he wasn’t there to litigate “about who’s right and who’s wrong,” though he said he would continue to defend his views. But he spoke in conciliatory terms, crediting Francis as one who “cares about the flock of Christians under his under his leadership and the spiritual direction of the faith.”

By the Associated Press

And United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres is expressing hope that the Trump administration’s decisions can be reversed.

Guterres is also warning that “The reduction of America’s humanitarian role and influence will run counter to American interests globally.”

He told reporters that information received by the U.N. and many humanitarian and development organizations in the last 48 hours about US funding cuts impact a wide range of critical programs — from lifesaving aid to the fight against terrorism and drug trafficking. This week the administration terminated over 90% of the US Agency for International Development’s contracts for humanitarian and development work around the world.

As examples, Guterres says, cash-based humanitarian aid programs in Ukraine that reached one million people in 2024 have been suspended in key regions. He also cited the suspension of hundreds of mobile health teams and other services affecting 9 million people in Afghanistan and aid programs to 2.5 million people in northeast Syria. And he said funding has run out to help support Sudanese people who fled the war to neighboring South Sudan.

By the Associated Press

The Ukrainian president is set to speak with Trump in a high-stakes meeting as he seeks assurances of US security support.

Zelensky’s delegation also is expected to sign an economic agreement that’s seen as a step toward ending conflict in eastern Ukraine three years after Russia invaded.

Trump greeted Zelensky with a handshake. The leaders looked toward journalists and Trump pumped his fist. They did not respond to the shouted questions.

Trump and Zelensky are scheduled to meet in the Oval Office followed by a lunch meeting and a news conference.

Zelensky arrived Thursday in Washington for his fifth visit to the U as president and met with US senators. Later Friday, he’s expected to speak at the Hudson Institute, a Washington think tank, and meet with members of the Ukrainian community in the United States.

By the Associated Press

French President Emmanuel Macron acknowledged Friday he has “very little hope” to make Trump change his mind on applying wholesale tariff of 25% on all EU products, after his trip to Washington earlier this week.

“I believe there are misunderstandings” and “misconceptions in the trade approach” of the Trump administration, Macron said, speaking in a news conference during a trip to Portugal. He added that describing as a tariff the value added tax, which is implemented on all local and foreign goods and services in France, is “factually false.”

Macron argued tariffs are “bad for everyone” because they’re leading to price increases. “The United States has nothing to gain from them,” he said.

He warned that if the US decision was to be confirmed, Europeans would respond through “reciprocal tariffs.”

By the Associated Press

More than 80 House Democrats praised the Office of Special Counsel, a nonpartisan government watchdog agency tasked with protecting federal workers, for opposing efforts by the Trump administration to fire workers throughout the federal workforce.

That sweeping effort has been coordinated from the White House between the Office of Personnel Management, the Office of Management and Budget and the so-called Department of Government Efficiency, a select government reform championed by billionaire Elon Musk.

“The brazen attack on the federal government’s oversight infrastructure is alarming and emphasizes the importance of OSC,” the lawmakers wrote in a letter spearheaded by Rep. Ayanna Pressley, D-Mass.

“There has never been a more cruel and baseless attack on our civil service in the history of our nation. We urge you to continue fulfilling OSC’s mission and ensure federal workers are protected from abuse,” the authors write.

By the Associated Press

Paris-based humanitarian organization Action Against Hunger said Friday it’s forced to halt more than 50 projects in 20 different countries that were helping hundreds of thousands of people after the Trump administration said it’s eliminating more than 90% of the USAID’s contracts.

Action Against Hunger “is deeply outraged by this drastic decision, which will have dramatic consequences for populations cut off from vital aid overnight,” the statement said.

“For the past month, the American authorities have been using the lives of millions of people as a budgetary adjustment variable. We have received termination notices for nutrition projects that help nearly 1.5 million people, including more than 797,000 severely malnourished children under the age of 5,” Aïcha Koraïchi, President of Action Against Hunger, said. “These activities are vital to their survival.”

Action Against Hunger said it will be forced to “shut-down critical operations, leaving vulnerable populations without essential assistance in several major humanitarian crises including Afghanistan and the Democratic Republic of Congo.

By the Associated Press

He’s expected to sign an executive order on Friday designating English as the official language of the United States, according to the White House.

The order will allow government agencies and organizations that received federal funding to choose whether to continue to offer documents and services in language other than English, according to a fact sheet about the impending order. The executive will rescind a mandate from former President Bill Clinton that required the government and organizations that received federal funding to provide language assistance to non-English speakers.

Designating English as the national language “promotes unity, establishes efficiency in government operations, and creates a pathway for civic engagement,” according to the White House.

By the Associated Press

The Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals said in a ruling Friday that the government didn’t make a strong showing that it could succeed on the merits in the case concerning Trump’s executive order ending birthright citizenship for people born to parents not legally in the country.

It’s the second appeals court to reject the administration. The Ninth Circuit similarly rejected the government’s petition for a stay in a Seattle case brought by four states. At issue is the president’s January executive order that would eliminate automatic citizenship at birth for people whose parents aren’t legally in the country. The 14th Amendment guarantees citizenship to those born or naturalized in the United States.

The Trump administration centers its arguments around part of the amendment that says those born and naturalized and “subject to the jurisdiction” of the United States, arguing those born to people not legally in the US fail this test.

By the Associated Press

A grassroots organization is encouraging US residents not to spend any money Friday as an act of “economic resistance” to protest what the group’s founder sees as the malign influence of billionaires, big corporations and both major political parties on the lives of working Americans.

The People’s Union USA calls the 24 hours of spending abstinence, which started at midnight, an “economic blackout,” a term that has since been shared and debated on social media. The activist movement said it also plans to promote weeklong consumer boycotts of particular companies, including Walmart and Amazon.

Other activists, faith-based leaders and consumers already are organizing boycotts to protest companies that have scaled back their diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives, and to oppose Trump’s moves to abolish all federal DEI programs and policies. Some faith leaders are encouraging their congregations to refrain from shopping at Target, one of the companies backing off DEI efforts, during the 40 days of Lent that begin Wednesday.

By the Associated Press

A key price gauge declined last month, a sign that inflation may be cooling though stiff tariffs threatened by the White House threaten that progress.

Yet data released Friday by the Commerce Department also showed that Americans cut their spending last month 0.2% in January from the previous month, likely in part because of unseasonably cold weather. Still, the drop may raise alarms about whether Americans are growing more cautious amid widespread uncertainty about the economic outlook.

Inflation declined to 2.5% in January compared with a year earlier, down from 2.6% in December, the government said. Excluding the volatile food and energy categories, core prices dropped to 2.6%, the lowest since June, from 2.8%.

Inflation spiked in 2022 to its highest level in four decades, propelling President Trump to the White House and causing the Federal Reserve to rapidly raise interest rates to tame prices.

By the Associated Press

Hundreds of federal National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration employees on probationary status were fired Thursday, lawmakers and weather experts said.

Federal workers who were not let go said the afternoon layoffs included meteorologists who do crucial local forecasts in National Weather Service offices across the country.

Cuts at NOAA appeared to be happening in two rounds, one of 500 and one of 800, said Craig McLean, a former NOAA chief scientist who said he got the information from someone with first-hand knowledge. That’s about 10% of NOAA’s workforce.

The first round of cuts were probationary employees, McLean said. There are about 375 probationary employees in the National Weather Service — where day-to-day forecasting and hazard warning is done.

By the Associated Press

Civilian federal jobs are being cut by the thousands, as Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency continues to shrink the government workforce at the behest of President Trump. That’s brought a lot of churn and uncertainty in the nation’s capital, where 20% of the country’s more than 2 million civilian — or nonmilitary — federal workers are located.

It’s also affecting workers and communities outside the Washington, D.C. area, where about 80% of that workforce is based. Those cuts mean that members of Congress are now facing potential angst among the out-of-work federal employees in their districts across the country.

The precise locations of all of the thousands of federal employees now out of work isn’t yet known, but a look at the areas with the highest concentrations of civilian US government jobs gives a glimpse at some places that could be most affected.

By the Associated Press

From talk of acquiring Greenland and its vast mineral wealth to prodding Ukraine for minerals in exchange for help fending off Russia’s invasion, Trump has made the raw materials of modern life a pillar of his foreign policy.

An executive order Trump signed Tuesday calls for boosting the domestic copper industry by investigating the national security implications of imports and weighing tariffs as a response.

It could mean a new day for U.S. copper mining, and new worries for environmental groups that are contesting proposals such as the stalled Twin Metals project in northern Minnesota’s Boundary Waters, a lake-filled wilderness on the U.S.-Canada border.

By the Associated Press

The Social Security Administration is preparing to lay off at least 7,000 people from its workforce of 60,000, according to a person familiar with the agency’s plans who is not authorized to speak publicly. The workforce reduction, according to a second person who also spoke on the condition of anonymity, could be as high as 50%.

It’s unclear how the layoffs will directly impact the benefits of the 72.5 million Social Security beneficiaries, which include retirees and children who receive retirement and disability benefits. However, advocates and Democratic lawmakers warn that layoffs will reduce the agency’s ability to serve recipients in a timely manner.

Some say cuts to the workforce are, in effect, a cut in benefits.

By the Associated Press

Five former secretaries of defense are calling on Congress to hold immediate hearings on President Trump’s recent firings of the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and several other senior military leaders, according to a letter obtained by The Associated Press.

The five men — who represented Republican and Democratic administrations over the past three decades — said the dismissals were alarming, raised “troubling questions about the administration’s desire to politicize the military” and removed legal constraints on the president’s power.

By the Associated Press

Ukraine’s leader will meet with Trump in Washington on Friday at a pivotal moment for his country, one that hinges on whether he can persuade Trump to provide some form of U.S. backing for Ukraine’s security against any future Russian aggression.

During his trip to Washington, Zelenskyy’s delegation is expected to sign a landmark economic agreement with the U.S. aimed at financing the reconstruction of war-damaged Ukraine, a deal that would closely tie the two countries together for years to come.

Though the deal, which is seen as a step toward ending the three-year war, references the importance of Ukraine’s security, it leaves that to a separate agreement to be discussed between the two leaders — talks that are likely to commence Friday.

As Ukrainian forces hold out against slow but steady advances by Russia’s larger and better-equipped army, leaders in Kyiv have pushed to ensure a potential U.S.-brokered peace plan would include guarantees for the country’s future security.