First CCDC News Update
Welcome to the CCDC News Updates, where we will keep you informed as best we can in this rapidly changing political environment. Let’s start with some of the worst that Trump has done in his second term as President (and Musk in his first fling as President-in-all-but-name):
The Office of Personnel Management sent an email to all federal employees offering a “deferred resignation plan” under which they would be paid through September if they resigned by February 6.
Trump pardoned all prisoners convicted of crimes related to the Capitol Building riots on January 6, 2024 (about 1,600 individuals).
The Acting Deputy Attorney General requested the Active FBI Director to send the names of all FBI agents who worked on January 6-related cases (about 5,000 agents).
Trump signed an executive order pausing all foreign aid for 90 days and newly appointed Secretary of State Marco Rubio placed all employees of USAID (U.S. Agency for International Development) on administrative leave as of February 6. However, on the afternoon of February 6, a federal judge issued a partial temporary restraining order requiring the State Department to reinstate all employees and grant them to access to their email, pay, and security notifications. A hearing has been set for Wednesday, February 12.
Trump issued an executive order ending birthright citizenship for children born to parents who are not citizens at the time of birth.
Trump ordered a broad freeze on all federal aid, including grants and loans to non-profits, universities and states.
Elon Musk demanded access to the Treasury Department’s financial system but his minions were rebuffed by the Acting Secretary of the Treasury, a career employee of the Department. The Acting Secretary retired and Musk and his team were granted access to the payment system that controls $6 trillion per year, including all benefit programs, such as Medicare and Medicaid.
On February 7, the National Institutes of Health announced that medical research will be funded with a cap on “indirect funding” that pays fro maintain equipment and facilities and support staff. That cap will reduce funding to research centers by about 10%, a crippling blow to many research instititions.
All this has been done in only three weeks. On the upside, teams of lawyers have successfully petitioned to have many of these put on hold by the courts:
The deadline for the deferred resignation plan has been paused by a temporary restraining order until February 10, when a hearing will be held.
The Justice Department has been instructed to keep names of the FBI agents who worked on January 6 cases internal, under the terms of a temporary restraining order, pending a court ruling on whether to issue a preliminary injunction against the Department. A hearing date has not been set.
A temporary restraining order was issued on February 7 requiring the State Department to reinstate all employees of USAID. A hearing has been set for Wednesday, February 12.
On February 6, a federal judge issued a preliminary injunction blocking Trump’s executive order carving out exceptions to birthright citizenship.
Trump’s freeze on all federal aid was paused by a federal judge shortly after it was announced “to allow more time for litigation.”
A federal judge on February 8 revoked the access of Musk’s team to the Treasury Department's systems, part of a lawsuit filed by 19 Democratic Attorneys General. Musk has “demanded” the judge be impeached.
What remains to be seen is what the results of upcoming hearings will be and whether the Trump/Musk team will comply with judicial rulings.
Come back for further updates.