Author: Alex Smith

Washington — The Trump administration on Thursday intensified its sweeping efforts to shrink the size of the federal workforce, the nation’s largest employer, by ordering agencies to lay off nearly all probationary employees who hadn’t yet gained civil service protection – potentially affecting hundreds of thousands of workers.In addition, workers at some agencies were warned that large workplace cuts would be coming. The decision on probationary workers, who generally have less than a year on the job, came from the Office of Personnel Management, which serves as a human resources department for the federal government. The notification was confirmed by…

Marco Rubio’s plane forced to return to DC after mechanical issues Marco Rubio’s plane forced to return to DC after mechanical issues 00:28 A plane carrying Secretary of State Marcio Rubio bound for Munich, Germany, was forced to return to Maryland late Thursday night due to a “mechanical issue,” officials said. State Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce said in a statement the plane returned to Joint Base Andrews outside Washington, D.C. “The Secretary intends to continue his travel to Germany and the Middle East on a separate aircraft,” said Bruce, who is also aboard the flight. The plane landed safely shortly…

Actress Issa Rae has canceled a sold-out show at the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, citing “an infringement of values” at the venue after President Trump fired board members and installed himself as chairman this week. Rae, the creator and star of HBO’s “Insecure,” announced on Instagram that she would no longer host her “An Evening with Issa Rae” event that was scheduled at the Washington, D.C., venue for March 16. “Unfortunately, due to what I believe to be an infringement on the values of an institution that has faithfully celebrated artists of all backgrounds through all mediums, I’ve decided…

Paramount-owned channels including CBS, Comedy Central and MTV are set to go dark on YouTube TV Thursday night if a contract renewal agreement is not reached, both companies say. “The contract Paramount has with Google’s YouTube TV to carry CBS, Nickelodeon and 21 other networks is about to expire,” Paramount stated on a webpage devoted to the business disagreement. “YouTube TV is attempting to pressure Paramount to agree to unfavorable and one-sided terms.” The dispute centers on what are known as carriage fees, which are the payments that paid TV providers like YouTube make to broadcasters for the right to carry the…

Dubai, United Arab Emirates — Elon Musk called Thursday to “delete entire agencies” from the U.S. government as part of his push under President Trump to radically cut spending and restructure its priorities.Musk offered a wide-ranging survey via a videocall to the World Governments Summit in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, of what he described as the priorities of the Trump administration interspersed with multiple references to “thermonuclear warfare” and the possible dangers of artificial intelligence. In remarks similar to ones he made in the Oval Office Tuesday with the president looking on, Musk said, “We really have here rule of…

President Trump’s Education Secretary nominee Linda McMahon will appear before the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions on Thursday as the future of the agency that she could potentially lead hangs in the balance. Mr. Trump has long teased the possibility of closing the Department of Education, but he could be closer to making good on his pledge. Since taking office, the president has signed several education-related executive orders and multiple sources confirm he is considering executive action that would dismantle the agency. This week, Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE, chief Elon Musk also slashed nearly $1 billion in funding from…

Boston — A federal judge in Massachusetts allowed the Trump administration’s bid to offer “deferred resignations” to federal workers who voluntarily leave government service to continue and lifted a previous court order pausing the program’s deadline.Judge George O’Toole, in the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts, ruled Wednesday that the plaintiffs in the case — unions that represent federal employees — lacked standing to bring the case in the first place. He also ruled he did not have the jurisdiction to stop the program from proceeding. The judge initially paused the original Feb. 6 deadline for workers to accept…

Washington — The Senate voted to advance Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s nomination to lead the Department of Health and Human Services on Wednesday, teeing up a final vote on his confirmation later this week. In a 53 to 47 vote, the Senate voted to clear the final procedural hurdle to Kennedy’s nomination. The vote fell along party lines.Kennedy’s path to confirmation was once considered among the most fragile of President Trump’s nominees. The 71-year-old faced scrutiny from Democrats and Republicans alike in recent weeks, including during a pair of fiery hearings last month, where he was grilled over his controversial views…

Moscow — Russia on Wednesday rejected swapping occupied territory with Kyiv in any peace deal, after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy floated the idea. “This is impossible. Russia has never and will never discuss the topic of exchanging its territory,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters, ruling out Zelenskyy’s idea of a swap involving Ukrainian-held parts of Russia’s western Kursk region.Peskov spoke not long after Russia hit Ukraine’s capital Kyiv with a deadly drone and missile attack that President Volodymyr Zelenskyy called proof the Kremlin is not interested in pursuing peace. Journalists with the French news agency AFP heard a volley…

“Best in Show” awarded Tuesday night at 149th Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show “Best in Show” awarded Tuesday night at 149th Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show 00:22 The 149th Westminster Kennel Club dog show put about 2,500 dogs of all sizes to the test and Monty the giant schnauzer came out on top Tuesday night, winning the prestigious Best in Show title at Madison Square Garden in New York City.Four finalists were chosen Monday: a bichon frisé called Neal, a whippet and repeat runner-up known as Bourbon, a shih tzu called Comet who’s been a finalist before, and a German shepherd…