Politics

(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 […]

(WASHINGTON) — In a sneaky legislative maneuver tied into the effort to pass a funding bill and avert a government shutdown, House Republicans earlier this week successfully blocked Democrats from forcing votes and debate on President Donald Trump’s controversial tariffs. It was a somewhat complicated move. But it worked — and demonstrated that Republicans are […]

(WASHINGTON) —  A federal judge on Thursday ordered the Trump administration to reinstate thousands of probationary employees fired last month from a half dozen federal agencies. U.S. District Judge William Alsup ordered the Trump administration to reinstate employees at the Department of Veterans Affairs, the Department of Agriculture, the Department of Defense, the Department of […]

Robert Alexander/Getty Images (WASHINGTON) — A federal judge on Thursday ordered the Trump administration reinstate thousands of probationary employees who were fired last month from a half dozen federal agencies. U.S. District Judge Charles Alsup ordered the Trump administration to reinstate employees at the Veterans Administration, the Department of Agriculture, the Department of Defense, the […]

(LANSING, Mich.) — Former Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg announced Thursday morning that he will not run for U.S. Senate or governor in the state of Michigan, potentially clearing the way to possibly mount a run for president in 2028. “I care deeply about who Michigan will elect as Governor and send to the U.S. […]

(WASHINGTON) — A former Tennessee lawmaker who was once represented by White House Counsel David Warrington said he received a pardon from President Donald Trump after pleading guilty to an illegal campaign finance scheme in 2022. The White House has not said anything publicly about former Sen. Brian Kelsey’s pardon, but sources familiar with the […]

Illustration by Thomas Fuller/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images (WASHINGTON) — The White House on Thursday pulled President Donald Trump’s nomination of Dr. David Weldon to lead the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, multiple sources told ABC News. The withdrawal came just before Weldon was to appear for his confirmation hearing Thursday morning before the […]

(WASHINGTON) — Calling it the “biggest deregulatory action in U.S. history,” the Environmental Protection Agency rolled out sweeping moves Wednesday aimed at walking back environmental protections and eliminating a host of climate change regulations, some decades in the making. Taken together, the agency’s actions indicate a wholesale reorientation of the agency away from government support […]

(WASHINGTON) — President Donald Trump and Elon Musk’s controversial showcase of Tesla cars in front of the White House has set off alarms around Washington over what some see as an infomercial for the billionaire’s car company on high-profile government property. Ethics experts ABC News spoke with are raising concerns that the Tuesday event could […]

(WASHINGTON) — Joe Murphy, whose position as a management and data analyst was eliminated when the Department of Education laid off nearly 50% of its workforce Tuesday evening, said on Wednesday that he and his colleagues are filled with a sense of “sadness” and “disbelief.” “We got the sense that we were disposable in a […]