Summary

Donald Trump has attended only 12 intelligence briefings in his first 100+ days of his second term, a steep decline from his already infrequent briefing schedule during his first presidency, POLITICO reports.

He began 2025 with just two in-person updates monthly, shifting to weekly in April.

Critics, including Sen. Mark Warner, say Trump’s disengagement endangers national security, as he also avoids reading detailed briefing materials.

His national security team is in turmoil, and recent cuts to CIA DEI programs have sparked fears of institutional regression and increased vulnerability to global threats.

David Steiner, a former CEO of the nation’s largest waste management company who currently serves on the FedEx board of directors, is poised to take over control of the U.S. Postal Service, becoming the nation’s 76th postmaster general.

The announcement of Steiner’s appointment, which heightened concerns from postal unions over possible efforts to privatize the USPS, was made Friday by Amber McReynolds, chairperson of the USPS’ Board of Governors, during a meeting of the independent group that oversees the service.

Exclusive: The intervention to marginalize Ricky Buria is aimed at insulating the Pentagon from any more missteps

Exasperated by the turmoil that has dogged Pete Hegseth’s office in recent weeks, the White House will block the US defense secretary’s choice of chief of staff and select a candidate of its own, according to two people familiar with the matter.

Hegseth had suggested giving the chief of staff position to Marine Col Ricky Buria after the first person in the role, Joe Kasper, left last month in the wake of a contentious leak investigation that brought the ouster of three other senior aides.

But the White House has made clear to Hegseth that Buria will not be elevated to become his most senior aide at the Pentagon, the people said, casting Buria as a liability on account of his limited experience as a junior military assistant and his recurring role in internal office drama.

The Trump administration’s tariff scheme appears less and less likely to bring manufacturing jobs back to U.S. shores.

Businesses across the country are crunching the numbers and realizing that, despite Donald Trump’s insistence, they can’t balance out his tariff hikes across the supply chain.

“Some manufacturers who had plans to open factories in the country say the new duties are only adding to the significant obstacles they already faced,” Bloomberg reported Friday.

That’s because the supply chain to produce those goods in the United States simply isn’t there, requiring companies to import raw materials and factory equipment—which Trump’s tariffs have made unaffordable—from abroad.

Tesla told Austin workers on its Model Y and Cybertruck lines to stay home for the week of Memorial Day, three workers told Business Insider.

The break is unusually long, the workers said. Production lines were up and running during the same period last year, they said.

The electric vehicle maker notified employees earlier this week. The workers, who are paid hourly, were told they could either take paid time off or come in for cleaning and training but would not be working on the production line.

Tesla deliveries dropped 13% year over year during the first quarter.

Summary

FBI Director Kash Patel, appointed by Donald Trump despite lacking law enforcement experience, has frustrated current and former FBI and DOJ officials with what they see as a lack of seriousness and professionalism.

Patel skipped or scaled back key briefings and ended routine field office meetings, citing leaks.

Critics cite a leadership void, public relations stunts, and excessive travel including multiple trips unrelated to work.

Patel also briefly led the ATF but was quietly replaced after being absent.

The Trump administration’s widespread layoffs and firings for government workers are likely unlawful, a federal judge in California tentatively said at a Friday hearing.

Judge Susan Illston of the US District Court for the Northern District of California said President Donald Trump’s February executive order calling for a radical reorganization of the federal workforce likely violates the Constitution.

She said she was leaning toward granting a temporary restraining order requested by coalition of labor unions, nonprofit organizations, and municipal government to halt worker layoffs nationwide.

“I’m inclined to issue an TRO at this stage to protect the power of the legislative branch,” she said.

Donald Trump released a furious tirade Friday over coverage of his trade tariffs on MSNBC.

The network is a frequent target for Trump, who has claimed it's a liberal outlet that works in partnership with the Democratic Party. He calls it MSDNC.

Though he doesn’t refer to it directly, his Friday fury followed a Thursday night segment in which host Lawrence O’Donnell called Trump an “illiterate clown” and “a rogue president violating American law on tariffs.”

During his first all-hands meeting with agency personnel, acting Federal Emergency Management Agency Administrator David Richardson issued a striking warning: "Don't get in my way," the former United States Marine Corps ground combat officer told staff, according to a recording of the speech obtained by CBS News.

"Obfuscation, delay, undermining," Richardson continued, referencing tactics he believed a fraction of FEMA staff might try to subvert his agenda. "If you're one of those 20% of the people and you think those tactics and techniques are going to help you, they will not, because I will run right over you. I will achieve the president's intent."

Richardson's formal title is Senior Official Performing the Duties of FEMA Administrator. He was named to the role Thursday and has not been formally nominated nor confirmed by the U.S. Senate.

Donald Trump has threatened to place a 100 percent tariff on Barbie maker Mattel, after the company's CEO said it would continue to manufacture outside the U.S. but would be reducing its reliance on Chinese imports.

"I've heard [Mattel] said: 'Well we're going to go counter, we're going to try going someplace else,'" Trump said in the Oval Office on Thursday. "That's OK, let him go, and we'll put a 100 percent tariff on his toys, and he won't sell one toy in the United States, and that's their biggest market."

In an interview with CNBC on Tuesday, Mattel CEO Ynon Kreiz was asked whether it would be cheaper to relocate some manufacturing to the U.S. due to the tariffs, but responded: "We don't see that happening."

In a joint statement following talks, Xi Jinping and Putin stated that the war in Ukraine could only be resolved by removing its "root causes".

Such formulation clearly echoes key Russian propaganda messages used by the Kremlin to justify the launch of the full-scale war, including the threat of NATO expansion, discrimination against Russian-speaking people and the suppression of the Russian language, culture and media in Ukraine.

The U.S. government has officially granted 54 Afrikaans South Africans, white descendants of mainly Dutch colonizers, refugee status and they are expected to land in the U.S. on Monday May 12, three sources with knowledge of the matter have told NPR. The sources did not want to be named because they work for the U.S. government and fear for their careers.

U.S. authorities on Thursday were trying to arrange a charter flight that would bring the South Africans to Dulles Airport near Washington, D.C., on Monday morning, but it's not clear if they will be allowed to land there. If that is not possible then they will be sent on commercial flights, according to the sources.

NPR has also seen an email confirming the plan, and that the new arrivals will then be sent on to their final destinations in various states across the country.