A federal judge ordered a Venezuelan couple, accused by the Trump administration of being members of the Tren de Aragua gang, to be released, delivering a stinging rebuke of the government’s evidence in the case.
Earlier this week, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on Friday was making an announced trip to the southern border — without reporters — as he faces new scrutiny in Washington.
ABC News has confirmed that, in at least two separate meetings, Hegseth accused top-ranking military officers of leaking to the news media and threatened to polygraph them.
Hegseth also used the Signal app on a personal computer in his office that was connected to the internet on an unsecured commercial line, what’s known as a “dirty line,” two sources confirmed to ABC News Thursday. A Pentagon spokesman called that report “fake news.”
Minority Leader Chuck Schumer sent a dear colleague letter today marking Trump’s first 100 days in office, calling his early tenure “the worst for any President in modern history”.
In the letter, Schumer outlines plans by Senate Democrats to mark the 100th day of Trump’s presidency on Tuesday by holding the Senate floor late into the evening with speeches “against Donald Trump’s disastrous 100 days.”
“On Wednesday, we will join with our House colleagues to decry in one voice the many ways Donald Trump has already failed our country in his second term,” he writes.
He also promises Democratic resistance to the upcoming reconciliation package Republicans are working on to fund Trump’s agenda, and he said Democrats will continue to conduct oversight where possible.
“We will do what Senate Republicans refuse: Conduct strong oversight and hold the Administration accountable for its incompetence and the harm they are doing to the American people. This includes looking into the disastrous leadership at the Pentagon, pushing back on the attacks at the Social Security Administration, fighting the attacks on educational resources like PBS, and exposing the chilling arrests of individuals without a shred of due process,” he said.
Trump claimed Sunday that he is bringing back Columbus Day, blaming Democrats for “destroying” Christopher Columbus.
“I am hereby reinstating Columbus Day under the same rules, dates, and locations, as it has had for all of the many decades before!” Trump wrote.
Columbus Day is a federal holiday on the second Monday of October that celebrates Christopher Columbus’ arrival in the Americas.
In 2021, then-President Joe Biden commemorated the date as Indigenous Peoples’ Day with a presidential proclamation he issued yearly. Indigenous Peoples’ Day is not a recognized holiday under U.S. federal law; however, some states have paired or replaced Columbus Day with it.
Trump encouraged the Michigan Republican delegation to stay in Washington this week instead of traveling with him to celebrate his 100th day in office in Michigan on Tuesday evening.
“I wish everyone could come with me, but this is a crucial week to work on “THE ONE, BIG, BEAUTIFUL BILL,” which will contain Massive Tax Cuts, Strong Border Security Measures, Major Military Advancements, Dramatic Deregulation, Powerful Spending Reforms, and more!” Trump said in a Truth Social post. “It is much more important that everyone stay in Washington this week to work hard and fast on all of it – IT MUST BE DONE.”
He continued, “You will be missed, but your work is far too important to take any time off.”
The President would be referring to Reps. Jack Bergman, John Moolena, Bill Huizenga, Tim Walberg, Tom Barrett, Lisa McClain and John James.
Michigan currently has two Democratic U.S. senators, Gary Peters and Elissa Slotkin.
The president’s trip is the second domestic swing of his second term. He traveled to North Carolina, California and Nevada during the first weekend in office.
In a scathing rebuke of the government’s attempt to deport a Venezuelan couple who is in the country legally, on grounds that they’re TdA members, a federal judge has ordered them to be released Friday.
U.S. District Judge David Briones, a Clinton appointee, also barred the administration from removing anyone under the Alien Enemies Act in the Western District of Texas without giving them 21 days notice.
