All posts tagged "nbc news"

'This is wrong': MAGA sheriffs furious as Trump admin poaches deputies to beef up ICE

Local law police departments and sheriff's offices across the country are being targeted by the Trump administration as ICE scrambles to meet its sky-high recruitment quotas, NBC News reported.

"As it attempts to hire 10,000 new ICE agents, the Trump Administration this week tried recruiting local law enforcement officers away from sheriff’s offices in multiple states, alienating some allies along the way," correspondent Jesse Kirsch posted to X on Thursday.

The Pinellas County Sheriff's Office near Tampa, Florida, told NBC News, “ICE actively trying to use our partnership to recruit our personnel is wrong and we have expressed our concern to ICE leadership." Kirsch noted that Pinellas County Sheriff Bob Gualtieri "is an elected Republican who has been supportive of President Trump."

Sheriff's offices in other states, including Georgia, Texas, and Florida, confirmed to NBC News that the administration has reached out via email to try to recruit deputies in their departments.

A Florida police chief spoke to NBC News on condition of anonymity, claiming that the ICE effort will exacerbate hiring challenges currently faced by local departments.

“Now you know why everybody’s so p-----," the chief said.

When asked about their recruitment efforts, a senior DHS official told NBC News, “ICE is recruiting law enforcement, veterans, and other patriots who want to serve their country and help remove gang members, child pedophiles, murderers, terrorists, and drug traffickers. This includes local law enforcement, veterans, and our 287(g) partners who have already been trained and have valuable law enforcement experience."

According to the ICE website, the 287(g) program trains local law enforcement agencies "to enforce certain aspects of U.S. immigration law" to protect their communities "from potentially dangerous criminal aliens."

At least one sheriff told NBC News he was "100% supportive" of the federal government's recruitment efforts.

"I think if someone wants to better their life, better their career… there's nothing better than the US government to go out and have a successful career,” Sheriff Thaddeus C. Cleveland with Terrell County, TX, told NBC News.

'Didn't even know': GOP lawmakers talk repeal after being shocked by Big Beautiful Bill provision

Some Republican lawmakers are starting to regret voting for President Donald Trump's megabill now that they're hearing about some of its provisions for the very first time, NBC News reported.

Sahil Kapur, NBC News senior national political reporter, said one of the problematic provisions is a "tax hike on gamblers" that one professional sports better called "potentially catastrophic for the industry."

The clause "would reduce the tax deduction on wagering losses from 100% to 90% starting in 2026," Kapur said in a report for Politics Now.

"Long story short, gamblers could be stuck with a tax bill even if they have zero net winnings in a year."

Kapur said several lawmakers who voted for the legislation now want to repeal it.

"That includes the House's top tax writer, Congressman Jason Smith (R-MO), who told me this tax hike is a mistake by the Senate and that it needs to be undone," Kapur said.

In addition, Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) called the provision "unfair" and claimed that "most Republicans didn't even know this was in the bill when they voted to pass it," according to the report.

The Senate passed its final version of Trump's 2026 budget legislation at the beginning of July. The vote was 50-50, with Vice President JD Vance breaking the tie.

Republican senators who voted against the bill were Thom Tillis (R-NC), Rand Paul (R-KY), and Susan Collins (R-ME).

Watch the clip below via NBC News.

Furious family attacks Trump admin for ignoring outbreak that nearly killed son

A family railed against health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and his "Make America Healthy Again" movement on MSNBC Wednesday after their 10-year-old nearly died from an E. coli infection after consuming contaminated food.

NBC News revealed last month that 89 people across 15 states were sickened in an E. coli outbreak due to romaine lettuce in November, but the Food and Drug Administration — under the auspices of Kennedy — closed its investigation in February and never disclosed vital information to the public.

“The FDA should still do its job and let the American taxpayers know exactly who's at fault," Colton George's father, Chris George, told MSNBC's Katy Tur. "That way we can know, and the American people can know."

Tur added, “And you can know to be a little bit careful and...other growers can know to be extra careful so they're not put in the same position."

EXCLUSIVE: Trump accused of new grift that puts Qatari plane in shade

Tur continued, "You made a point of calling out Make America Healthy Again and I want to understand why it was important for you, Chris, to put Make America Healthy Again, side-by-side with what happened with your son?”

“I mean, I watched the news and I see, you know, stuff with taking food coloring out of cereal, and stuff like that," George said of Kennedy's recent campaign. "I'm sure that is bad for kids, but E. coli is even worse."

"I haven't heard of food dye that I know of injuring anybody. Cereal's been eaten forever. Lettuce gets eaten and consumed every single day. Therefore, you know, it's deadly for old people and kids, and, thankfully, Colton survived this. Like I said, I just think the FDA needs to do its job and come out and tell us who it was, whether there's romaine lettuce still on the shelf or not."

Colton called the experience "very scary,” adding that for "the first three days, they said it was most likely going to be deadly.”

The FDA still has not released the name of the company that produced the contaminated lettuce.

You can watch the full interview below or here.

- YouTubeyoutu.be

'Multiple standing ovations': Speaker Johnson ridiculed for fawning over Trump meeting

Speaker Mike Johnson mostly stood by and nodded as President Donald Trump pitched his spending bill to reporters on Capitol Hill Tuesday, but when he did speak, his praise of Trump was effusive.

"I think this was a tremendous session — you might want to say something," Trump prompted Johnson after the president met with Republican lawmakers.

"It was a great meeting, the party was unified, the House Republican Conference is excited — multiple standing ovations, they love this president, and everybody back home loves what he's doing. It's historic," Johnson said.

EXCLUSIVE: Trump accused of new grift that puts Qatari plane in shade

On X, journalist Aaron Rupar commented, "Mike Johnson goes full North Korean and claims that House Republicans gave Trump 'multiple standing ovations' this morning."

The account of @LucasSa56947288 posted a gif of a North Korean news anchor under Rupar's post, while @ChidiNwatu posted, "The groveling is next level. Even North Korea would be jealous."

NBC News's Gabe Gutierrez seemed to confirm at least one standing ovation.

"He's right now speaking to the Republican conference behind closed doors," Gutierrez said. "We're just getting some video of the ovation that he got as he entered the room. And the president is also saying that he does not expect there to be any meaningful cuts to Medicaid in this one big, beautiful bill that he's touting."

Multiple Trump flip-flops leave House GOP facing 'political blowback': report

House Republicans figuring out how to pay for Donald Trump's "big, beautiful" spending bill are in a bind over whether the president will flip-flop on cutting entitlements, according to The New York Times.

So far, Trump has repeatedly claimed, “We’re not cutting Medicaid, we’re not cutting Medicare, and we’re not cutting Social Security."

He told NBC News last weekend that he would veto the bill “if they were cutting” Medicaid. “But they’re not cutting it. They’re looking at fraud, waste and abuse. And nobody minds that.”

Meddling with entitlements is considered the untouchable "third rail" of politics, but Republican lawmakers know from experience that Trump is liable to change course in an instant.

EXCLUSIVE: Breastfeeding mom of US citizen sues Kristi Noem after being grabbed by ICE

"Mr. Trump is well known for abruptly changing his mind on major issues once his party has staked out a position, leaving Republican leaders and their rank-and-file members uncertain of where he might end up and whether they could find themselves locked into an untenable political position," The Times reported. "They are keenly aware of the potential political blowback that could come from slashing the government program that provides health coverage to tens of millions of Americans."

On another major issue to pay for the bill, hiking taxes on the wealthiest Americans, Trump posted ambiguously to social media Friday that "even a ‘TINY’ tax increase for the RICH” would give Democrats ammunition to use in the upcoming midterm elections. “In any event, Republicans should probably not do it, but I’m OK if they do!!!”

House Speaker Mike Johnson, who has vowed to pass the spending bill by the July 4 deadline, called the balancing act, "a sensitive thing."

He told reporters Thursday, “Look, our true and honest intention is to ensure that every Medicaid beneficiary who is in that traditional community of folks — you’re talking about young pregnant mothers and young single mothers and the elderly and disabled — those folks are covered, and no one loses their coverage.”

Read The New York Times article here.

'You're hired': Democratic governors implement initiatives to lure fired federal workers

Federal workers fired by Elon Musk's Department of Government Efficiency may find their professional futures lay in blue states where Democratic governors are rolling out the welcome mat, NBC News reported.

"In light of the thousands of federal job cuts doled out by President Donald Trump and billionaire adviser Elon Musk via the Department of Government Efficiency, a growing number of governors, mostly Democrats, have begun trying to woo those employees to apply for state government jobs. Others have promoted private sector opportunities and other resources available for those who are newly in the job market," wrote reporter Adam Edelman.

New York Gov. Kathy Hochul (D) dubbed the effort the "You're Hired" initiative. Her office put together a job board of open New York state positions, NBC reported, and she announced in a video, "The federal government might say, ‘You’re fired,’ but here in New York, we say, ‘You’re hired.' We love federal workers. Whatever your skills, we value public service.”

ALSO READ: 'Gotta be kidding': Jim Jordan scrambles as he's confronted over Musk 'double standard'

Hawaii Gov. Josh Green (D) signed an executive order last week for an "expedited hiring process for qualified federal workers." NBC reported, "The effort aims to provide such candidates who’ve applied for Hawaii jobs with a conditional job offer within two weeks of their application submission."

Other blue states have launched programs "designed to provide them with resources to ease their unemployment," NBC reported.

At least one Republican governor has stepped up, according to the report. Although Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin (R) has praised DOGE efforts to cut government waste, he launched a website called the “Federal Worker Resource Bundle,” with information about "applying for unemployment benefits, preparing for a job search, and understanding health care options."

"Come experience those powerful words of 'you are hired,'" Youngkin said at a news conference.

The New Yorker reported that "some 30,000 federal workers have been given notice since Elon Musk’s DOGE began its work in January, of a workforce of 2 million." Musk has said DOGE is aiming to cut $2 trillion from the federal budget.

Read the NBC News report here.

'Got your back': Defiance hits Musk as only 1 official tells staff to respond to email

Some federal officials are reminding their employees that Elon Musk is not their boss and they don't have to answer to him, according to new reporting in Mother Jones.

The directive from several department heads came after Musk and the Office of Personnel Management sent an email to an unknown number of federal employees with the subject line: "What did you do last week?" The email, sent Saturday, advised the employees to "reply to this email with approx. 5 bullets of what you accomplished last week and cc your manager."

Musk also posted to X, "Consistent with President @realDonaldTrump’s instructions, all federal employees will shortly receive an email requesting to understand what they got done last week. Failure to respond will be taken as a resignation."

But not all managers are falling in line behind Musk, reported Julianne McShane with Mother Jones.

ALSO READ: 'Gotta be kidding': Jim Jordan scrambles as he's confronted over Musk 'double standard'

"The biggest surprise may have been the federal officials—including a couple of Trump loyalists—who sought to guard their own turf from Musk, even by quickly telling their staff to essentially ignore the email, because Musk is not their boss," she wrote.

One of those "Trump loyalists" is newly-confirmed FBI Director Kash Patel, who wrote to employees Saturday night telling them to "please pause any responses" to the email. Patel added, "The FBI...will conduct reviews in accordance with FBI procedures."

Ed Martin, Interim U.S. attorney for the District of Columbia, who was appointed by Trump to run the RNC's 2024 platform committee, advised his employees to “be general” in their responses and promised to protect them, CNN reported. Martin wrote, “If anyone gives you problems, I’ve got your back."

In addition, NBC reported, the acting under-secretary of management at the State Department told his staff that the department itself would handle the response. "No employee is obligated to report their activities outside of their Department chain of command,” he wrote.

McShane wrote, "So far, it seems the only official who has publicly ordered employees to comply was Secret Service Director Sean Curran, who told employees that the email 'requires your response,' according to CNN. Spokespeople for the White House and the Office of Personnel Management did not immediately respond to questions."

Read the Mother Jones article here.

Trump-nominated US attorney launches investigation into Schumer to 'protect' DOGE

A Trump-nominated D.C. prosecutor announced Wednesday that he's investigating Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-NY) and anyone who threatens federal employees like Elon Musk's Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE).

NBC News' Ryan Reilly reported to BlueSky that "this morning, Interim U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia Ed Martin — a 'stop the steal' organizer and Jan. 6 defendant advocate — sent an email titled 'Operation Whirlwind' in which he said he's personally launched an investigation into Sen. Chuck Schumer."

Reilly posted a screenshot of Martin's email to colleagues that described "despicable" threats being received by DOGE workers and other Trump administration officials, including Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth.

In addition, "Our office has been flooded with threats against those who helped free the January 6th prisoners," Martin wrote.

ALSO READ: 'Gotta be kidding': Jim Jordan scrambles as he's confronted over Musk 'double standard'

He continued, "We are the DC US Attorney's Office; we are the guardians of federal workers. You and I must do whatever possible to assure government work is safe for all involved. We must protect our cops, our prosecutors, our DOGE workers, the President, and all other government employees from threats against our nation.”

In one of the "most abhorrent examples," Martin detailed threats allegedly made by Schumer against conservative Supreme Court justices. He quoted Schumer as saying in a speech, "I want to tell you Gorsuch. I want to tell you Kavanaugh. You have released the whirlwind and you will pay the price. You won't know what hit you if you go forward with these awful decisions."

Martin wrote, "I reached out to Schumer to investigate his threats," but wrote that he had not received a response.

"Let me be clear," Martin wrote. "We will protect each other. We will protect DOGE. We will protect our judges and cops. And we will go after the people who threaten federal workers and who use their threats to move others against us. We will hold all of them accountable because, as former President Joe Biden said in 2024, 'No one is above the law.'"

Martin ended the email by asking colleagues "to send any and all threats you see or hear to me."

Read the email on BlueSky below.

"We will protect DOGE." This morning, Interim U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia Ed Martin — a "stop the steal" organizer and Jan. 6 defendant advocate — sent an email titled "Operation Whirlwind" in which he said he's personally launched an investigation into Sen. Chuck Schumer. The text:

[image or embed]
— Ryan J. Reilly “paints a vivid and urgent portrait of… disarray” (@ryanjreilly.com) February 19, 2025 at 10:48 AM

'Collateral damage': Federal worker says Trump's 'cruel' cuts endangered pregnant wife

A foreign service worker accused the Trump administration of putting his pregnant wife and unborn child's lives at risk with the president's “rushed, haphazard and cruel” actions to shut down operations at the U.S. Agency for International Development.

The worker, who goes by "Terry Doe" in court documents, claimed cuts by Elon Musk's Department of Government Efficiency led to the government twice denying his pregnant wife a life-saving medical transport.

Earlier this month Musk announced DOGE was shutting down USAID as part of his effort to cut $2 trillion from the federal budget.

USAID "delivers billions of dollars in humanitarian aid overseas, funding that advocates say provides a critical lifeline to more than 100 countries at a small fraction of the overall federal budget," NBC News reported.

ALSO READ: 'Gotta be kidding': Jim Jordan scrambles as he's confronted over Musk 'double standard'

In an affidavit that's part of a larger court filing, Doe wrote, “Each day has brought a new constellation of suffering. Because of the stress and strain of the constant onslaught by my employer in recent weeks, my wife has repeatedly been in the hospital with a life-threatening condition and stress-related complications.”

NBC News reported, "The worker said the couple was told they must evacuate because the medical complications had placed the mother at high risk for hemorrhaging. But despite twice having received approval for a medical evacuation, the State Department in Washington canceled the transports on Feb. 4 and Feb. 6 with a message stating, 'there is no USAID funding for Medevacs.'"

The report continued that after an extended delay, "the worker’s spouse had begun hemorrhaging and needed emergency hospitalization at their overseas post. She must now remain on bed rest, as they were told it would be too risky to move the mother and unborn child."

Doe maintained, "Our lives are acceptable collateral damage for their political gain."

NBC News said the White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Read the NBC News story here.

Trump's national security adviser confronted with sudden flip on USAID after confirmation

President Donald Trump's national security advisor Mike Waltz was put on the defensive Sunday about a government agency he once supported.

Waltz appeared on "Meet The Press" where host Kristen Welker asked about the impact of Elon Musk's Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) slashing USAID's staff of 10,000 down to mere hundreds.

"It has become incredibly bloated, it has become incredibly top heavy, and it's essentially a series of contracts. If you think the big defense contractors have too much power and too much influence, wait until you dig into the USAID contractors and the subcontractors and the subcontractors and the local contractors," Waltz said. "The president wants action and that's what he's getting."

ALSO READ: 'Making America less safe': Democrats warn of disaster as Trump purges the CIA

Welker continued, "You know...you used to support parts of USAID's mission. As a member of Congress, you sponsored legislation for USAID to expand girls' access to education worldwide, which you said was, quote, 'Essential to our national security.' Is foreign aid vital to the nation's national security?"

"When foreign aid is aligned with U.S objectives and U.S. objectives meet the president's objectives as commander in chief, then it is, but that is not the case," Waltz answered. "Many of these senior aid officials have their own agenda, have gone their own direction, and these programs — many of which are no longer authorized by Congress — just seemed to continue in perpetuity. So, we can talk the entire time about USAID."

Waltz then shifted the conversation to President Trump's "amazing" foreign policy wins since he took office.

"I have a lot of experience about it on the ground, but in these first two weeks, we've had major foreign leaders. We have the Mexicans putting thousands of their troops on the border. The Canadians putting their assets on the border. Panama moving away from Belt and Road. Colombia first refusing to take deportation and then now taking it — and we can go on and on, with the successes of the hostages that the previous administration couldn't get out. President Trump says, 'There's all hell to pay,' and now we have, not only hostages from Hamas reuniting from their family, from Venezuela and from the Taliban, too. So, we've had an amazing two weeks. We can get into the details of foreign assistance, but it badly needs reformed."

Watch the Meet The Press clip via NBC News below or at the link.