A senior White House official told NBC News that President Donald Trump fired at least 12 federal inspectors general on Friday. The Justice Department and Homeland Security inspectors general were unaffected by the action. The official responded that the president was trying to get rid of aspects of the previous Biden administration that didn't fit with the new Trump administration when asked why the inspectors general were sacked. The official stated, "We're clearing out everything that doesn't work for us and moving forward." Given that Congress reinforced safeguards against arbitrary terminations for inspectors general in its 2022 amendment to the Inspector General Act, the legal basis for the firings is unclear. The statute stipulates that the White House must provide Congress 30 days'...

Washington The Trump administration's intentions to deport immigrants to Mexico were at least temporarily thwarted Thursday when Mexico refused to allow a U.S. military plane to land, according to two U.S. defense officials and a third person with knowledge of the matter. According to the sources, deportees were flown out of the United States Thursday night on two Air Force C-17s headed for Guatemala, each carrying roughly 80 passengers. Mexico was the destination of the third trip, which never got off. The reason Mexico blocked the aircraft was not immediately apparent, but since President Donald Trump's victory in the November election, tensions have increased between the United States and Mexico, longtime allies and neighbors. Trump has threatened to impose 25% universal taxes on Mexi...

Washington President Donald Trump received an invitation from House Speaker Mike Johnson on Saturday to speak to Congress in March. This would be Trump's first joint address to Congress during his second term. Johnson requested in the letter that Trump address both houses of Congress "to share your America First vision for our legislative future." "I am eagerly awaiting your response," Johnson, R-La, continued. Usually held only a few times a year, joint sessions or meetings of Congress are used to give the president or other heads of state a chance to speak about their priorities. Former President Joe Biden, former Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu spoke to Congress in three joint sessions last year. Although Johnson's letter made no me...

A 46-year-old man was arrested by West Balm Beach, Florida, police said Saturday after he allegedly threatened to assassinate President Donald Trump on social media. authorities Chief Tony Araujo stated at a press conference on Saturday that authorities were notified on January 19, the day before Trump was sworn in, that a man named Shannon Atkins had posted threats against Trump on Facebook. Araujo described the threats as "violent rhetoric, political views, and his opinion aimed at the president." According to Araujo, Atkins was taken into custody on Friday evening close to his residence in West Palm Beach. He went on to say that three bags of cocaine were purportedly discovered in the suspect's pocket. According to a press release from the West Palm Beach Police Department, Araujo is ch...

Authorities stopped a pair in Oregon from slinking into a Palisades Fire evacuation zone while driving a fire vehicle they bought at auction and wearing fictitious fireman garb. The couple was detained and charged. According to a news release issued by county district attorney Nathan Hochman on Friday, Dustin Nehl, 31, and Jennifer Nehl, 44, were charged with posing as firefighters during the wildfires in Los Angeles County. It's unclear if either has hired legal counsel. According to a news statement from the sheriff's department, the couple was arrested on January 18 after a police patrol unit carrying firefighters passed a fire truck that didn't seem to be authentic. The fire vehicle tried to enter an evacuation area but was stopped by deputies. According to the sheriff's department, th...

The Central Intelligence Agency stated on Saturday that it had changed its earlier conclusions and that it was likely the Covid-19 virus was leaked from a Chinese laboratory before to the outbreak of a worldwide pandemic. However, the agency expressed a lack of confidence in its assessment. "Based on the available body of reporting, CIA evaluates with low confidence that a research-related origin of the COVID-19 pandemic is more likely than a natural origin," a CIA spokesperson stated in a statement. CIA continues to believe that the COVID-19 pandemic's natural genesis and research-related possibilities are still likely. "The agency has low confidence in this judgment and will continue to evaluate any new intelligence reporting or relevant information," the statement continued. The CIA ha...

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has announced that Kia is recalling over 80,000 of its Niro cars due to a problem that may impair the vehicles' airbags and seat belts. In a report submitted to the NHTSA, the automaker stated that frequent alterations to the front passenger seat might seriously jeopardize safety by causing damage to the wiring underneath the seat that regulates vital components like the airbag and seat belts. According to the analysis, this could increase the risk of damage by preventing airbags from deploying correctly in a collision, deploying abruptly, or failing to switch off for young passengers. 80,255 Niro, Niro EV, and Niro Plug-in Hybrid cars with manual front passenger seats that were produced between August 10, 2022, and December 13, 20...

January 25, Frankfurt For the second time in as many weeks, Elon Musk spoke out in favor of the far-right party during a surprise appearance at the AfD (Alternative fuer Deutschland) election campaign rally in Halle, eastern Germany, on Saturday. Alongside party head Alice Weidel, Musk gave a live video link speech to a crowd of 4,500 people about safeguarding the German people and preserving German culture. Musk stated that it is beneficial to be proud of German culture and values and to avoid losing them due to multiculturalism that dilutes everything. The U.S. billionaire caused a stir last week when, during the inauguration celebrations for U.S. President Donald Trump, he made a gesture that was compared online to a Nazi salute. In reference to Germany's Nazi past, he stated on Satu...

Tennessee's Nashville. In a press release, tire manufacturer Bridgestone Americas said it was closing its truck and bus radial tire plant in LaVergne, Tennessee, and laying off 700 employees. According to Bridgestone, the closure will boost the company's competitiveness and help it maximize its commercial footprint. Bridgestone also announced additional personnel cutbacks in U.S. corporate, sales, and operations, as well as capacity and workforce reductions at its farm tire factory in Des Moines, Iowa. It intends to cut production capacity and personnel in Brazil and Argentina in Latin America. According to an email from company spokesperson Emily Weaver, "force reductions are impacting our corporate, sales, and operations in the Americas where a realignment of staffing levels is needed...