U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Mike Waltz told Reuters that the U.S. would begin making payments toward the billions of dollars it owes to the United Nations.
How Trump and Mamdani Found Common Ground
“When Mayor Zohran Mamdani met President Donald Trump in the Oval Office last fall, the 34-year-old democratic socialist steered their private conversation toward an unlikely subject: New York City zoning laws,” Politico reports.
“It wasn’t idle policy chatter. The city’s labyrinthine land-use approval process has long been a personal fixation for the Queens-born president — a grievance that dates back decades to his days as a New York real estate developer. For Mamdani, who entered the meeting as a liberal villain to the right and a frequent Trump antagonist, it proved a rare point of resonance.”
“Trump became animated as Mamdani described how the system slows housing construction, telling the mayor he had wanted it overhauled for years, according to a person with direct knowledge of the meeting.”
Ghislaine Maxwell’s Bombshell Filing
Dina Doll: “Buried in a footnote of Ghislaine Maxwell’s court filing, she makes the bombshell claim that there twenty-five accomplices of Jeffrey Epstein entered into secret settlements and that there are four unnamed employee co-conspirators of Epstein.”
“The fact is, Maxwell is no longer content with the conditions of her confinement. She has tasted a glimpse of freedom and appears determined to push for more. After losing her appeal to the Supreme Court, she filed a habeas corpus petition. This is the legal equivalent of a last resort. It asks a court to overturn a conviction on the grounds that it is so fundamentally unfair or unconstitutional that it cannot stand, even after all other appellate avenues have been exhausted.”
“In her petition, Maxwell alleges that twenty-five accomplices of Epstein entered into secret agreements with Epstein survivors through their lawyers. She also asserts that four employees of Epstein were co-conspirators but were never charged. Maxwell does not stop there. She specifically names two men closely associated with both Epstein and Donald Trump: Leon Black and Leslie Wexner.”
“When you piece it altogether Maxwell’s court filling starts looking less like a plea to a Judge but a pardon plea to Trump.”
Bonus Quote of the Day
“I am, by the way, the least racist president you’ve had in a long time, as far as I’m concerned.”
President Trump, speaking to reporters.
James Comer Warns Clintons Won’t Want Public Hearings
Punchbowl News: “Hillary Clinton will sit for a private deposition on Feb. 26, and Bill Clinton will follow a day later.”
“The Clintons are still pushing for public hearings. Comer, for his part, told me he’s happy to hold public hearings at a later date. But he insisted that private depositions are more substantive and suggested that after the private depositions, the Clintons won’t have any desire to appear in public.”
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Quote of the Day
“You can kiss the midterms goodbye.”
— Former Trump Chief of Staff Mick Mulvaney, on NewsNation, after President Trump shared a racist post of the Obamas.
Exchange of the Day
President Trump spoke to reporters on Air Force One:
REPORTER: The vice president got booed during the opening ceremony. What do you make of that frosty reception?
TRUMP: That’s surprising because people like him. Well, I mean, he is in a foreign country, you know, in all fairness. He doesn’t get booed in this country.
Team USA Booed at Italy’s Winter Olympics
Wall Street Journal: “In an unmistakable sign of Europe’s rapidly dimming view on America, the U.S. delegation entered the San Siro stadium here on Friday night to a chorus of boos and disapproving whistles from the international crowd of more than 65,000. The jeering only intensified when Vice President JD Vance appeared on the big screen during Team USA’s arrival.”
“The only other team to receive similar treatment was Israel.”
State Department Removes X Posts
“The State Department is removing all posts on its public accounts on the social media platform X made before President Trump returned to office on Jan. 20, 2025,” NPR reports.
“The posts will be internally archived but will no longer be on public view.”
Trump’s Calls to ‘Nationalize’ Voting Have Raised Fears
“President Trump has repeatedly suggested that he wants the Republican-led federal government to ‘nationalize’ or ‘take over’ the running of elections,” the New York Times reports.
“His position is at odds with the Constitution, which leaves the administration of elections to the states.”
“Mr. Trump’s remarks have raised alarms among election officials in both parties, who cite his attempt to overturn his 2020 defeat, his castigation of American elections and his administration’s attempts to involve itself more in voting matters. The latest efforts come as Republican worries grow about defending their majorities in Congress. White House officials contend that Mr. Trump is referring to federal legislation and is simply concerned about the safety and security of elections.”
Justice Department Struggles to Recruit Prosecutors
New York Times: “The intermingling of law enforcement and political goals has made the department, long a magnet for platinum legal talent, an unappealing landing spot.”
“The number of applications is down significantly from previous years, officials said, even as Trump loyalists have publicized vacancies through official and unconventional channels. Some of those applying are generally not as qualified as those who sought the position in the recent past.”
Trump’s Redistricting Plan Is Falling Short
“President Trump’s effort to push Republican state lawmakers to create more GOP-leaning House districts is on track to yield far fewer gains than expected, the latest sign that his party’s majority is at risk in this year’s elections,” the Wall Street Journal reports.
“Trump has been pressuring Republican-led states to redraw the boundaries of House seats now, rather than waiting for the next census, in an attempt to hold off the gains that the party out of power usually makes in midterm elections. But a Supreme Court ruling this week makes it likely that the political sea wall the president has tried to build will be weaker than his allies had hoped for, and Democrats’ surprise showing in a Jan. 31 Texas legislative race suggests a Democratic wave could be growing stronger after the party also won major races late last year.”
Trump Won’t Apologize for Racist Post
“President Donald Trump declined to apologize for sharing a social media video that depicted Barack and Michelle Obama as apes, saying he did not realize the image of the former president and first lady was tacked on to the end of the clip,” the Washington Post reports.
Said Trump: “No, I didn’t make a mistake. I look at a lot of — thousands of things. And I looked at the beginning of it. It was fine.”
Summing Up the Redistricting Wars
Lutnick and Epstein Were in Business Together
“U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick has said he had ‘limited interactions’ with Jeffrey Epstein, but documents show they were in business together as recently as 2014,” CBS News reports.
“Lutnick and Epstein each signed on behalf of limited liability companies that agreed on Dec. 28, 2012, to acquire stakes in a now-shuttered advertising technology company called Adfin, documents released among the so-called Epstein files show.”
Hegseth Says Pentagon Will Cut Ties With Harvard
“Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said on Friday that the Defense Department would sever its academic ties with Harvard University, the latest broadside by the Trump administration in its pressure campaign to force the university to cut a deal with the government,” the New York Times reports.
Trump Took Down Racist Post After Call with Tim Scott
“President Trump called Sen. Tim Scott on Friday after the South Carolina Republican publicly urged the president to remove a reposted video depicting former President Barack Obama and former first lady Michelle Obama as apes,” CBS News reports.
“During the conversation, Mr. Trump told Scott, who is chairman of the National Republican Senatorial Committee, that the repost was a staffer’s mistake and said he would take it down.”
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