The Full Belmonte, 5/2/2025
Trump’s budget asks Congress for unprecedented federal funding cuts
05/02/2025 10:57 AM EDT
“President Donald Trump is seeking massive funding cuts across the federal government, unveiling a budget blueprint asking Congress to slash the nation’s overall spending on non-defense programs by more than $163 billion.
The proposal released Friday pressures Republican lawmakers to cleave more than 20 percent from federal coffers Trump has already been freezing without their approval since Inauguration Day. Congress isn’t accustomed to cutting anywhere near what Trump is proposing, amplifying tension between the White House and congressional Republicans as GOP leaders work to fund the government before the Sept. 30 shutdown deadline.
Trump’s budget asks for dramatic reductions to key environmental, energy, education and foreign aid programs for the fiscal year that starts in October, as well as the gutting of hundreds of millions of dollars in grants and other projects that the White House has deemed ‘wasteful.’ In some cases, the administration is calling for the elimination of entire agencies.”
Read the latest at POLITICO
Trump budget slashes domestic programs
President Trump greets legendary former Alabama football coach Nick Saban last night during a commencement appearance in Tuscaloosa, Ala. Photo: Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images
“President Trump will lob his FY 2026 budget request at Congress today, calling for deep cuts in foreign aid and renewable energy and increased spending for the border and national security, Axios' Hans Nichols reports.
Why it matters: In size and scope, Trump's budget amounts to another declaration of war on the status quo — and the priorities and programs that animate the Democratic Party.
It aims to reduce discretionary non-defense spending — which doesn't include Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid — by $163 billion from this year.
In total, for non-defense programs that need to be reauthorized every year, the Office of Management and Budget wants to allocate $557 billion for the next fiscal year.
That represents a 22.6% cut, according to Wall Street Journal, which first reported some of the budget numbers (gift link).
For national security spending, Trump will ask for a record $1.01 trillion, for a whopping 13% increase, according to Bloomberg.
Funding for EPA, the Department of Education and what was known as the U.S. Agency for International Development will be starkly reduced.
Trump is also taking aim at federal grants that were authorized during the Biden administration, including those for ‘environmental justice’ renewable energy projects.
Trump rolls tide last night at a University of Alabama commencement event in Tuscaloosa, Ala. Photo: Elijah Nouvelage/AFP via Getty Images
Breaking: President Trump signed an executive order last night that's designed to cut funding to NPR and PBS, Axios' Rebecca Falconer reports.
The order calls the two biggest public broadcasters in the U.S. "biased" and directs the Corporation for Public Broadcasting to "cease direct funding."
An NPR statement says: ‘Public radio serves 99% of the population over the air, counters the growth of local news deserts across the country, and, in some cases, may be a community's only source of daily, local news from journalists who live in and know their communities.’” [Axios]
David Degner for The New York Times
Trump Renews Threat to Revoke Harvard’s Tax-Exempt Status
“President Trump said on his social media site, ‘It’s what they deserve!’ It was not immediately clear if the I.R.S. was in fact moving forward with a change.”
Follow live updates at New York Times
Trump’s use of Alien Enemies Act for swift deportations is illegal, Trump-appointed judge rules
05/01/2025 12:14 PM EDT
“President Donald Trump’s invocation of a wartime power to summarily deport Venezuelan nationals to El Salvador was “unlawful,” a federal judge ruled Thursday, blocking the administration from further deportations under the Alien Enemies Act of 1798.
The decision from U.S. District Judge Fernando Rodriguez, Jr., a Trump appointee, is the latest sharp rebuke to one of Trump’s most aggressive and high-profile efforts to quickly carry out deportations with little or no due process.”
Read the latest at POLITICO
1 big thing: Waltz's new gig
Trump, Vance, Hegseth and Waltz (foreground) in the Oval Office. Photo: Andrew Harnik/Getty Images
“Mike Waltz has been a dead man walking in the White House for the past month, and the outgoing national security adviser started to act like it, Trump administration sources tell Axios' Marc Caputo and Barak Ravid.
But instead of outright firing him, President Trump nominated him for United Nations ambassador. He asked Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-N.Y.) to withdraw her nomination for the role to preserve the House's slim GOP majority.
The big picture: Signalgate badly damaged Waltz, but it wasn't his only problem. He got on the wrong side of everyone from conspiracy theorist Laura Loomer to White House chief of staff Susie Wiles.
Behind the scenes: Waltz didn't work as well with other Cabinet and White House officials as was hoped.
On a trip to Greenland in March, Vice President Vance counseled him about ‘working more collaboratively,’ a senior White House official told Axios at the time.
The former Florida congressman and Green Beret also treated Wiles with a dismissive attitude, two officials said.
‘He treated her like staff and didn't realize he's the staff, she's the embodiment of the president,’ one of them said. ‘Susie is a deeply loyal person and the disrespect was made all the worse because it was disloyal.’
Screenshot: @realDonaldTrump/Truth Social
Then came Loomer, the social media influencer who has crusaded against what she claims are ‘disloyal’ people and ‘neocons’ who never should have been hired in Trump 2.0.
In a meeting with Trump a month ago, Loomer urged him to fire some of the staffers Waltz had appointed, and shared an old video of Waltz criticizing Trump years ago.
‘When you stack everything on Waltz, he just couldn't survive. Laura Loomer gets a confirmed kill,’ an administration adviser familiar with the discussions said.
The intrigue: In recent days, Wiles began collecting names to replace Waltz but kept the process and discussions strictly under wraps.
Trump envoy Steve Witkoff has been floated in some reports but isn't interested in the job, a source familiar told Axios.
Trump announced Waltz's new gig on Truth Social, saying Waltz had ‘worked hard to put our Nation's Interests first.’
Secretary of State Marco Rubio will serve as interim national security adviser — underscoring his growing importance to Trump.”
Go deeper. [Axios]
Bad News for Pete Hegseth as Pentagon Signal Probe Widens
“The Pentagon inspector general has reportedly expanded an investigation into Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s use of the encrypted messaging app Signal. Citing a congressional aide and a source familiar with the inquiry, The Wall Street Journal reported Thursday that acting Inspector General Steven Stebbins plans to widen his investigation to include a second Signal chat Hegseth made that included his wife, brother, and personal lawyer. Stebbins initially announced the launch of the investigation last month, and stated it would examine a Signal group chat Hegseth and other top officials were a part of. That chat became public after then-National Security Adviser Mike Waltz accidentally added Jeffrey Goldberg, the editor-in-chief of The Atlantic. The inquiry will now include a probe into the second group chat as well, and could pose trouble for Hegseth—who has repeatedly denied ever using the app to send classified information. Crediting their source, WSJ adds that Stebbins is concerned in part about ‘who took information from a government system for highly-classified information and put it into Hegseth’s commercial Signal app.’” [Daily Beast]
Read it at The Wall Street Journal
New data: Who votes
Data: Census Bureau. Map: Alex Fitzpatrick/Axios
“About 65% of voting-age Americans cast a ballot in last November's elections, Axios' Alex Fitzpatrick reports from new U.S. Census Bureau estimates.
That's down from nearly 67% in 2020.
By the numbers: D.C. (79.5%), Minnesota (75.9%) and Oregon (75.3%) had the highest turnout.
Arkansas (52.8%), Texas (57.9%) and Louisiana (58%) had the lowest.” [Axios]
1 big thing: Golden Age ... for Trumps
Illustration: Sarah Grillo/Axios
“President Trump warned American families this week that they may have to make do with fewer — and more expensive — holiday toys.
But for Trump's own inner circle, a veritable Golden Age is well underway, Axios' Zachary Basu writes.
Why it matters: Most presidents try to avoid even the appearance of using the office or public policy for personal enrichment. But Trump has blended official power and personal business in unprecedented ways — often in plain sight.
What's happening: Trump, his sons and their associates have launched a wave of high-dollar projects.
World Liberty Financial: The Trump-backed crypto venture has raised more than $550 million. Trump himself serves as the company's ‘Chief Crypto Advocate,’ while his administration pursues policies — including a federal crypto reserve — that have boosted the value of assets held by the firm.
OFFICIAL TRUMP: The president's meme coin surged more than 60% last week after its website advertised an ‘intimate private dinner’ with Trump for the top 220 coin holders — plus a ‘special VIP’ reception and White House tour for the top 25. The website later scrubbed references to the ‘White House.’
Executive Branch: Donald Trump Jr. and his business partners are launching an exclusive D.C. club with a $500,000 membership fee, pitched as a private hangout for donors and business moguls to rub shoulders with top Trump officials.
Foreign deals: At least 19 foreign Trump-branded projects will be in development over the next four years, according to ethics watchdog CREW. Just this week, the Trump Organization announced a deal to build a luxury golf resort in Qatar. Trump, whose first foreign visit will be to Saudi Arabia, also hosted a Saudi-backed LIV golf tournament at his Doral club in Florida earlier this month.
Merchandise: The Trump Organization is selling ‘Trump 2028’ hats, a nod to the president's musings about an unconstitutional third term. Trump hawked Bibles, sneakers, perfume and trading cards during the 2024 campaign, and his political operation continues to rely on MAGA merchandise to raise funds.
Corporate boards: Dominari Holdings, a small public financial services company with headquarters in New York's Trump Tower, saw its stock price surge more than 1,200% in about six weeks after Trump Jr. and Eric Trump joined its advisory board and took equity stakes worth millions. Trump Jr. also has been named to the board of a digital firearms retailer, called GrabAGun, that's due to go public this summer.
Screenshot from World Liberty Financial's website.
The other side: Allies note that Trump Jr. and Eric Trump have long maintained business careers independent of their father's political office, and say their recent ventures are consistent with that history.” [Axios]
BUSINESS AND ECONOMY
Karl Russell
U.S. Job Growth Remained Strong in April
“Employers added 177,000 jobs in April, a slight downtick in hiring from 185,000 in March.”
Follow live updates at New York Times
“Kohl's CEO was fired after four months in the job over allegations he violated conflict-of-interest standards. The struggling department store chain has had significant turnover in the C-suite as it tries to reinvent itself amid three straight years of sales declines.” Go deeper. [Axios]
TECH
Self-driving trucks go live
Aurora's driverless truck merges into traffic on I-45 in Texas. Photo: Aurora
“Aurora Innovation says it has successfully launched a commercial self-driving trucking service in Texas — a milestone for the autonomous vehicle industry, Axios' Joann Muller writes.
While driverless trucks on the highway may seem scary to some motorists, Aurora and other AV developers say the technology will make roads safer and help bolster a critical sector of the American economy, which often can't find enough drivers.
After four years of testing with humans behind the wheel, Aurora pulled the driver for the first time last Sunday, on a route between Dallas and Houston — with a load of frozen pastries in tow.”
Go deeper. [Axios]
HEALTH AND MEDICINE
US bets $500 million on universal vaccines, WSJ reports
“May 1 (Reuters) - The United States is investing $500 million in a vaccine project, with the goal of making ‘universal’ vaccines that protect against multiple strains of a virus at once, the Wall Street Journal reported on Thursday, citing emails.
The project involves producing vaccines from chemically inactivated whole viruses, reminiscent of how flu vaccines were made decades ago, WSJ said.
Keep up with the latest medical breakthroughs and healthcare trends with the Reuters Health Rounds newsletter. Sign up here.
The move is part of what the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) calls 'Generation Gold Standard', a universal-vaccine technology that represents a shift in funding from COVID-19 projects to studies of more viruses, the paper reported.
The project also includes research on a second universal flu vaccine and universal coronavirus vaccines, according to a HHS statement to the WSJ.
U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr would require all new vaccines to undergo placebo testing, The Washington Post reported late Wednesday.
Kennedy, a former environmental lawyer, is well known as a vaccine sceptic and founded the anti-vaccine group Children's Health Defense, which has sued in state and federal courts over common inoculations, including measles.
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services did not immediately reply to a Reuters request for comment.” [Reuters]
MEDIA
U.S. press freedom hits record low
Data: Reporters Without Borders. Chart: Axios Visuals
“Press freedom in the U.S. has hit a record low, according to the latest World Press Freedom Index, published annually by Reporters Without Borders.
The index now says press freedom in the U.S. is in line with developing countries such as Gambia, Uruguay and Sierra Leone.
The big picture: While physical threats against journalists are often a clear sign of eroding press freedoms, Reporters Without Borders said economic strains on the media are the biggest driver of global decline right now.”
Go deeper. [Axios]
TRANSITIONS
Jill Sobule, Hitmaker Behind ‘I Kissed a Girl,’ Dies in House Fire
“Jill Sobule, the iconic singer behind the 1995 anthem “I Kissed a Girl,” has died. She was 66. Her manager, John Porter, confirmed to TMZ that she died Thursday in a house fire in Minneapolis, Minnesota. ‘Jill Sobule was a force of nature and human rights advocate whose music is woven into our culture,’ Porter said in a statement shared by the outlet. ‘I was having so much fun working with her. I lost a client & a friend today. I hope her music, memory, & legacy continue to live on and inspire others.’ Throughout her career, Sobule released 12 albums and even created an off-Broadway musical in 2022, but it was her 1995 single that propelled her to stardom. The track is widely considered to be the first openly queer-themed song to chart on the Billboard Top 20, per Variety. Sobule is survived by her brother and sister-in-law, James and Mary Ellen Sobule, as well as her nephews, Ian Matthew and Robert, and Robert’s wife Irina.” [Daily Beast]
Read it at TMZ