The chaos of Trump's second week in office was a competitive follow-up to his first. After the president called for a halt on federal aid, confusion and outrage were quick to follow, leading the Office of Management and Budget to rescind its memo and clarify that some programs, such as Medicare, wouldn't be affected. The freeze has been temporarily blocked in 22 states and Washington, D.C., by a federal judge. One GOP lawmaker sought to defend the funding halt by suggesting kids who can't afford lunch just get a job.
Following a midair plane collision Wednesday night that killed 67 people, the president scapegoated Democrats and diversity initiatives for the crash in the first briefing of his new term. Vice President JD Vance, Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth and Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy then took turns cosigning Trump's remarks from the lectern. The apathy was only just getting started. This week also saw the Trump administration instruct officials to prepare to hold tens of thousands of migrants at Guantanamo Bay, make a proposal to "clean out" Gaza, fire FBI leaders and DOJ prosecutors who worked on Jan. 6 cases, demand the CDC cut off communications with WHO and announce the start of higher tariff rates and. The president will also open up the White House to Netanyahu this week. What hasn't the president done this week? Lower the prices of eggs.
The DNC has elected its new chairperson, Ken Martin. A slate of Trump's more controversial Cabinet nominees faced confirmation hearings last week. Robert F. Kennedy Jr., Kash Patel and Tulsi Gabbard were all grilled by Senate Democrats (and a few Republicans) over questionable past remarks and their plans for the agencies Trump wants them to lead. Elsewhere in Congress, Rep. Andy Ogles, who was the subject of an FBI probe over his campaign finances, is now no longer under federal investigation. Just last week, the congressman proposed a long-shot bill that would allow Trump to run for a third term. Meanwhile, former U.S. Sen. Bob Menendez, D-N.J., was sentenced to 11 years in prison following his federal corruption conviction. And as Black History Month kicks off, the Pentagon has said it won't be recognizing the cultural celebration (or any others, including Pride or Holocaust Remembrance Day) in compliance with Trump's push to eliminate "diversity" from the federal government.
Missed something? Don't worry. Here are our select columns and videos from the week. And don't forget to check out MSNBC.com for more.
