signed an executive order Thursday aimed at eliminating the .
On immigration, a federal judge ordered the administration to provide more information about r or make a formal 鈥渟tate secrets鈥� claim. The Justice Department has resisted, accusing the judge of encroaching on the executive branch鈥檚 authority relating to national security and foreign policy. Trump鈥檚 border czar has tallied 40,000 immigration-related arrests since Trump got into office.
Meanwhile, the Trump administration has negotiated held for more than two years by the Taliban.
Here's the Latest:
Small group of protesters greet Alaska Sen. Sullivan at state Capitol
A small group of protesters, holding signs with slogans such as 鈥淧rotect Our Democracy,鈥� lined a hall at the Alaska state Capitol that Republican U.S. Sen. Dan Sullivan had to pass through on his way to deliver annual remarks to a joint session of the state Legislature.
The protesters were largely quiet as Sullivan entered the chambers. They had been cautioned earlier by the House sergeant at arms to keep decorum.
Taylor Beard, of Juneau, was among the group. She said she feels Sullivan鈥檚 loyalties lie with Trump and wanted to see him push back in areas where she believes Trump has exceeded his authorities as president.
Speaking to reporters after his speech, Sullivan said he鈥檚 done town halls before and will again, but he added that when 鈥減eople stand up and they鈥檙e looking for that viral moment and they鈥檙e yelling and screaming,鈥� that drowns out people who want 鈥渃onstructive engagement with their senator.鈥�
White House withdraws executive order targeting law firm
Trump has withdrawn an executive order targeting an international law firm after the firm agreed to review its employment practices and provide the equivalent of $40 million in free legal services to support certain Trump administrative initiatives.
The White House sought to punish the firm of Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison because of the work of one of its former lawyers, Mark Pomerantz, who oversaw an investigation by the Manhattan District Attorney鈥檚 office into Trump鈥檚 finances in between his first and second terms in office.
The White House agreed to withdraw the order against the law firm because of commitments that the firm had made, including that it would not use DEI in its hiring and promotion practices.
Columbia and Barna
rd must hold off on complying with House committee鈥檚 demand for records, judge orders
A federal judge has ordered Columbia University and Barnard College to refrain from complying with a Republican-led House committee鈥檚 demand for student disciplinary records 鈥� for now.
The order followed a lawsuit filed by Mahmoud Khalil and other students who want to block the committee from getting the records. It instructed the schools to hold off until at least next Tuesday after a hearing in the case.
The lawsuit was filed in federal court in Manhattan against the schools, the House Committee on Education and the Workforce and its chair, Michigan Republican Rep. Tim Walberg. It seeks a permanent injunction barring Congress from forcing the schools to provide the records and the universities from complying with the demand.
The committee sent a letter last month demanding that Columbia and Barnard provide the records or risk billions of dollars in federal funding.
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Alpha Phi Alpha asks state attorneys general to fight dismantling of Education Department
Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc. the oldest of the historically Black sororities and fraternities known as the 鈥淒ivine Nine,鈥� condemned President Trump鈥檚 executive order to dismantle the education department and asked state attorneys general to fight the effort.
The fraternity says in a statement the move is 鈥減art of a larger agenda to eliminate educational opportunities for marginalized and underserved students, particularly those who are poor, racially marginalized, and living with disabilities, as well as to dramatically decrease those able to afford and pursue a college education and prevent the enforcement of civil rights and educational equity.鈥�
It called on all its chapter presidents to contact their congressional representatives and senators and said their responses would be listed in an initiative called 鈥淰oteless People is a Hopeless People.鈥�
鈥楽ee you in court鈥�: Executive order to eliminate Education Department faces swift legal challenges
The Trump administration鈥檚 effort to abolish the Education Department through an executive order was quickly met by promises of legal challenges.
Skye Perryman, president of the advocacy group Democracy Forward, promised to sue.
鈥淲e will use every legal tool to ensure that the rights of students, teachers, and families are fully protected,鈥� Perryman said.
Randi Weingarten, president of the American Federation of Teachers, made a similar pledge even before the order was signed.
鈥淪ee you in court,鈥� Weingarten said in a statement Wednesday evening.
To fully abolish the Education Department, Trump would need Congress to act and formally vote to eliminate the cabinet-level agency. Past legislation introduced in both the House and Senate to terminate the department failed to gain much traction.
US cannot deport detained Georgetown scholar until court has a chance to rule, judge orders
A federal judge has ordered immigration officials not to deport a detained Georgetown scholar until the court has a chance to rule.
U.S. District Judge Patricia Tolliver Giles in Alexandria, Virginia, ordered that Badar Khan Suri 鈥渟hall not be removed from the United States unless and until the Court issues a contrary order.鈥�
Suri, a postdoctoral scholar at Georgetown University and citizen of India, was arrested Monday night outside of his Virginia home by officers who identified themselves as Department of Homeland Security agents, according to a legal filing by Suri鈥檚 lawyer.
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Most oppose dismantling the Education Department in recent polls
About 6 in 10 registered voters oppose Trump鈥檚 plan to eliminate the Department of Education, according from March.
Nearly all Democratic voters and about two-thirds of independents were against the move, but only about 2 in 10 Republican voters felt the same way.
An found about 6 in 10 U.S. adults overall opposed proposals to dismantle the department.
Americans have mixed views of the Department of Education, according to polling. They were about evenly split between favorable and unfavorable views in a 2024 poll, with about two-thirds of Republicans having a negative view.
GOP senator says he鈥檒l move to get Congress鈥� OK to shut down Education Department
Sen. Bill Cassidy, who chairs the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, says he will introduce legislation to obtain congressional approval.
鈥淚 agree with President Trump that the Department of Education has failed its mission,鈥� says the GOP senator from Louisiana.
鈥淪ince the Department can only be shut down with congressional approval, I will support the President鈥檚 goals by submitting legislation to accomplish this as soon as possible.鈥�
Cassidy served as an academic physician in the Louisiana State University public hospital system that has always been heavily dependent on federal money.
Education Department will retain control of student loans and Pell grants despite Trump鈥檚 order
Trump鈥檚 order largely dismantling the Department of Education will see the agency shrink dramatically but won鈥檛 affect its management of federal student loans and Pell grants.
The president signed the order surrounded by students, teachers and governors in the White House鈥檚 East Room.
He promised to return education management to individual states, saying that would cost the government less and produce better outcomes.
Trump didn鈥檛 give details on the department still overseeing loans and grants.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said before the event that those duties, and other critical responsibilities like enforcement of civil rights, will remain with the department.
Trump orders a plan to dismantle the Education Department while keeping its core functions
Trump has signed an executive order calling for the dismantling of the U.S. Education Department, advancing a campaign promise to take apart an agency that鈥檚 been a longtime target of conservatives.
Trump has long derided the Education Department as wasteful and polluted by liberal ideology. However, completing its dismantling is most likely impossible without an act of Congress, which created the department in 1979.
The White House says the department would not close completely right now. It is to retain certain critical functions, like managing federal student loans and Pell grants.
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Judge directs Trump administration to explain why deportee flights didn鈥檛 violate court order
U.S. District Judge Jeb Boasberg demanded answers after weekend flights carrying Venezuelan immigrants landed in El Salvador after he temporarily blocked deportations under an 18th century wartime law.
Boasberg had directed the administration to return to the U.S. planes that were already in the air when he ordered the halt.
The administration has resisted the judge鈥檚 request to provide more details about the flights. It鈥檚 called his questions 鈥済rave encroachments on core aspects of absolute and unreviewable Executive Branch authority.鈥�
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US stocks edge lower amid uncertainty
Thursday鈥檚 trading followed signals that the economy for the moment and fresh reminders of the looming impact of .
Wall Street has been for weeks on a ride, as stock prices veer on about what will . Stocks got a after the said interest rates should stay unchanged for now.
And more data Thursday bolstered that view: Slightly last week than economists expected, and both regional manufacturing growth came in stronger than expected.
But Accenture fell sharply amid concerns about which accounted for 17% of the consulting firm鈥檚 North American revenue last fiscal year.
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Federal judge鈥檚 order aims to protect the personal data of millions of Americans
Thursday鈥檚 decision from Judge Ellen Hollander in Maryland also requires 鈥檚 Department of Government Efficiency team to delete any personally identifiable it may have.
Labor unions and retirees asked for the emergency order, saying DOGE鈥檚 鈥渘early unlimited鈥� access violates privacy laws and presents massive information security risks.
The Trump administration says seven people on the 10-member DOGE team inside the Social Security Administration have been granted read-only access to agency systems or personally identifiable information.
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Georgetown scholar鈥檚 congressman says Trump is assaulting freedom of speech
Democratic U.S. Rep. Don Beyer represents the Virginia district where Badar Khan Suri was arrested by masked immigration agents, told his visa had been revoked and flown to a detention facility in Louisiana pending deportation.
Suri, who is married to a U.S. citizen, was accused of 鈥渟preading Hamas propaganda and promoting antisemitism on social media,鈥� a Homeland Security official tweeted.
鈥淭he 鈥檍ustification鈥� given for these violations of Mr. Suri鈥檚 right to due process is another violation of the Constitution: a blatant attack on the First Amendment,鈥� Beyer said in a statement.
A filing by Suri鈥檚 lawyer says federal authorities provided no evidence he鈥檚 committed any crimes.
鈥淭he Trump Administration has openly expressed its intention to weaponize immigration law to punish noncitizens whose views are deemed critical of U.S. policy as it relates to Israel,鈥� attorney Hassan Ahmad wrote.
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Defense lawyers say everyday tattoos got Venezuelan men deported
Some of the accused Venezuelan gang members last weekend and sent to a after Trump invoked were targeted because of everyday tattoos, defense lawyers say in legal filings.
Among those tattoos: A crown over a soccer ball; an eyeball that the lawyers say 鈥渓ooked cool鈥�; flowers.
U.S. officials have said agents did not rely on to identify gang members. But lawyers say tattoos were repeatedly used to argue the men belonged to the gang Tren de Aragua.
While tattoos are central to membership in some Central American gangs, experts say they鈥檙e .
People named in JFK assassination documents aren鈥檛 happy their personal information was released
Sensitive personal information including Social Security numbers was unveiled in the newly unredacted documents
White House officials say the administration will offer credit monitoring to those whose information was disclosed and will screen the records to identify all the Social Security numbers that were released. Officials also say new Social Security numbers will be issued to those affected.
The White House did not respond to questions about why the personal information was unredacted.
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt says 鈥渢he National Archives and the Social Security Administration immediately put together an action plan to proactively help鈥� those affected.
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Taiwan鈥檚 president says defense spending will exceed 3% of GDP in military overhaul. Trump wants more
William Lai Ching-te told the American Chamber of Commerce on Thursday that to face the rising threat from China, his self-governing island will buy more U.S. equipment and expand its military by offering higher pay and lengthening compulsory national service from four months to one year.
U.S. and Taiwanese critics have said Taiwan is not spending enough on its own defense. Taiwan currently spends about 2.45% of its GDP on its military, and relies on the U.S. for much of its cutting-edge weaponry.
Trump has demanded that Taiwan increase defense spending as high as 10% of GDP, a proportion well above what the U.S. spends, to deter China.
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Trump鈥檚 shoot-from-the-lip style backfires in court as litigation challenges his agenda
Nowhere has the president鈥檚 spontaneity complicated his legal positions more than in challenges of Elon Musk鈥檚 efforts to downsize and overhaul the federal government.
The latest example came when a federal judge ruled that Musk likely violated the Constitution by dismantling USAID. Justice Department lawyers and White House officials insist that the billionaire is merely a presidential adviser, not DOGE鈥檚 actual leader.
But Trump has said otherwise 鈥� in speeches, interviews and public remarks 鈥� and Judge Theodore Chuang Chuang quoted him extensively in his decision.
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Amtrak CEO abruptly resigns
Amtrak CEO Stephen Gardner is at the nation鈥檚 passenger railroad.
The leadership change appeared to come down to Amtrak maintaining support from Trump. Gardner鈥檚 statement Wednesday said he鈥檚 stepping down 鈥渢o ensure that Amtrak continues to enjoy the full faith and confidence of this administration.鈥�
Billionaire Elon Musk floated the idea of privatizing Amtrak at a tech conference earlier this month. And, citing sources familiar with the matter, Reuters Wednesday that Gardner was asked to step down at Trump鈥檚 request.
The railroad declined to comment further when reached by the AP Thursday.
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Trump says dollar-backed stablecoins will keep the U.S. greenback as the world鈥檚 dominant reserve currency
Stablecoins are an increasingly popular type of cryptocurrency because their value is tied to other assets such as traditional currencies or gold to reduce volatility.
Trump said in a virtual address to a blockchain forum on Thursday that 鈥渨ith the dollar-backed stablecoins, you鈥檒l help expand the dominance of the U.S. dollar.鈥�
鈥淚t鈥檒l be at the top鈥� for many, many years to come, the president added. 鈥淎nd that鈥檚 where we want to keep it.鈥�
White House reiterates support for Israel as Mideast ceasefire shatters
鈥淭he president made it very clear to Hamas that if they did not release all of the hostages there would be all hell to pay,鈥� press secretary Karoline Leavitt said. 鈥淎nd unfortunately Hamas chose to play games in the media with lives.鈥�
鈥淭his situation, let鈥檚 not forget, is completely the fault of Hamas. When they launched that brutal attack on Israel on October 7th. And the president has made it very clear that he wants all of those hostages to come home. And he fully supports Israel and the IDF and the actions that they鈥檝e taken in recent days.鈥�
Israel resumed heavy bombardment of Gaza on Tuesday, . Overnight airstrikes and killed at least 85 Palestinians, according to local health officials.
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Border czar says 40,000 immigration arrests under Trump so far
The man in charge of President Trump鈥檚 border policies says they鈥檝e made about 40,000 immigration-related arrests since Trump got into office.
Tom Homan said the vast majority were 鈥減ublic safety threats and national security threats.鈥�
Homan said Trump鈥檚 decision to invoke the was the 鈥渞ight thing to do鈥� even if his administration has been sued over it. He vowed that immigration arrests would continue.
US sanctions Chinese company and CEO for buying and refining Iranian oil
The Treasury Department accused the China-based oil refinery Luqing Petrochemical and its CEO Wang Xueqing of buying from ships linked to the militant Houthi group and Iran鈥檚 military and refining hundreds of millions of dollars鈥� worth of Iranian crude.
Treasury鈥檚 Office of Foreign Assets Control imposed the sanctions on a total of 19 firms and ships that transport millions of barrels of Iranian oil.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the U.S. is committed to denying revenue that enables 鈥淭ehran鈥檚 continued financing of terrorism and development of its nuclear program.鈥�
The Trump administration has promised maximum pressure to drive Iran鈥檚 oil exports, including to China, to zero.
A reminder from Marco Rubio: 鈥極ther Americans are still detained in Afghanistan鈥�
The secretary of state鈥檚 statement says Glezmann is returning to the U.S. to be reunited with his wife, Aleksandra.
鈥淕eorge鈥檚 release is a positive and constructive step,鈥� Rubio said. 鈥淧resident Trump will continue his tireless work to free ALL Americans unjustly detained around the world.鈥�
President Joe Biden had contemplated involving the release of Glezmann and other Americans for Muhammad Rahim, a detainee at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, but told families during a call in January that the Taliban would have to release Afghan-American businessman Mahmood Habibi.
U.S. officials believe the Taliban is holding Habibi, but the Taliban has denied it.
White House says closing Education Department will return authority to the states
A fact sheet says Trump鈥檚 executive order also directs Secretary to 鈥渆nsure the effective and uninterrupted delivery of services, programs, and benefits on which Americans rely鈥� while facilitating the closure.
The department manages $1.6 trillion in federal student loans and billions of dollars in programs for colleges and school districts, from school meals to support for homeless students to .
It adds up to roughly 14% of public school budgets, often for supplemental programs for vulnerable students, across school systems that advocates say remain .
鈥淭his isn鈥檛 fixing education. It鈥檚 making sure millions of children never get a fair shot. And we鈥檙e not about to let that happen without a fight,鈥� the National Parents Union said in a statement.
American man held hostage by the Taliban for more than 2 years has been released
George Glezmann was abducted more than two years ago while traveling through Afghanistan as a tourist.
His release was brokered by U.S. and Qatari negotiators, the State Department said Thursday.
The airline mechanic from Atlanta is to be released by the Taliban since January. He was seized by the Taliban鈥檚 intelligence services in December 2022.
He was being accompanied back to the U.S., through Qatar鈥檚 capital, Doha, by Adam Boehler, who has been handling hostage issues for President Donald Trump鈥檚 administration.
Most countries don鈥檛 recognize the Taliban鈥檚 rule. Glezmann鈥檚 release is part of what the Taliban has described as the 鈥渘ormalization鈥� of ties following in 2021.
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The Education Department was created to ensure equal access. Who would do that in its absence?
The equity goal of the Education Department, which was created by Congress in 1979, emerged partly from the anti-poverty and civil rights movements of the 1960s and 1970s.
But as the Trump administration moves to dismantle it, officials have suggested other agencies could take over its major responsibilities: civil rights enforcement to the Justice Department, perhaps; student loans to Treasury or Commerce; oversight of student disability rights to Health and Human Services.
Advocates are worried about what could happen with a more lofty part of the department鈥檚 mission 鈥� promoting equal access for students in an American education system that is fundamentally unequal. Without the department, they鈥檙e concerned that the federal government would not look out in the same way for poor students, those still learning English, disabled students and racial and ethnic minorities.
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Georgetown University defends scholar who was seized for deportation and jailed in Louisiana
Badar Khan Suri was determined to be deportable for 鈥渟preading Hamas propaganda and promoting antisemitism on social media,鈥� Homeland Security Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said late Wednesday on X.
A Georgetown statement says the Indian national was 鈥渄uly granted a visa to enter the United States to continue his doctoral research on peacebuilding in Iraq and Afghanistan鈥� while studying at the university鈥檚 center for Muslim-Christian Understanding.
鈥淲e are not aware of him engaging in any illegal activity, and we have not received a reason for his detention,鈥� the school said. 鈥淲e support our community members鈥� rights to free and open inquiry, deliberation and debate, even if the underlying ideas may be difficult, controversial or objectionable. We expect the legal system to adjudicate this case fairly.鈥�
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The Associated Press
