12:30 Report — Trump turns focus to CFPB; DOJ pushes to drop Adams charges
Good afternoon! I'm Emily Martin, filling in for Cate on this chilly Tuesday. Inside today's edition:
Trump, Musk go after the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.
Trump meets with Jordan's King Abdullah II.
Democrats see funding deadline as leverage.
A preview into the annual Westminster Dog Show.
© The Hill, Greg Nash
Trump, DOGE gutting consumer bureau:
Administration officials and Elon Musk 's Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) have been targeting agency after agency in an effort to cut what they see as government waste and shutter programs that don't align with President Trump 's agenda.
The Trump administration has moved quickly to dismantle the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) and has signaled plans to target funding at the departments of Education and Defense, to name a few.
The latest target: The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB).
What we know: The administration and DOGE descended on the agency over the weekend. Newly confirmed Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Director Russell Vought was appointed acting CFPB director Friday, and since then:
Vought ordered the agency to 'cease all supervision and examination activity' and 'stakeholder engagement,' as well as telling employees to 'stand down from performing any work task.'
He also said the agency would not take its next drawdown of funding from the Federal Reserve.
The CFPB's X account has been deleted, and its homepage shows a '404: Page not found' error, but the overall site remains functional.
Employees affiliated with DOGE have gained access to CFPB's data systems, according to Bloomberg News, giving them full access to the information stored at the agency, such as sensitive bank examination and enforcement records.
From one CFPB employee: 'I think everyone assumes this is the USAID playbook, and I think everyone's operating off of the assumption that we're about to get annihilated, the way that they were annihilated,' the employee told The Hill's Julia Shapero.
Just in: Two career officials at the CFPB resigned Tuesday following the order to stand down from all work, according to CNN.
What's the GOP's beef with the CFPB?: Republicans have opposed the CFPB since its inception, arguing the agency oversteps its regulatory authority, as well as the bounds of the Constitution. They've tried to fight the agency multiple times in court to little avail.
The CFPB was the brainchild of Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) before she joined Congress and was established to protect consumers in the financial sector (i.e., credit cards, student loans, etc.).
➤ LAWMAKER REACTIONS:
Warren: 'So why are these two guys trying to gut the CFPB? … It's not rocket science: Trump campaigned on helping working people, but now that he's in charge, this is the payoff to the rich guys who invested in his campaign and who want to cheat families — and not have anybody around to stop them.'
Rep. Maxine Waters (Calif.), the top Democrat on the House Financial Services Committee: 'Why the richest man in the world is working to gut the agency that has returned $21 billion to harmed American consumers is simple … Such a platform would be regulated by — you guessed it — the CFPB.'
➤ RELATED READS:
Shutting down CFPB 'begging for another financial crisis': Former director (The Hill)
Trump is slashing agencies long hated by the GOP. The next cuts might be harder. (Politico)
How Elon Musk's Anti-Government Crusade Could Benefit Tesla and His Other Businesses (Time)
Justice for Elizabeth Warren (WSJ)
Adams's corruption charges ordered dropped:
The Department of Justice (DOJ) has ordered federal prosecutors to dismiss corruption charges against New York City Mayor Eric Adams (D).
Situational awareness: Adams has tried to get closer to President Trump in recent months, especially on the topic of immigration. The mayor has been scheduled to go on trial on federal corruption charges starting in April.
'In a short memo, acting Deputy Attorney General Emil Bove said the DOJ reached the decision to dismiss the counts without assessing the strength of the case and indicated that the attorneys who filed the charges did nothing wrong,' The Hill's Ella Lee reports.
Why did they dismiss the charges?: Bove claimed the case 'improperly interfered' with Adams's 2025 mayoral campaign and also pointed to the Trump administration's efforts to end 'weaponization' in the federal government.
But that's not all: He also said the pending prosecution 'unduly restricted' the mayor's ability to help the feds enforce the Trump administration's illegal immigration crackdown.
Adams's response this hour: 'I thank the Justice Department for its honesty. Now we can put this cruel episode behind us and focus entirely on the future of our city. But despite the fact I am no longer facing legal questions, I also understand many New Yorkers are still questioning my character. I know I must continue to regain your trust.'
➤ JUST IN:
'A federal appeals court agreed to dismiss the Mar-a-Lago documents case, ending an appeal of a decision toppling special counsel Jack Smith and effectively ending the criminal case against President Trump's two co-defendants,' via The Hill's Rebecca Beitsch.
Could be a tense meeting:
© AP
' President Trump 's proposal to permanently resettle Palestinians from the Gaza Strip is complicating relationships with allies in the Arab world,' The Hill's Brett Samuels reports.
Timing: Trump is set to host King Abdullah II of Jordan at the White House on Tuesday, just days after floating the idea that Gazans should be resettled in countries like Jordan and Egypt.
Vibe check: Things are expected to be *tense*. Marwan Muasher, the former foreign minister of Jordan, told NPR the meeting won't be easy 'because there is no amount of pressure in my view that the United States can exert that Jordan can accede to. This is an existential issue to Jordan.'
Context: Jordan is already home to more than 2 million Palestinian refugees. Trump has also threatened to withhold aid from Jordan and Egypt if they don't take in Palestinian refugees.
🔴 2028
'I think you have a lot of very capable people':
' President Trump said that it's too early to name Vice President Vance as his successor in 2028, saying that while his No. 2 is skilled, so are a number of other people who could be future leaders of the GOP,' The Hill's Alex Gangitano reports.
During an interview with Fox News's Bret Baier, when asked if he viewed Vance as his successor and the 2028 Republican presidential nominee, Trump said 'No, but he's very capable.'
'I think you have a lot of very capable people. So far, I think he's doing a very fantastic job. It's too early, we're just starting,' Trump added.
'Vance is seen as the potential future of the MAGA movement in the Republican Party and has quickly become Trump's liaison to the Senate in the first weeks of the administration.'
➤ RELATED READS:
Vance rips 'excessive' AI regulation at Paris summit (The Hill)
'JD gets the game': Vance embraces role as social media provocateur (Politico)
OPINION: Why Musk and Vance Went to Bat for a Self-Described Racist (The New York Times)
Democrats looking for some leverage:
Congressional Democrats are fuming over what they see as President Trump 's unchecked power and Elon Musk 's carte blanche when it comes to dismantling various government agencies. And they see the March 14 deadline for government funding as their best chance to pressure Trump and Musk to back off on some of their efforts.
Democrats are arguing that while they want to prevent a shutdown, this time it might be inevitable if Trump doesn't pump the brakes on Musk and DOGE.
But, but, but: Surprising to no one, Democrats are divided over exactly how hard to push their shutdown threat over fears the party could be blamed for fallout from a funding lapse.
Some in the party, such as leaders and more those who are more centrist, want to deflect blame onto Republicans, while the more progressive members of the party want to come out full force.
As The Hill's Alexander Bolton reports, 'With Democrats furious over Trump's and Musk's extraordinary use of executive power to freeze spending and push federal workers out of their jobs, there's growing appetite within the party to show Republicans that both sides can wreak havoc for political effect.'
Nancy Mace's fiery floor speech:
'Rep. Nancy Mace (R-S.C.) made a series of allegations of sexual abuse, rape and voyeurism perpetrated against herself and other women by her former fiancé and three other men in a personal — and highly unusual — speech on the House floor Monday evening,' report The Hill's Emily Brooks and Mychael Schnell.
'Mace, who has served in the House since 2021, spoke for nearly an hour in the lower chamber, accusing four South Carolina men of being 'predators' and displaying their names and photos on a poster board on the House floor.'
'Mace also went into further graphic detail, but The Hill has not independently verified the allegations. While Mace said she has evidence to back up her claims, she has not yet presented it.'
© Getty
President Trump on Monday pardoned former Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich (D), who served eight years in prison on corruption charges. Trump cut short his 14-year sentence in 2020.
Trump signed an executive order directing the Department of Justice to stop enforcing a law preventing bribery to foreign government officials.
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth signed an order Monday to change the name of Fort Liberty, a North Carolina military base, back to Fort Bragg.
Check out The Hill's 'Future of Energy' series where our reporters explore how Trump's second term will affect the energy industry in America. Read Part 1 here and Part 2 here.
Former Interior Secretary Deb Haaland announced she's running for governor of New Mexico.
The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) fired four employees, including its chief financial officer, for making 'egregious payments' to New York hotels used to house migrants.
A group of investors led by Elon Musk offered to buy OpenAI for $97.4 billion. OpenAI CEO and co-founder Sam Altman declined the offer, saying, 'OpenAI is not for sale,' and that Elon is 'probably just trying to slow us down.'
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