DHS transfers FEMA staff to ICE amid hurricane season
DHS is detailing roughly 100 people from FEMA's human resources and security teams to help process applicants at U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) amid a bid to hire 10,000 extra officers.
'Under President Trump's leadership and through the One Big Beautiful Bill, DHS is adopting an all-hands-on-deck strategy to recruit 10,000 new ICE agents. To support this effort, select FEMA employees will temporarily be detailed to ICE for 90 days to assist with hiring and vetting,' DHS said in a statement.
'Their deployment will NOT disrupt FEMA's critical operations. FEMA remains fully prepared for Hurricane Season.'
The Washington Post first reported the move, which it said would impact roughly half of FEMA's human resources team.
It's not unusual for departments to detail employees from one agency to another, and ICE has previously helped with hurricane response. But usually such assignments are voluntary and not in the weeks when hurricane season is expected to accelerate.
FEMA's human resources staff in particular serve a critical role alongside its security staff as the agency looks to swiftly hire local staff to respond to disasters.
FEMA is already down roughly 2,000 staffers both as the Trump administration culls the federal workforce and as employees flee the agency amid signals from the White House it plans to dismantle or otherwise reorganize the agency and leave more responsibility for disaster response to the states.
Meanwhile, DHS is speeding ahead with plans to hire additional ICE officers, announcing Wednesday it would scrap existing age limits.
Those interested in working as deportation officers at ICE must currently apply to do so before turning 40, while those seeking to do investigations but do so before turning 37.
'We are ENDING the age cap for ICE law enforcement,' Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said Wednesday. 'Qualified candidates can now apply with no age limit.'
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Yahoo
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'The CEO of INTEL is highly conflicted and must resign immediately. There is no other solution to this problem. Thank you for your attention to this problem!' wrote Trump on social media. On Wednesday, Reuters reported that US Republican Sen. Tom Cotton sent a letter to the company's board raising questions about Tan's ties to Chinese firms and a recent criminal case involving his former company, Cadence Design (CDNS.O). Intel stock was down as much as 3% in premarket trading. Eli Lilly stock falls despite earnings beat as oral GLP-1 pill results disappoint Eli Lilly (LLY) stock fell 7% in premarket trading. Although the company's second quarter earnings topped expectations, the results of a late-stage trial of its highly anticipated oral GLP-1 pill disappointed. For the quarter, Eli Lilly reported $15.56 billion in revenue, beating Wall Street estimates of $14.69 billion. Earnings per share came in at $6.31, compared to Street expectations of $5.56. 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The IPO was upsized, and it's likely it will come out of the block strong when it opens. I am not in love with the company's financials, but it has a host of key deals in place and its technology has proven to work (see trips to moon). And it has a SpaceX ( like story to tell at a hot time for markets. Perfectly timed debut. I am live with Firefly CEO Jason Kim around 11am ET today from the Nasdaq. Tune into Yahoo Finance! Not too far removed from Figma's (FIG) huge IPO, Firefly will come to market at the Nasdaq later on today. The IPO was upsized, and it's likely it will come out of the block strong when it opens. I am not in love with the company's financials, but it has a host of key deals in place and its technology has proven to work (see trips to moon). And it has a SpaceX ( like story to tell at a hot time for markets. Perfectly timed debut. I am live with Firefly CEO Jason Kim around 11am ET today from the Nasdaq. Tune into Yahoo Finance! SoftBank swings to profit on vision fund gains ahead of AI push Softbank's (SFTBF, 9984.T, SFTBY) Tokyo shares closed 1% up on Thursday after reporting a bigger profit than expected in the June quarter. Bloomberg News reports: Read more here. Softbank's (SFTBF, 9984.T, SFTBY) Tokyo shares closed 1% up on Thursday after reporting a bigger profit than expected in the June quarter. Bloomberg News reports: Read more here. Apple gains after announcing $100B US investment Apple stock rose 3% before the bell on Thursday. Yahoo Finance's technology editor Daniel Howley and Washington correspondent Ben Werschkul outline the latest developments from the Apple investment announcement on Wednesday. Read more here. Apple stock rose 3% before the bell on Thursday. Yahoo Finance's technology editor Daniel Howley and Washington correspondent Ben Werschkul outline the latest developments from the Apple investment announcement on Wednesday. Read more here. Sony stock rises as in-demand games and music help allay Trump tariff fears Bloomberg News reports: Read more here. Bloomberg News reports: Read more here. TSMC hits record; Taiwan says tech giant exempt from US tariffs Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSM) shares rose 5% in premarket trading on Thursday after announcing it will not have to pay 100% tariff on sales to the US. Bloomberg News: Read more here. Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSM) shares rose 5% in premarket trading on Thursday after announcing it will not have to pay 100% tariff on sales to the US. Bloomberg News: Read more here. Error while retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error while retrieving data Error while retrieving data Error while retrieving data Error while retrieving data
USA Today
11 minutes ago
- USA Today
Why Trump's political war in Texas is much bigger than the Lone Star State
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The GOP's Texas power play has shaken the political landscape 15 months ahead of the midterm election, setting off a redistricting arms race as blue state leaders move to create more Democratic-leaning House seats to counter Texas, and lawmakers in other red states, including Indiana and Missouri, consider joining the fray. The tit-for-tat redistricting battle has exploded into one of the most consequential elements of the 2026 midterms, with the potential to decide control of the House well before votes are counted. Democrats seek check on Trump Republicans currently hold a 219-212 majority in the House, with four vacancies. The party in power typically loses seats in the midterms. If the four vacant seats are filled by a member of the same party that vacated them, Democrats need to pick up just three seats to win control. Trump's agenda has energized the Democratic base. A Democrat-controlled House could kill any legislation coming out of the White House, launch investigations of the Trump administration on everything from the Epstein files to Trump's deportation tactics, wield subpoena power to compel testimony from administration officials and even impeach the president for a third time. "Donald Trump has always been a wannabe dictator," Rep. Sylvia Garcia, a Texas Democrat, told USA TODAY. "If Democrats take control of the House we're a stumbling block for him." Trump has seen it before. Democrats rode a wave of anti-Trump enthusiasm to win the House in 2018 during his first term and aggressively probed everything from Trump's tax returns and personal finances to his administration's family separation policy for detained immigrants and his purported threats to the rule of law. Trump twice was impeached by the House during his first term after Democrats won a majority, the first time over allegations he pressured Ukraine's president to dig up dirt on political rival Joe Biden and the second for allegedly inciting an insurrection on Jan. 6, 2021 when a mob of his supporters stormed the U.S. Capitol. The Senate acquitted Trump in both cases. Democrats face a less favorable political map for the upper chamber and are less likely to win control next year. 'Impeach, impeach, impeach' Republicans are highlighting the impeachment threat to argue the last two years of Trump's presidency could be a distraction from issues Americans care about, such as boosting the economy. They hope to give Trump maximum flexibility to continue a controversial agenda that includes mass deportations, overhauling the federal government and new tariffs on foreign goods. "We all know that should we lose the House, which I don't think we would... that the Democrats would do nothing but impeach, impeach, impeach for two straight years," Texas GOP Rep. Troy Nehls, a Trump ally, told USA TODAY. Democrats say Trump is abusing his power and must be reined in. They point to polls showing aspects of his agenda are unpopular. The Texas redistricting plan is a way for Trump to game the system to circumvent a reckoning at the 2026 ballot box, Democrats say. "Let's be clear why this is happening, this is happening because Donald Trump is trying to avoid accountability," Texas Democratic Party Chair Kendall Scudder told USA TODAY. Whether a few new GOP-leaning seats in Texas would be enough to swing the election is unclear. Many other factors could come into play, especially the economy, University of Virginia political science professor Larry Sabato told USA TODAY. "We're so far away" from the election, Sabato said. "Suppose we have a recession or even a significant slowdown in the economy? Then it probably will be... a sizeable Democratic margin, at least in the House." But in a close race for the House, any redistricting changes could be decisive. High stakes Both parties are acting aggressively, portraying the redistricting fight as a battle for the future of the country. As Texas Republicans worked to jam through a new House map, Democrats fled the state to prevent a quorum and stall legislative business. The state's GOP governor and attorney general responded with legal threats. California Gov. Newsom is pushing a plan to redraw his state's House districts to counter Texas. "Whatever they are doing will be neutered here in the state of California," Newsom said Aug. 4. Trump "recognizes he's going to lose in the midterms and we have the opportunity to de facto end the Trump presidency in less than 18 months. That's what's at stake, and that's why we're putting a stake in the ground." Other blue state leaders are contemplating redistricting, and more red states are considering joining Texas to create more conservative-leaning seats. 'Using every day to the hilt' Trump said Aug. 5 on CNBC that "we are entitled to five more seats" in Texas because of his strong performance in the state. Scudder, the Texas Democratic chair, said his party must be willing to play hardball. "We are tired of playing by a different set of rules than the ones they play by," he said. Sabato said presidents typically understand they have two years to enact their agenda and then "they shift into a lower gear." Trump seems determined to make his second two years as consequential as the first two. "Whatever the motivation, he is using every day to the hilt, much to the chagrin of Democrats," he said. Whoever prevails in the redistricting war, Sabato was skeptical that a Democratic-controlled House would be a meaningful check on a MAGA White House. "There's no obstacle that cannot be removed or cut down to size, especially when you've got a president like Trump," he said.
