Trump administration considers selling OKC Federal Building
The topic has a lot of people talking, and has even sparked a heated response from at least one state lawmaker.
On their website, the U.S. General Services Administration calls the Oklahoma City Federal Building a 'national symbol of strength and resilience.'
But now, the same agency says the facility may be on the government's chopping block.
April 19 Remembrance Ceremony to honor those lost in 1995
'This building symbolizes the strength demonstrated on April 19, 1995,' said Stephen Perry, former GSA Administrator.
When it opened in 2004, the Oklahoma City Federal Building was labeled as a symbol of freedom by the then-administrator of the GSA.
However, according to a list released on Tuesday by the agency, the building is now considered a 'non-core asset' and is being considered to be sold.
Agency leaders say selling the federal building and other federal properties on the list would save the government more than $400 million a year.
A building that was once said to represent the 168 lives lost, and the thousands of others impacted.
'This building that we dedicate today is a part of the overall effort to honor their memory, and to honor America's resolve over the evil of terrorism,' said Perry.
According to a report by the GSA, more than 300 federal employees work at the federal building in agencies including the Food and Drug Administration, Department of Veterans Affairs, and Department of Agriculture.
The news is frustrating for Democratic Senator Mark Mann (D-Oklahoma City).
Just a month away from the 30th anniversary of the Murrah bombing, this action by the Trump administration is tone-deaf, at best. The agencies and employees housed in the Oklahoma City Federal Building provide valuable services to Oklahoma, the region and the country.It's time for Oklahoma's congressional delegation to stand up to Trump. Decisions like this should only be made after conducting in-depth analysis and evaluation and should be data driven, not a political stunt.
Sen. Mark Mann (D-Oklahoma City)
The GSA says it will look at research and feedback before making a final decision on a sale.
Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

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CNBC
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Red carpet for Putin, trade relief for China, penalties on India: Inside Trump's peculiar policy playbook
President Donald Trump is pursuing an unusual strategy — courting Russian President Vladimir Putin, holding fire on Beijing, all the while turning the screws on a close ally: India. Despite India being one of the earliest nations to engage in negotiations with the Trump administration, there is still no sign of it sealing a deal with the U.S. New Delhi is now also staring at a secondary tariff of 25% or a "penalty" for its purchases of Russian oil that is set to come into effect later this month. U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent on Tuesday escalated criticism against India, accusing it of profiteering from cheap Russian oil imports and threatening to further raise tariffs on Indian goods. "We have planned to up the tariffs on India — these are secondary tariffs for buying the sanctioned Russian oil," Bessent told CNBC on Tuesday. Earlier this week, White House trade advisor Peter Navarro condemned the Asian giant's dependence on Russian oil as "opportunistic" and undermined international efforts to isolate Russia's war economy. "India acts as a global clearinghouse for Russian oil, converting embargoed crude into high-value exports while giving Moscow the dollars it needs," Navarro said in an op-ed for the Financial Times . By now the world is getting used to the ad-hoc and sometimes contradictory ways in which the Trump administration is pursuing its agenda. Professor at the East Asian Institute at the National University of Singapore Bert Hofman The sharp rhetoric threatens to unravel years of improving ties between Washington and New Delhi — with India saying the U.S. was targeting it unfairly over its Russian oil purchases. 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Speaking at the joint news briefing following the talks , Putin reiterated that "for the conflict resolution in Ukraine to be long-term and lasting, all the root causes of the crisis ... must be eliminated; all of Russia's legitimate concerns must be taken into account." Kirill Dmitriev, one of Putin's top negotiators, hailed Monday's talks in Washington as an "important day of diplomacy," emphasizing Moscow's opposition to any short-term ceasefire deal with Ukraine. Trump is trying to "maximize his leverage ... pressuring India, and Russia via India," to get a trade deal with the former and a ceasefire pact with the latter, said Matt Gertken, chief geopolitical and U.S. strategist at BCA Research. These will eventually help boost Republicans' prospects in the upcoming midterm election, Gertken added. Not provoking China While India faces steep tariffs for its purchases of Russian crude, China, which has remained the largest importer of Russian crude, has been spared such levies. Trump said last Friday he was not considering retaliatory tariffs on China for buying Russian oil, but might consider it in two or three weeks. China's purchases of Russian oil have risen to 46% of overall exports from Russia in the first half of this year, from 34% in 2022, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, followed by India which imported around 36% of Russia's supplies. When asked about China's role in Russian oil purchases, Bessent suggested that Beijing's imports were less egregious in the eyes of the Trump administration because it had already been a big buyer even before Russia invaded Ukraine. Going soft on China may also reflect Trump's desire not to scuttle a potential high-profile summit with Chinese President Xi Jinping in the coming months and the conclusion of a lasting trade deal, said Stephen Olson, a senior visiting fellow at ISEAS-Yusof Ishak Institute. The secondary tariffs on India may be intended as "a shot across Russia's bow" to show that the U.S. could turn up the pressure by extending similar tariffs to China, if Russia is not more compliant, Olson added. Following weeks of escalating tensions, Beijing and Washington agreed in May to suspend the hefty duties and loosen several punitive measures imposed in April, as both sides continued to work on hammering out a durable deal. Beijing has leveraged its sheer dominance of rare-earth minerals crucial for military and industrial use in its negotiations with Washington, maintaining a tight control on exports of the critical minerals. The relationship with China is complicated, and the Trump administration has not yet come out with "a clear, coherent policy toward China. Sometimes it seems like it wants to compete with China economically. Other times it seems like it wants to reach some type of understanding or a or a detente," Kugelman said.


NBC News
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NBC News
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