Trump news at a glance: veterans affairs department muzzled after critical article
Senior officials at the US Department of Veterans Affairs have ordered VA physicians and scientists not to publish in medical journals or speak with the public without first seeking clearance from political appointees of Donald Trump.
Veterans advocates say the decision fits into a pattern of censorship by the Trump administration, and came hours after the prestigious New England Journal of Medicine published a perspective co-authored by two pulmonologists who work for the VA in Texas.
The article warned that cancelled contracts, layoffs and a planned staff reduction of 80,000 employees in the nation's largest integrated healthcare system jeopardizes the health of a million veterans who served in Vietnam, Iraq and Afghanistan.
Here are the key stories at a glance:
The edict, laid down in emails on Friday by Curt Cashour, the VA's assistant secretary for public and intergovernmental affairs, and John Bartrum, a senior adviser to VA secretary Doug Collins, came hours after the article published in the New England Journal of Medicine.
'We have guidance for this,' wrote Cashour, a former Republican congressional aide and campaign consultant, attaching the journal article. 'These people did not follow it.'
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Russell Vought, the director of the office of management and budget (OMB), on Sunday cast doubt on the constitutional obligation of the White House to ask Congress to sign off on Donald Trump's massive cuts to the federal workforce spearheaded by Elon Musk.
Vought indicated the White House preferred to rely on 'executive tools' for all but a 'necessary' fraction of the cuts instead of submitting the whole package of jobs and agency slashing that took place via the so-called 'department of government efficiency' (Doge), to the congressional branch for its official approval.
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The US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) removed a list of 'sanctuary' states, cities and counties from its website following sharp criticism from a sheriffs' association that said a list of 'noncompliant' sheriffs could severely damage the relationship between the Trump administration and law enforcement.
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A teenage transgender athlete in California, who has been at the center of widespread political attacks by rightwing pundits and the Trump administration, won in two track events over the weekend. The 16-year-old athlete, AB Hernandez, tied for first place alongside two other athletes in the high jump, and tied for first place in the triple jump.
This comes as the Trump administration threatened to withhold federal funding from California for allowing trans athletes to compete in girls' sports.
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The White House budget director Russ Vought on Sunday dismissed as 'totally ridiculous' fears expressed by voters that cuts to benefits in the huge spending bill passed by the House will lead to premature deaths in America.
Donald Trump's One Big Beautiful Bill Act, now awaiting debate in the US Senate, will slash two major federal safety net programs, Medicaid, which provides healthcare to poor and disabled Americans, and the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (Snap), which helps people afford groceries, which will affect millions of people if it becomes law.
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The is FBI investigating a multiple-injury attack in downtown Boulder, Colorado.
One person died and 11 other were injured after 80 shots fired at North Carolina house party.
A British businessman was accused of plotting to smuggle US military technology to China.
Catching up? Here's what happened on Saturday 31 May.
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