Hacker News with Generative AI: US Government

Tips for Travelers Entering the U.S. Now: Check Your Visa, Turn Off Your Phone (nytimes.com)
At airports and land borders across the country, tourists and other visitors coming to the United States have reported being caught up in the Trump administration’s campaign of “enhanced vetting.”
Why does US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth have a Russian email address? (twitter.com)
Something went wrong, but don’t fret — let’s give it another shot.
US Debt Clock (usdebtclock.org)
The US Treasury Dept. today announced it is lifting sanctions on Tornado Cash (infosec.exchange)
CISA fires then rehires security crew, and puts them on hold (theregister.com)
The upheaval at the US government's Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, aka CISA, took another twist on Tuesday, as it moved to reinstate staffers it had fired over the past few weeks - specifically those still in their probationary period - though they've been benched on paid leave for now.
Democratic FTC commissioners say they were illegally fired by President Trump (theverge.com)
President Donald Trump fired the two remaining Democratic commissioners at the Federal Trade Commission Tuesday in what appears to be a conspicuous exercise of power over the independent agency.
Sensitive Complex Housing CIA Facility Was on GSA's List of Properties for Sale (wired.com)
A now-deleted list containing hundreds of US government properties that the General Services Administration (GSA) plans to sell includes most of a sprawling, highly sensitive federal complex in Springfield, Virginia, that also houses a secretive Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) facility, WIRED has learned.
Trump Says He'll Release JFK Assassination Files on Tuesday (nytimes.com)
President Trump said on Monday his administration would release approximately 80,000 pages related to the assassination of President John F. Kennedy on Tuesday afternoon.
An obscure US Government office has become a target of Elon Musk (theguardian.com)
Federal employees in a little-known office dedicated to tech and consulting services were at work on the afternoon of 3 February when Elon Musk tweeted about their agency for the first time.
US Department of Education cuts half its staff (apnews.com)
The Education Department plans to lay off more than 1,300 of its employees as part of an effort to halve the organization’s staff -- a prelude to President Donald Trump’s plan to dismantle the agency.
Email tells USAID workers to destroy classified docs, court asked to intervene (apnews.com)
A union for U.S. Agency for International Development contractors asked a federal judge Tuesday to intervene in any destruction of classified documents after an email ordered staffers to help burn and shred agency records.
Doge Is Putting Major Government Efficiency Projects at Risk (wired.com)
Since Elon Musk’s so-called Department of Government Efficiency took over important government technology teams within the General Services Administration (GSA) and what was formally known as the United States Digital Service (USDS), around 200 technologists have either resigned or been fired, jeopardizing about a decade’s worth of work dedicated to everything from public health to passport applications.
US Government considers selling FBI and DOJ headquarters (ft.com)
The SEC Is Abandoning Its Biggest Crypto Lawsuits (wired.com)
The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is backing away, one by one, from the volley of lawsuits and investigations it brought against cryptocurrency businesses under the Joe Biden administration, in a reversal described by a former attorney at the regulatory agency as “unprecedented.”
US Commerce Department to Fire as Many as 500 NIST Staffers (bloomberg.com)
The National Institute of Standards and Technology, a lab housed under the Commerce Department, is preparing to fire as many as roughly 500 probationary staffers as part of President Donald Trump’s sweeping cuts to the federal government.
List accomplishments or resign, Musk tells US federal workers (bbc.com)
US government workers received an email on Saturday afternoon asking them to list their accomplishments from the past week or resign - the latest development in the Trump administration's efforts to scale back the federal workforce.
US judge grants CIA impunity in Assange visitors case (twitter.com)
Elon Musk's Doge Targets US Gold Reserves (ibtimes.co.uk)
Billionaire Elon Musk's Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) has been driving massive changes across US federal agencies and institutions in an attempt to trim unnecessary spending and redundant workforce for transparency and enhanced operational throughput.
Apple to Restore TikTok to US App Store Following Justice Department Letter (bloomberg.com)
Apple Inc. and Alphabet Inc.’s Google are restoring ByteDance Ltd.’s TikTok to their app stores on Thursday following assurances in a letter from US Attorney General Pam Bondi that a ban wouldn’t immediately be enforced.
House Democrats denied entry to the Department of Education (nbcnews.com)
Democratic members of Congress were denied entry to the Department of Education for a meeting with acting Secretary Denise Carter when a security officer would not allow them inside.
Musk Says DOGE Halting Treasury Payments to US Contractors (bloomberg.com)
Elon Musk said his “DOGE team” of government efficiency enforcers is shutting down some payments to federal contractors, suggesting that the world’s richest man may have access to sensitive systems used at the US Treasury Department.
Copyright Office suggests AI copyright debate was settled in 1965 (arstechnica.com)
The US Copyright Office issued AI guidance this week that declared no laws need to be clarified when it comes to protecting authorship rights of humans producing AI-assisted works.
Removed content related to the January 20, 2025 "Woke Removal" Executive Order (github.com/uswds)
Removed report link and introduction. Removed content related to the January 20, 2025 Executive Order, "Ending Radical And Wasteful Government DEI Programs And Preferencing".
White House rescinds federal aid freeze (cnn.com)
POTUS Tracker – Executive Orders, Presidential Schedule, Signed Legislation (potustracker.us)
POTUS Tracker experienced significant downtime on 1/28 due to an overloaded server.
US pauses all federal aid and grants (bbc.com)
US President Donald Trump has paused grants, loans and other federal assistance, according to a leaked government memo verified by the BBC's US partner, CBS News.
Trump prohibits development of US Central Bank Digital Currency (whitehouse.gov)
By the authority vested in me as President by the Constitution and the laws of the United States of America, and in order to promote United States leadership in digital assets and financial technology while protecting economic liberty, it is hereby ordered as follows:
TikTok could bypass US blockade by making a PWA (lukaszolejnik.com)
The Supreme Court’s decision to uphold the Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act is a significant moment for both technology and geopolitics.
China is reportedly open to Elon Musk acquiring TikTok US (techcrunch.com)
Chinese government officials have reportedly discussed a scenario where ByteDance sells TikTok’s United States arm to Elon Musk, should the Supreme Court uphold the law banning the app on January 19.
What the TP-Link Ban in the US Means for You (thedefendopsdiaries.com)
The potential ban on TP-Link routers in the United States has sparked significant concern and debate, reflecting broader geopolitical tensions and cybersecurity challenges.