Hacker News with Generative AI: US Politics

Cory Booker's anti-Trump speech on Senate floor has lasted 17 hours and counting (npr.org)
Sen. Cory Booker has spent all of Monday night and Tuesday morning on the Senate floor, delivering an impassioned speech in protest of the Trump administration's policies.
The Democrats Are in Denial About 2024 (nytimes.com)
Last year’s election was close, despite President Trump’s hyperbolic claims about his margin of victory. Still, the Democratic Party clearly lost — and not only the presidential race. It also lost control of the Senate and failed to recapture the House of Representatives. Of the 11 governor’s races held last year, Democrats won three. In state legislature races, they won fewer than 45 percent of the seats.
RFK, Jr. Laying Off Entire Office of Infectious Disease and HIV/Aids Policy (forbes.com)
The U.S. is still reeling from the COVID-19 pandemic with more and more long COVID cases emerging. Bird flu is a growing threat. Measles outbreaks have been occurring. Antibiotic-resistant organisms continue to spread in healthcare settings. So what do you do next if you are in charge of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, which is supposed to protect the health of humans in the U.S.? How about lay off the entire staff of the U.S.
How to Avoid US-Based Digital Services–and Why You Might Want To (wired.com)
Amid growing concerns over Big Tech firms aligning with Trump administration policies, people are starting to move their digital lives to services based overseas. Here's what you need to know.
Trump Says Biden's Pardons Are 'Void' and 'Vacant' Because of Autopen (nytimes.com)
President Trump wrote on social media on Sunday night that he no longer considered valid the pardons his predecessor granted to members of the bipartisan House committee that investigated the Jan. 6, 2021, attacks on the Capitol, and a range of other people whom Mr. Trump sees as his political enemies, because they were signed using an autopen device.
Trump ends Fauci security detail, he'd feel no responsibility if harm befell him (apnews.com)
President Donald Trump has ended the federal security detail for Dr. Anthony Fauci, the infectious disease expert who advised him on the COVID-19 pandemic, a person familiar with the matter said Friday.
DOGE's Cuts to the IRS Threaten to Cost More Than Doge Will Ever Save (propublica.org)
The Trump administration claims gutting federal agencies will save money, but cutting the IRS means the government collects less taxes. “If you’re interested in the deficit and curbing it, why would you cut back on the revenue side?” one expert asks.
Fact Sheet: President Donald J. Trump Establishes the Strategic Bitcoin Reserve (whitehouse.gov)
CREATING A STRATEGIC BITCOIN RESERVE AND DIGITAL ASSET STOCKPILE: Today, President Donald J. Trump signed an Executive Order to establish a Strategic Bitcoin Reserve and a U.S. Digital Asset Stockpile, positioning the United States as a leader among nations in government digital asset strategy.
US Citizens Were 80 Percent of Crossers with Fentanyl (2024) (cato.org)
Trump calls for repealing the CHIPS Act (nytimes.com)
President Trump, delivering an address to a joint session of Congress six weeks into his second term, described the country he inherited from former President Joseph R. Biden Jr. as overrun by violent immigrants and crushed under high prices. He lauded the flurry of action he has taken so far, adding that he was “just getting started.”
House and Senate Democratic Boycott Grows Against Trump Address (politicususa.com)
House and Senate Democratic leadership have decided to leave it up each of their members to decide whether or not they will attend Trump’s Tuesday night address before a join session of Congress, but many Democrats are not going to attend the speech. Others are planning to walk out, or bring guests that will highlight the pain that Trump is causing.
Trump purge hits CHIPS Act office, two-fifths of staff to be terminated (tomshardware.com)
CDC terminates flu vaccine promotion campaign (npr.org)
As flu rages, the Trump administration has pulled the plug on a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention flu immunization campaign that targeted high-risk groups, including pregnant women.
Researcher Captures Contents of 'DEI.gov' Before It Was Hidden Behind a Password (404media.co)
A German researcher captured the contents of the White House’s “DEI.gov” during a brief period when it was not password protected.
US prosecutor in New York resigns after order to drop mayoral case (ft.com)
The legal theory that would make Trump the most powerful president in US history (vox.com)
President Donald Trump recently attempted to fire Gwynne Wilcox, a member of the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) and its former chair.
Elon Musk is reportedly taking control of the inner workings of US govt agencies (techcrunch.com)
People working for, or with, Elon Musk are reportedly taking over the inner workings of multiple government agencies, including the Office of Personnel Management and the Treasury Department.
US government agency argues that money isn't property–so it can take yours (reason.com)
In a jaw-dropping argument, the Department of Justice claims seizing $50,000 from a small business doesn’t violate property rights because money isn’t property.
Cointelpro (wikipedia.org)
COINTELPRO (a syllabic abbreviation derived from Counter Intelligence Program) was a series of covert and illegal[1][2] projects conducted between 1956 and 1971 by the United States Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) aimed at surveilling, infiltrating, discrediting, and disrupting American political organizations that the FBI perceived as subversive.[3][4][5][6]
US Civil servants are being asked who they voted for in 2024 election (independent.co.uk)
Incoming senior Trump administration officials have begun questioning career civil servants who work on the White House National Security Council about who they voted for in the 2024 election, their political contributions and whether they have made social media posts that could be considered incriminating by President-elect Donald Trump's team, according to a U.S. official familiar with the matter.
POTUS Tracker – Executive Orders, Presidential Schedule, Signed Legislation (potustracker.us)
POTUS Tracker experienced significant downtime on 1/28 due to an overloaded server.
Trump orders release of last JFK, RFK, King assassination files (yahoo.com)
US President Donald Trump ordered the declassification Thursday of the last secret files on the assassination of president John F. Kennedy, a case that still fuels conspiracy theories more than 60 years after his death.
US Cloud soon illegal? Trump punches first hole in EU-US Data Deal (noyb.eu)
Since the Snowden disclosures we know that the US engages in mass surveillance of EU users by scooping up personal data from US Big Tech. The "Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board" (PCLOB) is the key US oversight authority for these laws. The New York Times now reports, that Democratic Members of the (officially "independent") PCLOB, have received letters, demanding them to resign by Friday night.
Infosec was literally last item in Trump's policy plan; major changes are likely (theregister.com)
The Trump administration came to office this week without a detailed information security policy, but analysis of cabinet nominees’ public remarks and expert comments suggest it will make significant changes in the field.
Constitutional Crypto: How Trump's Solana Token Could Force a SCOTUS Showdown (hackingbutlegal.com)
Donald Trump's launch of a cryptocurrency token days before his inauguration has set the stage for what could become a landmark test of presidential power.
French group encourages mass departure from X platform on US Inauguration Day (euronews.com)
A group of French organisations are asking the public to leave X on January 20th, the day that incoming US President Donald Trump will be inaugurated.
TikTok Is Down in the US (theverge.com)
TikTok is going dark in the US now that the ban-or-divest law passed last year is taking effect.
Biden signs 11th-hour cybersecurity executive order (theregister.com)
Joe Biden, in the final days of his US presidency, issued another cybersecurity order that is nearly as vast in scope as it is late in the game.
Incoming Trump team is questioning civil servants at NSC about their loyalty (apnews.com)
Incoming senior Trump administration officials have begun questioning career civil servants who work on the White House National Security Council about who they voted for in the 2024 election, their political contributions and whether they have made social media posts that could be considered incriminating by President-elect Donald Trump’s team, according to a U.S. official familiar with the matter.
US-owned Greenland and Gulf of America? What a weird week (theregister.com)
We all know the US's incoming president, Donald Trump, has gone off-script in a way that is almost comical. Gulf of America? Make Greenland great again? Taking over the Panama Canal?