Good morning. We're covering how President Trump is trying to reshape the government — as well as R.F.K. Jr., war in Congo and the Lunar New Year.
Freezing the governmentPresident Trump believes that a deep state held him back in his first term. Now, he wants to go through the federal government and its many functions, line by line, to make sure he gets his way — on diversity, climate change, immigration and more. Yesterday, the Trump administration tried to freeze a host of federal grants and loans while it figures out whether these priorities align with the president's agenda. The directive subjects programs to "ideological litmus tests," my colleague Nicholas Nehamas wrote. It says government money should not "advance Marxist equity, transgenderism and Green New Deal social engineering." Moments before it was set to begin, a judge suspended the freeze; a ruling will follow next week. The president is trying to strip any policy or program that he and his allies might call "woke." He has already moved to bar transgender people from the military and to prevent the government from paying for transgender children's treatments. He revoked a 60-year-old order that bans hiring discrimination in federal contracting and ended D.E.I. programs for the federal work force. Lawmakers often say that "personnel is policy." Trump is taking that view seriously as a way to ensure that his new policies are actually enforced, after some federal employees admitted that they secretly undermined his first-term agenda. So the president ordered federal employees to report on colleagues who try to continue D.E.I. efforts. He has dismissed officials who he believes oppose him. Yesterday, his administration offered millions of federal employees payouts to resign. It promised to impose "enhanced standards of conduct" to judge if workers are "reliable, loyal, trustworthy." The funding freeze is also part of an effort to enforce Trump's agenda across the entire government. By looking at each agency on a granular level, Trump can see if everyone is doing what he wants. The rest of today's newsletter breaks down what may happen if the freeze goes forward. 'Temporary pause'If the freeze proceeds, some programs that Americans rely on will shut down, though the administration called it a "temporary pause." My colleagues have put together a list of potentially affected programs. They include:
The administration said it excluded some major services — Social Security, Medicare and food stamps, for instance — from the freeze. "Any payment required by law to be paid will be paid without interruption or delay," the Office of Management and Budget said. But the freeze might be illegal. The Constitution gives Congress power of the purse, meaning that its members decide how the government spends its money. The president has some leeway (say, in picking contractors), but he typically can't decide to withhold money. The Supreme Court has rebuked past efforts by presidents to "impound" funds in this way. In 1975, it ruled against Richard Nixon when he cut off some environmental protection funds. Mass confusion
When the administration issued the directive on Monday, officials across the government wondered if it would affect them. At first, the White House sent agencies a giant spreadsheet of affected programs, asking officials to explain if any violated Trump's executive orders. Then, the administration rushed to clarify that it exempted some big programs, like Medicaid and Head Start. But in the pandemonium, states reported yesterday that Medicaid payments were frozen. Providers who care for young children said they couldn't access Head Start funds. Gov. Jeff Landry of Louisiana, a Trump ally, issued a statement asking the administration to take steps to avoid "jeopardizing the financial stability of the state." Trump views unpredictability as a virtue that keeps his opponents guessing. In this case, maybe the cuts related to wokeness or climate change will scare federal employees into acting cautiously — to avoid getting on their boss's bad side. But that unpredictability also has another effect: As Trump moves quickly, some government services — and the things they pay for, like schools and policing — might not always function as Americans expect. More on the funding
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Opinions Trump's pause of the TikTok ban could begin an economic era in which the government picks winners and losers — as China does, Tim Wu writes. The Chicago police pulled a live coyote from a supermarket produce aisle last week. Nature is always closer than we think, Margaret Renkl writes. Here's a column by Bret Stephens on the end of diversity programs. The Times Sale: Our best rate for readers of The Morning. Save now with our best offer on unlimited news and analysis as part of the complete Times experience: $1/week for your first year.
On the mountaintop: As flood risks increase, Kentucky is relocating people to mine-cratered higher ground. Survival: The plane crash should have killed her. Sometimes she wishes it had. Ask Well: "Does hot lemon water have any health benefits?" Lives Lived: Pableaux Johnson was a New Orleans food writer, photographer and cook who documented Mardi Gras traditions and served red beans and rice to thousands. He died at 59.
N.B.A.: The Kings are open to trading the star guard De'Aaron Fox, perhaps to the Spurs. W.N.B.A.: The Phoenix Mercury will acquire Alyssa Thomas, a five-time All-Star, from the Connecticut Sun. And Brittney Griner agreed to a one-year deal with the Atlanta Dream after 11 seasons with the Mercury.
It's Dumpling Week, an NYT Cooking celebration of Lunar New Year featuring five new recipes for your dumpling party. "All the good feelings rush in with dumplings," Genevieve Ko writes. "While making dumplings from scratch can be a meditative solo project, shaping and eating them with a group is its own kind of bliss." See the recipes, as well as videos showing how they're made. More on culture
Wrap chile oil wontons at home. Take these items on a road trip. Edit photos on your phone.
Here is today's Spelling Bee. Yesterday's pangram was mailbox. And here are today's Mini Crossword, Wordle, Sudoku, Connections and Strands. Thanks for spending part of your morning with The Times. See you tomorrow. —German Sign up here to get this newsletter in your inbox. Reach our team at themorning@nytimes.com.
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