Trump blames Biden as inflation stalls amid tariffs rollout; Senate to vote on Tulsi Gabbard nomination: Live updates

Paul Martin, who had been appointed inspector general for the agency by former president Joe Biden in 2023, was informed by email from the Office of Presidential Personnel that his position was terminated “effective immediately.”

Ariana Baio has the story.

Justin Baragona reports on the moment.

A group of eight government watchdogs at various agencies who were fired by the Trump administration want a judge to restore their jobs.

In the lawsuit, the independent inspectors general of government agencies say they play a critical, nonpartisan role in overseeing trillions of dollars in federal spending and the conduct of millions of federal employees.

Congress was not given the legally required 30-day notices about the removals, something that even a top Republican decried.

President Donald Trump has said he would put new “good people” in the roles.

Global Health Council, a global aid organization, sued the Trump administration yesterday.

The group nows the Trump administration “accelerated” cutting off USAID contracts, “and may be doing so specifically in response to this lawsuit and the pending motion. ”

They have now filed a motion for a temporary restraining order.

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi will not travel to Washington for talks at the White House as long as the agenda includes President Donald Trump’s plan to displace Palestinians from Gaza, two Egyptian security sources told Reuters.

Trump has infuriated the Arab world with a plan to permanently displace over 2 million Palestinians from the Gaza Strip, assert U.S. control over the area, and develop it into the “Riviera of the Middle East.”

He has demanded that Egypt and Jordan accept the Palestinians, threatening to withdraw aid from the two U.S.-allied Arab states if they refuse. Egypt, alongside Israel, is one of the largest recipients of U.S. military aid.

Yesterday, Jordan’s King Abdullah II appeared uncomfortable during his meeting with Trump at the White House during which the president discussed his Gaza plan.

Egypt’s Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty visited Washington this week to avert a potentially awkward presidential visit. However, according to Egyptian sources, Secretary of State Marco Rubio made it apparent that the Palestinian displacement plan would be discussed if Sisi visited.

Abdelatty responded that such a meeting would be of no use and that any discussion should be over Egypt’s own plan for reconstruction of Gaza, the sources said, which ensures Palestinians remain on their land.

King Abdullah raised the prospect of the Egyptian plan during a brief press conference with Trump on Tuesday.

Sisi has repeatedly stated that Egypt would never facilitate the expulsion of Palestinians from Gaza, viewing it as a significant threat to Egypt’s own security. Such actions could breed extremism and provide a pretext for future Israeli attacks, in addition to being an injustice to the Palestinians.

As data shows U.S. consumer prices rose faster than expected in January, indicating that progress on inflation may still be stalled, Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell is heading to Congress for a second day of testimony.

Rising prices for housing, food, and energy pushed the Consumer Price Index up at a 3% annual rate in January, compared to 2.9% in the previous month.

The change in the Consumer Price Index slightly exceeded analysts’ expectations. This is likely to increase the Fed’s reluctance to cut interest rates further, as policymakers wait for signs that price pressures in the economy will continue to ease.

The jump in consumer staples, with gas prices rising 1.8% over the month and food at home increasing by half a percentage point, could also influence public expectations about inflation, which the Fed believes are crucial to manage.

Powell will appear today before the House Financial Services Committee at 10 a.m. ET and will typically repeat the opening statement delivered in Tuesday’s hearing before the Senate Banking Committee.

Meanwhile, President Donald Trump offered his sage take on Truth Social: “Interest Rates should be lowered, something which would go hand in hand with upcoming Tariffs!!! Lets [sic] Rock and Roll, America!!!”

He later added: “BIDEN INFLATION UP!”

With reporting from Reuters

Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum says Mexico will send a message to the White House concerning the 25 percent steel and aluminum tariffs imposed by President Donald Trump.

She said her foreign minister, Juan Ramón de la Fuente, and U.S. secretary of state, Marco Rubio, would be speaking on Thursday,

Sheinbaum questioned the purpose of the tariffs, noting that they are not “convenient” for the U.S. given that it has a trade surplus with Mexico in steel and aluminum.

With reporting from Reuters

Denmark’s citizens have launched a petition to purchase America’s most populous and prosperous state, California, in response to Donald Trump’s efforts to acquire Greenland.

The president has recently escalated calls to purchase the autonomous Danish territory for “national security” purposes, despite both Denmark and Greenland’s prime ministers insisting the Arctic island is not for sale.

Pledging to “Make California Great Again,” Danes have launched a retaliatory campaign seeking the “Denmarkification” of the world’s fifth-largest economy.

The president’s tariffs on steel imports this week could wreak havoc on American auto manufacturing, industry leaders say.

The moves align with the Trump administration’s aggressive global trade agenda and ambitions to strengthen U.S. industry but they could have an inverse effect.

On March 12, all steel imports will be taxed at a minimum of 25 percent, the result of two orders the president signed on Monday that also include a 25 percent tariff on aluminum.

That could have a serious impact on domestic auto companies including Ford, GM and Stellantis – and make these companies’ vehicles more expensive for the nation’s car buyers.