Transcript

2.25.25 · Washington Post

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Speaker 1: Welcome to the reading of the Washington Post for Tuesday,
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February twenty fifth, twenty twenty five. As a reminder, RADIOI
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is a reading service intended for people who are blind
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or have other disabilities that make it difficult to read
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printed material. Your reader for to day is Centy Fraser.
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The headlines from to day's front page are U S
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votes against condemning Russia, joins pro Moscow Nations at U
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N shift reflects deepening split with allies on war. Our
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next headline, agencies told they can ignore Musk email. Employees
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won't be fired for not saying what they did over
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the past week. Next, stricter FAA regulations disrupt flights at
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National after mid air collision. Runways close when marine ion
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is near by. Next, Doge cuts workers using tech playbook
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must deploy desruptive management style he adopted in Silicon Valley.
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Our next headline. ROBERTA. Flack nineteen thirty seven to twenty
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twenty five, spellbinding singer with a string of nineteen seventy's hits.
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One time DC teacher found fame and acclaim with quiet,
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emotionally searching recordings. And the final headline from today's front
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page podcaster who bashed at the eye will be its
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deputy leader. Let's turn to our first item entitled US
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votes against condemning Russia joins prol Moscow nations at U
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n shift reflects deepening split with allies on war. By
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Karen De Young, John Hudson, and Shiavan O'Grady. The United
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States voted with Russia, North Korea, Iran, and fourteen other
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Moscow friendly countries Monday against a UN resolution condemning Russian
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aggression in Ukraine and calling for the return of Ukrainian territory.
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The resolution, sponsored by representatives from Kiev, passed overwhelmingly in
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the UN General Assembly. The US delegation also abstained from
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voting on its own competing resolution that simply called for
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an end to the war. After European sponsored amendments inserting
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new anti Russian language in the resolution were approved in
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the one hundred ninety three member body by a wide margin.
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The amended US resolution also passed. The votes taken on
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the third anniversary of the Russian invasion of Ukraine were
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an astounding reflection of a deepening split between the Trump
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administration and the United States major allies over support for Ukraine.
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And disapproval of President Donald Trump's unilateral outreach to the
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Kremlin to settle the war on terms favorable to Russia.
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Trump has blamed Ukraine for starting the war, called Ukrainian
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President Volodimey Zelenski a dictator, spoken directly with Russian President
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Vladimir Putin about normalizing Washington Moscow relations, and implied that
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strong U S sanctions against Russia over Ukraine may be lifted.
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Later Monday, the United States was saved with a similar
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failure after re offering its original resolution at a meeting
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of the fifteen member UN Security Council. While General Assembly
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resolutions reflect world opinion but are non binding, Security Council
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floats which require nine members in favor and no vetos
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by the five permanent members, the United States, Russia, China,
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Britain and France have the force of international law. The
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other ten members are selected by region for two year
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terms and have no veto. Ukraine is not a current
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Council member. The Security Council meeting was more subdued than
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the morning session, where wide spread applause broke out at
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Ukraine's victory, but was notable for its underlying tension between
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the Europeans and the United States, while other members took
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subordinate roles. Speeches were uncharacteristically short and to the point.
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France and Britain first sought to delay the Council meeting
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by a day, asking for a vote to allow more
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time to consider the proposed US resolution that was circulated Friday.
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The request was denied, with US and Russian vetos it
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was time. US interm Ambassador Dorothy Camillechet said for the
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Council to now step forward and do its job. Jay
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called the U S resolution, which consisted of only a
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few lines calling for the war to end and assigned
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no responsibility for it to Russia, elegant in its simplicity.
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The resolution is not a peace deal and it imposes
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no costs. The Europeans, France, Britain, Denmark and Slovenia then
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offered the same free amendments proposed in the Generalists, replacing
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the words the Russian Ukraine conflict with the full scale
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invasion of Ukraine by the Russian Federation, reaffirming Ukraine's right
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to all of its territory and the need for a
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lasting peace. The United States, which earlier in the day
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had said it would veto its own resolution if it
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was amended in the Council, was saved from having to
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do so when Russia killed two of the European measures
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with the veto. Russian Ambassador Fasili Lebendia said he considered
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the U S resolution a step in the right direction,
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a common sense initiative which reflects the will of the
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new administration in the White House to really contribute to
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the peaceful settlement in the conflict. The final vote was
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a victory of sorts for Trump, passing with ten votes
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for the Europeans abstained. The two sets of UN votes
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came as Trump met at the White House with French
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President Emmanuel Macron for bilateral talks and a virtual meeting
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of the Group of Seven Industrialized Nations, and prepared for
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a Thursday visit from British Prime Minister Keir Starmer. The
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Trump administration has opposed phrasing in a statement on Ukraine
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that the G Seven, which comprises the United States, Canada, France, Germany, Italy,
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Britain and Japan, has been preparing to issue this week.
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In a social media post after the virtual meeting Monday,
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Trump referred to Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau the G
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seven chair as Governor Trudeau a reference to the President's
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ongoing call for Canada to become the fifty first U
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S state, and repeated his contention that the war in
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Ukraine would never have started if I was president. Trump
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also expressed hope for an agreement with Kiev on what
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he called the vital, critical Minerals and Rare Earths deal,
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in which he has asked Ukraine to sign over the
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rights to fifty percent of its mineral wealth to quote
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recoup US money spent on Ukraine's defense. He said he
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was in serious discussions with Putin on ending the war
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and also major economic development transactions which will take place
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between the United States and Russia. Talks are proceeding very well.
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Asked by reporters ahead of his Oval Office meeting with Macron,
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why the United States opposed the Ukraine sponsored resolution condemning Russia,
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Trump said, I would rather not explain it now, but
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it's sort of self evident. When the two leaders later
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held a news conference, Macoun appeared determined not to antagonize Trump,
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while arguing that long term peace could only be secured
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by being tough with the Kremlin. There is good reason
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for President Trump to re engage with President Putin, he said,
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but being strong and having Detern's capacities is the only
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way to be sure a piece deal will be respected
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by Moscow. Ukraine's General Assembly Resolution KOs, sponsored by dozens
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of other nations, was the seventh approved by that body
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and the first not supported by the United States since
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the war began. This is a moment of truth, the
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Ukrainian Deputy Foreign Minister Marina Betsa told the Assembly Monday,
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a historic moment not only for Ukraine, but also for
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Europe and for the entire democratic world. The way we
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answer to Russian aggression today, to Russian atrocities and crimes,
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will define our entire future. Shay, the U S representative,
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told the Assembly that multiple resolutions had failed to stop
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the war, urging support for the unamended US measure. She
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called it a simple statement that looks forward, not backward,
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focusing on one simple idea of ending the war. A Benja,
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the Russian ambassador, repeated Putin's contention that the war was
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in response to attempts by the West to expand its
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own influence and territorial control at Russia's expense, and by
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Ukraine to violate the human rights of its Russian speaking minority.
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He was informed in advance that the United States would
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vote against Ukraine's resolution, and US demands at Zelensky's government
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take its proposal off the table continued as late as
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Monday morning. The Trump administration also pressured other nations, including
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through messages sent by Secretary of State Markarrubio, to all
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US embassies, to vote against the resolution or to abstain.
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We told them we would not surrender, a Ukrainian official said,
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speaking on the condition of anonymity about the sensitive diplomatic discussions.
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This is a really unpleasant surprise. But it's not for
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us to judge, it's for the Americans themselves. The official
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noted that Haiti was among the nations that aligned with
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the United States and voted against the resolution. If Washington
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is treating Ukraine with such pressure, the official said, what
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will they do to Haiti? As by a rear porter
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and Brussels on Monday, whether the Trump administration was acting
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in the interest of the free world or of Russia. Kajakalis,
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the former Prime Minister of Estonia and now the chief
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European Union diplomat, paused and said, if we look at
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the messages that come from the United States, then it
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is clear that the Russian narrative is there very strongly represented.
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Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andresibya expressed thanks to all countries set
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back to Ukraine. Ukraine and the wider international community will
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also undoubtedly notice the company that ended up voting against
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this document, he wrote on social media. At the end
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of the day, despite all the obstacles, Ukrainian diplomacy has
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proven its ability to defend principles and truth. Alexander Forty,
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a Ukrainian army officer who runs intelligence operations in Russia's
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Kursk region and whose brigade is now among those battling
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nor Korean forces fighting for Russia, said he was stunned
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to see Washington aligned with Moscow, Tehran and Pyongyang. Sometimes
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it feels like we are living in a post apocalyptic
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sci fi novel, he said, speaking on the condition he
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be identified by his first name in keeping with Ukrainian
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military rules. In addition to Haiti, other countries voting against
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Ukraine's General Assembly resolution were Belarus, Brakina, Faso, Burundi, Central
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African Republic, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Hungary, Israel, Mali, the Marshall Islands, Nicaragua,
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Knee Jair, and Sudan. The required two thirds majority of
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those votings was reached, with all of Europe with the
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exception of Hungary and Australia, voting for the resolution. Sixty
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five countries abstained, including China, the Persian Gulf Nations, Paraguay, Argentina, Brazil, Yemen, Vietnam,
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and much of Africa. Richard Gowan, a UN expert at
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the International Crisis Group, said the divide between the United
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States and Europe marked the biggest split among Western powers
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at the UN sends the Iraq War, and probably even
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more fundamental. Anastasia Ganushka and Michael Birnbaum contributed to this report.
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Our next item from today's front page is entitled Agencies
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told they can ignore a Musk email. Employees won't be
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fired for not saying what they did over the past week,
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by Emily Davies, Hannah Thomson, Jeff Stein, and Lisa Rhine.
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The Term administration has told federal agency leaders that they
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can ignore the public decree from Elon Musk to effectively
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fire employees who did not send in bullet point summaries
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of their work last week, according to people familiar with
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the matter, a break with a billionaire who has exerted
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significant power to slash the two point three million person
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federal workforce. The Office of Personnel Management, a federal agency
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that functions as the government's HR department, delivered the news
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to agency chief human capital officers on a call midday Monday,
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according to one of the people, an agency official on
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the call who spoke on the condition of anonymity to
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discuss internal conversations. Another person briefed on the call said
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that OPM is also looking at weekly reporting for government departments,
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but the person said that OPM was unsure what to
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do with the emails of employees who responded so far
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and had no plans to analyze them. Later in the day,
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though Trump suggested non responders could still be terminated, while
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Musk wrote on x they would be given another chance
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to write back before being fired. In a written memo,
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Opus wrote that employees should respond, but added agency heads
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may exclude personnel from this expectation at their discretion and
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should inform OPM of the categories of the employees excluded
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and reasons for exclusion. It is agency leadership's decision as
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to what actions are taken. The memo said. Of those
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who did not respond, Musk on Saturday posted on a
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social media platform x that federal employees would receive an
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email asking for a list of what they did at
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work last week and would be considered as having resigned
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if they did not reply by Monday at eleven fifty
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nine p m Eastern. Shortly thereafter, an email blast from
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o PM relaying the request without the termination threat went
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out to millions of people, including federal judges and workers
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in the legislative branch, prompting confusion as agency heads struggled
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to apply the guidance to their particular work. Even before
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the latest directive, some agency told workers not to comply,
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fearful that they might, at OPM's behest, be disclosing information
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that was sensitive or important to national security. The OPM
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memo said. The Executive Office of the President was also exempt.
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The patchwork of conflicting, evolving guidance and ensuing confusion has
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become a mainstay of the Musk led US DOGE Services
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campaign to shrink the federal government, an effort that has
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inspired considerable backlash from the courts, lawmakers, and people inside
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the bureaucracy. Also Monday, a federal watchdog agency said the
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Trump administration's firings of a handful of probationary federal workers
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were illegal and requested a forty five day stay of
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their terminations. Meanwhile, in the halls of the Department of
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Housing and Urban Development, TV monitors showed a looping video
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of an apparently falsified ce possibly AI generated, depicting President
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and Donald Trump sucking Musk's toes, with long lived the
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Real King written over the loop. According to people at
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HUDD who share the images, administration surprising about face reflected
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the degree of unease among even senior Trump officials about
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the scale and ambition of Musk's effort to gut the
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federal government, which has already disrupted some functions. It also
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furthered the sense of whiplash among the government workforce. Last week,
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the administration moved to fire probationary employees across the government,
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including those who had taken the federal buyout offer, only
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to backtrack and say those who took the offer would
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be allowed to defer their resignation as planned, while agency
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leaders were given discretion in whether to have employees respond
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to the latest OPM email asking them to do so.
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Some departments had not signaled that they were rejecting Musk's mandate,
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leaving the door open for certain federal employees to be
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let go if they did not comply. Trump, speaking from
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the Oval Office on Monday afternoon, said federal workers who
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did not reply to the email would be sort of
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semi fired, or you're fired, in an apparent recognition of
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the uncertain consequences of failing to respond. He also downplayed
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any perceived disconnect between his administration and Musk's x feed.
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Trump suggested that the only exceptions to Musk's email were
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coming from agency heads who wanted to protect sensitive information,
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citing the FBI and State Department. They don't mean that
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in any way combatively with Elon. They're just saying, there's
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some people that you don't want to really have them
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tell you what they're working on. Last week, Trump said,
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other than that, everyone thought it was a pretty ingenious idea.
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White House Press Secretary Caroline Levitt, in a statement to
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The Washington Post, doubled down. Everyone is working together as
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one unified team at the direction of President Trump. Any
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notion to the contrary is completely false. For his part,
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Musk downplayed concerns about his move, which came after Trump
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publicly questioned whether he was being aggressive enough in his efforts.
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Observed that a five minute email generates this level of concern,
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Musk wrote on X something is deeply wrong. Officials also
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told top HR leaders to adhere to the guidance they
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had already issued to their work force on the time
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line of return to office mandates, which includes deadlines in
18:35
mid March. The agency official on the call said. Musk
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posted on X on Monday that workers who had not
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already returned to the office would be placed on administrative
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leave this week. There's a full revolt going on right now,
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said Doug holt Eken, president of the American Action Forum,
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a center right think tank. Don't's state of objective was
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to reorganize the agencies to meet their goals, but cabinet
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heads want to run their own agencies, and they are
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objecting to the across the board cuts coming from Musk's team.
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Politico first reported the Trump administration's decision to back off
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Musk's e mail campaign mandate on Monday afternoon. Many agencies
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began issuing guidance that the employees did not need to
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reply to Musk's e mail and asserting that no one
19:24
would be considered as having resigned. Despite what Musk's said.
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As of the evening, officials at NASA, the Agriculture Department,
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and the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, among at least
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seven others, had made clear the report was optional. At
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one agency, the Department of Health and Human Services, and
19:45
email to staff rescinding the mandate, when so far as
19:48
to say that if workers opted to reply, they should
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assume that what you write will be read by malign
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foreign actors and tailor your responses accordingly. In twenty fourteen,
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hackers working for the Chinese state reached the Office of
20:03
Personnel Management's computer system, compromising personal data of up to
20:08
four million then current and former federal employees. But other
20:13
agency has, including the acting director of the Personnel Office itself,
20:18
said their employees still needed to respond to the email,
20:22
or that responding was strongly encouraged. According to documents obtained
20:26
by the Post at the Interior Department, employees not only
20:31
still have to reply to this past weekend's email with
20:34
their accomplishments, but they will have to do the same
20:37
exercise weekly. According to an email reviewed by the Post.
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At the Commerce Department, Deputy Assistant Secretary Jeremy Pelter offered
20:47
a compromise of sorts. He said employees should craft five
20:51
bullet points relating to activities last week, according to an
20:55
email obtained by the Post, but scaff should not send
20:58
the rite up to o PM. Pelter wrote that information
21:02
must be provided to your first line supervisor at Commerce.
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You do not need to copy other recipients at this time.
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Pelter wrote, Supervisors, ensure that you retained the responses from
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your employees. A department at Veterans Affairs Health Agency Communication
21:20
offered another way forward, telling employees to respond from a
21:24
list of fifteen prepared options for bullet points, including efforts
21:28
to address severe mental illness, to promoting productivity to efforts
21:33
to address patient's safety. At one agency, leaders went further,
21:38
making clear that employees didn't need to respond now or
21:42
going forward. Leadership at one division of the Energy Department
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email staff midday Monday, telling them there was no need
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for you to respond to the email and warning against
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replying to any future emails emineing from OPM two in
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the event you re any type of emails like the
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one you received this weekend. The message stated, please do
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not take any action. Your senior leaders will provide guidance
22:09
as soon as possible on x and In private conversations,
22:14
federal workers complained that the varying guidance meant to increase
22:18
productivity was instead reducing it. One tsa employee speaking on
22:24
the condition of anonymity to prevent retaliation, said they were
22:27
stationed over the weekend at an airport in the Pacific Northwest.
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They said, workers who normally checked passengers for dangerous weapons
22:35
and use X ray technology to examine luggage were pulled
22:38
away from their stations and forced to sit down at
22:41
the computer so they could compose emails detailing how they
22:44
spent the past week creating long lines on what was
22:48
already a crowded night. I just don't understand it, the
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employee said, referring broadly to the Musk email and also
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the Doge led effort to shrink the government. Do they
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increased in efficiency? Aaron Weiner and Aaron Shaefer contributed to
23:06
this report. Our Next Island is entitled Stricter FAA regulations
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disrupt flights at national after mid air collision, runways close
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when marine won is nearby by Iain Duncan and Loy
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Aretani Airline passengers have experienced serious disruptions at Washington's Reagan
23:27
National Airport because of new rules that trigger runway closures
23:31
when President Donald Trump flies to and from the White
23:34
House aboard his helicopter. According to people aware of the restrictions,
23:38
fly tracking data and federal records, the stricter requirements imposed
23:43
by the Federal Aviation Administration after the mid air collision
23:47
of an Army helicopter and American Airlines passenger jet last
23:50
month that killed sixty seven people have forced dozens of
23:54
airliners bound for National to circle in holding patterns or
23:58
divert to other airports, including Dallas International, Baltimore, Washington International, Marshall,
24:04
and Richmond International. American Airlines pilots have been told they
24:09
might need to carry more fuel to account for potential
24:12
delays when they are flying into National, according to a
24:15
company memo obtained by The Washington Post. Passengers have noticed
24:20
suspended disruptions, raising questions on social media in recent days.
24:25
Anyone know what's going on with air traffic? One user
24:28
posted on a Reddit page focused on the Washington area Saturday,
24:32
when Trump traveled by Marine one to a political conference
24:35
in the Maryland suburbs. The user said, there's spouse's pilot
24:39
toll passengers. There was VIP movement in the DC airspace,
24:44
and they don't want any commercial aircraft there right now.
24:48
The FAA has rolled out restrictions in the airspace around
24:51
national in the weeks after the January twenty nine crash,
24:55
seeking to reduce the chance of further encounters between helicopters
24:59
and airliners. In the immediate aftermath, the agency ended helicopter
25:04
flights in a designated area along the Potomac River, with
25:07
exceptions for critical flights such as law enforcement and presidential
25:11
flights on Marine line. On February thirteen, an additional FAA
25:16
safety measure went into place, affecting a broader area. Air
25:21
traffic controllers were told to discontinue use of visual separation
25:25
rules to maintain a safe distance between aircraft. Set Two
25:29
people briefed on the restrictions, speaking on the condition of
25:32
anonymity because they were not authorized to talk publicly. Visual
25:36
separation requires pilots to see nearby aircraft and steer clear
25:41
of any danger. Instead, air traffic controllers and pilots must
25:46
now follow rules for radar separation, which requires one point
25:50
five miles of lateral distance between aircraft or five hundred
25:55
feet of altitude separation. Because National Airport is so close
26:00
to downtown Washington and the White House, that effectively shuts
26:04
down traffic along the busy flypaths when marine ie and
26:07
helicopters supporting the president's travel are in the air. The
26:12
policy change quickly had an impact. On February fourteen, when
26:16
Trump left the White House on the first leg of
26:19
a trip to Florida, roughly thirty airliners bound for National
26:23
were kept circling in the sky. Publicly available flight tracking
26:26
data shows at least nine aircraft diverted to other airports.
26:31
Similar disruptions have happened in the days since, the data shows.
26:35
The FAA said in his statement the Transportation Secretary Sean P. Duffy,
26:40
took action after the crash to improve safety, imposing their restrictions.
26:45
For years, non critical helicopter traffic congested the DCA airspace,
26:50
which created challenges for controllers and pilots, the agency said.
26:54
The White House did not respond to a request for comment.
26:58
A Marine Corps spokesman said theervice, which is responsible for
27:01
the president's flights will follow all applicable regulations from the
27:05
FAA at all locations. The disruptions caused by the stricter
27:10
rules are a preview of the balance officials are likely
27:14
to have to strike as a way how to insure
27:16
safety in the skies over Washington. The designated helicopter routes
27:21
near the airport come close to flypaths used by airliners
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that transport twenty five million passengers a year in and
27:28
out of National The Post has reported that risks in
27:32
the busy airspace were well documented years before the crash.
27:37
On the night of the collision between the Army black
27:39
Hawk helicopter and the American slide from Wichita, staff in
27:43
the National Air Traffic Control Tower were relying on visual separation,
27:48
which calls for helicopter palace to confirm they can see
27:51
airline traffic and will avoid it. The National Transportation Safety Board,
27:56
which is leading the crash investigation, has said the black
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Hawk was flying at two hundred seventy eight feet above
28:02
a two hundred foot ceiling on the helicopter route. Experts
28:06
have said the helicopter crew, when confirming visual separation to
28:10
the tower, may have mistaken another jet for the American Flight.
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Duffy said the limits to helicopter flights in the designated
28:19
area would remain in place, at least until the NTSB
28:22
completes its preliminary investigation into the crash. Airline traffic has
28:27
been required to wait for Marine one in the past,
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but under the new policy, the disruptions have become more severe,
28:34
according to the people familiar with the changes. In part,
28:38
that is because a US Park Police helicopter circles a
28:41
white house before Marine one arrives and departs. Flight tracking
28:46
data shows in the past, controllers could continue to allow
28:50
airline flights to operate while that helicopter was in the air,
28:54
but now they must hold the commercial traffic, one of
28:57
the people said. American Airlines, a major operator at National,
29:02
told pilots February sixteenth to be prepared for holds for
29:06
helicopter traffic and said their aircraft may be loaded with
29:10
extra fuel to accommodate the additional time in the air.
29:13
According to an email obtained by the Post, the airline
29:16
said the holes were due to essential flights, including life
29:20
safety operations, law enforcement activity, and presidential transportation. The memos
29:26
said the delays were expected to be about twenty minutes,
29:29
but could last longer. Planes typically arrived and depart National
29:34
every few minutes, but on February fourteen, the day after
29:38
the policy change, flights at National came to a stop
29:41
around two twenty five p m. Normal traffic didn't resume
29:46
for almost an hour. Flight tracking data from ADSB Exchange,
29:51
a side that gathers publicly available data on aircraft movements,
29:55
showed an aircraft circling over the White House. An FAA
29:58
bulletin issued around the the same time told airliners to
30:02
expect disruptions. Users can expect departure and arrival delays airborne
30:07
holding into the Washington National Airport of up to sixty
30:11
minutes due to VIP movement, the message read, while departing
30:15
flights waited on the ground. That day, roughly thirty jets
30:18
bound for National circled over Maryland, Virginia, and North Carolina.
30:24
Nine flights ultimately diverted to b WI, Dulles and other
30:27
airports in Virginia, a sign they were running low on fuel.
30:32
A passenger on one diverted American Airline flight said she
30:35
could see National Harbor from her seat on the right
30:38
side of the plane as a jet began its final
30:41
approach into National Airport, but then she felt the plane
30:44
pulled back up, and the captain got on the intercom
30:47
to explain that they'd beholding due to VIP movement. The
30:51
passenger spoke on the condition of anonymity because she is
30:54
not permitted to speak to the media without permission from
30:56
her employer. The plane continued to serve before the captain
31:01
informed passengers they'd have to divert to Dulles. But the
31:04
confusion did not end there, she said. On the ground,
31:08
American was scrambling to find gate agents to help passengers.
31:12
People were panicked because they were afraid of missing their flights,
31:16
and some people had already missed their connections entirely. She said.
31:20
Some had cars or car rentals at National or reservations
31:24
in that part of town. Trump left the White House
31:27
on Marine one at three o eight p m, bound
31:29
for Joint Base Andrews, where the presidential planes are based,
31:33
for a trip to Florida. Flights resumed at National a
31:36
few minutes later. The tracking data shows Matt Pfizer and
31:40
Dan Labouth contributed to this report. Next, an item entitled
31:46
doge cuts workers using tech playbook must deploys disruptive management
31:51
style he adopted in Silicon Valley Ahammentton Tansen, Elizabeth Blaskin,
31:57
Garrett d. Vink, and Vaiz Sadiki. US DOEGE service personnel
32:02
come in hot, striding into federal departments in casual clothes
32:06
and moppy haircuts. They demand access to employment and funding databases.
32:12
Federal workers who refuse can find themselves on a tense
32:15
phone call with those had elon Musk or one of
32:18
his senior aids. Once DOGE crews gain access to IT systems,
32:23
they use tech tools to quickly identify programs to cut
32:26
and people to fire. In some cases, they have used
32:29
artificial intelligence software to comb through federal databases for targets.
32:34
This account of the Department of Government efficiencies cut first,
32:38
asked questions later approach is based on meeting records obtained
32:41
by The Washington Post and conversations with eight people familiar
32:45
with the group's work or Musk's goals and philosophy. All
32:49
spoke on the condition of anonymity to avoid retaliation or
32:53
to discuss private information. A month into Musk's explosive campaign
32:58
inside the federal government, VOGE claims who have achieved fifty
33:01
five billion dollars in savings by cutting government contracts, but
33:06
a Washington Post analysis found that hundreds of the counciled
33:09
contracts listed represents savings of zero dollars each, and that
33:14
the interventions have had disruptive consequences. Millions of pounds of
33:19
food aid were stranded en route to overseas recipients after
33:22
Doge swept through the US Agency for International Development, the
33:26
Post reported Friday, despite a court order requiring foreign aid
33:31
to be restarted. The Agriculture Department said last week that
33:35
it was trying to rehire several people fired in Dodge
33:39
directed cuts who were working on the ongoing outbreak of
33:42
adian influenza or bird flu. But Doge's actions reflect management
33:47
practices that embrace upheaval and have cemented Musk's reputation in
33:52
Silicon Valley as a visionary leader. Though the slogan moved
33:56
fast and break things was coined and later abandoned by
34:00
Facebook under Mark Zuckerberg, it has found no clearer avatar
34:04
than Musk. You should just cut, one of the people
34:08
said of Musk's philosophy, speaking on the condition of anonymity
34:11
to describe private conversations, Then if it breaks, you can
34:16
just add things back in. People familiar with the billionaire's
34:20
leadership style said he likes to slash frameworks he considers
34:24
broken and rebuild them from scratch, even if that could
34:27
sow confusion and dysfunction. That approach has similarities with zero
34:32
based budgeting or z b B, a strategy once embraced
34:37
by President Jimmy Carter, but the speed at which Musk
34:41
implements his vision, such as during his twenty twenty two
34:44
acquisition of the social network Twitter now called X, often
34:48
guarantees turmoil. After Musk fired about eighty percent of Twitter's workforce,
34:55
including many content moderation staff, and loosen content rules, the
35:00
platforms suffered technical outages and saw a surge in antisemitic posts.
35:05
The consequences of that delete and rebuild from zero approach
35:08
can be more drastic when applied to government departments that
35:12
provide services many people rely on. Cybersecurity experts have also
35:17
raised concerns about the potential for hacks and leaks when
35:21
government databases are copied, combined, or made accessible to many
35:25
more people. Some DOGE representatives used personal laptops when they
35:29
initially came to one agency set. A person familiar with
35:32
the situation, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to
35:36
avoid retribution. Using personal devices can breach agency security policies.
35:42
Move fast and breakstuff that's great in software as a service,
35:46
said John Gilmore, head of research at cybersecurity company delete me.
35:51
That gets really complex when you start talking about the government,
35:55
because a government has an agreement with citizens. Some are
36:00
questioning the methods employed by Doge and Musk. Republican lawmakers
36:05
faced anger and protests last week from constituents about federal
36:09
layoffs and Doge's access to personal data. A Washington Post
36:13
ifso's poll found that forty nine percent of Americans said
36:17
they disapprove of the way Musk is handling his government job,
36:21
with thirty four percent approving and fourteen percent not sure.
36:25
A spokesperson for the White House, where Doge has been
36:28
referring questioned, did not respond to request for comment. President
36:33
Donald Trump on Saturday said in a post on truth
36:36
Social that he was happy with Musk's work. Elon is
36:40
doing a great job, but I would like to see
36:42
him get more aggressive, he wrote. Hours later, Musk posted
36:47
on x that all federal employees would shortly receive an
36:51
email asking what they got done last week, and that
36:55
any who failed to reply would lose their job. Musk
36:58
previously posed a version of that question to Twitter CEO
37:02
ahead of his acquisition of the company, and later fired him.
37:06
Federal workers began receiving emails from the Office of Personnel
37:09
Management on Saturday afternoon with the heading what did you
37:13
do last week? According to a copy reviewed by The Post,
37:17
it asked recipients to reply with the summary of their
37:20
accomplishments before Monday at eleven fifty nine pm Eastern Time,
37:24
but did not mention consequences for not responding. Confusion followed
37:29
as leaders at several agencies, including the Defense Department, told
37:33
workers not to reply well. Musk said in a post
37:37
on x on Monday that anyone who didn't take the
37:40
email seriously would soon be furthering their career elsewhere get
37:45
to the core. Since the conception of DOZE in the fall,
37:50
Musk has been focused on using technology to gain access
37:53
to the infrastructure of the federal government and using data
37:56
mining tools to search for inefficiency, waste and programs contrary
38:00
to Trump's agenda, said two people familiar with the planning
38:04
process among Musk associates. They spoke on the condition of
38:07
anonymity to describe it. In discussions about how the group
38:12
should operate, Musk said that it was important to gain
38:15
direct and immediate access to government data and systems to
38:19
allow swift deletion of programs without the need for broader
38:22
consensus or input from untrustworthy bureaucrats. The two people said,
38:28
if you accept for a moment that people are trying
38:30
to hide lots of things, then that's how you get
38:33
at it. The person said, you get to the core.
38:37
The people must hire to implement that vision are generally young,
38:41
often in their twenties, and typically have backgrounds in technology
38:45
rather than government. They work long hours, through weekends and
38:49
at breakneck speed, said two federal employees have worked directly
38:52
with a group and who spoke on the condition of
38:54
anonymity for fear of retaliation. Dog staffer Christopher Stanmon, who
39:00
has worked in security engineering at Musk's companies, boasted about
39:03
leading work at two o three a m. Friday morning,
39:07
just now leading work, caring and competence, he wrote on
39:11
x with an emoji featuring two hands clasped in the
39:13
shape of a heart. Stanley did not respond to a
39:16
request for comment exactly, Musk affirmed at two thirty six
39:21
a m. He has said Doge is working one hundred
39:24
twenty hours a week, evoking times when he has become
39:27
hyper focused on challenges at one of his businesses, and
39:31
has spoken of sleeping at the offices of Twitter or
39:33
a Tesla factory. DOES representatives have displayed contempt for civil servants,
39:39
suggesting they consider them to be stupid or slow, The
39:42
two federal employees said, Must suggested in a post on
39:46
S last month that government workers have been pretending to
39:49
work while taking money from taxpayers. DOGE staffers are under
39:54
immense pressure to move as fast as possible, the federal
39:57
employees said. One source of that Steve Davis, a Musk
40:01
deputy who previously helped him revamp Twitter, who constantly pushes
40:05
dogetaffers and any federal worker who gets in the way
40:09
to go faster. The employees said. Davis did not respond
40:13
to requests for comment. In early February, DOES representatives showed
40:18
up at the FBI and asked staff to combine the
40:21
agency's various employee databases to make them more easily navigable.
40:26
FBI workers pushed back, saying the data was in separate
40:29
databases managed by dozens of staff and couldn't be combined
40:33
over night. The DOGE representatives insisted that the task could
40:38
and should be done by just a handful of people.
40:41
Set a person with knowledge of the situation at the
40:43
FBI who spoke on the condition of anonymity to avoid
40:47
retribution for sharing details about the group's work. The response
40:51
betrayed a lack of understanding of how government databases work
40:55
and the realities of working without data technology. The person said.
41:00
One reason DOGE agents have pushed career staff to centralized
41:04
federal data is to quote, optimize it and make it searchable,
41:08
including with AI tools that can speed up the process
41:12
of identifying programs to cut. At the Agriculture Department, a
41:17
senior official toll staff that an AI bought would be
41:20
searching databases to hunt for spending that ran afoul of
41:23
Trump's executive Order forbidding diversity, equity and inclusion programs. According
41:29
to contemporaneous meeting records obtained by the Post that marked
41:33
a reversal from the pre DOGE era, staff had previously
41:37
raised alarms about the use of AI, resulting in a
41:41
ban on chat gpt US on USDA computers and the
41:45
rejection of a proposed subscription to proofreating tool grammarily. According
41:50
to a department employee who spoke on the condition of
41:52
anonymity to avoid retaliation, DOGE staff have also adapted government
41:58
AI tools built under the previous administration to their fast
42:02
moving mission. President Joe Biden issued an executive order on
42:06
AI in twenty twenty three that ordered government agencies to
42:10
find ways to use AI more while adhering to guard
42:14
rails meant to protect civil rights. Many government workers familiar
42:18
with those tools and initiatives have been fired in the
42:21
general purge of probationary federal workers instigated by DOGE, according
42:26
to two people familiar with the situation who spoke on
42:29
the condition of anonymity to avoid retribution. As a General
42:33
Services Administration, Mosque's allies want to turn an existing tool
42:38
called g SAI into a more general purpose system that
42:42
can go full glass asap. One of the people said
42:46
Biden's AI initiative had some overlap with Musk's vision for DOGE,
42:50
urging government departments to embrace the technology. The Musk people
42:55
are not interested in guardrails is a big difference, the
42:58
person said. Next, an item entitled Roberta Flac nineteen thirty
43:04
seven to two thousand five. Spellbinding singer with a string
43:08
of nineteen seventies hits. One time d C teacher found
43:11
fame and acclaim with quiet, emotionally searching recordings by Matt Schuttel. ROBERTA.
43:18
Flack a classically trained pianist who taught in the d
43:21
C school system before launching a singing career that made
43:24
her one of the most popular performers in the nineteen seventies,
43:28
with number one hits such as the First Time Ever
43:31
I Saw Your Face and Killing Me Softly with his song.
43:34
Died February twenty fourth in Manhattan. She was eighty eight.
43:39
The cause was complications from amiotrophic lateral sclerosis sometimes called Luke.
43:44
Garrett's disease set her publicist a lame shock. Missus Flak
43:49
taught music and accompanied other vocalists on piano before she
43:53
was cajoled into singing Christmas carols while appearing at a
43:56
Washington nightclub in the nineteen sixties. She eventually decided to
44:00
concentrate on a music career, and her quiet, emotionally searching
44:04
style soon won a growing number of fans. By the
44:08
end of her life, Miss Flack had influenced generations of
44:11
younger singers, including Wettey Houston, Anita Baker Chade, and Lady Gaga.
44:19
Miss Flat's nineteen sixty nine debut album First Take contained
44:23
the First Time Ever I Saw Your Face, which he
44:26
had taught years earlier to some of her choral students
44:29
at Washington's Bannaker Junior High now a high school. She
44:33
released two more albums, Chapter Two and Quiet Fire, in
44:37
nineteen seventy and nineteen seventy one, respectively, and was seemingly
44:42
content with a niche following. When Clint Eastwood was preparing
44:46
to direct play Missy for Me, his moody nineteen seventy
44:49
one thriller about a djay pursued by a stalker, he
44:53
heard the First Time Ever I Saw Your Face on
44:56
the radio. Eastwood called Miss Black and asked if he
44:59
could use a song for a key scene in the film.
45:03
He was so sincere, Miss Flack later told Britain's Daily
45:06
Telegraph newspaper, and he wanted it just how it sounds.
45:11
Isn't it too slow? I asked? He replied, no, just
45:16
like that, all of it, and he'd played all five
45:19
minutes and twenty two seconds of it. I thought, if
45:23
he's willing to do that, I must be doing something right.
45:28
The film's success led Miss Flax's record label Atlantic to
45:31
release First Time as a single, shortened by about a minute.
45:36
The song, written by British folk singer Ewan McColl in
45:40
nineteen fifty seven, had been recorded several times before, but
45:44
it was Miss Flak's version that became a sensation. First
45:48
Time spent six weeks at number one on Billboard's Hot
45:52
one hundred chart in nineteen seventy two, three years after
45:55
it was recorded. At the Grammy ceremonies, it won Song
45:59
of the Year and Record of the Year, and made
46:02
Miss Flack a star. Her slow, deliberate recording didn't easily
46:07
fit in any of the prevailing musical styles of the time.
46:12
I didn't try to be a soul singer, a jazz singer,
46:15
a blue singer, no category, Miss Flak told The Guardian,
46:20
my music is my expression of what I feel and
46:23
believe in a moment. But First Time she found a
46:27
musical sweet spot that touched on elements of jazz, pop,
46:32
classical and folk. The lyrics seemed to float, as if
46:36
driven by the clarity and conviction of her voice. The
46:40
first time Ever I saw your face, I thought the
46:43
sun rose in your eyes, and the moon and the
46:46
stars were the gifts you gave to the dark and
46:49
the endless skies. In nineteen seventy two, soon after First
46:54
Time began to climb in the charts, Miss Flak had
46:57
a second hit record, the breezy soft soul tune where
47:01
Is the Love? Performed with Donny Hathaway. They won a
47:05
Grammy for Best Vocal Duo Writing. A surge and popularity,
47:11
Miss Flack released another single, Killing Me Softly with His
47:15
Song in nineteen seventy three, A song almost as ethereal
47:20
as The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face, is
47:23
about the effect a singer has on a young listener,
47:26
strming my pain with his fingers, singing my life with
47:30
his words, killing Me Softly with his song. A dispute
47:35
about the origin of the tune, which is credited to
47:37
songwriters Charles Fox and Norman Gimble, has swirled since the
47:41
early nineteen seventies. Singer songwriter Laurie Lieberman, who was managed
47:46
by Thoughts and Gimble, first recorded Killing Me Softly in
47:50
nineteen seventy two. She has maintained that she developed the
47:54
song's concept and jotted lyrics on a napkin after seeing
47:57
a performance by Don mc lane. In any case, Miss
48:02
Flax's recording of Killing Me Softly held the number one
48:05
spot on the Billboard Pop Chart for five weeks in
48:09
nineteen seventy three, and went on to win Grammy's for
48:12
Record of the Year and Best Pop Vocal Performance. She
48:17
was the first person to win back to back honors
48:19
for Record of the Year. An immensely popular Grammy winning
48:24
cover of Killing Me Softly, released by The Fujis in
48:28
nineteen ninety six, helped introduce the song and Miss Flax's
48:32
music to new generations of listeners. Miss Flox charted another
48:37
number one hit in nineteen seventy four with the frothy
48:40
feel Like Making Love, then embarked on worldwide tours and
48:44
settled in New York, where she lived next door to
48:47
John Lennon and Yogo Ono in the Dakota Apartment building.
48:51
She continued to record duets with Hathaway, including the nineteen
48:55
seventy eight hit the closer I Get to You, until
48:58
his death in nineteen seventy nine. She later formed a
49:02
vocal duo with Peboll Bryson and appeared at different times
49:06
with such artists as Quincy Jones, Bert Baccaroc, Miles Davis,
49:11
Judy Collins, and Michael Jackson. She wrote songs with poet
49:15
and novelists Maya Angelou. I am a person who has
49:19
managed to last because I've chosen to stay true to
49:22
my own ideals and principles and true to my own experience,
49:25
Miss Black told The Washington Post in nineteen eighty nine.
49:29
I am a black person who sings the way I do.
49:32
I'm not a black person who sounds anything like Aretha
49:35
Franklin or anything like Chopra Kahan. I know what I am,
49:39
and I don't want to and I shouldn't have to
49:42
change in order to be who I am practicing six
49:46
hours a day. ROBERTA. Cleopatra Flack was born in Blackfountain,
49:51
North Carolina, on February tenth, nineteen thirty seven, and grew
49:55
up in Arlington, Virginia. For much of her career, she
49:59
was described as several years younger than her actual age.
50:03
Her father was a draftsman for the federal government, and
50:06
her mother was a school cook. Both parents played the piano,
50:10
and Miss Flack began on the instrument at a young age.
50:13
She practiced six hours a day studied with a black woman,
50:16
Hazel Harrison, who had trained in Europe. I was a
50:20
good student because I didn't do anything else, Miss Slack
50:24
told Avenue Magazine in nineteen seventy one. I weighed over
50:28
two hundred pounds. All I did was play the piano
50:31
and eat all day, and I did them at the
50:34
same time, and study and go to church. That was
50:38
all I did. She won a scholarship to Howard University,
50:42
studying piano and vocal music and conducting choirs on the
50:46
side before graduating. In nineteen fifty eight, when she received
50:50
a practice teaching assignment at Alice Deeele Junior High in
50:53
northwest Washington, I was one of the first negroes inside
50:57
that building, except for the cooks and janiors, she told
51:00
the Post in nineteen sixty eight. She later taught at
51:04
Banneker and other schools. During those years, she accompanied singers
51:09
on piano and gradually began to sing in public herself,
51:13
modeling her style in part on the boundary of her
51:15
favorite singer, Frank Sinatra. She began by performing Christmas songs
51:20
during the holiday season. I'm singing and I'm playing, and
51:25
suddenly everyone stops and I'm out there by myself, she
51:28
recalled to the post in nineteen eighty nine. And because
51:32
I'm a performer, I just kept on singing. At the end,
51:35
they applauded and said sing another one nightclub owner Henry
51:40
y Aff built a special room for Miss Slack at
51:42
mister Henry's on Capitol Hill, playing jazz and shel tunes.
51:46
She built a strong early following, particularly among the gay
51:50
clientele at the venue. In nineteen sixty eight, jazz penis
51:54
Lesna Cann heard Miss Slack at a charity benefit and
51:58
helped her get an audition with it left record label.
52:01
It is a stunning voice. There's no question about that.
52:05
Composer Marvin Hamlish, who wrote songs for Miss Flax's nineteen
52:08
eighty eight album Oasis, told Newsday, she inspires you. Miss
52:13
Flatk's marriage to jazz musician Steve Novisel ended in divorce.
52:18
She had no immediate survivors. Over the years, she established
52:23
a charitable foundation and supported efforts to support urban education
52:27
and a combat HIV a's She retired from singing after
52:31
a stroke in twenty eighteen, then two years later received
52:34
a Grammy Award for Lifetime Achievement. When I was a
52:38
child in Arlington, Virginia, Miss Flap recalled in nineteen eighty eight.
52:42
Six hours a day and on Sundays, when everybody else
52:46
was out playing, I was practicing. I had no idea
52:49
it would come to anything. Yet I never felt I
52:52
was wasting my time, not one second. And the final
52:57
item on to Day's front page is entitled podcaster who
53:01
bashed FBI will be its Deputy Leader by Perry Stein,
53:06
Jeremy Roebuck, Jonathan Baron, and Clara Ann Smors. FBI Director
53:12
Cash Patel has offered the public two different visions from
53:15
the nation's powerful law enforcement agency. During his confirmation hearing,
53:21
Patel assured senators that there will be no politicization at
53:25
the FBI and that he respects the agents who work
53:28
at the bureau. Under his watch, FBI personnel would not
53:32
be fired based on the cases they were assigned, Batel testified,
53:37
But in his twenty twenty few books and in public appearances,
53:41
Batel has portrayed a dramatically different vision. He derided FBI
53:46
agents as people who can't be trusted and called for
53:49
retribution against his and President Donald Trump's perceived enemies. On Sunday,
53:55
Patel tat is his deputy director, Dan Bongina, a bomb
53:59
Basque podcast host whose tamper worked at the FBI and
54:03
has spent years pushing conspiracy theories about the Bureau and
54:07
the quote deep state, he says has infiltrated the federal government.
54:12
His hiring to an enormously powerful job held until now
54:17
by FBI veterans could be a strong indication of which
54:20
vision Patel plans to carry out. The Bureau has never
54:24
had someone from the outside come in as a deputy director, never,
54:29
said ray At Phinis, a retired FBI counterintelligence officer turned
54:34
author and historian of the bureau. I believe Bongino has
54:37
a steep, possibly insurmountable learning curve. The FBI did not
54:43
comment Monday on Bungino's hiring, but Pateau posted on x
54:48
that his appointment was quote tremendous news for law enforcement
54:52
and the future of American justice. I am proud to
54:55
welcome Don Bungino as the next Deputy director of the FBI,
54:59
A war and a lifelong public servant, he wrote, with
55:03
Pan Bondy as our new Attorney General. We are assembling
55:06
a team focused on restoring public trust, upholding the rule
55:10
of law, and insuring justice is served. Bongino has spent
55:15
the past decade as a popular conservative pundit slamming the
55:19
law enforcement agency he will now help lead as corrupt
55:22
and unfixable. He and Patel, like many Trump allies and
55:27
Republican lawmakers, say the agency is biased against conservatives. Bongino
55:33
has repeatedly called for the FBI agents assigned to conduct
55:36
the court authorized search of Trump's Marlago property in Pompeach,
55:40
Florida for missing classified documents to be fired. Fire every
55:45
single person involved in political targeting of Donald Trump and
55:49
anyone they don't like, everyone, personnel or policy, Bongino said
55:53
on this podcast shortly after the August twenty twenty two
55:57
ray is a fact. Fire everyone. It's the only way.
56:01
The evidence of a corrupted FI is everywhere. Many FI
56:06
agents fear Patel and Logina will up end the bureau,
56:09
according to people familiar with the agent's thinking, whose folk
56:13
on the condition of anonymity to protect themselves and the
56:16
agents from retribution. The people said there are concerns that
56:21
Patel and Longino will work together to push out agents
56:25
they deem disloyal and use the FBI to carry out
56:29
the White House's directives. Bongino's hiring further intensifies the mistrust
56:34
that many agents already had for Patel and the Trump administration.
56:39
These people said. He was announced as deputy director only
56:43
two days after senior managers at the bureau were told
56:47
Patel plans to move up to one thousand, five hundred
56:50
administrative staff and agents from the agency's Washington headquarters to
56:55
satellite locations throughout the country. When patown that with the
56:59
FIG Association ahead of his confirmation in January, he assured
57:04
the group's leaders that he would select the deputy who
57:06
was a veteran of the Law Enforcement Bureau and has
57:09
a trust of the agents. According to a memo the
57:12
group wrote to member Sunday, the FBI has a tradition
57:16
of selecting someone with deep experience within the bureau to
57:19
serve as deputy director. Given that Patel has no FBI experience,
57:25
the Agent's Association had hoped for someone who understood the
57:29
intricacies of the bureau and its personnel. On Inauguration Day,
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Trump tapped two respected FBI leaders, Brian Driscoll and Robert Kssane,
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as the acting Director and acting Deputy Director of the FBI.
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Both had experience as senior officials handling sensitive matters in
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field offices, and some current and former agents hoped Patel
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would keep one of them in the deputy position. The
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acting leaders gained the respective agents across a bureau over
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the past four whisks as they tried to keep some
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senior officials in their jobs and pushed back against the
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Justice Department's demands for the names of thousands of agents
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and employees who touched the investigations of rioters who storm
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the US Capital on January sixth, twenty twenty one. It's
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unclear what Riscos and Casein's roles will be now that
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Patel has been confirmed and picked his deputy, which is
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not a Senate confirmed position. Unfortunately, due to time constraints,
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we will not be able to complete this item. This
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concludesive reading of the Washington Post for today, Tuesday, February
58:35
twenty sixth, twenty twenty five. Your reader today has been
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Sidney Fraser. If you have any questions, comments, or suggestions
58:43
concerning this program, please feel free to call us at
58:46
A five nine four two, two six, three nine zero.
58:50
Thank you for listening, and now please stay tuned for
58:52
continued programming on Radio I