Elon Musk Is Making Republicans Sweat and Giving Democrats a New Target
The New York Times
His unusual governing arrangement with President Trump is opening Republicans up to being yoked politically to Mr. Musk, who polls show is broadly unpopular.
He held court in the Oval Office in a T-shirt and blazer with a child clinging to his shoulders. He takes private meetings on Capitol Hill, offering his phone number for senators to voice their complaints, as if they are his constituents. And last month, he brandished a chain saw as he promised to cut spending, to rapturous cheers from conservative activists.
Seven weeks into President Trump’s second administration, Elon Musk has not just upended the government. His omnipresence in Washington has also swiftly become an unpredictable factor that could reshape politics across the country.
Already, the billionaire’s signature slash-and-burn style and showy spending cuts have reverberated far beyond the Capitol, making even lawmakers from deep-red states begin to sweat. He has shown a willingness to shape elections directly, both by spending locally and by threatening to wield his fortune to stifle dissent within the Republican Party.
And he has given a glimmer of hope to Democrats in search of a message they can use against Mr. Trump, playing a starring role in new advertising for their candidates and by several of the party’s major campaign arms. Democratic operatives gleefully swap private polling suggesting Mr. Musk could prove a serious liability for the president.
While many presidents have relied on family members or close friends as advisers, never before has the country seen an unelected billionaire and newcomer to electoral politics gain such a powerful and prominent perch in the White House.
The department agreed to some of the officers’ demands but said that those who did not return to work on Friday would face disciplinary action and possible criminal charges.
People say they are intimidated by online attacks from the president, concerned about harm to their businesses or worried about the safety of their families.
And the feeling isn’t good. Aaron Renn has gained a following by warning that the U.S. is currently a “negative world” for Christianity.
Mayor Eric Adams of New York City has taken few concrete steps to launch a serious re-election campaign, even as he faces a growing field of prominent challengers.
The idea that every student should aim for a four-year college motivated a bipartisan movement for decades. Now even enthusiastic promoters of the idea are reconsidering it.
Uncertainty about how much money colleges and universities stand to lose has led some schools to reduce the number of doctoral students, in some cases reneging on offers.
Mr. Myrie, a Democratic state senator, would offer free seats to public school students from 3-K to 12th grade in a plan to make New York City more affordable for families.
Ms. Adams, the New York City Council speaker, is trying to position herself as a principled alternative to former Gov. Andrew Cuomo and Mayor Eric Adams.
Officials have suggested that the pause in weapons shipments and intelligence sharing could be relatively short-lived if Ukraine’s president bends to White House demands.
The Police Department said several demonstrators were taken into custody during the sit-in at the college’s main library.
A third dog that was found dead last week with the couple was an Australian Kelpie mix named Zinna, the boarder said.
In tense political times, can “The Great One” be both a Trump supporter and a beloved hero in Canada? Some want him to pick a side. (Preferably the one to the north.)
The city didn’t actually spread more salt than usual. But it may have seemed that way, according to the Sanitation Department, because there was less snow and rain.