☕ Why the Democrats want DOGE investigation

It’s Friday.

And for those who celebrate, it’s Super Bowl weekend. We’ll be watching the game (of course), but also the circus that surrounds the tournament - the half-time show, the ads, and a good dose of celebrity spotting.

I’ve got 30 seconds

Some headlines from this morning:

⏰ The deadline on a Trump administration offer to government employees - pay until September in return for their resignation before 11:59PM, Thursday - has been temporarily blocked by a federal Judge, who sided with labor unions. It means the deadline will be pushed back until the conclusion of orals argument in court on Monday. The Trump administration’s offer, part of wide-scale cost-cutting efforts across the public sector, has already been accepted by nearly 40,000 federal employees.

🛬 Flights into Reagan National airport have been reduced indefinitely as experts investigate last week's crash, which killed 67. Officials have held long-term concerns over the hazards of heavy air traffic at the nation's busiest airport. The Federal Aviation Authority cited bad weather and ongoing recovery efforts for the reduction in flights, and refused to put a timeline on their full resumption. A preliminary report on the crash is expected to be finalised this month.

🇮🇱 Israel is preparing in line with President Trump's proposal for all Palestinians to leave Gaza, ceding ownership to America. Israel’s Defence Minister instructed the military to "prepare a plan that will allow … residents … [wishing] to leave to do so." He added that any country who had criticized Israel’s actions during the conflict must accept Palestinian civilians. Today, President Trump also clarified that US troops wouldn't be needed to take control of Gaza because Israel would hand it to the US at the “conclusion of the fighting.”

🤖 An update to Google’s AI policy has removed a longstanding ban on using artificial intelligence for weapons and surveillance. Alphabet, Google’s parent company, published its original AI guidelines in 2018. This included a ban on using AI to pursue “weapons or other technologies” that were “likely to cause harm”. However, this pledge does not appear in its new AI principles. The updated guidelines also scrapped a ban on using “technologies that gather or use information for surveillance violating internationally accepted norms.” Google said it will uphold “widely accepted principles of international law and human rights”.

I’ve got 1 minute

The Kansas City Chiefs will return to the NFL’s biggest stage on Sunday night, to attempt a third consecutive Super Bowl title. The only thing standing in their way is a highly talented and motivated Philadelphia Eagles team.

Kansas City Chiefs

The Chiefs are playing in their fifth Super Bowl in the past six years. The weight of their experience in the setting makes them slight favourites. Led by quarterback Patrick Mahomes, the Chiefs are poised to become the only team to achieve a Super Bowl three-peat. Mahomes, who has a 3-1 record in the league’s title match, was named MVP each time the Chiefs won. The Chiefs have not looked as dominant this season as in past years, but they have found a way to win, mainly through the brilliance of Mahomes.

Philadelphia Eagles

The Eagles are out for revenge after losing to the Chiefs at the 2023 Super Bowl LVII. Their biggest offensive weapon is running back Saquon Barkley, who has had a historic season. Barkley is 30 yards away from breaking the all-time single-season record for combined rushing yards in the regular season and playoffs, was not in the Eagles lineup the last time they were at the Super Bowl and could prove the difference.

MVP

Barkley has already picked up an honor, being named the NFL’s Offensive Player of the Year at a pre-Super Bowl awards ceremony. Barkley was beaten by Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen for the overall MVP award. Allen beat out a crowded field including fellow QBs Lamar Jackson (Baltimore Ravens), Joe Burrow (Cincinnati Bengals), and Jared Goff (Detroit Lions).

Half-time show

The half-time show this year will be headlined by rapper Kendrick Lamar, accompanied by SZA. The match will also feature plenty of famous faces, including Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce’s partner Taylor Swift, and reportedly President Trump. If Trump does go, he’ll be the first President to go to the Super Bowl while in office.

I’ve got 2 minutes

In the 18 days since President Trump took office, many major moves announced by the administration have involved Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE). Now, a group of Democrats have penned a letter requesting an investigation into the national security risk Musk and his team at DOGE may pose, airing concerns Musk and his team are accessing sensitive government information as they carry out their cost-cutting efforts.

What is DOGE, and what does it do?

DOGE was established via executive order on the first day of President Trump’s second term, and is not a government department. It is tasked with cutting government spending and regulations, including by reducing government headcount.

DOGE has been at the center of many of the early Trump administration initiatives, including the deal offered to federal government employees asking them to resign in return for pay until September, and the plans to significantly reduce the function of USAID.

Musk has been placed in charge of DOGE via the status of ‘Special Government Employee’, and has vowed to cut up to $2 trillion of government expenditure. Musk’s team have not been officially identified, but it has been widely reported that Musk’s staff is made up, in part, of young engineers between the ages of 16 and 24.

DOGE staff this week have been demanding access to federal agency systems. The Democrat's letter mentioned DOGE staff accessed the systems of USAID and the Office of Personnel Management, as well as federal payment systems.

The letter

The letter argues information being accessed by DOGE staff this week was private and could be sensitive to the national interest. Democratic lawmakers want more transparency on the identity and security clearance of those accessing the information.

"We are deeply concerned that unauthorized system access could be occurring across the federal government and could pose a major threat to the personal privacy of all Americans and to the national security of our nation", they said.

Committee members are calling for evidence that all DOGE staff are entitled to access government systems and have been properly vetted for a security clearance.

The White House confirmed that DOGE are operating with "appropriate security clearances, and as employees of the relevant agencies, not as outside advisors or entities”.

What’s next?

The Inspectors General (the recipients of the letter), Musk or President Trump are yet to respond to the letter.

However, government pushback on DOGE’s effort is increasing. Today, 13 state attorney generals stated their intention to file lawsuits blocking DOGE from accessing government personnel’s payment information.