The U.S. Senate voted Thursday to confirm former U.S. Rep. Billy Long of Missouri as Commissioner of the Internal Revenue Service.
The vote was 53-44 along party lines.
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✅ CONFIRMED: Billy Long as the 51st Commissioner of Internal Revenue <a href="https://t.co/xZhKnxQ0Ns">pic.twitter.com/xZhKnxQ0Ns</a>
&mdash; Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) <a href="https://twitter.com/RapidResponse47/status/1933218584844468343?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 12, 2025</a></blockquote>
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During his time in office, Long had <a href="https://www.congress.gov/bill/113th-congress/house-bill/25/cosponsors">cosponsored</a> legislation to abolish the IRS. Now, he says he hopes to “improve” it.
“I have the opportunity to make real, transformational change to an agency that needs it more than any other federal agency,” Long said during his confirmation hearing in May.
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IRS Commissioner nominee Billy Long delivers remarks before the Senate Finance Committee: &quot;I have the opportunity to make real, transformational change to an agency that needs it more than any other&#8230; You got to ask why I want this job. I want it because I care about people.&quot; <a href="https://t.co/C7CQrLHVTS">pic.twitter.com/C7CQrLHVTS</a>
&mdash; Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) <a href="https://twitter.com/RapidResponse47/status/1924838753400390028?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 20, 2025</a></blockquote>
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President Donald Trump nominated Long in December 2024, calling him “an extremely hard worker … respected by all,” The Daily Wire previously <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/trump-taps-extremely-hard-worker-former-congressman-billy-long-for-irs-commissioner">reported</a>.
“Billy brings 32 years of experience running his own businesses in Real Estate and, as one of the premier Auctioneers in the Country,” Trump said in a statement at the time. “Since leaving Congress, Billy has worked as a Business and Tax advisor, helping Small Businesses navigate the complexities of complying with the IRS Rules and Regulations.”
<a href="https://get.dailywire.com/gift/?utm_medium=website&amp;utm_source=wisepops&amp;utm_campaign=dad&amp;utm_content=fathersdaygiftpopups" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Gift Dad an All Access Membership. Use code DAD40 at checkout to save 40%!</a>
Long had said he was “very honored and excited” to be nominated for the position, The Daily Wire reported at the time.
“Taxpayers and the wonderful employees of the IRS will love having Billy at the helm,” Trump said in December. “He is the consummate ‘people person,’ well respected on both sides of the aisle.”
Long will replace the current Acting Commissioner Michael Faulkender. Former Commissioner Danny Werfel, who had been appointed by former President Joe Biden, <a href="https://www.taxnotes.com/research/federal/other-documents/other-irs-documents/werfel-announces-resignation/7qhs8">resigned</a> when Trump took office in January.
Long’s confirmation comes as over 20,000 IRS employees <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/tax-day-miracle-over-20k-irs-employees-took-trumps-second-buyout-offer?author=Zach+Jewell&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=undefined&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=TAX+DAY+MIRACLE%3A+Over+20K+IRS+Employees+Took+Trump%E2%80%99s+Second+Buyout+Offer">resigned</a> in April after accepting Trump’s second buyout offer.
Trump has announced plans to revamp the agency, <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/fact-sheets/2025/03/fact-sheet-president-donald-j-trump-modernizes-payments-to-and-from-americas-bank-account/">signing</a> an executive order “to modernize how the government handles money, switching from old-fashioned paper-based payments to fast, secure electronic payments.”

Billy Long

Senate Confirms Former Rep. Billy Long As IRS Commissioner

Congress

Internal Revenue Service (IRS)

Politics

Trump Administration

U.S. Senate

President Donald Trump said Friday that Harvard University would lose its tax-exempt status, ramping up his fight with the Ivy League institution to a new level.
Trump&#8217;s comments come amid a funding fight with the university as his administration has frozen more than $2 billion in federal funds to Harvard over its pushback on his administration&#8217;s efforts to target diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives and handling of anti-Israel protests. Last week, Trump called Harvard a “far left institution” and “a threat to Democracy.”
&#8220;We are going to be taking away Harvard’s Tax Exempt Status. It’s what they deserve!&#8221; Trump <a href="https://truthsocial.com/@realDonaldTrump/posts/114437989795464761" target="_blank" rel="noopener">posted</a> on his social media platform Friday morning.
The announcement comes after repeated pressure from Trump for Harvard to comply with his executive orders on education or face the consequences. Last month, the Washington Post <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/trump-admin-wants-irs-to-quash-harvards-tax-exempt-status-report?author=Hank+Berrien&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=undefined&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=Trump+Admin+Wants+IRS+To+Quash+Harvard’s+Tax-Exempt+Status%3A+Report" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reported</a> that the Treasury Department had asked the IRS to revoke Harvard&#8217;s tax-exempt status.
“Perhaps Harvard should lose its Tax Exempt Status and be Taxed as a Political Entity if it keeps pushing political, ideological, and terrorist inspired/supporting ‘Sickness?’ Remember, Tax Exempt Status is totally contingent on acting in the PUBLIC INTEREST!” Trump posted on Truth Social on April 15.
At the time, White House spokesman Harrison Fields said that any probes into entities over their tax-exempt status had begun before that social media post.
“Any forthcoming actions by the IRS will be conducted independently of the president, and investigations into any institution’s violations of its tax status were initiated prior to the president’s TRUTH,&#8221; he said.
Trump took another shot at Harvard on Thursday night during his commencement speech at the University of Alabama.
&#8220;The next chapter of the American story will not be written by the Harvard Crimson. It will be written by you, the Crimson Tide,&#8221; Trump said, saying that Harvard&#8217;s billions of dollars in federal funding wouldn&#8217;t be &#8220;so forthcoming&#8221; now.
Harvard <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/harvard-renames-dei-office-amid-funding-battle-with-trump-admin?author=Zach+Jewell&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=undefined&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=Harvard+Renames+DEI+Office+Amid+Funding+Battle+With+Trump+Admin" target="_blank" rel="noopener">rebranded</a> its DEI office this week, renaming it the “Community and Campus Life” and changing its focus to “expanding cross-cultural engagement programs, supporting first-generation and low-income students, and creating more opportunities for dialogue across differences,” according to The Harvard Crimson. The university has also changed its chief diversity officer position, which has been renamed and will now be called the Chief Community and Campus Life Officer.
On Monday, the Trump administration <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/trump-admin-launches-probe-into-harvard-law-review-over-treatment-of-white-contributors?author=Leif+Le+Mahieu&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=undefined&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=Trump+Admin+Launches+Probe+Into+Harvard+Law+Review+Over+Treatment+Of+White+Contributors" target="_blank" rel="noopener">announced</a> that it would investigate Harvard and the student-run Harvard Law Journal over its treatment of white contributors.
The Trump administration specifically cited reports that a Harvard Law Review editor said it was “concerning” that four out of five individuals who wanted to reply to an article on police reform were &#8220;white men.” The administration provided another example of an editor saying “that a piece should be subject to expedited review because the author was a minority.”

US-POLITICS-EDUCATION

‘What They Deserve’: Trump Says He’s Ending Harvard’s Tax-Exempt Status

Diversity Equity and Inclusion (DEI)

Donald Trump

Education

Executive

Harvard University

Senator Roger Marshall on Thursday will introduce a measure to keep taxpayer dollars from going toward transgender medical procedures on both children and adults.
The Kansas Republican&#8217;s bill, the &#8220;No Subsidies for Gender Transition Procedures Act,&#8221; would ensure that transgender medical procedures  — such as removing the breasts of girls who identify boys — would not be considered healthcare under IRS code. The Kansas Republican told The Daily Wire that he designed the bill specifically with an eye towards including it in the &#8220;one, big, beautiful&#8221; bill backed by President Donald Trump working its way through Congress.
“Americans overwhelmingly agree that hard-earned taxpayer dollars should not go toward paying for harmful gender transition procedures,” Marshall said.
“This legislation delivers on President Trump’s promise, puts a halt to the misuse of federal funds for gender transition procedures on both minors and adults, and defends our nation’s values. As the reconciliation process continues, I urge my colleagues to support this commonsense legislation and ensure it is included in the One, Big, Beautiful Bill.”
Marshall pointed to the proposal&#8217;s focus on amending the tax code and mandatory spending as reasons why it should fall under Trump&#8217;s &#8220;beautiful bill proposal.&#8221;
One major component of the bill would be to prohibit transgender procedures being funded with dollars from Medicaid, Medicare, the Children’s Health Insurance Program, and the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. This would mean no more taxpayer funding for procedures like removing the breasts of women identifying as men or surgeries to create pseudo-male and female genitalia.
Marshall&#8217;s proposal would also end tax deductions for transgender medical procedures by changing the definition of health care used by the IRS.
From 2016 to 2021, the Defense Department spent around $15 million on transgender procedures for military members, according to Marshall&#8217;s office. Twenty-five states and the District of Columbia also include the procedures in their Medicaid policies.
Fellow Republican Senators Bill Cassidy (LA), Pete Ricketts (NE), and Mike Lee (UT) are backing the bill while Rep. Claudia Tenney (R-NY) introduced a companion bill in the House.
“Taxpayers should never be forced to fund dangerous and irreversible gender transition surgeries. The No Subsidies for Gender Transition Procedures Act sets a sweeping precedent by applying to both adults and minors and applying to as many federal funding streams as possible,” Tenney said.
“This will ensure that regardless of the age of the individual looking to mutilate themselves, the American taxpayer will not be forced to subsidize it. We are working to ensure that not a dime of federal funds can be used to pay for gender transition procedures.”
Trump has already taken aim at the funding of transgender procedures for children, signing an executive order blocking funding from hospitals that facilitate the &#8220;mutilation&#8221; of kids.

US-CONGRESS-ECONOMY-CREDIT

EXCLUSIVE: GOP Senator Sets Out To Codify Trump Order On Transgender Surgery Funding

Kansas

Senate

transgender surgery

President Donald Trump on Thursday extended the freeze on hiring new government workers for another 90 days.
The administration has said that the freeze is part of an effort to make the government more efficient and promote fiscal responsibility. The freeze, now in effect until July 15, includes exceptions for the military and other national security-related positions. 
“No Federal civilian position that is presently vacant may be filled, and no new position may be created, except as otherwise provided for in this memorandum or required by applicable law,” Trump wrote in a memo. “In carrying out this memorandum, the heads of agencies shall seek efficient use of existing personnel and funds to improve public services and the delivery of those services.”
The memorandum said that the freeze does not apply to military personnel of the Armed Forces or positions related to immigration enforcement, national security, and public safety. Agencies are allowed to apply for exemptions to the hiring freeze to the Office of Management and Budget, which can grant exemptions on a case-by-case basis.
&#8220;The extension of the hiring freeze is a critical step in shrinking the federal government and ensuring taxpayer dollars are used efficiently,&#8221; the White House <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/fact-sheets/2025/04/fact-sheet-president-donald-j-trump-extends-the-hiring-freeze/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said</a>. &#8220;The American people elected President Trump to drain the swamp and end ineffective government programs that empower government without achieving measurable results.&#8221;
For the IRS, Trump&#8217;s memo says the staffing moratorium will remain in effect until otherwise determined by Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent in consultation with OMB Director Russ Vought and acting Department of Government Efficiency Administrator Amy Gleason.
If they determine &#8220;that it is in the national interest to terminate the freeze,&#8221; they are directed to publish a notice in the Federal Register.
The IRS has already <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/tax-day-miracle-over-20k-irs-employees-took-trumps-second-buyout-offer" target="_blank" rel="noopener">lost thousands</a> of employees this year, with more than 20,000 taking buyout offers from the Trump administration to leave their positions, and another 7,000 probationary workers being terminated. The firings are currently being challenged in court.
After the freeze ends for the other government departments and agencies, the White House said that federal entities will only be allowed to hire one new employee for every four that leave. The White House said that during former President Joe Biden&#8217;s last two years in office, one out of every four new jobs was in government. 
“President Trump is committed to reversing this trend by prioritizing private-sector job growth and reducing the federal workforce to focus on essential functions,” the White House said.

MixCollage-18-Apr-2025-09-58-AM-7418

Trump Extends Hiring Freeze: ‘Critical Step In Shrinking The Federal Govt’

Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE)

General

White House

According to The Washington Post, the Trump administration is pushing the Internal Revenue Service to revoke Harvard University’s tax-exempt status.
The Post <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2025/04/16/trump-harvard-tax-exempt-irs/">reported</a> that three sources informed the outlet that President Donald Trump&#8217;s administration had asked the IRS to make the move, although there is no confirmation that it has done so. WaPo also reported that its sources claimed Andrew De Mello, the IRS’s acting chief counsel, was asked by the Treasury Department to take the action. Sources also claimed this is part of a feud with Ivy League schools that the Trump administration views as &#8220;woke.&#8221;
“I think they’re going to go after a whole bunch of them,” former House Speaker Newt Gingrich (R-GA) said. “I’m not sure why we need to be funding people who aggressively refuse to give up a variety of values and structures that most Americans don’t agree with.”
On Tuesday. President Trump <a href="https://truthsocial.com/@realDonaldTrump/posts/114342374504628520">posted</a> on Truth Social, “Perhaps Harvard should lose its Tax Exempt Status and be Taxed as a Political Entity if it keeps pushing political, ideological, and terrorist inspired/supporting ‘Sickness?’ Remember, Tax Exempt Status is totally contingent on acting in the PUBLIC INTEREST!”
White House spokesperson Harrison Fields stated: &#8220;Any forthcoming actions by the IRS will be conducted independently of the president, and investigations into any institution’s violations of its tax status were initiated prior to the president’s TRUTH.”
In January 2024, Rep. Jason T. Smith (R-MO), chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee, <a href="https://www.politico.com/news/2024/01/10/jason-smith-harvard-mit-penn-might-not-deserve-tax-exemption-00134815" target="_blank" rel="noopener">suggested</a> that the responses of Harvard, Cornell, the University of Pennsylvania, and MIT to the antisemitism on their campuses might justify revoking their tax-exempt status. The college’s actions “raise several questions, including whether your institutions are fulfilling their educational purposes as required to receive 501c3 tax-exempt status &#8230;”
On Monday, the Trump administration’s Department of Education announced it would freeze $2.2 billion in multi-year grants and $60 million in multi-year contract value to Harvard University after the school said it would not comply with the Trump administration’s demand that the university <a href="https://www.harvard.edu/research-funding/wp-content/uploads/sites/16/2025/04/Harvard-Response-2025-04-14.pdf">claimed</a> would “invade university freedoms.”
Last Friday, the Departments of Education and Health and Human Services sent a <a href="https://www.harvard.edu/research-funding/wp-content/uploads/sites/16/2025/04/Letter-Sent-to-Harvard-2025-04-11.pdf">letter</a> to Harvard in which they stated, “By August 2025, the University must adopt and implement merit-based hiring policies, and cease all preferences based on race, color, religion, sex, or national origin …” adding that the same attitude must prevail in admissions policies. The correspondence also declared that by the same date, the university must “prevent admitting students hostile to the American values and institutions inscribed in the American Constitution and Declaration of Independence, including students supportive of terrorism and anti-Semitism.”
The university “shall commission an external party … to audit the student body, faculty and leadership for viewpoint diversity” by August 2025, the letter continued, in order to ensure that the leftist perspective that dominates the university should be contrasted with other viewpoints.
Alan Garber, the president of Harvard University, responded with a <a href="https://www.harvard.edu/president/news/2025/the-promise-of-american-higher-education/">statement</a> in which he said, “We have informed the administration through our legal counsel that we will not accept their proposed agreement,” contending, “The University will not surrender its independence or relinquish its constitutional rights” and claiming the administration’s demands violated “Harvard’s First Amendment rights … threatens our values as a private institution devoted to the pursuit, production, and dissemination of knowledge.”

Trump Admin Wants IRS To Quash Harvard’s Tax-Exempt Status: Report

Harvard

Taxes

Washington Post

Wokeness

Around 22,000 Internal Revenue Service employees have accepted President Donald Trump&#8217;s latest buyout offer, calling it quits at the service responsible for collecting taxes, The New York Times <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2025/04/15/us/politics/irs-resignations-trump.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reported</a> on Tuesday.
The IRS turnover marks a dramatic shift from the Biden administration, when the IRS staff was beefed up to around 100,000 employees. The IRS cuts have reportedly forced the service to drop the number of audits it&#8217;s able to perform this year and could cause issues for Americans who call the IRS for help with their tax filings. A spokesman for Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said that the secretary remains &#8220;committed to ensuring that efficiency is realized while providing the collections, privacy and customer service the American people deserve,&#8221; the Times reported.
Shortly after Trump took office in January, his administration offered federal employees the chance to quit their work while remaining on the payroll through September, and around 75,000 federal workers accepted the offer. Earlier this month, a second buyout offer went out to some federal workers, extending the deadline for employees who did not jump on the first offer, Axios <a href="https://www.axios.com/2025/04/02/federal-worker-buyouts-trump-administration" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reported</a>. Acceptance deadlines on the second offer ranged from April 7 to April 18, according to <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2025/04/02/deferred-resignation-trump-federal-workers/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Washington Post</a>.
In addition to the resignations at the IRS, around 7,000 probationary workers were fired by the Trump administration, but those firings have been challenged in court. If the firings go through, the IRS could lose up to one-third of the workforce with which it entered the year. The losses also include senior leadership at the IRS, such as Melanie Krause, the acting IRS commissioner who announced her resignation last week.
Some, such as Virginia Democratic Rep. Abigail Spanberger, have <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/virginia-democrat-picks-the-wrong-tax-day-to-praise-the-irs" target="_blank" rel="noopener">lamented</a> the IRS staff cuts. In a post on X, Spanberger argued that the cuts are &#8220;making it harder for people across the Commonwealth to get the help they need.&#8221; Under former President Joe Biden&#8217;s Inflation Reduction Act, the IRS was given a massive increase in funding and had the green light to hire 87,000 new employees over the next decade.
As IRS employees jump ship, President Trump is hoping to revamp the government&#8217;s &#8220;outdated paper-based payment systems.&#8221; Last month, Trump signed an <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/fact-sheets/2025/03/fact-sheet-president-donald-j-trump-modernizes-payments-to-and-from-americas-bank-account/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">executive order</a> &#8220;to modernize how the government handles money, switching from old-fashioned paper-based payments to fast, secure electronic payments.&#8221;
&#8220;President Trump is making government work better for the American people,&#8221; the White House stated.

TAX DAY MIRACLE: Over 20K IRS Employees Took Trump’s Second Buyout Offer

Rep. Abigail Spanberger (D-VA) chose April 15 — better known to most American adults as Tax Day — to play defense for the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), and her efforts backfired in spectacular fashion.
Spanberger, who is currently facing Lieutenant Governor Winsome Sears (R-VA) in the 2025 gubernatorial race, took to X to post her &#8220;Happy Tax Day&#8221; message attacking President Donald Trump and his administration.
&#8220;Just a reminder that while Virginians are filing their taxes, the Trump administration is cutting IRS staff and making it harder for people across the Commonwealth to get the help they need,&#8221; she posted.
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Happy Tax Day.
Just a reminder that while Virginians are filing their taxes, the Trump Administration is cutting IRS staff and making it harder for people across the Commonwealth to get the help they need.<a href="https://t.co/mO2RBcBlB0">https://t.co/mO2RBcBlB0</a>
&mdash; Abigail Spanberger (@SpanbergerForVA) <a href="https://twitter.com/SpanbergerForVA/status/1912134139844657367?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 15, 2025</a></blockquote>
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Sears was among those who responded to Spanberger&#8217;s post, saying, &#8220;You just can’t make this up. Only a DC politician like @SpanbergerforVA would defend the IRS on Tax Day AFTER voting to hire 87,000 agents to wring every dollar out of you.&#8221;
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You just can’t make this up.
Only a DC politician like <a href="https://twitter.com/SpanbergerForVA?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@SpanbergerForVA</a> would defend the IRS on Tax Day AFTER voting to hire 87,000 agents to wring every dollar out of you. <a href="https://t.co/XSp3FRDEHk">https://t.co/XSp3FRDEHk</a>
&mdash; Winsome Earle-Sears (@winwithwinsome) <a href="https://twitter.com/winwithwinsome/status/1912140383967997972?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 15, 2025</a></blockquote>
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&#8220;We went to war to overthrow tyrants like you,&#8221; radio host Dana Loesch said, adding, &#8220;F every last shred of misplaced sympathy for extortionists who steal from the American public.&#8221;
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F every last shred of misplaced sympathy for extortionists who steal from the American public.
&mdash; Dana Loesch (@DLoesch) <a href="https://twitter.com/DLoesch/status/1912165696827425134?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 15, 2025</a></blockquote>
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Twitchy&#8217;s PolitiBunny added, &#8220;Abi, are you seriously praising the IRS &#8230; on tax day? Jeezus, lol. ROFL. LMAOROFL. I&#8217;m taking a screenshot of this one, this is so bad. Wow.&#8221;
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Abi, are you seriously praising the IRS &#8230; on tax day? Jeezus, lol.
ROFL.
LMAOROFL.
I&#39;m taking a screenshot of this one, this is so bad. Wow. <a href="https://t.co/kfQKlcEHo6">https://t.co/kfQKlcEHo6</a>
&mdash; The🐰FOO (@PolitiBunny) <a href="https://twitter.com/PolitiBunny/status/1912142424349999211?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 15, 2025</a></blockquote>
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&#8220;Just a reminder that Ronald Reagan once observed that: &#8216;Republicans celebrate the 4th of July, Independence Day. Democrats celebrate April 15, tax day,'&#8221; Newsmax writer Michael Dorstewitz posted.
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Just a reminder that Ronald Reagan once observed that:
&quot;Republicans celebrate the 4th of July, Independence Day. Democrats celebrate April 15, tax day.&quot; <a href="https://t.co/ITEED4qyi3">https://t.co/ITEED4qyi3</a>
&mdash; Michael Dorstewitz (@MikeDorstewitz) <a href="https://twitter.com/MikeDorstewitz/status/1912196712027894009?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 15, 2025</a></blockquote>
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&#8220;I’ve been filing taxes for 38 years and never once had a IRS staff member assist me, on, after, or prior to tax day,&#8221; another pointed out.
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I’ve been filing taxes for 38 years and never once had a IRS staff member assist me, on, after, or prior to tax day. <a href="https://t.co/uKafXOJx0d">https://t.co/uKafXOJx0d</a>
&mdash; Rob O&#39;Donnell (@odonnell_r) <a href="https://twitter.com/odonnell_r/status/1912184360054202875?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 15, 2025</a></blockquote>
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&#8220;How does the IRS staff help citizens of Virginia in need?&#8221; Scottie Nell Hughes asked. &#8220;The IRS doesn&#8217;t prepare or file taxes. It does target small businesses with expensive and time-wasting audits. I think you meant to say the Social Security Administration, but facts don&#8217;t matter as long as you are trying to demonize Trump, right?&#8221;
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How does the IRS staff help citizens of Virginia in need? The IRS doesn&#39;t prepare or file taxes. It does target small businesses with expensive and time-wasting audits. I think you meant to say the Social Security Administration, but facts don&#39;t matter as long as you are trying… <a href="https://t.co/calW1jbFJ3">https://t.co/calW1jbFJ3</a>
&mdash; Scottie Nell Hughes (@scottienhughes) <a href="https://twitter.com/scottienhughes/status/1912183662109503551?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 15, 2025</a></blockquote>
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&#8220;I love it when Democrats are &#8216;on message,'&#8221; radio host Larry O&#8217;Connor said.
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I love it when Democrats are &quot;on message&quot; <a href="https://t.co/AZGbNgbo8y">https://t.co/AZGbNgbo8y</a>
&mdash; L A R R Y (@LarryOConnor) <a href="https://twitter.com/LarryOConnor/status/1912161088520478732?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 15, 2025</a></blockquote>
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&#8220;Democrats: &#8216;How can we win back the working class?'&#8221; Doug Powers asked. &#8220;&#8216;Aggressively defend the IRS on tax day?&#8217; &#8216;Brilliant!'&#8221;
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Democrats: “How can we win back the working class?”
“Aggressively defend the IRS on tax day?”
“Brilliant!” <a href="https://t.co/d9mkMKqaRL">https://t.co/d9mkMKqaRL</a>
&mdash; Doug Powers (@ThePowersThatBe) <a href="https://twitter.com/ThePowersThatBe/status/1912146455973814518?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 15, 2025</a></blockquote>
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Virginia Gubernatorial Candidate Abigail Spanberger Speaks At An Everytown For Gun Safety Rally

Virginia Democrat Picks The Wrong [Tax] Day To Praise The IRS

Income tax

Winsome Sears

The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and two other nonprofit organizations have come under fire for allegedly implementing scholarship and career advancement programs that discriminate against white Americans, potentially violating federal law and jeopardizing their tax-exempt status.
The American Alliance for Equal Rights (AAER) reported three organizations, the Gates Foundation, the Lagrant Foundation, and the Creative Capital Foundation, in <a href="https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2655691/American_Alliance_for_Equal_Rights_Files_Request_to_IRS.pdf?p=pdf">letters to the IRS</a>, claiming the nonprofits have &#8220;intentionally&#8221; discriminated against white people.
These cases of discrimination, AAER says, constitute &#8220;sufficient grounds&#8221; for the IRS to revoke the tax-exempt statuses of these three organizations.
Edward Blum, the president of the AAER, blasted the groups for engaging in race-based discrimination while enjoying public subsidies on account of their tax-exempt status. “Organizations that discriminate based on race—whether their intentions are benevolent or not—are not eligible for public subsidies through the tax code,” Blum asserted. “The IRS must act to uphold the law.”
The Gates Foundation, AAER says, is “intentionally discriminating against white students by excluding them from the tuition assistance and specialized support that it provides to students of every other race or ethnicity.” The foundation’s Gates Scholarship states that the program is a “highly selective, last dollar scholarship for outstanding, minority high school students” before listing acceptable racial and ethnic backgrounds in its eligibility requirements.
A 2022 video advertising the Gates Scholarship <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CxxirXy4nA4">reaffirms</a> that only &#8220;low-income, minority students&#8221; are eligible. The program is only open to students who are &#8220;African American, Hispanic American, Asian American, or Native American.&#8221;
AAER also blasted the Lagrant Foundation, which it similarly accuses of engaging in race-based discrimination against whites.
The Lagrant Foundation partners with large corporations like Walmart, Microsoft, and Charles Schwab and seeks to “increase the number of ethnic minorities in the fields of advertising, marketing and public relations.” It lists the approved racial and ethnic backgrounds eligible for the program, which is limited to African Americans, Alaska Natives, Asian Americans, and Hispanics.
Another organization, called Creative Capital, teamed up with the leftist Skoll Foundation to similarly engage in discrimination, AAER claimed in its letter.
Skoll and Creative Capital, which provides funding to artists, worked alongside Kickstarter “to launch a $500,000 Creative Capital x Skoll Foundation Fund that backs projects by Asian, Black, Indigenous, and Latinx creators on the crowdfunding platform.”
Artists selected for the program were also given “access to Creative Capital’s vast educational resources and workshops at no-charge” and “strategic guidance” from “Kickstarter’s category experts.”
“These organizations are free to operate as they wish—but not with the public subsidy that tax-exempt status provides,” Blum charged. “Racial discrimination—whether in scholarships, professional development, or artistic grants—violates public policy and must not be underwritten by American taxpayers.”
The three nonprofits are far from the only organizations accused of openly engaging in blatant race-based discrimination in the name of DEI, however. One Massachusetts music nonprofit ran a “<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/music-ensemble-hosts-bipoc-internship-barring-white-applicants-citing-systemic-allyship">BIPOC internship</a>” that similarly excluded white people, informing applicants that “we welcome Black, Indigenous, and other persons of color to apply.”
A wide range of corporations have also discriminated against white applicants, a series of Daily Wire investigations revealed. <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/nascar-takes-down-blatantly-illegal-racial-requirement-for-internship-after-daily-wire-report">NASCAR</a>, <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/major-bank-pharmaceutical-giant-participated-in-mckinsey-training-that-banned-white-people">McKinsey and Company</a>, <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/oracle-internship-scholarship-opportunities-bar-whites-and-asians-on-the-basis-of-race">Oracle</a>, <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/apple-entrepreneur-camp-program-bars-applicants-based-on-race">Apple</a>, and various other corporations appear to have engaged in openly discriminatory practices in the name of DEI.

Bill Gates

Bill Gates Foundation, Other Nonprofits Could Lose Tax-Exempt Status Over Anti-White Discrimination

Discrimination

Diversity

Social Issues

Democrats find themselves facing angry voters as a massive rift opens up between the far-Left and the party’s more moderate members. President Donald Trump and his top donor, Elon Musk, draw national attention to what could prove to be a pivotal battle for control of Wisconsin’s Supreme Court. And Trump revokes the security clearances of a number of Biden allies, while ICE and the IRS prepare to team up.
It’s Monday, and this is the news you need to know to start your week. If you’d rather listen to your news, today’s edition of the Morning Wire podcast can be heard below:
<iframe style="width: 100%; max-width: 660px; overflow: hidden; border-radius: 10px;" src="https://embed.podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/democratic-infighting-grows-wisconsins-judicial-showdown/id1576594336?i=1000700568389" height="175" frameborder="0" sandbox="allow-forms allow-popups allow-same-origin allow-scripts allow-storage-access-by-user-activation allow-top-navigation-by-user-activation"></iframe>
<h2>Democrats’ Downward Spiral</h2>
<div id="attachment_896267" style="width: 841px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-896267" class="wp-image-896267 size-large" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/03/Dueling-Dems-831x576.jpg" alt="" width="831" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/03/Dueling-Dems-831x576.jpg 831w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/03/Dueling-Dems-300x208.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/03/Dueling-Dems-768x532.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/03/Dueling-Dems-1536x1064.jpg 1536w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/03/Dueling-Dems-2048x1419.jpg 2048w" sizes="(max-width: 831px) 100vw, 831px" />(Photo by wildpixel via Getty Images)</div>
Topline: Democratic lawmakers have found themselves confronted by angry constituents as the party searches for a unifying message amid rampant infighting. Meanwhile, new polling shows Democrats continue to be less popular than ever before.
Historically, there’s often a sort of buyer&#8217;s remorse with voters, where a president’s approval ratings will start to decline quickly, and the opposition party will become more popular &#8212; but that has not happened. Trump’s approval ratings have held steady at around 48% — well above where he stood during his first term — and Democratic popularity has only plummeted since Election Day. Last week, CNN found that just 29% of Americans view the party favorably — that’s a 20-point drop from 2021. And over the weekend, things got even worse.
A new <a href="https://poll.qu.edu/poll-release?releaseid=3919">Quinnipiac</a> poll showed that just 21% of Americans approve of Democrats’ job performance in Congress &#8212; the lowest mark in the poll&#8217;s history &#8212; and only 40% of Democrats approve of the job their leaders are doing in Congress. By contrast, Congressional Republicans are more popular today than ever, with a 40% approval rating.
Democrats appear torn between two differing visions of the party’s strategy going forward.
There are those who say the party needs to listen to its left-wing base and double down on their opposition to Trump, doing everything possible to prevent his agenda from being implemented. In that camp is Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY), who kicked off a “Fighting Oligarchy” tour last week with Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT), hitting Tempe, Las Vegas, and Denver in recent days and drawing crowds in the tens of thousands.
“We are going to fight Trump and his oligarchic friends,” Sanders said. “But we have got to do something else. We have got to ourselves have a vision for the kind of country we want to become.&#8221;
On the other side are Democrats who feel November’s results were a clear rebuke of progressive ideologies and governance. They say the party has to shake the “woke” label and moderate on social issues while embracing a more old-school Blue Dog Democrat approach. Leading the charge on that front is, ironically, California’s Gavin Newsom, one of the nation’s most far-Left Governors. Newsom launched a new podcast where he’s been having friendly chats with hardline conservatives like Steve Bannon and Charlie Kirk. He’s openly criticized his party as being elitist and out of touch while conceding that he understands why folks supported Trump in November. He even went as far as saying he opposes trans-identifying males in women’s sports and called on Democrats to stop using gender-neutral language like “Latinx,” although he has used that term many times in the past.
The Democratic base appears to be as divided as their leadership &#8212; the latest numbers from Gallup found that 45% of Democrats want the party to become more moderate, while 29% say they should be more liberal, and 22% want to hold course.
<h2>Wisconsin Supreme Court</h2>
<div id="attachment_896401" style="width: 873px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-896401" class="wp-image-896401 size-large" src="https://www.dailywire.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/GettyImages-2206573074-863x576.jpg" alt="" width="863" height="576" srcset="https://www.dailywire.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/GettyImages-2206573074-863x576.jpg 863w, https://www.dailywire.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/GettyImages-2206573074-300x200.jpg 300w, https://www.dailywire.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/GettyImages-2206573074-768x512.jpg 768w, https://www.dailywire.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/GettyImages-2206573074-1536x1025.jpg 1536w, https://www.dailywire.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/GettyImages-2206573074-1200x800.jpg 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 863px) 100vw, 863px" />RACINE, WISCONSIN &#8211; MARCH 23: Dane County Circuit Court Judge Susan Crawford, candidate for the Wisconsin Supreme Court (Photo by Scott Olson/Getty Images)</div>
Topline: An upcoming election will determine whether liberals or conservatives control Wisconsin’s top court. Already the most expensive judicial race in United States history, analysts are calling it the first referendum on Trump’s presidency.
Next week, a midwestern election will offer a rare chance to flip the ideological balance of the highest court in a key swing state. Depending on how things play out on April 1st, Wisconsin’s Supreme Court could go from a 4-3 liberal majority to a 4-3 conservative one, which would have several ramifications on national policy.
The balance of power could play a significant role in Wisconsin’s congressional districting. After the 2020 census, Republicans — who controlled the legislature — drew Wisconsin’s congressional maps. Democrats said this was gerrymandering and sued. In 2022, the liberal court threw out the GOP’s maps and adopted ones drawn by Governor Tony Evers, a Democrat. That new map helped Democrats flip one congressional seat in 2024. If conservative candidate Brad Schimel wins, he will likely uphold GOP-drawn maps that help cement that very slim margin Republicans have in the House right now. On the other hand, if liberal Susan Crawford wins, the court is likely to strike down the Republican maps again, meaning Democrats will have a greater likelihood of winning more seats in the state.
“The congressional majority is so razor thin, it could cause the house to switch to Democrat if federal redrawing takes place,” Elon Musk, the world’s wealthiest man and the mastermind behind DOGE (the Department of Government Efficiency), said on <a href="https://x.com/cb_doge/status/1903547076002316644">X</a>, the platform formerly known as Twitter. “Then we won&#8217;t be able to get through the changes that the American people want.”
Republicans also see a conservative court in Wisconsin as a potential firewall that could shield Trump’s policies from state-level challenges — think lawsuits over federal overreach or immigration crackdowns. On Truth Social yesterday, Trump called Crawford a “Radical Left Democrat” who is “insistent on bringing hardened CRIMINALS, that we removed to far away places, back into our Country, allowing men into women’s sports, [and] Open Borders.”
<h2>Security Switch Up</h2>
<div id="attachment_896275" style="width: 874px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-896275" class="size-large wp-image-896275" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/03/US-Security-Nodes-864x576.jpg" alt="" width="864" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/03/US-Security-Nodes-864x576.jpg 864w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/03/US-Security-Nodes-300x200.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/03/US-Security-Nodes-768x512.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/03/US-Security-Nodes-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/03/US-Security-Nodes-2048x1365.jpg 2048w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/03/US-Security-Nodes-1800x1200.jpg 1800w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/03/US-Security-Nodes-1200x800.jpg 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 864px) 100vw, 864px" />(Photo by Douglass Rissing via Getty Images)</div>
Topline: Immigration authorities may soon receive help from the IRS to confirm the identities of illegal aliens. Reports of the new agreement come as thousands of law enforcement officials are expected to be redirected toward President Trump’s mass deportation agenda.
The IRS and ICE are near an agreement that would essentially allow immigration agents to cross-check information on aliens with IRS databases &#8212; that’s according to <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2025/03/22/us/politics/irs-ice-immigrants-deportation.html">The New York Times</a>. To be clear, DHS would not have access to IRS systems, but agents would be able to verify with the IRS whether the home addresses agents have for illegal aliens are correct. The Trump administration has tried before to get the IRS to help locate illegals, but the agency has always resisted because of the sensitivity of taxpayer information &#8212; and because it didn’t want to run afoul of federal law. This way, the IRS can keep complete control over its taxpayer database.
Illegal immigrants are often employed in the United States and file tax returns that include information such as where they live, who they work for, and their income. The IRS has long encouraged illegal aliens to pay taxes; the agency even has a separate nine-digit code called an individual taxpayer identification number that it will give to aliens in place of a Social Security number.
More generally, the Department of Homeland Security is in the middle of a massive reshuffle to focus resources on deportations, according to reporting by <a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/us/thousands-agents-diverted-trump-immigration-crackdown-2025-03-22/">Reuters</a>. The Trump administration has also canceled the CHNV parole program, which allowed 30,000 immigrants from Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua, and Venezuela to apply for entry to the United States. Trump ended the program on his first day in office, but over the weekend, DHS issued an order revoking legal status for those aliens who entered the country through it. The order encourages them to self-deport within 30 days or risk deportation.
In other news, President Trump officially revoked the security clearances of a number of people on Friday, including top Biden administration officials, as well as some of the president’s top antagonists &#8212; those who brought and supported the court cases he faced during the election and who pushed Russian collusion conspiracies. Some of the most prominent names on that list include former President Joe Biden, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, New York Attorney General Letitia James, and former Republican Congresswoman Liz Cheney (WY).

TOPSHOT-US-POLITICS-GOVERNMENT-HEALTH-KENNEDY

Morning Brief: Dems’ Downward Spiral, Wisconsin Supreme Court Race, And Security Shakeup

Democratic Party

Department of Homeland Security

Elections

Judiciary

Wisconsin

Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick revealed that when he asked President Donald Trump if the federal government could eliminate income taxes on all Americans making less than $150,000 a year if the Trump administration could balance the budget, Trump answered, “Sure.”
Lutnick appeared on the “All In” <a href="https://www.youtube.com/@allin" target="_blank" rel="noopener">podcast</a>, where he spoke about balancing the budget before speaking of Trump and income taxes.
“I’m in the car with him and I said we’re going to balance the budget,’ Lutnick recalled. “And I said, ‘But I have one favor to ask you: If we can balance the budget for you, will you agree to waive all income tax for every person who makes less than $150k a year in the United States of America?’ Which, by the way, is about 85% of Americans. And the reason you want to work for Donald Trump is he looks at me, he goes, ‘Sure.’ You realize, the President of the United States said, ‘If you balance the budget, sure.’ And he’s not lying; he’s not kidding. He’s like, ‘Yeah.’”
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
Commerce Secretary <a href="https://twitter.com/howardlutnick?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@howardlutnick</a> says eliminating income taxes is a real possibility👀
&quot;I&#39;m in the car with [<a href="https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@realDonaldTrump</a>] &#8230; I said &#39;I have one favor to ask you, if we can balance the budget for you, will you agree to waive all income taxes for every person who makes less… <a href="https://t.co/aDnXcY2KbN">pic.twitter.com/aDnXcY2KbN</a>
&mdash; Trump War Room (@TrumpWarRoom) <a href="https://twitter.com/TrumpWarRoom/status/1903074178938413542?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 21, 2025</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
&nbsp;
Lutnick launched into a history tour to explain how tariffs had worked in the past:
<blockquote>
America was built on tariffs with no income tax. No income tax until 1913. None, greatest, richest country in the world. So when Donald Trump says, “Make America Great Again,” what he’s talking about is from 1880 to 1913, when the country had so much money that we had blue-ribbon commissions to try to figure out how to spend the money. And no income tax. Then we put in the income tax in 1913. Why? Because we’re entering World War I, and don’t we all need to contribute to protect democracy and protect our way of life?
Then what happens is the world goes into chaos; we come out of chaos, and then we’re starting to think, “Well, what do we do? What do we do?” And then in 1929 the stock market crashes. By 1933, we start to say, “Oh, whoa, whoa, God, we forgot. We need to do tariffs.’” 1933? How can you do tariffs when the market’s crashed, the world’s going into depression and you’re going to do tariffs in 1933. You can’t charge the rest of the world money unless the rest of the world’s okay. So it was too little, too late.
So then we come out of World War II. It’s 1945; we need to rebuild the world. So we decide we’re going to take our tariffs down, and we’ll let them — here’s the key — let them have tariffs be up and we will export the power of our economy to let them rebuild. And we let them rebuild. And that’s what happened. So in 1945 we have the Marshall Plan; and we do it in Japan, of course, cause they need to be rebuilt. What’s the difference. They need to be rebuilt.
And then what happens is we have the fifties, and we have the Korean War. So we let them rebuild, which means we have low tariffs here, high tariffs there. Then we have the Vietnam War. So now all of a sudden we have all of Southeast Asia. Low tariffs here, high tariffs there.
You know what’s the best example I can give you to make it crystal-clear? Kuwait. We spent almost $100 billion freeing Kuwait. You know who had the highest tariffs against the United States of America? The number one country with the highest tariffs against the United States of America? Kuwait.
</blockquote>

Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick

Lutnick: Trump Said If We Balance The Budget, No Income Tax On Earners Making Less Than $150K

Department of Commerce

Economy

Howard Lutnick

After decades of <a href="https://nces.ed.gov/nationsreportcard/">failing grades</a>, the Department of Education is being scrapped by the Trump administration. Attorney General Pam Bondi charges several suspects with “domestic terrorism” after targeting Tesla, and the Trump IRS is slamming the brakes on major audits as the agency braces for radical change.
It’s Friday, March 21st, and this is the news you need to know to start your day. If you’d rather listen to your news, today’s edition of the Morning Wire podcast can be heard below:
<iframe style="width: 100%; max-width: 660px; overflow: hidden; border-radius: 10px;" src="https://embed.podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/education-department-dismantled-tesla-terrorism-continues/id1576594336?i=1000700243845" height="175" frameborder="0" sandbox="allow-forms allow-popups allow-same-origin allow-scripts allow-storage-access-by-user-activation allow-top-navigation-by-user-activation"></iframe>
<h2>Trump Dismantles the Department of Education</h2>
<div id="attachment_895193" style="width: 874px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-895193" class="size-large wp-image-895193" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/03/US-Department-of-Education-864x576.jpg" alt="" width="864" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/03/US-Department-of-Education-864x576.jpg 864w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/03/US-Department-of-Education-300x200.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/03/US-Department-of-Education-768x512.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/03/US-Department-of-Education-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/03/US-Department-of-Education-2048x1365.jpg 2048w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/03/US-Department-of-Education-1800x1200.jpg 1800w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/03/US-Department-of-Education-1200x800.jpg 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 864px) 100vw, 864px" />(Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images)</div>
Topline: On Thursday, President Donald Trump signed an executive order to disband the Department of Education.
At a ceremony at the White House on Thursday, President Trump signed an executive order that will “begin to eliminate” the Department of Education. The department was created by an act of Congress, and dissolving it entirely would require Congressional approval, but in the meantime, the Trump administration will continue to cut the department’s staff, as <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/education-dept-staff-expected-to-be-slashed-by-half-as-trump-mulls-closing-it">nearly half of its employees have already been let go</a> since Trump took office.
&#8220;We are going to be returning education very simply back to the states where it belongs,” Trump said to a crowd of governors, educators, and students from around the country. “This is a very popular thing to do, but much more importantly, it&#8217;s a commonsense thing to do – and it&#8217;s going to work.&#8221;
The Numbers: The Department of Education was founded under the Carter administration in 1979. Republicans have campaigned on abolishing the department for nearly as long as it’s existed – President Reagan pledged to end it in his 1980 campaign but failed to garner enough support from <a href="https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1985-01-29-mn-13948-story.html">Congressional Democrats</a>, who controlled the House of Representatives for the length of his presidency. From 1979-2017, U.S. spending per pupil (adjusted for inflation) has <a href="https://nces.ed.gov/programs/digest/d19/tables/dt19_236.55.asp">nearly doubled</a>, while <a href="https://www.thebalancemoney.com/the-u-s-is-losing-its-competitive-advantage-3306225">relative standing</a> compared to other nations with respect to education has gone down, and test scores have remained mostly flat.
<div id="attachment_895195" style="width: 970px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-895195" class="size-large wp-image-895195" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/03/page-1-960x576.jpg" alt="" width="960" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/03/page-1-960x576.jpg 960w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/03/page-1-300x180.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/03/page-1-768x461.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/03/page-1.jpg 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 960px) 100vw, 960px" />(Image by NAEP)</div>
“We can spend those dollars so much more efficiently and effectively than the federal government can,” Tennessee Republican Governor Bill Lee told Morning Wire. &#8220;Part of the taxpayer money that Tennesseans send up to D.C., and then they send back to us – if it&#8217;s filtered through a bureaucracy of thousands of employees, it siphons off a large part of that tax money to support that bureaucracy before it comes back to educate our kids.”
At the moment, total abolition of the department seems unlikely – it would require 60 votes in the Senate to overcome a filibuster, and the chamber is currently split 53-47. Democrats remain <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/live/2025/mar/20/donald-trump-executive-order-department-of-education-us-politics-latest-updates-news">fiercely opposed</a> to cuts. But Trump can still use executive authority to strip the department of most of its responsibilities and funding. Many of the department’s most important functions will remain in place but shift to other departments.
After signing the executive order, President Trump assured the public that “Pell Grants, Title 1 funding, and resources for children with disabilities and special needs will be fully preserved and redistributed to various other agencies and departments that will take very good care of them.”
<h2>Suspected Tesla Attackers Charged As Terrorists</h2>
<div id="attachment_895197" style="width: 874px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-895197" class="size-large wp-image-895197" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/03/Tesla-Graffitti-864x576.jpg" alt="" width="864" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/03/Tesla-Graffitti-864x576.jpg 864w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/03/Tesla-Graffitti-300x200.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/03/Tesla-Graffitti-768x512.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/03/Tesla-Graffitti-1536x1025.jpg 1536w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/03/Tesla-Graffitti-2048x1366.jpg 2048w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/03/Tesla-Graffitti-1800x1200.jpg 1800w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/03/Tesla-Graffitti-1200x800.jpg 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 864px) 100vw, 864px" />(Photo by Kena Betancur/Getty Images)</div>
Topline: United States Attorney General Pam Bondi announced that the Department of Justice is charging three suspects with domestic terrorism after a series of attacks on Tesla.
“If you&#8217;re going to touch a Tesla, go to a dealership, do anything, you better watch out, because we&#8217;re coming after you,” Bondi said. “And if you&#8217;re funding this, we&#8217;re coming after you. We&#8217;re going to find out who you are.”
The Allegations: The names of the suspects are not yet public. One suspect allegedly lobbed eight Molotov cocktails at a Tesla retailer in Oregon. Another in Colorado is charged with “attempt[ing] to light Teslas on fire.” A third in Charleston, South Carolina, allegedly spray-painted obscene graffiti about President Trump at a Tesla charging station and set three charging stations on fire.
This violence is especially concerning as it&#8217;s now putting ordinary citizens at risk. On Wednesday, a number of Tesla owners confirmed that their names and home addresses were published on an online map. The site also encouraged protestors to “unleash [their] artistic flair” by vandalizing Tesla vehicles and recommended other “creative expressions of protest.”
Fellow Travelers: Some Democrats and public figures have made light of the violence. On Wednesday night, talk show host Jimmy Kimmel responded to a clip of Elon Musk saying these attacks make no sense by saying, “When you pull out a chainsaw to celebrate firing thousands of people, they get mad.”
Prominent elected Democrats have taken a more active role in supporting the anti-Tesla movement: Former vice presidential candidate and Minnesota Governor Tim Walz recently <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/loudmouth-tim-crows-about-tesla-stock-dropping-minnesota-had-millions-of-shares-in-tesla">celebrated Tesla’s declining stock price</a>, claiming he checks the downward ticker “to give [himself] a little boost during the day.”
Rep. Jasmine Crockett (D-TX) <a href="https://x.com/atensnut/status/1902735220589154433">said</a> during a livestream with the protest group Takedown Tesla, “All I want to see happen on my birthday [March 29] is for Elon to be taken down.”
<h2>Changes At The IRS</h2>
<div id="attachment_895199" style="width: 874px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-895199" class="size-large wp-image-895199" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/03/IRS-Forms-864x576.jpg" alt="" width="864" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/03/IRS-Forms-864x576.jpg 864w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/03/IRS-Forms-300x200.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/03/IRS-Forms-768x512.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/03/IRS-Forms-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/03/IRS-Forms-2048x1365.jpg 2048w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/03/IRS-Forms-1800x1200.jpg 1800w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/03/IRS-Forms-1200x800.jpg 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 864px) 100vw, 864px" />(Photo by masterSergeant via Getty Images)</div>
Topline: It’s been a busy few days for the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), and not just because it’s tax season. The agency is halting major audits and adjusting to new management.
The IRS is reportedly halting a number of major audits and seems likely to pursue fewer down the line. Now, critics are pointing to this as a huge red flag. They say pausing the audits is leaving billions of dollars on the table and basically means allowing the rich to get away with tax fraud. But remember, the Biden administration had expanded the IRS’ auditing power in a way that left people concerned. Democrats had plans to bring on more than 80,000 new agents who would largely be tasked with <a href="https://www.heritage.org/budget-and-spending/commentary/fact-checking-team-biden-who-those-87000-new-irs-agents-would-audit">auditing</a> people making less than $400,000 a year.
On NBC&#8217;s &#8220;<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lvrSxTE8GOw">Meet the Press</a>&#8220; last weekend, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent discussed those cuts and shared his vision for the future of the agency. “There were about 15,000 probationary employees that we could have let go. We kept about 7,500, 8,500 because we viewed them as essential to the mission. … I have three priorities for the IRS: collections, privacy, and customer service. And we&#8217;ll see what level is needed to prioritize all those.”
Whistleblower Promotions: On Tuesday, the agency announced that Gary Shapley and Joseph Ziegler had been brought in to the Department of Treasury as senior advisors to Bessent. Those two are the IRS employees who the department says were “wrongfully targeted” after blowing the whistle on Hunter Biden’s tax evasion. For the next year, they will serve as senior advisors to Bessent and then transition back into senior positions at the IRS. In a <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/trump-admin-promotes-hunter-biden-whistleblowers-after-they-were-wrongly-punished-by-superiors">statement</a> announcing the moves, Bessent praised them as “veteran civil servants” who will “help further the agency’s focus on collections, modernization, and customer service, so we can deliver a more effective and efficient IRS experience for hardworking American taxpayers.”

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Two Internal Revenue Service (IRS) whistleblowers are receiving promotions after they were &#8220;wrongfully targeted&#8221; following their testimony on embattled former first son Hunter Biden&#8217;s tax evasion, according to a Tuesday <a href="https://home.treasury.gov/news/press-releases/sb0052" target="_blank" rel="noopener">press release</a> from the U.S. Treasury Department.
The release indicated that Gary Shapley and Joseph Ziegler would be given new roles as Senior Advisors within the Treasury Department, and that part of their job would be to &#8220;drive much-needed cultural reform within the IRS.&#8221;
&#8220;The United States Department of the Treasury and Internal Revenue Service (IRS) today announced that the two IRS whistleblowers who had been wrongfully targeted for investigating Hunter Biden’s evasion of taxes on his $8.3 million income would be brought in to the U.S. Department of Treasury as Senior Advisors,&#8221; the press release stated.
What followed was a statement from Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, who added, &#8220;I am pleased to welcome Gary Shapley and Joseph Ziegler to the Treasury Department, where they will help us drive much-needed cultural reform within the IRS. These veteran civil servants join us to help further the agency’s focus on collections, modernization, and customer service, so we can deliver a more effective and efficient IRS experience for hardworking American taxpayers. I appreciate Senator Grassley’s efforts in Congress to support whistleblower protections in order to improve transparency, accountability and root out the culture of retaliation.&#8221;
The release concluded, &#8220;Shapley and Ziegler, who spent years working on the Hunter Biden tax evasion case, came forward in 2022 and subsequently faced political persecution by the IRS, including several attempts to discredit their reputations and ruin their careers.&#8221;
Both <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/smear-irs-whistleblower-responds-to-hunter-biden-lawsuit-targeting-him" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Shapley</a> and Ziegler were named in a lawsuit filed by Hunter Biden&#8217;s attorneys, alleging that they had made confidential tax information public in their testimonies.
&#8220;This suit against the IRS is just another frivolous smear by Biden family attorneys trying to turn people’s attention away from Hunter Biden’s own legal problems and intimidate any current and future whistleblowers,&#8221; Shapley responded at the time through his own legal team.

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