The Senate voted to confirm as FBI director, a decision that places him , despite concerns from Democrats over his qualifications and the prospect that he would do President Donald Trump鈥檚 bidding.
Here's the latest:
Chinese official says there鈥檚 no winning with tariffs
A senior Chinese economic official says there is no winner in trade wars and tariffs and that Beijing will work with the international community to safeguard global trade.
Zhao Zhao, counselor of economy and commerce at the Chinese Embassy in Washington, said the move by the Trump administration to impose 10% tariffs on Chinese goods was 鈥渨ithout authorization.鈥�
鈥淚t represents a typical form of unilateralism and trade protectionism,鈥� he told reporters.
Trump said he has imposed the tariff due to China鈥檚 role in making the opioid fentanyl.
Beijing has taken the case to the World Trade Organization. Zhao said much is at stake for the world鈥檚 two largest economies to handle their trade relations appropriately.
Groups sue Trump administration over end to protections for Venezuelans
Two nonprofit groups have filed a lawsuit challenging the Trump administration鈥檚 decision to end temporary legal status that has shielded more than 600,000 Venezuelans living in the U.S. from deportation.
Casa and Make the Road New York contend that an order to end Temporal Protected Status for Venezuelans is unconstitutional.
The lawsuit was filed in Maryland. It鈥檚 the second to challenge the Department of Homeland Security鈥檚 decision to revoke an 18-month extension of TPS that was granted by the Biden administration in January.
That order affects more than 348,000 Venezuelans living in the U.S. whose temporary protection expires in April. TPS protections for other Venezuelans are set to expire at the end of September.
EPA union challenges return-to-office order
The largest union at the Environmental Protection Agency is seeking to block a Trump administration mandate that workers return to the office full-time.
The American Federation of Government Employees Council 238, which represents more than 8,000 EPA employees, filed grievances against the agency over a memo requiring in-person work 鈥渢o the maximum extent possible鈥� starting next week.
鈥淥ur hallways have been too vacant, desks are empty, and cubicles are filled with unoccupied chairs,鈥� EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin said in a video message to employees.
The union said the order violates a collective bargaining agreement that allows flexible schedules for about half the agency鈥檚 staff.
FBI directors are given 10-year terms
FBI directors are given 10-year terms as a way to insulate them from political influence and keep them from becoming beholden to a particular president or administration.
Patel was selected to replace , who was picked by Trump in 2017 and served for more than seven years but who was seen by him as insufficiently loyal. He before Trump took office.
Since Wray鈥檚 resignation, the FBI has been led by interim leaders, who have clashed with the Justice Department over its demands for details about the agents who investigated the Capitol riot. Trump has said that he expects some of those agents will be fired.
Patel denied having any knowledge of discussions about potential firings.
Bomb threat forces evacuation of Kennedy Center
The Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts was evacuated Thursday in response to a bomb threat.
A statement from the Kennedy Center said that the center鈥檚 multiple buildings were 鈥渆vacuated due to a bomb threat targeting Shen Yun performances. Security acted swiftly, following existing protocols.鈥�
Police and bomb-disposal units arrived as visitors were ushered outside. Images posted on social media showed video monitors throughout the complex displaying a red screen with the message:
The Shen Yun artistic troupe is an offshoot of the Falun Gong movement, an anti-Beijing spiritual group. The troupe has performed regularly at the Kennedy Center for years and was set to begin a 10-day run with a performance Thursday evening.
As of 2 p.m. EST, a spokesman for the U.S. Park Police, which has jurisdiction over the Kennedy Center, said the Park Police were 鈥渘o longer on the scene鈥�
A Kennedy Center spokesman confirmed that the evacuation order had been lifted.
Only two Republicans vote against confirming Patel
Sens. Susan Collins of Maine and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska were the lone Republican holdouts. The vote was 51-49.
National security adviser says Trump is 'frustrated' with Zelenskyy
Trump鈥檚 national security adviser, Mike Waltz, said the U.S. president is 鈥渙bviously very frustrated鈥� with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
Waltz鈥檚 remark during a White House briefing continues days of barbs the leaders have traded as Trump has refocused U.S. foreign policy toward pressuring Ukraine to make concessions to Russia that would end the war.
鈥淪ome of the rhetoric coming out of Kyiv, frankly, and insults to President Trump were unacceptable,鈥� Waltz said. He criticized Zelenskyy for rejecting a Trump proposal to 鈥渃o-invest鈥� in mining Ukrainian natural resources as a way to refund the U.S. for billions of dollars in weapons and economic assistance.
Waltz did not respond when asked whether Trump sees Russian President Vladimir Putin as a dictator, a day after Trump called Zelenskyy, who was elected in 2019, a 鈥渄ictator without elections.鈥� He also didn鈥檛 directly answer a question about whether Trump thinks Zelenskyy or Putin was more responsible for the war.
Patel inherits an agency gripped by turmoil
Patel inherits an FBI gripped by turmoil as the Justice Department has forced out a group of senior bureau officials in the past month. It鈥檚 also made a who participated in investigations related to the Jan. 6, 2021, riot at the U.S. Capitol.
Patel has spoken of his desire to at the FBI, including a renewed emphasis on its traditional crime-fighting duties rather than the intelligence-gathering and national security work that has come to define its mandate over the past two decades.
He has also echoed . Patel raised alarm among Democrats for saying before he was nominated that he would 鈥渃ome after鈥� anti-Trump 鈥渃onspirators鈥� in the federal government and the media.
Republicans rally around Patel as right person for FBI job
Republicans angry over what they see as law enforcement bias against conservatives during the Biden administration and criminal investigations into Trump rallied behind Patel as the right person for the FBI director鈥檚 job.
鈥淢r. Patel wants to make the FBI accountable once again 鈥� get back the reputation that the FBI has had historically for law enforcement,鈥� Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, said before Patel was confirmed.
Democrats complained about Patel鈥檚 lack of management experience compared with previous FBI directors.
鈥淚 am absolutely sure of this one thing: this vote will haunt anyone who votes for him. They will rue the day they did it,鈥� said Sen. Richard Blumenthal, a Connecticut Democrat.
About a half-dozen Democrats on the Senate Judiciary Committee gathered outside FBI headquarters before the vote in a last-ditch plea to derail his confirmation.
Senate narrowly confirms Patel as FBI director despite Democratic concerns
The Senate has narrowly voted to confirm as director of the FBI, moving to place him atop the nation鈥檚 premier federal law enforcement agency despite doubts from Democrats about his qualifications and concerns he will do Trump鈥檚 bidding and go after the president鈥檚 adversaries.
鈥淚 cannot imagine a worse choice,鈥� Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., told colleagues before the 51-49 vote by the GOP-controlled Senate. Sens. Susan Collins of Maine and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska were the lone Republican holdouts.
A Trump loyalist who has fiercely criticized the agency, Patel will inherit an FBI gripped by turmoil as the Justice Department over the past month has forced out a group of senior bureau officials and made a who participated in investigations related to the Jan. 6, 2021, riot at the U.S. Capitol.
Trump calls US hockey team before 4 Nations Face-Off final against Canada
Trump is also looking forward to watching the game Thursday night between the U.S. and Canada, the White House press secretary said.
鈥淎nd we look forward to the United States beating our soon-to-be 51st state, Canada,鈥� she said.
Trump has been pressing the idea of Canada becoming the 51st state as part of his trade dispute with America鈥檚 neighbor to the north. Canada鈥檚 prime minister, Justin Trudeau, has said that will never happen.
Leavitt gives journalist for X the first question, talks up 惭耻蝉办鈥檚 platform
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt says Trump has signed 73 executive orders in his first month as president.
Leavitt and other White House officials used the press briefing Thursday to highlight Trump鈥檚 actions over the past 30 days.
Among the executive orders Trump has signed are efforts to eliminate birthright citizenship, gain more presidential control over the federal bureaucracy and workforce, and eliminate diversity, equity and inclusion measures.
Trump signed 73 executive orders in his first 30 days
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt says Trump has signed 73 executive orders in his first month as president.
Leavitt and other White House officials used the press briefing Thursday to highlight Trump鈥檚 actions over the past 30 days.
Among the executive orders Trump has signed are efforts to eliminate birthright citizenship, gain more presidential control over the federal bureaucracy and workforce, and eliminate diversity, equity and inclusion measures.
Leaders of France and Britain to meet with Trump next week
Trump will host French President Emmanuel Macron at the White House next Monday, followed by British Prime Minister Keir Starmer on Thursday.
Trump will also hold the first Cabinet meeting of his second term next Wednesday, said White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt.
Murkowski urges Congress to 鈥榮tand up鈥� against efforts by Trump to exceed his authority
Alaska U.S. Sen. Lisa Murkowski said Congress needs to 鈥渟tand up鈥� against efforts by Trump that exceed his authority, including any attempts to withhold federal funds that Congress has already appropriated.
If Congress permits that, it effectively cedes some of its authority, told a tele-town hall attended by more than 1,000 people late Wednesday.
鈥淲e have to stand up. Now, the 鈥榳e鈥� has to be more than just me. And this is where it becomes more of a challenge, but it requires speaking out. It requires saying, 鈥楾hat violates the law, that violates the authorities of the executive.鈥欌��
It also requires using relationships that have been built within the administration 鈥渢o go back to the executive and say, 鈥楾here is a way to accomplish what you are seeking, but you have to do it within the confines of the law.鈥欌�� she said.
Murkowski said some Alaskans will want her to 鈥渞aise hell鈥� and fight the administration while others want her to back the president.
Layoffs hit agency devoted to preventing overdose deaths and suicides
Roughly 100 people have lost their jobs at the U.S. government agency devoted to preventing overdose deaths and suicides, according to a Health and Human Services official who wasn鈥檛 authorized to disclose the figure and spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity.
The dismissals last weekend 鈥� part of the White House鈥檚 efforts to shrink the government workforce 鈥� amounted to about 10% of the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration staff, the official said.
SAMHSA provides expertise and grant money to communities to prevent overdoses and suicides, operates treatment locators where people can find addiction treatment providers, and supports efforts to enhance mental health. The agency operates and promotes awareness of the 988 suicide and crisis hotline.
President Donald Trump made the opioid crisis a priority during his first term. In 2017, Trump became the first president to declare the opioid crisis a national health emergency. In 2018, he signed a bill increasing federal opioid funding to record levels.
Senators applauds McConnell
About 20 senators from both sides of the political aisle gathered in the Senate chamber as McConnell paid tribute to his family, his home state and to the Senate itself, having announced he will not seek reelection.
鈥淭he Senate is still equipped for work of great consequence,鈥� he told them. 鈥淎nd, to the disappointment of my critics, I鈥檓 still here on the job.鈥�
As he concluded, Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C. motioned that the audience of senators, staff and Capitol visitors be allowed to applaud for up to 30 seconds.
Then, the Republican senators in attendance lined up to greet McConnell and gathered around him.
He took out a tissue and made a joke, prompting the group to laugh. Senate Majority Leader John Thune then gave him a warm handshake and a dozen other senators soon did so as well.
Venezuelans sue Trump administration over ends of temporary protection
A group of Venezuelans is suing the Trump administration over its decision to end temporary protections that shield hundreds of thousands of immigrants from the South American country from deportation.
The lawsuit by the National TPS Alliance and eight Venezuelans alleges that Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem illegally revoked an 18-month extension of Temporary Protection Status, or TPS, for Venezuelans that was granted by the Biden administration in January.
Noem鈥檚 order affects 348,202 Venezuelans living in the U.S. with TPS slated to expire in April. That鈥檚 about half of the approximately 600,000 who have the protection. The remaining protections are set to expire at the end of September.
鈥淰enezuelan TPS holders, like all TPS holders, are lawfully present here pursuant to protection granted because it is not safe for them to return to their country,鈥� said Jose Palma, coordinator of the National TPS Alliance.
The lawsuit was filed in San Francisco, at Federal Court in the Northern District of California.
Musk and Argentina鈥檚 Milei to meet at CPAC
Billionaire Elon Musk, who has become Trump鈥檚 close adviser spearheading a massive effort to cut spending and downsize the federal government, is set to meet with Argentine President Javier Milei, who is in Washington to attend the Conservative Political Action Conference.
Musk was announced as a speaker for the conference earlier on Thursday by Mercedes Schlapp, a CPAC organizer. The scheduled meeting between Musk and Milei was confirmed by a person who insisted on anonymity to discuss an event that hadn鈥檛 yet been announced publicly and said the meeting was private and had been planned for weeks.
Milei was the first foreign leader to meet with Trump after he won the election, but before he took office. He was also invited to the inauguration. A self-described 鈥渁narcho-capitalist,鈥� Milei has received praise frequently from Musk for implementing a series of austerity measures, laying off tens of thousands of government workers, freezing public infrastructure projects to fix Argentina鈥檚 long mismanaged economy.
-By Adriana Gomez Licon
Vance says American culture has sought to turn everyone into 鈥榓ndrogynous idiots鈥�
Vance told conservatives that American culture is sending a message that is diminishing masculinity.
鈥淚 think that it wants to turn everybody into, whether male or female, into androgynous idiots who think the same, talk the same, and act the same. We actually think God made male and female for a purpose,鈥� Vance said.
He told the CPAC audience that when it comes to the Trump administration, 鈥淲e want you guys to thrive as young men and as young women and we鈥檙e going to help with our public policy to make it possible to do that.鈥�
He said Trump appeals in particular to young men because 鈥淗e doesn鈥檛 allow the media to tell him he can鈥檛 make a joke or he can鈥檛 have an original thought.鈥�
Sen. Mitch McConnell won鈥檛 seek reelection in Kentucky in 2026
Republican is announcing on Thursday that he won鈥檛 seek reelection next year, ending a decades-long tenure as a power broker who championed conservative causes but ultimately ceded ground to the fierce GOP populism of President Donald Trump.
McConnell, the in U.S. history, chose his 83rd birthday to share his decision not to run for another term in Kentucky and to retire when his current term ends. He informed The Associated Press of his decision before he was set to address colleagues in a speech on the Senate floor.
His announcement begins the epilogue of a storied career as a master strategist, one in which he helped forge and steered the Senate through , and fierce political fights.
Administration officials to address reporters
National Security Advisor Mike Waltz, Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller and National Economic Council Director Kevin Hassett will address reporters at the White House on Thursday as part of the press briefing, Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt announced.
Leavitt said in a post on X that the officials will be there 鈥渢o discuss the President鈥檚 accomplishments so far.鈥�
Vance to speak at annual Conservative Political Action conference
People are gathering in a Washington suburb for the annual Conservative Political Action Conference, where Vice President JD Vance will open as the first speaker.
President Donald Trump is scheduled to appear on Saturday, the organization announced.
Attorney General Pam Bondi and House Speaker Mike Johnson will be speaking later Thursday as well as Steve Bannon, a popular Trump ally. Other international figures such as former UK Prime Minister Liz Truss and Argentine President Javier Milei are also appearing at the Gaylord National Resort & Convention Center in Oxon Hill, Maryland. Italian Premier Giorgia Meloni is scheduled to address attendees at the conference, but her office said it will be a video appearance.
A news conference between Zelenskyy and Trump's Ukraine envoy is cancelled at US request
A Kyiv official says a news conference after talks between Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and President Donald Trump鈥檚 Ukraine envoy was cancelled Thursday at the request of the U.S.
The scheduled comments to the media by Zelenskyy and retired U.S. Lt. Gen. Keith Kellogg, Trump鈥檚 special envoy to Ukraine and Russia, were called off after their meeting, the Ukrainian president鈥檚 spokesman Serhii Nikiforov said.
Kellogg鈥檚 trip to Kyiv coincided with recent feuding between Trump and Zelenskyy that has bruised their personal relations and cast further doubt on the future of U.S. support for Ukraine鈥檚 war effort.
Thursday marks a month since Trump took office
He鈥檚 expected to host a reception for Black History Month in the afternoon, and then go to the National Building Museum to give a speech to a meeting of the Republican Governors Association.
Also on tap is a press briefing with the White House press secretary and other administration officials.
Trump will be signing executive orders at a different desk in the White House
The Resolute Desk, an Oval Office mainstay, 鈥渋s being lightly refinished,鈥� Trump posted on social media. The desk was built from oak used in the British Arctic exploration ship HMS Resolute, and Queen Victoria gave it as a gift to President Rutherford B. Hayes in 1880.
In the meantime, Trump said he would sit at the 鈥淐&O鈥� desk previously used by President George H.W. Bush. It was originally built around 1920 for the owners of the Chesapeake and Ohio Railway, hence the name.
鈥淭his is a beautiful, but temporary replacement!鈥� Trump said.
President Trump is targeting more organizations as he tries to downsize the federal bureaucracy
He listed four targets in his executive order on Wednesday, including the United States Institute of Peace, which promotes conflict resolution around the world, and the Presidio Trust, which manages a park in San Francisco.
Both organizations were created by Congress. The executive order said they 鈥渟hall reduce the performance of their statutory functions and associated personnel to the minimum presence and function required by law.鈥�
Trump also directed the elimination of various advisory panels, including the Health Equity Advisory Committee, the Advisory Committee on Long COVID and the Community Bank Advisory Council.
Trump says federal government should 鈥榯ake over鈥� DC, backing congressional GOP push
Trump on Wednesday threw his support behind congressional efforts for a federal takeover of the nation鈥檚 capital, saying he approves putting the back under direct federal control.
Speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One, Trump complained about crime and homelessness in the district, saying, 鈥淚 think we should take over Washington, D.C. 鈥� make it safe.鈥� He added, 鈥淚 think that we should govern District of Columbia.鈥�
Under terms of the city鈥檚 Home Rule authority, Congress already vets all D.C. laws and can outright overturn them. Some congressional Republicans have sought to go further, eroding decades of the city鈥檚 limited autonomy and putting it back under direct federal control, as it was at its founding.
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Senate pushes toward confirmation of Kash Patel as FBI director
The Senate was set to vote Thursday on whether to confirm as FBI director, a decision that could place him atop the nation鈥檚 premier federal law enforcement agency despite concerns from Democrats over his qualifications and the prospect that he would do President Donald Trump鈥檚 bidding.
by a 12-10, party-line vote.
He is expected to be confirmed unless more than three Republican senators defy Trump鈥檚 will and vote against him, which is seen as unlikely.
Patel, a Trump loyalist who has fiercely criticized the agency that he is poised to lead, would inherit an FBI gripped by turmoil. The Justice Department in the last month has forced out a group of senior FBI officials and made a who participated in investigations related to Jan. 6.
Trump has said that he expects some of those agents will be fired.
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Trump and Musk say they like working together and will keep at it. Will it last?
It鈥檚 been a burning political question for weeks: How long will 鈥� who doesn鈥檛 like sharing the spotlight 鈥� be able to do just that with , a billionaire also overly fond of attention?
In a joint Fox News Channel interview that aired Tuesday, both insisted they like each other a lot and would stick with their arrangement despite what Trump said were attempts by the media to 鈥渄rive us apart.鈥�
At times, Trump sat back as Fox News Channel鈥檚 heaped praise on Musk in an attempt to counteract a that he鈥檚 a callous and unelected force out to destroy the government and upend civil society.
There were also moments when Trump and Musk were all but finishing each other鈥檚 sentences, as if they were part of a buddy comedy and not the president and his most powerful aide.
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Trump backs idea to send some DOGE savings to American citizens
Trump said at an investment conference in Miami on Wednesday that he likes the idea of giving some of the savings from Department of Government Efficiency back to U.S. citizens as a kind of dividend, and that the administration is considering a concept in which 20% of the savings produced by goes to American citizens and another 20% goes to paying down the national debt.
Trump also said the potential for dividend payments would incentivize people to report wasteful spending.
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