Trump’s Accent Remark and FBI Probe Obstruction – 2/27/25

United States

  • Trump tells UK’s Keir Starmer: “What a beautiful accent. I would’ve been President 20 years ago if I had that accent.”
  • Representative Andy Ogles proposes a law to ban federal workers from government roles if they destroyed Epstein file evidence.
  • FBI staff are reportedly hindering the probe into Thomas Crooks, the attempted Trump assassin, and his possible accomplices in Butler, PA, per NYP.
  • Meta, led by Mark Zuckerberg, is working on a standalone AI app to rival ChatGPT, per NYP.
  • Mortgage rates have dropped to their lowest point in more than two months, per Fox Business.
  • An illegal immigrant, allegedly tied to ISIS, faces charges for terror financing, gun crimes, and immigration fraud, per Fox.
  • Trump Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt says, “The media landscape has changed,” after meeting influential social media creators with bigger audiences than most reporters, per Karoline Leavitt.
  • NOAA has cut about 600 jobs, affecting workers at the National Weather Service and National Hurricane Center, per NBC.
  • A judge has ruled that the mass termination of probationary federal workers may be illegal, directing further review, per AP.
  • The White House says a noticeable bruise on President Trump’s right hand came from handshakes, per NBC.
  • Mindy Kaling’s show “Running Point” streams on Netflix despite an ongoing trademark dispute with Pepperdine University, per BI.
  • Katy Perry joins a six-woman team for Blue Origin’s next spaceflight, set to be the first all-female crew in decades, per Forbes.
  • Trump’s threats have sparked a boom in Canadian flag sales, overwhelming manufacturers as demand surges, per NYT.
  • A judge has declared that OPM’s directive to fire probationary federal employees violated the law, per Politico.
  • The People’s Union USA urges Americans to halt spending on Friday in an “economic blackout” to resist billionaire and corporate influence, per AP.
  • Eli Lilly is amassing a huge stockpile of an oral weight-loss drug, with $550 million in pre-launch inventory as of late 2024, per Forbes.
  • The State Department insists USAID cuts spare life-saving programs, but Stop TB Partnership’s Lucica Ditiu calls it “absolutely not true” after losing funding, per CBS.

International

  • Mexico reports extraditing 29 suspects, including cartel leaders, to the US while coordinating with them to combat drug trafficking.
  • China expanded its navy by 30 ships in 2023, while the US added just 2 to its fleet.
  • A U.S.-sanctioned, aging oil tanker is being dismantled in India, a key moment for the shadowy “dark fleet,” per Bloomberg Economics.