Reading archive 2024-11-13

Opinion The world’s richest person is about to receive a free public education: Elon Musk vows to cut more than $2 trillion from federal spending. Wait till he runs into Washington. - "Instructed by Reagan not to 'leave any stone unturned' combating 'inefficiency,' Grace found that under every stone lurks someone like the farmer who was the father of Major Major, a character in Joseph Heller’s 1961 novel, 'Catch-22.' He was 'a God-fearing, freedom-loving, law-abiding rugged individualist who held that federal aid to anyone but farmers was creeping socialism.'"

Opinion Trump’s MAGA advisers are setting him up for failure in Ukraine: Pressuring Ukraine into a bad deal would harm Ukraine, the United States and Trump’s own legacy.

How to save money with the Inflation Reduction Act before Trump is in charge: The Trump administration could repeal tax credits for electric vehicles, heat pumps and more.

Pete Hegseth has said exactly how he will shake up the Pentagon: Trump’s nominee for defense secretary has called for a war on what he calls the ‘woke’ military, including potentially firing top brass.

Senate Republicans choose John Thune to replace Mitch McConnell as majority leader: The leadership fight, like much else, became proxy battle over fealty to Trump.

The Hegseth nomination is a multilayered Trump loyalty test: Donald Trump’s plan to bring the military to heel begins to take shape.

Opinion The right and left are talking about the military in dangerous ways: The U.S. military is busy enough. Stop dragging it into partisan politics.

Opinion Trump can keep campaign promises or be popular. Not both.: Should he go through with his radical agenda, Democrats will have a lot to work with.

The mysterious Virginia mansion allegedly bought with stolen Nigerian money: Authorities say close friends of an alleged kleptocrat bought properties with cash meant to fight Boko Haram, underscoring how the U.S. has become a money-laundering haven. - "'At a time when many American neighborhoods are experiencing affordable housing crises, it’s more important than ever to stop dirty money from being laundered and stored in our residential real estate market,' the Treasury Department’s acting undersecretary for terrorism and financial intelligence, Bradley T. Smith, said in a statement to The Washington Post."