Evening Report — Hegseth moves to shake up Pentagon

View Online Evening Report Friday, Feb. 21 | By Jonathan Easley TRUMP FIRST 100 DAYS ©  Virginia Mayo, Associated Press Hegseth moves to shake up the Pentagon DEFENSE SECRETARY PETE HEGSETH is moving to overhaul the Pentagon through steep budget and staffing cuts.   Hegseth said Friday that a hiring freeze and an "aggressive" effort to fire civilian employees is on the way.   "We're going to be thoughtful, but we're also going to be aggressive, up and down the chain," he said in a video posted on X.   In a memo issued this week, Hegseth directed senior Pentagon officials and military leaders to plan for an 8 percent cut to the defense budget for each year over the next five years, which would amount to about $300 billion less in military spending.   Reductions are aimed at the military command in Europe and the Middle East, while programs pertaining to nuclear weapons, submarines, attack drones, missile defense and cybersecurity would be spared.   The Pentagon also said it will look to redirect about $50 billion in the Biden administration's budget proposal that would have gone to "so-called 'climate change' and other woke programs" and "excessive bureaucracy."   Acting Deputy Defense Secretary Robert Salesses said money would be reallocated for border security and Trump's proposed "Iron Dome for America" missile defense system.    The Pentagon's current budget is more than $850 billion. Lawmakers are generally loathe to cut defense spending. The House GOP budget endorsed by President Trump contains a $100 billion defense spending hike.   Defense spending accounted for 13 percent of all government spending last year. Medicare, Medicaid and other government insurance programs made up 24 percent of the budget, followed by Social Security at 21 percent. WASHINGTON REACTS Democrats and defense hawks expressed alarm.   "These types of hasty, indiscriminate budget cuts would betray our military forces and their families and make America less safe," said Senate Armed Services Committee ranking member Jack Reed (D-R.I.).   Republicans, who traditionally oppose defense cuts, took the news in stride.   "This process will enable the Secretary to offset needless and distracting programs — such as those focused on climate change and [diversity, equity and inclusion] — and direct focus on important warfighting priorities shared by the Congress," said Senate Armed Services Committee Chair Roger Wicker (R-Miss.). TRUMP ESCALATES WAR OF WORDS WITH UKRAINE Trump on Friday continued railing against Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, suggesting Zelensky wouldn't play a part in negotiations to end the war between Russia and Ukraine.   "He has no cards. And you get sick of it," Trump said on Fox News Radio.   "So, I don't think he's very important to be at meetings, to be honest with you. He makes it very hard to make deals."   Zelensky has said Ukraine must be involved in any peace agreement, although Ukrainian officials were frozen out of a summit last week between U.S. and Russian officials in Saudi Arabia.   Secretary of State Marco Rubio noted that former President Biden had his own frustrations with Zelensky.   However, Keith Kellogg, Trump's special envoy to Ukraine and Russia, called Zelensky an "embattled and courageous leader" after meeting with him this week.   And some Republicans are pushing back.   Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick (R-Pa.), a moderate Republican, posted on X:   "President Volodymyr Zelenskyy need not, and must not, have any deal forced upon him by any outside nation that does not guarantee the security and the sovereignty of the Ukrainian people."   Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.) said:   "Whoever believes that there is any space for Vladimir Putin in the future of a stable globe better go to Ukraine They better go to Europe; they better invest the time to understand that this man is a cancer and the greatest threat to democracy in my lifetime."  MEANWHILE… The fragile ceasefire between Israel and Hamas is teetering.   Hamas made a spectacle of returning caskets with the remains of four Israelis who were taken hostage and killed following the Oct. 7, 2023, terror attacks, including a 4 year-old and 9 month-old .   Their mother, Shiri Bibas, was also supposed to be returned. But Israel says the remains they received are not hers, calling it a "cruel and malicious violation" of the ceasefire.   Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Hamas would pay the "full price" for sending the wrong body.   Hamas claimed it made an "error or mix up in the bodies" but said it remains committed to fulfilling "all our obligations" in the ceasefire. 💡Perspectives: • The Hill: Europe's elite fears Trump, Musk and the truth. • The Hill: Trump finally shows his cards — he's siding with Russia. • Kyiv Post: Why a US-Ukraine resources deal makes sense for Ukraine. • Foreign Affairs: America has a historic opportunity in the Middle East. • The Wall Street Journal: Ponder how the Bibas boys died. Read more:  • European troops, US support are part of an emerging plan for Ukraine. • US not co-sponsoring UN resolution supporting Ukraine. • Supreme Court sides with Hungary in Holocaust survivors' lawsuit. CATCH UP QUICK The federal judge overseeing New York City Mayor Eric Adams's (D) criminal case indefinitely delayed his April trial as he considers the controversial move by President Trump's Justice Department to drop the charges.   Enrique Tarrio, the former national chairman of the Proud Boys, was arrested by U.S. Capitol Police on Friday after a press conference with other Proud Boys members and Oath Keepers' founder Stewart Rhodes. Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass (D) removed the fire chief amid tensions over the blazes that devastated the city. NEWS THIS AFTERNOON ©  Greg Nash Consumer sentiment plunges as inflation, tariff fears grow Consumer confidence plunged 10 points in February over growing fears about inflation and the impact of President Trump's threatened tariffs, according to the latest University of Michigan consumer survey.   Those fears are echoed in the latest Pew Research survey, which finds that inflation and health care costs are seen as the biggest issues facing Americans.   A CNN poll released this week found nearly two-thirds of voters say Trump isn't doing enough to address inflation, which was an albatross around former President Biden's administration.   This comes as Washington is consumed by the Trump administration's offensive against the federal workforce and the sweeping cuts imposed by Elon Musk's Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE).   Musk boasted about his efforts at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) on Thursday, where he wielded a chainsaw for emphasis.   Some Republicans are starting to feel the heat from the DOGE cuts back home.   Rep. Rich McCormick (R-Ga.) faced boos and pointed questions at a town hall, where he was questioned by constituents on the hundreds of workers who were fired from Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta.   DOGE has sought to rescind some its mass layoffs for federal employees working on sensitive matters, such as the U.S. nuclear program and the bird flu.   The latest:   • A federal judge ruled that the Trump administration violated a court order to temporarily unfreeze foreign aid but declined to hold officials in civil contempt.   • Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) threw cold water on the idea of using DOGE savings to send checks to Americans.    • The Justice Department will drop a lawsuit against Musk's SpaceX, which alleged the company discriminated against refugees and asylum seekers during the hiring process. 💡Perspectives: • Notes From the Middle Ground: Trump's act of collective self-harm. • The Liberal Patriot: Congress has only itself to blame for DOGE. • Whole Hog Politics: Democrats learn the limits of resistance.  • MSNBC: Musk isn't too rich to be corrupt with DOGE. Just the opposite. • The Wall Street Journal: Trump's executive power restoration. Read more:  • Democrats launch probe into Musk's White House role. • 83 percent of Americans disapprove of Trump's Jan. 6 pardons: Poll. • Trump, Maine governor clash over transgender athletes. • 5 takeaways from Musk's CPAC talk. ON TAP Here's who's talking on the Sunday shows...   NewsNation's "The Hill Sunday": Rep. Erin Houchin (R-Ind.).   NBC's "Meet the Press": Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer (D) and Sen. Markwayne Mullin (R-Okla.).   Fox News Channel's "Fox News Sunday": Reps. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) and Jim Himes (D-Conn.).   CNN's "State of the Union": House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries (N.Y.).  IN OTHER NEWS ©  Greg Nash Washington Roundup: Senate adopts budget resolution; focus moves to House The Senate adopted its budget resolution after a marathon vote-a-rama Thursday night, ramping up pressure on the House to move on their own budget resolution when lawmakers return next week.   President Trump has backed the House's one-bill strategy, even as questions persist about whether such a bill can squeak by the GOP's narrow majority in the lower chamber.   Senate Budget Committee Chairman Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) cast the Senate's efforts to pass two bills as a backup plan if the House can't get it done.   "I hope the House can pass one big bill that meets President Trump's priorities," Graham said in a statement. "But this approach provides money that we needed yesterday to continue the momentum on securing our border, enforcing our immigration laws, and rebuilding our military. Time is of the essence."   • Trump says he'll go to Fort Knox to make sure the U.S. gold reserves are still there. Some on the right have pushed for an audit of the facility and spread unfounded claims that the gold reserves have gone missing.   • The Trump administration will replace the acting director of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) amid frustrations that deportations are not happening swiftly enough.   ICE removed deported migrants from a facility at Guantanamo Bay, taking them to Honduras where they'll be picked up by the Venezuelan government. The Department of Homeland Security moved to end deportation protections for Haitians in the U.S.   • Trump says he'll make Alice Johnson, whose sentence he commuted during his first term, his "pardon czar" to make recommendations about who should receive clemency. 💡Perspectives: • The Atlantic: The free speech phonies. • The Hill: Why is YouTube boosting anti-US propaganda? • The Hill: Democrats: Get out of Washington and into the real world. • Salon: Personal defiance matters more than ever. • The Hill: Democrats must reinvent themselves. Read more:  • Progressives struggle to stem bleeding after brutal year • NY Republicans push back against 9/11 fund cut. • Trump says he'll add Black icons to National Garden of American Heroes. • Trump administration to investigate California high-speed rail project. Stay Engaged Someone forward this newsletter to you? Sign up to get your own copy: TheHill.com/Evening. Did I miss a story? Drop me a line. See you next time! 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