On Politics

Mon Feb 10 2025

Rebecca Morin | Senior National News Reporter

@RebeccaMorin_

Hello! It's Rebecca Morin, senior national news reporter at USA TODAY. Now that we're in a new administration, we thought it might be a good time to switch up the newsletter a little. Starting Wednesday, I'll be sending On Politics in the early afternoon as part of a test. Love it? Hate it? Feedback on the newsletter? Send your thoughts here.

Judge extends pause on Trump federal worker plan

Some of President Donald Trump's plans to shrink the federal workforce remain paused. A federal judge on Monday extended his block on the Trump administration's deadline for more than 2 million federal employees to accept a controversial buyout. U.S. District Judge George O'Toole issued a temporary restraining order against the program, saying the order would remain in place "until I respond to the issues presented." Read more.

About 65,000 federal workers signed up for the program through Friday. More than a dozen federal employees spoke with USA TODAY about their decision to either continue working for the government or to go. One employee, an Air Force veteran Shane Poole, who took the buyout, said he's lost all trust in the government. Read more.

As Trump faces pushback in the courts, some Democrats and legal experts voice concerns the Trump administration may ignore unwelcome federal court decisions.

•	Judge rules Trump White House failed to comply with court order
•	States sue Trump admin over research funding cut

A presidential Super Bowl

Usp Nfl Super Bowl Lix Kansas City Chiefs At Phil

President Donald Trump and Ivanka Trump react during the playing of the national anthem in Super Bowl LIX between the Philadelphia Eagles and the Kansas City Chiefs at Ceasars Superdome on Sunday.

Mark J. Rebilas, Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images

A politics pit stop

•	Trump souring on Gaza ceasefire over hostages' condition
•	Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem: Trump should 'get rid' of FEMA
•	White South Africans rejecting Trump's immigration offer
•	Trump birthright citizenship order blocked for the third time
•	Trump doesn't want new pennies. These Americans say 'time to move on' from the coin.

It's official: US changes name of Gulf of Mexico to Gulf of America

If you're in the United States, the body of water that extends from Florida to the Texas coast will officially be the Gulf of America. Workers at the federal Board on Geographic Names have formally changed the name to the Gulf of America per one of Donald Trump's first executive orders. The change doesn't affect what other countries call it, and Mexico's president has promised to ignore it and asked others to do the same. Read more.

•	'Gulf of America Day': Trump makes proclamation on Super Bowl flight

Will Eagles visit the Trump White House if invited? It's complicated.

It's been a decades long tradition. You win the Super Bowl, you're invited to the White House. That tradition, however, changed during Trump's first term in office. Only one of four Super Bowl-winning teams made a White House visit. Back in 2018, the president actually disinvited the Philadelphia Eagles on the eve of their scheduled trip. Trump this year was rooting for the Kansas City Chiefs, but the Eagles came out on top. Read more.