President Donald Trump shakes up the federal workforce and economic landscape, ending union rights for many federal workers and preparing to impose sweeping tariffs this week. Leftwing activists are ramping up their “Tesla Takedown” protests as new investigations unveil the powerful entities behind the movement. And, is Trump’s “self-deportation” messaging for illegal immigrants working? We have the data.
It’s Monday, March 31st, and this is the news you need to know to start your week. If you’d rather listen to your news, today’s edition of the Morning Wire podcast can be heard below:
Trump’s Economic Executive Orders
(Photo by Mandel NGAN / AFP) (Photo by MANDEL NGAN/AFP via Getty Images)
Topline: President Trump signed an executive order targeting many federal worker unions as his sweeping tariffs are set to take effect this week.
The move stripped collective bargaining rights from a wide swath of federal employees. It will not apply to all federal workers, just those who work for agencies with “national security missions,” including the Departments of Defense, State, Justice, Homeland Security, and Veterans Affairs.
Context: A number of large federal unions have made clear they will do everything possible to slow President Trump’s agenda, launching dozens of lawsuits to block his efforts to cut spending through his Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) project. Other unions negotiated deals with the Biden administration that are still in effect but run contrary to the Trump administration’s agenda. The White House says this order will “ensure that agencies vital to national security can execute their missions without delay and protect the American people.” Trump added that while he “supports constructive partnerships with unions who work with him, he will not tolerate mass obstruction that jeopardizes his ability to manage agencies with vital national security missions.”
Hours after the order was signed, eight federal agencies filed a lawsuit in Texas, calling for a judge to void their existing contracts. Those deals will remain in place while the case is heard, but we could see action quickly. The largest federal workers union, The American Federation of Government Employees, said over the weekend that hundreds of thousands of its 800,000 members could soon be stripped of their memberships — vowing to file countersuits of their own. If the courts rule in Trump’s favor, they would give him considerable power to cut the federal workforce and follow through on his promise to slash spending.
On Wednesday, a slew of new tariffs are set to go into effect on everything from auto imports to appliances to agricultural products — the list goes on. Trump is calling it “Liberation Day,” saying on Truth Social: “For DECADES we have been ripped off and abused by every nation in the World, both friend and foe. Now it is finally time for the Good Ol’ USA to get some of that MONEY, and RESPECT, BACK.”
The Trump administration has been adamant that tariffs would help secure more favorable trade deals. It views them as a means of combating illegal immigration, incentivizing military cooperation, and spurring domestic manufacturing. Trump points to the trillions of dollars worth of investments foreign companies have made in recent months as proof that tariffs will push companies to onshore and bring their supply chains to America.
We’re still waiting on the full list of products that will be impacted, but Canada and Mexico will be among the hardest hit — facing 25% tariffs on all imports. From there will come worldwide reciprocal tariffs. The White House says if a trading partner wants a lower rate, all they have to do is reduce the tariffs imposed on U.S. exports. The president will also slap an additional 25% rate on oil and gas from Venezuela in response to the “criminals” who he says have been sent to the U.S. illegally. That tariff will also apply to countries that continue buying oil and gas from Venezuela.
DOGE PR Battle
(Photo by Frederic J. BROWN / AFP) (Photo by FREDERIC J. BROWN/AFP via Getty Images)
Topline: A new report finds that influential left-wing political organizations are paying for the “Tesla Takedown” protests that continued all over North America and Europe this weekend. Meanwhile, the DOGE team gave its first interview.
On Saturday, there were hundreds of anti-Tesla demonstrations worldwide, from Chicago to Germany to Australia. Turnout for these events varied considerably, from a handful of aging protestors waving signs that said things like “No one elected Musk” and “Drive Tesla out of business” to larger actions in major urban centers like New York City.
The objective is to hit Tesla CEO Elon Musk, Trump’s biggest donor, where it hurts while urging him to back off his activities on behalf of the Trump administration.
In response, Trump’s DOGE initiative, which Musk leads, appears to be pivoting its PR strategy — initially, Musk said that he wanted to keep DOGE analysts out of the spotlight to protect their privacy and safety. But on Friday, DOGE leaders sat down with Fox News’s Brett Baier, giving Musk a chance to dispel the image of DOGE as just a bunch of young, rowdy tech bros.
BAIER: Some people say this shouldn’t take a rocket scientist. Steve Davis, you are a rocket scientist… Now, essentially you’re the chief operating officer of DOGE… How did you end up here? What’s the biggest challenge you see?
DAVIS: The reason I’m here, which is probably for many, is that I think the goal is incredibly inspiring. I think most of the taxpayers in the country would agree that in order to have the country going bankrupt would be a very bad thing, and therefore the country going not bankrupt is a good thing, that all of us are willing to kind of put our lives on hold in order to do. I think the thing that’s special right now is we actually believe there’s a chance to succeed,
A new report in the Fairfax Times found that “Takedown Tesla” actions have been almost entirely bankrolled by well-known leftist activist networks like The Indivisible Project, which organized 29% of the protests, as well as MoveOn.org, the Disruption Project, and local Democratic Party chapters. After building a public database based on a chronology of the Tesla Takedown protests, the report concluded, “While the local #TeslaTakedown protest may appear spontaneous and community-driven, it is the product of a well-funded, tightly coordinated campaign.”
Self-Deportations Push
(Photo by Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)
Topline: With an estimated 14 million people in the U.S. illegally, the Trump administration wants to convince many of them to self-deport. But is the message working? A new report suggests it is.
A new report from the New York Times found that the administration’s self-deport messaging might actually be working. It seems that the length of time spent in the United States is the most influential factor: long-term illegal residents are still unlikely to leave, but more recent arrivals, such as all those who crossed the border under Biden, appear more likely to be swayed by the administration’s message.
Recent deportation flights to El Salvador seem to have had an effect – Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem recently posted a video shot at El Salvador’s state-of-the-art prison complex – the message being that violent illegal aliens in the U.S. will be found and imprisoned here.
“I also want everybody to know, if you come to our country illegally, this is one of the consequences you can face,” Noem said. “Do not come to our country illegally. You will be removed and you will be prosecuted, but know that this facility is one of the tools in our toolkit that we will use if you commit crimes against the American people.”
The administration has been clear that it is prioritizing the deportation of violent criminals, but some aliens don’t want to risk arrest. Others believe it’s only a matter of time before federal authorities catch them, so they want to leave before they’re forced out.
Additionally, hundreds of foreign students who have voiced support for Hamas have also been encouraged to self-deport. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said that the green cards or visas of about 300 students have been revoked so far, including Syrian national Mahmoud Khalil, who led protests at Columbia University; British-Gambian National Momoduo Taal, who participated in similar actions at Cornell; and Turkish national Rumeysa Ozturk, whose visa was revoked after the State Department found she “engaged in activities in support of Hamas.”
