Trump 2nd term updates: Trump says USAID is run by 'radical lunatics'

The comments came amid turmoil as DOGE took over USAID offices last week.

ByAlexandra Hutzler, Ivan Pereira, Emily Chang, Andrea Pineda-Salgado, Meredith Deliso, and Julia Reinstein
Last Updated: February 2, 2025, 11:11 PM EST

President Donald Trump made good on his threats to impose tariffs on some of the U.S.'s trading partners, announcing Saturday that he will levy 25% tariffs on some goods from Canada and Mexico and 10% on Chinese goods.

Experts have warned that tariffs of this magnitude will likely increase prices paid by U.S. and Trump appeared to acknowledge that “some pain” might be possible in the U.S.

Meanwhile, the Senate Finance Committee announced it will meet Tuesday, when it is expected to vote on the controversial nomination of Robert F. Kennedy Jr. for secretary of Health and Human Services.

Key Headlines

Here's how the news is developing:
Jan 28, 2025, 6:18 PM EST

Fed workers union responds to buyout plan

The American Federation of Government Employees, which represents more than 800,000 federal and Washington, D.C., employees, responded to the reports that Trump is planning to offer federal workers buyouts.

"This offer should not be viewed as voluntary," AFGE National President Everett Kelley said in a statement.

Kelley claimed the Trump administration's goal "is to turn the federal government into a toxic environment where workers cannot stay even if they want to."

"The number of civil servants hasn't meaningfully changed since 1970, but there are more Americans than ever who rely on government services. Purging the federal government of dedicated career federal employees will have vast, unintended consequences that will cause chaos for the Americans who depend on a functioning federal government," he said.

-ABC News' Sarah Kolinovsky

Jan 28, 2025, 6:11 PM EST

Trump signs EO restricting transgender care access for people under 19

Trump signed an executive order that would restrict gender-affirming care for people under the age of 19.

The action would restrict medical institutions that receive federal funding from providing such care -- including puberty blockers, hormone therapies, and surgeries -- and calls on the secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services to "take all appropriate actions to end the chemical and surgical mutilation of children."

Read more here.

-ABC News' Kiara Alfonseca

Jan 28, 2025, 6:07 PM EST

Stephen Miller claims freeze won't affect 'any federal benefits' programs

White House Deputy Chief of Staff for Policy Stephen Miller took questions from the press to talk about the federal funding freeze, which was temporarily blocked by a judge.

Miller claimed the freeze "doesn't affect any federal programs that Americans rely on, full stop."

White House deputy chief of staff for policy and US homeland security advisor Stephen Miller speaks to members of the press outside the West Wing entrance of the White House in Washington, D.C., on Jan. 28, 2025.
Roberto Schmidt/AFP via Getty Images

When asked by ABC News if Americans who rely on indirect benefits might see impacts, Miller said the OMB document "is clearing up how to implement the original executive order, which doesn't cover any entitlement or public benefit spending at all."

-ABC News' Mary Bruce and Michelle Stoddart

Jan 28, 2025, 5:56 PM EST

Nevada governor says his office in touch with White House over funding freeze

In a post on X, Nevada Gov. Joe Lombardo said his office is in touch with the White House and will be part of a larger meeting with the Office of Management and Budget to discuss the impact of the federal fund freeze on his state’s agencies.

"While these discussions are ongoing, it's important to reiterate that programs that provide direct benefits to Nevadans -- like Medicaid, Medicare, SNAP, and Head Start -- are continuing without interruption. Despite the shameless political theater on this issue, the Office of the Governor will continue to provide state agencies and Nevadans with timely, accurate, and correct information," he said.

-ABC News' Brittany Shepherd