Trump 2nd term updates: Trump attends the Super Bowl

Trump becomes the first sitting president to attend a Super Bowl.

Last Updated: February 9, 2025, 7:18 PM EST

President Donald Trump's second administration continued its swift recasting of the federal government, prompting pushback from Democrats and legal challenges.

The president said Sunday that he will announce tariffs on all imported steel and aluminum on Monday but didn't say when they'll take effect.

Trump, meanwhile, is at Caesars Superdome in New Orleans on Sunday night to take in the Super Bowl. Trump picked the Kansas City Chiefs to beat the Philadelphia Eagles in an interview aired before the game on Fox.

Key headlines:

Here's how the news is developing:
Feb 03, 2025, 4:11 AM EST

Musk 'in the process' of 'shutting down' USAID, he says

Elon Musk said he was "in the process" of "shutting down" the U.S. Agency for International Development and claimed he had briefed President Donald Trump on his efforts, which he said Trump supports.

Speaking on an audio stream described as the first "Dogecast" podcast, Musk said USAID was "hopeless" based on his team's findings.

Musk was joined by former DOGE chair Vivek Ramaswamy and Sens. Joni Ernst and Mike Lee on the Spaces event, which was hosted on Musk's X social media platform and which drew around 90,000 listeners over the hour-long stream.

A view of the USAID building in Washington, D.C., Feb. 1, 2025.
Annabelle Gordon/Reuters

"The reason for that, as opposed to simply trying to do some minor house cleaning, is that as we dug into USAID, it became apparent that what we have here is not an apple with a worm in it, but we have actually just a ball of worms," Musk said

Musk said he has been briefing Trump on his efforts and that Trump supports "shutting it down."

"None of this could be done without the full support of the president," Musk said. "And with regard to the USAID stuff, I went over it with him in detail, and he agreed that we should shut it down. I want to be clear. I actually checked with him a few times, 'Are you sure?' Like, yes, so we are shutting it down."

-ABC News' Will Steakin

Feb 02, 2025, 11:49 PM EST

HHS tells CDC grant recipients that 'gender ideology' programs are 'terminated'

The Department of Health and Human Services directed recipients of grant funding from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to immediately halt all programs, personnel and activities related to "gender ideology," according to an email obtained by ABC News.

“You must immediately terminate, to the maximum extent, all programs, personnel, activities, or contracts promoting or inculcating gender ideology at every level and activity, regardless of your location or the citizenship of employees or contractors, that are supported with funds from this award,” the email stated.

“Any vestige, remnant, or re-named piece of any gender ideology programs funded by the U.S. government under this award are immediately, completely, and permanently terminated," it continued.

The latest directive from the HHS impacts any entity that receives CDC funds, such as local health departments and clinics, and it affects any programs supported by the nearly $4.5 billion spent by the CDC last year to aid health departments across all 50 states.

-ABC News' Will T. Steakin and Anne Flaherty

Feb 02, 2025, 11:49 PM EST

Over 50 DOE employees put on administrative leave for reasons related to DEI

Dozens of Department of Education employees received letters on Friday night placing them on “administrative leave," effective immediately.

While no specific reason was given, employees told ABC News on Sunday that they believe the only common thread between them is that they attended a voluntary diversity training program in 2019, during President Donald Trump's first term.

ABC News has obtained the letter which states that the administrative leave notice is not for disciplinary purposes; rather, the letter said it's related to Trump’s executive order on diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility. Employees were told to await “further guidance from OPM,” according to the letter, referencing the Office of Personnel Management.

Per the letter, employees will receive full pay and benefits through the end of the administrative leave, but they are not required to do work-related tasks during this time or come into the office. At the same time, the impacted employees had their government email access suspended.

Sheria Smith, the American Federation of Government Employees Local 252 president, told ABC News that over 50 employees in “extremely diverse roles” within the department had received the emails after regular business hours this weekend.

Smith said she fears more letters will be sent in the coming days.

ABC News did not receive an immediate response to a request for comment from the DOE.

-ABC News' Arthur Jones II

Feb 02, 2025, 11:11 PM EST

McConnell slams Trump's tariffs, calls pardons for Jan. 6 rioters a 'mistake'

In an interview that aired on "60 Minutes" on Sunday, former Republican Leader Mitch McConnell was openly critical of recent decisions by President Donald Trump and said he planned to be more outspoken about their differences of opinion now that he was no longer in a leadership role in the Senate.

McConnell sharply criticized the president imposing tariffs, especially on allied countries.

PHOTO: Senate Luncheons
UNITED STATES - MARCH 7: Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., is seen after the senate luncheons in the U.S. Capitol Building on Tuesday, March 7, 2023.(Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)
Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Imag

"It'll drive the cost of everything up. In other words, it'll be paid for by American consumers. I mean why would you want to get in a fight with your allies over this?" McConnell questioned.

McConnell often found himself at odds with Trump during his first term in the White House, he said, but claimed their relationship was all but severed after Jan. 6, 2021.

The former Senate leader reacted to Trump's sweeping pardons for the convicted rioters, saying, "I think pardoning people who have been convicted is a mistake."

-ABC News' Allison Pecorin