Trump's USA

The cuts
40 prosecutors have been fired – concerns about a broad effort

40 prosecutors at the US Justice Department have been fired since Donald Trump entered the White House, writes the Washington Post.

In addition to prosecutors, more than 200 people have been fired from the department and its agencies. Many of the prosecutors who have been dismissed have worked on well-known cases, including the indictment of Jeffrey Epstein and the storming of the Capitol.

The dismissals are abnormal for the department, according to the newspaper. And now employees are worried that a broad political effort is underway that strengthens the president's political interests and weakens the rule of law, writes the Washington Post.

Sources: Musk's space company too powerful to cut

After the fight between Donald Trump and Elon Musk, the Trump administration began reviewing the space company Space X's lucrative contracts with the government with the aim of cleaning up the ranks. But government officials then determined that the contracts with Musk's company were so important to NASA and the Department of Defense that it was not possible, sources told the Wall Street Journal.

It puts the finger on Space X's dominance in rocket and satellite launches - and Elon Musk's power. The government has known about that balance of power and dynamics for years and politicians have long fought to change the matter, the newspaper notes.

Jeffrey Epstein case
Democrats claim: FBI instructed to flag Trump's name in Epstein documents

FBI employees who are reviewing the Epstein investigation have been instructed to flag all documents that mention Donald Trump's name. This is claimed by the top Democrat on the Judiciary Committee, Dick Durbin, who claims to have received the information from a whistleblower.

In separate letters to the US Attorney General and various FBI leaders, Durbin asks why the staff has received that information. NBC News has seen the letters, which were sent on Friday.

“Why were staff asked to flag documents mentioning President Trump? What happened to the documents mentioning President Trump after they were flagged?” he writes in the letters.

Neither the FBI nor the government have commented.

The president’s connections to the notorious sex offender have long been debated. This week, the news gained new momentum after the Wall Street Journal published a letter and a drawing that Trump allegedly sent to Epstein on his 50th birthday. In response, Trump has denied it and sued the newspaper and its owners.