Good morning! It’s Tuesday, February 25. In today’s Morning Update:

• Trump is forced to back down on a clearly illegal move 😂

• The most important news right now — and why it’s important 🧐

• Are we about to finance another genocide? 😔

• Stories the algorithm may have kept out of your feed 👀

⏱️ Estimated read time: 5 minutes

L FOR ELON

Trump tells federal workers they can ignore Elon’s email ultimatum

The Trump administration is backing down from an illegal ultimatum given to millions of federal government employees by Elon Musk—but only after half the government rebelled.

On Monday afternoon, Trump’s Office of Personnel Management quietly informed agency leaders that they are not required to enforce Musk’s directive.

BACKGROUND: On Saturday, Elon tweeted and e-mailed every federal government employee demanding to know what they did last week by midnight last night or be fired.

• Multiple legal scholars and unions quickly called the move illegal—there are strict rules about “resignations” and firings that can’t just easily be ignored.

• Several government agencies told workers on their own that they didn’t have to comply—including the State Department, the Department of Defense, and others.

• Two close allies of Trump directly told their staffers they didn’t have to comply—the immensely unqualified Kash Patel at the FBI and Tusli Gabbard at the office that oversees coordination between intelligence agencies.

The ultimatum led to massive confusion… before Trump was forced to back down on Monday.

Elon is now trying to spin the whole thing as just more trolling, saying he wanted to test whether federal employees are “capable of replying to an email.”

We call bullsh*t.

WHY IT MATTERS: Despite what Trump wants us to believe, there ARE still guardrails against him (or Elon) actually becoming a king—and resistance works.

RELATED: A federal judge yesterday blocked Elon from getting Americans’ data at two more agencies.

📰 Most important stories right now

There’s a lot of sh*t out there. Here’s what’s actually important and why.

U.S. votes against UN resolution condemning Russia for Ukraine invasion

Why it matters: Trump continues to rip the United States away from our allies (western democracies) while cozying up to Putin and other authoritarians. The resolution passing over U.S. objection shows that those allies, particularly in Europe, are preparing to go it alone. Full story from Politico.

As costs for consumers rose, healthcare companies gave over $2 trillion back to investors

Why it matters: An outrageous new study released this month proves just how profitable rising healthcare costs are for Wall Street. Over the past 20 years, healthcare companies gave over $2 trillion worth of “profits” back to investors in dividends and buybacks. That’s enough profit to give every single American a check for $7,855. Full story from USA Today.

The right-wing media machine is hitting a wall

Why it matters: Like we said last week, Trump’s approval rating is plummeting, suggesting the far-right’s propaganda machine is hitting a wall. They may be doing a good job convincing conservatives that Trump is doing a good job—but only conservatives. Full story from The Washington Post.

🗳️ Question of the day

With Trump reversing decades of U.S. foreign policy, we want to know: Why do you think he’s doing it? Give us your thoughts in the comments after you vote!

HERE WE GO AGAIN

Palestinians fear Israel will level the West Bank like Gaza

Palestinians and advocates fear that Israel is getting ready to destroy the occupied West Bank the same way it destroyed Gaza—all paid for by Americans.

DRIVING THE NEWS: On Sunday, Israel sent tanks into the territory for the first time in over 20 years.

• It’s part of a “military operation” that Israel launched just days after agreeing to a ceasefire in Gaza last month.

• The operation in the West Bank is aimed at wiping out indigenous Palestinian resistance to Israel taking more and more of their land.

• Over 40,000 people have been displaced from a refugee camp that’s been the center of Israel’s aggression. It’s the biggest displacement in the West Bank since the 1967 war.

Israel’s Defense Minister says the army intends to stay in the camp to prevent the return of residents.

WHY IT MATTERS: American tax dollars have paid for Israel’s ongoing genocide in Gaza, which has killed or injured over 150,000 people and destroyed nearly 70% of all structures there. Advocates say the only way Palestinians will get peace is if the United States stops arming Israel.

👀 Under the Radar

Here are some stories the algorithm may have kept out of your feed.

• Democrats are paralyzed. Thankfully, this guy is not.

• The stunning reason why Trump fired his top generals

• Jane Fonda has a new definition for “woke”—and it’s infuriating conservatives

• 40% of contracts canceled by DOGE are expected to produce no savings

• Corporations are taking insane steps to protect their data (and their CEOs)

• Trump’s real feelings about Elon have leaked, and they’re hilarious

• Crypto giants’ investment in Trump is already paying off big time

• Despite making billions in profit, Starbucks is laying off over 1,000 workers

• Democratic Rep. Jasmine Crockett picks a side in US vs. Canada and Mexico

• And — social media can’t get over J.D. Vance’s tiny pants

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We’ll be back Thursday morning. Questions or comments? Just reply to this e-mail.