Confusion and chaos loom as hundreds of thousands of federal employees begin their workweek Monday facing a deadline from President Donald Trump ’s cost-cutting chief, Elon Musk, to explain their recent accomplishments or risk losing their jobs. Musk’s unusual demand has faced resistance from several key U.S. agencies led by the president’s loyalists — including the FBI, State Department, Homeland Security and the Pentagon — which instructed their employees over the weekend not to comply. Lawmakers in both parties said Musk’s mandate may be illegal, while unions are threatening to sue.
Here's the latest:. UN rejects US resolution that doesn’t note Russian aggression in Ukraine war. In a win for Ukraine on the third anniversary of Russia’s invasion, the United States on Monday failed to get the U.N. General Assembly to approve its resolution seeking to end the war without mentioning Russian aggression.
The U.S. draft resolution was amended by the assembly, adding language making clear that Russia invaded its smaller neighbor in violation of the U.N. Charter. The vote in the 193-nation world body on the amended U.S. resolution was 93-8 with 73 abstentions, with Ukraine voting “yes,” the U.S. abstaining and Russia voting “no.”.
▶ Read more about the United Nations resolution. Trump says he hopes a proposed deal to recoup billions in military aid to Ukraine will soon be signed. In a post to his Truth Social website, Trump said Monday he explained to visiting French President Emmanuel Macron and other leaders of the Group of Seven advanced democracies that the deal, which would involve the U.S. taking control of a significant portion of Ukraine’s rare earths and mineral assets, was critical to his efforts to end the war.
Those efforts have included direct contact with Russian President Vladimir Putin and other top Russian leaders as well as a United Nations resolution calling for an end to the war. “Everyone expressed their goal of seeing the war end, and I emphasized the importance of the vital ‘Critical Minerals and Rare-Earths Deal’ between the United States and Ukraine, which we hope will be signed very soon!” Trump wrote. He said the agreement would result in a long-term economic partnership between the U.S. and Ukraine and would help “Ukraine’s economy grow as this brutal and savage war comes to an end.”.
Trump’s comments came on the third anniversary of the start of the war. FDA moves to rehire medical device staffers fired only days earlier. Barely a week after mass firings at the Food and Drug Administration, some probationary staffers received unexpected news over the weekend: The government wants them back.
Beginning Friday night, FDA employees overseeing medical devices and other key areas received calls and emails notifying them that their recent terminations had been “rescinded effective immediately,” according to messages viewed by The Associated Press.
Three FDA staffers affected by the decisions spoke with the AP on condition of anonymity because they planned to continue working for the agency and weren’t authorized to discuss its internal procedures. The reversal is the latest example of President Trump and billionaire Elon Musk’s chaotic approach to cost-cutting, which has resulted in several agencies firing, and then scrambling to rehire, employees responsible for nuclear weapons, national parks and other government services.
▶ Read more about the FDA workers. Massachusetts cities sue over Trump threats to cut funds if they don’t cooperate on immigration. The two cities, Chelsea and Somerville, are Boston suburbs that have so-called sanctuary policies limiting cooperation with federal immigration authorities. They argue the administration’s tactics violate the cities’ constitutional rights.
“The President cannot use federal funding as a weapon to force local governments to undermine public safety and their values and participate in his mass deportation efforts,” said Oren Sellstrom, one of the cities’ attorneys. “Today’s lawsuit seeks to protect sanctuary and welcoming cities, so they can continue to make public safety decisions that are in the best interests of their residents.”.
The Trump administration has sued Chicago over its sanctuary policies and lawmakers in at least 20 states have introduced bills targeting sanctuary cities. The lawsuit comes as White House border czar Tom Homan recently called out Boston, which also has a sanctuary policy, for not helping federal officials with deportations.
Federal employees who have been working from home are returning to offices this week. That’s in accordance with President Trump’s return-to-office mandate. Billionaire Elon Musk, who’s leading Trump’s Department of Government Efficiency scouring government agencies for suspected waste, said on his platform X on Monday: “Starting this week, those who still fail to return to office will be placed on administrative leave.”.
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