Nearly everyone agrees that the federal government has become this bloated monster that needs to be cut down to size.

The massive bureaucracy, attacked by some as evil, is absurdly overstaffed and wastes massive amounts of money.

What President Trump is doing in trying to shrink the size of government is popular – even if his billionaire budget-slasher, Elon Musk, is not – and many of the court battles are likely to be resolved in his favor.

Media and Democracy Project (MAD) filed an appeal to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) after Trump-appointed commissioner Brendan Carr revived Biden-era petitions against liberal networks but not its effort to deny Fox Corporation a broadcast license for one of its local TV stations.

He has a lot of competition in the media, but few have as big a stage as 60 Minutes elder Scott Pelley. As he continues to step up his attacks on President Donald Trump and the new administration, Pelley is elbowing aside all others to emerge as Trump’s loudest TV critic.

Our colleague Curtis Houck’s earlier writeup of the new but not improved CBS Evening News suggests that the ongoing turmoil is driven by the newscast’s new format, editorial choices, and anchor delivery. Tonight’s report on efforts to end the war in Ukraine confirms that thesis.

Watch as anchors John Dickerson and Maurice DeBois open the newscast with an introduction to the Ukraine story:

Guest and former George W. Bush administration official John Yoo characterized McConnell’s ruling as “another example of the courts trying to get into the middle of a fight between the president and the Congress.” Yoo described Trump’s actions as those of an “energetic executive,” claiming, “There is nothing wrong with the president saying, ‘I want to freeze spending now that I’ve come into office and see what's going on.’” [Fox News, America Reports, 2/10/25]

The Federal Communications Commission and CBS have published the transcript of the November 60 Minutes interview of former Vice President Kamala Harris that some say was edited to make her look better.

Separately, President Donald Trump has accused 60 Minutes staff of editing Harris' responses and in October filed a $10 billion lawsuit against CBS News. Officials at CBS parent corporation Paramount Global are considering settling the lawsuit, which has caused consternation among CBS News employees, CNN Business reported Friday.

CBS on Wednesday took the unusual step of releasing internal video footage and transcripts of a “60 Minutes” interview conducted with then-Vice President Kamala Harris in October.

The executive producer of "60 Minutes" remains defiant and CBS News' parent company mulls settling a lawsuit waged by President Donald Trump. 

Bill Owens, who has led the long-running program since 2019, took a tough stance against Trump during a Monday staff meeting, according to The New York Times.

"There have been reports in the media about a settlement and/or apology," Owens reportedly said. "The company knows I will not apologize for anything we have done."

The chairman of the Federal Communications Commission has waded into the politicized debate over NPR and PBS, ordering up an investigation that he said could be relevant in lawmakers’ decision about whether to continue funding the public news organizations.

Brendan Carr, the chairman, said in a letter to NPR and PBS on Wednesday that the inquiry would focus on whether the news organizations’ member stations violated government rules by recognizing financial sponsors on the air.

You know the stereotype of the NPR listener: an EV-driving, Wordle-playing, tote bag–carrying coastal elite. It doesn’t precisely describe me, but it’s not far off. I’m Sarah Lawrence–educated, was raised by a lesbian peace activist mother, I drive a Subaru, and Spotify says my listening habits are most similar to people in Berkeley. 

I fit the NPR mold. I’ll cop to that.