NEWS - SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 01, 2026 - NEWS
About 240 million people were under cold weather advisories and winter storm warnings Saturday morning. CBS
The Senate passed a deal on a package of spending bills late Friday, sending it to the House, though funding for dozens of government agencies has still lapsed. CBS
VOA VIEW: Dems are acting dumb.
A judge declared that Luigi Mangione will not face the death penalty if convicted on federal charges in the 2024 killing of United HealthCare CEO Brian Thompson. It's a big win for Mangione, though he still faces the possibility of life in prison. CBS
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There were nationwide protests against President Trump's immigration crackdown on Friday. At least five protestors were arrested in Los Angeles after clashing with police. Meanwhile, former CNN journalist Don Lemon was released from jail after allegedly taking part in an anti-ICE protest at a church in Minnesota. CBS
Don Lemon was taken into custody by federal agents in Los Angeles, where he had been covering the Grammy Awards, his attorney said. CBS
Passengers without Real IDs can still fly if they pay a $45 fee, which covers the cost of additional identity verification screening. CBS
The investigative arm of the Department of Homeland Security, known as Homeland Security Investigations, had been leading the investigation into the fatal shooting of Alex Pretti in Minneapolis. CBS
Some American citizens have begun carrying their passports in Minneapolis, fearful that they'll be mistaken for undocumented immigrants and detained amid a surge of federal agents to the city. CBS
VOA VIEW: State officials are causing the problems.
Kevin Warsh, a former Fed governor, has emerged as Donald Trump’s pick to lead the Federal Reserve. Here’s his background, views and why it matters. CNBC
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Big Food has been selling off underperforming brands or even splitting up, as the industry faces weaker demand. CNBC
Southwest Airlines replaced open seating with assigned seats after more than 50 years. CNBC
U.S. Central Command warned Iran it will not tolerate "Any unsafe and unprofessional behavior" near American forces ahead of live-fire naval drills. FOX News
Federal judge denies Minnesota's bid to halt ICE's Operation Metro Surge, ruling state failed to meet legal standard to block immigration enforcement. FOX News
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Melinda Cook was fired as a nurser from VCU Health while Democrats targeted a Virginia military college over DEI concerns and Chicago teachers continued their anti-ICE campaign. FOX News
VOA VIEW: Dems are getting madder.
Judge Andrea Bradley-Baskin and three other Detroit residents were charged for allegedly conspiring to "systematically embezzle funds from wards." FOX News
ICE lodged an arrest detainer against an illegal immigrant from Egypt accused of sexually assaulting a 16-year-old girl while she slept in her bed, according to federal authorities. FOX News
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The LAPD won't enforce California's ban on masked federal immigration agents, citing public safety concerns during ongoing ICE operations in Los Angeles. FOX News
VOA VIEW: As he should - does not have authority.
A Nevada judge released a convicted MS-13 murderer despite Justice Department warnings, sparking public safety concerns and legal controversy. FOX News
Hospice fraud explodes in Los Angeles with providers allegedly scamming $3.5 billion from Medicare through ghost patients and fraudulent sham companies. FOX News
VOA VIEW: they should go to jail.
The federal government will shut down at least through Monday after the Senate on Friday voted to fully fund all but Homeland Security. UPI
The U.S. Department of Justice Civil Rights Division is participating in a multi-department investigation into the shooting death of Alex Pretti. UPI
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The Supreme Court of Panama invalidated the contract of a Hong Kong subsidiary to operate ports on the Panama Canal, ruling it is unconstitutional. UPI
VOA VIEW: As they should.
Venezuela's National Assembly has OK'd easing oil sector regulations, seeking to attract private and foreign investment in the nation's main industry. UPI
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The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has altered the official portrait of former Adm. Rachel Levine, the Biden administration’s transgender federal health official, replacing Levine’s current name with his original birth name. It is the right thing to do.
Levine is a biological male who identifies as a transgender female. The former Biden official previously stated that, for decades, he lived with the distress of gender dysphoria while building a career and raising a family. Once his children were older and more independent, Levine felt he “could finally live authentically.” He eventually began transitioning in his early 50s.
Levine’s portrait, which hangs in a seventh-floor corridor of the Hubert H. Humphrey Building alongside those of previous leaders of the U.S. Public Health Service Commissioned Corps, originally read “Adm. Rachel L. Levine.” However, sometime recently — presumably during the recent government shutdown that furloughed non-essential employees — HHS staff removed the frame’s glass, swapped the printed nameplate for one reading “Richard L. Levine,” the former Biden official’s “deadname,” and resealed it.
HHS changed Richard Levine’s name back to Richard after the Biden admin referred to him as “Rachel.” This is a dude! If the truth hurts, seek help. According to LGBTQ terminology, a deadname is the birth name or former legal name that a transgender, non-binary, or gender-nonconforming person used before they transitioned and adopted a new name. Adrian Shanker, another former Biden administration health official, upheld that the change occurred during the government shutdown this fall.
“During the federal shutdown, the current leadership of the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Health changed Admiral Levine’s photo to remove her current legal name and use a prior name,” Shanker said, describing the change as “small acts of pettiness and bigotry.” NPR first reported the change on December 5th after receiving a photograph from an “anonymous HHS employee” who described the alteration as “disrespectful.”
Levine, a pediatrician, served as HHS Assistant Secretary for Health from March 2021 until the end of the Biden administration. He played a prominent role in the disastrous federal COVID-19 response under Biden and strongly supported access to hormone blockers and sex change operations, describing both as being “medically necessary and life-saving.”
