Leavitt Press Briefing, Federal Funding Freeze, Republicans Plot Strategy | Jan. 28, 2025

On today’s Top News in 10: Reporters peppered White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt with questions on a range of topics during her first briefing. She promised to reverse former President Joe Biden’s decision to revoke the White House press credentials of 440 reporters. The Daily Signal’s Fred Lucas was among those who lost his credentials in 2023. The White House announced it is freezing federal grants and loans while it undertakes a sweeping review of such spending to ensure it is aligned with the president’s priorities. In fiscal year 2024, he said the government distributed more than $3 million in federal financial assistance. That’s approximately 30% of the $10 trillion it spent. House Republicans are gathered in Florida for a three-day meeting to sort out their strategy for enacting President Trump’s agenda. The Daily Signal’s Elizabeth Mitchell is in Miami for the meeting and interviewed several members of Congress about their plans for budget reconciliation and other upcoming legislative debates. Additional headlines: After dominating the news for weeks last year, Levitt announced the drones flying over New Jersey were authorized to be flown by the Federal Aviation Administration. President Trump has another member of his Cabinet today after the Senate voted 77 to 22 for Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy. Sen. Mike Lee of Utah is suggesting that the government enlist private citizens—or privateers—to help combat Mexican drug cartels. Google Maps will comply with President Trump’s directive to change the name of the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America, and rename Denali to Mount McKinley. Keep Up With The Daily Signal Sign up for our email newsletters: https://www.dailysignal.com/email Subscribe to our other shows: The Tony Kinnett Cast: https://www.dailysignal.com/the-tony-kinnett-cast Problematic Women: https://www.dailysignal.com/problematic-women The Signal Sitdown: https://www.dailysignal.com/the-signal-sitdown Follow The Daily Signal: X: https://x.com/DailySignal Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thedailysignal/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheDailySignalNews/ Truth Social: https://truthsocial.com/@DailySignal YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/DailySignal Rumble: https://rumble.com/c/TheDailySignal Thanks for making The Daily Signal Podcast your trusted source for the day’s top news. Subscribe on your favorite podcast platform and never miss an episode. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices