A former Homeland Security official from President Donald Trump’s first term, known for penning an anonymous op-ed heavily criticizing the president, is urging independent governmental oversight groups to launch an investigation after Trump directed the department to probe into his government tenure.
Miles Taylor, who served as chief of staff at the Department of Homeland Security, cautioned in a conversation with The Associated Press about the extensive consequences of Trump’s memorandum issued on April 9.
Here’s the latest:
US growth likely to slow to 1.6% this year, hobbled by Trump’s trade wars, OECD says
The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development projected on Tuesday that the U.S. economy, being the largest globally, will decelerate further, reaching just 1.5% in 2026. Under Trump’s policies, the average U.S. tariff rates have surged from approximately 2.5% when he resumed office to 15.4%, the peak since 1938, as per the OECD. These tariffs increase expenses for consumers and American manufacturers dependent on imported raw materials and components.
World economic growth will slow to just 2.9% this year and stay there in 2026, according to the OECD’s forecast. It marks a substantial deceleration from growth of 3.3% global growth last year and 3.4% in 2023.
The world economy has proven remarkably resilient in recent years, continuing to expand steadily — though unspectacularly — in the face of global shocks such as the COVID-19 pandemic and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
But global trade and the economic outlook have been clouded by Trump’s sweeping taxes on imports, the unpredictable way he’s rolled them out and the threat of retaliation from other countries.
▶ Read more about the world economic forecast
Top Trump officials visit prolific Alaska oil field amid push to expand drilling
Trump wants to double the amount of oil coursing through Alaska’s vast pipeline system and build a massive natural gas project as its “big, beautiful twin,” a top administration official said Monday while touring a prolific oil field near the Arctic Ocean.
The remarks by U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright came as he and two other Trump Cabinet members — Interior Secretary Doug Burgum and Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lee Zeldin — visited Prudhoe Bay as part of a multiday trip aimed at highlighting Trump’s push to expand oil and gas drilling, mining and logging in the state that drew criticism from environmentalists.
During the trip, Burgum’s agency announced plans to repeal Biden-era restrictions on future leasing and industrial development in portions of the National Petroleum Reserve-Alaska that are designated as special for their wildlife, subsistence or other values.
▶ Read more about the trip
Man accused of trying to get witness against him deported by writing letters threatening Trump
A Wisconsin man is facing charges accusing him of forging a letter threatening Trump’s life in an effort to get another man who was a potential witness against him in a criminal case deported.
Prosecutors said in a criminal complaint that Demetric D. Scott was behind a letter sent to state and federal officials with the return address and name of Ramón Morales Reyes.
Scott was charged Monday with felony witness intimidation, identity theft and two counts of bail jumping.
Immigration agents arrested Morales Reyes after he dropped his child off at school in Milwaukee. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem announced the arrest, saying he had written a letter threatening to kill Trump and would “self-deport” to Mexico.
But the claim started to unravel as investigators talked to Morales Reyes.
Morales Reyes is listed as a victim in the case involving Scott, who is awaiting trial in Milwaukee County Jail on armed robbery and aggravated battery charges. The trial is scheduled for July.
▶ Read more about the case
Ex-Homeland Security official Taylor fights back against Trump’s ‘unprecedented’ investigation order
A former Homeland Security official during Trump’s first administration who authored an anonymous op-ed sharply critical of the president is calling on independent government watchdogs to investigate after Trump ordered the department to look into his government service.
Miles Taylor, once chief of staff at the Department of Homeland Security, warned in an interview with The Associated Press of the far-reaching implications of Trump’s April 9 memorandum, “Addressing Risks Associated with an Egregious Leaker and Disseminator of Falsehoods,” when it comes to suppressing criticism of the president. That memo accused Taylor of concocting stories to sell his book and directed the secretary of Homeland Security and other government agencies to look into Taylor and strip him of any security clearances.
Taylor sent a letter via email to the inspectors general at the Department of Justice and Homeland Security on Tuesday.
“I didn’t commit any crime, and that’s what’s extraordinary about this. I can’t think of any case where someone knows they’re being investigated but has absolutely no idea what crime they allegedly committed. And it’s because I didn’t,” Taylor said.
▶ Read more about Taylor’s letter
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