International
The White House denies that Elon Musk is the legal manager of the Department of Efficiency
The White House denied before a court that Elon Musk is the legal manager of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), an office that President Donald Trump created for the tycoon to cut public spending of the federal Administration.
In a document filed on Monday with the District of Columbia federal court, White House Administration Director Joshua Fisher detailed that Musk is neither the administrator nor an employee of the DOGE.
According to Fisher, the richest man in the world is actually a White House worker who serves as an advisor to the president and who, therefore, has no direct authority to make government decisions.
The document does not clarify who is the legal guardian of the DOGE.
The White House’s revelation comes in response to the lawsuit filed by several Democratic prosecutors from different states accusing Trump of having delegated to Musk “a practically uncontrolled authority” and without the authorization of Congress.
The argument that Musk is not the legal manager of the DOGE contrasts with the public statements made so far by Trump himself, Musk and the DOGE.
After winning the elections last November, Trump announced the creation of the DOGE to cut bureaucracy and placed businessmen Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy at the head, but the latter disassociated himself from the organization.
Musk was last week in the Oval Office with Trump detailing to the press the actions that the DOGE is carrying out and assuring, in the face of criticism from the opposition, that its management is “transparent.”
To date, DOGE and Musk have led the dismantling of entities such as the International Development Agency (Usaid) or the Consumer Financial Protection Office (CFPB), in charge of monitoring Wall Street and protecting consumers.
The broad power of the businessman within the Administration has generated concern in some departments and a federal judge blocked the DOGE’s access to the Treasury Department’s payment system.
International
El Chapo’s son Joaquín Guzmán López pleads guilty to U.S. drug trafficking charges
Joaquín Guzmán López, one of the sons of notorious Mexican drug lord Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán, pleaded guilty on Monday to drug trafficking charges in a U.S. court, months after his brother Ovidio reached a similar plea agreement, according to local media reports.
The defendant appeared before a federal court in Chicago early Monday afternoon and changed his previous plea in the case, the Chicago Tribune reported. U.S. authorities accuse him of forming, together with his three brothers, the cartel faction known as “Los Chapitos.”
The group is believed to have continued the operations of El Chapo, who has been serving a life sentence in the United States since 2019.
Guzmán López, 39, was arrested after landing in Texas in a small aircraft alongside cartel co-founder Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada.
International
Venezuela authorizes return flights as U.S. continues deportations amid rising tensions
The arrival of U.S. aircraft carrying undocumented Venezuelan migrants continued regularly despite rising tensions between Washington and Caracas over President Donald Trump’s military deployment in the Caribbean.
Trump maintains that the deployment is part of an anti-narcotics operation, while Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro insists the true objective is to remove him from power and seize the nation’s oil resources.
Venezuela’s aviation authority has “received a request from the United States government to resume repatriation flights for Venezuelan migrants from that country to Venezuela,” the Ministry of Transportation said in a statement .
“Under the instructions of President Nicolás Maduro, authorization has been granted for these aircraft to enter our airspace,” it added.
Caracas will permit two Eastern Airlines flights to land on Wednesday and Friday.
Migration remains one of the Trump administration’s flagship issues. On Monday, the U.S. president held a meeting with his National Security Council to discuss the situation in Venezuela, a day after confirming he had spoken with Maduro by phone, without offering further details.
According to the Venezuelan government, roughly 75 deportation flights have been carried out this year, returning at least 13,956 Venezuelans from the United States.
International
20,000 rounds stolen from german army after driver leaves cargo unattended
The German army confirmed the theft of a shipment of ammunition that occurred a week ago while it was being transported by a civilian delivery driver, a military spokesperson told AFP, confirming earlier media reports.
According to Der Spiegel and the regional broadcaster MDR, around 20,000 rounds of ammunition were stolen from an unguarded parking lot near Magdeburg, in eastern Germany, while the driver was asleep in a nearby hotel. No information has been released regarding the identity of the suspects, and the military declined to specify the exact type or amount of ammunition taken.
Authorities have also not indicated how the perpetrators knew the cargo would be left unattended.
“The theft was discovered upon delivery at the barracks,” the German army spokesperson said.
A police spokeswoman confirmed to AFP that an investigation has been opened but refused to provide further details “for tactical reasons.”
Sources close to the German military, cited by Der Spiegel, believe it is unlikely the theft was a coincidence. They suspect the thieves waited for the driver to stop for the night before striking.
Der Spiegel also reported that the Defense Ministry normally requires two drivers for this type of transport to ensure the cargo is constantly monitored. However, in this case only one driver was assigned, meaning the civilian transport company failed to comply with the security protocols.
El Chapo’s son Joaquín Guzmán López pleads guilty to U.S. drug trafficking charges
Venezuela authorizes return flights as U.S. continues deportations amid rising tensions
20,000 rounds stolen from german army after driver leaves cargo unattended
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